Hu Zongxian closed his eyes and thought for a moment, then sighed, "Then tell me, what should we do? What is wrong with the court? Why would they send such a person to Jiangnan? This is going to be the death of me... alas..."
Alas...
The three of them sighed long and deeply in unison.
But just then, the guards from the front camp shouted outside the tent:
"Marshal! The silver has arrived!"
"Marshal! Young Master Zhu has sent people with silver!"
"..."
A clamor!
Upon hearing that the silver had arrived, the three men rushed out of the tent. They saw a long queue entering the camp area, with the character "饷" (Xiong, meaning provisions/pay) written in large characters on the sides of dozens of carriages!
Qi Jiguang was overjoyed and shouted, "How much silver?"
"Reporting to General Qi, three million taels!"
What?!
The three looked at each other.
Hu Zongxian was instantly furious. He slapped the table and reprimanded, "Nonsense! Those who report false military intelligence will be executed! Do you understand? This is a military stronghold, how can you joke around like this!"
The sentry was terrified and ran over to kneel, but still replied, "Reporting to the Marshal, this subordinate is not lying. Indeed, indeed it is three million taels... It is, it is Governor Zheng who personally escorted it..."
Ah?
Is it really three million?
This, this is really...
Is it possible?
The three felt as if they were in a dream, looking at each other, not knowing what to do?
At this moment,
Zheng Bichang rode up on a fast horse and shouted from thirty feet away, "Marshal! The three million taels of military pay have been escorted here! Young Master Zhu asked Zheng to convey a message, asking the Marshal and General Qi: Is the silver enough? If not, another million taels will be escorted here!"
Hiss!
Hu Zongxian suddenly felt a surge of blood rush to his head. His vision blurred, and his ears roared. He muttered to himself, "It's enough, it's enough, how can three million not be enough..."
Qi Jiguang had fought battles for more than half his life and had never received his full military pay. At this moment, he was like being in a cloud, still doubting if everything before him was real...
"How is it possible, how is it possible...?"
As for Tan Lun, he felt as if he had been kicked hard, and felt a loss of face, his whole body covered in dirt...
"Three million taels, starting from when the Japanese pirates began their raids, the total expenditure hasn't even reached three million taels..."
At this time,
Zheng Bichang dismounted and ran over to Hu Zongxian, saying, "Marshal, Young Master Zhu has raised ten million taels of silver in ten days! He instructed Zheng that if military supplies are insufficient, he can allocate another million, but more will require waiting another month..."
Buzz!
All three felt that Zheng Bichang's words seemed to carry the thunderous sound, making their ears numb!
It was already three million, and another million could be allocated,
And then, if more was needed, it could be raised in a month?
This,
Are they claiming to be gods?
But at this moment, the gleaming silver was being transported in, and many soldiers were unloading it. Without getting close, one could tell that this silver was not fake; it was all unrefined silver. This meant that this silver was indeed raised from the common people, not allocated by the imperial court!
And all this money was raised within ten days...
After being stunned for a while, the three were speechless.
After a long time,
Looking at the gleaming silver, Qi Jiguang suddenly felt confident and said sternly, "Marshal, with such ample military supplies, I am confident that I can eradicate all the Japanese pirates within half a year!"
Hu Zongxian and Tan Lun nodded in agreement, "Yes, these military supplies are enough for three years... Not to mention dealing with the Japanese pirates in the southeast, even if we were to fight all the way to Japan, it would be enough..."
Hu Zongxian then asked, "Your Excellency Zheng, how did Young Master Zhu manage this? Why was there no prior news at all?"
Zheng Bichang was already completely in awe of Zhu Mo and sighed,
"Marshal, you don't know, this Young Master Zhu used the fifty million taels of the Imperial Weaving Bureau as collateral, signing some kind of bond. He said that if he couldn't repay it, the Imperial Weaving Bureau would be responsible, with an interest rate of five percent; he also said that after three years, this money could be converted into shares of the official monetary institution, with an annual return of six percent... With this, not only in Jiangnan, but merchants from Jiangyou, Huainan, and Wuzhong all rushed to subscribe overnight..."
Oh...
So that's how it is.
Tan Lun suddenly woke up as if from a dream—
This move was indeed brilliant. The Imperial Weaving Bureau was the golden signboard of the Great Ming! With this golden signboard, plus the incentive of interest, it was natural to raise money. So he never intended to force donations through the government...
This method, Tan Lun probably could not have thought of in a lifetime.
Hu Zongxian had the same thought, shaking his head and sighing, "No one knows what this Young Master Zhu is up to... He actually managed to get so much money as if by magic..."
Suddenly,
A flash of inspiration crossed his mind, and he blurted out,
"Huh? That's not right!"
He stared at Zheng Bichang, then at Tan Lun and Qi Jiguang, and asked in surprise,
"This money, so much money, even with an interest rate of five percent, that's a huge amount annually. How will he repay it? The military supplies alone cost three million. How will he repay the principal in three years? He says he lent it to those silk workshops, but will they borrow it? Even if they borrow it, they might not be able to make a profit to repay it..."
Right!
The three of them suddenly realized!
This,
There's a loophole!
"Oh dear!"
Hu Zongxian slapped his thigh abruptly and blurted out,
"Young Master Zhu has caused a great disaster!"
"He has solved the immediate crisis, but left endless future troubles!"
"Think about it, if he can't repay the interest, it's one thing, but if he can't even repay the principal, won't it cause chaos? Where will the court get the money to clean up this mess? At that time, it will be a huge hole, and even gods cannot save it..."
As soon as he said this,
The joy the three had just felt vanished. They had money now, but what about the future?
Zheng Bichang had been wondering all the way. Now, reminded by Hu Zongxian, he suddenly interjected, "Marshal, before Zheng came, he heard Young Master Zhu say something. It seems, it seems... he is very confident about the silk business..."
Confidence?
Is this something one person can decide?
The three pondered for a while and felt that Zhu Mo pinning all his hopes on the silk industry seemed very inappropriate! Not to mention anything else, if the Japanese pirates blockaded the sea, no matter how much silk there was, it couldn't be transported out!
Hu Zongxian thought about the winter offensive that was about to begin and had no time to ponder these issues. He could only sigh, "Let's not worry about it for now... Who knows what this Young Master Zhu is up to? Let's prepare for the war first..."