Aztec Eternals

The long January winds descended from the western plateau and blew across the warm Mexica Valley, dry with a slight chill.

Shirot tightened the wide priest's cloak a little, and slowly walked towards the priest's temple. In the Texcoco Lakes region, it's around 10 degrees early in January and a pleasant 20 degrees on a sunny midday.

Along the way is the great market of Tenochtitlan. A little chill could not stop the enthusiasm of the crowd. A few days before the New Year's Day on January 12, nobles and commoners from the four towns and villages flocked. The big market in the main city is crowded with people, and at least 30,000 people trade here. And the trade plaza in the north city is even more amazing, with a transaction scale of 60,000 people.

Shilot paid attention to the transactions in the market. The villagers are always in rough clothes and bare feet, carrying all kinds of vegetables and grains, and carrying fruits, spices and even honey picked from the mountains and fields, looking for suitable trading partners. Their purpose is very clear, usually the exchange of stone tools, pottery, tools and cloth.

Shilot stopped and looked at it for a while, the same piece of cloth, the value is not fixed at all. Sometimes a turkey, sometimes a turkey and half a bag of black beans, sometimes more.

"Your turkey is too small. If you want to change this cloth, you have to add some extras. Just this jar of honey in your hand!" The cloth merchant seemed casual and careless.

The peasant hesitated slightly. He looked around and found no one to ask, so he tried to refute it himself.

"That's not good, honey is not so easy to get. People in the village say that city people are transformed from hummingbirds, and they naturally love honey. A jar can be replaced by a piece of cloth. And my jar is worth a large piece of cloth. "

The cloth merchant chuckled.

"Change a piece of cloth? Why don't you become a samurai, just go and grab it. Your jar is broken, who would want you? I'll return the jar to you in a while."

The peasant was slightly embarrassed. He stood where he was, holding the honey and just shook his head.

The cloth merchant looked at it for a while, and then said impatiently.

"I just want to taste the sweetness, I'll give you half a piece of cloth, don't change it. I'm still busy!"

After speaking, the cloth merchant turned sideways, not knowing what work he was busy with.

The peasant stood for another moment, looked at the merchant's profile, and then spoke anxiously.

"Change. I'll change it! But it's okay, I have to return this jar to me."

Then the cloth merchant raised his eyes slightly and smiled.

"You can still have the jar. But the turkey is too small and you need to buckle some cloth. It's a half and a half." He handed one and a quarter of the cloth to the farmer.

Shiroute had a dark feeling in his heart, saying that it was one-quarter of a horse, and it should be only a little more than one-fifth. There is also no standard scale to measure here in the market.

The farmer gave the turkey and the honey jar to the merchant. He watched the merchant pour honey into an intact clay jar, and happily walked away with the cloth and the chipped jar.

As soon as the peasants disappeared, the cloth merchant immediately held the honey pot and let the people next to him look at the stall and hurried to the market.

Shirot followed silently. Watch the cloth merchants come to the border of the inner market, kept out by guarded samurai. He waved vigorously inside and called out softly. A big businessman in gorgeous clothes came leisurely.

"Look, fresh honey! This is the favorite of the nobles, and I managed to get it."

The cloth merchant bowed his head and smiled.

"As long as five cloths of spices are needed, I will sell them to you."

The big businessman shook his head slightly.

"You can eat the spices of five pieces of cloth by yourself. If you can't enter this inner market, you can't sell anything to the nobles. It's so daring to want to corrupt my stuff!"

The smile on the cloth merchant's face stopped for a while, and then he continued to laugh.

"Isn't this something that can be negotiated, say a price!"

The big businessman stretched out three fingers and did not speak.

"How can this be? I bought three pieces of cloth." The cloth merchant shouted.

The big businessman glanced at the cloth merchant contemptuously, and the other party immediately stopped talking.

"Well, take one step back, four pieces of cloth!" the cloth merchant shouted through gritted teeth.

The big businessman turned around and left.

"Okay, okay! Three horses are only three. I want the herbs used at home! I know the price!" The cloth merchant shouted distressedly.

The big businessman turned around and nodded slightly. He summoned a guard and gave two orders. After a while, the guard came over with a small cloth bag containing a handful of processed herbs.

The cloth merchant counted, and a smile appeared on his face. He saluted the big merchant and hurried to his stall. Sherlot watched from a distance. He frowned slightly, the price of these herbs seemed to be much cheaper than he knew.

Shilot thought for a while, then slowly followed the big businessman in gorgeous clothes and watched him walk to the luxury store. The shops here all have cloth awnings, and he walked under the awning and completely covered his hands. When he came out again, he already had an exquisite stone bottle in his hand.

Soon, the big businessman also hurried away. With a kind smile on his face, he walked to the foreign merchant's shop, found a great nobleman in the city, and gave him a respectful salute.

