Chapter 960: Wu Tiju's Brilliant Move

If the palm oil and other local products couldn't be sold, their first major business venture would fall through, which would be a significant blow to the nascent Yangshan Archipelago.

It was truly difficult to start from scratch in a foreign land.

"Mm, Supervisor Wu," He Lingchuan mused for a moment. Supervisor Wu's actions against the Yangshan Archipelago were likely due to the two reasons Guan Ke had mentioned. "If his personal interests conflict with ours, no amount of gifts or leveraging personal connections will be useful."

His position dictated his decisions.

Guan Ke continued, "Blade Port also produces palm oil, and this season a large number of merchants from other regions are arriving to purchase it. If we can't seize this opportunity within the next month to successfully market and sell the Yangshan Archipelago's palm oil, our inventory will likely accumulate, and we won't be able to sell it all even by March or April of next year. By then, it will be a new harvest season, and old oil doesn't sell as well as new."

Qiu Hu sneered, "No wonder the Maritime Trade Office refused to grant us a license. They wanted to stall our business until it failed."

Needless to say, Supervisor Wu could sell all of his own produce. Missing the optimal sales window would result in heavy losses for He Lingchuan and the Yangshan Archipelago.

Haha, the Lu family father and son probably guessed he didn't have much money. Last time they made things worse for him; this time they wanted to pull the rug out from under him. One trick after another.

He Lingchuan immediately concluded that further contact with Supervisor Wu would be useless, just a waste of effort.

He turned to Leini and said, "You used to sell palm oil. How much stock could those buyers take?"

Leini was startled. "They took as much as I offered; there was no limit. But my previous dealings were all small-scale; how could they compare to the scale of your current operation?"

"Contact your buyers, and tell Min Tianxi and Huang Zhao to contact their original buyers as well. They can have as much palm oil as they want," He Lingchuan said. "The price can be slightly lower than the market rate. Let's liquidate some of our current stock first."

Ding Zuodong also nodded. "We need working capital, so the sooner, the better."

Leini affirmed.

If they were buying palm oil from pirates, why would those unconventional buyers care about a quality inspection permit from Blade Port?

He Lingchuan asked again, "You just said he's from the Imperial Uncle's lineage of Qing?"

"Yes, otherwise he wouldn't have landed this lucrative position," Guan Ke told everyone. "The revenue from operating Blade Port accounts for at least twenty percent of Qing's national income."

Judging by the prosperity of Blade Port, its annual income was no small sum. Even if Supervisor Wu wasn't openly greedy, he would still benefit handsomely from such a lucrative position.

"What's the status of this Imperial Uncle in the Qing royal court?" He hoped he wasn't as tough and difficult to handle as Yuzhou's Grand Marshal.

The Imperial Uncle is the brother of the Qing Emperor's consort or concubine.

"Grand Minister of Ceremonies." Guan Ke wasn't as familiar with the nobles in Qing's capital. "But his sister, Consort Yu, is a formidable figure. I heard from people in the Maritime Trade Office that although Supervisor Wu was recommended by Imperial Uncle Ning, he actually takes orders directly from Consort Yu."

"Imperial relatives by marriage." He Lingchuan grunted. "Supervisor Wu is riding on Consort Yu's influence; no wonder he's thriving. Don't they have opponents in the royal court?"

"Yes, Councilor of State Weng Min and others are at odds with them."

He Lingchuan knew that the Councilor of State was equivalent to a Deputy Prime Minister. Factions in the imperial court were normal. However, Guan Ke wasn't clear about the specific grievances between the two sides. After all, he made his living in Blade Port, not the capital, so his knowledge was based on hearsay.

"Since they're opponents in court, hasn't anyone impeached Supervisor Wu?" Qiu Hu interjected. "This Wu character doesn't strike me as a good official."

"When Supervisor Wu was an Assistant Administrator, Supervisor Zhao was in charge of the Maritime Trade Office. It was only after Zhao was exposed for corruption and thrown into prison that Supervisor Wu had room for advancement." Guan Ke took a sip of tea, his mouth twisting from the bitterness. But the tea, bitter at first then sweet, particularly cut through the greasy char of the grilled skewers. "With that precedent, Supervisor Wu has always been very careful."

He Lingchuan was interested. "How is he careful?"

"I just told you he has a hundred mu of mountain forest, didn't I? Well, it's not actually in his name. Nominally, it belongs to his in-laws and a few of his disciples," Guan Ke whispered. "Those hundred-plus mu of forest land, including many centuries-old valuable tree species, originally belonged to the Bailei people. I heard that dozens of mu were even once owned by the Lu family but somehow lay vacant and unattended for decades. Later, when Blade Port was leased to Qing, these lands were also allocated. Supervisor Wu used many methods to legally transfer these mountain forests to the names of his own people."

He Lingchuan's hand, holding a skewer, froze.

The spectacle he was observing turned out to concern him? Tracing back to the source, wasn't Supervisor Wu's acquisition of those hundred-plus mu of land an act of undermining him?

Logically, anything belonging to the Bailei and Lu families should have belonged to He Lingchuan's former self.

Yes, logically.

What disappointing ancestors, sigh.

The grilled sea rabbit in his hand suddenly lost its appeal.

Guan Ke continued, "Furthermore, Supervisor Wu himself never accepts bribes. Anyone who dares to offer him something directly would be thrown out of his office. All gifts and donations are collected by two of his subordinate officials."

Ding Zuodong nodded. "He is indeed very cautious." He kept himself clean, leaving no handle for outsiders.

"Supervisor Wu doesn't live in a luxurious mansion either; his entire family still resides in the official quarters," Guan Ke said, waving his hand. "No matter how many times investigations were conducted from above, he always appeared clean and incorruptible. I remember that three years ago, the Qing court even publicly commended him for his honesty and dedication to public service."

Qiu Hu asked, "How do you know all this?"

"Oh!" Guan Ke chuckled. "These things are kept from superiors but not from subordinates, and they can't be hidden from those below. What good are rumors and gossip circulating among the common folk? What does it matter if the people know? Without concrete evidence, they can't do anything to Supervisor Wu."

He Lingchuan also sipped his tea. "Besides those hundred-plus mu of mountain forests and rice paddies, what other stable sources of income does Supervisor Wu have? Preferably legitimate ones."

Stable meant a steady, long-term flow, with a constant inflow of ready cash.

Anywhere, such assets were enviable.

Guan Ke understood and, without much thought, said, "Supervisor Wu has made a lot of money over the past ten-plus years. Every so often, he buys a ship and leases it out. Among them are ocean-going cargo ships, whose carrying capacity ranks among the top in all of Blade Port. To date, he has bought ten large ships and twenty-two small ones, all of which he leases out."

Ding Zuodong exclaimed, "No wonder! When I went to register for a ship rental some time ago, the Maritime Trade Office recommended a few large ships, saying they were guaranteed to be effective. The ships were indeed large, and the prices were truly expensive. They were twice the size of the ships we eventually rented, but the price was four times higher or more."

"Four times?" Qiu Hu asked, "Isn't that price outrageous?"

"It is outrageous, but sea transport has peak and off-peak seasons, so cargo ship rental prices fluctuate. Renting a ship during the peak palm oil harvesting season compared to a few months later simply can't be the same price. At their most exorbitant, prices can surge five or six times higher. Who can really say?"