1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 967 Merchant
September 1680, 9, Daxing Mansion, Minfeng County (now Caboolture, Australia, 3 kilometers north of Brisbane).

"What cargo is being unloaded on that ship?...Why is there such a strong rotten smell!" Lu Shaohong, the owner of Luji Liulichang, held a piece of silk in his right hand, covered his mouth and nose, and looked towards the west side of the pier with some disgust. .

"Oh, boss, that ship must be a guano mine brought back from overseas." Wen Jikang, the chief manager of the factory, glanced sideways, and replied with a smile: "Two years ago, the Navy's exploration fleet was at 2000 northeast of Weiyuan Island. A small island (Nauru) full of bird droppings was accidentally discovered on the sea of ​​more than one kilometer. After the agricultural officials and technical experts went to investigate, they immediately regarded it as a treasure mine and used it as a source of fertilizer supply. It is said that A lot of native coolies were recruited to dig mines on the island, and then they were transported back to the country one by one to improve and increase the fertility of the farmland.”

"It's not where the guano boat is docked! At least it has to stop at the downwind outlet. There's a foul smell of guano everywhere." Lu Shaohong shook his head, got on the carriage, and told the driver , "Hurry up, get out of here. I was already hungry when I came back from the bumpy journey, but I lost my appetite after smelling this smell!"

Minfeng, the first batch of immigrants arrived here in 1655. In 1668, the population exceeded 4000, and then a county-level government was established, becoming one of the 12 major counties and towns in Daxing Prefecture.The Ruxi River (now Lagong River) in the north and the Xiaoqing River (Caboolture River) in the south sandwich the county seat, providing the county with a very sufficient water source, thus reclaiming hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile land, which is the whole Daxing Prefecture is the most important agricultural production area.

However, Minfeng County is less than 12 kilometers away from Daxing, and the railway passes through the city, coupled with convenient water transportation, making the county's industry and commerce extremely prosperous.In the 8000 years since the establishment of the county, the population has exceeded [-], and the population of the county seat has reached [-], and the urban area has expanded six times.

"Boss, should we go back to the mansion or go to the factory?" Wen Jikang asked cautiously when he saw his boss sitting in the car, seemingly thinking about something.

"I went to Zhong Lun Island (now Bribie Island on the eastern coast of Australia) for the past few days. Didn't anything go wrong in the factory?"

"Everything in the factory is as usual, there is no problem. But..." Wen Jikang hesitated for a while, and finally said bravely: "However, that Yu Laosan who injured his hand in the factory came to make a fuss once, saying it was..., It is said that the compensation from the owner is less."

"30 yuan is still too little?" Lu Shaohong couldn't help sneering when he heard the words, "Otherwise, I'll give him 100 yuan? Or, 1000 yuan?"

Wen Jikang muttered, not daring to answer.

"Tell me, he didn't work carefully, and he crippled his hand. I gave him 30 yuan for soup and medicine. I have done my best. Where can he find such a kind employer like me? What's the matter? He still wants to blackmail me." For the rest of my life!" Lu Shaohong said bitterly: "This kind of bastard, next time you come to the factory, throw me out.... Doesn't this affect the normal work of the workers in the factory!"

"...Yes, my boss." Wen Jikang replied in a low voice.

"Well, let's go to the factory." Lu Shaohong ordered: "Go to the factory first. Otherwise, I don't feel at ease."

Luji Liulichang is located on the east side of the county, covering an area of ​​more than 70 mu. There are two huge glass casting factories, a two-story office building, four rows of workers' dormitories, and a large open space.The entire factory has more than 80 workers and can produce more than 900 tons of glass per year, which is considered a relatively large-scale factory in Minfeng County.

The main customers of the factory are domestic huge civilian window glass and carriage glass. With the increase of wealthy people in China, the demand for window glass is extremely strong.Of course, the factory also strives for the lucrative foreign trade export, which makes the factory run almost at full capacity throughout the year.

At present, the production method of glass in Qi State generally adopts the slab pouring method, which has gradually replaced the previous blowing method.Because the casting method has the advantage of being able to produce larger flat glass.The flat glass that can be manufactured by the blowing method can reach a maximum length of 120 cm and 75 cm, while the pouring method can obtain flat glass with a length of more than 400 cm and a width of more than 200 cm.

This allows the ever-changing buildings in the country to make full use of various glass decorations, and to inlay wider and more transparent glass on window sills, roofs, and even exterior walls.It is said that in Jianye City, an eight-storey building was built locally. One side of the wall is decorated with blue glass, which shines brightly under the sunlight, and is known as the Crystal Building.

