The Qin merchants in Shaanxi declined, and the salt merchants in Yangzhou rose. This is how things are in the world!
Yangzhou salt merchants are salt merchants chartered by the governments of the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty to monopolize the transportation of salt.
They took advantage of this privilege to seize huge commercial monopoly profits and became prominent wealthy businessmen for a while.
Everyone knows that Yangzhou salt merchants thrived on the Grand Canal, and the sale of salt contributed to the glory of Yangzhou salt merchants.
However, who knew that it was the rise of Yangzhou salt merchants that led to the decline of Qin merchants in Shaanxi.
In the world of business, the cake is only so big. Some people can eat a big part, while others can only eat a small part...
Different from Yangzhou salt merchants, Shaanxi merchants sell their grain to borders and grasslands in order to obtain salt imports, and they are also restricted by Yangzhou salt merchants...
Anyway, let’s get to the point!
Although Qin merchants have always been low-key and not as flamboyant as Shanxi and Hui merchants, their power, influence, status, and financial resources are no worse than those of Shanxi and Hui merchants.
Not only that, these Shaanxi businessmen also have a lot of grain in their hands...
Also, the future livelihoods of the millions of people in Taiyuan Prefecture will all depend on these Shaanxi businessmen...
Whether it is to provide relief to the victims or to extinguish the locust plague, in this period of drought, finding a way to survive for the millions of people in Taiyuan Prefecture cannot do without the support of Qin merchants...
Therefore, when He Shen was planning to exterminate, he immediately thought of them.
The invitations sent to Qin merchants were not only the first to be sent out, but were also written by He Shen himself, and they also bore the title of imperial envoy, which was quite polite.
The Qin merchants also gave the imperial envoy He Shen a lot of face. In addition, Taiyuan Mansion was originally the territory of the Qin merchants, so a large number of Qin merchants arrived as quickly as possible.
"……………………"
Heshen met with them this time, firstly, to raise and collect the shortage of relief grain and grass, and secondly, to get their support for Heshen's actions to extinguish the locust plague.
It is not difficult to persuade the support of those clan elders and squires, as long as He Shen can still convince them because of his interests!
Because most of these clan elders and squires are landowners and wealthy locals, the locust plague has both advantages and disadvantages for them!
After the locust plague, all the people died, and although the land was freed up, there were no more people to farm it...
Hundreds of acres of farmland cannot be cultivated by just a few people from the landlord's family...
Therefore, to a certain extent, although landlords can annex land after the locust plague, it is useless to have land without people...
Therefore, Heshen planned to convince the Qin merchants first, and then confront the clan elders and squires, and finally the magic stick, witches, monks and Taoist priests...
That makes things a lot easier.
After all, the ruling power of Qin merchants, clan elders, and country gentry is deeply rooted in Taiyuan, and most of the magicians, witches, monks, and Taoists are also attached to them...
As long as Qin Shang, clan elders, and country gentry stand together with He Shen, those
God sticks, witches, monks and Taoists will never dare to disobey unless they want to die...
Compared to those magicians, witches, monks and Taoists who regard faith as a means of making money or even their only means of living...
Qin merchants, clan elders, and country gentry are undoubtedly much easier to convince, because Taiyuan is their home and their foundation...
…
"Sir, all the guests are here."
Just as He Shen was secretly thinking about his countermeasures after meeting Qin Shang, He Er entered He Shen's room and reported softly.
He Shen nodded after hearing this, straightened his clothes, and then walked towards the living room with He Er.
"..."
Shaanxi Qin merchants are still black, so they attach great importance to traditional families. The decoration and furniture are mostly black, which gives people majesty and solemnity.
Shaanxi people are called "Shaanxi Lengwa" by people from other provinces. They have a temper that is raw, cold, naughty, and stubborn. It is these characteristics of Qin people that created the Qin merchants' "honest, upright, loyal, benevolent and courageous" character. Qin Shang spirit.
"…………"
When He Shen arrived at the hall, he saw more than 20 people waiting quietly in the hall.
These twenty-odd people are among the best businessmen in Shaanxi.
Some are the owners of mountain salt ponds, some are caravan leaders, and some are ticket office owners, but outside, they all have a unified name, and that is "Qin Shang"! ! !
The hall was very quiet, and the Qin merchants were also very qualified. There was no noise or discussion.
Most of these Qin businessmen were just drinking tea in silence, occasionally exchanging business secrets in soft whispers.
Qin Shang's performance made He Shen couldn't help but nod. He was worthy of Qin Shang's spirit of "honesty, integrity, loyalty, benevolence and courage".
"…………"
Therefore, He Shen, who made a good first impression, was also very polite in appearance.
As soon as he arrived at the door, he already offered his hands to the Qin merchants and said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry...I've kept you all waiting for so long. I'm late. I'm really sorry."
"..."
"I've met the Imperial Envoy!"
"I've met the Imperial Envoy!"
"I've met the Imperial Envoy!"
After seeing He Shen appear, all the Qin merchants also showed respect in front of He Shen and returned the favor one after another.
