Lin Zexu left Beijing and set off for the south, Guangzhou was able to receive the news, then Lin Zexu had been away from Beijing for at least half a month, Yi Zhizu vaguely remembered that Lin Zexu seemed to have arrived in Guangzhou in only two months, and it seemed that it was time to prepare and leave Guangzhou.

He knew very well that as soon as Lin Zexu arrived in Guangzhou, he vigorously launched an anti-smoking campaign, pointing the spearhead directly at the thirteen merchants and all foreign businessmen, and it only took three months to hold a feat of gunpowder in Humen that shocked China and foreign countries.

It can be said that the smoke of gunpowder in Humen is a crow. The fuse of the piece of war since he expected the crow. If the war breaks out, you can't interfere! With his current status and reputation in Guangzhou, once Lin Zexu strictly banned smoking, he would be in the center of the whirlpool, whether it was the government, foreign businessmen and the Thirteen Lines, they would all look for him, and if one was not good, he would not be a person inside and outside.

He doesn't want to offend people now, Lin Zexu, Deng Tingzhen, Yiliang, Yu Kun, Guan Tianpei and other military and political officials he can't afford to offend, Yilu and other British officials are not suitable to offend now, he doesn't want to affect the change of the situation because of his personal factors, as for the thirteen lines, he is even more reluctant to offend.

If you want not to offend people, the best way is to leave Guangzhou temporarily, wait until the dust settles, and then return to Guangzhou, actively make suggestions, contribute money and efforts, and help plan the anti-British affairs, in order to win a good impression and a good reputation, his personal reputation does not matter, but he has to consider Yuan Qi's reputation.

Seeing that he didn't say anything for a long time, Wu Changqing smiled and quipped: "Brother contentment shouldn't be frightened by Lin Qincha, right?" ”

"I don't sell crows. Piece, what is scared? Yi Zhifu stretched as he spoke, stood up and said, "Our fleet has been training for several months. It's time to be proficient, too. Is Changqing interested in going to sea with me to have fun? ”

"Out to sea? Where to go? ”

"Go to Hainan. I went to the eight institutes to see, there has been no news about the copper exploration in Changhua County, and I really doubt that there is a mine. ”

Are you concerned about copper exploration in Changhua County? Wu Changqing wouldn't believe his nonsense, he glanced at him suspiciously, and then said seriously: "Brother Contentment shouldn't want to avoid Lin Qincha, right?" ”

"Why should I avoid him?" Yi Zhizu said and pointed to the students who were training on the playground, and said, "The main thing is to take them to the eight institutes, the time is urgent, and it is time for them to conduct live-fire training." The sound of gunfire was too loud, and it was inconvenient to conduct training in Guangzhou. ”

This is right, Wu Changqing nodded, and said: "Your big shopkeeper is gone, who will take care of this big stall in Guangzhou?" ”

"It won't be too long, but it's a month or two, and it's not a big deal." Yi Zhizhi said disapprerovingly: "With a group of shopkeepers and factory directors performing their duties, there is really a big matter, and there is no old man in your family." ”

It was dark, and a two-person sedan chair stopped at the entrance of Xishanli Alley. Yi Zhizu got off the sedan chair to pay the sedan fare and walked slowly alone. went to Yan's mansion, Lin Zexu was about to arrive, he told Yan Qichang, Yan Shikuan and his little sister went to Shanghai, for the sake of the face of the two of them, the Yan family had more or less snacks.

Since the Xingtai merchant arrears case occurred, Yan Qichang has been very low-key for more than a year, and Yan's mansion is also very deserted, closing the door early, Yi Zhizhi patted the door knocker outside, and then saw the lights on, and the old grandson of the porter asked through the door: "Who?" ”

"Lezai." Yi Zhizu said softly.

Le Zai is Yi Zhi's nickname, he has been inseparable from Yan Shikuan since he was a child, but he has not come to Yan's mansion, how can the old grandson not know the truth, but for more than a year, he rarely comes to the door, the old grandson is a little unbelievable, raised the lantern and said through the crack in the door: "Is it Yi Gongzi?" ”

"It's me." Yi Zhizhi smiled: "Can't even hear my voice? ”

Seeing that it was really Yi Zhicontent, the old grandson hurriedly smiled and said, "Yi Gongzi hasn't been here for some days." As he spoke, he hurriedly opened the small door, and after Yi Zhishu entered the door, he asked, "Is Yan Shibo at home?" ”

"Yes." The old grandson hurriedly closed the door and said, "The little one will take Yi Gongzi forward." ”

Yan Qichang was checking the accounts in the study, and when he heard that Yi Zhizhi was coming, he hurriedly got up to greet him and let him into the study, and then he asked, "How can the virtuous nephew have time to come today?" He said as he stretched out his hand to give up his seat.

