Chapter 2462: Inside and outside the Gui Zi Juan Mansion, family affairs and state affairs

Bi Ziyan stroked his beard and said, "Ziying, it seems that you are very interested in the colonization of Southeast Asia. What attracts you there? I heard that the branch of Haitong Silver Village has been opened under the control of Fo Langji. Sulu and Luzon?”

"Brother Jing Hui, Sulu is Sulu, and Luzon is Luzon. Luzon Island, with Manila as the center, is basically controlled by the Francois. Manila is the largest city in the region, and Haitong Bank was indeed established there. It has reached a point, but the scale is very small. It mainly provides services to businessmen traveling between Luzon and Guangzhou. Sulu is still far away and is still at a very backward stage. However, there are indeed many Han people who go to make a living. It is not limited to Luzon and Sulu. There are many Han people in the old areas of Xuanweisi in Jiugang and Bo Ni..."

Feng Ziying explained briefly, "Currently, Luzon, Sulu and even Bali are in a relatively chaotic state of separatism. To be precise, except for the Manila area under the control of the Buddha, the rest of Luzon Island has not been controlled by the Buddha. The real control of the Langji people is still in a state of autonomy and desolation by local princes and nobles. Whether it is the Balni Kingdom or the Sulu Kingdom, local control can only be achieved through powerful local nobles, and because the region is mainly dominated by various There are mostly islands, so the connections are not very convenient and not close. Even if there is a war, it is more accidental..."

“After talking so much, Ziying, you still haven’t answered my question.” Bi Ziyan said dissatisfied.

"Simple, with the reclamation of Dongpan, Anfu merchants have already had rich experience in reclamation. In addition to drying salt, logging, and mining gold mines, Dongpan started planting a large amount of rice two years ago, with three crops a year. The output is very good, attracting many people from Fujian, many of whom don’t even need guidance..."

“Malaria is still the biggest obstacle, but the cinchona tree has been successfully planted in Dongfan, and the artemisia annua medicine has also achieved certain promotion results, so this has also greatly accelerated Dongfan’s attraction of population,…”

"As far as I know, when I went to Shaanxi the year before last, the number of refugees from Shandong and Fujian to Dongfan increased significantly. In the tenth year of Yonglong, nearly 30,000 people moved to Dongfan. In the eleventh year of Yonglong, the number has increased to 40,000. Five thousand people, this year is not over yet, but by October about 50,000 people will have moved in, which means that the current population in Dongpan has exceeded 160,000, and has formed northern, central, southern, The trend of settlement in the four west directions,…”

“I think the conditions for setting up a government in Dongfan have matured, and the imperial court can consider incorporating Dongfan into formal administrative management. Of course, in view of the huge contributions made by Anfu merchants, the original policy will continue. Of course, the Anfu merchants’ investment should be rewarded,…”

 Feng Ziying’s intentions became increasingly clear.

“The Anfu businessmen also understand this. Twenty years of preferential policies are enough for them to make a lot of money, but if you don’t think about the long-term, you must have immediate worries. As a large group of Anfu businessmen, they must have longer-term plans..."

"In addition, we have also collected more information from Nanyang. For example, there are many islands in Sulu and Luzon that need to be developed urgently. There are more in Nanyang. Anfu businessmen intend to continue to cooperate with the court and increase their investment in Luzon and Sulu. The development of the area,…”

“The development of Dongpan still requires continued investment, so this requires funds, materials, and manpower. By raising funds and seeking more partners, we will comprehensively improve our reclamation capabilities and strive to become the number one reclamation player in the Great Zhou Dynasty. I think this should be feasible, especially now that there are so many opportunities in front of us, Anfu merchants and Xue's fleet are willing to share this opportunity with others,..."

 “Share the opportunities?” Bi Ziyan nodded slightly, “And share the risks?”

"Of course." Feng Ziying spread her hands calmly: "I just want to share the money directly. How can there be such a good thing in the world? But there are indeed many opportunities in Sulu, Luzon and Nanyang. Gold, silver, copper and tin, Sulu, Luzon and Nanyang are rich in it, not to mention the well-known spices, pepper, cloves, nutmeg and various precious woods and fur gems. There are many islands there, many of them are large and fertile, but there are no people inhabiting them. There are three to five hundred people. It is perfectly fine for two thousand people to occupy an island and cultivate it, and the imperial court should give them the necessary support. Moreover, this area is also a necessary channel for the imperial court to communicate with the Western Yi in the future, and it must be controlled in our own hands..."

"But you also said that the Folangji, Hongmaofan, and other English people have come to this area from Xiyi. If we enter, it will definitely cause conflicts, right? I think the Xiyi people have sharp weapons and perverse personalities. Domineering, I'm afraid it will trigger a war if I'm not careful, but the imperial court has no intention and no ability to start a foreign war."

Since Bi Ziyan went to the Ministry of Commerce, he was naturally familiar with matters involving the Municipal Shipping Department and land reclamation, so the questions he asked were much more professional than those of Guo Zhengyu.

