high official

Chapter 587

The excited scene of the two brothers need not be elaborated, the two managed to calm down, then abandoned their horses, got into the carriage and went to talk.

"Zhongde, I've heard about everything you did in Beijing." Zhu Zhanji excitedly said with Wang Xian, "It's really embarrassing for you!"

"Actually, most of the time, Ji Gang is coming at me." Wang Xian twitched, but he didn't twitch his arm, so he had to let him hold it, and said helplessly, "I can only bear it."

"Then you are also protecting my father and son from the wind and rain. I have two brothers in one life, and I won't say much. In short, we are brothers in our life." Zhu Zhanji said emotionally.

"Hehe, Your Highness..." Wang Xianzhen didn't know how to answer, coughed dryly and said, "His Royal Highness and His Highness are both fine, Your Highness need not worry about it."

"Well, that's great." Zhu Zhanji smiled, because he grew up with the emperor since he was a child, and his relationship with his parents is not as deep as his relationship with his grandfather. However, what happened last year made him deeply understand that he and the emperor Father is a community of destiny, so he is also very happy to hear that his father is very good.After a pause, he asked again in a low voice: "Yinling...is it okay?"

"Okay, okay..." Wang Xian immediately breathed a sigh of relief, but said in embarrassment: "It's just a little too good..."

"What?" Zhu Zhanji guessed immediately: "Could it be that Yu Qian is entangled again?"

"Yes." Wang Xian nodded with difficulty.

"Didn't he fail the Jinshi? Why is he still wearing a silver bell?" Zhu Zhanji couldn't help but sarcastically.

"This..." Wang Xian scratched his head and said, "Who can say for sure about this kind of thing?"

Wang Xianxin said that what I said has reached this point, His Highness Taisun should also retreat in spite of difficulties?Who knew that Zhu Zhanji was reasonable and said: "That's right, it's all my fault that I have been away from Beijing for too long, and let that surnamed Yu sneak in." He took Wang Xian's hand and begged: "Brother, you have to think about it quickly." , help me settle this matter, so I can go back to Beijing quickly!"

"What am I here for?" Wang Xian shook off his hand and said, "Of course it's to solve your problem."

"You really have a solution?" Zhu Zhanji then put the other things behind him, looked at Wang Xian excitedly and said, "Tell me quickly, you don't know, I'm really worried to death these days..." It seems In the heart of His Highness the Grandson, the personal relationship between children is certainly important, but business matters are more important...

"Your Highness, don't be restless, listen to me slowly." Wang Xian then told Zhu Zhanji concisely what he had discussed with Yan Qing in the capital, plus the inspiration from the magistrate of Zhou County.

Zhu Zhanji was dumbfounded when he heard that, and it took him a long time to pat Wang Xian's thigh and said, "There is really no way you can't think of! Now the day of returning to Beijing is finally possible!"

Of course, Wang Xian would not say that this is actually collective wisdom, but he pretended to say: "Actually, I am not that optimistic, and there are still some difficulties. For example, those leaders of the White Lotus Sect are already wary of us. Are they warming up again? What is more troublesome is the resettlement of refugees. My method of commercial settlement is good, but the emperor has suspended Shanxi Kaizhong to ensure the construction of Beijing. If His Highness cannot let the emperor release Shanxi Kaizhong again, then this method only feasible."

"Haha, it's really a hero who sees the same thing." Zhu Zhanji laughed, took out a court post from his sleeve, and said, "Look, I asked for this last month. At that time, you were busy with the examination room. I didn't tell you about the fraud case, I didn't expect Grandpa Huang to approve it so soon."

"Oh?" Wang Xian took it over and took a look. Sure enough, the Ministry of Households agreed to reopen Shanxi and allow merchants to transport grain to Datong in exchange for salt. He immediately breathed a long sigh of relief: "This is really great. It seems that I was worrying for nothing, it turns out that His Highness has long been concerned about it."

"There's nothing to care about..." Zhu Zhanji smiled embarrassedly when he heard the words: "I'm a blind cat who ran into a dead mouse. I was entangled by those Shanxi businessmen, so I went to this book..."

"It can be seen that the sky wants His Highness to succeed, but he can accidentally insert willows." Wang Xian was in a good mood, and it was rare to flatter Zhu Zhanji.

"No way, the lucky star is shining." Zhu Zhanji also laughed happily: "You are my lucky star!"

.

The so-called opening up of China and France was an important national policy of the Ming Dynasty.In the early days of the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there were frequent wars in the north, and millions of troops were hoarded on the front line of Shanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, and Jiliao to resist the still quite powerful Mongolian cavalry.So many soldiers and horsemen eat horse chews and spend a lot of money.However, after decades of war in the north, it is simply unable to supply so many troops.The people in the southern provinces could only transport grain to the northern frontier, but the efficiency of the government's delivery was extremely low, and the loss of grain and grass for one stone transported by the people even reached two or three stones.In this context, even Emperor Taizu, who disliked merchants very much, could only agree to the official's request and adopt the open-China method to solve the arduous and difficult work of grain and grass transshipment.

