In Jin San's shop, several businessmen sat around and drank tea each. They were merchants from the Western Regions, well-informed, and when they heard that Chen Ximing had entered Beijing, they went to Yizhou in advance and followed them into Beijing. The goods brought with him were exchanged for money and given to Chen Ximing, and the rest had nothing to do with it.

Looking around, Li Zhou said: "Jin Yuanwai really enjoys it, and it is really enviable to build such a residence in Shengzhou City." ”

Jin Sandao: "The houses in Shengzhou City are now owned by the government and leased by merchants. I also rented it here, but I took care of it and devoted myself to entertaining merchants from the Western Regions. Later, when you come to work, you will know. ”

Li Zhou nodded: "What the staff said is that I heard that the train is going to Yizhou, and business will be easy in the future." ”

Several people around said yes. They took the train to Seongju and saw the speed of the train with their own eyes, and they were all happy.

Jin San said: "Don't just think about the benefits, but also think about the disadvantages that you have to face after getting through the train." With the train, it is convenient to do business, but we are not the only businessmen. Only when we work together and support each other can we become bigger, and we can't be the same as before. Now the train only goes to Hezhou City, which is nearly a thousand miles away, and the prices in Hezhou are about the same as those in Shengzhou. Later, when the train went to Illinois, or even to Jiaohe, everything would be different. The goods sold now, there was no money to be made at that time, have you ever thought about it? ”

Cui Ying said: "The truth is this, but once the train is opened, the population will inevitably increase, and there will be more business, right?" ”

Jin San sighed: "When you first came, all you saw were benefits, and after a few days, you will know the difficulties." I've been here since the city was first built, and I've seen it all. I tell you, because of the trains, the prices of many things have dropped all at once, and although there are more business opportunities, they are not as good as before. Now doing business, as before, I am afraid that it will be difficult to make money. ”

Li Wei arched his hand: "What the staff said is true." What are the differences, can you tell us about them? ”

Jin Sandao: "First of all, in the past, because of the long road, most of the goods were light goods. And once every few years, the profit is quite high. Now it's different, in terms of Shengzhou, living here, in fact, the life is a little similar to the Central Plains, but there is less border atmosphere. How so? Because most of the goods here are transported from the Central Plains, the train freight is cheap. On the other hand, because of the train transportation, in the past two years, the price of beef and mutton in the Shengzhou area has risen, because there are more shipments to the Central Plains. In the future, the business must be determined according to the train in order to make money. ”

Several people nodded together, feeling that what Jin San said made sense. He was the first big businessman to entrench here, and he was sensitive to the market, so he naturally said the best words. In the past, the business relied on business routes, which was unstable, and there was a lot of luck in earning more and earning less.

Jin San said again: "The people who do business here on Hequ Road all live in Shengzhou, why is this happening? Because of the train here, it can go directly to the Central Plains, not other places. The business here is not only in the Western Regions, but also in the Khitan, Dangxiang, and even Mobei. The Western Regions are vast and relatively sparsely populated, so business is one practice and another in other places. You will not know the mystery until you have lived for a long time. ”

Everyone nodded together as they listened to Jin San talk about the rules of the current business. Jin Sanjian is a place to establish contacts and serve the new business network. In the past year, he has learned that the current business is different from before, and he urgently needs to take people into his circle.

After talking for a while, looking at the sky, Jin San said: "You are far away, and today I will wash the dust for you." The best place in Shengzhou City is not far from the official restaurant, I have been to it a few times, but it is still a little worse. Today, I will set up a banquet in my house, and you will not be surprised. ”

Everyone didn't dare to say anything, and thanked Jin San together.

In the back hall, in a small garden pavilion, everyone sat down and served wine and food.

The dishes that everyone saw were different from those in the handsome mansion last night, and they were more exquisite. Except for a few, I can't even name the dishes.

Jin San said: "This is a famous chef I invited from the capital, and I cooked the dishes." Dare to boast, in Shengzhou City, there is no second one! ”

Everyone said yes, and they had never seen it before.

With the rise of the railway supervisor of Jingxi Road and the opening of the railway, the world has become powerful in recent years. What used to be a city that hasn't changed for hundreds of years now becomes unrecognizable in just a few years. The food in the capital has also changed its face because of this. Nowadays, most of the banquets are mainly stir-fried dishes, with some special dishes. The famous chef in the capital invited by Jin San is only said that he has never been to the capital, but the dishes are well cooked.

After three rounds of drinking, the topic dispersed, and then we talked about the current situation in the Western Regions.

Jin Sandao: "The Western Regions are vast, but in fact, the population is not large. Where do you all come from, you should know how many people are there in Gaochang City, the largest city in the Western Regions? It is countless worse than Katsushu, not to mention compared to famous cities in the mainland, such as Tokyo. Once the railway is built to Juyan, it will inevitably enter Yizhou. No matter what the Yizhou City Lord who came thought in his heart, he couldn't change it. ”

Li Wei said: "Yes, everyone thinks in their hearts that when the railway arrives in Juyan, it will inevitably be repaired to the west." ”

Jin San said: "You have taken the train on the road, you should know that this road is paved with money!" From Hezhou to Juyan, two thousand miles of road, do not go west to build into the Western Regions, how can Juyan be able to match such a railway! ”

Cui Ying said: "That's true. We passed through Juyan on the way, and there was no one else there except the garrison, so what was the use of building the railroad in the past! It is only useful if it goes west to the Western Regions. When the Central Plains entered the Western Regions, it was nothing more than going to the Hexi counties in the south, or passing through Juyan. Now the counties of Hexi are still in the hands of the party, and only by living in the middle of the country can the Central Plains enter the Western Regions. ”

Li Wei nodded: "That's right." In the future, when this railway is opened, Yizhou will inevitably become an important place. ”

The rest of the people said yes again and again, especially a few who were not from Illinois, and they were particularly in favor.

Jin Sandao: "With the railway, you can't do this in the future." Only when there are connections and methods in various places can we control the local market. Those who traffic long-distance no longer rely on caravans, but by rail, then there must be people in Yamen. ”

Everyone nodded in unison. In the future, it is more sad not to rely on caravans. As for the need for people in the yamen for railway transportation, it is not a particularly important matter at present. At present, except for a few railways in the mainland, the capacity of other railways is sufficient, and there is generally no shortage of trains. Of course, in the future, I am afraid that it will be like the mainland, and if it wants to use the railway to transport things, it will rely more and more on the cooperation of the yamen.

Du Zhongxiao's status is too high, he doesn't interfere in the affairs below, and he doesn't have much contact with Jin San and others. This year, Jin San's main energy was spent on opening up local contacts in Shengzhou, and the main ones who worked hard were officials. Now at Shengzhou Station, Jin San said that he wanted to send a car, and there was basically no problem. Whether it is sent to or from the Central Plains, the train is on call. This is the foundation of Jin San's pride, his connections.

The national economy and people's livelihood, important materials, are now in charge of the shopping mall. Ordinary daily expenses, many inconspicuous little things, are the responsibility of these merchants. What they talked about, Du Zhongxiao didn't know about it many times, and it was an unimportant thing. But in fact, for the people, in addition to food and clothing, there are many things in daily life, which depend on the merchants.