Yi Zhizhi was not polite, sat down directly, and then said with a smile: "How many business debts are still outstanding in Xingtai Bank?" ”

Seeing that he directly asked about the arrears, Yan Qichang didn't dare to hide it, and said truthfully: "It is claimed that it is more than 1.5 million, but in fact it is only about 900,000 yuan, which is mainly due to the care of the virtuous nephew when the tea market collapsed and the silk market dominated. ”

Isn't this nonsense, Yi Zhixiang smiled secretly, the tea market and the silk market, the Yan family earned more than 500,000 yuan, he knows this very well, and now he only owes 900,000, that is to say, the Yan family has been smuggling crows for more than a year. The piece earned at least nearly a million and it seems that the crow. The smuggling of pieces does make money, and after a slight groan, he said: "Lin Qincha has already gone south, and it is estimated that he will be able to reach Guangzhou in a month and a half." ”

Hearing this, Yan Qichang sighed and said: "At most, in one year, you can repay all the debts, but at this moment, the ban on smoking in the imperial court is tight for a while, and the relationship that has finally been spread out has almost been ruined." ”

"If Shibo can be safe and sound, it is time to burn high incense." Yi Zhixiang said with a smile: "Although the silver is good, it is not worth taking your life." ”

"The virtuous nephew has a point." Yan Qichang said: "Within this month, I will clean up all the hands and tails." ”

Yi Zhixin was a little skeptical about his words, he knew very well that the stricter the investigation, the tighter the rumors. The higher the price of the film, the greater the profit from smuggling, Yan Qichang, who is also anxious, is afraid that he may not be willing to let go easily, so he has to think of a way to persuade him, not only to be worthy of Yan Shikuan's two brothers and sisters, but also out of consideration for the overall reputation of the Thirteen Lines, and Yan Qichang cannot be allowed to have an accident.

took out a cigar and lit it slowly, Yi Zhixin asked casually, "Now the crow. How much does a piece cost? ”

Yan Qichang glanced at him in surprise, not knowing why he suddenly cared about the crow. When the price of the film came, he didn't think much about it, and said in a deep voice: "In the past six months, the wind has been very tight, and the government has been strict in investigation. The wholesale price of Lingdingyang decreased slightly. About $450 per box. But in the mainland, it has risen to 700 yuan a box. ”

"Lin Zexu is known for his rigidity and strictness, and when he comes to Guangzhou, the situation will inevitably be even stricter." Yi Zhishu said half a sentence and stopped.

What do you mean? Crow. The price of the film will continue to rise! Yan Qichang's heart jumped, and he said tentatively: "The meaning of the virtuous nephew is to hoard crows. Slice? ”

After glancing at him, Yi Zhizhi said, "If I say, crow. The slice can rise to 25 to 3,001 boxes. Is Shibo credible? ”

"Three thousand!" Yan Qichang lost his voice and said, if it is purchased from Lingdingyang, it will be more than six times the profit! His heart was beating for a while, this was really attractive, he knew very well that Yi Zhi's contentment would not harm him, and for Yi Zhi's contentment, he was now blindly convinced, not only him, but now all the merchants in the thirteen lines admired Yi Zhi's contentment. No one dared to question his words lightly.

I thought about it for a long time. Yan Qichang said: "But now that the government is very strict, it is impossible to hoard in large quantities." ”

"Shibo has finally not reached the point where Li Lingzhi is faint." Yi Zhixiang smiled and said: "Where can't you hoard, you have to be in Guangzhou?" ”

After a slight pause, he smiled and said in a deep voice: Lin Zexu came to Guangzhou to ban smoking, and Shibo must stop! Otherwise, no one can save the Yan family! ”

"Don't worry, nephew." Yan Qichang nodded again and again: "I promise to stop!" ”

Yi Zhishu said uneasily: "Shikuan is now the treasurer of Yuanqi Branch, Shibo don't beat his idea." ”

"Ten thousand virtuous nephews can rest assured." Yan Qichang said with a smile: "Do everything possible to get him out, how can you let him get involved in this business again?" ”

The news of Lin Zexu's departure to the south slowly spread in Guangzhou within a few days, and at the same time, Lin Zexu's proposal to ban smoking - severely punish crow smoking. Those who do not quit after the expiration date will be sentenced to death. Quite a few crow-suckers. The gentry and businessmen who are addicted to tablets are all in a panic, and everyone knows that how easy it is to quit smoking? Rich and wealthy addicts naturally cross the sea to show their powers, or buy enough opium to store, or build secret rooms in their homes, and some simply find an excuse to leave Guangzhou, and they can't afford to provoke or hide?

Corresponding to it - average family background, or because of crow smoking. The family members and friends of the addict who had ruined his family were overjoyed, eagerly hoping that Lin Zexu would be able to forcibly get their family to quit smoking after arriving in Guangzhou.

Of course, the most sensitive to this news are the big and small crows. The filmsellers, under the severe blow of Deng Tingzhen, were originally half-light and half-dark crows. The sales of the film have completely turned underground, one by one, like a mouse living in the dark, the days are already very difficult, and now there is a more ruthless one, won't this day be even more sad in the future?

