SWDnovel Chapter 294 Completion
Chapter 294 Completion
As Fushengji revealed that the small courtyard on the east side of Xiyuan was to be auctioned off, the atmosphere in the capital became tense, and the Huitong Money Shops in various prefectures received a large number of deposit requests one after another.
Huitong Money Shop, having anticipated this, proceeded with its business in an orderly manner.
Time passed slowly, and the summer in the capital quietly faded away. Emperor Shun'an ended his summer retreat, left the West Garden, and returned to the palace.
Mid-September of the Seventeenth Year of Shun'an
The Xiyuan project has been fully completed.
Seven days ago, the Fushengji supplement started a countdown on its pages again, which was the countdown to the completion of Xiyuan.
This countdown, like a heartbeat manipulator, has been controlling everyone's heartbeats. In the past few days, people in teahouses and restaurants have been discussing this matter.
Everyone now knows that the small courtyard on the east side of Xiyuan is going to be auctioned off, and they all know what an auction means.
It's simply a matter of the highest bidder wins!
So this time the discussion shifted to who were the ten wealthiest people in the capital.
The people all have their own options in mind.
But without exception, they were all merchants!
Merchants had a low social status, but they were generally recognized as having money.
Just as everyone was discussing animatedly, someone poured cold water on their enthusiasm: "Why do you all think they are merchants from the capital?"
"Haven't you noticed that there have been a lot more people from other places in Beijing lately?"
"I've wanted to say this for a while now, and all the people coming are wealthy out-of-towners. I heard that several inns have been booked out."
"Although the capital is the nation's capital, in terms of wealth, our merchants are not even ranked. Everyone knows that the most wealthy in the Great Chu are the Shanxi merchants, the Lianghuai salt merchants, the Huizhou merchants, and the Guangdong merchants."
"They all have shops in the capital, and they've already heard about the auction of the small courtyard on the east side of the West Garden. With them involved, how can the merchants of the capital possibly compete?"
As this topic came up, everyone finally realized that this auction was not limited to merchants in the capital.
Because the news leaked out so early, the capital city was already teeming with wealthy merchants, each one more powerful than the last.
Tobe
"Brother Wen, was this something you expected?"
The government offices naturally have more acute and detailed information than the general public. They have already learned that various merchants have come to the capital, each of whom is extremely wealthy in their local area.
Their gathering in the capital now speaks volumes.
Bai Baojing couldn't help but ask Wen Zongji.
Wen Zongji shook his head: "How could I have thought that far ahead?"
He really hadn't thought of that much, otherwise he wouldn't have planned to start promoting it half a month before completion. He had originally thought that merchants from the capital region would participate in the auction.
However, plans can't keep up with changes. Because public opinion has dragged the military into the matter, he announced the auction ahead of schedule to prevent the situation from escalating.
The original intention was to divert the public's excessive attention from military generals.
As a result, the news spread too early, attracting so many merchants.
This was indeed not what Wen Zongji had anticipated.
But the result will definitely be good.
Bai Baojing, however, was somewhat worried: "Those merchants are all incredibly wealthy; won't they buy up all those small courtyards on the east side of the West Garden?"
Merchants never do business at a loss. If the people who bought the courtyard were a group of people, there's no guarantee they wouldn't team up and cause trouble.
Wen Zongji said, "Brother Bai, don't worry, I've already come up with a plan."
Bai Baojing finally breathed a sigh of relief: "I knew you wouldn't overlook these things."
Just as he finished speaking, a minor official came in and said, "Lord Wen, someone from the Eastern Palace has arrived. The Crown Prince wishes to see you."
"it is good."
Wen Zongji got up and left the office.
Bai Baojing watched him leave, thinking about how Wen Zongji had only been in the Ministry of Revenue for a few months and had already caused so much trouble. He couldn't help but sigh that capable people could make a difference anywhere.
Wen Zongji is capable and highly regarded by the Crown Prince, so his future is limitless.
Bai Baojing could sense that the time he and Wen Zongji would be sharing an office wouldn't be long.
Wenyuan Pavilion
"Your humble servant pays respects to the Crown Prince."
The Crown Prince waved his hand: "Sit down, we're all family, no need for such formalities. Please wait a moment."
After the Crown Prince finished reviewing a memorial, he looked at Wen Zongji.
"Information about those merchants has been sent to the capital from the various branches of the Imperial Gazette Office."
"Merchants were of low social status, yet they possessed vast amounts of wealth. Whether for self-preservation or other reasons, they were fond of forming groups and establishing trading companies. Merchants from Shanxi, salt merchants from the Jianghuai region, merchants from Anhui, and merchants from Guangdong all had trading companies."
"But they are not monolithic; in fact, there are constant conflicts. After all, businessmen are profit-driven, and they can do anything for profit."
Merchants within the same trading company would maintain a semblance of decorum, but competition between different trading companies was fierce, with all sorts of underhanded tactics employed, and naturally, there was no shortage of animosity.
"Therefore, when the auction takes place, we only need to state that each member of the same business can only buy one small courtyard, and we don't need to worry about them colluding together."
Of course, it can't be said that there's no need to worry at all. If those merchants realize that something is threatening them, they will definitely put aside their differences and band together under pressure.
However, the imperial court auctioned off the courtyard to raise funds and replenish the national treasury, and had no intention of discarding it after it had served its purpose, so there was naturally no pressure.
Wen Zongji nodded: "Your Majesty, I understand."
The Crown Prince asked, "Now that the project is complete, when is the auction planned?"
"tomorrow!"
The crown prince was stunned: "So fast? Everything's ready?"
Wen Zongji smiled mysteriously: "This isn't a formal job, it's just an appetizer."
Seeing that he was being mysterious, the Crown Prince did not press the matter, but simply said, "Don't forget what you promised Father Emperor."
Emperor Shun'an set a target of 200,000 taels of silver for Wen Zongji.
Wen Zongji chuckled: "Now that so many merchants have come to the capital, fulfilling the Emperor's request should be a piece of cake."
"That would be best."
……
The following day, a new issue of the Floating Life Supplement was published.
The news on the front page instantly attracted everyone's attention.
[At the beginning of the Xu hour today, the Ministry of Revenue will hold an auction on the first floor of Wangchun Tower to auction off the places to visit ten small courtyards on the east side of the West Garden tomorrow. There is no limit to the number of people who can participate in the auction, and the entrance fee is one hundred taels of silver!]
The expressions on the faces of the people who saw this news were quite interesting.
"Is this admission fee what I understand it to be?"
"I think so!"
"Good heavens, as expected of the Ministry of Revenue. To participate in the auction, you have to pay one hundred taels of silver first. This time, it's just an auction for the number of people who can visit the courtyard, not a formal auction of the courtyard itself."
very good!
The Ministry of Revenue once again reinforced the public's stereotypes about it.
"One hundred taels of silver is quite a lot; surely not many people will participate?"
"Then you're underestimating those merchants. They're all incredibly wealthy; a hundred taels is nothing to them."
"Exactly. More than money, they probably want to know what the small courtyard that the Ministry of Works has been working on for more than three months looks like, so they can know whether it's worth it to bid for it."
"Thinking about it this way, the Ministry of Revenue did a pretty good job. They didn't let people take photos blindly, and they even allowed people to visit."
"You've probably forgotten that the tour slots are auctioned off."
"Um, okay."