Republic of China small businessman

Old Master Bai still has an appointment, and he will go out to visit friends later, Bai Jiu took Xie Jing to sit here for a while, agreed on a departure date, and left.

Xie Jing followed behind for a while, and suddenly said, "Master, can I..."

Master Jiu said: "No."

Xie Jing was silent for a while, and then said: "My master didn't even hear me finish, how do you know you can't?"

Master Jiu smiled and said, "I don't need to listen to know what you're going to say." He shook his head and repeated, "I can't take you with me after the year, the time left is too short, and there are too many things to do, you and Bai The two go to the Eastern Provincial Railway together to really share my worries."

Xie Jing thought for a moment, then nodded in response.

As Master Jiu said, the time is really limited, there is not even time to go back to the provincial government to buy luggage.Master Jiu asked everything to be kept simple, Xie Jing kept it in mind, and started to help pack things for the trip after returning home.

The rest is easy to say, only the clothes should be thick and warm.

Master Jiu is afraid of the cold, and the place he wants to go is the extremely cold place in the north.

While tidying up, Xie Jing couldn't help frowning, wanting to follow up several times in her heart, but swallowed the words again.

At noon, Bai Mingyu found Xiaolou.

Master Jiu is taking a nap in the afternoon, only Xie Jing is still packing clothes in the small hall outside. There are two packs of close-fitting clothes that have already been packed, and there are four or five winter fur coats on the table beside them, and three black mink underneath. A thick leather coat, the top is a snow-blue fur cloak, with a fluffy collar, it looks warm.

Bai Mingyu didn't disturb Master Jiu when he came over, he poked his head at the door and took a look, then threw a small red bead on Xie Jing's body.

Something like a red ball hit Xie Jing's body, and Gu Lulu rolled around and fell to his feet.

Xie Jing looked down, but it was a polished red coral bead.

Before he could pay any attention to it, Second Young Master Bai at the door threw several more. If it wasn't for the thick velvet carpet on the floor of this room, the sound of the light would have woken the sleeping Master Jiu inside.

Xie Jing packed Jiuye's fur coat, went to the door with her hands in her hands, and saluted him: "Second Young Master, hello..."

Bai Mingyu hurriedly covered his mouth, looked inside, and asked in a low voice, "Master Jiu is asleep?"

Xie Jing nodded, Bai Er covered her tightly, and he couldn't speak.

Bai Mingyu dragged him out, and when he got to the corridor, he said proudly, "Hey, do you know what Mr. Huang talked to me this morning?"

Xie Jing blinked and was thinking about how to reply when she heard Bai Mingyu who was standing opposite could not help bragging: "Mr. Don’t talk to you, anyway, you can’t understand—”

Xie Jing didn't say a word, thinking to herself, I'm afraid you didn't remember it either.

Bai Mingyu was elated, and finally got to the point: "Have you ever played chess with Mr. Huang?"

Xie Jing froze, trying to maintain a calm expression: "Usually Master Jiu and Mr. play chess, I... I'm not very good at chess."

Bai Mingyu's eyes lit up, and he became excited when he heard this!

He coughed, straightened his back and looked at Xie Jing: "Then do you know how many rounds Mr. Huang and I won after three rounds this morning?"

Xie Jing shook his head, he couldn't think of anyone who could play worse than Huang Mingyou.

Bai Mingyu stretched out a finger, still wanting to say: "Three rounds, I won one round. Mr. Huang's chess skills are good, and we fought hard. Although I lost a few pieces in the end, it was only a small defeat. There is room for improvement."

Xie Jing was surprised: "You lost? Lost to Mr. Huang?"

"What's so surprising about this? Mr. Huang's amazing skills, a generation of national players, it's normal to lose to him." Satisfied, Bai Er raised his finger and waved it in front of his eyes twice, "You need to know that even Jiu Ye's ten games There are always one or two rounds lost to Mr. Huang."

Xie Jing: "..."

Xie Jing: "Did Mr. Huang tell you that?"

