A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Chapter 225 Flood
Chen Guangliang came to the Nanjing government and visited Song Zaiwen who had just been frightened.

Originally, Song Zaiwen was a senior official of the Nanjing government. It was not an exaggeration to say that he was the commander-in-chief's number one subordinate. Because in that era, the Nanjing government had to raise funds and food whenever it went to war, and the commander-in-chief would beg Song Zaiwen to raise money quickly.

and so.

It is generally more difficult for a businessman like Chen Guangliang to meet Song Zaiwen than to meet the commander-in-chief.

But this time, Song Zaiwen met Chen Guangliang immediately because some things happened too coincidentally.

After Chen Guangliang sat down, he immediately said, "Minister Song, I came here this time to consult you about something."

Song Zaiwen nodded and said, "You are also a busy man. You suddenly came to Nanjing to see me. It must be something important. Please tell me!"

Great attitude.

There is a play!

Chen Guangliang took the opportunity to say, "The Nanjing government is determined to revitalize the national shipping industry and has established five shipping bureaus across the country to oversee inland and coastal routes. I'd like to know if our private enterprises are also included in the scope of support."

Song Zaiwen said decisively: "Of course."

Although the fiscal policy of the Nanjing government is to extend the influence of officials and businessmen into private enterprises, this cannot be brought to the table.

To be honest, Song Zaiwen dreams of absorbing the three southern banks and the four northern banks, or at least making them "state-private enterprises", that is, acquiring shares in them.

Of course it’s not robbery!

Chen Guangliang nodded and said, "Okay, that puts my mind at ease. With the Canadian National Railway's asset auction, I've entrusted Warren & Co. to purchase four 4000-5000-ton steamships, all ten years old and nearly new. These ships will operate two fixed routes (mixed cargo and passenger, two shifts) from Shanghai to Qingdao and Tianjin, and from Shanghai to Xiamen, Shantou, Guangdong, and Hong Kong. These two routes have long been controlled by Jardine Matheson and Swire, and I hope to gain some respect for us Chinese."

Song Ziwen was somewhat surprised by Chen Guangliang's wealth. He had bought four second-hand ships of 4 to 4000 tons in one go, something even the Nanjing government couldn't afford. The Nanjing government's annual revenue was 5000 to 4 million yuan, but this was not enough to spend, so they had to issue government bonds to advance revenue.

However, the China Merchants Group is currently in a critical condition. Not to mention investing money, even if it wants to survive, it will probably have to borrow heavily.

"Okay, I've approved these two routes for your global shipping company. I'll have Secretary Tang take you to the Ministry of Transport later to get the official approval documents." Song Zaiwen said readily.

The first is that China Merchants Group is now unable to take care of itself, so it might as well give Chen Guangliang a chance.

The second is that Chen Guangliang came now, perhaps to seek credit.

Chen Guangliang said happily: "Thank you, Minister Song"

These two routes cannot be regarded as concessions. It is not necessary to have good relations with the government. On the contrary, government relations are very important. Secondly, if we want to compete with Swire Jardine Matheson, we must obtain the support of the government.

Just as Chen Guangliang was leaving, Song Ziwen suddenly said, "Mr. Chen, I was assassinated this time thanks to that Oriental Daily reporter's warning!"

Chen Guangliang was surprised and said, "No way! I haven't heard of this. But this is working for the country, and every citizen should do it. Minister Song, may I ask what the reporter's name is? I'll ask the company to give him a raise and promotion later."

Song Zaiwen looked again and again, then said: "Wang Chunhua"

"He's the head of entertainment news at our newspaper. He loves to stalk and gather celebrity gossip. We have an internal nickname for him: paparazzi. He's like a dog, with a keen nose, digging up firsthand celebrity gossip everywhere."

Upon hearing this, Song Zaiwen burst into laughter and said, "People say that all the reporters at Oriental Daily are well-informed. It seems they're right."

Seeing that Chen Guangliang didn't reveal anything, Song Zaiwen had no choice but to give up, because he was just a little bit strange.

"Then I'll take my leave first."

"slow walk"

With Song Zaiwen's approval, the two routes of Global Shipping were quickly approved, and the next step was to compete with foreign merchants.

As for why Chen Guangliang came to him at this time, it was naturally to give Song Zaiwen a favor, or to seek credit.

But Chen Guangliang would not reveal the mastermind of the "Axe Gang" Wang Yajiao, because this man could also kill Japanese devils; nor could he reveal that it was someone from Guangdong Province who was paying the killer, because Chen Guangliang still needed to do business in Guangdong Province.

When Chen Guangliang was about to leave, Tang Yulu took the time to come and see him off. I wonder what his intention was!
In the morning, Chen Guangliang was sitting in the living room on the third floor, reading the Oriental Daily.

"The Yangtze and Huaihe River basins experienced torrential rain for 7 days, from July 18 to 28, both near and far from the river. For example, Anqing in Anhui province was hit by heavy rain for several days, and Tongling was experiencing torrential downpours for more than ten days and nights."

