Chapter 53: The Great Merchant Family

  The Maritime Merchant Clan

  After Yao Fang left, the three Li brothers began discussing Yao Fang.

  "This Yao Fang is really knowledgeable, he's simply a Western expert!" Li Jing sat down at the edge of the chessboard in the center of the large bed, patting his thigh in admiration.

  "This person's knowledge is quite miscellaneous, but it's clear and organized, obviously he has received a good education. With such a wealthy family background, they can send their children to travel and do business all over the world, they must have hired the best Western teachers at home, I think our American teacher White Dick can't compare with that. Mr. White only knows how to teach English, but where did he learn so much?" Young Li Mochou attributed Yao Feng's knowledge to his imagined family education in the Yao family.

  "This young man is only 26 years old, yet he has traveled extensively throughout the Western countries, having been to England, France, Prussia, Austria, Italy, and America! He's a living embodiment of the spirit of adventure across four continents! When I heard him talk about the customs and ways of life in those Western countries, as well as the etiquette of high society, he spoke with such fluency that it's clear he has immersed himself deeply in their cultures."

  He's young and has traveled all over the world, what a wonderful life he's lived! If I'm lucky in this life, I'd also like to travel to the Western world. Even if I spend the rest of my life at home taking care of my parents, I'll be content." Li Jingyu was also deeply moved.

  Li Jingyu was the most beloved daughter of Li Hongzhang and his wife, so she naturally dared to have such a grand dream.

  Young Li Mouyu smiled and said, "How can a girl like you go out so far? Father must not allow it. If mother heard about it, she would hurry to marry you off."

  Li Jingyu puffed out her chest and said: "Then I'll just marry a merchant, that way I can fulfill my dream of traveling the four seas."

  Li Jingfang laughed and said, "You've only just met Yao Fang for the first time, and you're already thinking of marrying him? Hmph, since you have this idea, I'll go back and tell Father about it. He can discuss it with him." After saying that, Li Jingfang and Li Deshu burst out laughing together.

  Li Jingyu saw the two of them making fun of her, and in anger, she threw a chess piece which floated gently and hit Li Jingfang's belly before rolling to the ground with a rumbling sound. She scolded angrily: "Big brother is bullying me! I'll definitely tell father about this when we get back!"

  Li Jingfang hastily comforted him, saying: "Big brother is just joking with you. This Yao Fang is just a merchant, how can he be worthy of our family's young lady? Our family wants to find a son-in-law, and at the very least, we should look for a scholar who has passed the imperial examination."

  Li Jingyu pinched the hem of her clothes and lowered her head, thinking: "If... if I were to find someone like him, would it be worse than being a scholar? Isn't it said that merchants value profit over separation? ... Ah! How can I think of such shameful things!"

  Three people were discussing in turns, and Fu Bo brought a servant carrying books back.

  "Three young masters, this is the book sent by Mr. Yao for you." Fu Bo took over the books from the hands of two family members and placed them properly on a simple desk with transparent tung oil against the wall.

  "It's actually in color! The Yao family is really willing to spend money!" Li Jingfang quickly stepped forward, took a book and clicked his tongue in admiration.

  "Wow, so many! Great!" Mr. Fu had just put the books on the table when Li Shu rushed forward and grabbed one, flipping through it with excitement.

  Li Jingyu looked through the book titles one by one and said: "The Yao family is really formidable, they can actually translate historical books!"

  Li Jingfang opened the first page, his eyes wide as a bronze bell: "It's not a translation, you see what it says here, 'Written by Yao Peng!' This... this is actually a history written by someone from the Yao family for those Western countries!"

  "...I think of the hardships my family endured, crossing the vast ocean to trade with Western countries. After settling in Europe, I felt a deep connection to its history and thought that if I could record it all with a Chinese brush, the twists and turns of fate would be revealed to our descendants, showing them the rise and fall of civilizations..."

  My family, the Yaos, have been traveling merchants among various countries for a long time. Collecting and compiling historical materials and illustrated records from Western countries is quite convenient. Therefore, at great expense, I recorded the history of these countries, accompanied by colored illustrations, to provide a reference for my descendants.

  "All the coloured pictures were taken with a Seagull camera made by the Yaohua factory, and then carefully hand-painted and coloured by skilled craftsmen to achieve a true-to-life effect. Descendants should study them carefully, appreciate them in their hands, but not show them lightly to others..."

  Li Desheng's hands trembled as he flipped through a book on the history of the British Empire, excitedly saying: "So that Queen Elizabeth was like this! My god, the Yao family isn't afraid of offending those foreigners' taboos!"

  "Who would have thought that the Yao family, a wealthy and cultured household, would spare no expense in compiling a history of foreign countries after their business dealings, and not forget to educate their children on culture!"

  Li Jingfang sat at the edge of the table, flipping through the book in his hand with a dazed expression, nodding repeatedly: "He must have a large family and enormous wealth, and be deeply connected with Western countries. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to write like this. But how did the Yao family become so powerful? I've never heard of them before. I only know that the thirteen trading houses in Guangzhou are incredibly wealthy, but none of them know how to spend money on researching Western countries to broaden our Qing scholars' horizons. Compared to the Yao family, they're just a bunch of pigs who only know the smell of copper!"