"Respected lord. Today is really blessed by the patron saint. I received a jar of fresh nectar. This is collected by hummingbirds from the vicinity of the king's garden, and it should be dedicated to such a noble person as you."

As he spoke, he bowed his head deeply and held the stone bottle with honey in both hands.

The great noble was slightly taken aback. He waved behind him. An experienced servant came respectfully, leaned over and saluted, and then took the stone bottle. The servant checked the quality of the honey, and then leaned forward, respectfully whispering back to the great noble.

After listening, the great noble nodded in satisfaction, and waved his hand casually again. The servant accepted the honey and gave out a small tube of golden sand worth ten bollards of cloth.

The big businessman saluted again. Then he lowered his head, took the golden sand with both hands, and walked backwards with a smile.

Shulot stood sideways at the booth next to him, bowing his head to avoid being recognized by the great nobles.

Soon, the big businessman hurried past him, bringing a breeze. Shilot vaguely saw an angry face.

"Shrewd old fellow, miser!" The big businessman lowered his head, leaving a faint whisper.

Shulot thought for a moment. He continued to wander the inner market and came to the shops of foreign merchants. After a while, he knew how insignificant the big businessman's transaction just now was.

As the New Year festival is approaching, foreign merchants also come up with the best products. These multinational businessmen are the real big businessmen.

Tarrasco merchants wore moon ornaments considered evil by the Mexicas and sold expensive Western bronzes. Only an arm-sized copper pot requires at least twenty pieces of cloth.

Wearing only shells and feathered cloaks, the Vastek merchants sell the brightly colored feathers of the north. A draped feather coat is worth fifty pieces of cloth.

Mistec merchants wear delicate gold and silver jewelry and sell the beautiful gems of the South. They only accept gold and silver, and a turquoise costs half a sachet of sand. These golden sands will be reworked by them into expensive gold ornaments.

Mayan merchants have a distinctive appearance. Their slender heads and sincere cross-eyed eyes are a sign of their divinity. Sacred smoke rises from their booth, a bag of cigarettes is a bag of golden sand, and the price of exquisite spice smoke is doubled.

These foreign businessmen grouped together according to the region and formed an autonomous group in the trading area, similar to a chamber of commerce. There are three on-duty judges and one inspecting judge in the inner market, plus a dozen entourages of samurai. Judges are responsible for maintaining order in the market and combating theft and shoddy goods.

Sherlot stepped forward and revealed his identity. Immediately, in the fear of the other party, he asked about the situation of the foreign caravan.

"What do these foreign merchants mainly come to sell in the big market?"

"It's mainly all kinds of luxury goods. God smoke, spices, embroidery, feather clothes, precious stones, gold and silver jewelry, bronze utensils... By the way, there are also carmine dyes." A judge on duty reported in detail.

"That's right. So what did they buy?" Sherlot asked earnestly.

"The Tarrascos would take a lot of cloth, and well salt in the state. The Vastec would buy some fine instruments and flowers, and some weapons. The Mistec would take a lot of gold and silver, Sometimes they also buy cotton armor. As for the Mayans, they wanted everything.”

The law enforcement officer on the other side hurried to answer, smiling.

Hearing the name of the product, Shulot frowned slightly. He went on to ask, "What is the number of transactions per day?"

The judges were speechless. They only have four people and a dozen assistants to manage a large market of 30,000 people. Clearly, the statistics are far beyond their capabilities.

Shilot thought for a while, then changed the question.

"How do you collect taxes?"

"The outer market does not pay taxes. Each merchant in the inner market pays a market fee. Local merchants are usually in kind, and foreign merchants like to pay for common cloth. Their merchant groups will coordinate the amount of payment with us, and pay once a period of time. ” reported an elderly duty judge.

"So, we neither limit the types of commodity transactions, nor can we grasp the quantity of commodity transactions. The commercial tax is very small and has nothing to do with the amount of commodities. And in the market, foreign merchants are autonomous?"

Sherlot looked serious, looking at the old duty judge.

The old judge bowed his head and saluted. He heard the meaning of the reprimand and explained it hastily.

"All city-states do this. Those numbers are impossible to count, not even the Mayans. If some merchants bring enough materials, we will also collect an extra batch of goods."

Shulot thought for a moment. The law enforcement power is insufficient, and they cannot grasp the numbers. There must be many ways for businessmen to avoid taxes, but they cannot blame judges. He continued to ask.

"Then how do you measure the value of the goods on both sides of the transaction? If there is a dispute in the transaction, how will it be managed?"

"Value? Dispute?" The only inspector was slightly taken aback. He thought for a moment.

"We have a general idea of ​​the value of various commodities in the state. The commodities of foreign merchants need to be negotiated with their business groups. As long as the two parties to the transaction are willing to each other, the transaction will be established, and there will be no interference.

If there is a dispute between the two parties, we will check the quality and quantity of the items, and shoddy and the thief will die. If the transaction can be terminated, both parties will return their respective things. If the dispute is really unclear, let the two sides fight a duel, the loser will die, and the winner will win. "

Hearing this way of handling, Shulot was expressionless and speechless in his heart. He pondered for a moment, then continued to ask.