Bai Mingyu: "Yes."

Xie Jing's mouth twitched, not knowing what to say for a while.

Bai Mingyu hooked up with him, like two good brothers: "Xiao Xie, sir, you said that you are too impatient in chess, and you cut yourself off after a few moves. If this doesn't work, he even asked me to help you with private tutoring."

Xie Jing shook her head immediately: "No, I only like to practice boxing and shooting, and I have no interest in playing chess."

Bai Mingyu said: "You've been wielding knives and guns all day long, you have to calm down, otherwise how will you please girls in the future? I heard from my elder brother that he used to go to my sister-in-law's house to play chess with Shibo, Then look for an opportunity to play chess with my sister-in-law, so why don't you take other girls to hunt in the mountains in the future?"

Xie Jing laughed and didn't deny it: "It's not bad to go hunting in the mountains, I can roast hares for him to eat."

Bai Mingyu clicked his tongue, and just wanted to say whose girl is so wild and loves to go hunting in the mountains.Before she could speak, a figure of a girl in a red riding suit, with a fiery red bow tie on her curly hair, was charming and heroic, and the smiling girl with a riding whip in her hand was Bai Hongqi—— Some time ago, he took Bai Hongqi as his "wife" in Russia and blocked a lot of wine shops, but it was the first time he thought of her after he came back, and for some reason his face felt hot.

Xie Jing was about to leave, but Bai Mingyu stopped him, and suddenly asked: "Hey, you...you don't like that one, do you?"

Xie Jing asked strangely, "Who?"

Bai Mingyu mumbled a name.

Xie Jing only confirmed those three words by looking at his mouth shape. She was amused for a moment, shook her head and said: "Of course not, she is the big shopkeeper of the branch family, and I only have to respect it."

Bai Mingyu relaxed a little, and then heard Xie Jing say: "But we may have to work with her in the next year, and Master Jiu said that we will go to the Eastern Provincial Railway."

Bai Mingyu frowned, that area is really under the jurisdiction of Baihongqi, and Baihongqi also does a lot of business, but the bulk of them are on the railway and road. I heard that this girl is very skilled.

He grabbed Xie Jing's hand, stuffed him with the rest of the coral beads, and raised his eyebrows: "I don't care, Xiao Xie, you are my good brother, no matter what happens, you can't get mixed up with her." , we have a deal."

Xie Jing inexplicably got a string of coral beads, and couldn't figure it out for a moment while watching Bai Er's leaving back.

In the previous life, Bai Mingyu and Bai Hongqi were enemies. They wanted to grab business and manpower, and they wanted to grab anything left by Master Jiu, no matter whether it was useful or not.

If it weren't for the "blood" connection, I'm afraid I'd have to hurt my muscles and bones before giving up.

Bai Hongqi is not the real Bai family, but her loyalty to Master Jiu is no less than that of Bai Er.

Xie Jing's impression of the two of them was deeply ingrained, and she couldn't think of going to another place for a while, so she collected most of the string of coral beads and went back.

Bai Mingyu did get a lot of treasures when he came back this time. It is estimated that the Qinghe Bai family did not miss him. This coral bracelet is of high quality, and it would sell for dozens of oceans elsewhere, but Bai Er took it apart and used it as marbles Hit, the second young master looks much taller, but his heart is still the same as before.

The new year's festival in Heihe is not as lively as the provincial capital, but it is also full of joy.

The Bai family in Qinghe held a grand banquet to entertain the guests.

Master Jiu and Old Master Bai sat in the private seats on the second floor, accompanied by only a few relatives, and no one disturbed them.

The old man had a good capacity for alcohol, Bai Jiu drank a few more glasses with him, and returned to the room after enjoying himself.

Xie Jing was not there, probably driven away by Bai Er.

Master Jiu chuckled, and didn't ask anyone to look for it. Let them have enough fun during the Chinese New Year.

He turned around and took a scroll from the shelf. When he opened it, it was an unfinished portrait with a handprint beside it.

