Coming out of the supply and marketing cooperative shopping mall, several prefects praised him profusely. A few of them are even thinking about opening one themselves when they go back. At this time, there were few businesses that made money without the government getting involved. Even if it is not easy to operate a government-run business, it will be contracted to individuals at a reasonable price.
In the Song Dynasty, it was very common for shops to be owned by the government and contracted to individuals. When purchasing, the government sets a price, and whichever company contracts must ensure that it pays this amount to the government every year. If you earn too much, it belongs to you; if you earn less, you must use your family wealth to make up for it. Later, another form of real-name surrender appeared. That is, the government does not set a price and the people bid for it. Everyone wrote their prices and put their bids together, and the one with the highest bid got it. This method is later called bidding. In order to win, people often offer abnormal prices.
No matter which method is used, the government will surely make a profit without losing any money. No matter how good the business is, the government's share of money must not be reduced. And whether it is a buy or a real-name investment, there must be a low bet. If the money is not paid, the government will confiscate the collateral.
Wang Xiaolie almost never adopts this form. If the scale is small and it is inconvenient for the government to operate, the government will not intervene. Encouraging development is only in the form of providing discounts, recruiting some relevant people, and forming a cooperative. The society is composed of private citizens and will be supervised by the government after its establishment. The government does not directly intervene in collecting taxes. Those who make money and join the cooperative share the money, and those who lose money bear the responsibility themselves. In the words of later generations, it is the system of collective institutions.
The society economy was very popular during the Tang and Song Dynasties. Some people invest and operate the company together, and some people invest and receive dividends based on shares. There are various forms. This economic form was rare in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but the Chinese were not familiar with it. Some large clubs are similar to joint-stock companies in later generations, and some even hire specialized managers. Some of the supervisors and shopkeepers are the real operators, and the boss only distributes the money.
For large-scale projects, if the government decides to participate, it will be financed by the government, and officials will be dispatched to watch over it and people will be hired to run it. To some extent, this is similar to the state-owned industry and commerce of later generations. However, except for officials, there is no establishment here, so it is not an iron rice bowl. Except that it is owned by the government, the rest is not much different from ordinary enterprises. And as needed, political tasks are sometimes completed.
At this time in the Song Dynasty, it was not surprising that some large-scale industries and commerce were owned by the government. In the past, Kaifeng City had a large number of workers, even more than 10,000, in the production of weapons, textiles and clothing.
For the ancient Chinese, there was no ownership problem. From the government's point of view, as long as money is made, it is only natural that the government should control it. As long as it is profitable, it is better for the government to make money than for businessmen to make money.
When several magistrates saw that the supply and marketing cooperative was doing well, they naturally started thinking about it. Now is the time to spend money to raise troops. As long as there is money to be made, of course we cannot let it go. It's just that the territory is small, unlike Wang Xiaolie who occupies several states.
After walking a few steps, I suddenly saw several shops in front of me. There are two noodle shops and three pubs not far from each other.
Xi Yi said to Chen Yuyi: "These restaurants look big, but are they under the Xiangyang Mansion?"
Chen Yuyi said: "What Zhizhou said is true. Two of them are from the government office, and the other three are subordinate to the Zhiji Department."
Chen Gui asked: "What's the difference?"
Chen Yuyi said: "Wang has a habit of observation. He wants to study carefully any industry. Even drinking and eating. One of the two noodle restaurants inside sells shaved noodles, and the other sells ramen noodles. Under the Production and Purchasing Department There are dedicated people who study these and find out how to make them delicious. These two noodle restaurants are opened by them and the business is booming. No one in Xiangyang has learned their methods and cannot open them. The same is true for the big tavern next to it. Under the Production and Construction Department, they specialize in selling large pot dishes. They cook many dishes in one big pot and sell them in portions. In the Production and Construction Department, this is how the army cooks. There are specialized people who study it, so how can others do it? Yes? So the business is good. The other two taverns, one sells ordinary side dishes, and the other one is opened by Xiangyang Prefecture and learns how to make big pot dishes."
Everyone found it strange that the commercial and government offices of the Manufacturing and Construction Department were actually separated, and they didn't know what the significance was. Ordinarily speaking, isn’t the Xiangyang Mansion’s money the same as the Production and Purchase Department’s money? Why should we distinguish clearly?
The characteristic of the Song Dynasty's finance was a high degree of centralization of financial power. In principle, except for a small amount of money and food, all money and food in the world belong to the imperial court. In the past, it was managed by the Third Division, but later it was placed under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Household Affairs. In addition to official salaries in local states and counties, almost all the money and food belonged to the imperial court. A large amount of food is shipped to the capital every year, and the remaining food that cannot be transported is called money-saving food, and nominally belongs to the imperial court.
Local financial power is minimal. There is also ministerial money at the state level, which is used for official expenses. The county level doesn't even have money for ministers. Usually, when county officials have to eat good food and entertain guests, they often order their subordinates to take care of it. Officials spent their own money to buy fish and meat.
There is a saying that if you have misfortune in three lives, the magistrate will be attached to Guo; if you do evil in three lives, you will be attached to the provincial capital of Guo; if you are full of evil, you will be attached to the capital of Guo. Some people say that this is about the situation in ancient China. Actually no, this was the situation in the Qing Dynasty and not in other dynasties. Ancient China has gone through thousands of years, and its political system has been changed countless times. Many things cannot be summarized in one sentence from ancient times.
In the Song Dynasty, because the state had envoy money, the magistrates and county lieutenants of Fukuo County could also use it, and the treatment was better than that of other counties.
Since the prefectures and counties have little financial power, Wang Xiaolie here allows the prefectures and counties to collect taxes on the industry and commerce of Zhizhi. In addition, states and counties are also allowed to start their own industrial and commercial businesses. Of course, taxes are still paid, but the profits belong to the local government.
In addition to political reasons, the official establishment of industry and commerce is to make money. It cannot be said that if you open a shop or factory, you will lose money. How can that be done? What must be lost must be political reasons, and allocating additional funds is different from ordinary industry and commerce.
Wang Xiaolie did not treat officials harshly, and he certainly would not treat local officials harshly. So they are allowed to run industry and commerce, and even the county allows them to have official money. The more money you make, the more you can distribute dividends. Unless there are special reasons, the production department will not collect the money.
After hearing Chen Yuyi's explanation, everyone was surprised. Wang Xiaolie was not financially centralized. Where did the money for raising troops come from?
In fact, the industrial and commercial businesses run by local governments are scraps that the Production and Construction Department does not want. If it is not done by the local government, it must be done by the businessmen. If you open the same store as the manufacturing company and squeeze out the business of the manufacturing company, there will be nothing to say. The construction and purchasing department with superior resources can't do it in the state and county, so what excuse can there be? Is it appropriate to close the door because of incompetence?
Of course, several magistrates would not enter such a small shop. In the past few days, except for eating in the Yamen, they went to the largest restaurant, Jiangbian Restaurant. After asking Chen Yuyi, I found out that there were no noodle restaurants selling them here. A few people were curious and ordered some copies to be sent to the restaurant.
Walking in Xiangyang City, the people looked at it more and more strangely. Business thrives here, but the model is different from elsewhere. Although there are a large number of government-run industries and commerce, civilians are not prohibited from doing so. Some people are clever and have learned almost all the techniques in government-run shops, and their business is booming. The government only collects taxes and does not crack down on them.
In Wang Xiaolie's words, except for the categories that are exclusive to the government, such as banquet, the rest are not prohibited for the common people. The official competition is not good, but the officials in charge are incompetent and have nothing to say.
