1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 996
In terms of professionalism, there is no one better than Schneider in terms of business and trade. Even the Panyu New City project that Luo Shengdong inquired about, Schneider must be one of the leaders involved in the planning.If you want to find a professional to give Luo Shengdong some advice, then Schneider is undoubtedly the best choice. Even if you only reveal a little inside information, it will be a great business opportunity for outsiders.Luo Shengdong also immediately figured out the key point, and immediately thanked Ning Qi.

Not long after, Schneider really came, and Luo Shengdong quickly stood up to greet him.Schneider smiled and said: "Zongbing Luo is a rare visitor, long time no see! Are you talking about business?"

"It's both a business matter and a private matter." Ning Qi greeted Schneider to take a seat, and then briefly recounted what Luo Shengdong said just now.

After listening, Schneider said to Luo Shengdong: "Master Luo, you may have misunderstood Director Ma's statement. The Panyu New City we are going to build is not a city like Guangzhou, but a trading-oriented city. To put it simply, the area is to expand the business scale of these commercial institutions that existed in Panyu County, so as to make the business functions more perfect. Of course, after this place is well established, there will definitely be many business opportunities.”

Luo Shengdong answered eagerly: "I also ask Mr. Shi to show me the way!"

Schneider said: "With all due respect, in the existing commercial and trade industries in Guangdong and Guangxi, we basically have fixed partners, just like Mr. Luo acting as an agent for our salt business. If Mr. Luo wants to cross-bank and try other businesses, This is no problem. We are old friends, and we can provide you with relevant qualifications and technical support, but we can only treat them equally in terms of policy, otherwise it will be very unfair to other partners.”

Luo Shengdong said: "I naturally understand the principles that President Shi said. In fact, I don't mean to make a lot of money from it, but this private salt sale is not a long-term solution after all. Even if it is for the sake of future generations, I have to think about it." Think about how to change careers in the future.”

Schneider said with a smile: "I didn't expect Mr. Luo to think in the long term!"

Luo Shengdong said: "Boss Shi was joking, I just don't understand the future development direction, so I came here to ask the chiefs for advice."

Although Luo Shengdong is a rough person, after being in contact with Haihan for so many years, he can still get advice from these time travelers from time to time, and his vision and knowledge have gradually improved. The level of general local officials or gentry.As for the prospect of the salt smuggling business, he not only considered it long ago, but also tried his best to inquire about it from Anxi and others. Generally speaking, the prospect is not promising.

The purpose of Haihan's private salt business with Daming is to open trade channels and gradually control the supply of strategic materials such as salt in Guangdong and Guangxi. But when these areas were gradually brought under the rule of Haihan, the supply and sale of salt would be taken back by the government.In the early days, Luo Shengdong made his fortune by smuggling smuggled salt from Shengli Port to Fucheng and Danzhou City in Qiongbei. After Haihan took Qiongbei, the salt markets in these areas were taken over by the public.Now there is no such thing as private salt on Hainan Island, and the salt industry department under the Haihan Ministry of Industry controls the market, and Luo Shengdong can only transfer the scope of activities to the mainland.

But even if Haihan won't attack Guangdong and Guangxi in a short period of time, Luo Shengdong will not be optimistic that his private salt business can continue so smoothly.With the gradual standardization of various departments in Haihan, the openings for private salt trade are also slowly tightening. Although this trend is not obvious, Luo Shengdong, as a practitioner, can clearly feel it.

In the past, when Luo Shengdong bought salt from the Salt Industry Department, he only needed to report the quantity. As for the whereabouts, Haihan would not ask too much. Sell ​​it to get the money back and fill the hole.But now, if you want to buy salt from the Salt Industry Department, you have to make a sales plan first. Where and how much you plan to sell, you have to come up with a clear plan before you can get Anxi's approval.Then go to the salt field with the approval document to get the needed salt, and the payment for the transaction must be settled before loading and leaving.Regions like Panyu and Hong Kong that have already fallen under the control of Haihan will no longer be in the sales area that Luo Shengdong is in charge of.

