"No way!"
The voice in the council hall was almost louder than the sound of Linhai Army’s cannon fire just a mont ago.
No wonder the Silver Blood rchants reacted so fiercely.
What is the concept of eighty percent of liquid assets?
Those small rchant associations that have just joined the Silver Blood Association are one thing, but those ranked above 60 have been operating in Xuanzhu County for at least thirty years.
Due to an imperfect banking system and inconvenient transportation, these rchant associations truly don’t have many places to spend money. Buying land and factories was an early strategy; later on, there’s nowhere left to buy, and they are reluctant to buy land in the Outer District—though so, like the Shi Family, have invested in Skyrim, and ended up selling off family assets due to losses.
In peaceti, buying land and building factories in the Outer District is too risky. Local clan forces, officials, rogue Martial Artists, anyone can make Silver Blood rchants suffer, and in many places, rchants hold very low status.
The Silver Blood Association was initially just a friendly organization for rchants to cooperate together.
Ironically, in chaotic tis, with military forces dominant and local tycoons cautious about stirring trouble, Silver Blood rchants can peacefully invest as long as they bribe the military, akin to buying the dip when the market is in a slump and waiting for the stock market to rise.
As long as they can protect their assets and survive the chaos, they will have ’successfully broken out,’ unlocking a new map.
Many large rchant associations within the Silver Blood Association gained their fortunes in the ’little turbulent tis’ two hundred years ago.
Returning to the main topic.
Currently, the liquid assets of Silver Blood rchants account for at least half of their total assets.
Liquid assets do not only refer to cash on hand but also include jewelry, accessories, gold, silver, antiquities, and even food that can be mortgaged.
Moreover, in the past two years, Silver Blood rchants have felt that currency depreciation is imminent, taking the opportunity to liquidate properties and purchase gold and silver, preparing to buy them back with a little money when chaos strikes and trade routes are cut off, or to simply flee with cash.
Besides, current comrce transactions are settled in cash, no one dares to offer credit—who knows if you’ll be killed by the Backlight Organization tomorrow, it’s all cash on delivery.
Therefore, if the Silver Blood Association’s eighty-eight rchant associations were to hand over eighty percent of their liquid assets, the ensuing ripple effect could regress Xuanzhu County’s economy by thirty years.
If future historians docunt this, they could even describe it as ’stifling the sprout of capitalism.’
Even though Silver Blood rchants had already prepared to be passive, they still couldn’t accept it.
"Unacceptable!"
"We won’t be sacrificial lambs!"
"Blue Fla is too much. We’ll fight him to the death!"
The fact that a group of profit-driven rchants could face a common enemy indicates how excessive this demand really is.
The selfishness of eighty-seven rchants is enough to topple the altruism of the Sea of Consciousness!
Such organizations that want to seize our assets should be eliminated!
If an organization requires to sacrifice for it, then it has no reason to exist!
But Le Yu didn’t give them any face: "Really? Then I’ll just notify the Linhai Army outside to leave so we can save a sum on military supply..."
Everyone imdiately went silent.
"President, don’t rush," said Qin Le Yin with a smile. "This matter may not be without room for negotiation, and even if we arrive at a result, we need to stabilize the Linhai Army outside, delaying a bit longer..."
"Patriarch Hongle speaks with reason."
"President, careful, careful!"
"Perhaps we can find a better solution."
Le Yu took the opportunity to say: "Then please speak freely about how we can raise this massive military fund?"
The cunning rchants of the Silver Blood Association offered their suggestions:
So said, how about issuing IOUs.
So suggested installnt paynts.
So said, perhaps the President could persuade Blue Fla; Blue Fla values the President greatly and may give him face. However, the President must be proactive, enduring humiliation and burden, letting Blue Fla understand the enthusiasm of Dongyang boys... Le Yu wanted to overturn the table and kill the proposer at that mont, but fortunately, soone next to him held him back, and the proposer compensated him with a red-gold bracelet for ntal damages, so Le Yu let it go with grumbling.
