Magistrate Chen's face darkened. Although his family ran a lot of business, it was all managed by his sons. They were farmers, farmers, and merchants. The master's family was bound to develop into an official career. It was precisely because of this that the Chen family was a Jiangnan family. The leader, His Royal Highness, will also discuss these matters with him.
The head of the Zhang family hurriedly smoothed things over and said: "Brothers, don't worry. After all, we are in the same boat. It is a rare opportunity to be able to climb up to His Highness the Crown Prince. It is always right to be careful."
The head of the Qian family, the largest fleet in the south of the Yangtze River, said: "Brother Chen Shi is a scholar and a magistrate. Naturally, he is embarrassed to discuss this matter with the crown prince. However, I also agree with Brother Li. It is not good to be too small."
Magistrate Chen soothed his brows: "Money and other things, now that the world has stabilized, the imperial court will inevitably increase its control over Jiangnan. Salt and iron items are the exclusive preserve of the government, so they should be discarded now."
Li Qiantang sneered. This was also the conflict between his Li family and Chen family. The Li family relied on selling private salt, but the Chen family always wanted to cut off this road. He didn't know whether it was to suppress the Li family's power or this. Ming officials looked down upon him.
The head of the Qian family sighed and said: "Brother Chen Shi, it's easy to say, salt is our lifeblood. Official salt is expensive and hard to find, and ordinary people can't afford it. And we all have a share in the Li family's salt business."
Li Qiantang took a deep breath. The people did not fight with the officials, let alone him, a private salt seller. If it weren't for the benefits of the Chen family, he would have been captured long ago as a political achievement.
At this time, Chen Yunshu walked in. The others thought that His Highness the Crown Prince had arrived, and hurriedly stood up with their hands solemnly prepared to pay homage when His Highness came in. Li Qiantang even trembled a little.
Magistrate Chen had been with Zhu Biao for two days, and as he was a serious official, he was naturally shocked. When he found out that Shi's son had come in by himself, he asked doubtfully: "Where is Your Highness? But you want me to wait to pay homage?"
Chen Yunshu smiled and said: "Your Highness is a little tired, let dad handle it."
After hearing this, Magistrate Chen was overjoyed at first, and then felt that something was wrong. They naturally knew the prince's itinerary. Everyone was afraid that something would happen to this ancestor in Hangzhou. If there was a bloody massacre in Jiangnan today, don't say anything about working hard. Li Wenzhong, it would be nice if Li Wenzhong didn't kill him himself.
His Highness had only played so much in this morning. He was not a delicate and elegant young man, but an Admiral of Tiance who had returned from the Northern Expedition to destroy the country. Rumor had it that he was as tireless as the Holy Emperor.
The rest of the people also looked at each other. Li Qiantang frowned and sat back. Quan Xu, who was beside His Highness, was looking around for information. They also knew that after a hundred years of operation, it was impossible to resist the imperial court, but there were few things in Jiangnan that could be hidden from them. .
Chen Yunshu was a little confused. It didn't matter if the others were unhappy. Why wasn't his father happy? This was because of the trust of His Highness the Crown Prince. From now on, the position of the Chen family's Jiangnan crown would be more stable.
The head of the Qian family was the first to speak: "Maybe you think we are not sincere, so why don't you take the initiative to pay your respects? My family has just obtained a few treasures, which can be used as gifts."
The rest of the people catered to him, and Magistrate Chen said solemnly: "You think His Highness the Crown Prince is one of those ministers in the court who can make you happy with some rare treasures. How can His Highness accept the gifts that come to your door for no reason?"
The head of the Zhang family nodded and said: "Giving a gift to a distinguished person must be elegant. If it falls into the conventional style and makes His Highness unhappy, let alone the gift being rejected, you will be charged with disrespect if you fail to do so."
The others were even more confused, and one of them with a big belly whispered: "Hasn't His Highness already accepted me? We should be filial."
Li Qiantang squinted his eyes and said, "Who told you?"
The rest of the people were even more puzzled. If His Highness had not confiscated them, then why did they come here? Some of them realized: "No one except His Highness Chen, the prefect, knows about the empty talk. If Your Highness doesn't admit it, tell this matter." Of course it didn’t happen.”
Someone scratched their head and said, "What kind of status does Your Highness have, so you don't have integrity?"
The rest of the people also understood why they asked the prince to be honest. The deal has not been completed yet, and His Highness has not benefited from them at all. The outcome now depends on their determination.
As for other things, their family's ability to be so big does not rely on integrity. Nowadays, everyone is a slave and I am a fish, so there is nothing they can do about it.
Magistrate Chen shook his head and said: "Your Highness is still waiting for our sincerity. There is nothing in the Chen family that we are reluctant to part with. It just depends on how you decide."
Li Qiantang sighed. The Chen family had already embarked on an official career and had enough money. However, the remaining family members did not even have officials above the fifth rank. Naturally, they still valued money, especially his family. Without these, Die young on the road.
The middleman with the gold abacus on his belt said: "I will give you twelve taels a year, which is no lower than the grain tax in Jiangnan. Your Highness should be satisfied with this. If the price is higher, I might as well go along with Li Wenzhong."
Li Qiantang sneered: "You have already brought the meat to your mouth, and you still want to give it to others. Could it be that His Highness, the Crown Prince, will not kill people? Can Li Wenzhong protect us in front of His Highness?"
Now everyone was dumbfounded. They came here happily, thinking that they were hugging the thickest thigh in the Ming Dynasty. How could they be ruined now?
The head of the Zhang family sighed: "Don't pretend to be stupid and dumbfounded. We all know the basics. It's okay if you want our three families to take the lead. If you don't want to continue the discussion, then go out and take care of yourself in the future."
The panic on everyone's faces disappeared at this time. In the final analysis, no one can easily accumulate a large fortune. If he had no ability, he would have been eaten by others. The Jiangnan family is united, but there is no need for fools.
Li Qiantang rubbed his rough face and said: "I can't get any more money. After all, the people below mostly use grain and copper coins to buy and sell. Even if Jiangnan is rich, it will not be able to provide His Royal Highness with hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in a few years."
There has not yet been a large-scale influx of overseas silver into the Ming Dynasty. Domestically, copper coins are used more and silver is not the mainstream. Bartering is even popular in some remote places. During the founding years of the People's Republic of China, there was even poverty. Except for the wealthy merchants in Jiangnan, I am afraid that there is no other silver. There is no place to use it.
Magistrate Chen nodded and said, "Your Highness may not want money."
As soon as these words came out, the others became even more silent. If they don't want money, they definitely want something more important. For them, they might as well want money. In fact, they had already guessed what Zhu Biao wanted, but How can we abandon our ancestral heritage?
The head of the Zhang family suddenly laughed and said: "When will it be our turn to make a decision in this matter? Scholars, farmers, industry and merchants. Although we are rich, we can only spend tens of thousands of young people, and most of them are just mobs. There are ten thousand people parked outside the city of Hangzhou." The cavalry are still occupying the north city gate, I'm just waiting for them to be fatter cattle and sheep, so I'd better accept their fate as soon as possible."
The rest of the people also showed reluctance. They were able to preserve such a huge family property in the chaotic times of the late Yuan Dynasty not because of honesty and justice. In the early years, let alone salt and iron, they sold all the people, military supplies, and horses. Otherwise, how would they have gotten this rich? It is easy to get rich in troubled times.
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