"What if foreign businessmen encounter vendetta and robbery here?"

The inspecting judge has the highest status, and he is still the one to answer.

"Vendetta is forbidden in the capital. Below the great nobles, the murderer will die. A duel witnessed by the God of War can be carried out. As for outside the Seven Bridges, the Alliance will ignore it. Facing a small group of bandits, a large caravan can usually resist. ."

Speaking of which, the inspecting judge looked around. Immediately, he smiled respectfully and lowered his voice.

"Your Highness, if you fancy something, just ask foreign merchants for it. Doing it outside will always leak rumors and damage your reputation. After all, you are a great person who wants to inherit the alliance! Ordinary nobles Can't compare to you."

Shulot was slightly taken aback. He thought about it, listening to this, is there a big noble who is intercepting foreign businessmen? He looked at the inspecting judge, who bowed his head in greeting, but did not speak.

Shiroutte thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded to the inspecting judge. Then, under the congratulations of the other party, he left the Capital Market. He pondered what he saw in the market, recalled his past memories, and thoughts flashed in his mind, turning into suggestions.

It was noon when we arrived at the Temple of the Priest. The elders and priests were getting tired after discussing and formulating the teachings for the morning. Now, the elders eat snacks, drink some cocoa and light wine, and discuss the trivial matters of life in the capital.

A priest and elder in the capital smoked the magic smoke comfortably, the air was filled with the relaxing scent of tobacco and spices. The other capital elders were used to it, but the holy city elders frowned slightly. Shilot looked at his grandfather. He recognized a trace of latent dissatisfaction in his grandfather's face, remembered his grandfather's teachings in the Holy City, and was convinced.

Seeing Shurot, the elders smiled and greeted each other, and Shurot also smiled and bowed his head in return, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

Then, he sat down beside his grandfather. The grandfather touched the boy's head and smiled. Next to my grandfather, was Acap, who was some distance away. He smiled and nodded to the boy, who happened to be sitting between the priests of the capital and the holy city.

Seirot first asked his grandfather.

"Respected high priest, how is the teaching progress this morning?"

"My child, in the morning everyone discussed the daily code of conduct for the royal family, nobles, warriors, and commoners. It stipulated which behaviors should be respected, which behaviors should not be interfered with, and which behaviors were expressly prohibited.

The advice you gave me last time was very good. In order to save life and wealth, large sums of money gambling was strictly prohibited in the future. Warriors and civilians are not allowed to take part in gambling or games involving life. Except for duels witnessed by the Lord God. "

Shuttle smiled and nodded. He looked at the boy gently.

"My child, do you have any advice?"

Shilot pondered for a moment, then saluted his grandfather solemnly. This action attracted the attention of the other elders, and everyone was watching. Shuttle also straightened up, solemnly.

Only then did Shilot speak slowly:

"Respected high priest, I propose to reform the commercial law~www.readwn.com~ First, unify market regulations. Establish written transaction regulations, dispatch judges who are familiar with regulations, and mediate trade disputes.

Second, manage money and weights and measures. Integrate existing cocoa, cotton, gold and silver, agree on the appropriate exchange rate, and dispatch currency exchange managers. Try to be consistent in length, weight, and volume units.

Third, manage market prices. Establish benchmark price signs in the market, mark pictures and texts, send people to explain daily, and provide farmers and civilians with basic reference of commodity prices. Keep abreast of merchants' commodity prices and control them if necessary!

Fourth, strategic material management and control. Official mountains and seas. Control the outflow of salt, cotton cloth, and weapons and equipment, and hoard copper tin ore for bronze weapons and leather for leather armor. Send a large number of people to manage the market, and when necessary, you can force the acquisition of important materials!

Fifth, control luxury goods. Purify customs and prohibit commoners and common warriors from spending their wealth on expensive luxuries. The levy of business tax does not restrict the use of luxury goods by nobles and priests, but it is necessary to increase taxes on luxury goods.

Sixth, control Shenyan. Shenyan can cure diseases, and it can also make people addicted and lose vitality. Warriors and priests need to strictly abide by the precepts, if not necessary, they should try to stay away from the smoke of the gods.

Seventh, manage foreign merchants. Hunt down foreign spies and forbid businessmen from approaching military positions. Abolish the autonomy of foreign business groups and require them to provide strategic supplies needed by the alliance. Guarantee the safety of their city-states in Mexica, dispatch the army if necessary, and conquer the "bandits" along the way! "

After the seven articles were finished, Shilot bowed his head and bowed to the ground, paying a big salutation. There was silence all around, and the elders had solemn faces and shocking eyes.

And the High Priest Shutter was the top one. He stared at the young man in front of him, his expression solemn and serious, his face calm and thoughtful. Finally, he smiled faintly.