The third manager of Yunshang Qianyun was the general manager of the accounting office of the Taigu salt merchant Qiao family in Yangzhou, and was nicknamed "Iron Abacus Yunsan". Of course he was also from Taigu, Shanxi, and one of the famous Shanxi merchants.
Shanxi merchants were known as the Eight Imperial Merchants in later generations. However, during the Ming Dynasty, these Shanxi merchants who did smuggling business with the Manchus were not at all popular. The real great merchants of Shanxi are salt merchants! Two of the eight major salt merchants in Yangzhou were Shanxi merchants, one was Taigu Qiao and the other was Pingyang Cao. The two great salt generals have become extremely wealthy since the beginning of the Ming Dynasty when China opened its borders. After more than 200 years of accumulation, they both have a net worth of several million taels. They are truly as rich as any country!
Although Iron Abacus Yun San is only the accounting manager of the Qiao family, he has been managing the Qiao family's accounts for eight generations, and his accumulated wealth is around two to three hundred thousand taels! No ordinary rich man can compare with him.
However, although the Yun family of Taigu Qiao, Pingyang Cao and Yun Shangqian were known as Shanxi merchants, their children and property were all in the southeast. The children of the three families may not return to Shanxi in their lifetime...
Therefore, the chaos in the north did not have much impact on these Shanshan salt merchants in Yangzhou. It really made the third manager of Yun worried about the contradiction between the nobles in Nanjing and the Xing Dynasty who moved from the south.
In the view of Third Manager Yun, there is no way for Xingchao and Nanjing nobles to coexist harmoniously! Because the emperor and the prince did not go south alone, but came with tens of thousands of people.
These tens of thousands of "heroes who overcame difficulties" and "righteous followers who overcame difficulties" who followed us are the heart and soul of the imperial court!
With them, Xingchao can take root in the southeast!
The so-called taking root means to let these loyal officials in the imperial court replace the nobles who stayed in the capital and the guards in the southeast to control the land and population of more than a hundred guards in the southeast, and of course the salt of the Huaihe River and the golden waterway of the Yangtze River.
With the land and population of the Weisuo, the salt interests of the Huaihe River and the Yangtze River shipping, the imperial court could live a good life after moving south!
Therefore, the nobles who go to court and those who stay in the capital will definitely fight!
And the general managers of the four mountains and Shaanxi provinces in Huaiyang became a piece of fat sandwiched between the nobles who stayed in the capital and those who went to court!
Going to court may not necessarily disturb the four Anhui gang salt generals, but it will definitely disturb the Shanshan salt generals! Because the Huibang Yanzong and others are backed by Donglin and Fushe. Although the scholar-bureaucrats in Donglin and Fushe also control a large amount of land and population, there is no ready-made system that allows the court to control the land and population in the hands of the scholar-bureaucrats. . The guard system in Xungui's hands is a ready-made system that can be thoroughly rectified and mastered just like the prince did in Denglai Seven Guards.
In addition, the land for military camps is state-owned, and the court can legitimately organize it. But Mintian is different. His name is not correct and his words are not smooth. If he is forced to sort it out, won't he become the second best to Li Zicheng?
"Dong Weng, we still have more than one million taels of silver and 70,000 taels of gold on hand. If we want to ship it, it will take at least a day."
Qiao Antu, the head of the Qiao family in Taigu, knitted his eyebrows and was listening to Yun San's report on the company's accounts.
Qiao Dadongweng seemed to have got some news. He got up early in the morning and found Yun San. He asked him to sort out the cash on hand and then load it on a ship to Nanjing.
But there is so much silver and gold, how can it be transported away so easily? And the prince probably posted sentries on the docks and canals!
"Dong Weng," Yun San said, then paused and said, "Why don't you pack up some things..."
Old man Qiao was already anxious. Hearing Yun San's suggestion, he turned around and rolled his eyes: "Whose appetite can be satisfied by some soft food? Without 1.5 million taels of silver, can the Wei government let me go?"
"But......"
"Nothing to worry about, go get ready!"
"Here!"
Yun San responded, and just as he turned around to leave, he saw a servant of the Yun family, Ding Fei, running into the study: "Master, master, it's not good, the guards in golden clothes have surrounded the garden! Back and forth, The water can’t drain out!”
"So fast!" Yun San was surprised, then turned to look at his Dong Weng, "Dong Weng, what should we do?"
...
