Chapter Nineteenth: The Mindset of Buying and Selling

  "This young man is Qiao Yu, isn't he? He's really accomplished at a young age! I'm truly happy for Brother Qiao to have such an outstanding son!" Li Yaoting stretched out his old hands with liver spots and grasped Qiao Yu's hand, looking very affectionate.

  Li Yaoting has been in Sichuan for many years, with a deep network of connections. He is also sworn brothers with the father of the Governor of Sichuan, Cen Chunxuan, Cen Yu Ying. His status is very high, and some people even call him the "Prime Minister out of office". Qiao Guangyuan has had some dealings with him, and regardless of age or social standing, Qiao Yu should show respect to this elderly man.

  "Old sir, you're being too polite. It's actually you who is still vigorous in old age and a great banner of the Sichuan business community!"

  "Ah! What a big banner, even if it is a big banner, the old man will hand it over to someone more capable today. Come on everyone, let's go inside, the old man doesn't have much to entertain you with, but there's still fragrant tea, please help yourself!"

  The crowd followed Li Yaoting into the main hall, with over 200 merchants attending the gathering. Only about twenty people were qualified to sit in the main hall, while the rest could only make it to the courtyard. However, the Li family had made preparations and set up tents, which were decorated elegantly. After everyone was seated, Li Heyang waved his hand, and countless maidservants flew out like butterflies, floating over to serve tea to the merchants.

  These maidservants were all around seventeen or eighteen years old, delicate and slender, each wearing silk clothes, with elegant figures. Just these maidservants alone showed that they had been carefully selected. Although the White family was also a wealthy household, after all, they couldn't compare to the Li family in terms of their history of prosperity, so how could they have the energy to select such excellent maidservants?

  Although everyone was envious in their hearts, they all knew that major events came first. After simply taking two sips of tea, Li Yaoting put down his teacup and coughed lightly: "The old man is grateful for everyone's mistaken love, having been the president of this Chamber of Commerce for six years now. My body is getting worse and my energy is not what it used to be. For the development of our Chongqing business community, I think we should re-elect a young and vigorous president to lead everyone. What does everyone think?"

  "Haha, Old Master Li, you should be the one, considering your high prestige and reputation. However, since you voluntarily resigned as the president, I think it's unacceptable for our country to be without a leader for even a day. We can't be without someone in charge, so we should re-elect a new president."

  The speaker was a fur merchant. Qiao Yu did not know this person, and Wang Gui whispered to him with his head down, "This man's surname is Xie, and he is related to Huang Baiwan by marriage!"

  Logically speaking, Huang Baiwan is not in an advantageous position. He should have tried his best to retain Li Yaoting, even if he couldn't let him continue to serve, he should have tried to win over Old Li's favor, but instead, he seemed eager to drive Li Yaoting away, it's really interesting.

  "Thank you, boss, what he said is that the old man had long intended to retire and yield to others. Let's elect a new president then!"

  Li Yaoting finished speaking, closed his eyes and didn't say a word. The old man seemed to have some discomfort in his heart as well. Before he even left, the tea had gone cold. Was it that urgent? Couldn't they even exchange a few pleasantries? The old man didn't speak, so no one else dared to break the silence either. After a long while, it was still that fur merchant with the surname Xie who spoke up again.

  "Gentlemen, we need to elect a president. In my opinion, this president must be a person of great wealth and influence, who can lead us to do great things and make a lot of money. I recommend Huang Baiwan, Mr. Huang. His business is booming, and his family is very wealthy. Both the underworld and the legitimate world have to give face to Mr. Huang. Even foreigners are polite to him. Nowadays, it's the foreigners' world. Whether it's the British Empire or the Japanese Empire, with just a flick of their finger, they can turn some people's proud factories into dust. You all should know what's going on!"

  "What does 'thank you, boss' mean? Is Huang Ye eating foreign food?" Wang Gui asked with a cold smile. He had already tied his interests with Qiao Yu's and at this time he absolutely could not fall behind, this was all about human relationships.

