Chapter 80

Zhou Chong sat in the main hall of Beigang Teahouse for a long time, carefully observing the transactions of the merchants there. Several merchants approached him to inquire what goods he was interested in purchasing. This time, Zhou Chong did not foolishly say he was there just to drink tea; instead, he mentioned that he was looking to buy a batch of corals from Nanyang, which were quite rare. Upon hearing this, the merchants who approached him all shook their heads and left.

After Zhou Chong had a good understanding of the situation in the hall, he brought Wangcai and Fugui to the counter. The teahouse manager did not recognize Zhou Chong, but when Zhou Chong revealed his identity, the manager was startled and immediately led them upstairs.

The second and third floors were mostly divided into private rooms. If merchants in the hall reached a preliminary agreement, they could go upstairs to discuss in private. The walls of these rooms were made of two layers of thick wooden boards with cotton in between, providing excellent soundproofing, so there was no need to worry about eavesdropping. However, on the second floor, there was a separate area accessible only through a small staircase behind the counter. This area was where Uncle Tu and his trusted subordinates handled teahouse affairs.

Zhou Chong followed the manager upstairs and found himself in a relatively spacious hall. Inside, there were two large tables, each with three accountants busy at work. They would bring up a batch of documents from downstairs using a pulley, sort and verify them, then hand them over to someone for review. Finally, they would tie the sorted documents with a red ribbon and send them to a small room inside the hall.

After the manager greeted the busy accountants, he led Zhou Chong into the small room where the documents were finally sent. As soon as they entered, Zhou Chong saw Uncle Tu sitting behind the only table in the room, reviewing the documents one by one. When he saw Zhou Chong, he was initially surprised but quickly stood up to greet him, saying, "Master, why have you come? Please, sit down quickly!"

However, as soon as Uncle Tu spoke, he looked embarrassed because the small room was very small, with only a chair and a table. The floor was piled with stacks of documents, leaving no place to sit or even stand.

Zhou Chong did not mind these details and casually found a higher stack of documents to sit on, saying, "I often heard Third Lady say that Uncle Tu is very busy and hard to see in the chamber of commerce. Today, I finally understand that you have to handle so many documents every day. However, despite being busy, Uncle Tu, you are not young anymore, so you must take good care of your health!"

Moved by Zhou Chong's concern, Uncle Tu replied, "Thank you, Master. I will definitely pay more attention in the future!"

"Uncle Tu, what kind of documents are you handling? They seem very important," Zhou Chong nodded and then asked curiously, knowing that the documents had to be very important since they went through several stages of sorting and review.

Uncle Tu smiled and explained, "Master, these documents are information left by merchants who haven't found buyers or sellers downstairs. We collect them and sort them into two main categories: for sale and for purchase. These two categories are then further divided into many subcategories based on the type of goods. After that, we match the information and hand it over to me for review. If there are no issues, we send people to notify both parties to discuss in the teahouse. If the deal is suitable, it is finalized, and the teahouse takes a commission. If not, we continue to help them find a match until the deal is successful."

After listening to Uncle Tu's explanation, Zhou Chong frowned. He thought the teahouse's method of matchmaking was too inefficient and had many loopholes. For example, if both parties were willing to transact but did not want to pay the teahouse's commission, they could pretend the deal failed and then transact privately, saving a significant amount of money as long as they kept it secret.

Of course, this was just one example. In reality, there were many more loopholes in the entire transaction process. Although the chamber of commerce had strict punishments for those who exploited these loopholes, they could not completely eliminate such behavior.

"Uncle Tu, I have some ideas about the teahouse's operations. Should I share them?" Zhou Chong had been observing and thinking while downstairs, and he had a rough idea in mind. Now was a good time to discuss it with the experienced Uncle Tu and see if it was feasible.

Uncle Tu was delighted to hear that Zhou Chong had different ideas about the teahouse's operations. Although he thought that Zhou Chong, given his age and experience, might not have many useful suggestions, it showed that Zhou Chong was truly dedicated to the chamber of commerce. Regardless of whether his ideas were useful, Uncle Tu was very happy. After all, age and experience could be gained, and as long as Zhou Chong was dedicated, with the support of the older members, he would eventually become an excellent merchant.

