Chapter 880 Zhoushan Investment Promotion Conference (5)
Although Wu Huanzhi is from Nanzhili, he has traveled a lot in Zhejiang in the past, so he is quite familiar with the geographical situation. He noticed that these cultural and museum investment places happened to run through the entire Zhejiang territory from east to west. The westernmost Quzhou Prefecture is the only state capital in Zhejiang that borders inland Jiangxi. This perfectly opens up the connection from Ningbo to Jiangxi. The entire land channel is expected to be indispensable for the flow of glassware from Quzhou into Jiangxi in the future. Of course, the economic cost of realizing this kind of plan is beyond the reach of ordinary people. Even businessmen of Wu Huanzhi's level can only envy and hate it.
After the bidding for the franchise in Zhejiang ended, Yang Yun on the stage took a few sips of water and announced the start of the bidding in the southern Zhili region. Wu Huanzhi secretly made up his mind. If there was no more than 5,000 taels in the bidding later, he would also compete for it. At worst, he would use all the goods he brought to offset the price. Among the fourteen prefectures and four Zhili prefectures, there may be places that no one cares about. If a blind cat hits a dead mouse, it will be an unexpected windfall.
Nanzhili, referred to as Nanzhi, was one of the two regions in the Ming Dynasty, that is, the region directly under Nanjing. However, after Zhu Di, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, moved the capital to Beijing, South Zhili was no longer an administrative region, but was just a collective name for Nanjing and nearby prefectures and Zhili Prefecture. South Zhili itself has no official offices, no institutions, and no chief executive. Although Nanjing Yingtian Prefecture is the capital of Beijing, it is only on the same level as other state capitals in the South Zhili region and has no jurisdiction. For example, in the Suzhou Prefecture where Wu Huanzhi was located, the affairs of the Household Department were managed by the Sichuan Division, while the affairs of the Criminal Department and the power to supervise the censorship were under the management of the Guizhou Division. The jurisdiction was not concentrated in Yingtian Prefecture. However, when Haihan was planning the investment fair, they still treated the South Zhili area as an administrative region. Although it did not conform to the Ming Dynasty's concept of administrative divisions, the people who came here were all here for money, so No one pays much attention to such details.
Sure enough, as Wu Huanzhi expected, due to geographical and time issues, only a few prefectures near the sea in South Zhili had more people getting the news, and not many businessmen were able to come to Zhoushan Island in time to participate in the investment fair. . Although Wu Huanzhi failed to win the franchise in the competition in several wealthy areas such as Suzhou, Yangzhou, Huai'an Prefecture, etc., he took advantage of the opportunity and grabbed the quota in Guangzhou at the price of 4,500 taels of silver. Although this price is a little painful for Wu Huanzhi, it probably won't be a loss.
In fact, when he first won the franchise, someone in the row behind him tapped him on the shoulder and asked him if he was willing to resell the franchise at a higher price. This shows that he is not the only one who is optimistic about this matter, but maybe other companies came in a hurry this time. Lack of preparation, just not bringing enough money.
By the time the bidding for the glassware franchises in these eighteen places in southern Zhili was completed, it was already noon. Yang Yun asked everyone on the stage if they wanted to eat out or send lunch to the venue and everyone would make do with it. As a result, everyone in the audience unanimously chose the latter, and kept urging Yang Yun to carry out subsequent projects.
Glassware is just one of the nine major items in this fair. It took half a day to complete one-third of the bidding. In the afternoon, there are still two major categories of glass stationery boxes and glass mirrors to fight for. If we don’t hurry up, I'm afraid it will be until midnight. It's a trivial matter to delay a little time here. The key is that the investment meeting is only for three days. Starting from the afternoon, other projects will be launched at another venue at the same time. Some businessmen with strong capital originally intended to compete for more projects, and naturally they did not want to miss the opportunity because of this. They had to finish the things here early so that they could go to other projects immediately.
Wu Huanzhi didn't have so many ideas. His original intention of coming to Zhoushan was just to sell his own silk. Even grabbing the franchise for this glassware was just a spur-of-the-moment move. He was very satisfied if he could get one. As for the afternoon's For the other two types of glass products, he didn't have much interest in continuing to watch the battle. He planned to go out for lunch and then look at other content.