  Li Jingyu flipped through a Cambridge illustrated edition of ancient Greek history, her first time reading it, she didn't look at the text, only gazing at the colorful pictures inside, one by one, the temples and Greek sculptures' color plates left her staring in awe.

  "This Yao family is probably too wealthy, afraid of being famous and unwilling to show off their wealth? Their family can actually intervene in the internal affairs of France, providing financial support to that Napoleon, this is not something an ordinary family can do!" Li Jingyu said, looking at the painting, half speaking to his brother, half muttering to himself.

  Li Jingfang shook his head while reading a book: "What I said earlier was wrong, the Yao family is indeed not an ordinary merchant... If... if Yao Fang is the eldest son of the Yao family's main room, it would be worthy of my sister."

  Li Jingyu heard that the topic was about herself again, and she hastily scolded: "Big brother just spoke a few serious words, but here you are talking nonsense again! I'll definitely report this to Mother when I get back!"

  Li Jingfang smiled and changed the subject, saying: "It's just that the layout of Western books is really strange, with text arranged from left to right, and the pages are also turned from left to right, it's really awkward."

  "Probably just following local customs, big brother, you see that Yao Fang didn't even keep his queue."

  Li Jingfang nodded and stopped talking.

  Thus the three sons of the Li family found their best pastime in this sweltering heat, fully concentrating on reading books, occasionally praising a sentence or two, taking out Chinese history and comparing it with foreign countries in the book, and then marveling at it...

  As the evening approached, none of the three Li family members were willing to put down the book, and they really couldn't bear to part with it. It was still Li Jingfang who was calm and composed, looking up and saying: "Let's have dinner, the book won't grow wings and fly away."

  Li Deshu sat on the kang with his back against the wall, holding a book and reading with great interest. He shook his head and said, "I won't, I want to finish it quickly. Tonight, even if I don't sleep, I will finish it. That way, tomorrow on the road, I can ask Brother Yao for guidance."

  Li Desheng said, "I think it's better this way. Tonight we'll set up a banquet and invite Yao Feng over for a drink. I heard from Fu Bo that his book chest is very large and there are many books inside."

  This remark immediately piqued the interest of two other bookworms, and Li Mou hastily said: "Great idea, big brother! Otherwise, after parting ways in Jinan, where would we find such good books to read? These are also the precious private collections of the Yao family, and even if you spend money, you can't buy them outside!"

  I said, let's give him some nice words later and offer him more money, we must buy all the remaining books from his hands.

  Li Jingyu said disdainfully, "Second brother is really foolish in his words. The Yao family is so wealthy, are they short of money? A few hundred taels for a bicycle, he didn't even blink when saying he wanted to give it to you two, does he care about money?"

  Li Desheng was still a young man, and he anxiously said: "This is hopeless, we can't steal it."

  Li Jingfang saw that he was talking nonsense and scolded: "What are you talking about, stealing books is such a shameful thing, you also have the nerve to mention it, really getting more and more absurd. In short, I think Yao Fang is a broad-minded person, as long as we get familiar with him, borrow from him to read, he may not refuse."

  Li Desheng clapped his hands happily and said, "Great idea, big brother! After borrowing it, you just say you lost it and ask for a lot of silver. We'll just compensate him and that's it."

  Li Jingfang scolded, "The more you talk, the more embarrassing it is. If Father hears about it, he'll surely give you a good thrashing. This was originally a elegant and refined matter, but you've made it sound so unpleasant."

  "In my opinion, once we arrive in Jinan, we'll reveal our identities to his father. Since he's a businessman, he'll definitely try to curry favor with us. When the time comes for us to ask him to lend us some books, it will be only natural. Of course, we won't take advantage of him without giving anything in return. We'll also introduce him to some influential people in Jinan Prefecture, which will make his future business dealings smoother. Isn't this a win-win situation?"

  Li Desheng said, "Let's do it! We still get along well with Brother Yao, and helping him is reasonable. Fu Bo, hurry up and arrange a banquet, the best table setting, big brother, let's go invite Brother Yao together."

  "Alright, I think he should be awake by now."

  Li Jingyu originally wanted to say "I'll go too", but as soon as she thought of Yao Feng's previous seductive appearance, her face immediately turned bright red and she couldn't speak.

  "I read in a book that ancient Greeks revered nudity, men and women bathing together. Is this Yao Fang not infected with the Westerners' habit? If so, it's truly shameless..." Li Jingyu thought to herself, her face flushing with embarrassment.

  Then the two brothers of the Li family went to invite Yao Fan.

  Yao Fan had been awake for a while and was discussing the next day's itinerary with his companions. Considering that they would be traveling with the Li family, Yao Fan asked the ten big companions to pass on the message, which meant asking everyone not to speak idly or crudely on the road, as they were traveling with government officials' families, and not to mention anything that might offend them or be considered rude.

  Two young men from the Li family came to invite him to a banquet, and Yao Fan agreed at once.

  Yao Weng slept well and woke up in good spirits, and the three of them started chatting again.