Chapter 176: The Visit

The Phoenix Villa had its own dedicated icehouse, which not only stored ice but also large quantities of fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat. The fresh lychees from the Phoenix Villa had become quite famous in Hangzhou’s gentry circles. Although the price was exorbitant and purchases were limited, one still had to pre-order to buy them.

The guests, while feasting on lychees and savoring the fine wine and delicacies, became pleasantly tipsy. Seeing that the gentlemen’s spirits were high, Cai Shi quickly went down to call for the female musicians to come and serve.

The practice of staging plays was extremely popular in the late Ming. Most gentry and wealthy families kept their own opera troupes. However, Zhao Yigong found keeping a troupe too expensive. Just preparing the costumes and hiring instructors was a huge expense, and if the Senate found out, it would undoubtedly cause another storm. Back then, a few men at the Leizhou station had gotten into trouble for acquiring a few extra maids.

But not keeping a troupe made it inconvenient for him to interact with the gentry. The “Australian novelties” were still rather weak in the entertainment department. So, Zhao Yigong kept a troupe of female musicians.

These musicians were all carefully selected from refugees who had sold themselves. Each was trained in a traditional instrument. The Senate did not object to this, as it could be justified as cultivating traditional musical talent, which was particularly appealing to some of the “nostalgic for tradition” senators. The maid training program was also considering adding musical instruments to its curriculum.

Zhao Yigong, also intending to please the General Office, spared no expense in hiring famous masters from the entertainment houses to teach them. Although their skills were still nascent, the gentlemen listening to the music were merely using it as a pastime; their true intentions lay elsewhere.

A servant woman in blue led six girls over. They all bowed to the guests at the table. They were all young girls with their hair in double buns, ranging from thirteen or fourteen to sixteen or seventeen. They were all dressed in identical sky-blue silk blouses with tight sleeves and light red vests. They were truly elegant and refined. Each held a musical instrument and curtsied gracefully before the guests. No matter how worldly the gentlemen were, their expressions couldn’t help but shift.

“This is a rather unique salute. Is it a custom of your household, Brother Zhao?” Wen Huai was delighted.

“It’s a new custom from Guangdong,” Zhao Yigong said with a smile. Suddenly, his brow furrowed. “Why are there only six people here?” he asked.

The servant woman seemed uneasy and lowered her head to reply, “To answer the Master, Miss Xihua said they have missed too many lessons recently practicing their music and were afraid of falling behind in their studies, so they stayed behind.”

A look of displeasure crossed Zhao Yigong’s face. He slowly put down his cup and stared at the servant woman. “She said that?”

Under his gaze, the servant woman could barely stand. She managed to keep from kneeling and said with a trembling voice, “This servant would not dare to lie.”

Zhao Yigong was silent for a moment. “You may leave.” The servant woman scurried away. Twelve round stools had been placed under the trees to the side of the banquet, but now only half were occupied, making it look a bit empty. Wu Zhixiang felt that Zhao Yigong had lost some face and quickly said, “Let’s listen to the music first.”

Zhao Yigong gave a slight nod. The clapper tapped lightly a few times. The pipa and zither started first, followed by the xiao and dizi. After a brief moment of tuning, a light, gentle, and smooth melody flowed out like water and clouds.

However, among those present, except for Wen Huai who was from a moderately well-off family, the rest all kept at least a few female musicians at home. Upon hearing the music, they could tell that the skill of Zhao’s little girls was at best “passable.” They were secretly surprised. Master Zhao’s taste in food and luxuries was famously high-end and sophisticated in Hangzhou. They never expected his household musicians to be so mediocre. Disappointment showed on their faces.

Although the music was not good, it did not spoil the gentlemen’s leisurely mood. After some pleasantries and toasts, the slightly drunk gentlemen were helped away. Servants had already arranged for sedan chairs to take them home.

Only Wu Zhixiang was unwilling to leave. He had come with another purpose.

After Zhao Yigong’s filature went into production, the raw silk it produced soon began to quietly enter the market. To gauge the market’s reaction, Zhao Yigong had secretly sent people to sell a batch of raw silk anonymously to “weaving workshops” to collect user feedback. The result was that this batch of silk received great praise as soon as it appeared. Not only was it top-grade “fine silk,” but it was also whiter and smoother than the best “Qili silk” on the market.

Crucially, the price of this silk was also quite low, only ten percent more expensive than the locally produced “fat silk.”

For a time, both the silk merchants and the workshop owners were attracted by this high-quality, low-price raw silk, and they inquired everywhere about its origin. But then, the silk disappeared from the market. Although the price of raw silk on the market had begun to slowly recover after the thorough exploitation of the sericulturists, it was still on the low side. Furthermore, Zhao Yigong’s purpose in reeling his own silk was for export; a quick look at the market reaction was enough.

