Hanyang Ironworks

  In spring, Jiangning Prefecture is a place of song and dance along the Qinhuai River, with a scene of prosperity.

  In the main hall of the Hui Garden, located in the former site of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's Heavenly King's Palace, which had been rebuilt as the Governor-General's yamen of the Two Rivers, Liu Kunyi, a high-ranking official of the late Qing dynasty who had served as the Governor-General of the Two Rivers for over twenty years, lay on a couch wearing casual clothes. His eldest son, Liu Nengji, stood behind him, while Zhang Jian, Yi Shundeng, and Fu Kaisen sat at the lower end of the hall. Lin Xue, however, stood at attention on the other side, dressed in a five-rank military uniform, his face respectful but his heart seething with discontent: "Damn it! Even that foreign devil Fu Kaisen gets to sit down, while I'm stuck standing here like a punished schoolboy!"

  Liu Kunyi, however, seemed to be dozing off, with his eyes narrowed and occasionally casting a glance at him, as if savoring the taste. On the low table in front of him was spread out a painting done by Zhang Zong's own hand: a desolate and barren landscape beyond the Great Wall, an army advancing into the wind, an old general with white hair standing beside the only withered tree on the mountain, gazing out into the distance.

  "The old general supports the zither to leave the border town, and regains the old rivers and mountains of ten thousand miles; Two hundred years later, the wheel tower road, Zuo Gong's willow under the words of that year!" Liu Kunyi read the poem on the painting in a low voice, suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Lin Xuan: "Is this poem written by you?"

  "Yes, it's something I happened to come up with. I hope the elder will correct me!" Lin Chou could only lean forward again, adopting a posture of seeking guidance.

  "I dare to correct what, Zuo Wenxiang would be delighted if he saw someone praising him like that, and might even take you as a close friend! Unfortunately, he can't read it himself." Liu Kunyi said.

  "The junior only spoke the truth, but whoever has been to the northwest will surely tell the story of how Wenxiang Gong led tens of thousands of Xiang soldiers out of the border and recovered Xinjiang! I have read history and observed contemporary people, and I only admire one person, Left General Wenxiang!" Lin Chong said with his head held high and a serious expression.

  Liu Kunyi straightened his back a bit, stared at Lin Chong for a while, and suddenly said: "How are you a military officer?"

  "The junior generation has been favored by the ancestors, and is helping to take care of the military affairs with the duty of guarding." Lin Chui bowed his head and replied, thinking in his heart that this old fellow wouldn't be using the name of his superior to bully him, would he?

  "Oh, I wouldn't have remembered if you hadn't mentioned it. Liu Shengsan had written to me about this matter before, asking me to take care of it. Are you from the Lin family in Taiwan?"

  "Yes, Dongjun owes it to the great Ci Tai for his support and was able to preserve and rebuild after the turmoil. The Lin family of Wufeng and all the people of Dongjun are deeply grateful to you!" Lin Xuan replied, although Dongjun's preservation benefited from Liu Mingchuan's recommendation, Liu Kunyi had actually made a significant contribution.

  "When Shengsan entrusted me with his last wish, how could I not fulfill it?" Liu Kun thought of the Xiang Army's veterans who had fought together to conquer the heavens, and now only he was left, his expression turned gloomy. Then suddenly changed the subject: "How did you think of opening a coal mine?"

  "This is mainly at the request of the gentry and merchants of Yuanzhou, Sheng Xuanhuai set up an official mining bureau in Shangli, and the merchants of Pingxiang are afraid that he will encroach on their interests!" Lin Chong said: "When Sheng's family took over the Hanyang Iron Factory from Xiang Jun's hands, they promised to raise 10 million yuan from the merchants. Now three years have passed, but only a few million yuan has been raised, and the operation is not good. It's just using the official funds of the China Merchants Bureau to maintain the iron factory's livelihood. Now his management of the Pingxiang coal mine is also relying on borrowing foreign loans, regardless of whether the factory and mine make a profit or loss, it's all about Sheng's family benefiting."

  Liu Kun didn't speak, but after a while he said: "I heard Ji Zhi say that the Dashi Factory was able to start work thanks to your strong support. Now it's thriving, and your vision is indeed very good!"

  "The junior is also for personal gain, but believes in Mr. Ji's vision and ability."

  "Haha, merchants are profit-driven. I've heard Ji Zhi has been praising you as a business genius. I've never seen him praise anyone like that before, not even Yuan Weiting who became the Governor of Shandong. I heard he's made a fortune from several deals?"

