Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 117: Shops in Dongjiaomin Lane

After returning to the mansion in Qianmen, Zheng Guohui was in a particularly good mood. He did not feel any burden in fooling around in front of Prince Gong Yixin.

The means are not important, the key is to achieve the goal.

Pineapple has been sold in Jiangnan Province for more than three months. Among the small fleets of immigrants returning one after another, copper ingots, fruits and stones are the three major commodities, accounting for more than 80% of all transportation volume.

What remains are some South Seas specialties such as sugar, tobacco, coconut meat, rare shells, spices and cocoa. This is not to say that the Chinese mainland does not have these, but they are specialties from tropical regions that can be sold at high prices.

Some people may say that there is sugarcane in Guangxi, so it is nothing special.

in this era

The key is that land transportation is extremely expensive. After passing through the prefectures, states, and counties, ordinary things can be sold at sky-high prices when they arrive in the capital. It is definitely not cheap.

It is transported all the way from Southeast Asia, transiting through Chongming Island and then directly arriving in Tianjin, which only consumes labor and time, and does not require any fees.

On the contrary, it is much cheaper, which naturally means huge profits.

It is easy to make money in the capital, but the water is deep and you might get yourself into trouble. This is the main reason why Pineapple Fruit has not entered the capital for a long time.

"Good luck, sir. The goods delivered from Tianjin recently have almost filled up the two side courtyards.

After a few busy days, the students and staff have already counted and accounted for everything, and all the relevant items have been prepared.

The storefront in Dongjiaomin Lane has also been bought. It is a two-courtyard house with a quite large courtyard. A few more warehouses have been built and the shop has been renovated. The manager and staff are also in place.

Just wait for the master to give the order, and then we can open the business."

Deputy Chief of Staff Dong Huanzhang reported step by step, handled things in an organized, calm and measured manner. After so much experience, he is much stronger than he was more than a year ago.

The staff are considered guests in the palace, so it is appropriate to call them "Master", which is generally the case in the outside world.

Dong Huanzhang also has another identity. He is Zheng Guohui's elder brother-in-law and his only biological sister with the same father and mother, so they are much closer.

Zheng Guohui was in a good mood at the moment. He took a sip of hot tea and then ordered;
"Now that everything is ready, send some of the goods over and find an auspicious day to open the shop and welcome customers. You can handle the relevant matters yourselves. If anyone causes trouble, report it directly to the Nine Gates Governor's Office.

If anyone from the royal family acts rudely, take my business card and go directly to the clan affairs office to deal with him.

I have already reported this matter to Prince Gong. If there is anything wrong, don't be afraid of making a big fuss. Just find a few troublemakers and teach them a lesson, and they will behave themselves.

By the way, have people spread the story of the pineapple legend in teahouses and taverns. They have sent it to the palace and Prince Gong’s Mansion, so they should also mention this matter.

The men of all ages in the capital who are sensible will surely not cause trouble, and this will save a lot of trouble.”

"I have taken note of everything. Do you have any further instructions, Master?"

"Go and do your work. Report to me if you have anything to say."

"Master, I understand. I will take my leave now." Dong Huanzhang did not break the rules at all. He bowed and retreated, walking out with steady steps.

Zheng Guohui nodded secretly when he saw this. He had indeed undergone great changes after more than a year of experience.

these days

Zheng Guohui sent various southern specialties to Prince Gong's Mansion and the palace, as well as several military ministers, the Ministry of War and the Nine Gates Governor's Office.

With specialties, there must be silver as a tribute. One thousand or two thousand taels of silver is not considered a small amount, and three thousand or five thousand taels of silver is not considered a large amount. Jiangnan specialties naturally have different values, depending on the closeness of the relationship and whether they can be used.
Zheng Guohui personally delivered five carts of Jiangnan specialties to the residence of the Nine Gates Admiral Guaerjia Ronglu, including pineapples, coconut meat, various spices and rare shells, a whole cart of yellow rock sugar, and five thousand silver coins.

This amount of money was second only to the 6 taels of silver and 30 carts of Jiangnan specialties sent to Prince Gong's Mansion.

