Daming: Wanted to be a small landlord, but was forced to ascend the throne

Chapter 466 The Battle Between Huaiyue and Guangdong
In fact, Lin Fu couldn't be blamed for being anxious.

The coastline of the South China Sea in the Lingnan area of ​​Guangdong has a long coastline, and the areas near the sea are all salt fields, which is the so-called Liangguang salt area of ​​Ming Dynasty.

In the early years, there was only a small-scale production for the people who depended on the sea for food, but with the development, the scale of Lingnan salt production became larger and larger.

During the Song Dynasty, there were 24 salt fields in Guangdong and Guangxi.

In the Ming Dynasty, there were even 29 saltworks.

The saltworks in Guangdong and Guangxi supply a lot of local salt, and the saltworks in Guangdong and Guangxi have also become a major source of income for Guangdong and Guangxi.

It's just that in order to strengthen the management of the salt industry, prevent the flood of private salt, and balance the interests of each salt area, the imperial court stipulated the sales boundaries of each salt area.

"Where merchants are selling salt goods, they should sell according to the place where the salt is sold, and no chaos is allowed!"

Anyone who sells salt across the border will be severely punished according to the law.

"A person who sells goods has a staff of one hundred, and a person who buys food with knowledge has a staff of sixty."

It is you who cross the border and sell goods, you will be punished with a [-] rod, not only today's buyers will also be punished with a rod of [-] boards.

Because the sale of salt is related to local interests, those who carry out punishments are all local officials. If the punishment lasts for a hundred boards, basically the life will be gone, which is equivalent to death directly.

The same is true for buyers, so whether selling salt or buying salt is a life-threatening matter.

Because there are many talents in the Jianghuai area of ​​the Ming Dynasty, and there are many people who have the right to speak in the imperial court, for their own benefit, the salt field sales area in the Jianghuai area was blindly expanded.

In addition to selling in the Jianghuai area, the salt farms in the Jianghuai area can also be sold in Huguang, Jiangxi, and southern Henan, which is very profitable.

The Jianghuai region can be said to be the pro-son of the Ming government, while the Guangdong and Guangxi regions are generally ignored like adopted sons. Although they are rich in table salt, they are stipulated: Guangdong salt cannot be exported!

Jiangxi was originally closer to Guangdong salt, but it was classified as selling only Jianghuai salt.

Because the distance is longer and the cost is higher, the price of salt in Jiangxi is more expensive.

If Guangdong salt is allowed to enter Jiangxi, it will not only reduce the cost of selling salt for ordinary people, but also the governments of Jiangxi and Guangdong, including salt merchants, will have higher profits.

Because of the involvement of huge interests, some salt smugglers gradually risked their lives to smuggle salt to Jiangxi.

Seeing the benefits, the local government of Guangdong simply invested in and supported those armed salt smugglers who smuggled salt into Jiangxi. The number of people reached tens of thousands at the time.

The Jiangxi region has benefited, so naturally it secretly acquiesces.

In the reign of Tianshun, in order to protect the interests of salt merchants, Ye Sheng, the governor of Guangdong, directly legalized the smuggling of salt by Guangdong merchants to Jiangxi in the name of "entering rice and paying the border".

The Guangdong side naturally harmed the interests of the Jianghuai salt merchants by doing so. It was a small friction at the beginning, and then it went straight to work.

The local government is fighting on the border, and the DPRK and China are officials assigning battles.

The Jianghuai area still has a lot of talents, and has great power in the court. Every time it basically ends in the failure of Guangdong.

Lin Fu is originally from the south, so he is very clear about these things.

When Wang Shouren was in Jiangxi a few years ago, for the sake of the local people and the defenders, he wrote to the imperial court to allow Guangdong salt to enter.

Although Wu Zong supported it, it was just that he didn't have much say because of economic convenience. When the court mentioned it, those management officials just laughed and ignored it, and the matter finally settled down.

Lin Fu served as the governor of these two provinces, and his management included salt administration.

Faced with a large backlog of salt in the Guangdong Salt Fields, the lives of the people engaged in the salt industry are getting more and more difficult. Lin Fu is naturally very worried.

It's just that when he took office, many people, especially Wang Shouren, learned that the new emperor is doing practical things, and as long as there are problems reported, the emperor will definitely pay attention to them and solve them.

Moreover, the new emperor has great ambitions, and regards the territory of the Ming Dynasty as his own son, and will not do it on purpose or because someone is partial.

A few days ago, Lin Fu reported the situation in Guangdong to the emperor. He was expecting the emperor's reply with all his heart. Who knew that the news he received was that the new salt from Huguang had entered the territory of Guangdong.

This is not solving the problem, this is making things worse!

It may be a good thing for other places, but it is not a good thing for their governments in Guangdong and Guangxi, and it is even more of a headache for Lin Fu.

Those officials and people who don’t care about the affairs of the court naturally don’t care, and some people manipulate the Daming coins that can buy Huguang salt at a very high price. Many people even went to the salt shop to ask when the Huguang salt will be released for sale, and they also You can try it out and see how it differs from their Cantonese salt.