Wu Zhixiang, however, immediately guessed the origin of this raw silk. Unlike other Jiangnan gentry who had close ties with Zhao Yigong, Wu Zhixiang had had much more contact with the “Australians” in Guangzhou. He had seen many more Australian goods, visited the construction site of the Grand World, and been to several of the new “workshops” opened by the Guangzhou station. He knew well that the “exotic contraptions and clever skills” of the Australians were far superior to anyone else’s. This was most likely produced in an Australian workshop. And the fact that the Cihuitang was running a filature was registered with the prefectural yamen and was not a secret. A little thought, and Wu Zhixiang understood everything.

Although Wu Zhixiang was seen by others as a profligate son, he actually had a great ambition to build a career. It was just that he was not naturally gifted for studying, and he had always struggled with the imperial examinations. Although he had made some progress in seeking an official position in Jiangnan, it seemed that in the end, he could only enter officialdom as a student of the Imperial Academy. Such a background was looked down upon in the official circles of the time. Therefore, Wu Zhixiang was no longer very enthusiastic about becoming an official.

His attraction to the Australians had begun with their “exotic contraptions and clever skills.” Gradually, Wu Zhixiang developed a strong interest in the Australians as a whole. He was particularly struck by how the Australians used their god-like skills to create far more wealth than ever before and achieve things that were previously impossible.

“The Australians are human, and I am human. We are all of the same Chinese stock. What they can do, I can do too.” Wu Zhixiang didn’t know when this thought had taken root in his heart.

Wu Zhixiang had lived in Guangzhou for a long time and was interested in the foreign trade business. He knew that the sericulture industry in the Pearl River Delta was also of a considerable scale, but the quality of the raw silk was not as good as that of Jiangnan, and the export price was not as high as “Nanjing silk.” If he could get the help of the Australians to raise silkworms and reel silk in the Pearl River Delta, he might be able to open up a new situation!

“You want to visit the Cihuitang’s filature?” Zhao Yigong was a little surprised. He had never met a Ming “upper-class” person who was interested in factories and workshops. Not just the upper class, even the common people had little interest.

“Exactly! I implore Brother Zhao to grant my request!” Wu Zhixiang’s face was full of sincerity. “I know that the newest raw silk on the market comes from the Cihuitang. To be honest, I also want to start an industry in Guangdong!”

“Of course, of course.” Zhao Yigong’s mind raced. Wu Zhixiang was a “pro-Australian individual.” From his past actions of risking danger to warn the Guangzhou station, to his recent initiative to sell rice to the Hangzhou station and invest in the China Merchants Bureau, all of it fully demonstrated that this person’s “heart was with the Senate.”

Of course, his intention was merely to rely on the Senate to start businesses and make money. But his ability to recognize the Senate’s superiority in science, technology, and productivity was already commendable. He was a “target that can be reformed and united.” The Senate itself also intended to spread private light industry in the Pearl River Delta region. If people like Wu Zhixiang were willing to invest, the impact on changing the social atmosphere would be enormous.

“There’s no harm in letting you see it. It’s just that if the inner workings of this filature were to spread, I am, after all, an outsider here. The ignorant masses might be alarmed by some things…”

“I swear to heaven that I will never speak of what I see here to any outsider,” Wu Zhixiang said solemnly.

If it were anyone else, Zhao Yigong would not have trusted such an oath. But Wu Zhixiang had at least been tested by the Guangzhou incident and the second anti-encirclement campaign. Although he couldn’t be called a “comrade,” he was at least a “fellow traveler.” He immediately agreed to Wu Zhixiang’s request.

This time, when they went down the mountain, Zhao Yigong did not call for a sedan chair. The two walked down together. The Phoenix Villa was not located on a high mountain, and there was a stone-paved footpath, so it only took about twenty minutes to walk down. Zhao Yigong deliberately chose not to use a sedan chair or palanquin to see if this young master was physically lazy.

A lazy person cannot accomplish practical things. No matter how much capital and sincerity he had, he could only be a “shareholder” who provides money. Only those who can do practical work can become “partners” of the Senate.

On the way, Wu Zhixiang was in high spirits, often lingering to admire the scenery and chatting with Zhao Yigong about his ideas. When they reached the foot of the mountain, they walked a long way under the scorching sun without any cover, yet he showed no signs of fatigue or boredom. He possessed a vibrant energy that many of the local young scholars lacked. This made Zhao Yigong quite admire him.

The two arrived at the factory gate, where they could already smell the coal smoke and the stench of wastewater. A strong odor assaulted them, and Wu Zhixiang couldn’t help but frown and cover his nose with his hand.

“The smell is indeed not pleasant,” Zhao Yigong said with a smile. “The smell inside is even stronger. If you feel unwell, it would be better not to go in…”

Wu Zhixiang shook his head. “It’s no problem. I can handle it.”

The factory’s workshop was processing the last batch of stored cocoons. The water in the huge cocoon boiling pots was boiling, and steam was rising from the gaps between the tight-fitting lids and the barrels. Although the roof of the cocoon boiling workshop was constructed with large, openable skylights to facilitate ventilation and heat dissipation, the temperature in the workshop under the scorching summer sun was still as high as fifty degrees Celsius. The workers inside, wearing full work clothes, were all darkened with sweat.