Dreaming back to 1949, the great powers were there to deceive us

November 4, 14 a.m.

At Shilipu Wharf, Hu Zhenhua had been waiting for more than ten minutes.

Suddenly, a whistle sounded in the distance. Hu Zhenhua quickly stood up and looked in the direction of the sound. A huge cargo ship was slowly entering the port.

The first batch of cotton ordered by Tongan, 1200 tons, is about to arrive.

This batch of cotton was handled by Jardine Matheson, which purchased it from the Nanyang region and then transported it to Shanghai in just a few days.

Jardine Matheson manager Thomson and textile tycoon Mr. Rong stood beside Hu Zhenhua.

This batch of cotton will be entrusted to Rong's yarn factory for weaving, printing and dyeing.

While they were chatting and laughing, the huge ship had come to a steady stop, with thick ropes securing the vessel firmly.

The stevedores lined up in neat queues, ready to board the ship and unload the cargo, with happy smiles on their faces.

For them, they are not afraid of hard work or fatigue, but they are afraid of having no work to do!

Hu Zhenhua looked at another ship next to him. It seemed to be carrying grain, and the unloading was already more than half completed.

The loaders bent over, carried the heavy sacks with their strong arms, and walked with steady steps to transport the sacks to the warehouse.

Their faces, beaded with sweat, gleamed in the sun, their eyes revealing tenacity and diligence. The crane's boom slowly rose and fell with a dull roar, hoisting bundles of sacks and stacking them precisely. The air was filled with the distinctive salty aroma of the docks. The whistles of ships, the shouts of workers, and the hum of machinery blended together to create a busy and vibrant melody of labor.

Thomson watched the crew members slowly walk down and said with a smile,

"Hu, we can unload now!"

Hu Zhenhua waved his hand.

"Mr. Thomson, don't be anxious. Let's inspect the goods first. This is our first time working together, so let's go through the process!"

Thomson laughed.

"No! No! No! This isn't the first time we've worked together. The first time was a loan!"

Hu Zhenhua also laughed and started chatting with Thomson.

Lao Hu's request to inspect the goods was not without purpose. In the early morning, Mr. Rong told him a story from the past.

Before the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, China was the world's third-largest cotton producer, boasting nearly 6500 million mu (approximately 1700 million hectares) of cotton fields and producing over million dan (approximately million dan) of lint. China had also successfully introduced fine-staple cotton from the United States, and the quality of its cotton cloth rivaled that of its American counterparts. The cotton textile industry was undoubtedly a pillar industry in old China.

However, due to currency devaluation and unreasonable exchange rates, China's cotton industry was quickly defeated.

In February 1946, the Nationalist government set the exchange rate of the legal tender to the US dollar at 2:2020. At this time, the legal tender had depreciated by more than 1 times compared with the period before the Anti-Japanese War, but the exchange rate had only risen by more than 4000 times, which was equivalent to an appreciation of about 600 times. American cotton priced in US dollars suddenly became very cheap.

In May of that year, the price of Chinese cotton was 5 yuan per dan, while US cotton, converted into French currency, was only 9 yuan. The Nationalist government, without any tariff protection measures, allowed rice cotton to flood the domestic cotton market. Over the next two years, rice cotton's share of the Chinese market rose from 7.2% to 16%, and in Shanghai's textile industry, it reached 36%.

The price China paid was a sharp drop in cotton purchase prices, the bankruptcy of numerous cotton farmers, and a dramatic decline in cotton acreage. In Shaanxi, a major cotton-producing region, cotton fields were reduced to only one-third of their original size. Meanwhile, the United States shipped over three million seized Japanese spindles to Southeast Asia, seizing traditional markets for China's cotton textile industry.

Even more damning is that after the US squeezed out Chinese cotton, it sold four or five years of old cotton to China. Even the US media admitted that these were goods that had no market in the world.

These old rice cottons are also mixed with leftovers, scraps and other garbage.

This is the real situation after the local industry was destroyed. It was completely at the mercy of others and became a dumping ground for foreign goods, and it had to take in both good and bad.

At this time, American cotton and cotton textiles are about to completely occupy the market.

Several large cotton bags were opened on the spot, and the reporters who had been waiting for a long time quickly pressed the shutter in their hands to record this scene.

Hu Zhenhua's face turned completely dark.

These cotton bags look fine from the outside, but they are actually a mess inside!

Hu Zhenhua even saw second-hand cotton pulled out from the torn quilt!

This is treating TA company as a sucker!

Hu Zhenhua said bluntly,

"Is the quality of American cotton so poor?"

He grabbed a handful and handed it to Thomson, saying coldly,

"I don't want this batch of cotton!"