Lin Fu was really anxious to see these days. He also had Mid-Autumn Festival subsidy Daming coins in his hand, but he put those things in the drawer and didn't take them out. He was so anxious!
"My lord! From my point of view, since the new emperor took office, all the decisions have been made swiftly and resolutely, all for the benefit of the country, the people and the locality. I think this Daming coin is not simple. It should not be deliberately selling Huguang salt to compete with our locality."

Master Lin Xuan saw that the adults in his family were a little bit clueless, so he expressed his thoughts.

"However, those Huguang salts have already entered Guangdong and Guangxi. Although there are few now, there is no guarantee that there will be more in the future! Lin Xuan, you don't understand the temptation of money. I'm worried that once you get a profit..."

Lin Fu was confused by this matter.

Since becoming the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, he has really worked hard and wanted to let the people of Guangdong and Guangxi live a good life.

But these are not things that can be done just by talking. Only when the local economy develops, the local government has money in hand, can pay the imperial court taxes, and let the people have surplus money in their hands, can they live a good life.

But to live a good life, it is not enough to just rely on farming. Those who can only afford food and clothing, and even food and clothing are difficult to solve complacently.

The only profitable business is the economical one. The Guangdong-Guangzhou Salt Farm is regarded as an important income item in Guangdong. For the benefit of Guangdong, Lin Fu also supports private salt from Guangdong to enter Jiangxi, not just for the benefit of the Guangdong government. , and more is to allow the people near the saltworks to obtain more income.

In his opinion, the Jianghuai area is already rich enough, but he wants to occupy the Jiangxi area, make money, and at the same time not let the people of Jiangxi eat cheap salt.

"My lord, it's useless for us to be anxious here. As for what the court and His Majesty want to do, we might as well invite Huang Tao, the transshipment envoy, over here. I heard that he was recommended by Mr. Zhang Cong to the emperor. His connections are better than ours. Guang, and he is in charge of the Salt Transportation Department, you might as well ask him about it.”

Lin Xuan expressed his thoughts.

"Yes! Lin Xuan, you are right! Find someone to invite Huang Tao over!"

Lin Fu only woke up after being woken up by Lin Xuan. He was too anxious, but he forgot that his transport envoy seemed to be recommended by the first assistant Zhang Cong.

Zhang Cong, that is a person that the emperor trusts quite a lot. I heard that the emperor had acquainted with him when he was in the hidden residence. How could I forget that there is such a talent in Guangdong!
……

"Master Lin, are you talking about Huguang Yan?"

Huang Tao saw Lin Fu's expression was a little anxious, and he knew that it must be because of the recent Huguang Yan incident.

"Brother Huang, do you know that gossip is not going to work? This Huguang Salt suddenly entered, I don't know what happened? My Liangguang Salt Industry... If Huguang Salt enters again, it will probably be affected. The people of Guangdong and Guangxi..."

"Lord Lin, don't be nervous about the salt industry. As for the gossip, I'm not sure, but the entry of Huguang Salt this time is definitely not what you think it is to compete with the local government for profit!"

"how do I say this?"

Lin Fu was very surprised that Huang Tao said that he didn't know the exact information, but he was so sure that the entry of Huguang Salt was not for local interests. What does this mean?
"Master Lin, don't you think about it. If Huguang Salt wants to compete for profits with the local government, it can just open a store or sell the salt to salt merchants. Why should it be sent to the local government for free?"

"This……"

After hearing what Huang Tao said, Lin Fu felt that this matter was really strange.

"My lord, buying Huguang salt here is just a cover, what we really want to do is the Daming coins!"

"Daming coins?"

"Yes! Didn't you find out that the Daming coin is the same as the Daming banknote?"

"Big Ming Banknotes? Could it be... Could it be that His Majesty wants to issue banknotes?"

"I'm not thinking about it, I'm doing it! You and I have got it, and there are officials, big and small. Now the big Ming treasures are being sold at high prices everywhere. This thing is valuable and you can buy it. You basically know it! I heard Some places have already started to use this kind of thing to replace other items, and I estimate that in a few days, the number of Daming coins will increase everywhere!"

Huang Tao said firmly.

"Brother Huang, did you hear some gossip?"

Huang Tao's medical books, Lin Fu seems to understand something, his thoughts have always revolved around salt, but he didn't think about the Daming coin from a higher level.

You can't blame him either. At the beginning, many people directly regarded the Ming coins as salty introductions, and didn't think about paper money at all.

"I haven't heard of the news of the issuance of Ming coins directly. There is no clear news about this matter. However, I heard that the Hanjing Factory (printing factory) has been established in Beijing and Nanjing half a year ago, but there is no Printing books, especially in Nanjing, I heard that Lord Wang Shouren, Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, is in charge of it personally, and Lord Lin is familiar with Wang Shangshu, so you might as well inquire about it!"

Huang Tao reminded.

