Big merchants from the four counties of Qidi were already standing outside the hall door. There were twelve people in total. Looking at their clothes, they thought they were just servants. They never expected that each of them was a wealthy businessman with a family worth hundreds of gold.

Everyone is no stranger to each other. Ordinary traders and women are often limited to one township and one town. Medium-sized merchants only show their power in counties and counties. But if you want to reach the level of "a hundred gold" and join the ranks of big merchants,

Dealing with colleagues is often indispensable.

Therefore, they are either partners who cooperate with each other, or they are rivals who have had conflicts in the past. But now, they all greet each other in a friendly manner. In the shopping mall, what they are chasing is nothing more than a profit. It is better to dissolve enemies than to make enemies.

What's more, since Qin destroyed the princes of Qi, the biggest enemy of merchants has become the same: the government!

After exchanging greetings, everyone also discussed topics of common interest: "Today, the Jiaodong County Sheriff suddenly sent a message, inviting us to come here for a banquet. I don't know why?"

"I'm afraid it's not a good feast."

Guan Yan, a businessman from Langya, looked worried. The Qin Dynasty's policies towards merchants in recent years made him feel that if the government came to find him, nothing good would come of it!

"Of course, Qin people hate merchants the most."

Everyone agreed. The Legalists of the Qin Dynasty had been in power and had hated merchants since the time of Shang Yang. Shang Yang believed that merchants like to wander around and are the most disobedient. If a merchant succeeds in his business, ten farmers will not cultivate the land properly, so it must be

Suppress business.

First of all, all things related to the national destiny, such as salt and iron, were taken back to the government, and commercial taxes were increased. Wine, meat, etc. were all heavily taxed, making it unprofitable for practitioners.

At the same time, the status of merchants was lowered in the laws and regulations. In the past, among the seven heroes in the world, the Qin merchants were the lowest, ranked alongside the son-in-law. Once there was a corvee or war, the merchants were always the first to be expropriated. The Qin army clearly stipulated that merchants should not be pitied.

As well as the lives of their descendants, they must be assigned to do any dirty, tiring or dangerous work!

Under this situation, Qin's business was basically controlled by the government. At most, large Yi and Di merchants like Wushi and Ba Qing emerged in the border areas beyond the government's control. However, they were eventually recruited by the court and became red-top merchants.

The reason why Heifu and his family's Nanjun Brown Sugar was successful was because they were based on the virgin land of Jiangnan and took advantage of legal loopholes. However, they were not free for a few years. Now all the sugar mills across the Jianghuai River have been turned into government-owned enterprises.

However, the Qi State in the east took the completely opposite route to Qin. As early as the Taigongwang period, the Qi State was located in a salt-alkali land near the sea and was not suitable for farming. Therefore, it adapted to local conditions and boosted the economy through industry and commerce, eventually becoming a country of fish and salt.

During the reign of Duke Huan of Qi, Guan Zhong further put forward the view of "the beginning of the beginning and the end of the beginning". Scholars, farmers, industry and merchants were the pillars of the country, and a hometown of industry and commerce was established. Merchants were also encouraged to transport fish and salt to Liang and Chu to earn extra money for Qi.

Although Tian is a high official, he relies on sea fish and wood to win people's hearts, and he is also very tolerant to merchants. Over the past two hundred years, Qi Jia has spread all over Guandong. The wealthy businessmen can compete with the feudal lords, and there are not a few who openly wear purple clothes and swagger through the market.

…

But this golden age of commercial prosperity ended after the fall of Tian Qi. The Qin Dynasty moved the policies of Guanzhong to Qi, and ordered that merchants were prohibited from wearing silk clothes and traveling in carriages, merchants and their descendants were prohibited from becoming officials, and merchants were required to pay

Double the population tax…

When Qin Shihuang visited the east, he even engraved "Shang Nong and eliminate Momo" on Langye Platform as a national policy and announced it to the world!

The good days of Qidi merchants are over. In the past ten years, whether they are engaged in farming, animal husbandry, fishing, mining, smelting, or luxury goods, merchants have been struggling. Their social status has plummeted, and they are still in fear of being slapped with any crime by the government.

Catch it.

That’s why today, thirteen wealthy businessmen are dressed worse than ordinary people!…

But the centipede will never die. The 800-year-old mercantile tradition of the Qi people will not change overnight. This policy of suppressing business did not completely defeat the merchants of Qi. On the contrary, there is such a saying in Qi:

"From poverty to wealth, farming is not as good as work, work is not as good as doing business, and women's handicrafts are not as good as selling..."

