1928: The rise of giant merchants

No. 31 Xiafei Road.

Lin Ruxian was humming a song and dressing up in front of the mirror, feeling very good.

Tonight, the French Consul General Verdy and his secretary and translator, Chinese woman Fan Juli, will officially hold a wedding banquet at the French General Club on Murring Road.

Because this was the first marriage between a high-ranking foreign official and a Chinese woman, in order to avoid unnecessary public controversy, Fan Erdi ordered a ban on all newspapers and magazines in Shanghai reporting on the matter, and only sent wedding invitations to those with relatively good connections in the upper class circles. , inviting them to the club for the wedding banquet.

Zhang Dingyao and others were happy to do favors to Verdi, so they cooperated with him to reduce the influence of the matter. Therefore, only a few tycoon-level figures knew about the wedding banquet.

Verdi does not like Chinese people. There are very few Chinese tycoons invited this time, let alone women.

Lin Ruxian's mood became even higher when she thought that she could not only attend such a high-end wedding ceremony, but also be Ye Luo's female companion.

She looked at herself in the mirror.

She has a delicate and fair face with oval seeds, long black hair tied behind her head, slender red phoenix eyes, curved eyebrows, a pretty nose, and red bean paste lips. Even though she is twenty-eight years old, she Her appearance is still one of the best in Shanghai, not inferior to popular stars such as Hu Die and Ruan Lingyu.

In addition, there is a pair of round and full legs, as well as enviable straight and slender legs. Just placing them on the table so lightly will charm many men.

She looked back at the clock on the wall, guessing that the time was almost up, and was about to get up when she heard the bedroom door click, and Ye Luo opened the door and came in.

"Sister-in-law, how are you getting ready?" Ye Luo saw her seductive legs as soon as he entered the door. He smiled softly and sat down on the bed. Then he saw the spiritual tablet next to the dressing table and stood up again in the cabinet. I took two sticks of incense.

Ye Luo lit the incense with a lighter, held it in the palm of his hand, and bowed three times to the spiritual tablet: "How is your French study?"

"It's so-so. In such a short time, you want me to go to heaven?" Lin Ruxian rolled her eyes at him, retracted her legs angrily, stuffed them into her high heels, stood up and took two sticks of incense, "Fortunately, Juli doesn't dislike me. Frey, teach me over and over again, and I guess by the end of the year, I will be able to barely converse with French people. If you offer Brother You another drink, I don’t know when the next time you come will be."

"I will come over at any time if you miss me." Ye Luo put the incense in place, picked up the small jug on the side and poured a small cup into the wine glass, muttering something in his mouth, "Brother Ruishan, long time no see, your grudge I'll report it to you right away, just wait."

"What did you say?!" Lin Ruxian just lit up a Fairy brand cigarette, and was so frightened by his words that she almost threw it away, "Revenge? Have you found the murderer?"

"Do you still remember that time you told me about Brother Ruishan being poisoned to death?" Ye Luo pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed, the two of them were close to each other, biting their ears and said, "There were only two suspects at the beginning. Dial, one is the boss Huang Chujiu of the Sino-French Pharmacy, and the other is Brother Ruishan’s wife and concubines."

"Well, what next?" Lin Ruxian leaned against him, enjoying this rare moment of peace.

"After that, I sent people to investigate Wang Guozhen and those concubines. I have to say that the three old bastards of Yongxing Company were really clean. None of the people who could be investigated by me had any problems, and those who had problems Those few are all dead." Ye Luo admired Zhang Wanlin quite a lot in these matters. He did bad things without leakage, and it was difficult to find out the reasons. "But things are not without a turn. I have spent so much manpower and material resources, and I can almost determine the poison. It was done by the three tycoons of Yongxing Company, and the concubine who cooked the medicine was an accomplice, and they asked Wang Guozhen's son Xiaojun to bring you the medicine, and you will complete the final kill."

"The truth is probably like this, but so what? Look at me now, when the word Lin Ruxian is mentioned in the French Concession, it is synonymous with killing one's husband and seizing property, and being vicious. Even the Ye's Film Company that you handed over to me is... It's hard for me, Ah Ruan and Hu Die are scolded after me." Lin Ruxian looked sad, "You know, the shadow of the famous tree, I am very grateful that you are willing to continue to protect me, and I will accompany you every time. If you attend such a banquet, I’m worried that my reputation will drag you down.”

"We can't ask them to plead guilty without evidence. Even if we have irrefutable evidence, it's hard to say whether the Public Security Bureau and the Patrol Office are willing to open a case to investigate the three of them."

