You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 83 Yongli Tongbao
The manager of Chang Family Bank was sweating profusely.

"Not familiar at all, not familiar at all."

"is it?"

Jiang Qingyun's voice was almost a hum from his nose.

The Eight Great Merchants of Shanxi: Qiao, Chang, Cao, Hou, Qu, Kang, Fan, and Kong.

In the sixth year of the Shunzhi reign, which was last year, Jiang Qingyun borrowed 3000 taels of silver from the Cao family's bank.

In the 7th year of the Shunzhi reign, after the loan matured, he borrowed another 30000 taels of silver from the Qiao family to repay the Cao family.

Now, six months have passed. Jiang Qingyun noticed that the money in his account was running low, so he decided to borrow another sum.

……

I have long heard of Imperial Censor Jiang's infamous reputation as an "official butcher".

Taking the initiative to visit someone's door is more likely to bring bad luck than good.

Suddenly, the shopkeeper remembered the Baoquan Bureau at the entrance of the alley. Rumor had it that the new ambassador of the Baoquan Bureau, Zhou Shao, had a close personal relationship with this murderous god.

“Imperial Censor Jiang, I have heard Ambassador Zhou of the Baoquan Bureau mention you.”

"is it?"

Jiang Qingyun's expression visibly softened, and his tone changed as well.

"Yes, yes. When Lord Zhou took office last month, the Baoquan Bureau held a grand banquet, and I was among those invited."

Jiang Qingyun signaled to the guards.

"come."

"What are your orders, sir?"

"Go to Baoquan Bureau and see if Zhou Shao is there. I'll go to his place at noon to ask for a drink."

"Yes."

……

After saying that, Jiang Qingyun stared at the shopkeeper.

"I would like to borrow some silver from you. It's not much, just 5 taels, to be repaid in one year. As for the interest, it will be based on the market rate. The borrower is the Nancheng Military Command Office, and the office will provide the official seal as collateral."

"Alright, alright. But please understand, sir, we can only pay 2 taels of silver in cash first. The remaining 3 taels will have to wait for the master's approval."

"Okay, let's draw up a written agreement."

The shopkeeper then realized that Jiang Qingyun had actually brought the official seal with him.

Judging from this, they're determined to get the money.

However, it's not impossible that he couldn't borrow the money. Given the character of this Imperial Censor Jiang, if he couldn't borrow the money, he would definitely mobilize troops to block the gate.

Which of the eight great families would dare refuse to lend?

The status of imperial merchants, the involvement of nobles, and connections in the capital were merely protective shells. If things turned sour, the Chang family would have to rely on others, while this Imperial Censor Jiang could exert his influence directly.

Businessmen do not fight with officials.

……

noon.

Baoquan Bureau, Qianliang Hutong.

As soon as Jiang Qingyun stepped across the threshold, he felt the sweltering heat.

"Old Zhou, is this the Flaming Mountain?"

"I have 20 coin-minting furnaces in my office. They suffer a bit in the summer, but they're fine in the winter. By the way, what brings you here today?"

"Close the door first."

The two went inside and sat down.

Jiang Qingyun grinned mischievously:
"I borrowed some silver from the Chang family's bank. By the way, do you have anyone hindering you at the Baoquan Bureau?"

"Thanks to you, everyone in the Baoquan Bureau is obedient, afraid of offending me and being sentenced to exile in Ningguta by the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate."

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

The day before Zhou Shao took office, Jiang Qingyun, under the pretext of eliminating Dorgon's remnants, sent troops to arrest several Manchu and Han ambassadors of the Baoquan Bureau. The arrests and evidence were obtained on the same day.

They were not only remnants of the criminal gang, but also embezzled public funds. The evidence was irrefutable, so they were directly ordered to confiscate their property and be exiled.

The three judicial departments—the Censorate, the Ministry of Justice, and the Court of Judicial Review—signed their approval.

……

"Old Zhou, I have a bold idea that I need your cooperation with."

"what?"

"Come here."

Zhou Shao was shocked by Jiang Qingyun's words.

"Yongli Tongbao, is this idea feasible?"

"can."

"Really?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

Jiang Qingyun laughed heartily, and Zhou Shao laughed along with him. Who else would you trust if not your brother?

"Old Zhou, if we brothers want to change this world, we must first eliminate enough obstacles. In the process, we must desperately seize power."

"Political struggle is brutal; if we don't eliminate others, they will eliminate us."

"Third brother, I'll listen to you."

...At noon, the two of them had a small drink inside the government office.

