Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Chapter 147 The giant businessman and the guest official rest at home

Haibao, Beichuankou and Hongshuikou of Xiningwei Town in the Ming Dynasty were known as "places for transactions between Han, Hui, and Mongolian people from far and near", and they were "official markets" where "borders were determined on a regular basis" and "supervised by officers and soldiers". In addition to the general trade in February and August every year, tea, cloth, and noodles are traded all year round.

However, the scale of official trade is not large, and it is the "civilian market" that really plays a decisive role. There are "Mules, Horses and Donkeys Market" on Shipo Street in Xining City, "Tassel Market" to the west of Qijia Archway, "Cattle and Sheep Market" to the east of Huangzhong Archway, and "Mules, Horses and Donkeys Market" and "Chaicao Market" at the entrance of the small street. ", Bayan Rongcheng has a "coal market for horses, cattle and sheep", and Guide has a "coal market for cattle and sheep" and a "donkey and horse market". Every day the market is crowded with people, bustling and rushing for their livelihood.

Ah Rishan commanded more than twenty Modlers (domestic servants) and Qitat (slaves), driving twenty carts towards Shipo Street in Xining City. The cart was heavy and loaded with fur goods, including cow, sheep, horse skins, and precious mink skins.

The market on Shipo Street is mainly engaged in livestock trading. There are not many leather goods shops. Even if there are, they are just small shops and you can't buy a few skins. It doesn't matter, as a Saiyinkun (a superior person) under Erketaji of the Huite tribe, his family has a big business, so he doesn't bother to go to a small shop and stops in front of an archway. The big "Zhou Ji" flag upstairs shows the merchant's surname. This kind of archway. In fact, it is just a cover, it is decorative and has no direct relationship with the store itself, but it is a symbol of the strength of the business. The real store behind it is not big.

"Here you are." The waiter came over with a charming smile and held the horse for him diligently.

Ah Rishan skillfully handed the riding whip to Huan Zhi's hand, showing that he was a frequent visitor here.

"Oh, brother Ah Rishan, I haven't seen you for a while, and you are getting more energetic." Zhou Fulai, a famous official in Xining City, greeted him with a smile on his face.

The so-called "official rest home" refers to local merchants who handle business on behalf of Mongolian and Tibetan merchants. "Qinghai Mongolian fans come to various cities in Xining and set up official rest homes to accommodate them. The Mongolian fans and others can easily buy grain, tea and other items. He is the manager of Guan Xie's family. When Meng Fan comes and goes, he reports to the official for review. If there is trouble, only Guan Xie's family will be asked."

To put it bluntly, they are middlemen. Mongolians from Qinghai came to Xining and were not familiar with the place, so they needed a middleman to help them sell their goods. If they needed to bring goods back, having a middleman help them purchase them would save a lot of time and effort.

However, this line of work is not easy and requires considerable connections and strength. Zhou Fulai was one of the best, and he had a heated relationship with officials in Xining and the tea horse ambassador in Hezhou.

"Ahem, I don't have the spirit of Shopkeeper Zhou. You are the real spirit if you are rich and powerful." Ah Rishan laughed.

The two chatted for a while and began to negotiate the price.

"So low? Why is it 20% lower than last time?" Ah Rishan was shocked by the price quoted by Zhou Fulai. The Mongolian man has a straightforward personality and shouted out on the spot.

"Alas! You don't know something. The world is not so good nowadays. There are thieves everywhere. Good leathers can't be sold at high prices. It's hard to do business!"

Zhou Fulai lowered his voice and whispered: "Haven't you heard? In the first month of this year, the rebel Li Zicheng attacked Luoyang and cooked King Fu's meat with venison. It was called the 'Fulu Feast'. That was the vassal king of the Ming Dynasty. , Lord Wanli’s favorite son! How can you get a good price in such a world?"