"The commander of the Yangzhou Guards, Xu Yongji, has evil intentions and is now on the run in fear of crime. The Jinyiwei searched his residence and found that you salt merchants were closely associated with him, so the Jinyiwei invited you to the Grand Marshal's Mansion in this palace."
Daming Temple, in the Fujun Grand Marshal's Mansion, Zhu Cixiang was sitting in the main hall with a golden sword, looking at a group of salt merchants kneeling below, talking pleasantly.
"What an injustice! The common people didn't know that Thief Xu was plotting rebellion..."
"It's unfair, the common people are just businessmen, and they did not conspire with Thief Xu..."
"The common people are wronged..."
"The grassroots are really unjust!"
Of course the salt merchants are treacherous, and none of them would admit to participating in the rebellion! If you admit it, your family will be destroyed!
"Oh." Zhu Cixiang smiled, "Whether you participated in Xu Yongji's conspiracy, the Jinyiwei will find out. The Jinyiwei now is different from the past. It was rebuilt by me. I will not wrongly accuse good people. If you If there is really no rebellion, there is no need to be afraid.”
There are some good people in Jinyiwei who don't wrongly accuse them...and they can't be considered good people after all, right?
The salt merchants were also speechless, but they did not dare to talk back to Zhu Cihong!
Zhu Cixiang nodded: "You don't say anything, so you must be relieved. However, Jinyiwei did copy the account book from Xu Yongji's house. It has your names and the amount of gold and silver donated! The amount is huge! These gold and silver are obviously Xu Ni's. Military expenses for rebellion! How do you explain it? What does your good salt merchant have to do with him, the commander of the Yangzhou Guard? Why should you give him so much money? Isn't it to fund his rebellion?
The evidence is solid! There are account books, the seized dirty money, and the confessions of the Xu family members... What else do you have to say? "
"No! Chitose misunderstood!"
"We gave him money because..."
A group of salt merchants don’t know what to say anymore? Xu Yongji took their money to rebel. How can they get rid of themselves?
How to say this?
Did you say that you bribed Xu Yongji and the Wei government behind Xu Yongji in order to sell illegal salt? Are you saying that both Wei Guofu and Xu Yongji are using their own dark stocks to make huge profits? Selling illegal salt is a serious crime, and the punishment for a minor crime is one hundred rods and three years in prison.
With the money they salt merchants gave to Xu Yongji, the amount of illegal salt sales would definitely be indispensable. At the very least, they would have to behead their heads and confiscate their homes!
This is really deadly!
On the one hand, he is participating in the rebellion and wants to destroy the family!
On the one hand, they are selling a large amount of illegal salt, and they want to behead their heads and confiscate their homes... There is no way to survive if they work together!
Zhu Cixiang's tone also became stern: "Whether you have conspired against me or not is not certain for the moment, but each of you has sent money to Xu Yongji, and the amount is huge! Why is this? Why did you send money? Did you collude with Xu Yongji? Yongji is selling illicit salt? What does the "Da Ming Law" say? As a salt manager and salt merchant, you are selling illicit salt, and the amount is huge. This is a capital crime!
You choose, are you plotting rebellion, or are you bribing and selling illegal salt? "
Co-authorship is dead?
The four Shanshan Salt Managers present were shaking so badly that they could no longer speak. Kneeling with these salt managers were the general managers, shopkeepers, accountants, etc. of each family. They were all captured by Zhu Cixiang under special care.
Prince Zhu is not the kind of master who only catches the culprits but never threatens him.
He even wants to be a coercion...
Therefore, the big threat of Iron Abacus Yun San is kneeling down from now on, and the little abacus in his heart has been pulled over countless times.
His master must be in trouble, whether he is treason or selling illegal salt, he must die! And the crime of being a coercion is not a light one. If he is to be held accountable, he will at least be spanked and exiled from the army!
But the question is, is the prince’s purpose really to kill everyone?
Thinking of this, Yun San knelt and walked forward. He was five steps away from Zhu Cihong before he was stopped by the guards.
"Caomin Yunsan, I have something to say..."
"Okay!" Zhu Cixiang nodded, "Detain him first and keep him alone!"
Two guards came forward and took Yun Shangqian out. Zhu Cixiang looked at everyone in the hall with a smile: "How is it? Who else has something to say?"
Of course!
How could it not be?
The four salt bosses are facing a dead end, and the big subordinates below think they can survive! Not only can he survive, but he will also have the opportunity to serve his new master!
They are all capable, otherwise they wouldn’t be great henchmen!
. m.