"Brother Jing Hui, the less you want to fight and the less you dare to fight, the more people will come to bully you. Nanyang is originally our sphere of influence in the Great Zhou Dynasty. The Western Yi people have come from thousands of miles away, and the Folangji people are even right under our noses. The red whales still want to take over Penghu, and they are still colluding with Japan. We are already lagging behind. If we don't work hard, we will suffer big losses in the future. What's more, the imperial court only supports private merchants to colonize. It's really If there are any disputes, let's discuss it later. Jiangnan has been decided. What will the Fujian navy do with it? If they don't go to Nanyang, are they raising a group of people to fish?"

Feng Ziying was eloquent, but in fact Bi Ziyan needed Feng Ziying's remarks to strengthen his confidence.

Nowadays, many functions of the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce still overlap. The Ministry of Household Affairs undoubtedly occupies a dominant position. If the Ministry of Commerce wants to highlight its differences and usefulness, it will not hesitate to open up new areas, expand cultivation, and open up new sources of revenue. This is Bi Ziyan. pondered.

Now that Feng Ziying raised this point, he undoubtedly hit it off with him, but the Ministry of Commerce also needs the support of the Ministry of War, otherwise once a dispute arises and the Ministry of Commerce lacks support, it will definitely suffer setbacks.

 Bi Ziyan is very satisfied, but the current topic is not the reclamation of Nanyang, but joint-stock enterprises and stock exchanges.

"It is more appropriate to establish a stock exchange in Yangzhou than in Jinling. The canal has always been the most important economic link, and it can also attract more northern companies to list in the future, not to mention Yangzhou salt merchants and Suzhou, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, and Songjiang on the other side of the river. Merchants and gentry are also richer, more open-minded, and more receptive to these new things..."

Feng Ziying’s suggestion was also recognized by Bi Ziyan and Guo Zhengyu.

“The key now is to complete the pilot project of Wusongkou Shipyard first, complete the joint-stock reform of this industry first, and then allow other industries to follow suit,…”

Both Bi Ziyan and Guo Zhengyu accepted the new terms that kept popping up in Feng Ziying's mouth. For example, they asked Feng Ziying where he coined the word "industry", but Feng Ziying's idea of ​​"buying property and starting a business" was simply called industry. , a bit far-fetched, but acceptable.

“It’ll be great if Brother Jinghui is here. With you taking care of things like this, Brother Meiming and I can breathe a sigh of relief…”

Bi Ziyan was very interested and willing to do this work himself, but he also knew that it would be too much for him to take over as soon as he came. "Ziying, I am willing to do this, but you have to pay I have enough people to help me..."

"No problem. Gu Dengfeng next to me is very familiar with this situation and has learned a lot from me. If he comes to assist Brother Jing Hui, he will definitely satisfy Brother Jing Hui. It will be good if Brother Jing Hui gives more support. "Feng Ziying also took the opportunity to push Gu Dengfeng to Bi Ziyan's side, so that he could play a greater role in the future.

Just when Feng Ziying and Bi Guo were talking deeply, Yuanyang's visit to Li's twin sisters also came to an end.

“Aunt Wen, Aunt Qi, and the two servants of the Zhen family are not very familiar with each other, so I would like to ask, should I go directly to visit, or can Aunt Wen help us lead the way..."

Yuanyang doesn’t know the relationship between the two sisters of the Li family and the Zhen family, so it’s not appropriate to raise it rashly, so she asks this question.

 “Sister Baochen and Bao Yu are different.” After being together for such a period of time, Li Min already knew a little bit about Zhen Baochen’s thoughts, and also knew that Zhen Baochen could not become a concubine in Feng Mansion.

 She felt regretful but also admired Zhen Baochen's situation and thoughts. It was not easy for a woman to survive independently in this world.

 Even with Feng Lang's support, he will still encounter various doubts and difficulties.

 “Oh?” Yuanyang raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Sister Baochen probably won't join our rich family. She has been married before, and she knows it herself, but my husband-in-law likes her very much and relies on her very much. In this matter about the Zhen family, even though Baochen and Baoyu are also trying to protect themselves. , but it did help my husband a lot. It was precisely because of the Zhen family’s leadership that my husband was able to quickly make a breakthrough and open up the whole Jiangnan situation quickly. For this, my husband is also very grateful and doting on her."

Li Min also had a lot of praise when talking about Zhen Baochen, which made Yuanyang think more highly of Li Min.

 “Then what is Miss Zhen going to do in the future?” Yu Chuan’er couldn’t help but interjected.

Li Min glanced at Yuchai'er and said, "Maybe she would rather be my husband's wife."

more willing? Both Yuanyang and Yuchuan'er were a little confused.

But Yuanyang didn’t ask deeply.

Since Li Min didn't tell her, she didn't ask. Anyway, she would know when she saw Zhen Baochen.

"As for Bao Yu, she may be like us. My husband will also take her to Beijing in the future." Li Wei smiled, "Bao Yu has a good temperament and is very compatible with Qi Mei. I think she will also be able to do it after entering the Feng Mansion." Very popular with everyone.”

Yuanyang understood something. Both Zhen Baoyu and Li Qi would be very popular, because they both have a gentle, quiet, and aloof temperament, but she, Li Min, is not the same, so she may not be popular, but she still has to persist. be yourself.

 (End of this chapter)