Chapter 372: Flocking to It

The fiery sun was about to set in the west, but the air still retained the heat of the day, indicating that summer was approaching. Reading

In the study, he talked to Zhou Yi about the Naval Academy.

Then, he led Zhou Yi to a courtyard less than 300 meters away from the palace.

This was once the other courtyard of the Huang family, a wealthy family in Yan County.

The venue was wide, with more than a hundred rooms and beautiful scenery.

"This will be the station of the Naval Academy." Zhao Xu said to Zhou Yi.

Later, he would ask the officials of the Engineering Department to renovate this place to make it more like a school.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Zhou Yi looked around since he came in, and was very satisfied with the place chosen by the King of Yan for him.

Nodding, he continued: "There will be someone in the school to provide you with meals, so don't worry about these sundries. In a few days, this king will provide you with a set of textbooks."

He was not very anxious about the lessons of the Naval Academy. After all, Chen Shou's warship could not be completed in less than half a year.

At present, Zhou Yi's most important task is to recruit naval soldiers, and then train them for at least three months like the royal army.

In addition to physical training, they must master the use of flintlock rifles and artillery to shape their discipline.

Of course, he will often come to the Naval Academy to popularize some basic knowledge for them.

For example, concepts such as ocean currents and monsoons.

After handing the key to the school gate to Zhou Yi, Zhao Xu returned to the palace.

The rest of the school's sundries were left for Zhou Yi to deal with.

This is also a test for him. Some things can only be done by him personally, so that he can grow faster.

...

Business.

Yang He thought about the list for a long time, and when the night was completely dark, he asked someone to light the lights.

He let out a long breath and said to the official beside him: "You go to Lu's Mansion and call Lu Lin, and say that this official invites him to have a drink."

The official replied yes and turned away.

About half an hour later, a carriage stopped in front of the business.

A fat merchant walked into the business with the help of a servant.

At this moment, a table of wine was set up in a private room in the business.

Lu Lin saw Yang He sitting in it and smiled.

"Lord Yang ordered me to come so late, there must be something good." Lu Lin bowed and smiled.

"Of course, I can't forget who I forget, Brother Lu." Yang He put away his official style and looked very intimate with Lu Lin.

He and Lu Lin had known each other for a long time. When the Zhang family was still there, Lu Lin often sold silk from Yuzhou to Yan County.

The Yang family can be said to be one of Lu Lin's big customers.

After he became the head of the business, Lu Lin and the Yang family interacted more frequently.

After all, who among the merchants in the world doesn't want to have a relationship with the Prince of Yan's Mansion now?

But compared with other big merchants, Lu Lin's family background is a bit thin.

He can't compete with those wealthy merchants for the exclusive rights of the Prince's Mansion's fine wine, perfume, and glass.

But he was unwilling to give up, so he stayed in Yancheng, waiting for an opportunity to make a fortune.

"Are you serious?" Lu Lin just said a polite remark, but seeing that Yang He didn't seem to be joking with him, he immediately became serious.

Yang He nodded gently, "I know that Brother Lu's ambition is to become a first-class merchant in Dasong. Now there is an opportunity. I wonder if Brother Lu has the courage."

"Oh?" Lu Lin looked puzzled, "Please give me some advice, Brother Yang."

After a pause, he said, "Our Yanzhou Merchants intend to establish a business alliance to recruit merchants from all over the world to join. Merchants who join the alliance will be given various preferential treatments by the merchant, but in return, merchants must abide by the rules and orders of the merchant alliance."

Lu Lin's eyes turned, he was not a stupid person, and he guessed that this matter was unusual.

So he carefully asked, "Is this the instruction of the King of Yan?"

Yang He just smiled and didn't speak.

Seeing this, Lu Lin had a plan in his mind.

He was a merchant in Yuzhou, and he would pay tribute to the Wang family every year, and he also had the Wang family's business permit in his hand.

There are many merchants with business leads, but only a few can get the goods from the palace.

