Warlords: Rising from the Northwest Border and Sweeping Across the Powers

Chapter 226: Ma Changfang, the old fox of the Ma family who is ready to make a move

In the evening, as soon as Su Zhengyang returned to the Governor's Mansion, Yan Shuangying came in person to report to Su Zhengyang the important information he had just obtained.

"Governor, our Northwest Intelligence Bureau intercepted a secret telegram sent by Zhang Chengxiang to the Ma faction in Xiazhou. According to the content, the Ma faction and the Qu faction are likely to have formed an alliance with Zhang Chengxiang and will mobilize a large army in the near future to launch an attack on Ganzhou, where the situation has just stabilized."

"The 21st Army of the Qu faction has made unusual movements recently, which just confirms our inference."

Su Zhengyang slowly finished drinking the chicken soup that Yang Qiyue had prepared for him, put the bowl and spoon aside, and slowly said, "Hasn't the fate of the Zhao and Han factions taught these Northwest warlords a lesson? They still dare to target our Northwest Revolutionary Army."

Yan Shuangying pondered and said, "Money can move people's hearts. Zhang Chengxiang has controlled the three provinces of Zhili for more than ten years. The wealth he has accumulated is an astronomical figure that is hard to imagine. In addition, he has the support of Fusang. If he offers a price that is attractive enough to make them excited, it is not impossible."

"Continue to pay close attention to the actions of the Qu and Ma factions. I want to know their latest information at all times. You don't have to worry about this matter. Leave it to me to handle it personally. I want to see if Ma Changfang dares to take the money that he wants to spend."

In the office of Zhang Chengxiang in the Governor's Office of Jiaozhou Zhili, Zhang Qide, with a hint of excitement, even forgot to knock on the door, strode into the office, and said to Zhang Chengxiang, who was frowning at his desk, "Governor, under my persistent inducement, our negotiations with Ma Changfang have made important progress."

Zhang Chengxiang was shocked and asked impatiently, "What conditions did Ma Changfang put forward?"

"Ma Changfang is a greedy guy. He not only wants 1.2 million yuan in cash, but also % of the shares of our Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce. If we win in the future, he wants part of the fertile land in southern Ganzhou."

Zhang Chengxiang frowned and thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "1.2 million in cash, % of the Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce's shares, this Ma Changfang is really asking for too much."

"Ma Changfang said that as long as we agree to their conditions, he will act as a lobbyist for the Qu faction, and there shouldn't be any problems."

Originally, 1.2 million silver dollars was already an extremely shocking astronomical figure. You know, even if Zhang Chengxiang occupied the rich land of the three provinces of Zhili in the Central Plains, the tax revenue he could obtain in a year was only about million silver dollars. Ma Changfang opened his mouth and was about to cut a piece of meat from him. Zhang Chengxiang was angry, but also frightened by Ma Changfang's greedy appetite.

Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce is one of the earliest large chambers of commerce established in northern Xinjiang, along with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Among them, Zhang Chengxiang holds 40% of the shares. The other shareholders are all wealthy people in the three provinces of Zhili and well-known businessmen. The Chamber of Commerce involves a wide range of businesses and real industries, such as daily necessities, imported luxury goods, hotels, mining, and steel industries, which are quite large in scale.

The entire Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce can be ranked among the top five even in the whole of China. It is no exaggeration to say that it makes a fortune every day.

Five years ago, Solman, a descendant of the French nobility, wanted to spend 2.5 million oceans to acquire % of the shares from Zhang Chengxiang. After careful consideration, Zhang Chengxiang did not agree. But now, Ma Changfang actually asked for % of the shares of Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce, which is worth at least million oceans. It can be said that this is no different from directly taking a knife and cutting flesh from Zhang Chengxiang.

"Tell Ma Changfang that I can agree to his terms, but I want to see that within half a month, the Ma faction mobilizes no less than 200,000 troops to launch a full-scale attack on Ganzhou. The negotiations with the Qu faction will also be handled by Ma Changfang."

Zhang Qide nodded, turned and left the office, and began to communicate with Ma Xi again.

Zhang Chengxiang sat in his office chair, muttering to himself with a gloomy face: "Ma Changfang, you are taking advantage of the situation. When I take the position of President of Northern Xinjiang, I will deal with you first!"

In Benma City, the capital of Xiazhou, Ma Changfang looked at the telegram sent back from Zhang Chengxiang with a smile of confidence on his face.

In a new round of negotiations between Zhang Qide and Ma Changfang, Ma Changfang demanded that Zhang Chengxiang must sign the share transfer document in his own name and use the goods worth more than 1.2 million oceans from the branches of Jiaozhou Commercial Bank in Huzhou and Xiazhou as collateral, and return the full amount after Zhang sent oceans to Xiazhou.

Not far from Ma Changfang, the short and stocky Huzhou Governor Qu Guowei, who had a square face and a mustache, asked while smoking an imported cigar, "Brother Ma, how is it going? Has the old fox Zhang Chengxiang agreed to our terms?"

Ma Changfang sat on the sofa with his legs crossed. He picked up the crystal glass filled with foreign wine on the coffee table, took a sip, and slowly said, "Don't worry, brother Qu. After the Han and Zhao factions were taken down by the Northwest Revolutionary Army, there are only our two families left in the entire Northwest region that can pose a certain threat to the Northwest Revolutionary Army. If our two families do not take action, Su Zhengyang may be able to turn the situation around with the power of the Northwest Revolutionary Army. Our two families are now rare commodities."

"Zhang Chengxiang is not a fool who would rather die than give up his wealth. As long as he wins this war and becomes president, he will have great power and will get all the benefits in the future. But if he loses the war, not to mention the wealth in his hands, he may even lose his head. So, he will definitely agree to our conditions."

Qu Guowei showed a happy smile on his face and gave Ma Changfang a thumbs up.

"Brother Ma's ability to control people's hearts is really great. It seems that this overwhelming wealth is already a cooked duck and can't fly away!"

The two looked at each other and both laughed out loud with their heads raised.

"Brother Ma, if we take advantage of Zhang Chengxiang, then we have to prepare and send troops eastward to interfere in the war between them."

A cunning light flashed in Ma Changfang's eyes.

"We, the Ma faction, will mobilize 200,000 troops and create the illusion that we are ready to launch an attack on Ganzhou at any time. You, the Qu faction, must also cooperate with our Ma faction to put on a good show. As for whether or not to really attack the Northwest Revolutionary Army, we can wait a little longer. If Fuso wins in the northeast and then moves south, the demise of the President faction is a foregone conclusion, and we will naturally have to do our part. But if there is any accident, we can say that it was just a misunderstanding. We are just conducting a normal troop deployment exercise and have no intention of attacking Linzhou. In this way, we can be invincible. No matter who wins or loses, it will not affect the status of our two families in Xiazhou and Huzhou."

"But if this is the case, will Zhang Chengxiang be dissatisfied? And we haven't gotten the Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce shares worth 200 to 300 million yuan yet."

Ma Changfang smiled and said, "If Zhang Chengxiang and his party win, given his personality, he will never transfer the shares to us as agreed. By then, the goods worth 100 million oceans will be enough for our two families to share. We can do a favor and not take the shares. Zhang Chengxiang will not take action against us for this favor. If Zhang Chengxiang loses, the contract in black and white is in our hands. Then we can naturally get a share of the fat meat of Jiaozhou Chamber of Commerce."