It was late at night, but it was a little more lively than usual. There was the faint sound of firecrackers on the street outside, and there was the rustling sound of wind blowing snow on the window outside the window.

The ground dragon is very hot in the room, the small hall outside has the aroma of oranges and bergamot, and there is a jug of warm rice wine that has just been delivered.

Master Jiu picked up the pen and finished drawing the master in detail.

It seems that it has been engraved in my heart thousands of times, without thinking too much, I know where the next stroke should be. The person in the painting slowly emerges, looks like Xie Jing, and looks like him when he has grown up, more than Now she is a little less childish, but still reveals the innocence and arrogance of a teenager, with a proud body and clear eyebrows and eyes, like a river of stars.

He was the best boy who was raised by his side.

When Xie Jing came back, he was carrying fireworks from firecrackers on his body. He stood in the small hall and slapped the snowflakes on his shoulders. He took off his thick cotton robe before coming in.

Master Jiu sat there pouring tea and sipping from his cup, saw him and said, "Add some clothes, be careful not to catch a cold."

Xie Jing went over to ask for a cup of tea, drank it all in one gulp, and said with a smile: "It's not cold, Lord, touch my hand."

Master Jiu touched it to make sure it was warm, then crossed his fingers and pulled him towards him, asking, "Where did you run like crazy?"

"I went to set off some fireworks with the second young master. Did you hear that just now? There is a [-]-ring ring, and the sound is very loud. We lit it on the street!"

Master Jiu laughed and nodded slightly: "I heard it."

Xie Jing told him about the outside world, Master Jiu put one hand on his chin and listened, occasionally responded, just looked at him and smiled.

Xie Jing blushed at the sight, her voice became quieter, and someone moved over to kiss the corner of his lips.

Jiu Ye didn't move, just looked down at him.

Seeing Xie Jing kissing him like a puppy for a while, and finally licking and biting, she couldn't help laughing, stretched out her hand to hold his neck, and moved closer to kiss him.

His Jing'er won't.

He needs to teach him.

Years later, Master Jiu led the team on a trip.

Steward Sun Fu has been on the other side of the river, and he has kept a lot of people there. This time, there are not many people accompanying him, and the personal guards only brought Zhang Huwei and Wang Su.

Xie Jing and Bai Mingyu went to the pier to see them off together, watching the boat drift away.

Huang Mingyou also came to see him off at the pier, put his hands in his sleeves, squinted his eyes and smiled, "When your ninth master comes back this time, I don't know how much commotion will be caused."

Bai Mingyu reined in the reins on his horse, and his eyes were bright: "That must be, that is my ninth master, the three provinces of the Northland, and there is no one who is more powerful than him!"

Xie Jing was still looking at the river.

The ninth master of the Bai family has been the best since he was a child. He is made of ordinary gold and jade, has the best food and clothing, and is also top-notch in learning and conduct.

At the age of three, he was familiar with reading and reciting. At the age of five, he studied abroad for enlightenment.

In the past hundred years, the Bai family in Beidi has only produced one Bai Rongjiu.

In the year of Kuichou, March.

The provincial capital of the Northland, the Governor's Mansion.

The conference room was full of smog, and there had been several rounds of quarrels. Some conservative officials still insisted on their views, while some radical officials argued with them in public, and their verbal conflicts were severe.

"Few merchants can buy ships by themselves, transport goods, and sail overseas. Those who trade with foreigners entrust foreign merchants to consign and sell goods, and the distance is tens of thousands of miles. They are easy to be deceived, and it is difficult to make profits!"

"That's right, if you open a sailing route, you will see merchant ships coming in a steady stream. One country arrives, and all countries come from them. The three provinces and seven counties in the North will become a world of foreign merchants. Let foreign ships roam freely..."

"There is also the concession..."

General Bai slapped the table angrily, looked around, and the people around gradually quieted down.

