The anti-Qing movement began with the looting of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

"Sir, just tell me how much you want? Thanks to you this year, we've made a little more money, and we should give some to you as a token of our respect," Zhou Shunda hurriedly stood up and said loudly.

Shen Lian exposed his secrets, and although Shen Lian said no one would touch him, he still felt a little guilty.

“It’s not that I want money! To be honest, none of you can compare to me in terms of wealth. I really don’t care about that little bit of silver. If I want to make money, I have plenty of ways! The main thing is that my wife has seen many refugees freezing to death outside every day, and she’s planning to set up a soup kitchen to help these poor people.”

“I think this is a good thing! As the saying goes, it’s better to share happiness than to enjoy it alone. I think we should all work together and make the soup kitchen bigger. Let merchants and people from other places see that we Linqing merchants are kind-hearted and are definitely not heartless rich people.”

"Alright! My lord, I'll donate ten thousand taels first!" Zhou Shunda jumped out eagerly as soon as Shen Lian finished speaking.

Shen Lian couldn't help but shake his head. It seemed his words had frightened the man. That's just how businessmen are! It's the same in any dynasty; no matter how rich you are, you're still afraid of officials.

"Thank you for your kindness, Manager Zhou. Please let me finish what I have to say!" Shen Lian waved his hand.

"I just did a rough estimate, and it will cost about 80,000 taels to keep these refugees and poor people in the city alive until spring! I'll personally contribute 30,000 taels, and you can donate the remaining 50,000 taels, how about that?"

“Sir, how can we let you pay! Let us do it! Let’s all chip in, and if it’s not enough, I’ll take more.” Zhou Shunda stood up again and said loudly.

"Zhou Shunda, I'm truly impressed!" Shen Lian gave a wry smile; he had already noticed the unpleasant expressions on some people's faces. This really wasn't a shill I hired!

"Boss Zhou, just say less! I was the one who proposed this, how could I let you all pay for it?" Shen Lian shook his head.

"Alright! It's settled then! You don't need to say anything more." Shen Lian saw that Zhou Shunda was about to speak, and some people below were also going to pretend to persuade him. He said this without allowing any further discussion.

"Sir, you are truly kind-hearted. We will not lag behind. Don't worry! Leave the rest of the donations to us." Seeing that Shen Lian had actually contributed money, the others also became lively and spoke up one after another. Suddenly, the atmosphere was incredibly lively.

"I'll contribute ten thousand taels first, and you can chip in the rest. If that's still not enough, I'll cover it all," Zhou Shunda said loudly.

“Fatty Zhou, although we don’t have as much money as you, we still want to do our part in this kind of good deed. I’ll contribute five thousand taels!” a withered old man sneered.

Shen Lian knew this old man; his family owned a woodworking workshop and an ironworks. He'd been supplying cigarette and lighter factories for the past six months, earning quite a bit. Moreover, his financial resources were likely greater than Zhou Pangzi's; he was simply cautious and didn't like to show off.

"That's right, that's right! We should also do our part in doing good deeds like this. I'll donate two thousand taels."

Soon, the merchants, some giving three thousand, others eight hundred, quickly raised fifty thousand taels. They were quite happy to have gained favor with Lord Shen for such a small sum.

"Alright! You all choose a relief committee to oversee the use of this money. Uncle Fu will hand the money over to them later!" Shen Lian called out.

"No, no! You should manage this money, sir! Or you can let the madam manage it." It was Zhou Shunda, that show-off, who jumped out again.

"We must never let the government get involved in relief efforts. Otherwise, there will be plenty of shady dealings. Let's do it this way from now on! As for my wife, she's here to help. We can't let her get involved in the money either," Shen Lian said earnestly.

"Your Excellency is truly of noble character and incorruptible! We admire you greatly!"

"Yes! Yes! We are truly blessed to be under Your Majesty's rule."

"..." A chorus of praise immediately filled the hall.

"Alright, alright! Stop with the flattery. Your honest business practices are the biggest support you can give me from now on! I think Boss Zhou is public-spirited and has contributed the most. How about we let him be the chairman of this committee?" Shen Lian quickly interrupted them, otherwise these guys would have been flattering him to the skies.

Zhou Dashun did indeed contribute the most money, and he certainly loved to show off, so the businessmen agreed that he should be the chairman.

"Thank you for your kind words, sir, and thank you for the support of all my colleagues!" Zhou Shunda stood up, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed with pride.

This guy thought it was some kind of good job! You're in for a world of trouble, Shen Lian couldn't help but shake his head.

Soon, five more committee members were selected, and Shen Lian had Uncle Fu hand over 30,000 taels of silver notes to them.

"Right now, what the refugees need most is clothing and food. Everyone should go back and ask their families to look for any old clothes they don't need and donate them! I'll also ask my wife to look around at home."

"Alright, everyone disperse! Let's get the relief efforts underway as soon as possible! Every day earlier we can save dozens more lives."

"We will heed your teachings, sir!" Zhou Shunda led a group of merchants in a deep bow to Shen Lian before leaving.

Back in the inner hall, Shen Lian told his wife what had happened. Nie Xiaoqian was so happy she almost jumped for joy. She was naturally active and had been wanting to go out for a walk all day, being cooped up in the mansion.

"What are you planning to do?" Shen Lian asked, lighting a cigarette.

"Isn't it just opening a soup kitchen? There's that relief committee that's in charge of purchasing, all I have to do is distribute it every day!"

"You think it's that simple, involving relief for thousands or even tens of thousands of people? Given your status, once you get there, they will definitely prioritize you. If you don't have any strategy, not only will you cause trouble, but they will also look down on you."

"Then what should I do?" Nie Xiaoqian frowned upon hearing this. She was a young lady from a wealthy family; how could she possibly know how to do something like this?

"Come on, give your husband a leg massage! I'll teach you." Shen Lian stretched out his legs, and Nie Xiaoqian obediently squatted down to massage them for him.

"First, the soup kitchens must be opened, preferably starting tomorrow! Then you need to count the number of refugees and the poor and widowed in the city. Then calculate how to ensure that the relief funds are used effectively."

"What they need most right now is food and warm clothes and bedding. Food is easy to buy; you can buy it with money. Clothing is harder to get! You can mobilize the people, wealthy households, and merchants in the city to donate."

"With your connections, Mrs. Shen, you should be able to raise quite a few! When you're counting the people, make a proper record and see what each family is most lacking. That way, you can allocate resources promptly."

“I’ll arrange some more manpower for you! Those kids in the backyard have been studying for a few months now, so they know a little arithmetic, and they’re familiar with the area.”

Why don't you pick out the older folks and have them help you with the work? Wouldn't that make your life much easier?

"Thank you, my husband!" With Shen Lian's strategy, Nie Xiaoqian felt a little more confident.