Although it is said that in the process of opening up the mutual market, a lot of hardships have been put in. However, under the joint auspices of Huangdian and the Ministry of Household Affairs, the wealth flowing into Ming Dynasty through mutual trading in the past two years has truly restored Ming Dynasty's national strength very quickly.
If nothing else, at least the national treasury is much richer, and there is no need to pay for peppercorns anymore. The court did not increase taxes to local governments even though many major events continued to be uneasy. Even after the restructuring of craftsmen's households, , many craftsmen received more money and food.
Of course, little food is produced on the grasslands, but after a stable period, Zhu Qiyu has begun to encourage Huangzhuang to accept the use of cattle and sheep for trade. Although these cattle and sheep cannot be used for farming, they can be transported to the inland. However, they will sell them below the market price. In this way, Huangzhuang's profits will be affected to a certain extent, but it will make the prices of cattle and sheep near Gyeonggi extremely stable.
Recently, Zhu Qiyu has even considered whether to open up some pastures specifically to raise these cattle and sheep.
In addition to the ordinary trade with Tatar, there is also the tea-horse trade with Oara. Although Oara occasionally cheats and uses some bad horses to pass off as good ones, after all, it does not affect the overall situation. With these horses In border towns such as Datong and Xuanfu, the scale of the cavalry can further expand.
These are all real benefits, and the most important thing is that there is no need to impose exorbitant taxes or send more corvees. Only when the court has money can it do more things, and when there is a disaster in the local area, there will be The confidence of tax exemption.
If the situation after the switch of Longqing in his previous life only made Zhu Qiyu start thinking about the problems of merchants, then the huge role played by the mutual market was to make him truly realize the usefulness of merchants.
There is nothing wrong with focusing on agriculture and suppressing business, but this does not mean that business is only bad for the country. The key depends on where it is used.
Mutual trading is certainly good, but it has a major flaw. That is, it can only be done by Huangdian!
Huangdian has a monopoly on mutual trade, but there are many inconveniences. For example, Huangdian’s various supplies are purchased from Gyeonggi and then shipped to the border for trade. The horses obtained from the trade can be incorporated into the officialdom on the spot. Army, but the excess still had to be transported back to the mainland. As for cattle, sheep and other items, they also had to be transported back and then sold.
This process was very troublesome and required a lot of manpower and material resources. However, neither Zhu Qiyu nor Chen Yi felt inappropriate about it.
You know, if we are purely based on cost, the best way is actually to open a sales market at the border, buy it directly from the imperial store, and then sell the exchanged materials locally, or from the perspective of the Ministry of Household Affairs, go one step further and open it to the private sector. For trade, you only need to set up a special trading location and then set up people to collect taxes.
The taxes paid by Huangdian are already higher than those in the mainland, but they cannot withstand the huge profits from mutual trade. Once private trade is opened up and higher tax rates are set, it will certainly be able to attract a large number of businessmen.
Moreover, the scale of the imperial store was limited after all, and many small tribes had no chance to join the mutual market. If the scale was expanded and private merchants were allowed to enter, it would not be a problem for the imperial court to double its annual income from the mutual market.
But no! Although his thoughts on trade have changed, Zhu Qiyu is still very clear-headed and has not been blinded by this large sum of money.
At this time, we have to mention the usefulness of Shen Shangshu of the Ministry of Revenue. Although this great situ is greedy for money, he still knows the pros and cons of mutual trading very clearly.
After the opening of the mutual market, he reminded Zhu Qiyu many times to maintain the current scale and frequency and not to continue to expand.
As for the reasons, they are very complicated. To put it bluntly, mutual trading is not only an economic issue, but also a political issue and a military issue.
Although the Ming Dynasty and the grasslands do have a mutual trading relationship, this is essentially a tribute trade, based on each tribe's oath of surrender to the Ming Dynasty. Once civilian trade is opened, this will be broken.
At the same time, mutual trading itself is a means of restraint. Compared with its economic significance, it is more important to regulate the situation on the grassland in this way.
In addition, once the people's mouth is opened, even if it is just setting up a sales market at the border, controlled by the imperial shop, and the merchants can trade internally, it will have serious consequences.
Smuggling at the border has been banned repeatedly. The only and best way is to strictly prohibit unlicensed private traders from doing business at the border.
Zhu Qiyu has always been very vigilant about this, so it is often said that people's wisdom comes from experience.