  "The junior is just luckier, this speculative business doesn't deserve Mr. Ji's praise." Lin Chui said with his head down.

  "Ah, it's good that you understand this point. Relying on clever tricks is not a long-term plan after all. I'll agree to your request and consent to the establishment of the Pingxiang Mining Bureau." Liu Kun's face showed some smile, rarely did this young man have such a clear head, "However, as for opening up the mine, the two provinces can't come up with that amount of silver. The account from 1894 hasn't been settled yet, and this time it's said that the Eight-Nation Alliance is asking for 100 million taels of white silver, and Beijing is still occupied by others, so this compensation is unavoidable. Local governments are already struggling, and this time they can't come up with the silver either."

  "This mining matter doesn't need Master Tai to worry about it, I will definitely handle it perfectly."

  As for opening a mine, others also chimed in. Lin Xue's plan was to invest around 5 million yuan in coal mining and build a railway to Zhuzhou, but this still needs Zhang Zhidong's approval, after all, Hunan is his territory.

  "If he really disagreed, then the railway would be built to Yuanzhou, and transportation along the Gan River would also become possible." Lin Chong said.

  Liu Kun smiled and said: "Zhang Nanpi is not as bad as you all say, you won't have much trouble building the railway."

  Liu Kunyi immediately ordered his subordinates to handle the official documents and licenses for opening Pingxiang Coal Mine, and sent an official document to Li Xingrui, the new governor of Jiangxi Province, asking him to assist in handling it.

  After a few days, Lin Xiu received the business license of Pingxiang Coal Mine from the Commercial Bureau and went to the Governor's Office to bid farewell. This time, Liu Kunyi met him alone and only said some irrelevant encouraging words. Just as Lin Xiu was about to leave, he heard Liu Kunyi suddenly say: "Take two battalions of Dongjun to Yuanzhou, where the gentry are not easy to mess with. Besides, you have made a lot of money from private salt in recent years, don't think I don't know. This year is the Empress Dowager's birthday, so donate 3 million as a gift, it's also a filial piety!"

  Lin Xiao's cold sweat broke out, it turned out that his family had long known about his partnership with the salt merchant to sell private salt under the guise of Dong Jun's inspection. This old man just said one sentence, and he himself had lost half of what he had earned from selling private salt over the years, and he still had to pretend to be willing and without complaint.

  It's really unbearable to be grasped by the small handle and let people take control.

  Lin Xiao had no choice but to obediently follow Liu Kunyi's orders and painfully donate 300,000 taels of white silver.

  The spring breeze was refreshing, and Liu Kun's heart felt even more comfortable as he looked at the 300,000 taels of silver on the table that Lin Xiang had handed over. The imperial court had allocated 500,000 taels for repairs to the imperial palace in the two rivers, and he had managed to scrape together the remaining amount with ease. Lying on a bamboo reclining chair, smelling the fragrance of flowers in the garden, he seemed to have fallen asleep.

  Liu Nengji sent Lin Xiao out of the door and quietly walked to Liu Kun's side.

  "Father, aren't you afraid of being looked down upon by treating him this way?"

  "Humbug! This young whippersnapper has never been worthy of my consideration!" Liu Kun didn't even bat an eye, raised his hand to touch the silver notes on the table, "This time I've finally vented the evil air in my chest."

  "But he seems to be very respectful towards you?"

  "That's him coming to me with a request, this kid is quite bold, he has his eyes on the Hanyang Iron Works. I'll set up a stage for him and let him perform with Sheng Xuanhua, now it's Zhang Nanpi's turn to have a headache again. Whether or not he can win over Sheng Xuanhua depends on his own abilities." Liu Kun let out a long sigh: "Two hundred years from now, the wheel of fate will turn again, and the words spoken under the willow tree that year will come true. Left Wenzheng's life has been worthwhile, I wonder when I'll be able to do the same!"

  At this time, Lin Xiu, who was scolding Liu Kun on the boat, could not have imagined that if he had been able to flatter and praise him a few words in person, Lord Liu's knife would not have fallen so heavily.

  Pingxiang had already formed several coal-producing areas, including Gaokeng, Anyuan, Xiangdong, Shangli and Chishan, during the Guangxu period. The annual output was about 2 million tons, but they all belonged to the old-fashioned earth-opening wells with low mining efficiency.