Yuanqi General Number, the big conference hall, neatly filled with people, are Guangzhou and nearby semicolon big shopkeepers and two shopkeepers, a group of shopkeepers have a rare opportunity to gather together, have whispered and discussed, I don't know what to call them to the meeting to discuss, the scale is so large, obviously not a trivial matter.

Yi Zhishu slowly walked to the front desk under the support of Kong Jian'an, Xie Xiuyuan, Liang Jiemin, Tang Jingyuan and other shopkeepers, glanced at everyone, and waited for the hall to be quiet, before he raised his voice and said: "I summoned you to come here today, and I only want to say one thing." ”

After a slight pause, he said slowly: "You should have heard that the imperial court sent Lin Zexu, the governor of Huguang, to come to Guangzhou to preside over the overall situation of the smoking ban. The filmmaker shall be sentenced to death if he does not quit after the expiration of the period.

All of you here are also small and wealthy, and you can be regarded as wealthy, and you have not smoked crows. Tablets? As early as October last year, after the emperor urgently summoned Lord Lin to Beijing, I began to find out the bottom of the house by branch, and according to statistics, about 20% of the shopkeepers smoked crows. Tablets of addiction. ”

Listen to this, the crow-sucking crows present here. The faces of the shopkeepers who are addicted to the film have changed, no one expected that since last year, Yi Zhishu began to investigate and find out, and they all looked at him one by one, not knowing what his charter was?

"What should I do?" Yi Zhizu raised his voice and said: "For the sake of Yuanqi's reputation, and for your own safety, I hope you will take the initiative to resign!" Go home and quit smoking! When will you quit smoking, Yuanqi still welcomes you back, and the original position and treatment remain unchanged.

In addition, from today onwards, Yuanqi Bank will add an iron law, all employees of Guangdong Yuanqi Bank, regardless of their position, but if they smoke crows. The filmmaker will be removed from the list, and the person who reports and exposes will be rewarded with a penny! ”

There was a buzzing discussion in the hall, Yuan Qi's body stock is not capped, whether it is the shopkeeper or the guy, there is no dislike for the body, and the guys are even more eager for the body stock, regardless of the general semicolon, if you want to smoke the crow. If the film is not noticed, this is simply impossible.

This rule and reward are certain, and it can be said that Yuan Qi will never tolerate a crow. Film, that is to say, Yuanqi's existing addicts take the initiative to quit the cabinet and have the opportunity to return to Yuanqi, if they are lucky, that is, there will never be a chance to enter Yuanqi again, and for addicts, Yuanqi is tolerant and generous enough, once they quit smoking, the original position and treatment remain unchanged, which makes them have nothing to say.

There are also addicts who have noticed that Yi Zhi's content is emphasizing Guangdong, obviously, the staff from other provinces are not among them, and they can't help but secretly regret it, knowing that this is the case, they should have gone to other provinces in the first place.

Yi Zhifen actually had the intention to implement this rule for a long time, but only considering smoking crows. There are really a lot of shopkeepers in the film, for fear of causing instability in people's hearts, so they deliberately delayed, and when Lin Zexu came to ban smoking, he used the momentum to push the boat downstream, so that everyone had nothing to say.

When the voice of the discussion gradually subsided, he suppressed it and said: "Shopkeeper Kong, shopkeeper Liang, add this rule into the regulations of the Yuanqi assessment system, and make this rule into a wooden sign and hang it in the lobby of each general semicolon, so that all customers can supervise together, in addition, add a slogan, 'Refuse the crow. Pieces, cherish life, start from me. Hang together. ”

Not only Yuanqi Bank, next, Xiguan Newspaper, Printing House, Tianbao Watch Factory, Changle Machinery Factory, Yuanqi Yixue, Yuanqi Resettlement Village, Yi Zhizhi ran one after another, convened a meeting, announced this rule, he gave all the employees under Yuanqi's name a high salary, but not let them smoke crows. film, taking advantage of this rare opportunity, he wants to come to a complete purge and sweep all the addicts out of Yuanqi.

The rules and slogans of Yuanqi Bank were soon hung in the eye-catching place in the lobby of the main number and the various semicolons, which immediately caused a great sensation and heated discussions in Guangzhou.

Yuanqi not only has many employees, but also has high salaries - silk reeling women, Changle craftsmen, Mr. Yixue, newspaper editors, printing apprentices, etc. are all high-paid, which is already a household name in Guangzhou, even medium-sized people are proud to be able to enter Yuanqi, not to mention ordinary people, who want to enter Yuanqi even if they sharpen their heads.

Yuan Qi openly refuses to smoke crows. The impact of the filmmaker is not small, not only greatly touching the gentry and merchants of the middle and lower classes, but also causing a great shock to the public halls of various industries, which can be said to be a great cooperation with the imperial court's anti-smoking action. (To be continued.) )