Chapter 409 Bargaining!

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Cui Shao smiled and said very frankly:
"I can only make decisions on behalf of the Cui family now, but if we can reach an agreement, I can help persuade them!"

After hearing this, Ye Mingsheng thought about it for a while, nodded and said:

"Third uncle, now that we have spoken, why don't you just tell me what your conditions are?"

"Our three families were originally planning to give you a generous gift after you became the warlord. Now that you are interested in reform, it is not impossible. However, the content of the reform needs to be discussed carefully!"

"First, you want Dadongsheng to be the only bank in Liaoyang. That's no problem. If you want to use Dadongsheng to issue a million taels of bonds, we can also organize relatives and friends to subscribe together. We guarantee that we can raise one million taels of silver for you!"

"But I do have some suggestions on how to spend this one million taels of silver..."

Ye Mingsheng knew Cui Shao was going to play tricks, but he still wanted to hear Cui Shao's thoughts, so he nodded and said:

"Uncle, if you have any advice, I'm all ears!"

"In fact, it's not really a guide, just some suggestions! The world is in chaos now, Mingsheng, you have the ambition to fight for the world, and we old men are willing to lend you a helping hand even at the risk of our lives!"

Cui Shao looked very excited and confident when he said this. If Ye Mingsheng had not had many contacts with this old fox and had been wary of him, he might have been moved to tears after hearing these words.

After he finished speaking, Cui Shao glanced at Ye Mingsheng. Seeing that Ye Mingsheng did not react, he felt a little disappointed and continued to explain:
"Every day of fighting costs a lot, including the medical care and pensions for the soldiers, the consumed food and equipment, etc. All of these require money. Mingsheng, although the Fengwu Army under your command is mighty and powerful, with sharp firearms, Zhao Fuqu has been in charge of Youyan for more than ten years, and he is no pushover. If you want to defeat him and annex Youyan, you need not only a high military force, but also money!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng also vaguely sensed Cui Shao's thoughts. As expected, Cui Shao observed his expression and continued:

"So I suggest that you use the one million taels of silver raised mainly as military expenses!"

Although Cui Shao's words seemed high-sounding and there was nothing wrong with them on the surface, Ye Mingsheng understood his hidden meaning...

In Ye Mingsheng's original reform plan, the one million taels of silver raised by Dadongsheng through issuing bonds would be used mainly to purchase land from the gentry and landlord class headed by the three clans of Liaoyang. The remaining silver would be used as military expenses for entering the Pass and advancing eastward, and to invest in businesses to complete the public-private partnership of large businesses in industries that generate huge profits for the people.

But now Cui Shao wants to make military spending the bulk of the money, which means less money to buy land and invest in businesses, less silver to redeem land, and the shares of public-private partnerships will naturally be reduced accordingly. This is what Cui Shao and others want to do to reduce the impact of the reforms on them after realizing that Ye Mingsheng's reforms are unstoppable!

After thinking for a while, Ye Mingsheng looked up at Cui Shao and asked:
"I wonder how much land you are willing to give?"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng asking the key question, Cui Shao, who had been prepared, spoke directly:
"Our Cui family is willing to contribute 3,000 hectares, the Yun family is willing to contribute 2,000 hectares, and the Gongsun family is willing to contribute 1,500,000 hectares!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng quickly calculated in his mind. Although there has not been a large-scale and accurate statistics of the land in various parts of Liaoyang, based on the known information at hand, Ye Mingsheng still estimated the scale of land in the hands of the three valves in Liaoyang.

Among the three clans in Liaoyang, the Cui family is the strongest, with a conservative estimate of about 20,000 hectares of land owned, mainly concentrated in Guangning and Dongning prefectures. The next strongest is the Yun family, with a conservative estimate of about 15,000 hectares of land owned, mainly concentrated in Lelang, Dongning and Xuantu prefectures. Finally, the Gongsun family, with a conservative estimate of about 10,000 hectares of land owned, mainly concentrated in Changqing and Xuantu prefectures.

The three families together own at least 45,000 hectares of land, and they are now willing to give 15% of their land, which is 6,000 hectares of land to themselves...