Seeing that the merchants who sell the goods from the palace in Yuzhou are getting richer and richer, it is impossible for him not to be jealous.

It is for this reason that he held his breath and stayed in Yancheng, just to wait for the new goods from the palace to be released.

So when Yang He said to give him a chance, he couldn't help but be tempted.

But he was also a little worried, afraid of being involved in the fight between the King of Yan and the powerful families.

To join the Merchant Alliance, you must abide by the rules of the Merchant Alliance, which is the same as obeying the orders of the palace.

So he smiled bitterly and said, "Good things are good things, but my small body can't stand the tossing of His Royal Highness the King of Yan and the Wang family."

Yang He sneered at this, and he said, "Brother Lu, do you know why the officials in Yanzhou treat merchants with courtesy and etiquette?"

"I have heard of this. It is said that His Royal Highness the King of Yan is promoting a policy of emphasizing business in Yanzhou, treating merchants like scholars." Lu Lin said.

"So what about Brother Lu in Yuzhou?" Yang He asked again.

"The wealthy and powerful families allow their children to do business, but they all regard business as a dirty thing, especially looking down on merchants." Lu Lin sighed.

"If that's the case, why should Brother Lu be an inferior in Yuzhou?" Yang He stared at Lu Lin, "Of course, Yang just saw that Brother Lu is a promising talent, so he has this good intention. If Brother Lu doesn't want to, he won't force it."

After a pause, he sighed, "It's just a village away, and there will be no such store. Besides, joining the Merchant Alliance doesn't mean that Brother Lu will march to war. Being a spy is not dangerous."

"Isn't this a serious job?" Lu Lin suddenly said in surprise.

Yang He was stunned for a moment and thought that Lu Lin had misunderstood and thought that he would be against the Wang family from now on if he joined the merchant alliance.

He laughed and said: "Brother Lu, Brother Lu, you are wrong about this. King Yan did not establish this business alliance to fight against others. It is just a big family that brings together merchants from all over the world."

After organizing his language, he said: "First, in the merchant alliance, you can get to know merchants from other states. This is a network of people. Second, the merchant alliance will have its own rules. For example, if merchants in the merchant alliance go to other states to do business, Merchants in the local business alliance cannot bully you and can only compete with you fairly. In this way, a good business environment can be established so that the interests of every merchant can be preserved. "

"Third, if merchants are blackmailed by officials, the merchant alliance will also come forward for them. Fourth, the merchant alliance will unify the prices of goods in the region. For example, the prices of rice and cloth in Yan County will remain roughly similar to prevent someone from going up or down. Sell……"

Yang He told the rules of the merchant alliance one by one.

Finally, he said: "Of course, as the initiator of the merchant alliance, the Yanzhou Commercial Bank will provide preferential treatment to the merchants in the alliance on goods from the palace, and you will be able to do business freely in Yanzhou in the future, and the government will protect your interests."

Then he smiled mysteriously and dropped a bombshell, "His Royal Highness also said that he may allow you to establish a workshop in Yanzhou in the future, for example, he will sell you the craftsmanship of the soap workshop."

"What!" Hearing this, Lu Lin could no longer remain calm.

Yang He just smiled. According to King Yan, they only need to keep the core of soap manufacturing, the caustic soda process.

The caustic soda was sold to merchants at high prices to ensure the royal family's profits, and they were allowed to establish their own workshops in Yanzhou for production.

This can quickly increase the supply of soap.

In order to avoid the waste of manpower in Yanzhou and enrich the population of Yanzhou, the palace will also introduce preferential policies to allow merchants to bring craftsmen from other states.

In this way, it not only attracted a large number of merchants to build workshops in the four northern counties, but also introduced a large number of high-quality people, killing two birds with one stone.

"I'll join, Brother Yang, you must let me join." Lu Lin suddenly held Yang He's hand tightly.

He admitted that his heart was moved, and that it was crazy.

Yang He showed a satisfied smile. For him, the first step of the grand plan was taken.