Chapter 63: The Municipal Housing and Property Exchange Act

The next day, Zhang Daocheng, accompanied by a retinue of family servants and bearing lavish gifts, arrived at the residence of Zhang Yaozu.

Zhang Yaozu, alongside Su Ze, personally greeted them at the front gates.

With the Zhang family's lineage being remarkably thin, Zhang Daocheng, despite merely being a merchant, was one of the few capable and relied-upon assets the family possessed.

Zhang Yaozu was acutely aware that if he were to achieve soaring success and prominence, he would need not only the backing of Imperial Concubine Zhang from within the inner palace but also the steadfast support of relatives like Zhang Daocheng.

Stepping down from his carriage, Zhang Daocheng strode quickly toward Zhang Yaozu. After an exchange of polite pleasantries, Su Ze stepped forward to offer a formal bow of respect.

Stroking his beard, Zhang Daocheng accepted the full bow with a hearty smile. As Zhang Yaozu led the group into the estate, Su Ze suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure among Zhang Daocheng's entourage of servants.

This—this was truly bold beyond measure!

Zhang Chulan flashed a sweet smile at Su Ze, adjusted the hat of the junior servant uniform she wore, and quickly hurried to keep pace with Zhang Daocheng.

Su Ze could not help but smile as well. Come to think of it, prior to the rise of Neo-Confucianism, the social ethos of scholars and intellectuals was far more unrestrained; had not both the former and current emperors married previously divorced women?

The Zhang family was not an aristocratic clan bound by rigid and stifling propriety; having risen to prominence only in recent years, it was quite normal for Zhang Daocheng to indulge and pamper his daughter.

Upon reaching the reception hall, Zhang Chulan stood composedly behind Zhang Daocheng. After another round of polite conversation, Zhang Yaozu invited Zhang Daocheng to his study to appreciate some rare ancient texts.

This signaled a transition to serious matters. While the reception hall was merely a venue for formal etiquette, the study was the most crucial workspace for an ancient scholar-official. Inviting Zhang Daocheng into the study clearly demonstrated the close and trusted relationship between Zhang Yaozu and Zhang Daocheng.

Just as Su Ze stood up to leave, Zhang Chulan tugged at his sleeve from behind.

"Surprised?"

Zhang Chulan narrowed her eyes, radiating an aura of youthful vitality.

Su Ze hurriedly nodded, causing Zhang Chulan's smile to grow even brighter.

"It's all my father's fault; he wouldn't let me come to see you earlier."

Su Ze thought to himself that daughters indeed tended to lean toward their husbands even before marriage, already blaming her father for being unreasonable. He quickly smoothed things over:

"Old Master Zhang was simply looking out for our reputations. Once we are married, you will still need to pick an auspicious date whenever you wish to visit your maiden home."

At the mention of marriage, a blush crept across Zhang Chulan's cheeks.

She suddenly realized that their relationship had fundamentally changed.

Transitioning from childhood sweethearts to an engaged couple, Zhang Chulan was overwhelmed by a sudden wave of bashfulness, rendering her unable to speak the words she had originally prepared for Su Ze.

After a brief, awkward silence, Zhang Chulan finally spoke:

"Oh right, I have something to return to you."

A servant stepped forward carrying a wooden cage-basket. Zhang Chulan opened the lattice-windowed, exquisite wooden box, which was lined with soft fur on the inside, and pulled out a white—pig?

No, as Su Ze looked closer, wasn't this his beloved cat, Rouge Snow?

How could it have grown to such a portly state in just over a month?

Su Ze was rendered momentarily speechless. After he became embroiled in that legal case, he had simply lacked the time to look after Rouge Snow. When he later returned to his small courtyard to search for it, the cat was nowhere to be found, and he had assumed it had wandered off to another household.

He never expected that Zhang Chulan would take it in and feed it until it transformed into a feline resembling a round little pig.

Zhang Chulan explained with a trace of exasperation:

"When you got into trouble, I went to your house to look for you, and this cat just followed me back. So, I took it in and raised it for you."

Then, she added disdainfully:

"This foolish cat doesn't even catch mice. All it knows how to do is eat every day, and this is how it turned out."

Su Ze was speechless. Wasn't that entirely because you overfed it?

The cunning feline evidently knew very well that following Su Ze only yielded small dried fish, whereas staying with Zhang Chulan meant a life of luxurious meals and pampering. It stubbornly twisted its fat body, refusing to let Su Ze pick it up.