As the saying goes, collections are valuable in prosperous times, gold is valuable in troubled times. Things like antiques and land are very valuable when the world is peaceful, but worthless when the world is not peaceful. At present, the market price of the best irrigated land in Liaoyang is only five taels of silver per mu. In worse places, an mu of land may even cost only three taels of silver or one tael of silver.

One hectare of land is equal to one hundred mu. Even at the lowest market price, the three clans would need six hundred thousand taels of silver to offer six thousand hectares of land. Of course, Ye Mingsheng would definitely not buy it at the market price. The price he offered was more like a sweet date after a slap in the face than a purchase.

For this land redemption reform, Ye Mingsheng wanted to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor in society and win over the vast number of poor people on the one hand, and on the other hand he also wanted to strike a blow against the landlord gentry class headed by the three clans and reduce their influence on society. From this perspective, 6,000 hectares of land is indeed a bit too little, as it is only about 15% of the land owned by the three clans, which is just a scratch...
Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng spoke again:
"Third uncle, what you said is very true. In this case, I am prepared to spend 500,000 taels of silver to buy the land. I wonder how much you can sell it to me?"

Cui Shao's heart sank as he finished speaking. His nephew was indeed not so easy to fool. After thinking for a while, he chose to pass the ball to Ye Mingsheng and said:
"Mingsheng, how much do you want?"

"Twenty thousand hectares!" Ye Mingsheng did not hesitate this time, raised three fingers and said directly:

Hearing this number, Cui Shao looked at Ye Mingsheng deeply, then sighed and said;

"Mingsheng, you are pushing us to death..."

"Uncle, third, I don't agree with what you said. I am not doing this for my own selfish interests, but for the overall situation of Liaoyang. I will distribute these lands. With their own land, the soldiers will have a stronger sense of belonging to my Fengwu Army and Liaoyang, and their fighting will will be greatly enhanced!" "In this way, with the powerful firearms of my Fengwu Army, what can a mere Youyan be? We will occupy Youyan next year and pacify the north in three years. Mingsheng can guarantee that your efforts today, third uncle, will be rewarded tenfold or even a hundredfold when I conquer the world!" Ye Mingsheng said proudly.

Ye Mingsheng was still not satisfied after saying this, and continued to tempt:
"Third uncle, think about Yijing, Jinyang, and even Luo'an! The mountains and rivers are as beautiful as a painting, and the Cui family has been living in a remote corner for decades, but has never been able to make further progress. Third uncle Lin Shize can be the prime minister, and his family can have two cabinet ministers and enjoy unlimited glory. Why can't your Cui family do the same?"

When the entrepreneurial wave was booming, Ye Mingsheng was also tempted to buy some books on the subject, wanting to learn from other people's successful experiences to prepare for the future.

Ye Mingsheng has not remembered anything else from these successful experiences, he only remembered one thing which is that when facing an investor, in order to get his money, his connections, and his resources, you must dare to brag and tell stories. You must draw him a big and round pie and make him firmly believe that you can turn this pie into reality...

Although Cui Shao was shrewd enough, his eyes couldn't help but flicker when he heard the words "the Prime Minister has two cabinet ministers from the same family".

As a member of the largest family in Liaoyang, the largest landlord, and the richest man, Cui Shao, who had never lacked money since he was a child, did not have particularly high material demands. He had almost everything he needed in terms of land, treasures, gold and silver.

Therefore, what Cui Shao cares more about now is spiritual satisfaction, and the most important thing is to further enhance the strength and influence of the Cui family, which has almost reached its limit in Liaoyang, and become a great family like the Lin family and the Murong family to bless their descendants.

In addition to wanting to lead the family forward, Cui Shao himself certainly also hoped to enter the cabinet and become a prime minister. Which Confucian student who has studied hard for ten years, learned literary and martial arts, and sold them to the imperial family does not have a dream of ruling the world?

Before, because the Cui family was isolated in a corner and had little influence in the power center of the Great Zhou, Cui Shao, who knew he was hopeless, could only think about it. But now the chaotic times are coming, heroes are vying for supremacy, and the old power structure has been broken. It is the time for capable people to show their talents...

