Looking north towards the rivers and mountains

Chapter 306 A Small Investment

"Shaoshe, this way please." Old Mo consciously stepped to the front and personally led the way, leading everyone through the front hall to an open pavilion next to the newly built garden at the back.

The room was already furnished with tables and chairs. Instead of the usual old-fashioned style with one person per table, there was a large rectangular table covered with Suzhou-style blue printed cloth, and a small bonsai of rocks was placed in the middle.

Shen Rong lagged behind, whispering something to Shen Mao. After everyone was seated, the two brothers entered.

After sitting down, Shen Rong looked at Shao Shuyi and said, "Xiao Hu's previous alias kept me in the dark for quite a while."

Shao Shuyi smiled somewhat embarrassedly and said, "When you're traveling, you have to be careful. Please forgive me, Master Shen."

"Not at all," Shen Rong waved his hand and said, "Come, let me introduce you to the people here. You may have met some of them before, but I'll introduce them again."

Shen Rong pointed to the thin-faced man on his left and said, "This is my younger brother, Shen Mao, courtesy name Daqing. He usually helps manage some shops in Suzhou and Hangzhou." Shen Mao stood up and cupped his hands in greeting, and Shao Shuyi returned the greeting.

Shen Rong then pointed to a plump man in his early thirties with a ruddy complexion and said, "This is Shen Dechang, the eldest son of Wan Sigong, who manages some estates in Suzhou."

Shen Dechang chuckled and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "I have long admired your esteemed name, Mr. Shao."

"This is Shen Hanjie, the second son of Wan Sigong, who now manages the textile workshops in Songjiang."

A handsome young man in his late twenties nodded without saying a word.

Finally, Shen Rong pointed to Shen Dezai, who was sitting at the last seat, and said, "This man still thinks highly of you. Shen Dezai, courtesy name Zhihua, is in the grain and oil business; he's family too."

Shao Shuyi met them one by one, and then sat down below Shen Rong.

Tie Niu remained standing behind him, but Shao Shuyi waved him away, signaling him to step outside.

Tie Niu hesitated for a moment, then stepped back and stood with the Shen family guards outside the door, his hand never leaving the hilt of his sword.

A servant came to serve tea. The teacups were Jian kiln rabbit fur cups, with fine silver lines shimmering on the black glaze. The tea soup was emerald green, and the foam was snow-white.

Shen Rong picked up his teacup, sniffed it, and took a sip. He said, "Shao She, I heard you set up a grain guild in Wuxi in September?" "It's just a small business, nothing to mention," Shao Shuyi said modestly.

"Oh, you're being too polite." Shen Rong put down his teacup and laughed, "Wuxi's rice market is the best in Jiangnan. It's not something an ordinary person can do to gather all the grain merchants there. I heard that even the Deputy Commander of the Grain Transport Commissioner, Fei Gong, has a high opinion of you and wants to take you to sea?" News travels fast.

Shao Shuyi thought to himself, but remained outwardly calm, saying, "Master Fei thinks highly of me and has given me this opportunity to partner up. I'm just providing two boats and cargo, while Master Fei provides the water transport, the nautical charts, and his connections. When we get to Tuta, his people will handle everything. After we return, we'll split the profits 50/50." "50/50?" Shen Dechang interjected, "Fei Xiong certainly knows how to do business."

Shao Shuyi smiled and said, "Business is about mutual consent. Without Fei Gong's people, my two boats wouldn't have reached Tuta. Besides, Fei Gong's nautical charts, navigation resources, and connections in foreign lands are things that money can't buy."

Shen Rong nodded, pondered for a moment, and said, "Little Tiger, to be honest, the reason I invited you here today is not only because of Yi Fang's invitation."

At this point, Shen Rongchao bowed slightly to Zheng Fan, who was sitting next to Shao Shuyi, and continued, "Actually, I also want to see you; I have something to discuss." Shao Shuyi put down his teacup and said seriously, "Please speak, sir."

Shen Rong glanced at Shen Mao.

Shen Mao cleared his throat and said, "Shao She, my Shen family has been doing business in Jiangnan for three generations, dealing in land, salt certificates, silk, grain, and maritime trade—we've got a little bit of everything. But in recent years, the imperial banknotes have become increasingly worthless, and land taxes are heavy, making business difficult..."

