I founded a heavy industry group in the late Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 118 The Guest is Powerful and Unpredictable

Chapter 118 The Guest is Powerful and Unpredictable

Chapter 117 "General, Amin has escaped, but not far. This subordinate can take Amin's head—"

"What would I do with his head?"

Hada chuckled and said, "Master, this servant—isn't this just a way to press our advantage and leave another batch of Jurchens behind?"

"The Jurchens are like gamblers who have lost everything. If we continue to pursue them, they will inevitably retaliate at all costs. At that time, we may end up losing more than we gain."

Chen Ying was well aware that not only Hada, but also Bianhamutai and even Bomubogor wanted to strike while the iron was hot and make a killing. In particular, the soldiers of the Daning New Army were extremely eager to make a name for themselves. The soldiers of Chen Ying's Shahe New Army and the Daning New Army were hoping to take as many heads as possible and be rewarded with more land.

In this battle, Chen Boying not only won the battle, but more importantly, the Jurchens suffered heavy losses. They would be unable to recover their strength for at least two or three years. By the time the Jurchens recovered, Chen Boying would have already established a firm foothold in Shuangchengwei. However, the problem was that, after Chen Boying's persuasion, they quickly calmed down.

In particular, the soldiers of the Shahe New Army were almost out of ammunition. The number of hand grenades on each soldier had dropped to single digits, and there were very few artillery shells left. They could no longer fight a major battle. If they continued to fight, they might end up like Qi Jiguang's army in the Battle of Hunhe, without any ammunition. They were indeed too exhausted to continue fighting.

As for the Wolf Cavalry still being able to fight, that's because during this period of fighting, they only took on the task of flanking cover. If they were to directly attack the Jurchens, they really wouldn't be able to win.

With Amin leading two or three thousand Jurchen cavalrymen in a disarrayed retreat, the battle between the two cities, which had lasted for more than half a month, finally came to an end.

In this battle, Chen Ying committed almost all of his capable troops to the front, fighting the Jurchens along a front of more than 1,300 miles from Shuangchengwei to Xianping. Of course, this battle was actually a one-sided beating for the Jurchens. With superior equipment and the high morale of the Ming soldiers, Chen Ying completely crushed the Jurchens, beheading 28,000 and capturing more than 4,000.

In addition, three thousand Mongol cavalrymen surrendered voluntarily. Among the Eight Banners of the Jurchens, the two Yellow Banners led by Nurhaci were severely damaged. Eleven Jiala Ejen and thirty-one Niru Ejen were killed. Nurhaci suffered a crushing defeat that he had never experienced since he started his rebellion. Chen Ying not only preserved Shuangchengwei, but also intimidated the Nurgan Commandery.

In this battle, the Ming army, including the newly established Daning New Army, suffered a total of more than 2,400 casualties, of which more than 700 were non-combat casualties. The Daning New Army suffered the heaviest non-combat casualties, but of course, it also gained the most. They not only preserved Shuangchengwei, but also used the deterrent effect of this battle to successfully rebuild Asujiangwei, Sulanwei, Nanguan, and most of the Haixi Pacification Commission, returning to the territory of the Ming Dynasty. Chen Ying and his Daning Army were greatly encouraged.

However, before Chen Ying could feel any better, and before he could return to Shuangchengwei, dozens of officers, including Liu Yuan, the commander of Xingzhou Left Garrison, Wang Han, the commander of Xingzhou Right Garrison, Li Chengdong, the commander of Xingzhou Front Garrison, and Zhang Chengying, the commander of Xingzhou Rear Garrison, came to find Chen Ying, their superior.

"We, your humble servants, pay our respects to the Commander-in-Chief!"

Chen Ying asked curiously, "Why are you here?"

"My lord, we want to rebuild the garrisons, but the problem is, the imperial court hasn't allocated any funds. Where are we going to get that much money?"

Liu Yuan, representing Wang Han, Li Chengdong, and others, pleaded poverty to Chen Ying.

Chen Ying looked at these garrison officials as if they were idiots and said, "How could we possibly not have money?"

Liu Yuan honestly replied, "To be honest, Commander Chen, the imperial court owes our Xingzhou Left Garrison thirteen months' salary. If it weren't for your help, Commander, we wouldn't even have enough to eat right now, let alone the money to build up the garrison city."

"Holy shit!"

Chen Ying said irritably, "Have you all lost your minds? You have no money, but the land I've allocated to you has vast forests, iron mines, coal mines, and copper mines. Can't you earn it yourselves? Trees in the forest, cut them down and transport them to Yongning, and they're silver. There are mines in the mountains, and plenty of fish in the sea. These are all meat that's practically on your lips! Why don't you use your brains? You deserve to starve!"

Wang Han explained with a mournful face, "General, we've tried cutting down trees, but we can't sell them—"

Chen Ying frowned, his gaze sweeping back and forth across the faces of Liu Yuan, Wang Han, Li Chengdong, and Zhang Chengying. Seeing that they didn't seem to be joking, he asked, "Explain in more detail."

