"Finance is a Storybook" - the author is teacher Xu Jing, an expert on modern Chinese history. The book tells the classic story of 15 cases at the China Fund Museum. How classic is it? The characters are all well-known financial giants: Zhou Xuexi, the founder of modern China's financial industry, the Song family who is married to politics and business, financial hero Kong Xiangxi, red-top businessman Hu Xueyan, Shanxi business representative Qiao family, the most greedy Heshen in history... the story is full of details, Restore the truth and show you the famous historical materials: Dongting merchant gang created unprecedented funds and talents from foreign trade to money shops; Shanghai Youth Gang also adapted to the times, from a rabble gang to joining the industrial and financial industries; finance on the tip of the tongue, The growth and expansion of "Guanshengyuan" and "Songhe Tower".
The book is about "Capital Adventure in the Age of Disorder", consisting of four parts. Part One: Legends and Truth: Stories of Financial Giants, 7 chapters in one chapter, telling 7 famous figures who have had various impacts on financial development; Part 2: Inheritance and Business Tao: Stories of Financial Giants, 1*** 3 chapters, telling the story of three big families who run money shops and commercial banks; the third part, Adventure and Wealth: The Financial Story of Shanghai, consists of 3 chapters, all of which took place in Shanghai, the most important financial center at the time. There are banks and gangs; the fourth part is the financial stories of men and women in the food industry, two articles in one, telling the story of two time-honored brands in the food industry that are active today.
With the current development of informatization and everyone's attention to the economic situation, it seems that everyone is very familiar with the concept of finance and is more or less involved in various financial activities. Even the square dancing ladies are queuing up to open accounts and buy stocks, so it’s not surprising that everyone can talk about exchanges, acquisitions, film and television investments, and global trade imbalances at wine tables, teahouses, and cafes. These are all familiar to modern people. of finance.
What exactly is finance? Is it just money, stocks, bonds? The famous economist Chen Zhiwu has a broader view. He believes that "all transactions involving value allocation across time and space, or the exchange of interests between people are finance." This even includes the traditional Chinese concept of raising children to protect against old age, having children The process of investing in cultivation and receiving filial rewards in old age is also a financial example.
Looking at this concept, the stories in the book are naturally living finance. They are not constructed with data and charts, but use more non-market factors to find the hidden financial hand. Just like the last story of Suzhou Songhe Tower, a catering brand that has gone through many ups and downs for more than 200 years and is still shining brightly. The book talks about the historical origins of food, as well as the expansion and bankruptcy of this time-honored brand, its crises and its peaks. Of course, there is business ingenuity and skills involved, but there is also the operation of capital and early financial tools. There is the separation of ownership and management rights, there are equity transfers during the war, there are "stem stock" gifts to operators, and there are also core technicians (the "masters" in charge of the kitchen) who left angrily because they were unable to fulfill their share commitments.
These stories exactly convey the concept of the Financial Museum, which is dedicated to popularizing modern financial concepts. There is this passage in the introduction of the book: "Some people rush to take exams at night, while others resign and return to their hometowns. The story of finance repeats itself over and over again. I have heard many truths, but I still see the flowers in the fog in the fetters of finance, because you never know the truth of the story." Through these 15 representative stories, a clear and vivid context will be sorted out for you. Once you understand them, you will understand Chinese finance, and even half of China's modern history.