After the fourth master and I wear each other [Qing wear]

Who is interested in plagiarism?

Yinzhen pretended not to understand what Wu Fuyi really wanted to express.

Wearing the attire of a Taoist priest, it is impossible to discuss on the street "how to copy a house without leaving sequelae", "on the skill of choosing a fat sheep (target) for copying a home", "should I copy it or should I copy it?" ’ and the like.

That's not appropriate.

It doesn't fit the Taoist Jia Wu's image of immortality, and his daughter and younger sister are behind him, so it doesn't affect him well.

Yinzhen looked around and talked about him, "It is said that this is Guangzhou Mansion, but it is actually outside the city wall. I didn't expect that it would be built with such an exotic style in just a few years."

Right now, the expedition team is walking in the area where the Guangdong Thirteenth Bank is located, which is located outside the west gate of Guangzhou City.

The so-called thirteen lines can be traced back to the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty.

The Portuguese began to live in Macau, and called the thirteen merchants originally from Guangzhou, Huizhou, and Quanzhou "Thirteen Banks" because they monopolized the commercial profits in the south.

The dynasties changed, and the business houses of the Ming Dynasty did not last until the Qing Dynasty, but this customary title was passed down.

More than 20 years ago, although Kangxi opened up the sea trade, he formulated various rules and regulations.

In a nutshell, after foreign ships dock, foreigners are generally not allowed to enter the city.

Local merchants in the Qing Dynasty could not have direct contact with foreigners, and they needed a middleman if they wanted to do business.

The middleman must obtain a foreign goods dealer's license.

It is not easy to hold a certificate, and various qualifications are required for guarantee, and then it will be reviewed and issued by local officials and customs.Of course, there are also paratroopers, that is, the relatives of the emperor who came directly from the capital.

The total number of these commercial firms is not fixed, and not all of them are located in Guangdong, but they are collectively referred to as Guangdong Thirteen Banks.

Maritime trade must go through the hands of thirteen lines, and one can imagine how profitable this almost monopoly business is.

With high profits comes a mountain of responsibility.

Responsible for handling all matters related to foreign caravans.As small as food, clothing, housing and transportation, as high as fighting, there are also various problems in business.

For example, after a foreign ship docked, in theory, it was not allowed to hire any Qing Dynasty people as short-term laborers. If there was no food, drink or place to live, they had to go to the thirteen lines.

For example, the imperial court stipulated that silver should not flow out in principle, and merchants in the Qing Dynasty used barter to buy foreign goods.

If a batch of exchanged goods does not meet the standard, and if any problems occur in quality and quantity, the intermediary commercial bank will be responsible for the whole process of recovering compensation and so on.

Foreigners were not allowed to enter the city, and the Thirteen Banks were built outside the city walls.

The site is adjacent to the Huaiyuan Post in the Ming Dynasty, which used to receive foreign envoys.

Geographically located on the side of the Pearl River, rows of houses are built facing the river.As soon as the boat lands on the shore, you can overlook the commercial buildings and other buildings, which is very convenient.

This year, the Thirteen Lines area is even more lively.

Kangxi finally approved it three years ago, allowing England and the Netherlands to conduct pilot projects first, and foreign commercial halls can be built within a designated area.

To put it mildly, foreign businessmen finally do not need to stay in hotels or drift on ships.On a larger scale, there is a decent office.

After three years of construction, two foreign commercial buildings have been completed, and they will officially move in on an auspicious day. ①

Don't ask why foreigners choose auspicious days for the zodiac, just do as the Romans do.The date has been set, half a month later, that is, the day when the God of Wealth is received on the fifth day of the first lunar month.

However, foreigners are still not allowed to enter the city without an edict, and this rule has not changed.

Similarly, the people of the Qing Dynasty did not go out of the city gate on the west side at will to contact foreigners.

Even so, the thirteenth row area outside the city is still busy with traffic.

Foreign merchants were not allowed to hire the people of the Qing Dynasty, but the Thirteen Banks could and must hire them, otherwise how could a ship of goods be sent into the city from outside the city.

There are policies and measures to counter.

For example, Li Wei's father, he is not a businessman of the Thirteen Banks, how could he buy "Theory of Heart Blood Movement" in the hands of foreigners?