"You don't have to be so polite. This is the home of Magistrate Liu. I'm inviting everyone here in my private capacity..."
"This kind of etiquette in official circles that fools people does not need to be like this..."
He Shen's attitude was as polite as ever.
"………………"
Although He Shen is now highly favored by Emperor Qianlong because of his clever methods of amassing money, and he has a high official position and is powerful...
He Shen is not afraid of these Qin merchant forces. In fact, these Qin merchants are afraid that He Shen will wear small shoes for them...
However, He Shen took the initiative to meet with Qin Shang this time for the purpose of cooperation. Therefore, to a certain extent, he was asking for help, and his attitude was naturally better...
"..."
After everyone was seated, He Shen, who was sitting on the main seat, picked up the tea on the table and said with a smile: "When I first came here, I heard about Shaanxi's famous tea. When I saw it today, it was indeed well-deserved. "
Ya'an in Shaanxi is one of the top ten tea sources, and it is also the only top ten tea source in the north. Ya'an's Mengding tea has long been a royal tribute in the past dynasties.
Youdao is "the water of the Yangtze River, the mountain tea on the top of Mengding Mountain", among which Shaanxi's "Mengding Huangya" is the most famous.
Pick the bud heads before the Qingming Festival. During the Grain Rain period during the Qingming Festival, pick each bud and leaf to get the nectar buds...
Cut directly with a sickle after Grain Rain, which is the more common Maofeng in tea, and the most common is Chencha!
At this moment, Heshen and a group of Qin merchants drank naturally the top-notch Mengding Huangya, the best nectar...
"..."
A group of Qin merchants smiled slightly when they heard this...
One of them, Qin Shang, an older man who was a tea merchant, even said with a smile.
"My lord has discernment."
"The tea in your hands is the best of Ya'an's famous teas. It only produces a few hundred kilograms per year. Its color is like field yellow, its fragrance is rich, its taste is mellow, and its shape is beautiful. It is mellow, sweet, and sweet again. Durable and worth a fortune…”
He Shen heard this, nodded with a smile, put it to his mouth and took a sip, and said: "It is indeed a good tea..."
After hearing He Shen's words, all the Qin merchants couldn't help but smile, and the atmosphere in the hall was very good.
He Shen followed up and said: "Everyone has known my identity for a long time, but I am new to this place and I am not familiar with you. Lord Magistrate, why don't you introduce me to me?"
These Qin merchants who came to the mansion were all personally invited by Liu An, the prefect of Taiyuan. In addition, Liu An is the largest landowner in Taiyuan...
Therefore, Liu An knew much better than He Shen about the identities and true circumstances of these Qin merchants.
After Liu An, the prefect of Taiyuan, heard He Shen's words, he nodded in agreement, indicating that he understood.
Liu An first pointed at the old man sitting on the left side of the guest seat and said: "This is the big boss Luo Dayuluo. He is the boss of the largest caravan in the north. One-third of the tea horse business belongs to them. of……"
Although he had already saluted before, during the introduction, Luo Dayou still stood up, bowed to He Shen, and said: "I, Luo Dayou, have met the imperial envoy."
"…………"
"Please sit down, please sit down."
He Shen raised his hand and said after hearing this.
Later, Liu An pointed at the middle-aged man on the right of the guest and said, "This is Ye Zixiu, the largest copper mine businessman in the north. Several of the largest copper mines in Shaanxi are all in charge of Ye Zixiu."
"Ye Zixiu, I've met the adults."
Like Luo Dayou before, Ye Zixiu also stood up and bowed respectfully to He Shen.
"This is Boss Bai Xiangnan, the largest tea merchant in Shaanxi..."
"Bai Xiangnan has met your Excellency."
Bai Xiangnan saluted...
…
Seeing the respectful and well-behaved appearance of all the Qin merchants, He Shen couldn't help but nodded secretly, feeling that Qin merchants really deserved their reputation...
In later generations, people often regard Shanxi merchants and Huizhou merchants as the largest merchants in the world, and think that they are representatives of merchants in historical periods...
But in fact, in He Shen's view, Qin merchants are no worse than Shanxi merchants and Hui merchants...
Regardless of power, influence, etc., compared to the high-profile Shanxi and Huizhou merchants, the Qin merchants have always been low-key and disciplined, at least for now, judging from their performance, this is the case.
"..."
After Liu An introduced all the Shaanxi Qin merchants present, He Shen coughed lightly and said.
"Everyone has introduced themselves, so now we all know each other."
After a brief polite exchange, He Shen waved his hands and said, "Everyone, you must have heard some rumors during this period..."
"But, among the people here, who can guess why I came to you this time?"
After hearing He Shen's words, all the Qin merchants looked at each other...
Luo Dayou, the leader of the largest caravan in the north, stood up and answered on behalf of all the Qin merchants present.
"Sir, you are referring to disaster relief."
"There is a severe drought in Shaanxi, a locust plague in Taiyuan, and nine out of ten houses are empty. We also know..."
"It has not been easy for the imperial court these past few years. Although it has allocated funds for disaster relief, it is still insufficient. This is the truth..."