Although the Qin Dynasty suppressed business, craftsmen and farmers did not necessarily have an easy life. Huge and heavy taxes were imposed, and people who worked honestly and farmed still lived in poverty, but the profits from speculation were even greater.

In Qi, due to the scarcity of officials in the Qin Dynasty, the government could not control the grassroots level like in Guanzhong. Shops and shops were still dominated by merchants. Linzi, Jimo, and most of these Tongyi cities had at least thirty kinds of industries, each of which

There is a big businessman who has a monopoly in an industry, and his annual income is ten times one million more than Heifu's salary of "two thousand dan"!

"When the sheep are fat, they will be killed; when the leeks grow, they will be cut!"

Langya merchant Guan Yan had a very different opinion of the Qin Dynasty, and said coldly: "Second and third sons, please don't forget to settle the misfortune!"

Everyone sighed. Originally, they could still make a profit, but since the introduction of that policy, business has become unprofitable.

The wealth of Qi merchants was noticed by Qin Shihuang who was on his eastern tour. Last year, after the emperor returned to Xianyang, in addition to forcibly moving some Qi merchants to Guanxi, he also promulgated a ban on merchants at the suggestion of Prime Minister Li Si.

new policy.

All industrial and commercial owners, loan sharks, hoarders, etc., regardless of whether they have city registration or not, must report their property figures to the government, and it is stipulated that every two min (one min equals a thousand coins) will be calculated, which is 200 coins. Generally, small money

For craftsmen, one number will be drawn every four pieces. This is called "min".

Except for officials, elders and soldiers, anyone who has a horse-drawn carriage will be drawn for one count. For a trafficker's cart, two counts will be drawn for one ride. Those with a boat that is more than five feet tall will also be drawn for one count!

If there is any concealment or failure to report, or if the report is false, all property will be confiscated! And a fine of one year will be imposed!

This is a blatant "property tax" from businessmen. As soon as this policy came out, businessmen all over the world were in mourning. Businesses that made more profits were fine, but those who made less profits simply couldn't make ends meet.

Many people have come up with the idea: "Isn't it okay if I don't become a businessman?"

However, the Qin Dynasty also strictly prohibited land annexation, blocking the possibility of purchasing land and real estate with money. The merchants were in a dilemma and found that the only option was to sell their business to the government at a low price and transform it from private to government-owned.

Guan Yan said pessimistically: "I'm afraid that's why we've been called here this time! I heard that the emperor issued an order to raise money for the Southern Expedition, the Northern War, the Lishan Mausoleum, and the Great Wall. Now the North and South

At the same time, the war started, and Li Shanling seems to have added 100,000 additional laborers. It needs more money, and we will definitely be attacked again!"

All the merchants nodded, and some smart people questioned, even if they have to cut leeks, Langya can do it in Linzi, so what's the point of calling them to Jiaodong?

"Don't forget, the county guard is the Supervisor of the Northern Expedition! Maybe he is holding a banquet. As long as anyone who comes in has to pay millions of dollars, no one will be allowed to come out!"

Guan Yan was a little sad and angry: "Everyone is not guilty of carrying a jade. In the eyes of the government, our crime is that we are rich, that is, we are rich!"

In the circle of Qi merchants, Guan Yan's words are still effective. He is not only a great merchant of Langya, but also a descendant of Qi Prime Minister Guan Yiwu hundreds of years ago!

Although Guan Zhong assisted Duke Huan of Qi and nine other princes, his descendants were in dire straits. The family declined early, and they lived in a small town until the Tian family became the Marquis of Qi. Even the small town was gone.

He could only pick up his ancestors' old business and start doing business. Perhaps this family did have a talent for doing business, but within a hundred years, they became one of the big businessmen in Qi State, with a family fortune of hundreds of gold.

When Guan Yan said this, more than a dozen merchants became more and more frightened. They felt that these Taoists were Huang Quan Hao Li, and Hei Fu was the black-faced ghost uncle who was seeking his life...

At this moment, a strange voice sounded.

"Guan Jun's words are wrong. Jiaodong Shouwei Jun has always treated the four people equally and has not severely punished the merchants in this county. Even when the imperial court promulgated the plan of calamity, he even wrote a letter to dissuade the emperor from adding an additional proclamation.