  Sheng Xuanhuai, after the Wuxu Reform, saw Wen Tingshi lose power in the court, and had the intention to monopolize the Pingxiang coal resources. Using the excuse that the Wenguangtai Fu business could not fulfill the contract of supplying coal and coke to the Hanyang Ironworks, he sent Mo Yinfan and Lu Hongkang as representatives to set up the Hanyang Ironworks Coal Affairs Bureau in Shangliao, starting to use official power to openly take over local merchants' coal mines.

  But recently, Zhang Zanchen, the general manager of the Coal Affairs Bureau, found that it has become very difficult to acquire local businesses that were previously squeezed out of business by the Mining Bureau. After inquiring carefully, he discovered that a new Pingxiang Mining Bureau had been established in Liangjiang, which absorbed these originally bankrupt businesses through equity participation in mines and coalfields. The merchants who had sought to sell their mines and coalfields to the Coal Affairs Bureau no longer took it seriously.

  Zhang Zanchen hurriedly ran to Shanghai to find Sheng Xuanhuai, but Mr. Sheng was accompanying Li Hongzhang in Beijing negotiating the Boxer Indemnity with foreigners. Back and forth, by the time Sheng Xuanhuai returned to Shanghai, half a year had passed, and most of the mines and coal pits in Pingxiang had fallen into the hands of Lin Kuai's Two Rivers Pingxiang Coal Mining Bureau.

  Sheng Xuanhuai, in a rage, ordered the Hanyang Iron Works to stop purchasing coke from the Pingxiang Coal Mine, which only served to worsen the already poor situation at the Hanyang Iron Works, resulting in even greater losses.

  Lin Zong suddenly felt at ease, anyway the coal mine needed to be transformed into machine excavation, and it was no problem to settle the existing workers. Moreover, many economic forests such as tung oil, camphor trees, tea gardens, and mulberry gardens on the mountain where the coal mine was located also needed to be developed. Sheng Xuanhuai played this trick right in his heart, and Han Yang Iron Factory would not be able to withstand its huge losses for long, even Zhang Zhidong would not be able to bear it.

  Indeed, Sheng Xuanhuai found Zhang Zhidong, and old Zhang was furious, saying "Liu Kunyi, aren't you undermining my authority?" He then sent a telegram to Liu Kunyi to question him. In response, Liu Kunyi replied that he felt it was not suitable for Sheng Xuanhuai to borrow foreign loans to open mines, and since the gentry and merchants of Yuanzhou were willing to raise funds on their own to operate the mine, he agreed to let them do so. Later, old Liu guaranteed to Zhang Zhidong that the Pingxiang merchants would provide coal to the Hanyang Ironworks at a price three taels lower than that of Shanghai coal, in order to meet the needs of the Hanyang Ironworks. The coal and coke produced would be prioritized to meet the needs of the Hanyang Ironworks.

  What I mean is that all this is for your consideration, Old Zhang. Isn't that enough? You can't always be stretching your hands into the territory of the two Jiangs.

  Zhang Zhidong hit a soft nail and had nothing to say.

  After holding on for more than half a year, Sheng Xuanhuai finally couldn't bear it anymore. The Hanyang Ironworks was losing tens of thousands of taels of silver every month, and the steel produced was also unqualified, which no one could tolerate.

  Sheng Xuanhuai actively asked Zhang Zhidong to resign, and Zhang Zhidong repeatedly persuaded him to stay. Sheng Xuanhuai proposed that if you don't get the Pingxiang Coal Mine for me, then I will leave.

  Old Zhang's face showed difficulty, this matter is quite difficult to handle. The Pingxiang Coal Mine has Liu Kun's backing, so the imperial court must intervene to resolve it. It can't be done in a few years. Moreover, the Empress Dowager is currently busy with how to return to the palace and doesn't have the energy to manage this matter. When Sheng Xuanhuai saw this, he had no choice but to give up on the Hanyang Iron Works. Although this mess wasn't a fat meat for him either, in his heart, he hated Lin Kuai to the bone.

  Sheng Xuanhuai left, and the Hanyang Ironworks stopped production again. Zhang Zhidong was impeached by court officials once more, who said that the ironworks he had established in Hanyang were a waste of money. Old Zhang sent a telegram to Liu Kunyi, saying that the current state of the Hanyang Ironworks was due to Liu's obstructionism, and now that he was in trouble, Liu couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

  Liu Kunyi called Lin Xue to Jiangning and showed him Zhang Zhidong's telegram, saying: "Lin Xue, aren't you eager for the Hanyang Iron Works? Now is your chance. I have taken the liberty of acting on your behalf, saying that you are willing to take over the Hanyang Iron Works."

