Hu Xue Yan 胡雪岩

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Twice, amid the chaos of war, Hu Xue-Yan's quick wit won him the favor of Zuo Zong-Tang, and he seized the moment to attach himself to Zuo Zong-Tang's service. On one hand, he procured grain for Zuo Zong-Tang; on the other, using the official silver that passed through his hands, he established a private bank in Shanghai, then took sole charge of the business of purchasing Western rifles and cannons on Zuo Zong-Tang's behalf, and raised funds for the Mawei shipyard that Zuo Zong-Tang planned to build in Fujian, later issuing foreign debt for the first time. Hu Xue-Yan's support for Zuo Zong-Tang's military affairs drew the attention of Ci Xi: he was imperially appointed chief superintendent of taxes for four provinces, then imperially granted the yellow jacket and the rank of first grade, becoming the only "red-topped" merchant in Chinese history. From then on, relying on his outstanding business mind, Hu Xue-Yan set up branches of the "Fukang" bank across the country and founded the "Hu Qing-Yu Tang" Chinese medicine shop in Hangzhou, his enterprise reaching its zenith. To break the monopoly of foreign merchants, he also set up a national silk-reeling factory, forcing the greedy English merchants to turn for help to Li Hong-Zhang, long a political rival of Zuo Zong-Tang. Through Li Hong-Zhang's behind-the-scenes scheming, Hu Xue-Yan was stripped of his "red top," and his fortune of nearly 30 million taels of silver was wiped out in an instant, leaving this peerless business genius with nothing but himself.