Thomson said anxiously,

"Mr. Hu, please calm down. Cotton is divided into different grades, and the prices vary greatly between different grades. The price we offer your company is for this type of cotton, and it is absolutely fair!"

He pointed to Mr. Rong next to him and said,

"Mr. Hu, if you don't believe me, you can ask Mr. Rong next to you. The cotton we sell to the Rong family is all like this!"

When Hu Zhenhua saw Mr. Rong's expression, he knew that this kind of "unspoken rule" had existed for a long time.

No wonder the major foreign banks rushed to lend money when they heard that Tong'an wanted a loan to purchase agricultural products from various countries.

Tongan will never accept such junk!

Moreover, Tongan was about to obtain the authorization for nylon fabrics. Hu Zhenhua was even more confident. He threw the cotton in Thomson's face and shouted,

"Mr. Thomson, let me tell you what's going to happen: If you can't provide me with qualified cotton, Jardine Matheson will be removed from Tong'an's cooperation list. My request is simple: the cotton grading standards of the United States, with prices for each grade!"

Thomson jumped up. He had never been treated like this before. No matter where he went, he was always a guest of honor. Hu Zhenhua's behavior made him lose face. What was even worse was that this scene was captured by reporters. But at this moment, Thomson no longer cared about his face and shouted,

"You are breaching the contract, breaching the contract!"

Hu Zhenhua pointed at the cotton on the ground and shouted,

"You were the first to breach the contract. The photos taken by the reporters are the evidence!"

Thomson's face flushed red. "Hu, the contract was signed by Mr. Atlan. I want to negotiate with him!"

Hu Zhenhua snorted coldly.

"Then go negotiate with him!"

Hu Zhenhua turned to the reporters and announced loudly,

"Our company has had a very unpleasant experience cooperating with Jardine Matheson. They used inferior cotton to deceive us. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it! In view of this, I announce that TA Company will reconsider its cooperation with Jardine Matheson!"

Countless flashes lit up, recording Hu Zhenhua on film.

A reporter asked,

"Excuse me, who are you at TA company?"

"My name is Hu Zhenhua, and I'm the chairman of TA company!"

There were other reporters who wanted to ask questions, but Hu Zhenhua had already turned away.

Ever since he was blocked by Jiangfang troops at the Liankou checkpoint, Hu Zhenhua had the idea of ​​stepping forward.

Fame is a sharp sword that can accomplish many things.

Hu Zhenhua walked up to Thomson and forced a smile.

"Since Jardine Matheson is dishonest, all of our company's deposits in your bank will be withdrawn. I hope you can prepare the money before you open at 9 o'clock. Otherwise, hehe..."

Thomson shuddered.

If Jardine Matheson cannot meet TA's demands, they may incite the public to run on the bank!

Thomson's momentum weakened, and he quickly looked at Mr. Rong.

"Mr. Rong, please be fair. The cotton we sell has always been like this!"

Hu Zhenhua didn't give Mr. Rong a chance to speak and answered first.

"If the cotton you sell in the United States also meets this standard, I will buy it immediately without hesitation!"

Speaking of cotton, Thomson suddenly realized that if TA company did not want this batch of cotton, Jardine Matheson would suffer a huge loss.

In the past, they could sell this cotton to other merchants, but now, due to the war, major textile factories are very cautious and have moved their factories abroad.

In other words, no one in other countries would want cotton of this quality!

Thomson grabbed Hu Zhenhua's arm.

"Mr. Hu, I promise this won't happen again! As an apology, Jardine Matheson is willing to give you a 95% discount on this batch of cotton!"

Hu Zhenhua snorted coldly, 95% off? You're fooling fools!

For this kind of stuff, the proportion of good cotton is at most 50%, and screening also costs labor costs.

Hu Zhenhua stretched out a finger.

"Considering that we are a cooperative, and to avoid losses for Jardine Matheson, I'll give you a 10% discount!"

If you want to kill the chicken to scare the monkey, you have to stick to it.

If you cannot make these foreign companies afraid, quality issues will continue to arise in the future.

Tolerance, there is only zero times and countless times.

Thomson jumped up and cursed,

"Blackmail! This is blackmail! I'm going to sue you in court!"

Hu Zhenhua's eyes were filled with murderous intent, and he shouted,

"Then go ahead and sue me. I want to see if Yihe can hold out until then!"

After saying that, Lao Hu turned away.

Mr. Rong looked at Hu Zhenhua's back, his eyes full of spirit. Over the years, Hu Zhenhua was not the first person who dared to show his sword to the outside world, but he was definitely the one with the greatest hope of success.

He bowed to Thomson and left right after Lao Hu.