  Lin Xiao said: "When did I say that I wanted to take over the Hanyang Iron Factory? You can't wrong me like this, sir."

  Liu Kun said, "Don't try to deceive me with this. What was your intention when you wanted to take over the Pingxiang Coal Mine? You think I couldn't see through it? Go and complain to Zhang Nanpi if you want. Let me tell you, right now Zhang is furious with you."

  "Let's drag Zhang down for a while and calm him down, so we can discuss the price."

  "Alright, I'm afraid Zhang Nanpi will suddenly get angry and send soldiers to capture you."

  "Governor, we also have troops in our hands."

  "Oh, I had forgotten about this. You little scoundrel, you dare to rebel against me?" Liu Kun glared at him with wide eyes.

  "How dare I!"

  "It's okay if you know, Zhang Nanpi is a person who loves face, when you meet him, say some flattering words, never argue with him."

  Lin Xie returned to Shanghai from Jiangning, still feeling a bit unsteady, and again found Zhang Jian and Xu Jilian to act as guarantors. These two men had a good relationship with Zhang Zhidong.

  Wen Tingshi has now moved to a new mansion near the shipyard in Yangshupu, where Mei Ze is located. The two of them discussed continuing to buy coal mines. When Lin Xuan was about to leave, it was Mrs. Gong who saw him out. At the door, Mrs. Gong took out a letter, "Young Master Lin going to Wuchang to see Commander Xiang?"

  Lin Xiao nodded.

  Mrs. Gong handed the letter to Lin Xiu's hand, "After arriving in Wuchang, bring this letter to Liang Dingfen under General Xiang's command. This person is very trusted by General Xiang, and after seeing this letter, he may speak on your behalf, but don't mention Yunge's name in front of him."

  Lin Xiao somewhat half-believed and half-doubted as he took over the letter.

  Back at the shipyard, Lin Xuan told Zhang Jue about this matter. After thinking for a moment, Zhang Jue opened his mouth and said: "Do you know who this Mrs. Gong is?"

  Lin Xiao shook his head.

  Actually, Mrs. Gong was originally the wife of Liang Dingfen. Wen Tingshi and Liang Dingfen were both disciples of Chen Lin, a famous Confucian scholar in Guangdong Province. The two had a shallow relationship. Liang Dingfen was successful in the imperial examination and became a jinshi at the age of 21. At that time, he was a renowned talented young man. After becoming a jinshi, he married Mrs. Gong as his wife. Mrs. Gong was beautiful and talented, and their marriage was envied by many scholars in the capital city. Liang Dingfen had a straightforward personality and considered himself a member of the literati. During the Sino-French War, Li Hongzhang advocated for peace talks, which infuriated Liang Dingfen. As a result, Liang submitted a memorial to the throne impeaching Li Hongzhang, accusing him of six major crimes punishable by death. However, Li Hongzhang was not punished, while Liang Dingfen was found guilty and demoted five ranks by order of the Empress Dowager. He was also fined and sent to the Taichang Temple to serve as a musician. The Liangs were furious and resigned from their official positions, leaving the capital city.

  Liáng Dǐngfēn left Beijing, and due to having no stable income, he entrusted his wife and children to his good friend Wén Tíngshì to take care of. Unexpectedly, Wén and his wife developed feelings for each other over time, and Madame Gōng even followed Wén Tíngshì back to Jiangxi to start a new life together. When Liáng Dǐngfēn heard the news, he was furious and divorced Madame Gōng with a letter of divorce, also cutting ties with Wén Tíngshì. However, this actually brought happiness to Wén Tíngshì, as the two were able to openly live together as husband and wife.

  However, it is said that there are some hidden reasons behind this. Liang Dingfen did not remarry after this and seemed to have always remembered Gongshi. Some people also say that Liang Dingfen was born with a disability and could not perform his husbandly duties, so he simply allowed the good relationship between Wen and Gong to continue. Indeed, Liang Dingfen seemed to have spared Wen Ting's life, if he had reported this matter to the authorities, Wen Ting's official career would have been ruined. However, Wen Ting's behavior was really despicable and unforgivable, after all, a friend's wife is not to be trifled with. In this matter, Yunge did something that was really out of line." Zhang Jie shook his head and sighed, Wen Ting had long been known for his talent, but his official career had always been unsuccessful, probably due to this incident.

