Chang Qianli, Chang Baiye, Cao Youshan and others led their horses out of Yangzhou City. The difference from when they came was that there was a wooden pole outside the Yangzhou City Gate, with a human head hanging on the wooden pole.
"Kill people, kill people, it won't be like this."
Cao Youshan frowned and sighed.
Chang Qianli coughed lightly and said, "Brother Cao, be careful what you say."
The person who died was Shi Wangli, the commander of Yangzhou City. The reason was that the city gate was wide open and defenseless, allowing Shanxi merchants' "cavalry" to enter the city.
Wang Li was questioned, and his head was not only removed, but also used to warn all local soldiers in the Ming Dynasty that city defense was no small matter and should never be taken lightly.
The Ministry of War even promulgated special city defense laws, including one:
No one is allowed to ride a horse within three miles outside the city, except for court officials, soldiers, and messengers.
Once a violation is committed, the local government has the right to arrest and question the crime.
Shanxi merchants were just businessmen and could only lead their horses for three miles before they could mount their horses and travel far.
In fact, this is nothing. After all, there are many businessmen saying goodbye, such as short stops of three miles and long pavilions of ten miles. After walking a lot, you will get used to it.
"Uncle, after I go back, I still want to leave."
Chang Baiye said longingly.
Chang Qianli glanced at Chang Baiye, smiled lightly, shook his head slightly and said, "It's just a matter of leaving seclusion. Although there is no news about Tatar and Oara at the moment, it is estimated that there will be complete chaos there in less than a year or two. I don't want to For you to take such a huge risk.”
"That's why we need to go out many times to find out information to win the attention of the court."
Chang Baiye insisted on his point of view.
During his time in the capital, Chang Baiye had already seen clearly that if a businessman wanted status, he had to win the approval of the court.
Although Shanxi merchants brought five hundred war horses, which shocked the capital and attracted the attention of thousands of people, what Shen Yiyuan, Huang Facai and others brought was food, three-season rice. Their goods were more related to people's livelihood and won the hearts of the people!
After all, the war horses are in the military camp, serving the war, and have nothing to do with the people. After marveling at it, they will forget it and will not mention it easily. However, food will be mentioned repeatedly by the people. Accordingly, Shen Yiyuan, Huang Facai and Nanyang will become famous. outside.
"Green Gourd Sword Fairy"
It was naturally impossible for Shanxi merchants to bring back a large amount of food when they went out to deal with the Mongols. However, the Ming Dynasty was developing the wool textile industry. If the wool textile industry was expanded and fed many people, Shanxi merchants could also win a reputation.
And this premise is customs clearance transactions.
Chang Qianli waved his hand and said to Chang Baiye: "You have a more important mission. Leave the matter of getting out of seclusion to others."
"What could be more important than getting out of seclusion?"
Chang Baiye became anxious.
A smile appeared on Chang Qianli's face. He did not answer directly, but asked: "You must have heard the news that the imperial court is dredging the Huitong River. This is an opportunity for our Shanxi merchants."
Chang Baiye was puzzled.
The meeting of the imperial court and the opening of the river seemed to have nothing to do with Shanxi merchants. The labor was recruited by the imperial court, and the money and food were directly controlled by the Ministry of Household Affairs. It was not easy to get a share of the pie.
Besides, the matter of connecting the river is a big deal. Once something goes wrong, Emperor Jianwen will be furious. When the time comes, the people involved will probably not end well.
Digging a river is not an opportunity, it is a pit.
Seeing this, Cao Youshan on the side reached out and patted Chang Baiye on the shoulder, saying: "Your uncle's idea is right. There are only two things you have to worry about when you leave seclusion. One is to serve the court, and the other is to get wool. But these two items are both If it is not a long-term thing, it is difficult to build a family business.”
"Why?"
Chang Baiye didn't agree with it.
Cao Youshan looked around and whispered: "Serving the imperial court and spying on information may not necessarily result in merit. Once things go wrong, there must be mistakes. This matter cannot be done for a long time. As for the wool, it seems to have great potential, but in fact the benefits are limited and the road is long. If you spend too much, how much profit can you get if you amortize it evenly? The price is high right now, and it will fall in less than three to five years..."
Chang Baiye took a deep breath, turned the corner, and couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
In my mind, I regard the imperial court as my "backer" and believe that if the "backer" does not fall, Shanxi merchants will not decline. But now that I think about it, the imperial court may not be reliable. They just use businessmen to obtain information, that's all.
If there is no such value, then the existence of Shanxi merchants is not important. As for wool, hehe, wouldn't it be simpler to open a mutual market after the Oara and Tatars are sorted out, and let them pay tribute every year?
By then, Shanxi merchants would no longer have any use.
Focusing only on the present without considering the future, you may not even know that you have reached a dead end.
"Uncle, what do I need to do?"
Chang Baiye no longer persisted and turned to look at Chang Qianli.
Chang Qianli pointed to the northwest and said: "Before we step into Shanxi, you need to figure it out. If you can't figure it out, it's best to stay in Shanxi."
"What if I want to understand?"
"In three years, you have the final say on the Chang family."
Chang Qianli said seriously.
Chang Baiye was so excited that after passing the three-mile boundary monument, he jumped on his horse and said loudly: "Uncle, let's wait and see."
The future of the Chang family cannot be pinned on the imperial court. If this is the case, then let's win over officialdom with business ways.
Shanxi, Taiyuan, Chief Envoy Si Yamen.