"My lord, you are wise. Yongning Port is now dominated by the Huizhou merchants. This is a classic case of the powerful bullying the weak!"

Liu Yuan sighed, pulled a crumpled ledger from his sleeve, and handed it over with both hands: "General, please take a look. This is the price list for our Zuotunwei's transactions with Huizhou merchants. For top-grade pine wood, one side only pays one fen of silver; for first-grade sable fur, one piece only pays six qian. As for ginseng and pearls, they are even discounted to less than 20% of the market price. When we cut down a tree and transported it to Yongning Port, after deducting labor and transportation costs, we still have to pay an extra qian of silver. Forget about making a profit, we actually lose money."

Liu Yuan felt increasingly aggrieved as he spoke, and continued, "I originally thought that since the commander-in-chief had given us a way to make a living, we could work hard, cut down trees, quarry stones, and fish to earn enough to eat. But those Hui merchants, relying on the exclusive rights the commander-in-chief gave them, have been squeezing the prices down. If we don't sell to them, the goods will rot in our hands; if we sell to them, we'll lose so much that we'll have to pawn our pants."

Wang Han chimed in, "The same goes for the Qiantun Guard. I sent men to hunt some furs and mountain goods, hoping to exchange them for some grain."

But that Hui merchant surnamed Cheng drove the price down to below cabbage. He only offered one tael of silver for a top-quality fox pelt. When my men tried to reason with them, they said, "Take it or leave it, it's up to you. This—isn't this bullying?"

Li Chengdong and Zhang Chengying also complained, saying similar things.

Chen Ying flipped through the account books, his face growing increasingly grim. He seemed to have figured out the reason for the problem. The Donglin Party didn't want to see Nurhaci destroyed by him, so they came to plead for mercy. Su Mei stabbed them in the back, demanding 1.5 million shi of grain and 1.2 million taels of silver. They had regretted their decision after seeing Nurhaci successfully escape back to Shenyang and the Jurchens were safe.

"You may all return first. I need to understand the situation."

Chen Ying picked up a pen and wrote a note allocating 10,000 shi of grain to each of the four garrisons to ensure their survival for the time being: "Since you can't sell it right now, use this timber to build houses and solve your housing problem first!"

"This humble general thanks the Commander for the reward!"

The Xingzhou Situnwei currently has between 50,000 and 80,000 people. 10,000 shi of grain is enough for them to eat sparingly for more than half a month. Half a month is enough for Chen Ying to investigate the situation and find a way to solve the problem.

"Please have Director Su come over here!"

Chen Ying finally got into a four-wheeled carriage. As tens of thousands of troops advanced, the road surface had been trampled into ice, and the carriage could travel on it. Although sleds were more labor-saving, they were extremely tiring for the buttocks. Sleds had no shock absorption devices, and traveling on ice felt like riding a roller coaster. The experience was indescribably unpleasant.

Upon returning to Shuangchengwei, Chen Ying, without waiting for Su Mei to bow, immediately asked, "Has our Chen family's business ever been subject to price gouging by Hui merchants?"

""

Su Mei shook her head and said, "No, the prices the Cheng family has given us have always been very fair. Pine wood is one and a half qian per cubic meter, sable fur is four and a half liang per piece, and top-quality ginseng is twenty to fifty liang per piece, which is several times higher than the prices given to the Xingzhou Four Garrison Guards."

Chen Ying sneered: "Heh—what a fine word of fairness! This is just playing favorites."

Su Mei smiled slightly: "Your Excellency has won a great victory this time, and the imperial court will surely reward you handsomely. They would not dare to offend you!"

"They dare not offend me, yet they dare to punish my subordinates. Don't they know that the Four Garrisons of Xingzhou are now under my jurisdiction?"

Chen Ying slammed the account book on the table and stood up abruptly: "When Cheng Yi came to me, he wanted to cooperate. I granted them the exclusive rights to Chen's products because the Cheng family was a long-established Huizhou merchant family and they were very sincere. But they just picked up the bowl to eat the meat and then smashed the pot after putting down their chopsticks?"

"What does the adult mean?"

Chen Ying paced back and forth a few steps, then suddenly stopped: "Su Mei, in the name of Chen Ji, invite Cheng Yi to come and talk. Tell him that I have some ideas about the current cooperation method that I want to discuss with him."

Su Mei nodded and said, "Yes. But sir, Cheng Yi is a very shrewd man. He dares to lower the price, so he must have his reasons. If you— I'm afraid things won't end well."

Chen Ying sneered, "I won't get angry. I'll reason with him. If he understands, great; if not, then I'll find someone else who does. But I'm armed with a sword; if reasoning doesn't work, then let's settle things with swords and spears!"

Three days later, in the back courtyard of the Da Ning Commandery, Shuangchengwei.

Cheng Yi sat upright in the guest seat, a smile on his face, his demeanor composed. Behind him followed two managers and a young waiter, all of them shrewd and capable.