As early as the times of Columbus and Magellan, Europeans often used glass beads and small mirrors to exchange food and gold from primitive tribes.You must know that glass is far less precious than jade, but without glass, clocks and various precision navigation instruments cannot be used at sea, and there will be no thermometers and magnifying glasses.

Glass not only gave birth to Qi State's optical and chemical research, but also brought Qi State super profits far exceeding ordinary commodities.Countless businessmen regarded it as a luxury item and sold it to Daqin, North Korea, Japan, and countries and regions around the Indian Ocean.

During the Ming Dynasty and the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the Central Plains Dynasty built large-scale and magnificent astronomical observatories, but there was a fatal flaw, that is, there was no glass lens.It can be said that in terms of glass alone, ancient China lacked the material basis for the industrial revolution.

Thirty years ago, the lead crystal glass invented by the Qi State Construction Industry Engineering Research Institute has better transparency and is easier to cut, making Qi State's glass products quickly beat the products from Venice.Up to now, there are more than 30 glass manufacturing factories in Qi State, which produce cheap and high-quality glass in large quantities, and make Qi State the most important glass manufacturing center in the world today.

In the traditional era, technology itself does not necessarily change the logic of history; on the contrary, the logic of technology is often subject to social and historical logic.Chinese civilization created the "Four Great Inventions" that changed the world very early, but it did not create a systematic scientific and technological system, such as complete and continuous knowledge, skills, and tools, instruments, equipment, facilities, etc.

In Qi State, in the past 40 years, under the scientific guidance of "people with a heart", many craftsmen and scholars have combined the long-standing physical science and precision machining technology, and rewritten the oriental civilization with a complete machine system. The material basis and cultural form of civilization.

His Majesty the Emperor once said a philosophical saying, "Science is a profound and systematic knowledge, and it is likely to make ordinary people of our generation surpass the geniuses of the previous generation."

If the previous inventions were just accidental inventions, then in Qi State, it is completely customized. The purpose of technology requires that the adaptability of technology itself precedes its social nature.Mechanical advances of all kinds are no longer accidental and accidental, but systematic and incremental.

In Luji Liulichang, the most core department is the batching workshop, where the salaries of technicians and workers are a bit higher than those in the pouring workshop and other departments.

In the warehouse of the workshop, there are piles of siliceous sand, alkali salt, quicklime, saltpeter and a large amount of broken glass or broken flat glass. Under the supervision of several technicians, the workers weigh the various raw materials one by one according to the principle of proportioning. , and then shipped in huge wooden barrels and carted to the furnace.

Plenty of smoke from coal-burning furnaces vents through vents in the roof, sending out a pungent smell.On the right side of the building is the pouring platform, a crane is used to turn over the containers of molten glass, and there are exits for the annealing chamber along each side of the glass shop.

Until the fifth year of Hanxing (1675), flat glass and polished glass were refined in wood-burning furnaces, which forced many domestic glass factories to purchase a large amount of wood waste from Weiyuan Island and Xuanhua Island— —The cabinet government issued a ban strictly prohibiting wanton deforestation in the Hanzhou mainland - as a fuel for melting furnaces.

In Jianye City, a glass factory accidentally introduced a "covered crucible", um, or a closed crucible, which made coal the main fuel for glass firing.With this method, the problem of soot in the melting furnace contaminating the molten glass can be avoided and the purity of the glass can be ensured.

Of course, if other glass factories want to use this method, they need to pay the corresponding patent fee --- they can also evade the fee, but the premise is not to be reported by others or caught by the officials of the Patent Department of the Ministry of Industry, otherwise they will be punished with a high penalty. fine.

The production details of the factory are handled by several hired managers, and Lu Shaohong doesn't pay too much attention to them.After eating a little something, inspecting the factory, he immediately came to the office building and called the accountant in the factory.

"Maybe the account books of the past few years can withstand the government's inspection?"

When Fu Shouliang, the accountant of the factory, just entered the room and sat down, he heard a very straightforward question from the owner.

"What did the boss hear?" Fu Shouliang was startled and stood up involuntarily.

"A few days ago, while visiting Zhonglun Island, I heard from some business colleagues that the General Taxation Department under the Ministry of Household Affairs may be separated and given greater power to collect taxes." Lu Shao Hong said: "In this way, it is not allowed that when the taxation department is newly established, in order to make some political achievements, it will conduct random tax inspections on many factories and commercial companies in the country. Therefore, we must ensure that the accounting books of the factories can withstand sudden inspections. , so as not to be taken as a target for Liwei and cut a knife on the head!"

"..." Fu Shouliang tilted his head and thought for a while, then said with a wry smile, "Boss, to be honest, our account cannot withstand the inspection of the tax office."