Listening to all these suggestions, Le Yu realized they all had three characteristics:
① They don’t want to pay.
② They don’t want to pay that much.
③ They don’t want to pay that much right now.
Le Yu raised his hand slightly, pressed down, and the Sea of Consciousness seed to crack like an ice surface, coldness flooding out, and all the mbers suddenly quieted down.
"You’ve misunderstood sothing," he said. "Blue Fla isn’t negotiating with us; he’s ordering us."
"Does he not know this demand is excessive? He knows."
"But he also knows that we, the Silver Blood Association, can certainly afford it."
After all, this was calculated by Jing Shou, whom I dispatched, to find the limit of liquid assets among all mbers of the Silver Blood Association, Le Yu thought.
Indeed.
Blue Fla never demanded a specific amount.
He’s a Director of the Statistical Departnt, a leading officer of the Linhai Army, what does he understand about cunning rchants.
This enormous sum was precisely calculated by Le Yu, a figure neither too large for the Silver Blood Association to sustain but pressing precisely at the edge of every mber’s bankruptcy.
"If you believe offering any less than this amount can satisfy Blue Fla, then you might as well not bother."
"Being satisfied without absolute implies absolute dissatisfaction."
Le Yu smiled: "You must rember, our money isn’t just buying the present, we’re buying the future. Yes, we, the Silver Blood Association, are the military’s purse, but they cannot drain us without us having money."
"Once we pay this ’protection fee,’ Blue Fla will savor the benefit, aning the gates to Chenfeng District open to us."
"Gentlen, rember, Blue Fla and Linhai Army have an excellent reputation in Chenfeng District, what does this signify? It ans the military cannot directly extract military fees, they need to maintain face."
"Thus, they need a purse that can secure military funds for them, and who in all the world is more suitable than our Silver Blood Association?"
"Gentlen, do you know what the investnt with the best cost-effectiveness in the world is?"
"Is it slaves?"
"Is it factories?"
"Is it places of entertainnt?"
Le Yu glanced at Qin Le Yin: "It’s the future emperor, it’s the future Imperial Court."
Everyone beca serious.
Soone asked, "Chairman, do you think Blue Fla..."
"I certainly don’t have the ability to see who will be the future ruler of the shining earth." Le Yu shook his head, "But with Blue Fla’s skills, he can at least ensure peace in Chenfeng and Dongyang for ten years."
Everyone was moved.
Ten years may not seem like much, but the future is not a ti of peace; it’s a dark era of Holy Sword suspended and mutual slaughter on the shining earth.
Ten years is enough for the Silver Blood Association to completely swallow Chenfeng District, becoming the indispensable financial strength in local military and governnt.
As for after the ten years, even if Blue Fla is defeated, they can always turn to a new master.
The era of rchants will never end.
Of course, the Silver Blood rchants didn’t fully trust the chairman’s judgnt.
But what they wanted wasn’t certainty, but a reason.
A reason that makes it less painful to spend money.
Investing in the future is enough of a reason.
Just like getting a gym mbership; it’s actually a place for running and weightlifting, which doesn’t sound very appealing, but frad as investing in health and increasing the chances of eting the opposite sex, it might not be so resistant.
"But we still can’t accept it." Quan Xin and others shook their heads, thoughts of rejection flooding the Sea of Consciousness.
The Silver Blood rchants also wanted to agree.
But what Blue Fla wants is really too much money.
It’s not just taking a cut, it’s squeezing them dry.
Life is important, but with so much money, they felt it wasn’t worth it.
Le Yu couldn’t help but look at them with admiration.
The spiritual realm of this group of capitalists is quite high.
Capital has thoroughly alienated them into the supre realm of ’greed makes fools die for wealth, martyrs die for fa, each sees the other as greedy fools, while seeing themselves as martyrs.’
Le Yu suddenly said, "I have an immature plan that might allow us to give less money."
