The dark clouds of war were gathering, and even the people of the Tang Empire could feel this oppressive atmosphere.
From time to time, groups of soldiers would come to the docks, escorting packages marked with military insignia to the ships docked there.
On the official roads of various places, groups of transport teams escorted by soldiers were also advancing. The local army, which the people rarely saw before, had now opened up their camps. Occasionally, a group of cavalrymen would patrol along the roads.
The bailiffs of the local government offices began to take up their duties on time with water and fire sticks in their hands. They also took the initiative to come to the various markets to help maintain order. They even personally set up shelves for the sellers and asked the elderly if there was anything they wanted them to do.
The local government put up notices one after another, requesting that local law and order be strictly enforced in the near future. They did not allow hooligans who had nothing to do to continue to wander around the streets in groups. If they caused trouble, they would be severely punished.
Darling Candy House had a new program, the Good Baby Award. As long as the children who went to school did not run around after school and returned home to study peacefully, or came to Darling Candy House to study with other children in the open room of Darling Candy House, they would receive a reward.
It could be a delicious cake, or a few beautiful candies. If her performance was good enough, she might even get a beautiful dress.
In just half a day, the people of the Tang Empire knew that there was going to be a war, and it was a war personally commanded by the War God in their hearts, Cuckoo.
There had been wars in the past, but there had never been a time like this. In the past, every war had a common feature, and that was when the horn of war sounded, domestic goods would rise in price. If the war was difficult, there would even be a temporary increase in rent.
In fact, the people of various places were already prepared for this. They only hoped that after the war, the price of goods would fall again.
The merchants also began to get restless. One by one, they contacted their peers and asked if they should take advantage of this opportunity to stock up on goods. When the time came, they would raise the price and earn more from the difference.
The small merchants gathered together to discuss. They felt that they should follow the previous rules, but they were not assured. They decided to find the bigger merchants, especially those on the top list of billionaires, to ask about the situation. Everyone could earn money together.
In the city of Suzhou, on the eastern road of Jiangnan, in the Ge family's mansion, it was already late at night. The house was brightly lit. Electric lights hung high in the sky above each courtyard. The sound of the diesel generator roared endlessly as the servants in the house shuttled back and forth.
The owner of the Splendid General Trading Company, Ge Yunfei, was sitting in the middle of the hall. Orders to distribute goods came out of her mouth, and the sound of telegrams from the local telegraph office kept ringing.
"Pay attention to the prices of goods everywhere. If there are any fluctuations, order them to report it immediately. Don't allow the managers of the branches to change the prices of the goods sold in the branches at will. Set up our telegraph machine and be ready to receive news from the Monopoly Alliance at any time."
After Ge Yunfei passed down a bunch of orders, she closed her eyes and thought for a while, then passed down a new order. She then picked up a bowl of soup on the table beside her, drank two mouthfuls, and let out a long breath.
Starting at noon today, after the Jiangyin Reserve had taken action, she had not had time to rest. She was very clear on what the large cluster of warehouses in Jiangyin was used for. As long as there was a change there, it was definitely Zhang Xiaobao giving the order, and the war would inevitably begin.
Thus, she did not have time to eat. She found the person in charge of the business in the house. After a discussion, they began to arrange the various matters of the Splendid General Trading Company. Now, they had finally arranged everything that needed to be arranged. All that was left was to wait.
Let's see what the Monopoly Alliance has to say.
The Monopoly Alliance sounded like a purely commercial organization, and only merchants who entered the top ranking of billionaires had the right to join. But once one joined, one would discover that this alliance was not purely a commercial alliance. There were also members of the Imperial Court hiding behind the scenes.
For example, the simplest method was to transport goods to places outside the Great Tang and exchange them with the local natives. If it was someone who had not joined the alliance, they would only know to gather the goods and do as they were told.
But the information the merchants in the alliance would receive was the general climate of each place, the reefs in the sea along the way, and the regions where there might be storms.
At the same time, they would also receive the sailing route of the Great Tang's patrol fleet, a special telegraph machine, and the corresponding password to contact the fleet.
Who would believe that there was no Imperial Court behind the alliance? Let alone the password, even the telegraph machine would not be given to you to use.
Most importantly, the chief stewards sent out by the alliance would be given a pistol with sixteen bullets and two magazines for them to carry on their bodies to protect themselves. At the same time, the stewards would be required to gather as much local intelligence as possible.
This included what kind of animals and plants there were, what the structure of the local tribes were, and the doctors following the teams would report on the actual physical conditions of the members.
Ge Yunfei knew from this that this was an Imperial Court operation under the guise of merchants. The purpose was to control all the influential merchants in the country.
Moreover, she knew that ever since the Monopoly Alliance had been established, none of the merchants had ever been kicked out, even if they had made less money recently, or if they had done something wrong and lost money.