Helpless, Su Ze said:

"You might as well keep raising it for now, Lan Niang."

Zhang Chulan was extremely fond of the cat; hearing this, she immediately cradled it tightly in her arms and smiled:

"Very well, we'll talk about it after we're married."

Mentioning marriage once more brought a rosy blush back to Zhang Chulan's face.

At that moment, Zhang Yaozu's personal pageboy came to summon Su Ze, forcing Su Ze to exchange reluctant farewells with his fiancée.

Upon entering Zhang Yaozu's study, Zhang Daocheng looked approvingly at his prospective son-in-law. Zhang Yaozu began:

"Your future father-in-law is truly lending you a helping hand. Brother Daocheng has stated that when the official performance evaluations take place, he can provide funds to cover the financial deficits of the Housing and Real Estate Bureau. Therefore, for the time being, you only need to manage the bureau well and ensure no scandals arise."

Su Ze looked toward Zhang Daocheng. True to form, his future father-in-law possessed considerable wealth and was even willing to spend money to help him build a successful political track record.

Since that was the case, executing his plan would be remarkably straightforward.

Su Ze bowed to the two older men and proposed:

"Uncle, Elder Zhang, I have an idea."

An idea?

Zhang Yaozu knew that Su Ze had always been resourceful, and over the past few days, the young man had been constantly running about, conducting on-site investigations into the actual conditions of the Housing and Real Estate Bureau.

Yet, the Housing and Real Estate Bureau was an abysmal mess. Did Su Ze genuinely possess a method to bring it back to life?

Su Ze explained:

"My humble idea is to establish a Market and Trade Office directly under the Housing and Real Estate Bureau, specifically tasked with helping the workshops within the bureau procure raw materials and purchase finished goods."

"The profits generated by this Market and Trade Office can then be used to maintain and preserve the properties under the bureau."

"In this way, the common people renting housing from the bureau will benefit, while the bureau itself will secure a new stream of revenue, allowing us to renovate dilapidated buildings and genuinely improve the living conditions within the bureau's housing estates."

Zhang Yaozu narrowed his eyes and asked: "A Market and Trade Office? A government-run guild?"

Su Ze looked at Zhang Yaozu, realizing that this man had not climbed to his current position purely through connections; Imperial Concubine Zhang valued him precisely because of his genuine competence.

Nodding, Su Ze replied:

"Precisely so. The Market and Trade Office can gather the demands of the various workshops within the housing estates, handle unified bulk purchases of materials, and distribute them directly to each household."

"Furthermore, the office can help connect with buyers and issue orders to the corresponding workshops whenever demand arises, ensuring a steady stream of business for them."

"In addition,"

Su Ze turned his gaze toward Zhang Daocheng and continued:

"Furthermore, because small family-run workshops often face financial constraints that prevent them from accepting large orders, the Market and Trade Office can also provide micro-loans to assist them."

Having laid out his core concept, Su Ze began presenting detailed data:

"The Housing and Real Estate Bureau oversees more than twenty thousand residential properties, among which are eight thousand various workshops, alongside another five thousand households that routinely craft small household goods in their spare time. These workshops encompass an immense variety of trades, practically capable of meeting every conceivable need within Bianjing City."

"The Market and Trade Office will procure raw materials and sell them entirely at cost, charging merely a five-percent commission."

"The same principle will apply to brokered sales facilitated by the office—we will charge a modest five-percent commission, and the loans provided will likewise carry only minimal, low-interest rates."

Frowning, Zhang Yaozu asked:

"Charging only five percent—will that generate any surplus?"

Su Ze smiled and answered:

"Uncle, do you realize that the commercial ventures operating within the Housing and Real Estate Bureau handle no less than five million strings of cash in transactions every single year? A five-percent commission is more than enough to sustain the bureau's operations and will even yield a healthy surplus."

Zhang Yaozu drew in a sharp breath. He had never imagined that the scale of commerce under the Housing and Real Estate Bureau was so colossal.

Zhang Daocheng, however, frowned and pointed out:

"With such massive flows of capital involved, even my Zhang family does not possess that much liquid cash on hand."

Su Ze's eyes gleamed as he said:

"This is precisely where I require Elder Zhang's assistance. Because this endeavor will inevitably infringe upon the interests of large-scale merchants, you, Elder Zhang, can persuade some of those prominent merchants to pool their capital together and invest it in the Housing and Real Estate Bureau to earn interest."