The stirring atmosphere in the council chamber suddenly cleared.
"Chairman, please speak!" everyone urged.
"Ultimately, Blue Fla is looking for military funds, but they can’t stay long in Dongyang District, so they’re thinking of draining us all at once because he may not co back for a second ti."
Le Yu spoke eloquently, "How could he not know the principle of exhausting resources for a quick gain? But in these tis, he doesn’t trust us, and we don’t trust him."
"Why don’t we both take a step back and give each other a chance?"
Everyone was a bit perplexed, "Chairman, what do you an...?"
"For example," Le Yu guided them patiently, "we could give Blue Fla immovable assets."
"Factories."
"Stores."
"Restaurants."
"Things the Linhai Army can’t take away; we can give them to him."
"If Blue Fla wants to exhaust the resources, let’s give him a chance to fish together."
"Let him experience the wonderful feeling of money flowing in without doing anything."
"Why should we oppose Blue Fla? Isn’t drawing Blue Fla into the Silver Blood Association an option too?"
"However, however," Le Yu clasped his hands, his voice as captivating as a soul-stealing charm, "Blue Fla certainly doesn’t trust us; after all, as a general, how could he compete with us in business."
"He is very self-aware, so the war reparations only require liquid assets, not interested in making money with us."
"Coincidentally, there are five hundred Linhai Army outside the city. They can be both the dagger to monitor us and the bridge of friendship between us and Blue Fla."
"To demonstrate our sincerity, I can order these five hundred Linhai Army to enter the city, letting them take over the immovable assets under your nas, and you must withdraw your family mbers so that these soldiers don’t feel deceived by ’shady rchants.’
"Don’t hurry, don’t hurry, just listen to finish. Although you have to withdraw your family mbers, as the chairman designated by Blue Fla and commander of these five hundred Linhai Army, naturally, I can send my people to follow them to guarantee that during their takeover, no losses will occur to the families’ properties."
"The key to my plan is mutual trust and sincerity."
"We must let Blue Fla understand that even if he is far away in Chenfeng, he can enjoy the continuous benefits from the Silver Blood Association. This can not only resolve the current crisis but also have the Linhai Army protect us—do you still want to rely on the useless iron of the Heyang Army?"
"Thus, you must temporarily let go of your properties, letting soldiers see for themselves how vast our ’pool’ is and how plentiful the ’fish’ are, using this to let Blue Fla feel the sincere intentions of the Silver Blood Association!"
"You need not worry; this is only a matter for a month or two. Once Blue Fla trusts us, the properties will naturally return to your families. Then we can cook the books; Blue Fla, recognizing the iron bar, will be drinking foot-washing water from us, won’t he?"
"But if Blue Fla accepts our proposal, I have confidence in reducing the amount for war reparations by half, or even by two-fifths!"
"For those who have doubts, think about it, my Jing Family also has nurous properties in Xuanzhu County."
Le Yu patted his chest, "Even if I were to cheat you, would I cheat the Jing Family?"
"Tell , isn’t this plan ingenious?"
Beside him, Qin Le Yin watched Le Yu’s passionate performance.
He suddenly rembered a little story he’d read in the Youth Daily.
It was written by an author nad Brother Xun.
In the story, soone wanted to let so windows open in a room but feared that people wouldn’t agree, so he proposed opening a skylight, leading to fierce opposition.
This ti, he said, ’Why not open a window instead,’ everyone thought, compared to opening a skylight, this proposal was much better, so they agreed.
From the start, Jing Zhengwei proposed snipping eight-tenths of the Silver Blood Association’s assets.
That naturally made everyone prefer to beco martyrs rather than give money.
This ti, he said, why don’t everyone hand over the assets to the Linhai Army, to the Jing Family for temporary managent, thus reducing the reparations by half, and even bringing in strong support.
The Silver Blood rchants couldn’t help but be tempted.
But they wouldn’t know.
Blue Fla just wants their money.
But Jing Zhengwei wants their lives.
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