Based on their wealth and status, they should have been kicked out of the alliance and replaced with someone better. But in reality, they had not been kicked out. On the contrary, they had received the support of the Great Tang Bank, and they had even been given interest-free loans.
This meant that the Imperial Court did not wish for the merchants of the Monopoly Alliance to leave the alliance and tell others about the rules, so they could only help them when they made mistakes in their capital operations.
And the merchants who entered the alliance would not suffer continuous losses. As long as they were given a little help, they would immediately be able to get back on their feet. Otherwise, they would not have been able to get on the list at the beginning.
But other people could also enter, such as those rising stars. As long as their seniors were not kicked out, as long as their assets reached a certain level, they could enter the alliance, and their position on the list would change according to their assets.
The only difference was that the list had only one hundred people in the past, but now it had been expanded to five hundred.
In theory, the top two hundred had the qualifications to enter the alliance, but in reality, there were more than three hundred people in the alliance. This meant that there were merchants whose positions on the list had changed, but they had not left the alliance.
Ge Yunfei was patiently waiting for the Imperial Court to give the alliance an order. Then, she did not need to consider any other problems. Whatever the Imperial Court arranged, she and the others would follow. Even if the Imperial Court wanted the people of the alliance to donate all their assets, she could not object or even hesitate.
"Reporting, there are guests outside the residence. They say they are coming to Thunderbolt Logistics. This is a name card." While Ge Yunfei was thinking about the alliance, a coachman ran in from outside the hall, speaking as he handed over a name card.
Ge Yunfei nodded and very casually took the name card. After opening it and glancing at it, she immediately stood up from her chair and ordered, "Come, open the main door and follow me to welcome them."
"Fei 'er, who is it?" An old man's voice came from the side hall.
"Father, you stay here. Your daughter will personally go over. It is the owner of Thunderbolt Logistics, Li Chengfang. The time is not right. He should be overseeing Luoyang. When did he come to our Suzhou?"
Ge Yunfei said to her father and shook her head. She walked out with confusion in her heart. She was truly confused. Looking at the time, if Li Chengfang had just received the news, or had received the news at noon, he should not have arrived in Suzhou in the blink of an eye.
Luoyang was quite a distance from Suzhou. Even the train could not reach this speed. Unfortunately, the train tracks were only built from the south to the capital. There were very few other places that were built horizontally. If only it was built directly to Jiannan Road.
However, it was clearly not possible now. It was said that no less than three hundred thousand people had died building this railway. It was truly an inch of blood for every inch of track. Fortunately, the people who had died were all people from outside. The Tang people were also a bit like this, but that was accidental. It was just like how one could fall to death while walking.
Very quickly, the main door of the Ge manor was pushed open with creaking sounds. Li Chengfang, who was waiting outside with a few people, revealed a smile. He was truly afraid that this strong woman would only open the side door. What should he do then?
"No wonder this little girl felt that the sky of the Tang Empire was shrouded in a tense atmosphere since noon. So it was Boss Li who came at night. Welcome, welcome. Please come in."
Ge Yunfei smiled when she saw Li Chengfang. She clasped her hands together and imitated the way a man greeted.
Li Chengfang also smiled and returned the greeting. "Is Boss Ge saying that I brought war? Thunderbolt Logistics and your Splendid Sundry Goods are partners. I only bring peace and money, not war. Please! "
The two of them greeted each other and entered the Ge manor. Naturally, there were people in charge of the arrangements for the people Li Chengfang had brought.
Returning to the hall, Li Chengfang looked around and asked, "I wonder if Uncle is here? I would like to pay my respects. "
"You didn't even bring a gift. Just pay your respects like this. My father is resting in the side hall. Let's talk business first. After we are done, I will wait for you to bring a gift and see my father."
Ge Yunfei didn't want others to disturb her father. Her father's health wasn't good, especially at the beginning of spring this year. He fell ill and almost didn't make it. First, he had people use ginseng to keep him alive. Then, a telegram was sent out, and the Virtuous Medical College sent a team of experts. Only then was his life saved. Now, he was continuing to recuperate.
This was one of the benefits of joining the alliance. Otherwise, they definitely wouldn't be able to invite a team of experts.
Li Chengfang revealed a regretful expression. He also heard that Ge Yunfei's father was sick, so he wanted to see the situation. He helplessly nodded and said, "Actually, I did bring a gift. It's just that it wasn't convenient to send it over today. I brought ten tons of hot spring water from Huayuan County. Tomorrow morning, I will have someone send it over. You can heat it up yourself and let Uncle soak in it."
"Really? Thank you. Now, let's talk business. "Ge Yunfei said. Weiwei was stunned.
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