In the capital

Don't expect to hide any movement from the ears of the Nine-Gate Commander. Guaerjia Ronglu is not only the empress dowager's favorite, but also her informant. He is currently the Nine-Gate Commander and the Minister of the Imperial Household Department, and is also given the title of Prince Taibao, which shows that he is favored by the emperor.

The treasures Zheng Guohui sent to the various palaces would be on the desk of the Nine Gates Governor, Guaerjia Ronglu, within a day. This was no joke. Without this ability, he couldn't guard the Forbidden City.

When Zheng Guohui visited, he was personally received by the Nine Gates Admiral Guaerjia Ronglu. The two chatted in the outer study for more than half an hour and soon became very familiar with each other.

This person praised Zheng Guohui for actually capturing the big grain merchant Wang Jincai. Obviously, this was not groundless, and it might be the opinion of the palace.

Guaerjia Ronglu's words and actions revealed a warm attitude. It was obvious that he knew much more than others. This was his way of showing goodwill in advance.

All signs indicate

Zheng Guohui made the right bet, and what he did made the people in the palace happy, so they naturally paid attention to him.

Nowadays, suppressing bandits is the top priority, and money is really being spent like water.

The British and French powers had to pay compensation for the aftermath, and the palace was in dire need of money, so it was easy for resentment to arise.

Never underestimate a woman's broad mind. Wang Jincai and his entourage were escorted to the capital and immediately thrown into the imperial prison. Such efficiency is a miracle.

All the genuine confessions and confiscated grain were handed over to the imperial court's Censorate.

From then on, I had nothing to do with Zheng Guohui.

Zheng Guohui set up a shop selling pineapples near the Zongrenfu Yamen in Minxiang, Dongjiao, which was very particular.

This place is the location of the "Five Ministries and Six Departments" of the imperial court. There are many government offices, mansions and temples. There are the Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Rites, Ministry of War, Ministry of Works, as well as many imperial government offices such as the Ministry of Clan Affairs, the Honglu Temple, the Imperial Observatory and the Imperial Medical Service. The Zongli Yamen is also located here.

If there is any disturbance here, the whole court will know about it within a day.

Zheng Guohui is using the tiger's skin as a banner, and ordinary royal family members have no eyes to look at him. Only the royal family's playboys of the yellow belt level dare to act wildly here.

As I said, the water in the capital is too deep.

Zheng Guohui is by no means doing anything unnecessary, nor is he timid. He prefers to do everything in advance and consider things more carefully, thus saving a lot of unnecessary trouble.

Before he had finished his cup of tea, the servant came to report.

"Sir, the Second Master of the Li Mansion has sent someone to bring a letter to deliver the message. Please give your instructions, sir."

"Oh, let me see."

Zheng Guohui quickly took the name card, and indeed there was Li Hongzhang's vigorous and powerful handwriting on it. He replied that the gift would be presented early tomorrow morning at an auspicious time, and that everything had been arranged at the Li residence.

If you are free after 3pm, you can come and meet me.

Zheng Guohui's spirits brightened, and he immediately ordered, "Please invite the Third Master and several elders to come over to discuss the marriage."

"As you command, sir."

After a while
Third uncle Zheng Shoudao and several clan elders came over with happy looks on their faces. They all felt honored to be able to marry into the Li family, a wealthy and prominent family in northern Anhui.

This is a family with two high-ranking officials, and only the Zeng brothers can match them in the court.

Now Zeng Guofan was transferred to be the Governor-General of Zhili, and Zeng Guoquan was suppressed by the court. He was forced to resign from the post of Governor of Jiangnan and retire to the mountains. His influence is no longer as strong as it was more than two years ago.

Although Zheng Shoudao and his three uncles were from the countryside, they were very interested in these old stories of the imperial court.

Chatted for a while
The main issues involved were the etiquette of Tongzhou's ceremony, including which items should be placed in front and behind, the number of buglers, the need to set off firecrackers when crossing the bridge, and what to do if someone tried to stop them. All these trivial matters were discussed one by one.

Zheng Guohui handed all these over to his third uncle Zheng Shoudao. Zheng Shoudao was like a chicken with blood injected, pounding his chest and saying bluntly, "My dear nephew, just be the groom quietly. If there is any mistake, your third uncle will take full responsibility."

After saying that, he led the three old men away excitedly.

(End of this chapter)