The cigarette in General Bai's hand was already half lit, and he didn't notice it at all. The collar of the military uniform was opened two times. Although he was over fifty years old, he was still full of momentum. What kind of bullshit concession! Sooner or later, I will drive all these foreign devils back to my home, and the soldiers will not be able to move, and the money will not be able to move. I, someone, has decided to open this route!!"

The officials who had spoken to persuade them endured it before, and still stepped forward and said with a suffocated breath: "But how can the Bai family make an exception and set a precedent? The waterway is absolutely impossible. The governor thinks twice!"

General Bai looked at him coldly, his cheek muscles twitched, and before he could speak, he suddenly heard his subordinates knock on the door and call out a report, sending a secret letter.

General Bai was very upset. He opened it for a look, and suddenly burst out laughing. He stopped smoking the cigarette in his hand, and just pressed it into the ashtray to extinguish it. He passed the letter to the left and right, and asked them to pass it on, " Come on, you all have a look, that boy Bai Jiu has done a good job!"

After reading left and right, they looked at each other in blank dismay.

Rather than a report, the letter is more about the recent conflicts on the river.

Bai Jiu's men and the Japanese businessman's fleet clashed head-on several times. The Japanese businessman didn't know that there was a Russian freighter in his fleet and accidentally injured a Russian ship. for a long time.But it is also because of this that the two parties have feuded.

Someone hesitated: "This, if you want to annoy the Orientals..."

General Bai said: "So what if you get annoyed? It's a good thing to have conflicts, because if there are conflicts, it means that they have already threatened them. The more they dance, the more threats they have. Good boy! You can make those Japanese people like this , must have gnawed off a large piece of meat, good job!" He became more excited as he spoke, and laughed: "Come on, get the governor's seal, and the water and land trade regulations will be decided like this. Add 1000, add 500 buoys, waterway escort, and open night sailing——!"

The Bai family in Beidi has a lot of pawnshops, and most of the pawnshops are linked to banks.

The Bai family gave the money.

Heihe gave the momentum.

General Bai of the Provincial Governor's Mansion personally sat in the town and gave the most critical support.

The right time, the right place, and the right people are just a step away——

In this battle, there was no smoke of gunpowder, but the fighting was fierce.

The ninth master of the Bai family took care of every step, swallowing the fruit bit by bit.

At the end of March, there were 509 voyages of ships traveling by horse-drawn carriages on the Heihe River; by the beginning of June, the number of ships had increased to 1632 voyages; In the area of ​​Aihu and Aihu, cross-strait voyages have increased sharply. In addition to shochu, silk, porcelain, and medicinal materials are also exported. The total number of voyages is 3204...

Border merchants were busy going back and forth, and it was also the first year that the tax revenue of the three northern provinces increased sharply. In less than a year, the tax revenue increased by nearly ten million silver dollars.

The Russians banned alcohol more and more strictly, but the Baijia caravan has led many merchants in the Northland to operate other goods, taking advantage of the momentum and opening up a business route.

At the end of autumn and the beginning of winter, the river surface in the Heihe area is already cold.

Five large ships were sailing on the upper reaches of the Heihe River. In front of the large ships were two small boats. Several strong men on the small boats were beating drums to announce the arrival of the caravan.

Each big boat has more than a dozen people pulling the fiber on the shore and dragging the big boat to the wharf at the junction of the Shile River.

When some merchants saw the big ship coming, they could not wait to go to the river to exchange goods in small boats. When they got closer and saw the flags on the ship, they found that it was the Bai family caravan, and they all dispersed.Some were reluctant to leave, and they circled the big ship, trying to exchange some in-demand foreign goods such as glassware and soap. The big ship sailed into the port safely and did not stop.

The wharf had already arranged people to meet them, unloading the goods in a busy and orderly manner, and Jiu Ye and his party who got off the boat also greeted them early, and respectfully sent them to the carriage.