However, Uncle Tu underestimated Zhou Chong. With his experience from two lifetimes, especially from the information age of his previous life, his insights and vision far surpassed those of the people in the Ming Dynasty. His suggestions directly addressed the teahouse's shortcomings, and his new ideas for the teahouse's operational model greatly surprised Uncle Tu, who had worked in the port for most of his life and had never thought of operating it in such a way.

Finally, after Zhou Chong finished explaining his ideas, Uncle Tu slapped the table and praised him, "Master, your idea is truly brilliant! Today, I will discuss it with the people in the teahouse and implement your suggestions as soon as possible. This will definitely help buyers find sellers more quickly, and our teahouse's income will surely increase to a new level!"

Hearing Uncle Tu's praise, Zhou Chong felt a bit embarrassed. This was his first time proposing a business idea, and he was unsure if it would work. However, Uncle Tu's praise boosted his confidence, and he became more bold and confident in his business endeavors.

After that, Uncle Tu stopped handling documents and engaged Zhou Chong in detailed discussions. He humbly sought Zhou Chong's advice on things he did not understand. They talked for hours until the sun was about to set, and they finally came up with a comprehensive plan. This plan was not just a set of suggestions for the teahouse but a complete reform plan.

Finally, while Zhou Chong was there, Uncle Tu wrote down the entire plan, and they had dinner together. Uncle Tu then personally escorted Zhou Chong back to the chamber of commerce's residence. He assured Zhou Chong that he would gradually implement the teahouse's reform plan over the next few days, and they would soon see a significant impact in Shuangyu Port.

Back at the chamber of commerce's residence, Zhou Chong was very excited. He was eager to see if his first business plan would succeed. In a few days, he would also discuss smuggling-related matters with the chamber of commerce's old clients. If he could demonstrate his business acumen before then, the old clients would have more confidence in him, making the negotiations easier.

However, being too excited is not always a good thing. Zhou Chong, due to the teahouse reform and the upcoming meeting with the old clients, kept imagining how the chamber of commerce would soar after his reforms, not only quickly recovering but even surpassing the Xie, Hong, and Ashikaga chambers, becoming the undisputed leader in Shuangyu Port and the dominant force in the coastal smuggling industry. This made him even more excited, and he could not fall asleep.

Zhou Chong lay in bed until the second watch of the night but still had no sleep. The wind outside had stopped, but a "soso" sound could be heard. Zhou Chong got up, put on his clothes, and opened the window. He saw that it had started snowing, with large snowflakes falling and the ground already covered in white.

Although there was no wind, the cold air from the snow was unbearable, so Zhou Chong had to close the window again. He aimlessly walked around the bedroom, missing the modern entertainment of his previous life, such as television, computers, and mobile phones. At least he would have something to do when he couldn't sleep. However, the entertainment options in the Ming Dynasty were limited, and with nothing to do, Zhou Chong could only pace around the room.

"No wonder men in the Ming Dynasty like courtesans; it must be one of the best ways to pass the time at night," Zhou Chong muttered to himself after pacing for a while. He then considered whether he should follow local customs and visit a brothel in the port, as he had been to nightclubs in his previous life.

However, Zhou Chong quickly dismissed the idea of visiting a brothel. First, his status was different now, and he had to maintain a close relationship with Xie Lingyun. If he were recognized in a brothel, it would be embarrassing. Second, he was concerned about the hygiene of the women in the brothel, especially since medical care in the Ming Dynasty was not advanced. If he contracted a disease, it could be a major problem, even life-threatening.

Thinking about these issues, Zhou Chong reluctantly lay back in bed, trying to force himself to sleep. Those who have experienced insomnia know that the more you try to sleep, the harder it is, and your mind becomes incredibly clear, sometimes even unable to close your eyes.

Finally, Zhou Chong could not bear lying in bed any longer. He got up and went to the desk to start writing. He remembered that he had not finished writing "Jin Ping Mei." Although Xie Lingyun had said she would not publish such a book, he could write it now to pass the time and read it when he couldn't sleep in the future. It might also add some fun to his married life.

Unfortunately, Zhou Chong did not realize that "Jin Ping Mei" would bring him a lot of trouble once it was completed.

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End of the chapter.