The flood has already formed and the great disaster is coming again.

Although Chen Guangliang is used to being a spectator, after all, he knows that this is history and he can't change anything. But seeing such news, he still feels a little pessimistic.

Just when he was feeling pessimistic, a pair of delicate hands covered his eyes from behind, and then Yan Renmei said in a delicate voice, "Guess who I am?"

childish!

"Let me guess, isn't she the school beauty from Zhongxi Girls' High School?"

Yan Renmei immediately untied her hands and walked in front of Chen Guangliang. She lifted her skirt slightly and said, "How is it? Is she as pretty as the school belle of Zhongxi Girls' High School you mentioned?"

Yan Renmei was wearing a carefully tailored floral dress, which was very modern and fashionable. She had an LV bag slung over one shoulder and a faint scent of Chanel perfume on her body.

This was the wife he wanted to see, stylish, modern, and in tune with his soul.

These were also selected by Chen Guangliang who personally accompanied Yan Renmei to Wing On Department Store.

"Perfect"

When Yan Renmei heard this, she was immediately satisfied. Naturally, she would not pursue the question of "the school beauty of Zhongxi Girls' School" and sat happily next to Chen Guangliang.

"What were you looking at so intently just now?"

"It's nothing, just some news. Your mission now is to accompany me and study. Don't worry about anything outside. Just be happy. I will take care of everything."

Yan Renmei immediately tapped Chen Guangliang's lips and said, "Well, let's go down!"

She was tormented by Chen Guangliang at night, so naturally she needed to recover her energy. She also knew that Chen Guangliang would get up early, but would wait for her on the third floor to go down together.

"Okay, time to have breakfast and replenish our energy!"

Yan Renmei shyly held Chen Guangliang's arm. She knew it was her man's teasing, but she really enjoyed this kind of conversation. It was free and unrestrained, just what she wanted. "Brother, sister-in-law..."

"Yeah, let's eat together."

There are now four people at the dining table, which finally adds a bit of popularity.

Early July.

The Shanghai Chamber of Commerce organized a large dinner at the Shangri-La Hotel.

Those who attended the dinner included Shanghai celebrities (prominent figures), various trade associations (similar to industry associations), local Shanghai hometown associations, and various charitable groups.

Unlike previous gatherings, the purpose of the bigwigs gathering together this time was not to discuss business and economy, but to listen to disaster reports from various provinces and discuss disaster relief issues - from June to August this year, China suffered a rare major flood.

In view of the urgency of the disaster, people from all walks of life agreed on the spot to establish the Shanghai Emergency Relief Association for Floods in Various Provinces, and jointly elected Xu Shiying (former Prime Minister) as president, Wang Yiting (former chairman of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce and philanthropist) as vice president, and Du Yuesheng, Wang Xiaolai, Yu Qiaqing, Chen Guangliang, Shi Liangcai, Zhang Xiaolin and 11 others as standing committee members, responsible for soliciting funds and supplies to provide relief to the victims.

At the party, Du Yuesheng took the lead in donating 20 yuan, and the others naturally followed suit.

However, a wealthy man like Yu Qiaqing only donated 10 yuan, so Chen Guangliang also donated 10 yuan. Like Adege, both of them were businessmen and could not steal Du Yuesheng's limelight.

Moreover, this disaster relief will last for a long time, possibly up to half a year, and various fundraising activities will appear one after another, so there will be plenty of opportunities to donate.

Not only that, since Chen Guangliang serves as a member of the disaster relief committee, he will also need to raise funds from the society.

People like Du Yuesheng could raise funds on the stage and perform on it himself, and his disciples would naturally come to support him.

Chen Guangliang and Shi Liangcai also had a way, which was to use newspapers to raise funds, which was also one of the reasons why they were elected.

In his previous life, Du Yuesheng donated and raised 260 yuan out of the total 52 million yuan raised by the "Shanghai Emergency Flood Relief Association of Various Provinces", accounting for about 20%. For this reason, he was later commended by the Nanjing government.

To be honest, Chen Guangliang was willing to personally spend 50 yuan, because as long as the pound depreciated, he could make a profit of 200 million yuan in foreign exchange alone, and a mere yuan was nothing.

But he couldn't let this kind of publicity out, otherwise someone would target him, and he might even offend Du Yuesheng.

Many wealthy businessmen were willing to donate money for this flood, but they did so secretly. The biggest reason was that they were worried about being targeted by gangsters, and the public security in Shanghai was not good.

Life must go on and business must continue.

Global Shipping officially launched two new routes in mid-August, joining the competition with Jardine Matheson and Swire, and advertised the launch in newspapers.

In the newspaper advertisement, Global Shipping addressed various issues, with the following key points:
First, the two fixed routes from Shanghai to Qingdao and Tianjin, and from Shanghai to Xiamen, Shantou, Guangdong and Hong Kong have long been operated by foreign shipping companies. Now that the government has decided to revitalize the national shipping industry, Global Shipping has seized the opportunity to join the competition.