After Luo Shengdong realized this trend, he began to think about how to deal with it.It is obviously impossible to change Haihan's salt sales policy on his own, and it is impossible to use money to bribe the Haihan officials who are in charge of this matter. Luo Shengdong did not think too much about these unrealistic methods. Soon the idea will be transferred to open up new business.Haihan has so many businesses, and it is not only the business of smuggling illegal salt that can make a lot of money.

However, as Schneider said, the pits that Haihan dug now are basically occupied by people, ranging from sailing boats to small matches. Haihan's products in various industries enter Daming's sales channels, and almost all of them have dedicated sales channels. Agents and resellers are responsible.Luo Shengdong now wants to switch to other industries, unless his sales market is an unfamiliar area that Haihan Commercial Network has not touched, otherwise it will easily compete with the existing sellers.Without the special care provided by Haihan, it would be difficult for this kind of newcomer to gain any advantage in the competition.

After thinking for a while, Schneider said again: "Actually, there are ways to get rich. It depends on whether you want to make big money or stable money."

When Luo Shengdong heard that there was something interesting, he quickly responded: "I would like to hear more about it, and I would like to ask Mr. Shi to explain it clearly."

Schneider said: "If you want to make a lot of money, you have to go farther and do business outside Haihan's control. Going north or going south is a good choice. If you want to make stable money, then deposit all your money with us In the bank, just eat the interest steadily to get by."

Luo Shengdong cried bitterly: "I was able to do this private salt business at the beginning, because I had an official position in the Ming Dynasty. But after leaving Guangdong and Guangxi, my official position as the commander-in-chief of the government is no good, and it is also good for business. It doesn't help much. The maritime merchants in Fujian, Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions are more or less related to people in the officialdom, and the official positions in Qiongzhou are useless. The south is the land of other countries, let alone. As for the preservation Qian Shengli, if there are only a few family members, that would be enough, but now there are hundreds of people under his subordinates to support, and they must be given jobs to make ends meet."

Luo Shengdong's understanding of the status quo is still very clear, and he didn't get overwhelmed because he made a lot of money in the past few years.He knew very well what the capital of his fortune was. Outside of this area, few people actually knew who Luo Shengdong was.There are indeed many business opportunities in the unfamiliar areas outside Haihan's control area, but they are only suitable for daring adventurers to explore. There is really no need for people like him who have a certain wealth to take such risks.

Schneider said: "The south is not without places to go. There are several ports operated by us on the coast of Annan. Further south, there are Ambuna Island, which is planning to engage in tourism, and Belitung Island, which is planning to mine mines. There is also a port in Malacca. Xingdao at the eastern end of the strait, these places will be key development areas in the next few years, and there are many infrastructure projects that can be invested. It’s hard to say how much you can make, but you definitely won’t lose money. Go back and study the map first. , Find the location of these places, if you have any ideas, go back to the Ministry of Commerce to find Ruan Jinggui, and let him arrange it for you."

Ruan Jinggui was a leading party who defected from the South Vietnam regime, and his brother Ruan Jingwen worked in the police department. Luo Shengdong knew both of them.When Schneider said this, Luo Shengdong naturally understood, got up quickly to thank him, took his leave and left.

"Although Luo Shengdong is a rough man, he still has a good brain." Schneider praised with difficulty: "He can understand the situation, and he is quite measured in doing things. He actually knows how to show loyalty by beating around the bush."

Ning Qi asked in puzzlement, "What kind of loyalty do you show?"

"Luo Shengdong has already seen that we will gradually withdraw the monopoly rights of the salt industry, and took this opportunity to specifically mention that he is going to change his career on his own initiative, which means that he will obey our arrangements and will not engage in confrontation below. "Schneider smiled and analyzed Ning Qi: "He is rich and powerful now, and he can't do any business. Isn't it just to show his loyalty? It's best for us to arrange things for him. Even if there is no arrangement, then It’s also a sense of presence, not a loss.”

