Ming Zuo

Chapter 795
Taixing Jijia has a lot of collections.

In addition to "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains", there is also Wang Xizhi's copy "Shenlong Orchid Pavilion", which is also a rare treasure.

The original "Lanting Preface" has disappeared, and "Shenlong Lanting" is the most exquisite copy among all copies.

Because there is a small seal of Tang Zhongzong Li Xian's Shenlong year name at the front of the scroll, it is called Shenlong Lanting.

These precious literary and artistic works have all become Shandong's spoils of war.

However, among the trophies, there are some that Shandong cannot keep privately.

That is the luxurious house of Qin and Jin merchants.

These Qin and Jin merchants were extravagant and luxurious, and the houses they built were absolutely magnificent and unparalleled in the world.

It is a pity to destroy such a good house and house, and it is useless to keep it.

At least none of the officials in Shandong dared to include it in their own name.

Not to mention whether staying here will cause criticism, and I can't afford it.

In the end, the situation was reported to Zuo Menggeng, and he made a decision.

auction.

There are countless people who look at and envy the luxury houses of salt merchants, and they will definitely sell for a good price and increase their income.

Sure enough, when the news of the auction spread, the entire Jiangnan area became a sensation.

In just ten days, even people from Zhejiang came over to inquire about the situation.

There is only one situation that is quite strange.

That is, Huizhou merchants are indifferent and have no interest in these luxury houses and art institutes, even though they are right in front of them.

But Zuo Menggeng became interested and sent someone to invite Huizhou merchants over.

"The commander-in-chief doesn't know that Huizhou merchants don't advocate luxury enjoyment. It is enough to have a house to live in and a meal to eat."

In front of Zuo Menggeng, all Huizhou merchants were terrified.

There is no way, Huang Zonghui saw blood that day in order to subdue Huizhou merchants.

These people were invited today, and no one knew if it was a Hongmen Banquet.

The person who explained to Zuo Menggeng was Cheng Shaozu, the leader of Huizhou merchants.

His grandfather Cheng Bai'an was a close friend with Gui Youguang, and Gui Youguang also wrote a birthday preface for Cheng Bai'an's [-]th birthday.

Huizhou merchants can become bigger and stronger, obviously they also have a huge network of relationships.

However, facing Shandong now, all the energy in the past is useless.

It was only after Zuo Menggeng had some conversations with Huizhou merchants that he realized that Huizhou merchants are completely different from the luxury merchants all over the world today.

Compared with enjoying and comparing, the daily life of Huizhou merchants is very low-key and simple.

They prefer to read books.

Merchants are scholars, scholars are merchants, and merchants are fond of Confucianism. This is the true portrayal of Huizhou merchants.

For example, Zheng Kongman, a businessman from She County, must carry a bookcase when he goes out.This time when I came to meet Zuo Menggeng, I always carried a copy of "Book of Changes" in my sleeve.

Wu Muqiu, also a businessman from She County, has always had a simple habit in his family, only one meal and one dish for each meal, just like the poor people.

Who would have thought that this family has a lot of money in Huaihe River.

However, during the Wanli period, when the imperial court sent troops to North Korea, Wu Muqiu's great-grandfather Wu Shouli generously lost [-] taels of silver, which greatly eased the imperial court's financial difficulties.

Because of this, Wu Shouli was appointed as the director of Langguanglu Temple.Wu Muqiu's grandfather, Wu Shifeng, was bestowed as a scholar in Wenhua Palace.

It can be said that Huizhou merchants are not extravagant, but they are full of feelings.

Knowing this, Zuo Menggeng couldn't help but think of the later famous red-capped businessman Hu Xueyan.

Looking at it this way, Huizhou merchants who are self-reliant are far better than Qin and Jin merchants who are domineering and have no sense of family and country morality.

After ascertaining these, Zuo Menggeng had a new idea.

"At present, all Qin and Jin merchants have been confiscated, and the local rule of the imperial court has been replaced by Shandong. Among other things, the Lianghuai Salt Field will naturally have to be reshuffled. I wonder if you are interested in participating in the operation?"

The voice was very soft, but it landed like thunder.

All the Huizhou merchants, even those who are the best at cultivating qi, can't help but miss a beat.

Hui merchants and Qin and Jin merchants have been fighting for nearly a hundred years, who are they fighting for?

Isn't it the huge amount of salt in the Lianghuai River?

Over the years, the gods and gods of the two sides have fought each other, and each has won or lost. Although no one can do anything to the other, in general, the Qin and Jin merchants have the upper hand.

Although the hands of Huizhou merchants have penetrated into the salt industry, they can only touch the corners and cannot touch the core.

Now that the Qin and Jin merchants are gone, the imperial court is gone, and there is a vacuum in the Lianghuai Salt Fields. I don’t know how many pairs of eyes are staring at them. How to deal with these golden mountains and silver seas.

Huizhou merchants are secretly negotiating and looking for opportunities to intervene.

It's just that Huang Zonghui's previous methods were too cruel, which frightened Huizhou merchants and made them restrained.

At this time, Zuo Menggeng personally invited him, how could Huizhou merchants still sit there?

It's just that due to Shandong's style of work, Huizhou merchants are somewhat cautious.

"Dare to ask the commander-in-chief, what kind of charter is this shareholding operation...?"

Zuo Menggeng spoke thoroughly.

"In the past, these salt farms were all in the hands of the imperial court. You could only buy salt from the imperial court and then resell it. Although the profits were huge, the imperial court had the final say on how much salt and what salt you could get. There is a lot of salt. Little salt, good salt and bad salt, the difference cannot be counted.”

After hearing this, all the Huizhou merchants couldn't help nodding their heads, and couldn't agree more.

In the past, when they fought with merchants from Qin and Jin Dynasties, this was where they suffered most losses.

In many cases, the best salt does not fall into their hands at all.

Without good salt, without enough salt, there will be no good business and no more money.

Zuo Menggeng explained Shandong's approach.

"My Shandong is different from the imperial court. I pay more attention to business. Therefore, the salt industry in Lianghuai will no longer be government-run, but commercial-run. Although the government still has the dominant power and pricing power, businessmen from all over the world are allowed to contribute capital and participate in it from the source. The operation of the salt industry. If you are interested, you may wish to give it a try."

Cheng Shaozu couldn't hold back his excitement.

"The commander-in-chief, can I and other merchants also participate in the operation of the saltworks?"

Zuo Menggeng smiled and said, "Of course."

"Although salt is an important weapon of the country, it is only a commodity in the final analysis. In the past, the imperial court violated the laws of business and forcibly used administrative means to monopolize the industry. As shareholders, you can participate in dividends from the beginning, and you can get the goods more conveniently."

He paused and warned: "Of course. No matter what kind of operation method, taxes are absolutely indispensable. Without taxes, the government will have no way to operate. Without the protection of the government, I believe that your business will not be reliable. ,is not it?"

All the Huizhou merchants quickly woke up, but the enthusiasm in their hearts did not weaken at all.

Although under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, these people can avoid paying taxes through various means, but the problem is that they can't do it with all their strength.

Compared with the profits from its full participation in the salt industry, what is the mere tax payment?
All Hui merchants expressed their attitude on the spot without going back to discuss.

"The commander-in-chief is kind, and he knows that it is not easy for us to wait for merchants. A scholar dies for his confidant. From now on, our Huizhou merchants will definitely follow the government's lead and make the Lianghuai salt industry better than before."

(End of this chapter)