Zhou Shao took out several brand-new Shunzhi Tongbao copper coins.

With just one glance, Jiang Qingyun saw the problem.

"This money contains too little copper."

"There is a severe copper shortage right now, so we can only mix it with iron and lead."

What will happen next?

"It can't be solved. There's a consensus within the Ministry of Revenue that unless they take over Yunnan or buy large quantities of copper from overseas, the Baoquan Bureau can only make do."

"What about the mints under the jurisdiction of each province?"

"They're all pretty much the same."

"Old Zhou, I'll say something taboo, but Zhu Youlang can't afford to collapse now. If he does, we're in trouble. If he holds on and the war continues, we'll have a chance to maneuver in the capital."

“I understand. The Eight Banners are too united and too powerful. If we could weaken them by half, or even more, the political landscape in the capital would be different, and we could gain more room for advancement. However, I lack confidence in the military leaders of the Great Western Army. Can they hold up half the country?”

"Will be fine."

Jiang Qingyun smiled slightly and raised his wine glass.

Historically, the Great Western Army was about to launch a major offensive, and Li Dingguo twice defeated famous kings, making him a formidable force in the southwest.

Afterwards, Hong Chengchou was appointed as the commander-in-chief of five provinces in a time of crisis. With his shrewd tactics, he once again dealt a heavy blow to the Ming army, extinguishing Zhu Youlang's last hope.

Things may have changed now.

……

After the meal, when Jiang Qingyun left, he gave her special instructions.

"Old Zhou, you must be careful throughout the entire process from mold making to forging, and you must not entrust it to others."

"Third brother, take care."

Take care~

After watching Jiang Qingyun leave, Zhou Shao inspected the coin-minting process every day and secretly memorized the procedures.

"Sir, it's too hot. Why don't you go out for some tea?"

"No rush, come and take a look at this copper coin."

"These are copper coins from the Ministry of Works' Baoyuan Bureau."

How to tell the difference?

"Sir, look, the character 'Tong' in 'Tongbao' is different in the two mints. The one with a triangle at the top and two dots at the bottom is the copper coin from the Ministry of Works' Baoyuan Mint."

Zhou Shao nodded, put his hands behind his back, and left.

……

Without stopping, Jiang Qingyun sent someone to find Green Pearl's biological father, Huang Dawu.

"This humble servant greets Your Excellency, the Imperial Censor."

Are you getting used to working in the bricklaying industry?

"I'm so used to it. Working in the city is ten times better than farming."

How many people are in the guild now?

"More than 200 people."

“Expand to 500 people. I’ve cleared out one or two streets near Yongdingmen. You go and build houses for me.”

"I wonder what kind of house you want to build, sir?"

"This red-brick courtyard house will be used to house the families of the brothers from the Five Cities Military Command. I'll have the blueprints delivered tomorrow. Go back and prepare now."

"Yes."

Huang Dawu left with his back bent. Since entering the city, his daughter, Lüzhu, had never seen him in private, nor had she given him a single coin.

……

After sending the message back, even more people came to my hometown in just a few days.

Looking at the fearful expressions of his fellow villagers, Huang Dawu finally felt like a master. He rolled up his sleeves, stood on a high place, and raised his right hand.

"Come on, I'll take you to work."

"Master Huang, what kind of work do we need to do?"

“Building a house pays 50 coins a day, plus two meals a day.”

Everyone was overjoyed.

Jiang Qingyun handled everything himself, from land and workers to bricks and tiles, making the entire process self-sufficient.

……

This year was the 7th year of the Shunzhi reign and the 4th year of the Yongli reign.

Prince Zheng, Jirhalang, who was over 50 years old, was stationed in Yongzhou City, Hunan Province. He commanded a large army, with the Three Princes as the vanguard, and launched a two-pronged attack. The fighting had been ongoing since the beginning of the year.

Objectively speaking, Jirgalang's military talent was quite average, ranking last among the founding princes. However, he knew that the Qing army's organization and battlefield will were far superior to the Ming army's, and that by attrition, they could win.

The Eight Banners mainly supervised the battles and occasionally participated in the fighting, while the Han army under the Third Prince of Shun undertook most of the battles.

For every 30 Han soldiers who died, only one Manchu soldier died.

Under strict orders, the Qing army fought a bitter and stalemate battle, which led to the collapse of the Ming army's morale.

The territory of the Southern Ming Dynasty continued to shrink.

The Southern Ming Dynasty was still embroiled in fierce internal strife.

(End of this chapter)