千禧年时,美国《华尔街日报》曾经做了一次跨越历史的富豪评选活动,最后评选出公元1000~2000年全世界最富有的50个人,其中出自中国的有两个清代人,除了大贪官和珅,另外一个便是广州十三行商人伍秉鉴。伍秉鉴祖籍福建,依靠十三行从事对外贸易,在晚清时期创造了一个财富神话。据估计,伍秉鉴的资产大约有1872万两白银。这个数字接近当 The millennium, the United States, “The Wall Street Journal,” once made a history of the tycoons selection event, the final selection of the year 1000 to 2000 the world’s richest 50 people, of which two from China Qing Dynasty, in addition to large Corrupt officials and emperor, the other is the Guangzhou thirteen firms Wu Bing Kam. Wu Bingjian, ancestral native of Fujian Province, relied on the thirteen lines for foreign trade and created a wealth myth in the late Qing Dynasty. It is estimated that Wu Bingxian’s assets are about 18.72 million taels of silver. This number is close to when