Shao Shuyi listened quietly.

Shen Mao continued, "But Shao She is different. You have boats, men, and you're brave and fierce. Bi Si's gang of Huai bandits, thirty-six of them, ran rampant on the Grand Canal, and the government couldn't do anything about them, but Shao She wiped them out in one fell swoop. I admire such ability."

"You flatter me," Shao Shuyi waved his hand and said.

"It's not a compliment, it's the truth," Shen Rong continued, "Xiao Hu, I heard you're planning to go to Wuchang next February?"

"Yes," Shao Shuyi replied.

He had already asked Manager Mo if there would be any freight business to and from Wuchang next year, so it wasn't surprising that Shen Rong knew.

Shen Rong nodded upon hearing this and said, "My family doesn't have much business in Wuchang, which is a pity. But if you want to transport goods, I can introduce you to a couple of old friends. They're all from Wuchang and live in Liujiagang year-round. They buy goods and then transport them back. It doesn't matter who you ask to transport them, you'll feel more at ease if Xiao Hu handles it. The amount isn't very large, a thousand shi at most."

"Thank you very much, sir," Shao Shuyi said happily.

This is the cargo capacity of two sea bream, meaning that two more boats can be taken to Wuchang, and more goods, including people, can be brought back.

"It's a small matter," Shen Rong said with a smile, "but there's one thing I don't understand."

"Please speak, sir."

"Your Wuyue Grain Store is quite good," Shen Rong said. "If the world descends into chaos, grain, salt, and cloth will be the most precious commodities. If one controls the grain, one is already invincible. However, my family is too prominent and attracts unwanted attention. It's fine for the collateral branches, but the main branch is under close surveillance and it's not advisable for them to join. But he—" Shen Rong pointed to Shen Dezai and said, "Zhihua, he's from Wucheng in Huzhou and deals in grain. If we establish a branch in Huzhou, I hope he can take charge."

"Okay." Shao Shuyi agreed without hesitation.

Seeing his straightforwardness, Shen Rong nodded slightly.

This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision, but rather something he had carefully considered for a long time. Yesterday, when Manager Mo saw him, he subtly mentioned it.

If chaos erupts in Jiangnan in the future and warlords seize territory, they will always need food. If the Shen family can gather many grain merchants to provide food for them, there will always be a way to survive.

Otherwise, wouldn't wealthy families like theirs be the perfect targets for exploiting the rich?

To put it bluntly, you need to be useful, then establish a relationship with others, and demonstrate your value before they decide to take action against you. Only in this way can you turn danger into safety.

The Shen family's current challenge isn't how much money they can make, but how to preserve their wealth and status. To put it more bluntly, you need to be aware of all the unforeseen circumstances and prepare in advance, even if those preparations prove futile in the future. It's better to be prepared, even if they seem unnecessary.

The Shen family is not short of money; giving a little to others is harmless, even insignificant.

Leaving aside distant events, three days before arriving at Liujiagang, Shen Ronggang hosted a banquet at his home for Zuo Danashili, the Darughachi of Pingjiang Road, who had returned from his inspection tour. Last October, Zuo Danashili and Jia Weizhen, the Director of Waterways, were ordered to inspect the Haibei, Hainan, and Guangdong regions.

This was the first time the Shen family had the opportunity to meet Zuo Danashili, so the banquet was held in a very grand manner.

The delicacies of land and sea on the table need no further introduction; even the tableware was extraordinary.

Unlike other wealthy families who use gold and silver utensils, the Shen family used carved silk as a banquet table, setting up twelve tables of purple Ding ware. Each table had two pieces of mutton-fat jade, each over a foot long and an inch wide, with a groove in the middle for placing chopsticks.

The wine is served on a white agate plate, with its patterned surface and a sprig of purple grapes, which five monkeys pick, a scene known as "Five Monkeys Fighting for Fruit," and is considered the most precious.

Each soup set consists of seven rounds of wine, with each round requiring a new precious cup.

And so on.

Even the servants and slaves of the Darughachi had the same food and utensils as those of the Xuanhe era.

It should be noted that Ding ware is mostly white, with very little purple-black color, and such exquisite purple Ding ware is extremely rare and very expensive.

