Chapter 71: Reconstruction

The sedan chairs made their way towards Huifu Street. The Qiwei Escort Agency had organized a large contingent of escorts to guard the procession. At every street corner, they set off “gaosheng” firecrackers that shot high into the air and long strings of “wanzibian” firecrackers. Sun Kecheng, wearing a new, uniform outfit, personally led the escorts on foot in formation behind them, looking proud and vindicated.

Ever since the navy had burned down the Wuyang Post House, the Qiwei Escort Agency, which had been keeping a low profile, finally shed its meek facade. After the secret treaty was signed between the two sides, Qiwei’s fortunes rose dramatically. He had been holding it in, waiting for Master Guo’s return to show off a bit.

The procession arrived at Huifu Street. The entrance to the street was already guarded by yamen runners from Nanhai and Panyu counties, preventing idlers from approaching. The fronts of the original residence and the two shops, Zichengji and Zizhenzhai, had been scrubbed clean. The seals that had been there for over half a year were long gone, and the weeds under the front steps had been pulled. The road surface was also swept clean. The only problem was that the large glass panes of Zichengji and Zizhenzhai had been smashed and taken away, so for now, the boards covering the windows couldn’t be taken down.

The clerks and craftsmen of the former Zi-brand enterprises, led by Shopkeeper Shen Fan, were lined up at the shop entrance, eagerly watching the sedan chairs approach. They had been waiting for this day for a long time.

After the entire Guangzhou Station evacuated, the clerks and craftsmen received severance pay and went home to lie low. Some unlucky ones who couldn’t escape were arrested by yamen runners, suffered a bit, and lost some money. Fortunately, Sun Kecheng had been helping secretly, and with occasional assistance from Gao Ju, they managed to keep everyone’s morale stable. Although this group had received severance pay and had enough for food and clothing, they were uneasy about living off their savings, which were dwindling by the day. They all eagerly hoped for Master Guo’s early return so they could get back to work.

After a long wait, the news of Master Guo’s return to Guangzhou finally arrived. The news was delivered by someone sent by Sun Kecheng. The staff of the Zi-brand enterprises couldn’t help but spread the news among themselves.

Shen Fan had returned to his hometown to lie low after being dismissed. As the chief manager of the Zi-brand enterprises, he was a key target of Tian Da. Before leaving Guangzhou, he was almost kidnapped by Tian Da’s vicious servants. Fortunately, Qiwei had sent people to protect him secretly from the beginning, ensuring his safe escape.

Carrying the roster of all the clerks and craftsmen of the Guangzhou Station, Shen Fan fled to his hometown under the escort of the agency’s men. Unexpectedly, Tian Da had great influence and managed to get the local county yamen to send runners to arrest him. His whole family had to flee overnight under the escort of the agency’s men and went into hiding at one of Qiwei’s outer branches for several months.

During his time in hiding, he was able to keep up with the situation in Guangzhou through the Qiwei Escort Agency’s communication network. Although he wasn’t as restless as the junior clerks and craftsmen, he had serious doubts about whether Master Guo and the others could return to Guangzhou—after all, the Australians were up against the government.

When the men from Qiwei Escort Agency informed him to return to Guangzhou to prepare for reopening, the old shopkeeper couldn’t contain his excitement and immediately set off for the city. After arriving in Guangzhou, he first stayed at Qiwei’s inn. Qiwei’s men went out to notify the clerks and craftsmen scattered in various villages and even neighboring counties to return to work. The entire inn was filled with a festive atmosphere, with everyone waiting for the Master to return and reopen the business.

At this moment, Shen Fan stood at the front of the clerks, his heart pounding with excitement. During this turmoil, although he couldn’t help the Master much, the Master had truly “returned.” They had fought their way back with cannons against the tyrannical power of the government that terrified common people. The Australians’ tough style of keeping their word and not fearing the powerful left a deep impression on him.

He watched as the sedan chair was set down nearby and the curtain was lifted. Master Guo leaned out, stamped his foot lightly, and dusted off his sleeves, exuding an unattainable “aura of a sovereign.” Then, Miss Pei also got out of the sedan chair behind him—still as radiant and stunningly beautiful as ever. Shen Fan suppressed his excitement, took a few steps forward, and knelt down in a grand gesture to kowtow to Guo Yi. All the clerks and craftsmen of the Zi Group present also knelt down in a rush. A large crowd was suddenly kneeling in front of the door.

Guo Yi was startled. He hadn’t expected these people to have such deep feelings for the Zi-brand enterprises. Seeing Shen Fan performing such a grand ceremony for him, he quickly stepped forward to help him up. Seeing the old shopkeeper’s face streaked with tears, choked up and unable to speak, Guo Yi himself felt a lump in his throat—”loyalty and righteousness,” he supposed, was something like this. He thought with emotion.

“Everyone, please rise!” Guo Yi composed himself and glanced at the crowd. “We’ve been apart for over half a year. You have all suffered. I said back then that we would eventually return to Guangzhou, revive our old business, and reopen our shops with firecrackers together.” As he spoke, he felt his eyes moisten. “Come! Bring the firecrackers!”