Although these people are far away from the circle of the capital, everyone in this official circle has their own news circle. The capital and Nanjing suddenly opened up new places to set up Hanjing factories, and they also sent special personnel to guard them.

The sudden appearance of Daming coins similar to Daming Treasure Banknotes made people think too much.

"Brother Huang, give me more pointers. It's just that this Daming coin will be the same as that Daming banknote. When the time comes..."

Lin Fu recalled the ending of Daming Baochao in the early years...

"Lord Lin, although these Daming coins and Daming banknotes are paper money, the method of issuance by His Majesty today is somewhat different from that of Taizu back then! Don't forget that they were used forcibly at that time, but now... you also Speaking of which, you didn’t expect it to be a banknote because it was regarded as a salt primer! From now on, I’m afraid banknotes are also salt primers, and salt primers are banknotes. As long as the salt still exists and someone buys it, the banknotes will not be useless !"

Huang Tao understood what the new emperor was thinking, he had been thinking about this these days.

He met Zhang Cong in the capital, but he was a Jinshi a few years earlier than Zhang Cong, and he only occasionally helped Zhang Cong back then, and he didn't like to add trouble to others, and he did things in a down-to-earth manner.

I hadn't contacted Zhang Cong for many years, even though Zhang Cong was reused by the new emperor, he didn't take the initiative to flatter and chat, and was directly recommended by Zhang Cong to his current position.

He remembered that when he went to see Zhang Cong before he left, Zhang Cong was not enthusiastic, and only said that Zhang Cong recommended him because of his talent.

But from Zhang Cong's words, Huang Tao still understood the real new emperor!
The new emperor's step-by-step measures and new policies one by one made Huang Tao truly understand this strategically minded emperor. Every thing he does will not be random, and there are intentions behind it!
"Listening to what you say is better than ten years of reading! Brother Huang, it seems that His Majesty really wants to issue this banknote. If this banknote is issued properly, it will indeed be useful. I remember that the ancestors talked about it. They just started to use it in the Ming Dynasty. At the time of the treasure banknotes, it was indeed convenient and easy to use, but it was issued too much later, and the court did not take it back, and only bought things from the people, causing prices to rise, and the Daming banknotes lost their effect. Now the emperor combines Daming coins with salt It's quite appropriate! But I'm still worried about the salt industry issue, Huguang Salt may just be His Majesty's plan to implement the new currency, but it will definitely hurt Guangdong Salt Industry, I wonder if you have any ideas or solutions?"

Lin Fu still said what he was worried about.

Perhaps Huguang Salt will not enter much in the future, but the Guangdong Salt Industry issue is still a problem. Now Jianghuai has noticed that Guangdong Salt has entered Jiangxi.

Fortunately, His Majesty is just, strict and decisive, and the court is not too biased towards Jianghuai.

The people on the Jianghuai side did not dare to make too many moves.

"Lord Lin, your majesty has written to let Guangdong salt merchants do Jiangxi salt business. We have discussed it before, but given the current situation, I feel that there is no need to apply for discussion on this matter in the future!"

Huang Tao took a sip of tea and said suddenly.

"how do I say this?"

"My lord, I feel that the limited sales area of ​​the saltworks may be released in the future!"

"What? Could it be that you got the gossip? Brother Huang, we are all working together in these two provinces. If there is anything to do, we must tell our brother a little bit, so that we can make a decision in advance!"

Lin Fu screamed out, and hurriedly cupped his hands at Huang Tao.

"Lord Lin, I don't have gossip, and I dare not directly speculate on the holy will. This is just my guess. The new emperor has a strategy in mind. He can open a night market in the capital and encourage all kinds of free trade. Now he even allows coastal fishermen to go to sea. , although the review is very strict, and currently only ships supported by the government are allowed to travel, but it can be seen that he encourages free trade! I speculate that the regional division of salt transportation will be lifted sooner or later. "

"Although I said that Huguang Salt is not competing for local profits, it is inevitable that Huguang Salt will enter the trade market in the future. If our Guangdong Salt Industry wants to make a big splash, we must make preparations in advance!"

"Brother Huang, what you said made me really enlightened. It is true that the various measures taken by the new emperor since he took power are by no means ordinary people. The measures taken by the coastal areas in the past two years were unbelievable at first, but now it seems that it is indeed the case! Let it go slowly. The ban on opening the sea must also be bartered, and the ban on exchanging silver should pave the way for the issuance of Daming coins!"

"Yes, I have the same opinion as Mr. Lin! Therefore, Guangdong's development will definitely be incalculable. As for the sales of salt in Jiangxi, we must not lose it, and we must consider a larger market!"

"Bigger market? Brother Huang is saying that after the liberalization, it can be sold everywhere? We are near the border of Ming Dynasty. If Guangdong salt is transported back to the north, the journey will be far away and the cost will increase. We will not have an advantage!"

"We do not have an advantage in non-inland or northern markets, but we have another larger and more advantageous region!"

"where?"

"overseas!"

"overseas?"

"overseas!!"

(End of this chapter)