As for the Xuanhe Ding ware used by servants for meals, it was also a famous product of Ding kiln, namely, "Ancient Ding ware, the best of which is from the kilns during the Zhenghe and Xuanhe periods".

The tableware used by the Shen family to serve meals to the servants of Zuo Danashili were all genuine products from the Xuanhe period, more than two hundred years ago. They could be considered antiques. How much effort and money must have been spent to collect them?

There were no "vulgar" items like gold or silver on the table, yet it exuded luxury in every way, and those who didn't know better wouldn't be able to tell—if Zodanashiri's servants knew that the bowl he was holding was enough to buy his life dozens of times over, would they still be able to hold it steady?

This is what is meant by understated luxury.

Therefore, the Shen family's investment in Shao Shuyi was actually nothing. They were so rich that they didn't know what to do with their money, so they started playing tricks on these trivial matters.

For example, the servants were served antiques, and a hairpin worn by a maid who poured wine at the banquet was worth dozens of ingots...

Moreover, Shen Jia had close ties with more than just Shao Shuyi, both openly and secretly.

The bandits of Taihu Lake did rob the Shen family's goods, but very rarely. Was there no reason for this? It's just that it's not something outsiders can say for sure. The Shen family themselves wouldn't admit anything, much less directly contact them.

After Shao Shuyi agreed to let Shen Dezai take charge of the Huzhou Grain Store, the atmosphere at the banquet became lively.

Shen Rong warmly invited, "Have some tea first, then we'll eat. I only prepared a few local Taicang dishes in a hurry, so it's a bit meager, but I hope you'll like them, Xiao Hu."

After a while, a servant came up and removed the teacups, replacing them with a wine pot and several cold dishes.

The wine is Autumn Dew White from Suzhou, clear and sweet.

The cold dishes include pickled goose, smoked fish, drunken crab, and jellyfish salad, all local flavors of Taicang.

Shen Rong personally poured Shao Shuyi a cup of wine and said, "Little Tiger, the Shen family values ​​'integrity' in business. Now that Zhihua has joined the grain business, you can go directly to him for any grain-related matters. My family also has many estates in Suzhou. If Huzhou doesn't have enough grain, just give us a call, and I'll have someone transfer some from Suzhou."

Shao Shuyi picked up his wine cup and asked, "How much land does the gentleman own in Suzhou?"

Shen Rong hesitated for a moment, then said, "It's alright to tell you, half of the farmland in Changzhou County belongs to my family."

Changzhou County is located in the northern part of Pingjiang Road, bordering Kunshan, Changshu and Wuxi. It covers a large area and has the highest yield per mu in the entire Pingjiang Road, almost twice that of other places. It is undoubtedly a major grain-producing area.

Zheng Fan chimed in, "Little Tiger, over 30% of the land in Wu County and Wujiang Prefecture belongs to the Shen family. Rongfu, of such high status, has condescended to do so; shouldn't you return the favor with a toast?"

Upon hearing this, Shao Shuyi immediately stood up and said, "Lord Rongfu's kindness is truly beyond words. I have nothing more to say, but I will never refuse any request from Lord Rongfu in the future."

Having said that, he drank it all in one gulp.

Shen Rong smiled more and picked up his wine glass, drinking it all in one gulp.

Afterwards, the group talked about going overseas to trade. Shen Rong expressed his "interest" and said that he had already placed an order in Liujiagang to build two large ships so that they could do business together and split the profits.

Shao Shuyi naturally wouldn't refuse.

Previously, the Shen family mostly relied on their in-laws, the Ye family of Chongming, for help in selling and buying goods. Although they claimed to be going overseas to trade, they were actually just borrowing the Ye family's ships and sailors. Now, they were actually spending money to build a new seagoing vessel, which was quite rare. Of course, what Shao Shuyi considered an enormous expense was nothing to the Shen family. Thinking of this, Shao Shuyi's mind wandered a bit, and he wondered why Madam Shen hadn't come.

Shao, being the most pragmatic of all, felt he should show more "respect" to Madam Shen and decided to find an opportunity to visit her in the next couple of days.

At this moment, the thief shamelessly thought that Fei Xiong, who was also very wealthy, didn't have a son. Would he be left without a son in the future? Oh dear, he was so worried and it was such a difficult choice.