Moma Liangshan

Chapter 119 Extravagant Spending, Taking the Initiative

The garden built by Emperor Huizong on a grand scale, including the collection of flowers and stones, was also known as "Genyue" because it was located northeast of the imperial city.

Genyue is built against Wansui Mountain, with the Furong River winding around it and converging in the southeast to form a pond. Within the pond, uniquely shaped peaks are constructed using a network of stones and flowers, with interconnected covered bridges linking them. The fertile soil is home to rare and exotic flowers and plants: spring orchids, summer lotus, autumn chrysanthemums, and winter plum blossoms, their colors never fading. Where the lake meets the mountain, a hundred acres of land are paved with three million catties of white marble sourced from the Taihang Mountains in Hebei, creating a breathtakingly white landscape.

A group of elegantly dressed people, with a grand entourage, passed through the pavilions at the foot of the mountain, walked onto the white marble path, and stopped at the waterside pavilion on the lake. In the pavilion, Empress Zheng spoke, "Xianmeng, do you think this place is suitable as the venue for the woolen fabric exhibition?" Although Wang Hao had visited Genyue before, it was always at night, and due to protocol, he had only visited a small part of Genyue. Today's tour had already delighted him, and he replied, "An excellent place!" Empress Zheng nodded slightly and said, "Then we will hold the exhibition as scheduled in six days. Consort Wang and I will invite many noble ladies and socialites from Tokyo. Xianmeng, please don't complain that I've made you spend too much!" She then covered her face and laughed. Wang Hao replied, "The purpose of this exhibition is to promote woolen fabric to the nobles of Tokyo more quickly. In other words, this is business, and the income after the exhibition will cover the expenses."

Such a straightforward answer left Empress Zheng and Consort Wang exchanging bewildered glances. After a long silence, Empress Zheng said earnestly, "There are some things I didn't want to say, but avoiding the topic might be detrimental to Xianmeng, so I'll elaborate!" Wang Hao quickly composed himself and replied, "This humble subject was originally a commoner, but entered the court through His Majesty's favor. However, cultivating one's mind and character is not something that can be achieved overnight. I hope Your Majesty will correct me if I have made any mistakes!" Empress Zheng took a slight step forward and said, "People generally say that merchants..." "You prioritize profit over righteousness. The Empress and Consort Wang have observed you for a long time, and we have found that Xianmeng has principles and knows what she should and shouldn't do. She has absolutely no history of bullying, monopolizing the market, or engaging in any evil deeds solely for profit. That's why we had your marriage agreement with Huanhuan! However, Xianmeng's words and actions today are capricious and too blunt. Don't you know the saying, 'Disaster comes from the mouth, and illness enters through the mouth'?" Wang Hao, feeling wronged, cautiously said, "This humble subject runs only legitimate businesses. There is no tax evasion or smuggling, and no selling inferior goods. Why can't I speak of that?"

Empress Zheng's anger surged, but after a long while she calmed down, she said again, "His Majesty, recognizing your intelligence and loyalty, entrusted you with important responsibilities and later betrothed Huanhuan to you. You should remember that your every word and action will affect the face of the royal family." Wang Hao wanted to argue but had no words to reply, so he could only say, "If the cloth is accepted by the people after the exhibition, hundreds of thousands of proletarians in Jiaodong will gain a livelihood. This is truly a benevolent act that benefits the country and the people. I am deeply grateful for His Majesty's favor and have been able to govern a region. I will do my best to benefit the people and repay His Majesty's kindness. As for personal gains and losses, they are not worth mentioning!" Empress Zheng was very satisfied and said, "Xianmeng is indeed a wonderful person, she understands immediately!" After saying that, she and Consort Wang exchanged a glance and smiled at each other.

Wang Hao understood Empress Zheng's goodwill and took out a gift list from his bosom, presenting it to her. Empress Zheng opened the list, her face showing surprise, and then handed it to Consort Wang, saying, "You have gifted me five hundred bolts of woolen cloth, and Consort Wang three hundred bolts, plus the two hundred bolts you previously promised Huanhuan, that's a full thousand bolts of woolen cloth; and you still want to take another two thousand bolts for me to bestow upon the many concubines and noble ladies attending the exhibition, adding up to three thousand bolts of woolen cloth. It's not that I'm being long-winded, but your extravagant spending is so wasteful that even mountains of gold and silver wouldn't last long!" Wang Hao explained, "It's not that I'm being reckless, but hundreds of looms have already..." "Within the construction phase, in six months, Jiaozhou's daily wool production will exceed a thousand zhang (a unit of length). With such a massive output, I must quickly familiarize people with the characteristics of the goods and open up sales channels throughout the country. Only in this way can my vision of benefiting the people be realized!" Consort Wang, seeing this, said, "What Xianmeng said seems very reasonable, yet it's difficult to understand!" Empress Zheng shook her head slightly and said, "Women always find it hard to understand the things men worry about. We women should just do our duty; as for the rest, there are plenty of others to worry about!"