The law. The law says that anyone who dares to report will be rewarded by the government with half of the confiscated property! If this law were implemented, we would have been sued and sent to the border to do hard labor. Now that the county guard has summoned us, we can still

I don’t know what to say, but I’m afraid it’s inappropriate for the second and third sons to slander me!”

Everyone followed the sound and saw a businessman in his forties with a mustache, his sleeves rolled up, looking at them with a smile.

Someone laughed and said: "Who did I think it was? It turned out to be Tojama."

Dao Jian was from Jiaodong and one of the big merchants, but he started his career as a concubine.

The merchants in Qi are good at raising domestic slaves, but they regard slaves as the least valuable things, inferior to cattle and horses. They often abuse them and sell them at low prices and give them away at will, just like discarded grass and mustard.

But Dao Jian was different. He regarded these slaves as treasures and bought smart and capable slaves everywhere. He did not directly use them to do rough and heavy work, but taught them skills: young and beautiful female slaves were taught the art of Fangzhong and given to them as gifts.

Build good relationships with local officials. Strong male slaves are trained as warriors to protect his trade. Smart slaves teach them literacy and arithmetic to run his industry and make profits.

In this way, Daojian became the leading rich man in Jiaodong by relying on his concubines. He treated his slaves well and lived a better life than ordinary civilians, so much so that they "would rather be a noble than a sword", which means they would rather not change

As a slave, I don't want the freedom enjoyed by civilians, and I don't want to leave the knife room...

Although Daojian was a wealthy businessman in Jiaodong, he was despised by other merchants. What was even more criticized was that after the announcement of the Suanmin Order, the wealthy people all scrambled to hide their wealth and planned to boycott the policy. However, Daojian rebelled and ran to

Jimo voluntarily donated one-third of his family wealth for military expenses.

Since then, Daojian has become a frequent visitor to the Jiaodong County Sheriff's Mansion. After the new route to Haidong was opened, Hei Fu even summoned him almost every month. Pang and other Qi Jia felt that Daojian was probably there.

Help the government plan how to slaughter them...

Guan Yan had been slaughtered too harshly over the years and complained a few times. Although he often cursed Dao Jian behind his back, when he saw him and the two Qin officials following behind him, he immediately gave up and said:

: "Knife Lord, you have dealt with me a lot. Although I am a person who speaks unscrupulously, I have no intention of slandering the county governor."

"Guan Jun is the leader of Langya merchants after Guan Yiwu, and he is also my senior. I naturally know who you are, but..."

Daojian smiled and said: "However, walls have ears, so it's better to say less of these words! Second and third sons, the governor has called you here this time to announce a great thing! Now that the governor is coming, you'd better follow me quickly.

Meet me!"

"A great thing?" Everyone looked at each other in confusion.

Touma looked like he was Kurofu's agent, and made an invitation gesture to invite everyone into the hall.

…

The political status of the merchants was low. Although there were tables and tables in the hall, the officials did not say anything and no one dared to sit down.

The person in charge always arrived last. After a while, Mr. Hei arrived late. He had a kind face and asked everyone to relax and sit down, but then he said something heartbreaking.

"I have heard the complaints that the second and third sons have just made about the imperial government's national policy, their dissatisfaction with the calculation method, and their speculations about the purpose of my inviting you here!"

"this……"

Except for Touma, who had nothing to do with it, everyone in the hall was so frightened that they stood up again and expressed that they were not the ones who said it.

The Langya businessman in charge of the banquet was so frightened that he fell to the ground and regretted his quick words. The "defamation crime" promulgated by Qin Shihuang during his eastward tour was still in effect. He couldn't help but pause:

"The villain made a mistake for a moment. I hope the governor can forgive me and spare my life!"

But Hei Fu smiled and said: "Excuse me? Spare my life. What you said is true. The court is shearing sheep, cutting leeks, and fishing in the marsh. What's wrong?"

"ah?"

The thirteen giants in the hall were all stunned. They looked at each other and thought that they had failed to obey. Why did Heifu, the governor of the border region, suddenly say that someone from the imperial court was not here?

"Tojian, read my memorial to them!"

Jiaodong merchant Dao Jian actively moved closer to the government, and Hei Fu reciprocated by letting him be his agent in the merchant circle.
To be continued...