"Then what do I invite you to do?" Lu Shaohong's tone couldn't help but turn a little cold.

"Boss, for so many years, can I decide how to do this account book?" Fu Shouliang couldn't help calling Qu: "If I have always followed the formal standard process to record the operation of the factory, will you allow it?  … ...I have done all my pens and bills in the account book according to your orders!"

"Quiet!" Lu Shaohong scolded impatiently: "You have to remember, who provides you with food and clothing? And who makes you get a high salary of 15 yuan a month? You are invited to replace me. Solve the problem."

"East..."

"Okay, no need to say more!" Lu Shaohong paced back and forth in the room, waved his hands roughly, and said, "Leaving aside the many matters before that. You can find a way to modify your account books so that you can pay taxes A possible inspection by the Yamen?"

"Boss, this account book is made by the double-entry bookkeeping method formulated by the government. If you change one point rashly, you will have to change almost all business records." Fu Shouliang said with some embarrassment.

"So there's no way out?"

"It's not impossible." Fu Shouliang hesitated for a moment, and said bravely: "When I was studying in Daxing Finance Professional School, I heard the instructor say that this bookkeeping method is not perfect, and there are still some problems. Loopholes can be exploited. However, it requires those veterans who are well versed in financial accounting to know how to take advantage of those loopholes and make a fake accounting book that does not leak."

"Oh..." Lu Shaohong touched his chin, his eyes kept rolling, "You may find this kind of old bookkeeper? Besides, how much does it cost?"

"When we arrive in Daxing, if we contact someone from the same year or former teacher who we are familiar with, we should be able to find someone who specializes in accounting. As for the cost, it may be around a few hundred yuan, um, it may be close to a thousand yuan."

"You shit, just helping to fix up the account books, how can you charge such a high price?" Lu Shaohong cursed in a low voice, then walked to a few cases, sat down, and quickly weighed in his heart.

Fu Shouliang stood silently in front of the window, looking at his stingy boss, slandering him endlessly.

To build a luxurious manor for himself cost more than 5000 yuan without blinking an eyelid.In order to demonstrate his economic strength, he ordered two luxury carriages from Daxing, each worth more than 3000 yuan, which were specially used to pick up merchants and local officials.

Not to mention, last year he spent tens of thousands of yuan to buy a steam-sailing boat with a displacement of [-] tons from Jianye Shipyard. In addition to transporting some of the goods in the nearby factories, he often used it as his personal The cruise ship invites a group of officials and merchants to sail on the sea, watch the coral reefs, and enjoy the beautiful scenery created by nature.

Co-author, find a veteran who makes false accounts, and the cost is only hundreds or thousands of dollars, so I think the price is too high! ?
"Next month, Chang'an will hold a science and technology expo. At that time, you will walk with me, and help me find someone to settle the account books in Daxing." After a while, Lu Shaohong glanced at Fu Shouliang, "here Yes, but you have to study hard. In the future, I will give you more salary."

"Yes, Master." Fu Shouliang let out a sigh of relief, and promised with his hands clasped.

"In our country of Qi, everything is good, but the officials are too strict with us merchants!" Lu Shaohong leaned on the soft chair and couldn't help sighing: "All the year round, there are endless taxes to pay, and endless taxes to pay. verification."

"The owner and the government collect taxes, which are taken from the people and used for the people. The railways, highways, ports, urban infrastructure construction, and resettlement, none of which cost money. Moreover, compared to Qin and North Korea , and other neighboring countries, Daqi’s support for merchants is considered the greatest.” Fu Shouliang couldn’t help retorting.

"It was taken from the people, whose money was it taken from? It was used for the people, on whose head?" Lu Shaohong glared at him, "Look, the goods sold by this factory have to be levied Tax, at the end of the year, the factory has made money, and there is another tax to be levied. A few years ago, what kind of inheritance tax was introduced. Heh, when the father dies, the children and grandchildren will inherit the family property and have to pay it to the government A tax. This is scraping off layer after layer of skin on us merchants!"

"..." Fu Shouliang was stunned for a moment when he heard the words.

This owner's complaints are quite reasonable. It seems that most of the taxes collected by the government are collected from rich factory owners and business company owners like them.Even though there is a personal income tax in the tax category, the main body of payment is the wealthy people.

As the vast majority of ordinary people in the country, it seems that they really belong to the main groups that are "used for the people".

However, our vast number of ordinary people are obviously working day and night, and it can be said that they have created most of the material products of this society.

Why, we are still not as big as the contribution of these rich people to government taxation?

(End of this chapter)