The suffocation in Lin Ruxian's chest was really uncomfortable, but there was nothing she could do about it.

"Since they did it, it doesn't matter whether there is evidence or not." Ye Luo hugged her slim waist and whispered, "Today I am not talking about this matter out of thin air, but I have a way to deal with them. .”

Ye Luo briefly told her that Zhang Dingyao had a chronic disease.

Lin Ruxian was confused and didn't understand what he meant.

Ye Luo also talked about how the Jingwu hero Huo Yuanjia was poisoned by Japanese invaders a few years ago and was beaten to death by Akutagawa Ryuichi in the ring because of chronic lung disease.

This is an eternal pain in the hearts of the Chinese people.

Although Chen Zhen later returned to China and beat Ryuichi Akutagawa violently, and a forensic doctor came forward to tell the truth, Huo Daxia was damaged by the chronic poison of the Japanese invaders and died in the ring.

But after the incident, the sick man of East Asia brand has been stuck on the heads of the Chinese people and cannot be removed.

"These things, coupled with the title of the Sick Man of East Asia, have made high-level officials extremely concerned about lung diseases, especially chronic diseases. Zhang Dingyao has always been in good health and was fine in the first half of the year. Now he suddenly has a cough and is suspected of being ill. If he is diagnosed with lung disease Chronic disease, if we release the real cause of Brother Ruishan’s death at the right time, what do you think will happen?”

Ye Luo smiled coldly. He had been hiding this move for a long time, just waiting to explode at this moment, leaving the three Yongxing tycoons no time to react.

"Brother Ruishan was poisoned to death. His status was extremely high in the original business world. There are countless people who want him dead, but there are only a few people who can profit from it. You are one, and the three tycoons are one . If someone comes forward to identify them at this time, it will be like yellow mud falling out of the crotch, it is either shit or shit."

Lin Ruxian opened her eyes wide and finally understood what he meant.

"This period happens to be a critical point when the National Government is reorganized and enters the period of tutelage. In the north, there are also issues such as Han Qing's change of flag, diplomatic issues such as tariff autonomy and consular adjudication rights. This is a moment when the political situation can be unstable at any time. If someone wants to stumble Zhang Dingyao at this moment, the time is right."

Lin Ruxian felt that this plan was so seamless. She always thought that Ye Luo had almost forgotten the infamy she was carrying, as well as Jing Ruishan's unjust death. It turned out that he had been waiting for this moment to explode, the Three Generals!

"No matter what the truth is, as I just said, it's not important. What's important is how Zhang Dingyao views Jing Ruishan's death and the stance and attitude of the three tycoons." Ye Luo patted Lin Ruxian's buttocks, He stood up with a smile and said, "Let's go, maybe this wedding banquet can bring us unexpected surprises."

French General Club.

The wedding banquet of Fan Erdi and Fan Juli was considered to be the grandest banquet in Shanghai since the wedding of the principal and his wife last year.

All the consuls general from the consulates general of various countries in Shanghai were present, and even the French minister and ambassador sent congratulatory messages to wish Verdy a happy wedding.

Fan Shiwei, who was once just a little translator next to Lu Yusheng, was full of joy. His daughter flew up a branch and turned into a phoenix. He also became a chicken and dog and ascended to heaven alone, and he suddenly became a prominent figure in the French Concession.

Even so, when Fan Shiwei saw Ye Luo walking towards Lin Ruxian, who was dressed up in a gorgeous dress, he immediately greeted him with a smile and showed great enthusiasm.

The three tycoons of Yongxing Company who arrived at the club first saw this scene and frowned, especially Zhang Wanlin and Lu Yusheng. They had no idea why Fan Shiwei was so familiar with Ye Luo.

Ye Luo and Fan Shiwei exchanged pleasantries for a while, and then went directly to congratulate the newlyweds Fan Erdi and Fan Juli. Both of them were very happy about his arrival.

"Ye, thanks to you, the turmoil in the dance industry has been successfully suppressed." Fan Erdi now admires and respects Ye Luo from the bottom of his heart.

He was worried that the scolding war between Paramount and Black Cat Dance Hall could not be properly resolved even today. Unexpectedly, Ye Luo used clever tricks to suppress the sixteen people who signed the letter and retreated one after another!

This morning, when the French Ambassador sent a congratulatory message, he also mentioned the so-called joint letter. It turned out that the sixteen people could not bear the humiliation and Ye Luo's crazy revenge, so they had already come to revoke the joint letter. , and informed various newspapers overnight to remove all their previous articles criticizing Black Cat Dance Hall from the shelves.