“Here!” Shen Fan called out. A clerk had already prepared a hundred “gaosheng” firecrackers and ten long strings of “wanzibian” firecrackers, laying them out densely all over Huifu Street.

Guo Yi took an incense stick and lit the fuse of a gaosheng. Then, the gaosheng and wanzibian firecrackers went off one after another. The entire Huifu Street was instantly filled with a deafening roar and thick smoke.

Guo Yi sat in the flower hall. The once magnificently furnished hall was now completely empty. Even the chair he was sitting on and the table in front of him were temporarily bought from a second-hand shop—in those days, there was no concept of a furniture store; furniture had to be commissioned from craftsmen. To buy ready-made furniture, one had to buy second-hand.

The twelve glass-inlaid windows, made by skilled craftsmen, had vanished. The greedy yamen runners had not only taken all the movable property and furniture but had also not spared the building materials that could be dismantled. Guo Yi had just inspected Zichengji’s distillery. The distillers and atmospheric boilers had been damaged by them before their withdrawal to prevent others from using them. Now, seeing them again, they were in a state of disrepair, with many parts missing. It was clear that someone had dismantled these things, moved them elsewhere, and recently moved them back.

Almost none of the business equipment returned from the government was intact. Guo Yi shook his head as he looked at it. Most of it was probably only good for firewood or recycling. As for daily utensils, not a single pot or bowl was left in the kitchen. It was difficult to even boil water to drink.

Fortunately, the house had been cleaned several times a few days ago by people organized by Sun Kecheng and Shen Fan. The weeds in the courtyard had also been pulled.

Even so, this once-thriving business still looked dilapidated and worn out.

“It’s truly been ruined beyond recognition,” Guo Yi lamented.

“Where am I supposed to sleep…” Pei Lixiu glanced at her former boudoir on Huifu Street—it was now practically “four bare walls.” As for Ziminglou, it was even worse. She and Zheng Shangjie had wanted to go back to Ziminglou immediately to check on its condition, but Shopkeeper Sun asked her to go tomorrow instead—it was still being cleaned and was probably uninhabitable.

“You and Zheng Shangjie can stay at Qiwei’s inn for the night. I’ve already told Shopkeeper Sun to prepare a deluxe room. It has a bathroom and is very clean.” Guo Yi instructed someone to set up a camp bed in his own bedroom and get a desk for office use.

“I won’t go to the inn. Just set up a temporary bed for me too. I can use the evening to think more about the plan to restore Ziminglou,” Zheng Shangjie said. She was very career-minded and felt she could handle the simple living conditions.

Guo Yi instructed that notices be posted outside the Huifu Street residence, Zichengji, Zizhenzhai, and Ziminglou: “Reopening soon. All employees of this shop and residence are requested to report for duty within three days.” Although most people had already reported back before the reopening, some had not yet been contacted.

As for the furniture, daily necessities, and shop equipment, he immediately sought craftsmen to make them, sparing no expense and urging the carpenters to work quickly. Some items that could be bought from second-hand shops were purchased from there first. But Guo Yi demanded that they must buy high-quality items and not make do with inferior ones.

“That’s easy. Recently, there have been many wealthy households in Guangzhou selling ‘confiscated goods.’ There are many good things in the second-hand shops. Not to mention furniture, even decorative items are plentiful!” Shen Fan said with a smile. He was now so busy he didn’t have a moment’s rest, running around and making arrangements. Guo Yi had given him a passbook for the Delong Guangzhou branch, from which he could withdraw funds freely.

“Oh? What’s going on?” Guo Yi asked curiously.

“It’s all because of the Australians…” Shen Fan lowered his voice, but couldn’t suppress a smile. “The government troops suffered a major defeat in Qiongzhou Prefecture. The civil and military officials who led the troops were either killed or captured. Those captured need ransom money, and when they get back, the court will still punish them. The guilty want to escape punishment, and the innocent want to get promoted. It’s a complete mess… Doesn’t all this require money for bribes and connections?”

“I see.” Guo Yi thought, “Our victory at Chengmai really taught these officials a harsh lesson.”

“There are also people selling land and houses now. If the Master is interested, you can secretly take a look to see if there’s anything suitable.”

“You keep an eye out for me first. If you find something suitable, report back.”

“Yes. This time, many people in the Guangdong officialdom were implicated.” Shen Fan had no affection for the Ming court and felt no sympathy for the misfortune of these officials who exploited the people and acted tyrannically. “Master, don’t worry. I’ll take Purchaser Zhou with me. He’s known as ‘Zhou the Skinner.’ We’ll definitely squeeze these corrupt officials dry and vent some anger for you, Master. These officials have a lot of good things.”

“Good, you may go,” Guo Yi nodded.

Guo Yi’s flagship had brought a construction team from the Lingao General Construction Company to repair the residence and businesses. They had also brought some potentially useful building materials, such as large panes of glass. But now it seemed the damage to the buildings far exceeded his expectations. The prepared materials were insufficient in both quantity and variety. Boilers, distillers, and sanitary ware—all these had to be ordered from Lingao. Guo Yi knew that the condition of Ziminglou would only be worse than here—many of the “ingenious and decadent” items inside were probably less than one-tenth intact. It was likely that even the water pipes and faucets had been dismantled and taken away.