Father Li can have friends in the thirteen lines, please ask them to take them out of the city to see them.Even if you directly trade one or two items with foreigners in private, as long as you are not reported.

Today, Wu Fuyi and the others are not members of the Thirteen Lines, but Yinzhen arrived in Guangzhou a year and a half earlier, and he has obtained a special foreign trade permit as Zhen Jiu.

A few years ago, Yinzhen also did business with foreigners, and got a license at that time.

This time, another certificate was sought, and a completely different business name was used, in order to distinguish it from the past.

"Fourth brother, you are here."

Yinzhen received the news and went out to greet her, and waved enthusiastically.

"It's really made my brother wait for a long time. If it comes ten days later, my brother will have to spend the New Year alone again this year."

Wu Fuyi asked with a smile, "You, alone? Sitting in the room looking at the ledger, shouldn't it be very lively? Your ears are full of noise from gold, silver and jewelry."

Yinzhen smiled wryly, "Fourth brother, stop teasing me, I'm just worried."

"What are you worried about?"

Wu Fuyi actually heard about it, so he read out a title, "Are you worried about "Pearl King", this name is not good? "

Last year, Yinzhen tried to develop new products in addition to traditional high-end sea trade goods such as tea, silk, and porcelain, and came to Shisanhang with the concept of pearl luxury whitening products.

In ancient times, there was a saying of buying a box and returning pearls.

Now, Yinzhen has customized a set of exquisite cosmetic wooden boxes, and sold [-] sets of pearl powder before the Western ship returns at the end of the year.

Sea-going ships sailing on the ocean depends on the face of the monsoon at sea.

Europe to Asia usually departs from Christmas to Easter next year, because it is necessary to adapt to the spring and summer monsoons of the Indian Ocean.

Returning from Asia usually departs from October to March of the following year, and it takes seven or eight months to return to Europe.

In October last year, Yinzhen's pearl powder whitening products were shipped away by foreign merchants.

In October this year, the English cargo ship arrived in Guangzhou again.

Businessman William wanted to find the "True King of Pearls" as soon as he landed, and signed a long-term cooperation agreement with him immediately, without delay.

Luxury pearl powder skin care products are sold out in England. To be precise, 108 boxes of cosmetics are not enough.

Fortunately, it wasn't during the reign of Elizabeth I more than 100 years ago, the Queen of England was a fanatical pearl lover, and she would have wrapped up all the pearl powder.

William came to sign the contract in a hurry, because he was afraid that he would run out of stock if he was too late.

Today, the vast majority of pearls are used as jewelry.

Although I also heard from Zhen Jiu that as early as 500 years ago during the Three Kingdoms period, there were medical prescriptions for pearl powder to nourish the skin in the East, but this luxury has not become popular.

This is related to the shortage of raw materials.

It is not easy to collect pearls, and it is too extravagant to grind them into powder.

Beads of different shapes and shapes are more often made into different accessories or sewn on clothing.

This contract must be signed quickly, and other foreign businessmen cannot preempt it, otherwise it will be bad if it is out of stock.

Calling Zhen Jiu "True King of Pearls", of course, I hope he will continue to supply energy, and call on clam shells to produce more pearls with one order, so as to fully confirm this title.

Yinzhen was very distressed, because foreigners speak too impudently and modestly. Can XX king be called casually?Make trouble for him.

If it falls into the ears of a caring person, he may be accused of competing with the people for profit, with bad intentions.

"Fourth brother, where did you hear the name Pearl King?"

Yinzhen didn't want the outrageous rumors to spread too far, "In less than two months, this word can't spread to the capital, right?"

Wu Fuyi did hear some outrageous stories, "After I entered Guangzhou, I heard the story of the Pearl King from the recent news from the innkeepers. It is said that the Pearl King obtained the true inheritance of the shark race and the secret recipe for eternal beauty. The elixir has passed to the people of Europa."

This is bullshit.

The medicinal application of pearl powder is recorded in the "Famous Doctors" of the Three Kingdoms.If you don't know what is so far away, then Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" also recorded it.

However, it is normal for the common people not to know the contents of medical books.

It is similar to the fact that the merman sheds tears and turns them into pearls because of love, and the pearls are ground into powder and applied on the face to keep youth forever. This kind of story has a much wider audience than medical books.

I don't know when the little joke started.

