Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 143 I'm in the dark

What is the concept of a hundred pennies?
In the late Qianlong period, the average price of a bucket of rice in the south of the Yangtze River was 50 to 70 yuan (a bucket of ten catties); the daily wages of farmers for short-term labor were 2000 to 2400 yuan, and the average monthly salary of long-term workers was about [-] yuan (a year’s worth of money). a tael of silver).Fifty Wen can buy a foot of dark blue or fish white cloth in Shandong.In places like Suzhou, Yangzhou, and Jiangning, the average monthly income of an urban family is about two taels of silver; although it is calculated in silver, it is actually used to make money, which is about [-] to [-] Wen.

(The exchange of silver and copper in the Qing Dynasty was not a simple exchange of one tael of silver for 1000 Wen. This was just the exchange rate that the imperial court hoped. In fact, the exchange of silver and copper in a region often depends on the local supply of silver and copper. Once silver flows into If the amount is too large, there will be a phenomenon that silver is cheap and money is expensive. For example, during the Northwest War, the local silver supply in Xi’an suddenly increased due to the military pay sent by the imperial court. The exchange rate of silver and copper in Xi’an at that time was 985 taels of silver Money.)
Based on this level, the pack of cigarettes in Shen Jingdan's hand is worth six to eight catties of brown rice, the wages of farmers working part-time for two days, and 8% to 15% of the monthly income of urban residents.A pack of 10 cents a pack of cigarettes, if there are [-] packs a month, ordinary people will go bankrupt.

A group of businessmen had been puffing and puffing in the flower hall all afternoon before ordering cigarettes with Shen and Huang.However, these people only bought [-]-[-] boxes in total, and they all said to take it back and try it first, and if the sales are good, they will buy more.

Both Shen and Huang understood that although the shredded tobacco used in the batch of cigarettes that Zhao Xin gave them was convenient to smoke and had a unique taste, there was still a gap between them and Fujian cigarettes.

During this period, in addition to Fujian tobacco, Jiangxi and Hubei also produced shredded tobacco.

The secret of the reason why Minyan can stand alone in this era is that in addition to adding various spices, it also adds oil for frying during production.This kind of shredded tobacco fried with oil not only burns fast, the ash will be extinguished when it falls to the ground, and it is not easy to cause fire, but also has a special fragrance when smoked.

Although the emperors of the three dynasties Kang, Yong and Qian did not smoke, and they did not like their courtiers to smoke, they did not prohibit the private cultivation of tobacco, which is also the main reason for the prosperity of tobacco.For example, shredded tobacco produced in Zhangzhou, Tingzhou, Pucheng, and Xinghua in Fujian is sold all over the country.In particular, the Jianyan produced in Pucheng has become a tribute purchased by the palace every year.

As for the reason why British and American cigarettes entered China and became popular in later generations, in addition to the large-scale manufacturing of industrial equipment, the huge sales system, strong capital support, and overwhelming advertising and promotion methods are also the reason why cigarettes have replaced traditional tobacco rods, pipes and pots. important reason.

Faced with the unsatisfactory start, Lao Huang was a little discouraged. If he had known earlier, he would not have brought so many cigarettes back.You must know that when they left Beihai Town, Zhao Xin gave them both eight thousand packs of cigarettes.If this can't be sold, and the tobacco gets damp after a long time, hundreds of taels of silver will be wasted.

Shen Jingdan was not in a hurry. He remembered that Zhao Xin told him before he left that it doesn't matter how much you sell at the beginning, but the important thing is to build a huge sales network from the city to the countryside.Only with this network can cigarettes become popular.

In the next ten days or so, Shen and Huang wandered around various guild halls. They didn't sell much cigarettes, but sold most of their leather goods.

As for those treasures, they will be put in the "Huang Shengtai" North-South grocery store opened by Lao Huang's family for the time being, and they will be sold slowly.

