Spy game? Stop guessing, I really am an undercover agent!

Chapter 18: Buy it all
As is well known, transportation rights are generally held by the government's transportation department.

The Nanjing Reformed Government was no exception; transportation was usually managed by the Ministry of Transportation, including postal services, freight, shipping, and so on.

However, this Economic Department is somewhat different from other departments.

This department is responsible for the supply of logistical materials.

The Economic Department has a separate administrative body.

Temporary Tongji Office.

This department is responsible for transporting supplies and, in theory, can transport various supplies collected by the Economic Department and supplied to the army on its own.

Hiroichi Iwai had no idea why Chen Yang became so interested as soon as the topic of transportation came up.

He simply assumed that Chen Yang valued the position of Director of the Economic Affairs Department.

After all, this position is a real power position, and it also oversees the collection, allocation, and transportation of logistical supplies.

It could be said that every step he took was lucrative, and countless people within the Nanjing Reform Government coveted this position.

Hiroichi Iwai saw through this, which is why he overruled objections and arranged for Chen Yang to take this position.

Although the mainland had already adopted the policy of using Chinese to govern Chinese proposed by the Shanghai consulate.

However, these tangible benefits cannot be allowed to be embezzled by these people.

"By the way, you should also keep this invitation safe." Iwai Hirokazu took a sip of coffee and said, "This is an invitation to the banquet for the new government members to be held on the 19th of this month in the VIP room on the second floor of the Shanghai Racecourse."

"In addition to officials from within the new government, a team of advisors selected by the consulate will also participate."

"Let me introduce you to Lieutenant Colonel Yoshikumura Sonoda, the head of the advisory team."

"You can communicate with him if you encounter any difficulties in the new government in the future."

“You were sent from academia. The officialdom is not like school. It doesn’t care about ability, but about seniority and connections.”

"With Sonoda-kun behind you, I believe no one in the new government will dare to target you."

Chen Yang agreed with a smile, but he knew very well that this was a way to force him to side with the Japanese.

It's said that the Japanese are backing him up, but he still has to be the one to take the lead.

Hirokazu Iwai put down his coffee, stood up, and said, "Alright, I should go back now."

Chen Yang hurriedly stood up and said, "Senior Brother Iwai, let me see you off."

Hiroichi Iwai patted Chen Yang on the shoulder and said, "No need to see me off. Do a good job and don't let your teacher down."

As he spoke, he seemed to remember something else and leaned closer to Chen Yang, saying, "Write more letters to your teacher when you have time."

"New information has come from the domestic side that a proposal to restructure the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has recently been approved."

"Former director of the South Manchuria Railway, Mr. Matsuoka, will serve as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and my teacher has also been invited to serve as Permanent Vice Minister."

“You are his most valued student. If you don’t understand anything, communicate with him more. He can give you the most sincere advice.”

"I'll take my leave now, please don't see me off."

Such a thing is unbelievable...

No sooner had Iwai Hiroichi left than Chen Yang immediately asked his driver, Uncle Qi, to call Lin Yongren back from his shopping trip.

The news brought by Hiroichi Iwai was like sending charcoal in snowy weather.

Chen Yang wanted to establish a perfect sales network, and transportation was one of the most crucial aspects of that.

Just as he planned, the faster the speed, the faster he would make money.

Without a suitable transportation line, this speed will be entirely in the hands of others.

But if he has the ability to control the transportation lines, then it's a different story; he can use AI to calculate the most efficient operating route.

With the transportation problem solved, the other issues seemed much simpler. In the study on the second floor, after seeing Iwai Hiroichi off, Chen Yang immediately wrote a letter to Fujiwara Tomoo.

The letter mentioned the Osaka Chamber of Commerce's inventory clearance situation and his upcoming appointment as Director-General of the Economic Affairs Department.

Chen Yang was also puzzled as to why Fujiwara Tomoo, who had always shown little interest in political performance, would suddenly change his ways and accept the invitation to join the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

However, having spent several years with Fujiwara Tomoo, he was well aware of the Fujiwara family's influence in Kyoto.

Chen Yang could only say that his appointment as Permanent Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs was both reasonable and unexpected.

He originally thought that Fujiwara Tomoo was only concerned with academic research and had little interest in other matters.

In fact, he was also waiting for an opportunity.

A knock sounded on the door. Chen Yang put the envelope in the drawer and said, "Come in."

Lin Yongren, covered in sweat, walked into the study and said, "Young Master, you wanted to see me?"

Chen Yang smiled and said, "Ah Ren, where are your shops? Let's go take a look together."

“Young Master, it’s great that you have a target.” Lin Yongren said happily, “The shop is in the south, a good location, and the International Settlement is not far away.”

“There are hospitals and schools nearby, and the tenants’ leases just expired recently and they didn’t renew them.”

Chen Yang asked gently, "The lease expired and wasn't renewed? Why? Ah Ren, are you planning to take it back and do it yourself?"

"No, that's not it. Actually, if someone is willing to rent it, I don't want to go through all the trouble." Lin Yongren sighed and said, "Young Master, you've just come back, so you might not know the details."

"Originally, the merchants in the French Concession were all managed by Chinese directors, but after the outbreak of war last year, one of the two Chinese directors ran away."

"The remaining Mr. Zhang has always worked for the Japanese, and merchants large and small in the French Concession have a hard time surviving under his oppression."

Chen Yang frowned and said, "You mean that Boss Zhang is having protection money collected?"

Lin Yongren nodded and said, "Yes, and the fees aren't low either. Small merchants charge five silver dollars, and some large merchants charge twenty or thirty silver dollars. Our rent is only eighty silver dollars a year. If we add a protection fee of sixty silver dollars, wouldn't that be driving people to the brink of despair..."

"If you don't give it to him, he'll send the Green Gang to smash up the shop."

"This Boss Zhang is not as benevolent as Boss Du; he can stop at nothing to achieve his goals."

"Many businesses couldn't survive and had to terminate their leases and leave."

Chen Yang sighed inwardly, no wonder this Boss Zhang was later eliminated by the Military Intelligence Bureau, he really was a scoundrel.

"Come on, let's go take a look."

The French Concession, south of the HP district.

This place is right next to the International Settlement, so the flow of people is indeed quite large.

Chen Yang nodded slightly as he looked at the three shops lined up in front of him.

The location was indeed quite good, just as Ah Ren had described, which also proved that the eldest sister, Lin Jing, was indeed very good to Lin Yongren.

She actually gave him three shops as a wedding gift.

Guided by Lin Yongren, Chen Yang toured the three shops, which totaled about 100 square meters. In a place like Shanghai, the rent for a single shop would be between 80 and 100 silver dollars.

With these three shops in hand, even if you do nothing, you can still earn two or three hundred dollars a year.

“Young Master, what do you think? These three shops are the cleanest in the area. The tenants I chose are all handicraft businesses. I don’t usually want to rent to food businesses because I’m afraid they’ll damage the shops.”

Chen Yang nodded slightly: "The shop is not bad, but three rooms are really too small."

"Ah Ren, how much do you think it would cost to buy all six shops in this row?"

"what"

(End of this chapter)