The English sailors also added fuel and vinegar, saying that the last time they transported pearl powder back to Europe, there were fewer storms and waves than in previous years.

This made the Pearl King even more mysterious. Could it be that the pearl powder provided by Zhen Jiu has a mysterious origin?

Wu Fuyi could understand the twists and turns. It was probably because businessman William was trying to promote the sale of pearl powder.

To turn it into a high-end luxury skin care product needs to be covered with a layer of mystery these days.It seems that the products brought back from the ocean are not only whitening products, but also products blessed by the magical power of the East.

Does anyone in Europe believe it?Isn't the West developing science?

Of course.There is no conflict between the two, just as there is no conflict between Newton's research on physics and his research on alchemy. Mystery has a very large market in the West.

Businessman William pinched the monsoon section of the ocean-going ship to and fro.After he sold the pearl powder, he couldn't wait a month to hear more feedback after the new product was launched, so he rushed to load the goods and came to the East again.

Now it is really hard to say what kind of image "Pearl King Zhen Jiu" has become on the land of England at this moment.

Wu Fuyi couldn't control the distance to the west, but seeing Yinzhen's sad face, he had a bad guess. "From the way you look, don't you write to your family about this?"

The so-called writing a letter home, of course, refers to writing a letter to Kangxi to know what happened in Shisanhang.

The emperor sent the Ministry of Internal Affairs to do business, and the emperor's merchants can naturally occupy a place in the Guangdong Thirteenth Bank and obtain the right to operate foreign trade.

At the same time, every year, the governors of Guangdong and Guangxi and other local officials will definitely hand in papers describing the customs duties of Guangdong Customs and the trade situation of the Thirteen Banks.

Even so, what the emperor got was not first-hand information.

The imperial merchants must earn the middle price difference, and the tribute fees collected by local officials will not be reported.

Kangxi understands what is meant by layers of exploitation, and even more what is called selective concealment.

An investigation team was sent for private visits in microservices, in order to learn as much real data about people's livelihood as possible.

In addition, let Yinzhen reapply for a new foreign product license, not only to sell pearl powder, but also to sell other products.

It must be distinguished from the previous business name, because the operation and income under the name of this company will be related to the resettlement of homeless people in the future.

Yinzhen personally played the front line, from site selection to breeding to sales to the sea, in order to control the entire industrial chain without any mistakes.

In this case, of course he had to report the work progress to Kangxi.

The booklet is written, and it is said that the pearl farm and the hired labor are already in place in a certain month.

How much did the pearls sold in a certain month test the waters sell? The steps and costs of applying for a foreign goods distribution license in Guangdong Province in a certain month, etc.

The entire text, at best, is full of non-parallel imports, but at its truest level, it is dry reporting data.

"We separated in Hunan. I haven't missed any work progress in the past year and a half. I wrote a letter to my father."

Yinzhen also had the second half of the sentence, "As for the unreliable jokes like the Pearl King, I didn't mention it much."

Wu Fuyi pointed it out, "It's not that you didn't mention it more, did you not mention it at all?"

Yinzhen blinked and made a fake smile.As long as the fourth brother knows, he will expose it face to face.

He had a reason not to say, "Fourth brother, it's not like you don't know the image of me in my father's heart. It can be summed up in one word - unreliable."

In the past, Yinzhen's ears were callused after hearing countless reprimands from Kangxi for doing business.

This time he came out to do serious things, and he also wanted to establish a solid and reliable image.However, the messy rumors just didn't let him go.

"Take a look at the Pearl King, the man who had a fling with the Merman Princess", "The heartless man who stole the Merman's secrets of eternal youth", "Pearl King, could the main body be a shellfish?"

In the past two months, such gossip rumors have been heard endlessly.

Yinzhen knew in her heart that some of these were jokes made by ordinary people after dinner, and some people said that grapes were sour because they couldn't eat grapes.

Some businessmen do not have a stable supply of pearls, and they have no way to get on the boat of selling pearl powder at expensive prices, so they can only satirize him secretly.

afraid?

Absolutely not afraid.

Yinzhen was a little worried, but she was prepared, the worst would be to return to Beijing and be reprimanded again.

But asking him to take the initiative to tell Kangxi these "wonderful little stories" first, it is really difficult to pick up that brush.

Never had this habit.

