Tianliangyuan

Chapter 360 Daxing Bank

Xu Zhaozhao finally belatedly noticed the man's change and immediately lay back down. She was really tired after all that fuss. Although this kind of thing was wonderful, it had to be done in moderation.

The two lingered together for a while longer, until evening, before finally sitting back down at their desks.

Xu Zhaozhao also returned to her previous rational state, but her voice sounded a little off.

"The business of a pawnshop should be based on mutual trust and operate with low profit margins. This should be the case whether it is government-run or private. Pawnshops are different. They offer high interest rates and only consider the term. When the redemption period expires, the pawnshop can directly sell the mortgaged items. Pawnshops seek profits and borrowers need funds for emergencies. This is a reasonable transaction, but neither party can guarantee the redemption."

That's true.

No one can guarantee who the collateral will ultimately belong to.

And to put it bluntly, you can exchange a fur coat for some money at a pawnshop, but if you go to a money exchange shop, no one will pay any attention to you.

Especially if the shop is only government-run, they will pay even less attention to you.

Ultimately, these two businesses have different operating methods and profit-making strategies, but in essence, they both involve using money to generate more money.

Regardless of the quality of the collateral, the pawnshop staff will describe the items as somewhat dilapidated. This is actually to prevent customers from deliberately finding fault later, and also to devalue the items so that they can be exchanged for customers at a very low price.

The pawnbroker will write a written agreement. Once it's written, if the pawner has no objections, the pawnbroker will accept the item and pay the money. But this isn't a sale; the pawnbroker is merely temporarily holding onto the items.

Both parties will agree on a time limit, usually a few months to one or two years. The pawner can redeem the item with the receipt, but will have to pay some interest.

If the item is not redeemed by the due date, it belongs to the pawnshop, which can then sell it for profit.

Xie Zheng now understands that while the way pawnshops make money may seem similar to that of counter shops, they are actually quite different in their own way.

"Does the quality warehouse make its profit from the price difference?"

Xu Zhaozhao smiled and said, "I guess so. For example, this Chengni inkstone, if you buy it properly in a study, it might cost fifty strings of cash. But if you go to a pawnshop, they will say that the item is old, worn, etc., and will give you a discount of up to twenty strings of cash. If the deadline is one month, then you will have to bring twenty strings and one hundred cash to redeem the item."

This is reasonable, because the pawnshop provides the money for your emergency. But if you fail to redeem it by the due date, the item belongs to the pawnshop, and they will resell it for forty strings of cash. If you encounter a shrewd seller, it might be sold for sixty or even one hundred strings of cash.

So, Sanlang, do you think I'd make a lot of money if I opened a pawnshop?

Xie Zheng's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he heard this.

“I wouldn’t argue if you said this Chengni inkstone could sell for forty or fifty strings of cash, but how can an old item be sold for even more? How can it be speculated up to a hundred strings of cash? This is simply unbelievable!”

Xu Zhaozhao smiled; there's a lot more to it than meets the eye.

She had no desire to talk to him anymore.

Keep in mind that her inventory warehouse hasn't officially opened yet, so we can't rush things. We can't reveal all the secrets to making money.

Although Xu Zhaozhao is not short of money, she doesn't mind having too much.

Moreover, she and Xie Zheng will have children to raise in the future, and they need to prepare some property for the children. Otherwise, what if they fight over the inheritance in the future?

The next day, Song Qing was transferred to Xu Zhaozhao's side.

Besides several head maids, Xu Zhaozhao was accompanied by two dowry maids, Xu Mama and Yu Mama, as well as Xie Zheng's former wet nurse, Lin Mama.

Logically speaking, Xu Zhaozhao should have quite a few people around her.

However, Xu Zhaozhao herself usually doesn't manage things in the garden; she leaves it to the three nannies to take care of, so she usually only has one nanny serving her.

Now that Song Qing has arrived, Xu Zhaozhao feels that things might be easier in the future.

"Aunt Song Qing, there's no need to be so polite. Since Sanlang sent you here, I naturally trust him. And don't laugh at me, Aunt Song Qing, my needlework isn't very good. I can manage to handle some of Sanlang's undergarments, but for outerwear, I'll have to trouble you, Aunt Song Qing."

Song Qing understood what the other party meant and immediately curtsied in response.

Song Qing had just arrived, so Xu Zhaozhao only let her familiarize herself with the place first, and the pawnshop, which had been in preparation for a long time, was finally ready to open.

Xu Zhaozhao was quite generous. First, she poached several experienced shopkeepers from Jiangnan, and then she had someone select a few clever young men from Lantian County to work as waiters.

The three counties of Chang'an, Wannian, and Lantian simultaneously opened a quality warehouse.

Xu Zhaozhao had money in her hands, so she wasn't afraid of not having anyone come to pawn her things.

But this line of work needs someone with a keen eye to oversee it.

However, she could only recruit a few experts at the moment, so she could only leave three experts in the capital and send one to Lantian County.

Moreover, the pawnshop in Lantian County was located on the street she herself built.

Since it was their own shop, there was no rent expense, and because it was close to the village, it was convenient for the staff to eat and live.

Less than ten days after the pawnshop opened, an imperial edict was issued.

The former government-run bank was officially renamed Daxing Bank, and the details of deposit profits and loan interest payments were clearly stated in the government notices.

The imperial court issued a gazette, which was then relayed down through the ranks.

Just after the silver shop in Wannian County finished setting off firecrackers and officially announced its opening for business, Xu Zhaozhao's people carried over several large boxes of copper coins in a grand manner.

After finally counting, the money was 1,000 strings of cash!

This is a fantastic start!

Xu Zhaozhao would never show favoritism. At the same time, she also had a thousand strings of cash delivered to the Chang'an County Bank.

This is her attitude, and also a trend.

Who doesn't know that Princess Anle is rich?

Who doesn't know how good the Scholar's Wine and Longevity Wine in the hands of the County Lord of Anle are?

With her taking the lead, people flocked to her to deposit money or inquire about loans.

The Princess of Anle set a good precedent, and Gu Dongyang was naturally very satisfied with the matter.

Although some nobles also deposited money to support national policies, they were nobles and officials, while Xu Zhaozhao was different.

Despite bearing the title of county magistrate, she truly enjoyed a high reputation among the common people and some merchants.

Therefore, her support naturally stood out.

Three days later, Fu Pei brought Gu Dongyang to the Duke of Huguo's mansion.

Although Xie Xiaolin invited him to the study, Xie Zheng and Xu Zhaozhao were invited over shortly afterward.

"To be honest, Your Highness, although the banks have resumed normal operations, it's clear that deposits are far outweighing expenditures. Moreover, His Majesty is an impatient man and keeps urging the banks to achieve some results as soon as possible. However, as Your Highness said before, private banks have severely damaged the reputation of this industry. Therefore, we need to lend out large sums of money right now."