Ning Qi wondered, "Luo Shengdong is so thoughtful?"

"It's not too thoughtful. After all, I have been with us for so many years, and I understand our habits to some extent. It can be regarded as a targeted preventive measure. After all, he is a person who has been in the officialdom, and he is quite meticulous in his work." Schneider's perception of Luo Shengdong was not affected by this. In fact, he quite appreciated Luo Shengdong's knowledge and interest. Among the Ming officials who cooperated with Haihan, not all of them could be as clear as Luo Shengdong. of.

Many officials who took advantage of Haihan's help to get promoted and made a fortune became more obsessed with power and money after they became popular. In the past few years, after taking refuge in Haihan, he was secretly dealt with by Haihan because of corruption and perverting the law. Officials also already have double digits.After all, greed is not enough to swallow an elephant, human greed is difficult to control, and there are only a few people who can know how to advance and retreat like Luo Shengdong.If another person were in charge of Haihan Salt's agency rights in the Guangdong and Guangxi regions of the mainland, and handled such a large amount every year, it would be difficult to calmly return such a lucrative project to Haihan's competent department.

After listening to Schneider's analysis, Ning Qi realized that there were some deep things behind Luo Shengdong's so-called "asking for advice", so he could only shake his head and sigh: "It's because you guys have many routines in business. I really didn’t expect it to be so deep. Forget it, I’m not in charge of business matters. Your business department is in charge. Let’s get back to business first. The preparations for the ceremony are basically in place, and almost all the guests have arrived. , The construction of the ceremony venue will be completed tomorrow, how is your work there?"

Schneider said: "There is still a little problem I need to communicate with you. The guests invited by the Ministry of Commerce originally asked the guests from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to arrange to sit together, but after discussing with Mr. Tao yesterday, I think it is better to arrange them separately After all, this is the founding ceremony, not the previous business promotion meeting, and the political significance should be more prominent. So Mr. Tao asked me to discuss with you to see how to make it better."

In the various large-scale celebrations and international events held by Haihan in the past few years, including the anniversary celebrations, a considerable part of the guests invited by the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs actually overlapped with each other, and most of the foreign politicians who attended these events were also They all came with the mission of negotiating trade with Haihan, and among the invited foreign businessmen, many of them also came with the political intentions of their backers.The boundaries between political and economic and trade activities are not clear, and officials and businessmen from various countries sit at the same table, which is also a common phenomenon during these activities.

But this ceremony is of great political significance. If it is arranged like the usual celebrations, it seems that it will be difficult to highlight Haihan's political considerations.Therefore, Tao Donglai suggested to adjust the seating arrangement of the original venue and banquet, and rank the dignitaries sent by various countries as the first class of VIPs, while the businessmen, scholars, and social figures should be listed as the second class, and the seating positions should be separated. arrange.Although this adjustment is very subtle and there is no need to make major changes to the existing venue, out of caution, Schneider made a special trip to discuss with Ning Qi, who was in charge of the ceremony reception.

Ning Qi immediately asked the secretary to find out the guest list, and while checking it, discussed with Schneider about the identification of the guests.Regarding the largest celebration in Haihan's history, the foreign affairs department has delivered invitations to the invitees one after another since three months ago.More than 3000 guests were invited this time, from more than ten countries. If all of them attended, counting the family members, attendants, guards, and crew they brought with them, there would be at least [-] to [-] people.Countries with close ties to Haihan, such as Annan and Portugal, will be accompanied by a large number of businessmen in addition to the invited dignitaries, so that they can participate in the next annual routine trade fair immediately after the celebration.

The foreign affairs department's initial estimate was that the number of foreign visitors to be received during the celebration might exceed [-], but judging from the current situation, this estimate is still conservative.Around March [-]th, the number of foreigners who arrived in Sanya this month registered by the port authority exceeded [-].As the conference draws near, the number of foreigners arriving in Sanya after March [-] to participate in the celebration is still rising, and it is expected to exceed [-] before April [-]. This is not good for Haihan's reception and security work. small test.

(End of this chapter)