Seeing that the most valuable goods were almost handled, Shen Jingdan bid farewell to Lao Huang, took his servant Ah Si, hired a small boat, turned from the Wusong River to the South Canal, and headed straight for Yangzhou.

Two days later, the boat docked at the canal wharf outside the east gate of Yangzhou City.As soon as he stepped onto the pier, Shen Jingdan couldn't help blurting out: "Finally home."

In the 34th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty, Wu Guifang, the magistrate of Yangzhou at that time, built an outer city based on Dongguo, the great city of Yangzhou in the Song Dynasty, in order to prevent Japanese pirates from invading, also known as the "New City".The city wall of the new city is connected to the east city wall of the old city, with a total length of more than eight miles from the southeast to the north.

In the Qing Dynasty, Yangzhou City was under the jurisdiction of Jiangdu and Ganquan counties.The western half of the old city and the southern half of the new city belong to Jiangdu County, while the eastern half of the old city and the northern half of the new city belong to Ganquan County.

Shen Jingdan's home is near Dongguan Street in Yangzhou New City, which is under the jurisdiction of Ganquan County.The Dongguan Gate in front of us was originally called "Lijin Gate".

After the master and servant got off the boat, they had just entered the gate of Dongguan City when they saw a [-] or [-]-year-old boy in green clothes standing in the shade of the gate and looking around.

"Master!" The boy in green clothes saw Shen Jingdan, jumped three feet high, shouted and ran over.

"Guisheng, I haven't seen you in half a year, I'm almost as tall as your father!"

While saluting, Guisheng said, "Since I received the master's letter, since the day before yesterday, my wife and the second young lady asked me to come to the city gate to guard for a while in the morning. It just so happened that you came back on the third day, master."

As soon as he finished speaking, he got up and took two packages from Ah Si's hands and carried them on his shoulders. "Father, I'll help you."

The three of them passed through the city gate and turned right into Bianyimen Street, which leads directly to Bianyimen in the northeast corner of the new city.

"Your Majesty, are Madam and Miss alright?"

"It's all good. It's just that Madam has been worried that you and the whole girl will not be able to eat well every day."

"Well."

Guisheng walked behind Shen Jingdan, and asked flatteringly: "Master, next time you go to sea, take me with you?"

Ah Si's face was serious, he turned his head and scolded his son, "Speak up! What's your business, just serve the family honestly."

Shen Jingdan just smiled and listened without speaking.The three of them walked northward from Bianyimen Street for dozens of steps and turned westward into an alley. The house in the innermost was Shen's house.

As soon as the three of them reached the door, Guisheng strode forward and pushed open the courtyard door, letting Shen Jingdan and Ah Si go in first; he followed behind and rushed inside, shouting: "Madam! The master is back! The master is back!"

The Shen family's yard is not big, with three entrances, front and back, but only more than 500 square meters.As soon as Shen Jingdan passed through the hall and entered the main hall, he saw two servants from the family greeted him with his wife and young daughter.

I haven't seen my family for half a year, so I can't help but sigh.

"Why didn't Sister Quan come back with her father?" After Shen Jingdan changed clothes and returned to the back hall, the youngest daughter Ayu suddenly asked.

Mrs. Shen read Shen Jingdan's letter before, so she naturally knew what was going on.She smiled perfunctorily and said, "Ah Quan is in Wa country with Aunt Di right now, and I can't come back for the time being."

"I want to play with sister Quan. She's not here. I'm so bored by myself."

Mrs. Shen said: "A few years ago, when your whole sister didn't come, I didn't see you talking about being bored. You are not young anymore. After this year, it's time to find someone to talk to you about."

Ayu's face changed, and he bowed his head and stopped talking.

Madam Shen didn't take it seriously, she turned to Shen Jingdan and asked, "Master, how long can you stay this time?"

"I won't go to Japan for the time being. In the future, I will go directly to Shanghai to pick up the goods if I have something to do."