The chief envoy Ding Jingfu was anxious and pacing back and forth. The imperial court issued an order to move 500,000 people from Shanxi to Beizhili, Henan and other places.
Immigration is not scary, the scary thing is the number!
Five hundred thousand!
Ding Jingfu didn't know what the people in the court were thinking. Just open your mouth and you could see a population of 500,000. Although Shanxi has a strong foundation and a large population, it can't be such a hassle.
There is still no news about the urgent document submitted to the court. It seems that the court has made up its mind.
"What a harmful strategy!"
Ding Jingfu sighed.
Although the imperial immigration documents had been sent to the Chief Envoy of Shanxi Province in early February, Ding Jingfu and a group of officials did not make the news public. Instead, they jointly submitted a letter requesting the imperial court to reduce the scale of immigration.
As the days passed, Ding Jingfu wished he could stand on the slope at the city gate and look around, but there was still no news from the court.
The Tomb-Sweeping Day has passed and cannot be postponed any longer.
"Sir, there is news from the court."
Chief Envoy Si Right Councilor Li Bin hurried into the lobby and handed over the document in his hand.
Ding Jingfu quickly took it, opened the document uneasily, glanced at it for a few times, and suddenly felt like a thunderbolt. He took two steps back, fell into his chair, and murmured: "The imperial court must have large-scale immigration."
Li Bin had already expected this result. After all, the fact that the immigration documents could be transmitted from the imperial court to Shanxi meant that the cabinet and the Ministry of Household Affairs had agreed. Since they had agreed, no matter how opposed the local government was, they would not be able to defeat the imperial court.
"In this case, please give an immediate order to summon all the chief officials of the four prefectures, twenty prefectures, and seventy-seven counties to rush to the Chief Envoy Si Yamen as quickly as possible."
Li Bin is well aware of the urgency of this matter
, the situation is serious.
The imperial court has issued an immigration policy, but if it is not implemented, understood, or publicized, and only follows rigid targets to immigrate, it is likely to trigger a popular uprising.
When chaos breaks out in Shanxi, who can bear the responsibility?
All chief officials must come to hear clearly the court's will and policies, declare their interests, and explain clearly how to respond in an emergency.
Ding Jingfu frowned and gritted his teeth and said: "Order the prefects and county magistrates everywhere, no matter far or near, to arrive in Taiyuan on March 20th. At the same time, spread the news about the large-scale immigration first."
"Ah, sir, you must not do this..."
Li Bin quickly advised.
What will it look like in Shanxi when such big news is spread without coordination among officials from all over the country?
How to live in a state of panic?
In case of civil unrest...
Ding Jingfu waved his hand, picked up the previous document, and ordered: "Follow the order, but when spreading the news, be sure to make the court policy clear, especially this one. Descendants can enter the local prefecture and county to study for free. If you participate in the imperial examination in the future, you will be given priority as appropriate. If there are immigrants who win the examination, you will be given priority in selecting officials..."
Li Bin had no choice but to agree.
The news that the imperial court wanted to immigrate 500,000 people to Northern Zhili and Henan first broke out in Taiyuan Prefecture, and by word of mouth, the news quickly spread to surrounding states and counties.
Two days later, Pingyang Mansion Zhaocheng.
Yang Layue, who was already in her sixtieth year, was sitting under a locust tree, with the warm sun shining on her body, feeling very comfortable. The crutch beside her seemed to be dozing off.
The naughty Yang Yuanjie escaped from the school with a few "followers" and ran to the alley to look at the old locust tree, his face full of anticipation.
A faint and elegant fragrance spreads, and the locust flowers that have not yet fully bloomed already look attractive.
Yang Yuanjie tiptoed and led the people to the locust tree. He was about to climb the tree and pick some locust flowers to eat, but unexpectedly, his butt hurt and he fell to the ground with an ouch. He looked back at Yang Layue who was holding a cane and couldn't help complaining: "Grandpa Yang, You can’t just let us taste it first.”
"The locust flowers haven't bloomed yet. What are you trying to taste? If you don't study hard in your studies, what are you doing here? Wang Jiaoyu doesn't care about you?"
Yang Layue paused her cane and said dissatisfiedly.
Yang Yuanjie stood up, patted the dirt on his body, and said: "Wang Jiaoyu has no intention of taking care of us. He heard that there is another large-scale immigration, so he went to the county government office to hear the news. However, the county magistrate went to Taiyuan, and he was afraid that he would not be able to return in a short time. coming."
"The Great Immigration?"
Yang Layue looked at Yang Yuanjie in shock, her face turning a little pale.
Seeing Yang Layue like this, Yang Yuanjie couldn't help but laugh and said: "Grandpa must be worried about the disaster caused by immigration, right? But this time immigration probably won't happen. The imperial court has given sufficient policies..."
"Oh, imperial policy? When can I trust imperial policies?"
Yang Layue shouted angrily.
"this……"
Several followers behind Yang Yuanjie ran away immediately.
Defaming the imperial court is a serious crime. These people also plan to obtain honors in the future. If they have a criminal record, it will be difficult to handle.
Yang Yuanjie sighed and didn't mind. He sat on the stone pier aside and asked, "Grandpa, do you think the court cannot be trusted?"
Yang Layue sneered and said to Yang Yuanjie: "The imperial officials have many tricks, and they are very good at deceiving people. Any nice words they say are all nonsense. My child, do you know how the immigrants from the Hongdong Big Locust Tree immigrated during the Hongwu period? of?"