In the previous life, when I paid tribute and reopened the mutual trade, Zhu Qiyu had already seen the consequences of the imperial court not controlling private trade.
You must know that at that time, the imperial court had not completely liberalized trade, but even under heavy bans, countless private merchants still swarmed across the border, and some of them even took risks and sold arms on a large scale.
Therefore, this gap must not be opened, and the mutual market must be controlled by the imperial store. Even the merchant trade in each border town must be strictly inspected and controlled.
Of course, Zhu Qiyu is not so naive. There will definitely be nothing wrong with the imperial store. There are always people who are greedy for profit.
However, as a Tianjia property, Huangdian is very convenient for him to investigate and deal with. More importantly, it is not scattered like the private sector. Even if something goes wrong, it can be easily repaired.
Therefore, if border trade is inconvenient, it can only be inconvenient. The Imperial Store has to spend so much time transporting it back and forth, so it has to be like this.
In essence, this is not in line with the pursuit of profit, but for various reasons, it can only maintain the status quo.
However, this problem does not exist in the Thai and Western countries. There are many difficulties in mutual trade between the Ming Dynasty and the grassland tribes. They are on guard against each other because they are close to each other and the grasslands are bitterly cold. Therefore, the two are naturally hostile and prone to war, so many preparations have to be made.
However, there is a vast ocean between the Thai and Western countries and the Ming Dynasty. At least for now, there is no confrontational relationship. The Thai and Western countries do not have the ability to cross the ocean to invade the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty also does not have the ability to attack each other. The journey is too long. , the logistics supply alone can extinguish all thoughts.
Because of this, if we start mutual trade with other countries in Thailand and the West, then the imperial shop will no longer have to control everything, and private merchants can be allowed to go to sea. The imperial court can follow the example of the former Song Dynasty and set up a shipping department to collect taxes and supplement the national treasury. .
Of course, it is very difficult to achieve this! The first thing to bear the brunt is the imperial government's policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing business. Zhu Qiyu has such an understanding because he is used to seeing the rise and fall of hundreds of years. However, for many ministers in the court, they do not have such an understanding, so , if private merchants are to be allowed to go overseas, they will inevitably encounter strong opposition.
Moreover, even the reasons are ready. The maritime ban policy established by Emperor Taizu is the best weapon. This is an ancestral system and cannot be violated easily.
In addition to this, there are practical problems. To put it bluntly, they are Japanese pirates. Japanese pirates occur frequently in the southeast. This is the biggest problem that hinders private commerce. Although the court has prepared Japanese troops, Japanese pirates are scattered and difficult to catch. Once it enters the vast sea, it is difficult for anyone to find traces and it will be endlessly suppressed. If this problem is not solved, it will be very difficult to open sea trade.
However, you have to eat one meal at a time and do things one by one. Don't rush it. Now is the first step, so you have to take it steadily.
Looking at the huge map in front of him, Zhu Qiyu pointed to the many places in it that only had names but no descriptions of topography and mountains, and said.
"Zhangzhou Prefecture is close to the sea. After Uncle Dai Wang moved to the feudal state this time, the first thing he did was to send a fleet for me to find out whether the records on the map were accurate and complete the map." He said this in a calm tone. , but with an indifferent tone of command, it was obvious that he was not discussing with Zhu Shiyi.
After hearing this, the acting prince said with a bitter look on his face.
"Your Majesty clearly knows that I have lived half my life and have never seen the sea. Even if I want to find out for Your Majesty, I am not strong enough. Besides, I know nothing about navigation. This..."
"It's okay if you don't know about navigation. You can learn it now." Zhu Qiyu waved his hand and motioned for people to reroll the map on the ground and put it away.
"Uncle Wang can take this map with him when he leaves the palace. In addition, I will order someone to copy a copy of the nautical charts, routes, etc. in Qintian Prison and give it to Uncle Wang. In addition, before leaving the capital, Wang Uncle Ke went to the Ministry of War and took away a copy of the account of Zheng He's voyages to the West that was kept by the Ministry of War. When we get to Zhangzhou Prefecture, we can read it slowly." Ah this... Zhu Shixi was stunned for a moment, and then his expression became even darker. He hesitated and said.