Chen Ying sat in the main seat, with Su Mei standing beside him. Liu Yuan, Wang Han, and the other four guard commanders sat below him, all with a hint of trepidation on their faces.

"Mr. Cheng,"

Chen Ying cut to the chase: "I've heard that you've been doing a lot of business with the Four Guards of Xingzhou lately?"

Cheng Yi smiled and said, "Yes. I am extremely grateful for the kindness of the lords of the Four Guards."

Chen Ying also laughed: "Then I'd like to ask, did Mr. Cheng take care of them? Top-grade pine wood, one cent of silver per square piece; first-grade sable fur, two qian of silver per piece. How did Mr. Cheng set these prices?"

Cheng Yi remained calm and replied, "General, you are wise. In business, what matters is genuine goods at fair prices and fair transactions."

The timber and leather goods from the four guards were of varying quality, and there was significant damage during transportation. This price was already the highest Cheng could offer. Besides, the Cheng family was transporting the goods all the way to Jiangnan, incurring costs at checkpoints, shipping fees, and labor along the way. If the price was too high, and the goods couldn't be sold in Jiangnan, Cheng would also suffer a loss.

Liu Yuan couldn't help but say, "Mr. Cheng, the price you gave Chen's was not like this, for the same pine wood—"

"Commander Liu, you're mistaken. I personally inspected Chen's goods, and they are indeed top-quality. As for the Fourth Guard's goods—" He smiled and didn't finish his sentence.

Wang Han's face turned red with anger: "You—"

Chen Ying raised his hand to stop him, looked at Cheng Yi, and slowly said, "Mr. Cheng, I have a few questions I would like to ask you."

"No, please speak, General."

"First, was the timber used by the Four Guards harvested from the same forest as the timber used by my Chen family?"

Cheng Yi's smile faltered slightly: "This—"

"Secondly, were the furs from the Four Guards acquired from the same group of hunters as the furs sold to me by the Haixi Jurchens?"

Cheng Yi fell silent.

"third,"

Chen Ying's voice suddenly turned cold as he slowly said, "I gave you the monopoly back then, and now you think you can take it back at any time? You, Cheng Yi, treat my people like cattle and horses, buying the trees they painstakingly cut down and the goods they harvested at bargain prices, then reselling them in Jiangnan to make a fortune. Do you think I, Chen Boying, am blind?"

Cheng Yi was extremely nervous. He was genuinely afraid that Chen Boying would chop him up with a knife. But the problem was, he was just the head manager and couldn't make the decision. He stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "General, please calm down. I had no such intention. It's just that—it's just that the goods from the Fourth Guard are indeed not as good as Chen's. Besides, this business was mutually agreeable, and I never forced anyone to buy or sell."

"Mutual consent?"

Chen Ying sneered, "If they don't sell to you, who will they sell to? In the entire Da Ning, only your Cheng family has the exclusive right. If you drive the price down, they won't sell to you, and the goods will just rot in your hands. Is this a mutually agreeable arrangement?"

Cheng Yi's forehead was beaded with sweat: "General, this—this is the rule of business. I'm just following the rules—"

"rule?"

Chen Ying stood up, looking down at him. "Mr. Cheng, tell me, what are your rules? Is it taking advantage of someone's misfortune? Is it exploiting them to the bone? Or are you just taking advantage of my people's ignorance of the rules?"

Cheng Yi took a step back, and the two accountants behind him also changed their expressions.

Chen Ying said, enunciating each word clearly, "I will give you two options. First, reprice the goods; the goods from the Four Guards will be purchased at Chen's price."

"Make up for the previous losses. Second—your Cheng family, get out of Daning. I'm giving the monopoly on the border trade to someone else."

Cheng Yi's face turned deathly pale. He never expected Chen Ying to be so resolute.

"General! The Cheng family has a prior agreement with you, you cannot—"

"Why can't I?"

Chen Ying coldly said, "I'm keeping you around so you can work for my people, not so you can suck their blood."

If you can't do it, I'll find someone else. Your Cheng family isn't the only one in this world wanting to do this business.

Cheng Yi opened his mouth, then finally lowered his head: "General, please allow me a few days to consider this."

"Three days."

Chen Ying held up three fingers. "I want to see the new price in three days. Otherwise, you will take your men and leave Da Ning."

Cheng Yi and his men slunk away.

Liu Yuan and the others were both surprised and delighted, and knelt down in unison: "General, you are wise! We are deeply grateful!"

Chen Ying helped them up. He knew very well that the four guards were not the cause of the incident; they were merely collateral damage. The Donglin Party had begun to target him, and this was just the beginning.

"Su Mei, I'm here!"

Chen Ying said calmly, "There might be some changes to our shipment. We need to find a replacement supplier for the Huizhou merchants immediately."

'

"Sir, are you really going to replace the Huizhou merchants?"

"It's not that I want to replace them; they broke the rules first. So why keep them around for the New Year?"

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