That night, Emperor Huizong slept with Empress Zheng and asked, "What does Your Majesty think of Wang Hao's character?" Empress Zheng seemed slightly surprised and said, "Wang Hao is inherently kind, but he lacks tact in his dealings with others, and sometimes his thoughts seem different from everyone else's!" Huizong was astonished and asked, "How are they different?" Empress Zheng said, "Wang Hao secretly cooperated with the Liao Kingdom, which is a crime of deceiving the emperor, yet he openly confessed everything to Your Majesty and even presented a large golden tiger. Such behavior, in the eyes of the censors, should be punished as both deceiving the emperor and flattering him!" Huizong said, "Wang Hao was promoted by me personally. In his eyes, the censors are insignificant; he only cares about my wishes!" Empress Zheng was even more puzzled and said, "But he openly defied your orders and secretly..." "Since cooperating with the Liao Kingdom!" Emperor Huizong said, "Wang Hao's mistake wasn't treason, but rather audacity. Do you know why I betrothed Huanhuan to Wang Hao?" Empress Zheng shook her head and said, "Wang Hao's kind nature is only one aspect; the deeper reasons are unknown to me!" Emperor Huizong looked wistful and said, "In Wang Hao's eyes, I am first and foremost his elder, and only then the Emperor; but in the eyes of the court officials, I am merely the Emperor. Wang Hao made me experience human relationships beyond imperial power, so I entrusted him with important responsibilities. But he is too sharp-tongued and completely unaware of the ruthless power of history's pen, so I must awaken him. He must understand that as a subject of the Great Song Dynasty and my consort, his personal sense of right and wrong must never disrupt the balance of the court or the face of the imperial family."

Empress Zheng, who never interfered in court affairs, said, "I have already promised Wang Hao that I will hold a fabric exhibition at Genyue, and he will bear all the expenses. Is that alright?" Emperor Huizong replied, "You mentioned this to me the day before yesterday, and I have already tacitly agreed." Empress Zheng replied, "Today, Consort Wang and I led Wang Hao on a tour of Genyue, and we had a conversation during which we were deeply moved and would like to share it with Your Majesty!" Emperor Huizong leaned against the silk quilt, half-embracing Empress Zheng, and said, "What were your thoughts?" Empress Zheng replied, "I originally thought that Wang Hao was spending lavishly for..." "He's been trying to curry favor with the powerful and influential in Tokyo, but after today's conversation, I realized that's not the case." Emperor Huizong asked, puzzled, "If it's not to curry favor with the powerful and influential, then why?" Empress Zheng replied, "Wang Hao's trade with the Liao Kingdom might hinder the free trade of warhorses, but wool won't be subject to such restrictions. Moreover, wool regenerates in just a few months after being sheared. Fine and warm woolen fabric will undoubtedly be highly sought after. If Wang Hao can obtain a continuous supply of wool from the grasslands beyond the Great Wall, he will surely be able to weave an inexhaustible supply of woolen fabric. At that time, the wealth of Jiaozhou will probably rival that of Suzhou and Hangzhou."

Emperor Huizong was surprised and said, "If the Jiaodong region can truly escape poverty and weakness by taking advantage of trade with the Liao Dynasty, then the Qilu region will be stable and worry-free from now on!" Empress Zheng thought to herself, "I hope you will not disappoint my expectations and lead the people of Qilu to a bright future!" She said, "If that day truly comes, it will be because Your Majesty is wise and capable, and knows how to use people well!" Emperor Huizong laughed and said, "The Empress has also made an indispensable contribution to the peace and prosperity of the country!"

The Northern Song Dynasty lacked horses, but not sheep. Wang Hao sourced all the wool from Hebei and Shandong for his woolen fabrics. Erlibao was one of Wang Hao's earliest businesses, now incorporated into the Jiaozhou Trading Company. Chen Songfeng, acting on Wang Hao's orders, ordered thousands of bolts of various colored woolen fabrics to be stockpiled in Erlibao for the exhibition. In addition, Wang Hao invited dozens of tailors from Bianjing (Kaifeng) to make clothes from the woolen fabric. Seeing Wang Hao so busy, Li Shishi said, "Brother, if you want to design novel and exquisitely crafted clothes, there's a group of people you absolutely cannot overlook!" Wang Hao, puzzled, asked, "Besides tailors, are there others skilled in making clothes?" Li Shishi replied helplessly, "Needlework is a skill every girl must master. As for tailors, while some are excellent, most are mediocre." Wang Hao shook his head, saying, "Time is tight this time. Besides my sister, I don't know any other girls in Bianjing. Therefore, I'm afraid my sister's suggestion cannot be implemented!"

Li Shishi said, "Do you know why men always frequent brothels?" Wang Hao replied with a smile, "Brothels have beautiful women, fine wine, and singing and dancing!" Li Shishi said, "It's good that you know, little brother!" Wang Hao suddenly realized and said, "Sister, are you saying that there are many skilled needleworkers in brothels?" Li Shishi said irritably, "Even the most beautiful woman is just a peasant woman in the vast sea of ​​people without glamorous clothes. The trends in Tokyo are never led by socialites and noblewomen, but by the hundreds of sisters in brothels. Give me thirty bolts of each color of woolen cloth, and in five days I will make you famous throughout Tokyo!" Wang Hao smiled sheepishly and said, "In that case, I'll have to trouble you, sister!" Li Shishi walked out of the room, then suddenly turned back and smiled, saying, "I hope you won't forget my kindness so easily!" Wang Hao solemnly replied, "If anyone dares to make things difficult for you in the future, little brother will bring them to justice!" Li Shishi turned around and said, "If that day ever comes, I hope you will still remember your promise today!"

News of the fabric exhibition spread like wildfire, and everyone was filled with curiosity about this novel commodity. The tailors in the marketplace, having received the fabric from Wang Hao, began working tirelessly, neglecting sleep and meals. Everyone knows the saying, "In literature, there is no first place; in martial arts, there is no second," but in the tailoring profession, are there any distinctions of rank? Although Li Shishi had been the most beautiful courtesan in Tokyo for many years, her needlework was unranked. Having fallen into prostitution, she had long lost the shyness of a young girl; how to live a life of unique elegance was a question that courtesans had long pondered!