After the biggest group of trolls subdued, Chen Zhengde could not make any splash on his own. He was still studying the voting for the most popular celebrity in the Republic of China, and gradually calmed down his attacks on Ye Luo.

After the pressure of public opinion dissipated, Lu Yusheng and others had no choice but to watch the Black Cat Ballroom's business boom again. The sales of dance tickets in ten days were said to have far exceeded the total revenue after the Paramount opened and invited various celebrities to spend. Today's In Shanghai, the name of Black Cat Ballroom can be heard everywhere, and when it comes to Paramount, everyone will just say "oh" and praise its grand style and magnificence.

And the dance queen election organized by Ye Luo caused a huge sensation.

The popularity of this event is comparable to the craze when two thousand Chevrolet 490s arrived in Shanghai in the past. Everyone is talking about it in the streets and alleys, and you can vote by buying a dance ticket at the Black Cat Ballroom. The cheapest white one only costs 5 cents. Who knows? Everyone can afford it and consume it, and it is indeed an entertainment activity that everyone can participate in.

The Queen of Dance election reminded Ye Luo of the popular Super Girl and Fast Boy talent show in later generations. At that time, just by moving your fingers, you could vote for your favorite singer. It can be said that Mango TV relied on these two programs to take off.

Ye Luo's goal is to create a Republic of China version of the talent show.

Lu Yusheng looked at the glorious Ye Luo with hatred. He had countless grievances in his heart, but these were nothing at this time.

What really bothered him was Paramount's profit and loss.

Ten days have passed.

Since its opening, Paramount has actually been unable to make ends meet!

The consumption of the ballroom every day is actually more than the income, which means that he has been losing money, not to mention that at the end of the month he has to face dividend requests from celebrities from all walks of life.

He really couldn't imagine how he would end up if this situation continued?

The fight with Ye Luo is just a trivial matter.

It would be a big deal to wipe out the money of celebrities from all walks of life, especially those at the top of the National Government.

Not far away, Edward was chatting and laughing with a group of foreign consuls general. Every time he looked at him, he had an expression that could kill someone.

He hoped that Paramount would turn him around and make him proud in front of his father.

Well now, Paramount not only failed to make any money, but also turned away his father Sassoon on the opening day!

After Victor Sassoon returned home, he called Edward and told him that the waiter at Paramount looked down on him because he was lame and would not even let him in. Edward was shocked.

The matter has reached this point and cannot be undone.

Victor Sassoon did not pay much attention to such trivial matters.

He had been lame for so many years, and many people looked down on him, but in the end he was stepped on, wasn't he?

These days, he has been observing Ye's Dance Company and paying attention to this scolding war. Finally, he came to the conclusion that dance companies can make money, but Paramount cannot.

Victor Sassoon decided to build the Shanghai Symphony Ballroom in the same proportion as the Symphony Ballroom in New York, USA, thus completely pushing Paramount into the bottom!

Of course, he didn't even tell Edward about this plan.

Shopping malls are like battlefields.

Paramount is the fat meat in Ye Luo's eyes and the cooked duck on his plate.

Even if it is an industry in which the son has a stake, it is the same.

After Ye Luo finished chatting with the Verdi couple and learned that they were planning to travel around the country for their honeymoon this month and might also visit Taihu Lake, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly but he didn't say anything.

Historically, when the Verdi couple visited Tai Lake, they were taken into the mountains by Wu Shikui, the leader of the bandits in Tai Lake, and kidnapped and ransomed as a pair of fat sheep.

This case shocked the French Concession. The Consulate General immediately sought help from Lu Yusheng, and it was only through the Qing Gang's connections that the Verdys were saved.

After this incident, Lu Yusheng completely established a foothold in the French Concession and became the most famous tycoon in the French Concession, surpassing Huo Tianhong and Zhang Wanlin!

Of course, if the Verdi couple were really kidnapped this time, nothing would happen to Lu Yusheng.

After the few people chatted, Ye Luo was about to put his arms around Lin Ruxian and go to the dance floor to dance, when he saw the German Consul General Knappe walking towards here with Boss Johnny.

Johnny had a frown on his face, and when he saw Ye Luo, his face turned even uglier.

"Consul General Knappe, Boss Johnny, hello." Ye Luo greeted them and then introduced them to Lin Ruxian.

"Haha, hello, Boss Ye, we meet again!" Knappe was obviously very happy, while Johnny on the side looked like a dead mother, which made Ye Luo guess what happened, "Congratulations, Black Cat Dance Hall is an unprecedented success!”

"Haha, it's just good luck. I wonder how your Rolls-Royce is selling, Boss Johnny?" Ye Luo looked at Johnny. He was good at everything he didn't like!