After Wu Huanzhi informed the staff of his intention, someone took him out of the venue and went to a nearby yard to go through the registration procedures for the franchise. At this time, Wu Huanzhi asked the staff if he could use the goods he brought to mortgage the bid he just made.
The staff member smiled and said: "Of course there is no problem with this. Even if you don't have enough money, you can still owe us money first. There is no need for physical guarantee, as long as you can verify your identity."
Wu Huanzhi blurted out: "How much can I borrow?"
The other party responded: "We have a directory here. Merchants on this directory can borrow up to ten thousand taels of silver. If they are not on the directory, they can only borrow up to three thousand taels."
Wu Huanzhi was also a smart man, and he thought that this list was probably the big merchants who had received Haihan's invitation. For these wealthy businessmen who spend a lot of money, borrowing ten thousand taels of silver based on their reputation is not an exaggeration. However, for a stranger like him who was dealing with him for the first time, Haihan dared to borrow three thousand taels without pledging his property. This really surprised Wu Huanzhi, but he soon figured out the secret.
It is indeed true that Haihan borrowed money, but the borrowed money probably cannot be taken out of Zhoushan Island, and it may not even be possible to actually get it from his own hands. There is no other place for foreign merchants to spend money on the island. The money they spend basically goes into the pockets of the Haihan people. The so-called borrowing is probably just a paper IOU instead of cash delivery during settlement. For the Han people, it is just a matter of entering from the left pocket to the right pocket, and the risk has been reduced to a minimum.
As for whether someone will refuse to repay the debt, Wu Huanzhi thinks that the possibility is quite low. With a business reputation like Haihan's that can quickly make hundreds of thousands of dollars with just a sign, if they come forward to claim that so-and-so borrows money, Also, I'm afraid it will be difficult for this person to continue mixing in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang business circles. What's more, the Haihan people are so tyrannical in force. If they really want to use force to collect debts, probably no one can stop them.
Wu Huanzhi still wanted to give it a try and inquired about the loan details. It was exactly as he expected. The borrowed money could only be used to pay for the transaction reached with Haihan. The actual loaned money was not even a copper plate. There will be. However, because Wu Huanzhi did not have enough cash and needed to mortgage the goods, the staff allowed Wu Huanzhi to go to dinner first, and then board the ship at the dock to inspect the goods, calculate the value of the goods, and then sign the franchise agreement. Wu Huanzhi was naturally concerned about this. No objection.
Wu Huanzhi took his entourage to find a nearby restaurant. He originally wanted to order more wine and food to celebrate his success, but he never thought that the waiter said that the wine must be limited to the number of diners during the investment fair, and he did not sell it for money. He wanted to drink more Not at all.
Wu Huanzhi didn't care too much about these details, so he immediately asked the waiter to hurry up and get started. After eating, he could go and see what was going on in the afternoon session if he had time. He wondered if he could think of a way to get another franchise later since he still had a loan limit of three thousand taels available.
When he came to Zhoushan Island, Wu Huanzhi was assimilated by the crazy investment atmosphere here without knowing it. Seeing so many wealthy and powerful businessmen throwing money into it, it was difficult not to have the urge to follow suit. thoughts. He just heard the discussion from the merchants in the front row at the venue, saying that when Fuguang was bidding for regional franchises in the past, merchants who obtained agency qualifications basically earned back the franchise fees within a year. It is said to be a business that is sure to make a profit, so it is no wonder that so many businesses came to participate in this investment fair.
Wu Huanzhi was glad that he came at the right time, otherwise he would have missed such a great business opportunity, but he was also very upset that he did not have the courage to bring more money, otherwise he might be able to grab a few more regional franchises.
Halfway through the meal, a group of Haihan soldiers with loaded weapons suddenly appeared on the street and blocked the door of the store. Wu Huanzhi was more cautious and quickly asked several of his followers not to get up to avoid misunderstanding. The Haihan people have the final say on Zhoushan Island at this time. If they are injured by these Haihan soldiers for no reason, there is no way to deal with it.
However, just because he remained silent did not mean that everything was fine. Those who followed the soldiers into the store and the venue staff who had just checked him in pointed at his table and said, "These are the ones."< br>
Wu Huanzhi's heart was agitated and he thought to himself: I didn't provoke anyone, so how could I get into trouble? Could it be that the fight for the Guangzhou franchise just now offended someone? This doesn't make sense, but for four to five thousand taels of silver, I'm afraid this money isn't enough for the Haihan people to come out and arrest him, right?