"Your Majesty, these charts and descriptions are the secrets of the imperial court. How dare I take them out of the capital at will? Moreover, when the eunuchs of the Three Treasures sailed to the West, their fleets were huge and equipped with ordnance and officers and soldiers. Even if I have your majesty's will, how dare I Forming such a fleet? This is something that can only be done by the imperial court. I dare not exceed my authority, and I am unable to complete it. Therefore, I boldly ask your Majesty to take back the order." This is true. Strictly speaking, the sea charts and routes are all It is a military secret, otherwise it would not be under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War.
This kind of thing cannot be followed by the emperor just telling him, otherwise, if he is not careful, it will be a big disaster.
The vassal king has a noble status, but when it comes to military and political matters, he must be cautious. Let’s not talk about the Japanese troubles, just talk about the many hidden reefs and maritime disasters in the sea. The dangers are unpredictable. If you want to ensure the greatest survival rate, the best way is to form a huge fleet.
This was the case when Zheng He made his voyages to the West. During the reign of Emperor Taizong, every time Zheng He went to the West, the number of people involved was at least more than 27,000, of which more than 20,000 were officers and soldiers.
A fleet of this size will still suffer a lot of losses every time it goes to sea. Is it possible that he, a mere acting king, can build a larger fleet?
Even if he could, he wouldn't dare! You know, a fleet of this size is actually, to put it bluntly, an army. The vassal kings from all over the country don't even have regular guards now. If such a fleet is really created, he is afraid that he will be in Zhangzhou Palace. It hasn't been built yet, so we have to pack up and go to Fengyang to squat.
There are no other people here, so there is no need to answer so many riddles. What's more, this acting prince, who has always been submissive, finally spoke so forcefully once, naturally he had a reason that he had to say.
Zhu Qiyu looked at Zhu Shixi's face and knew what he was hesitating about. However, he did not get angry because of this, but instead spoke with a gentler expression. "Uncle Dai Wang, these words are serious. I have not said that I will repeat Zheng He's voyages to the West. With the current state of the treasury, even if I agree, the Minister of Revenue, Shen, will not agree."
"I just want to know whether this map is authentic. According to what the missionary said, the countries of Europe and America, as well as America and other places on this map, have many features that are not found in our Ming Dynasty. If we can bring back some , which is also good.”
"If Uncle Wang is worried about money and food, I will turn around and issue an order to increase the annual salary of the prince's palace to ten thousand shi, so that he can pay it in his own way."
"In addition, I will find some sailors for Uncle Wang who have gone to sea with Zheng He. Nanjing has built some sea ships in the past few years. Uncle Wang can also take them with him. After arriving at Zhangzhou Prefecture, Uncle Wang only needs to return to the sea. Recruit some good men and form a fleet of three to five hundred people, and then we can go to sea, and there is no need to make a fuss like Zheng He's voyage to the West." As soon as these words came out, Zhu Huixuan blinked at the side.
The Emperor is really generous with his actions this time! You know, this is not an ordinary favor.
Before that, due to the various evil deeds of Dai Wang Zhu Gui, Dai Fan's annual salary was reduced again and again. Even if Renzong later added a lot more, it was still only six thousand dan, and he still paid half of the rice banknotes.
This time the emperor not only added money back, but also made sure to withdraw it at the original price. The inside and outside of this place are not much different from the money added by six thousand stones.
Especially now, when the officials of the imperial court are obviously interested in rectifying the vassal vassal, giving extra money to the vassal vassal will inevitably lead to pressure from the court.
However, the difficulty has been reduced and the conditions have become better, which is not a good sign... Looking at the faint look of King Dai, Zhu Huixuan sighed secretly and then said.
"Your Majesty, I believe that serving the country is the right thing to do. How can I invite you for a reward like this? What's more, although the fleet goes to sea with three to five hundred people, although it is a lot, after all, Japanese pirates are frequent in the southeast. If the Japanese pirates gather, I am afraid that It's difficult to deal with, but if the fleet is too large, it will be difficult to make the trip. Therefore, I also feel that it is better for the imperial court to deal with this matter." These words immediately made Zhu Shixi, who was still a little excited, sigh. Wanshi is certainly tempting, but it is not without cost. If the emperor gives you grace, you must get things done. Otherwise, the salary you get will probably become a hot potato in the end.
Zhu Qiyu sat at the top, his eyes fell on Zhu Huixuan, and he couldn't help but shook his head slightly. Sure enough, in terms of mental agility, it was him, the uncle of King Min.
These words fell in the ears of King Dai, reminding him of how capable he was and how much benefit he had gained. But to Zhu Qiyu's ears, it was obvious that King Min had seen through what he had just planned...