Mrs. Shen was overjoyed when she heard her husband say that he would not go to Japan for the time being.Whenever her husband goes out to sea, she is always on tenterhooks.

Mrs. Shen was about to speak, and Shen Jingdan said again: "Oh, there is one more thing. This time I stayed in Shanghai Laohuang for a while, and he wants to propose marriage to his son."

When the wife heard someone propose marriage to her daughter, she quickly asked, "Which old Huang?"

Shen Jingdan said: "Which one else could it be? The owner of 'Huang Shengtai'. I figured that Ayu is still young, so I didn't agree. Let's talk about it in a year or two."

Mrs. Shen said: "Still young? You're thirteen this year."

Hearing this, Ah Yu hurriedly said, "Father, I don't want to marry."

Shen Jingdan nodded and said: "Father didn't agree. You go to the main hall first. I bought a lot of things in the country of Wa, so you can ask Ah Si for it."

As soon as Ayu heard this, he quickly asked his servants to help him away.Seeing that her daughter was nowhere to be seen, Shen Jingdan said to his wife: "I have seen two amazing doctors in the North this time. They told me that premature birth of a girl is harmful to the body. Therefore, I want Ayu to pass Seventeen and then let others."

"Seventeen? Don't you all become old girls!"

Shen Jingdan ignored his wife's surprise, got up and called Guisheng, and ordered: "Go to the Ma's mansion on East Street and ask if the master of the Ma family is at home. If he is, tell me that I will visit the mansion tomorrow."

"Yes, master." Gui Sheng replied and went out.

Mrs. Shen asked strangely: "Huh? What are you looking for with Master Ma?"

"There's a good deal to talk to him about."

The Master Ma mentioned by Shen Jingdan is the owner of "Jienan Bookstore", a salt merchant in Yangzhou, Ma Yu.It is said that the most famous of the Ma family is their own library, also called "Little Linglong Mountain Library".

In the 37th year of Qianlong's reign, in order to compile the "Siku Quanshu", Qianlong instructed the Military Aircraft Department to ask the governors and academic officials of all provinces to pay attention to searching for classics, and to prepare a catalog and submit it to the imperial court in view of the insufficient collection of books in the inner government.After the valuable bibliography is determined, a bill will be issued to obtain it, sent to the capital, and hidden in the inner court, "to highlight the prosperity of ancient Youwen".

Unexpectedly, after the decree was issued, there was very little response from the people.Especially the heirlooms of poetry and books in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, no one is willing to give the collection of books collected by themselves for several generations to the imperial court.It sounds like an excuse, but in fact, everyone understands that it is a matter of meat buns beating dogs.

In the 38th year of Qianlong, Qianlong once again ordered the governors of the provinces to quickly purchase and visit the suicide notes within half a year.Now the provincial governors and academic officials knew that the emperor was going to get serious, so a large-scale call for letters was launched in various places.

The fathers of Ma Yu's family got rich from salt, but unlike other salt merchants who like to build villas and play with thin horses, they love to collect books and make friends with literati.The Ma family's rich collection of books was praised by the people at that time, with as many as 1385 kinds.

Qianlong had heard of the name "Little Linglong Mountain Pavilion" a long time ago, so he ordered the Lianghuai Salt Administration to search for books from Ma's house.Xunyan Yushi selected 776 kinds of books according to the books of the Ma family's collection, and submitted them in three batches; because of fear of omissions, Xunyan Yushi made a private investigation and unannounced visits to confirm that the Ma family had no other private collections, so he gave up.As a result, the Ma family has become the one with the most private book donations in the country.The painstaking efforts accumulated by generations of people who worked hard and scattered money for many years finally came to nothing.

Afterwards, in order to praise the Ma family's No.1 achievement in the country, Qianlong rewarded a "Collection of Ancient and Modern Books".In addition, he also rewarded many poems written by himself - 32 chants of the imperial poems of Pingding Yili, 32 chants of imperial poems of Pingding Jinchuan, and [-] pictures of victory.