  "Wang Gui, whether I eat Western food or not is none of your business. Even if we take a step back and don't care what kind of food it is, as long as we can eat our fill, it's better than starving to death! Everyone may be unhappy in their hearts, but I want to tell everyone that I've already negotiated with the British Empire and have become the sole agent for coal oil in Sichuan. This coal oil is a good thing, which household doesn't need lighting? I'm not saying this to show off, but to tell everyone that even if we get just a little benefit from those foreigners, it's enough for us to strive for our whole lives! We're all businessmen, who don't have any grudges against silver. If I become the president, I will definitely not forget about all of you! You all think carefully about this!"

  Huang Baiwan spoke up, and although his words were shameless, they seemed to have a bit of twisted logic. Many people nodded along as if in agreement. Li Yaoting's eyebrows twitched slightly, and the flesh on his face quivered. Qiao Yu, however, showed no change in expression, slowly savoring his tea. In fact, Huang Baiwan's words represented the thoughts of many shameless businessmen, a type of person known as compradors.

  The comprador class is a major cancer in modern China. China was forced to open up to the world, opening its markets and allowing foreign goods to flood in, causing the country's wealth to flow out massively. To change this passive situation, it is necessary to strive for industrial development and have one's own manufacturing industry to regain control over profits. The comprador class, relying on the protection of foreigners and their own privileges, helps foreigners sell goods while plundering China's resources and enjoying the leftovers given by foreigners.

  These people are undoubtedly a group of vampires, plundering China's resources while suppressing the survival space of national industries. China's wealth is being sucked dry bit by bit. Since modern times, especially after the Republic of China, China's industry, particularly heavy industry, has not developed at all. For decades, it still relied on some factories left over from the Qing dynasty to manufacture guns, cannons, and steel. This bleak situation is closely related to the rapid development of this comprador class. It can be said that their carefree lives are built entirely on the suffering of ordinary Chinese people.

  Wang Dongcheng coughed and said loudly, "Everyone, Huang Laozhu has already shown us a clear way, which is to be slaves for the foreigners, to help them plunder our wealth, and live on the charity of our foreign masters. Does anyone want that?"

  The businessmen present, although they agreed with Huang's proposal, did not dare to admit this nickname. Wang Dongcheng scanned the entire audience and continued: "Everyone, doing business is difficult, but it is a good thing that benefits the country and the people. The profit is far more than what can be obtained by working for foreigners. I own 10% of the shares in Liren Textile Factory, and the first month's dividend is 5,000 taels, which means the factory earned 50,000 taels in one month. This is just the first phase of the factory, and now the second phase has been completed, expanding the production capacity by more than three times. At this rate, it can be said that the investment will be recovered within a year. The prospects for other factories are also very good. Such achievements are largely due to Mr. Qiao's planning. I, Wang Dongcheng, have never admired anyone in my life, but Mr. Qiao's talent and character have made me surrender. That's why I am willing to support Mr. Qiao wholeheartedly. Everyone can think about it: working for foreigners is limited by the number of people, and maybe those present here are less than 1%. With the development of factories and industries, everyone has the opportunity to become a shareholder and enjoy the benefits of industrial development. What to do next, everyone should carefully consider!"

  Wang Dongcheng's words were reasonable and moving, and he also took out the profits of Limin Textile Factory as an example. Everyone knew that the textile factory made money, but they never thought it could make so much money. The balance in their hearts tilted further towards Qiao Yu.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, since Boss Wang has praised me, I'd like to say a few words. As we're all experienced in business, I believe you all understand the importance of capital circulation. Money can only create more wealth when it's in motion; otherwise, no matter how much money you have, it's just a number. This isn't just true for one industry, but for the entire society. Money is like blood - only when it flows freely can people be healthy. When we run our own factories and earn money, we'll continue to invest, driving more industries to develop. Workers will spend their wages on goods, nourishing Chongqing's commerce as a whole. On the other hand, helping foreigners means they'll take their profits and invest them in themselves, selling us more goods and earning even higher profits. Our own 'blood' will keep flowing out, making us weaker and weaker. If this continues, I dare say that at least half of you will go bankrupt, struggling to preserve your current businesses!"

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