Jiuye has been gone for a year, he is a little taller, he looks thinner, his face is still handsome, his eyes are as dark and deep as ink pills soaked in a cold pool, showing coldness, he dare not face him See.But as soon as the weather turned cold, Master Jiu was already wrapped in a leather cloak, a crow blue one, which made his face porcelain white, almost transparent.

Master Jiu coughed lightly in the car, and the waiter at the side immediately handed over a pot of warm wine, and asked cautiously, "Master, did you catch a cold again?"

Master Jiu took it, but without drinking, he shook his head and said, "Fortunately, the wind and cold have not subsided for the past few days. Where have you been?"

The man said: "There is still a long way to go to the shop, Lord, how many days are we going to stay this time?"

Master Jiu pondered for a moment, and said: "Let Sun Fu stay here, but let him and Bai Mingzhe make clear about some trivial matters. The rest of the people will turn to Nanfang with me. Hong'er's letter mentioned several times about the Eastern Provincial Railway. Worrying about them not handling it well."

The man tried to persuade him: "Master, you are too tired after traveling all the way, why not rest here for a few days before going to Nanfang..."

Master Jiu raised his eyes to look at him, the other party's heart skipped a beat, he bowed his head and stopped persuading him, he answered, opened the curtain of the car and went out to give orders.

Eastern Provincial Railway, Nanfang District.

In the early years, if China and Russia wanted to travel, they had to travel through the Qiqihar dry road through Aihu and then to Heihe. Now that the Eastern Provincial Railway has been opened, the railway will go directly to the other side, and it will no longer pass through the territory of Hua.Moreover, the railway freight is cheap, only 75 kopecks for a piece of goods, which is liked by many businessmen, so many Russians gathered in Nanfang area, sometimes tens of thousands of them.

The Nanfang area is extremely lively, with many taverns and casinos, and it is bustling with people at night, and the lights look like daytime.

In the casino, a handsome young man was sitting there throwing dice. He was handsome and had slender fingers. After throwing the sieve, he leaned back slightly. Hearing what a man behind him bowed and said, he chuckled and counted all the chips Pushed to the front, all-in.

The next game started, and he won the grand slam.

This is the tenth consecutive win by the teenager.

The bets are won over and over again. Although the bets are small, there are more than 5000 silver dollars in ten hands.

A few Russians at the same table were impatient, but some were timid and wanted to slip away, and the people sitting opposite didn't stop them and let them go.

Seeing that the table was won, no matter how old or young, a wine seller leaned over to win some prizes, but when she got closer, she realized that the person sitting there with a pile of chips was a handsome young man of seventeen or eighteen years old. Ruo Hanxing, with a straight nose bridge and sharp-edged lips, carries the arrogance only cultivated in a big family.The wine seller saw that the center of her eyes was pale for a moment, she turned around and called out "Master", before she could say anything more, she was stopped by a man dressed as a servant in dusty clothes, and the other party turned pale Some, born fairly handsome, but not accommodating when he stopped talking: "Girl, it's inconvenient for our young master."

The wine seller was unwilling: "What's the inconvenience? I'm a man and I'm a woman. It's only natural for us to be together..."

The young man on the gaming table finished counting seriously, gathered up the chips, hugged him and shouted, "Li Yuan, let's go! Go change the money."

Li Yuan, who was dressed as a gray-robed servant, hurriedly followed. There were many people in the casino. He originally wanted to protect Xie Jing, but Xie Jing walked fast and steadily. The high chair made a way out for Li Yuanqing behind.

Li Yuan followed out of breath, and when he raised his eyes, he saw Xie Jing exchanging money.

A large handful of chips were given out, and a few thin silver bills were exchanged, as well as a handful of silver dollars and a few copper plates.

Xie Jing put all of them in her arms seriously, and even put the copper coins in her sleeves, a lot of money.

Li Yuan looked at the man at the money exchange window, and he was already glaring. He leaned closer and whispered, "Xiao Xie, do you really not give him any money? We won money yesterday, and it seems that we didn't give him any money."

Xie Jing raised her eyebrows: "Why did I give him the money I won so hard?"