The so-called open-China law is based on the salt monopoly in the hands of the imperial court, stipulating that as long as the merchants transport the grain to the designated warehouse in the border area, they can exchange for a corresponding amount of "warehouse money", and then use the "warehouse money" to control the salt affairs The company's salt transportation department exchanges the salt monopoly license - "Yan Yin", and then sends the salt to the designated salt field with the "Yan Yin" and finally sells it to the designated monopoly area.In this way, the imperial court transferred part of the power of salt monopoly, and handed over the costly and popular errands of grain transportation to the merchants, while the imperial court just waited for the grain to be transported to the border.Merchants cooperate with large-scale transportation and manage more strictly and carefully. The efficiency of transportation is much higher than that of the government, and the loss is much lower than that of the government, so it is also profitable.

So in June of the third year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang approved this method to be tried out in Shanxi. The result was a great success, and it was gradually implemented to neighboring provinces. More than a dozen varieties of salt, Nacopper medium salt, and Namian cloth medium salt greatly promoted the economic development of the Ming Dynasty, and also enabled Shanxi merchants to rise up to dominate the business world and become famous Shanxi merchants!Opening up the Chinese law has also become the country's financial law and fixed it.

However, in the Yongle Dynasty, because the state overdrafted the power of the people, it could only concentrate on major tasks. Therefore, the development of Shanxi and other places was suspended, and it was dedicated to the construction of Beijing.This will have a great impact on Shanxi merchants and Shanxi people. Over the years, Shanxi merchants have been running up and down, calling for Shanxi to reopen.During this period, it was only opened a few times intermittently, but when the construction of Beijing City was tightened, the emperor cut off the confession of Shanxi, which made the merchants and the people miserable.

Speaking of the civil unrest in Shanxi, the emperor really contributed a lot...

When the Shanxi merchants were complaining that every day was not working, Zhu Zhanji came. Could they not worship him like an ancestor?After trying every means and persevering, even a stone was warmed up by him, and His Highness Taisun really asked to write a letter to plead for them, and His Highness Taisun really did not lose face, and actually asked for his will!
Coincidentally, what Wang Xian and Yan Qing came up with was also in Kaizhong.But it is not the opening in the traditional sense, but the innovative method of opening the middle.The traditional method of opening China is that merchants directly transport grain from the inland to the border areas in exchange for warehouse money, and then return to the inland to exchange for salt.The reason why merchants can replace the government to transport is not to say that merchants have great skills, but in fact, it is just that they can endure hardships that ordinary people cannot bear, and they have worked hard to improve efficiency and reduce losses in order to make money.In fact, it is still a lot of hard work and a huge loss.

So after thinking hard, Wang Xian came up with a solution. In this case, why not let the merchants recruit people to directly cultivate fields and produce food in the border areas?In this way, after the harvest, they will be put into the warehouse on the spot in exchange for salt and silver. Wouldn't it save the pain of labor and loss?How much money do you earn?Why not do it?
Some people are about to ask, this method is not difficult to think of, why can't Shanxi merchants think of it?In fact, Shanxi merchants were not unexpected, but they had no conditions to do so before.Because since the Song Dynasty in Shanxi, the original fertile forest soil has become continuous loess, and the land suitable for farming has dropped sharply. Otherwise, Shanxi people would not resolutely leave their hometown to do business.Therefore, local farming in Shanshan and Shaanxi is not realistic at all, so merchants can only choose far away and transport grain from the south.

But is there really no area suitable for growing grain near Shanxi?Obviously there are.Wang Xian immediately thought of Hetao. There is a saying that "the Yellow River is full of evils, but only rich". Hetao is surrounded by the Yellow River on three sides in the west, north and east.The Yin Mountains stretch across the Yellow River to the north, the Helan Mountains tower to the west of the Yellow River, the Luya Mountains shield the Yellow River to the east, and the south is adjacent to the Northern Shaanxi Plateau.With mountains blocking the river, the situation is dangerous.The Yellow River in the territory has a steady flow of water, and the land on both sides is fertile and can be cultivated and pastured. Known as the South of the Great Wall, the products are extremely rich, and it is easy to cultivate rice and wheat.

In fact, it is not limited to Saibei, even the land under Saibei can be turned into fertile land because of the gift of the Yellow River, as long as it is irrigated with the water of the Yellow River.These vast potential arable lands are near or even in Shanxi, and businessmen will naturally not turn a blind eye.

However, it is useless to look at it, because these virgin lands are outside the defense line of the Ming army, and Hetao has been occupied by the Mongols. Reclaiming land and building villages and towns, isn't it putting fat on people's lips?

With no guarantee of safety, who would go to these places to cultivate wasteland?Therefore, businessmen can only sigh in dismay.

But what the merchants can't do doesn't mean that Wang Xian can't do it, and maybe only he can do it in this world.Because he is the only one who can take both sides...Hetao has Baoyin, Bailianjiao has Xiaolian, Datong has Zhangxuan, Jin Wang also has to sell his face, and Taisun personally sits in the town, so this matter can only be done by Wang Xian !

"Your Highness, just call those Shanxi merchants," Wang Xian said with a confident smile, "As long as they are not stupid, they will know that this is a godsend opportunity!"

"They are not stupid at all." Zhu Zhanji also said with a smile: "It takes the right time, place and people to make a big event. This time, we have all gathered together. It is God who will make this happen!"

Wang Xianxin said, obviously I want to make it happen, of course he nodded with a smile and said: "Your Highness said yes, as expected, there must be a way for the car to reach the mountain!"

(End of this chapter)