  "It turns out there's such a story behind it, no wonder Mrs. Gong told me not to mention Yun Ge's name in front of Liang Dingfen!" Lin Chong finally understood.

  A few days later, Zhang Jingyao, Xu Jiayin and Lin Rong arrived at Hankou by boat together.

  Lin Xiu personally handed Gong Furen's letter to Liang Dingfen, but unexpectedly, this chief teacher of Zhang Zhidong looked at it with no expression, and didn't know what he was thinking.

  Governor-General of Hubei and Hunan Zhang Zhidong is worried about the Hanyang Ironworks in his hands. Due to the tight finances of the Hubei provincial treasury, it has no power to continue investing money in the ironworks. The ironworks he presided over have been shut down for several months. Sheng Xuanhuai insisted on resigning and Zheng Guanying also resigned as the general manager of the ironworks. He can only ask his son-in-law Chen Nian to temporarily take charge of the Hanyang Ironworks.

  Zhang Zhidong was resting in the backyard of his office, revealing a head full of sparse gray hair and drooling from the corner of his mouth. At this time, Chen Nian came over and said, "Father-in-law, that Lin Anhua is asking to see you outside the office!"

  "I don't know!" Zhang Zhidong shook his head and then lifted his hand to wipe the saliva from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve.

  "It was Liu Zhitai who mentioned on the telegram that rich businessman willing to take over the iron factory, and also came with Zhang Jizhi and Xu Zhonghu. I remember when I went to Shanghai last year, Xu Zhonghu was busy supervising the construction of a shipyard for this person." Chen Nian said loudly, now the old man's memory is not very good, he has already forgotten what happened just a few days ago.

  "Oh, since it's Zhang Jizhi and Xu Zhonghu who have come, then please hurry up and invite them in."

  Zhang Zhidong knew that the Lin surname tycoon mentioned by Liu Kunyi and others was very young, but he didn't expect him to be so young. He looked up and down at Lin Xiang with a skeptical gaze, not daring to believe that this ordinary-looking young man in his twenties standing before him was indeed the "first-class industrial and commercial genius of the Qing Dynasty" whom Liu Kunyi and Zhang Jian had repeatedly praised.

  "Are you Lin Anhua?"

  "Yes, junior is right!" Lin Xiao replied with his head down, but his face was respectful.

  "Hum, it's indeed your doing, forcing Sheng Xuanhuai to resign from the iron factory. I was just looking for you to settle accounts!" Zhang Zhidong said sternly, "At such a young age, with such an unscrupulous heart!"

  "What I'm doing is indeed to drive away Mr. Sheng!" Lin Chong said, raising his head. "Mr. Sheng has been in charge of the Hanyang Iron Factory for more than three years now. Has the factory's operation ever improved? I just can't bear to see your hard work being squandered by others, so I had no choice but to take this approach."

  "So you're using this cunning trick for my sake?" Zhang Zhidong snorted heavily, "You first tell me all the reasons, I want to see how you can justify yourself!"

  "Coal and iron are the foundation of modern industry, and the establishment of the Hanyang Iron Factory is a very wise move. It's not something that can be accomplished by just anyone, but rather requires someone with great foresight, wisdom, and courage like yourself. This move has opened up the way for China's modern industrialization, and in the future, when people talk about modern industry, they will have to mention your name and the Hanyang Iron Factory. The Hanyang Iron Factory is not comparable to the dozens of factories that Li Zhongjian has established over the years.

  However, I must say that at the beginning of the factory's construction, the decision-making was somewhat hasty, and the management of the iron factory was similar to that of a government office, with many redundant employees, wasteful spending, and corrupt practices. These are things that cannot be hidden from view. I have observed Western iron factories, and those with a scale similar to Hanyang Iron Factory's only cost around 30 million taels to build. Why did the Hanyang Iron Factory need to spend 50-60 million taels? The waste of funds is enormous, and it's no wonder that there are so many rumors and criticisms about this. These words are spoken in sincerity."

  Zhang Zhidong's complexion turned very bad again.

  Since the iron factory was built, I'm sure you've also been worried and know that the purchased steel furnace is not suitable for the iron factory. If you want to produce qualified steel, the iron factory needs to re-purchase a Thomas basic steel furnace, which costs around 300,000 silver per unit, plus iron ore, coal mines, etc., totaling around 8 million more investment, so that the steel factory can maintain normal operation. This is also where you are having trouble.