When she was young, Yinzhen also tried to get Kangxi to admit that she could be promising in business as a prince, but every conversation ended in being scolded and denied.

There is a saying among the people that there is more than half a sentence without speculation.

The father-son relationship between the two is also similar.After a long time, as his son, he didn't dare to say a word of gossip in front of Kangxi, and he never forgot that he was still the emperor.

Just because Yinzhen has not forgotten that Kangxi is the emperor, he will feel somewhat uneasy in his heart.

It can be predicted that when such outrageous rumors spread back to the capital, Kangxi's first reaction was that Brother Jiu was really unreliable, otherwise he would have been arrested.

Suddenly there was a flash of light.

correct!Once the fourth brother was also given an exaggerated title.

So far in Dongying, there is still a saying that "Zhen Jun of Zhongtu, the incarnation of the sea god, protects all living beings from being infested by sea monsters."

It is about the waters outside Nagasaki Port in Japan. Zhen Si led the crew to kill the super-large octopus, avoiding the disaster of the ship being destroyed.

"Fourth brother, you have experience. Zhen Si was named Sea God, and now Zhen Jiu is named Pearl King. Why don't you help me write a letter from the side?"

Yinzhen said fawningly, "With your ability, you can definitely explain the outrageous stories that are on my head. In fact, there is no need to explain, just let my father not be angry. My brother really has no such ability."

Wu Fuyi felt very amused.Going around in a circle, as the Spring Festival approached, Yinzhen actually increased her workload?

What's more, can they be compared?The rumor of the hero who bravely slayed the sea monster, and the romantic affair with the Pearl King and the Mermaid Princess is not a heavyweight rumor at all.

Ten thousand steps back, she was not the one who wrote the scriptures describing the events in Dongying back then.

She was killed at sea that year, and she and Yinzhen exchanged for several months, and the follow-up paperwork was done by Yinzhen.

Wu Fuyi glanced at Yinzhen inadvertently.I saw him observing the lacquer and pattern of the pillars in the lobby with eyes and nose, nose and heart, without the slightest thought of being a leader for the ninth brother.

Looking back, Yinzhen replied, "I have to think about this matter. Let's not talk for now, you arrange the room, and each of you has to go wash up."

Yinzhen didn't continue to beg for help, he felt that the fourth brother would not take this trick.

Decided to take a roundabout way, such as preparing all the delicious food and fun.Not only to make the fourth brother feel at ease, but also to take care of the younger sister-in-law, sister and niece.Moved the fourth brother with sincerity, and asked him to speak good words for himself in front of Kangxi.

"Okay, let's have a good rest first. Fourth brother, the two Taoist priests and this little Taoist boy are all invited here."

Yinzhen led the way, and then heard another sentence from behind.

Wu Fuyi said casually, "Old Jiu, you have been in the south for a year and a half. How much do you know about the situation of Fujian Admiral Lan Li? Admiral who ransacked the house, do you know the story here?"

Yinzhen had no doubts about him, "Lan Li was just promoted to the admiral of Fujian earlier this summer. This man is nicknamed "General Broken Belly", and his style of doing things is still the same as when he was fighting back then, bold and fearless.If you say that you ransacked your house, you ransacked your house, and took care of many tycoons who violated the law and caused chaos in Fujian.There are many rumors among the people. "

Since Yinzhen has been paying attention to inquiring about the "Pearl King" joke recently, he also listened to all the "Pearl King" joke by the way.He asked: "Lan Li copied several companies, fourth brother, which one do you want to listen to first?"

Wu Fuyi seemed to be thinking, and glanced at Yinzhen again.Now, Yinzhen is going to tell the story of ransacking the house, can this person remain indifferent?

**

**

Beijing, Qianqing Palace.

There are still ten days to celebrate the New Year, and all kinds of New Year gifts will be sent to the palace.

Kangxi glanced at the gift list roughly, and then caught a glimpse of Wen Xian and Yinzhen's gift list.

For now, pat your forehead.

Yes, he almost forgot about these two children.He forgot to find Wen Xian's remarried husband's family, and he also forgot to ask Yinzhen if anything unreliable happened when he left the inspection team to act alone?

Shouldn't be a big problem, right?

Yinzhen's memorial was written like an old monk chanting scriptures, so rigid that he couldn't be more rigid, he couldn't be so outrageous that he would make a joke about being king in the south, right?