Second, Global Shipping has deployed four 4-ton "nearly new ships" on two routes, which are fast and have a good environment. It also employs foreigners as senior seafarers, and their navigation skills are guaranteed.

The news shocked everyone.

Sanbei Shipping Company.

Yu Qiaqing exclaimed in astonishment, "This guy quietly managed to acquire four 5000-ton, ten-year-old ships. That would cost at least 10 million taels of silver. Adding that 150-ton ship, that's a total of 6000 tons of cargo capacity!"

He struggled for many years to build his current shipping empire, which consists of more than 6 ships with a total carrying capacity of approximately tons.

But Yu Qiaqing's fleet consisted mostly of ships in their twenties or thirties. Some foreigners even wanted to scrap their ships and specifically refused to sell them to Chinese, but Yu Qiaqing would buy them from shipbreaking yards, repair them, and continue operating them.

His eldest son, Yu Shunen, also the heir to the shipping empire, said at this time: "I heard that he has sold the 6000-ton ship to Chen Shuntong. Not only did he use it for half a year, but he also made 4 yuan."

Yu Qiaqing said in frustration, "These two routes are great. Chen Guangliang is competing from a national perspective, and I'm afraid he also has the support of the Nanjing government. It's a pity that I can't provide four ships right now, otherwise I would have competed!"

Then he said with emotion: "Chen Guangliang is a big businessman with many ideas. In the future, the shipping industry will have another big shipowner!"

However, Yu Shunen disagreed, saying, "Shipping is not something you can master overnight. These two shipping lines are controlled by giants like Swire and Jardine Matheson, so it's difficult for Chinese companies to compete!"

After chatting for a while, the father and son were just amazed and pessimistic, but did not say anything about suppressing it.

After all, Chen Guangliang is now competing with foreigners. If Chinese people dare to make trouble, they will probably be criticized by everyone.

In order to mobilize more forces for disaster relief, the Nanjing government set up a temporary and fully responsible organization in Shanghai on August 1931, 8 - the Flood Relief Committee, which took over the work of the Relief Committee and implemented flood relief in a specific manner.

The Disaster Relief Association has a Standing Committee to handle all affairs of the Association. The Disaster Relief Association has an investigation team, a financial team, an accounting audit team, a health and epidemic prevention team, a transportation team, a disaster area working group, and a liaison team. Each group has a special committee composed of Chinese and foreign people.

The leader of the transportation group was Yu Qiaqing, and Chen Guangliang was also elected as a member of the transportation group.

Chen Guangliang did not want to be an official, but he was happy to take this position. After all, it was for charity and social prestige.

But he won't show off and will just follow the arrangements.

Historically, the truly effective national-level decisions for this round of disaster relief were:
45. Borrow tons of flour and wheat from the United States;
Second, the Northeast has a large amount of grain in stock, which can be freely transported by the people, exempted from various port taxes, and given priority in railway transportation of grain from the Northeast;

8000. Issue bonds worth 1000 million (initially set at 3000 million and million).

But in the end, only the first one really worked.

Because of the second and third items, there was constant wrangling and they were not passed until September 9, and the next day the "G Hardship Day" occurred.

Why is there so much fuss about the second one?

Because the grain in Northeast China was also a source of wealth for the people, it couldn't be seized directly. It had to be purchased by the government or prepaid by the local government. Of course, Zhang Xueliang initially provided 30,000 dan of grain. Secondly, much of the Northeast's surplus grain consisted of millet and soybeans (which, due to the global economic depression, could not be exported). People in the Jianghuai region were accustomed to eating flour and rice, not millet and soybeans (which were primarily in surplus in the Northeast). Eating a miscellaneous grain at this time could easily lead to disease. Finally, the price of rice in Northeast China was higher than that of flour shipped from the United States to Shanghai. With so many victims, disaster relief also needed to be considered cost-effective, after all, the money was being wasted. While wheat was cheaper in China than in the United States, flour was more expensive than American flour shipped to Shanghai, demonstrating the lack of advanced Chinese processing industry.

Why is there so much wrangling about the third point?

Naturally, it started at 1000 million, then 3000 million, and finally 8000 million. Song Tsai-wen opposed the issuance of these bonds because the interest rate was a whopping 8%, while borrowing flour and wheat from the United States (at current prices) only cost 4%. Bonds needed to be repaid, and while there were often showdowns, his primary purpose was persuasion.

So the decision was not made until September 9th, but the Japanese were nothing and occupied the Northeast the next day.

Borrowing wheat and flour from the United States, on the other hand, offered not only lower interest rates but also a significant advantage, as silver prices were high when the principal was repaid between 1934 and 1936. Of course, the most important thing was that the first batch arrived in Shanghai at the end of October.

(End of this chapter)