  In fact, large iron factories in Western countries have larger scales and higher production volumes, with lower costs for smelting steel. On the contrary, smaller production volumes cannot make a profit. I heard that several major iron factories in Germany and the United States often have assets worth tens of millions, and it is impossible to make a profit without such a scale.

  Lin Xue didn't care about Zhang Zhidong and continued to talk, "I admire your courage and vision in building the Hanyang Iron Factory, but I couldn't bear to see the iron factory decline day by day. So, I'd like to take over the management of the iron factory, willing to invest all my family's assets, worth tens of millions, into the iron factory. If we can't produce qualified steel within three years, I won't take a single penny, and you can take back the iron factory and let someone else manage it!"

  "What if I don't agree?" Zhang Zhidong said, Lin Chong had staked his entire fortune of 10 million to shock him, but he couldn't stand the arrogance of this young man. Does that mean old Zhang has become a beggar?

  "China is vast, iron ore can be found everywhere." Lin Xiao smiled, you don't agree, I can go elsewhere, without first making you surrender, how can we discuss terms again.

  "Preposterous!" Zhang Zhidong slammed his hand on the table, and he really wanted to throw this young man into prison for his impertinence. But with Zhang Jian and Xu Jiayu still by their side, he could only seethe with rage, slamming down his teacup instead.

  "Get out!"

  De, Lin Xiao didn't say a few words and was driven out by this Zhang Da Shuai.

  "Anhua, you've gone too far this time. Xiangshuai is the kind of person who only responds to softness, not hardness. This matter will likely end in failure." Xu Jianyin complained after leaving the government office.

  "Haha, it's not that serious, the old man understands, as long as he wants to make this iron factory a success, I'm not worried he won't come knocking on my door after a while. This is me setting conditions for him!" Lin Xiao said with a smile.

  Zhang Jue smiled but did not speak.

  In the Governor's Garden, Chen Nian was persuading Zhang Zhidong, "Father-in-law, Lin Shou is young and arrogant, don't bother with him, taking care of your health is more important."

  "Haha, what's going on? Ah, I'd have beheaded him long ago if I were truly angry." Zhang Zhidong said, "You see how arrogant he is? This little guy is being clever, pretending to be stupid and waiting for me to make a move, how could I give him the chance to speak?" Turning his head to look at Liang Dingfen who was standing silently beside him, "Jieyuan, what do you think we should do now?"

  "I heard that Zhang Jizhi has opened a silk factory and this son has helped him a lot. Moreover, the shipyard he opened in Shanghai is very large, even Xu Zhonghu is willing to work for him. If these two people didn't have some real ability, why would they personally act as his spokesperson? Your Excellency might as well give the iron factory to him. At that time, the tens of millions of family assets he invested in coal mines and iron factories will all be in your hands, so you don't have to worry about him not listening to you."

  "Haha, still, Jie Yan knows me well. I'd like to see how deep this kid's Tao is!" Zhang Zhidong laughed and said, "Let him cool off for a few days, after a while he'll open his mouth to any condition, and I can just agree to everything first."

  Several days later, Lin Hui was summoned to the Governor's Office again. This time Zhang Zhidong was much more polite. In fact, his requirements were not excessive. Firstly, if the steel rails produced by the iron factory were qualified, the domestic railways should give priority to the use of Han Yang products when purchasing steel rails. The second point is that for convenient transportation, Lin Hui can build a railway in the name of the iron factory. The third point is that the operation of the iron factory will be managed by Lin Hui, and the government will not interfere. One or two silver dollars will be deducted from each ton of steel produced to repay the official loan, and after the principal is repaid, it will become a profitable capital for the government.

  Zhang Zhidong immediately agreed to Lin Shou's conditions, making Lin feel a bit unreal. Is the old man plotting something against me?

  In the autumn of 1902, Zhang Zhidong petitioned the imperial court for approval, and Lin Shou officially took office as the general manager of Hanyang Iron Factory. Due to his donation to repair the imperial palace and his achievements in handling industry and commerce, he was specially appointed as the Jiangxi Hou Bu Dao with a third-class rank and awarded a single-eyed flower plume.

  Another "red-hatted merchant" has emerged in the Qing dynasty, but now the imperial court is really short of money, and these red hats are flying all over the sky, which can't be considered rare.

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