What a rotten thing!Master Ma Yuma was so angry that he wanted to curse.

Qianlong wrote more than 4 broken poems in his lifetime, and just like this took away the foundations of several generations of the Ma family by "robbing them openly and secretly".The Ma family's "Little Linglong Mountain Pavilion" has never recovered from the fall.

However, Shen Jingdan went to the Ma family not for books, but for cigarettes.

The Yangzhou Hanjiang Poetry Society, which was quite influential in the history of the Qing Dynasty, was established with the support of Ma Yu's father and second uncle.When the literati of the Hanjiang Poetry Club hold regular parties, besides drinking and composing poems, the most important thing is to smoke.

For example, Li E, a member of the Poetry Society and the leader of the Western Zhejiang School of Ci, wrote a poem "Tianxiang" before his death, praising tobacco as "better than betel nuts and for dissipating leftovers."

Another example is that Quan Zuwang, another famous figure in the association, actually wrote a poem "Ode on Tamba Wild Rice" before his death!
If the cigarettes can be brought into the Hanjiang Poetry Club through the relationship of the Ma family, and then let the literati of the poetry club write a few poems and praises, then the market for cigarettes will definitely increase!

Turning back to Shanghai, Lao Huang has been busy helping Zhao Xin find a house since he handed over the cigarettes and belongings to the shop.

In order to help the beneficiary in Beihai Town find a house, Lao Huang personally took people to Suzhou and Jiangning to see houses every day.When he returned to Shanghai from Suzhou more than ten days later, the manager of the shop came to tell him that [-] boxes of cigarettes had been sold!

The astonished Lao Huang hurriedly asked who the buyers were. He thought it was a few ship dealers who had bought it before, but he didn't expect the shopkeeper to tell him that it was a few brothels in Shanghai County.

"The brothel?" Lao Huang asked in surprise, "What are the brothels doing with all these cigarettes?"

The shopkeeper replied with a smile: "Boss, all women in brothels are smoking now."

"Slap!" Lao Huang slapped his thigh with a slap, and said, "How could I forget this!"

Since the end of Ming Dynasty, smoking has become an indispensable part of the high-end commercial hospitality provided by high-end brothels.It has become customary for brothels to present pipe rods or shisha to customers as part of the tea circle.

And those famous prostitutes not only provide tobacco to the guests, but because they often chat with the guests late into the night, they also smoke in order to refresh themselves.

Today's courtesans are often invited to literati's gatherings, so it's normal to smoke with them.It is said that the poet is fascinated by the beautiful woman enjoying tobacco with the guests, and the poet is fascinated by her posture of swallowing clouds and fog, so there is a poem of "Jade lips are full of beauty".Of course, they still smoke pipe rods or hookahs.

Don't look at Lao Huang and Shen Jingdan hanging out with alluring women in Nagasaki every day, it's because they can't get out and have nothing to do; but these two rarely go to brothels when they return to China.So Shen and Huang didn't think of brothels as an excellent "sales channel" at first.

Thinking of this, Lao Huang asked the shopkeeper, "How much is a box sold in the brothel now?"

"It wasn't easy to sell before, and the owner gave me a [-]% discount. They were all offered at this price."

"I will buy them next time, and I will give them a [-]% discount! The extra [-]% discount will be a rebate!"

Thinking that there are more brothels in Jiangning and Suzhou than in Shanghai, Lao Huang immediately decided to bring a batch of cigarettes before returning to Suzhou!

In the early morning a few days later, Lao Huang returned to Shanghai with satisfaction.The cigarette sales price he reached in Suzhou reached [-] cents per box!
Back home, Lao Huang sighed secretly while drinking tea and smoking a cigarette.

"It would have been great if I had planned to come here in a month and a half! It will be out of stock in just over half a month. Mr. Zhao, you must come on time!"

(End of this chapter)