Although Ye Mingsheng has just risen among the many vassal states of the Great Zhou and his strength is not outstanding, Cui Shao, who has dealt with Ye Mingsheng several times, knows very well that Ye Mingsheng has means, scheming, vision, and ambition, and is an absolute hero.

The Fengwu Army under his command is even more united, with sharp firearms and high fighting spirit. It is a battle-hardened army that is sure to win wherever it fights. Except for the poverty of Liaoyang itself, Ye Mingsheng basically has all the elements for rising. Now Ye Mingsheng and the Fengwu Army are like a dormant dragon in the abyss, just waiting for the opportunity to soar into the sky and shock the world!
Based on his understanding of Ye Mingsheng and the Fengwu Army, Cui Shao was somewhat tempted by Ye Mingsheng's temptation. Otherwise, at his age, how could he be easily tempted after seeing countless people who talk big and boast?

Under Ye Mingsheng's gaze, Cui Shao thought for a long time, then shook his head and said seriously:
"Mingsheng, I'm telling you the truth. You want half of the land. Even if I agree to it, the other people in the Cui family will object. Even with my prestige in the Cui family, I'm still against it. Do you think the Yun family and the Gongsun family will agree to it?"

Ye Mingsheng narrowed his eyes and asked again:
"So, Third Uncle, how much land can you give up at most?"

In response to Ye Mingsheng's question, Cui Shao thought about it, then sighed and said helplessly:
"At most 12,000 hectares of land. One more mu is impossible. And it will cost 700,000 taels of silver..."

Seeing this, Ye Mingsheng began to think again. Twenty thousand hectares of land was twice as much as the initial ten thousand hectares. According to Ye Mingsheng's estimate of the 45,000 hectares of land held by the three valves in total, the twelve thousand hectares of land accounted for almost one-third. This was already a big blow to the three valves.

According to the standard of 20 mu per household, these lands are enough for 60,000 households, which basically achieves Ye Mingsheng's goal of reducing the gap between the rich and the poor in society.

After thinking carefully for a while, Ye Mingsheng nodded and agreed:

"Okay, then 12,000 hectares, but I can only give you 500,000 taels of silver!"

Seeing that Ye Mingsheng wanted to give two hundred thousand taels less, Cui Shao wanted to argue again, but before he could open his mouth, Ye Mingsheng spoke first:
"Third uncle, you just said this! War is all about money. If you put down the money you saved, I will use it all as military expenses!"

Seeing Ye Mingsheng choking himself with his own words just now, Cui Shao could only smile bitterly and nodded helplessly.

Seeing Cui Shao nod, Ye Mingsheng was also encouraged. The land issue was the most important and critical issue in his reform. Now that he could reach an agreement with Cui Shao, his reform was already half successful.

Ye Mingsheng never thought that he could completely achieve his political ideal with just this one reform. He always believed that reform is not a revolution, and should be done step by step. If the step is too big and the flesh is cut too hard, it is easy to provoke a strong reaction from the other party, which will not be worth the loss...

After discussing the land issue, they came to the second item of the reform, the public-private partnership of grain, cloth, salt, iron, ginseng, deer antler, and sable fur businesses. Ye Mingsheng directly stated that he would take out 300,000 taels of silver to buy shares. If they did not agree to buy shares, he would implement policies such as taxation, setting maximum sales prices, and franchising.

Compared with the land issue, Cui Shao's position on public-private partnership has softened. After all, their Cui family and Gongsun family only have some dry shares in several large businesses occupying these industries, and they receive dividends at the end of the year. Only the Yun family is specifically involved in the specific operations of the businesses, and they also benefit the most in this regard.

Cui Shao said that he could sell some of the Cui family's shares in these major businesses to Ye Mingsheng, and could assist Ye Mingsheng in completing measures to stabilize prices, combat hoarding, and regulate industry market behavior. However, as for the specific operation of the public-private partnership, Ye Mingsheng still needs to discuss it in detail with the Yun family, and the Cui family will not participate much.

As for the last item of Ye Mingsheng's reform, establishing schools for universal education, Cui Shao was very supportive and said that the saints' teachings were to teach everyone. Their Cui family was willing to provide fifty teachers and 20,000 taels of silver specifically for building schools to help Ye Mingsheng achieve the goal of free education...

(End of this chapter)