"Don't panic, everyone. We were just ordered to ask these customers to go back and cooperate with the investigation. We are not arresting prisoners." The leading officer immediately stood up to calm the uneasiness of everyone in the store. Wu Huanzhi stood up and clasped his fists and said: "This military master, I have never done anything illegal since I landed on the island. Is there any misunderstanding here?"
The officer glanced at Wu Huanzhi and responded calmly: "We didn't say you did anything illegal, we just need you to cooperate with our investigation. Boss Wu, please?"
Wu Huanzhi was about to argue a few words, but the officer lowered his voice and continued: "Boss Wu, we are treating each other with courtesy now. I hope you can cooperate and don't embarrass us!"
Now Wu Huanzhi didn't dare to make another mistake. If the other party turned against him and had him tied up and sent to the Yamen, it would be difficult to clear his reputation even if it was later found to be a misunderstanding. This island is full of people from the business community in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. If the reputation is ruined, it will be difficult in the future. At that moment, Wu Huanzhi and several followers honestly left the store and left with the Haihan soldiers.
Haihan soldiers took them into a courtyard, and then took away several followers, leaving only Wu Huan alone in the empty room. After a while, a middle-aged man came in with a book in his hand, walked to the seat opposite him and sat down.
"Wu Huanzhi, male, from Taicang, Suzhou, 37 years old, mainly engaged in silk trading." The man opposite was immersed in reading a book and said: "I arrived at Dinghai Port, Zhoushan by boat yesterday afternoon and participated in the first meeting this morning. A franchise bidding, what I said is correct?”
Wu Huanyi couldn't figure out the other party's background and intentions for a while, so he didn't dare to speak immediately, so he could only nod his head in agreement.
"The boat you took to Zhoushan was your own boat or a rented boat?"
"It was rented at Ningbo Yongjiang Wharf a few days ago." From the other party's question, Wu Huanzhi faintly noticed something bad.
"Have you known the boss of the ship and the sailors on the ship before? Have you had any experience of cooperation?"
"No, no, I didn't know each other before. The boss of the ship claimed that he just came back from Wenzhou and happened to be out of work, so I rented their ship. As for the sailors on the ship, I don't know any of them." Wu Huanzhi quickly defended himself. , but I was thinking that something happened to the people on the ship at the dock. Before he left, he gave many warnings to them not to cause trouble. Unexpectedly, in less than a day, all the Haihan people were summoned to interrogate him. When it comes time to settle the boat payment, you have to talk carefully.
The man opposite continued: "The question I'm going to ask you next, you should think it over carefully before you answer it. If we find out that what you said is untrue, we probably won't be able to let you leave Zhoushan easily. Those of your entourage are also there. Accept our interrogation elsewhere, don’t try to hide anything, maybe others will spit you out.”
Wu Huanzhi insisted: "I have nothing wrong with you, just ask!"
"Have you had any form of contact with the Zhoushan Boat Gang before this, or have you known any of its members?"
Wu Huanzhi shook his head and said: "My previous business was all handed over to middlemen for resale. Although some goods were given to the Zhoushan Shipping Gang, I had no direct contact with them."
"Really? Then how do you explain that there are people from the Zhoushan Gang on your ship?" The other party looked at Wu Huanzhi with a mocking look on his face and asked.
Wu Huanzhi almost jumped up from his chair. He also knew about the Haihan people's reward in Ningbo for arresting the Zhoushan Boat Gang. I had seen a notice on the Yongjiang Pier that day, in which the reward for the leader Wang Jialin was as high as a thousand taels of silver, and regardless of life or death, many people from the government and the public were looking for this guy. At that time, Wu Huanzhi regarded it as gossip, but he never thought that the Zhoushan Boat Gang would be related to him.
"I don't know the identities of these sailors on the ship. We just rented a boat. It's impossible to go to the government to check their innocence one by one, right?" Wu Huanzhi could only complain to himself. He was thankful that he could rent a boat at that time. There was no time to check whether the crew members were innocent. Moreover, the people on board were old and young, and they did not look like a pirate gang.
"Then after you disembarked at the dock yesterday, did you have any contact with these people on the ship again?" the other party continued to ask.
"No." Wu Huanzhi shook his head without thinking.
(End of chapter)