The Song Dynasty’s Greatest Tycoon

[The Making of a Powerful Tycoon: The Biography of Shen Sanbai]

“Shen Sanbai of the Shen family was an extraordinary man of Bianjing. When he first appeared, everyone dismissed him as a frivolous playboy who spent his days cockfighting and dog racing instead of pursuing anything worthwhile. Yet within just three years, he controlled half the Great Song's wealth. The Maritime Trade Office followed his orders, and the Privy Council relied on him for supplies. He delighted in playing the pig to eat the tiger, luring his enemies into the open before wiping them out in one fell swoop. His methods were ruthless, and his schemes never failed. Though he had seven wives and concubines, each an extraordinary woman of her age, the women of his household followed his lead in all things and dared not defy him. In his later years, he was ennobled as Prince of Commerce and appointed head of the Shangshu Department. He was known as the ‘God of Wealth Chancellor’ and posthumously honored as Zhongwu.”