In fact, he only said part of it. In addition to thieves everywhere and bad market conditions, Emperor Chongzhen also increased taxes and issued an edict to increase customs duties all over the world. This is not the first time. In the early years of Chongzhen, the tariff increased by one cent for every two taels, and the eight passes of Chongwenmen, Hexiwu, Linqing, Jiujiang, Hushu, Yangzhou, Beixin, and Huai'an increased by 50,000 taels. Soon, two more coins were added. Bi Ziyan, the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, proposed to "increase the tax amount of Nanjing Propaganda Department from 10,000 yuan to 30,000 yuan." Zheng Sanjun, the Shangshu of the Ministry of Household Affairs of Nanjing, argued that "the land tax collected from the Propaganda Department is not much, so I asked Wuhu to pay taxes to offset the increase." It is said that "the tax in Wuhu is 30,000 yuan, but the number of propaganda courses is still increased by 10,000 yuan." Later, in order to support the daily shortage, the tariff was increased by 200,000 taels, while the merchants and the people became increasingly poor. With the war and chaos and heavy taxes, it is indeed difficult to do business. Ah Rishan sighed, and according to Ming Dynasty rules, he cupped his hands towards Zhou Fulai, "I have come all the way to Xining, and there are still a lot of people at home who want to eat, so please be polite."

To put it bluntly, the price is only reduced by 10%.

After seeing off Ah Rishan who had thanked him so much, Zhou Fulai showed a proud smile on his face. It is true that the world is bad; it is true that the emperor increased taxes, but it did not affect the sales of leather goods. No matter what kind of chaos the country is in, the demand for fur goods among dignitaries has not weakened at all. On the contrary, the price this year has increased due to the war and the increase in tariffs.

The reason why Ah Rishan suffered a loss was because his family was afraid of hardship and was unwilling to contact buyers and sellers directly, so he could only be deceived by middlemen.

There is a kind of merchant, mainly Han Hui merchants, who do not use middlemen. They go directly into the hinterland to contact buyers and sellers. Because the goods they buy and sell are mainly sheep, they are called "sheep customers". The market where sheep traders participate in transactions is often liquid, so it is called a "floating market."

Being a "sheep guest" is very difficult and risky. If you encounter a horse thief, you will often lose both your life and money. Most of the people who do this are small traders. "There are very few indigenous people, and there are many foreign tourists. There are few well-off people, and they are all new to their business. They change every year, and the names of the people are not certain." The family has a small property, so they have to take risks. Make some more money.

If you want to make more money, you have to travel far. Money outside the Guan and the Western Regions is definitely easier to earn than inside the Guan. Hu Laoliu, a sheep guest, knew this truth very well. Together with his friend and another sheep guest Li Yi, they sold brick tea carried by three camels and left Jiayu Pass to the territory of the Huite tribe. They wanted to sell the brick tea at a good price in Chijin Town and sell some cheap livestock back.

Chijin Town was originally the seat of the Chijin Mongolian Guard established in the Ming Dynasty, and later became the pastureland of the Harahui tribe. After the Halahui tribe surrendered to the Huite tribe, Suletan set up the Yumen Land Customs Branch here to trade and collect taxes. Because it is located on the Silk Road, there are many caravans coming and going, and business is extremely prosperous. Horses, leather goods, tea, cloth, noodles, ironware and other commodities are all available.

Huitai Jisultan of the Huite Department was a man who valued trade, and successively ordered the opening of eight buildings in Hami, Kuqa, Chalishi, Xiaoyuledus, Yumen, Taragar, Baicheng, and Luntai. Land Customs Branch. In order to develop trade, he did not hesitate to surrender to the Ming and Qing Dynasties at the same time, so he could enjoy official trade such as "tribute" and "official market", and also strongly encouraged private trade.

Strolling on the plank road leading to Chijin Town, looking at the three camels they own, Hu Laoliu and Li Yi are full of longing for their future life. Suddenly, a caravan approached from behind. It was a long caravan, like a long snake, with thousands of camels and hundreds of carts. At the head of the caravan was a big flag with a big word "Fan" written on it.

Upon seeing the flag, Li Yi hurriedly pulled Hu Laoliu out of the way of the plank road.

"Brother Li, whose caravan is this? Why are you so respectful to him?" Hu Laoliu asked.

"Why don't you even know his family? This is the caravan of Jiexiu Fan, a famous merchant in Zhangjiakou and one of the eight major merchants in Shanyou." Li Yi said with a hint of reverence in his voice.

(End of this chapter)