Haisheng Mingdi

Chapter 302 My Rules
Wu Yi, Governor of Water Transportation of the Ming Dynasty, and Cheng Bi, the transfer envoy of both the Huaihe River and the Huaihe River, sat on the left and right in the Yangzhou government office, and first received a group of Huizhou salt merchants.

The meeting ceremony of the salt merchants was very proud.

He donated 10 taels of silver to His Royal Highness Lu Jianguo, and another 5 taels each to Cheng Yan, the governor of Cao Cao, and another 10 taels to help pay, for a total of 30 taels of silver.

Wu Yi looked at the gift list and just smiled.

Cheng Bi said, "The salt of the Huaihe River is sold in Nanzhi, Huguang, Henan, and Jiangxi. The salt area is huge and the sales volume is also very wide. I was also a salt merchant before, so I know very well. of.

I heard that after the Tartars occupied Yangzhou, they recruited new salt merchants, and the salt lesson set for you is about 600 million taels of silver a year? "

A group of Huizhou salt merchants immediately complained, saying that the total salt tax of the Ming Dynasty court was only more than 100 million taels a year, but now the Qing government asked them to pay 600 million taels of silver a year, which is more than ten times that of the past.

But Cheng Bi just chuckled.

"In the past, salt merchants in Yangzhou could earn at least 500 million taels of silver a year, but they could not pay one million taels of salt."

Someone smiled wryly and said, "Master Cheng also worked in the salt industry before, and he knows that the salt class is only on the surface, and there are all kinds of gray and black expenses. There are the Salt Patrol Department and the Nanjing Six Departments sent by the imperial court. There are many regulations. The governor’s annual income is no less than 20 taels of silver. Where did he come from? Half of them are salt regulations given by our salt merchants. "

You have to pay when you see an official, plus various apportionments and donations from the imperial court and the local government, and in addition, you have to manage powerful local officials in the court to ensure the qualifications of salt merchants, etc. These expenses are huge, even far exceeding their apparent Pay the salt lesson.

But Cheng Bi didn't know this.

"If it's as difficult as everyone says, you won't sharpen your heads and get into the salt industry. The expenses of white, gray and black are a lot, but compared to the huge amount of salt profit, it's not worth it. What's the matter, besides, everyone is not so polite and honest in selling salt, there are too many methods such as smuggling salt in the official salt, right?"

When I met Cheng Bi, a senior salt merchant from Huizhou, here, the salt merchants knew that they couldn’t be fooled, so they could only talk about it. They all hit it off.

"Before the one tael of money started to be earned, the money spent here and abroad has gone to the sea. Now the salt can't be sold, and we are almost bankrupt."

"Lu Jianguo will not make things difficult for you. It is still the same sentence. The common people have to eat salt, so they can't eat it lightly. You are salt merchants. The salt produced by the salt people has to be sold, and the court also has to eat salt." The salt tax is used to subsidize finances, so we cannot do without you.”

"Of course, it is the salt merchants that the imperial court cannot do without, not some individual salt merchants. If you can't do it, the imperial court can change the batch of people."

"My lord, please tell us what the imperial court needs us to do? We also want to collect salt and sell it as soon as possible, but now we can't leave Yangzhou City, and the salt boat can't leave the wharf."

Cheng Bi saw that the beating was almost done, and said bluntly, "The matter is actually very simple. In normal years, you can earn more than 500 million taels a year from selling salt. The Qing court asked you to pay 600 million taels of salt tax. Now Daming controls Yangzhou, so your salt tax will be handed over to the imperial court in the future."

Upon hearing this, the salt merchants wanted to run away.

The Qing court forced them to pay 600 million taels of salt tax a year, and now the Ming Dynasty wants to tax them another 600 million taels. The salt profit is at least 500 million guan, but the 600 million salt tax is only a public expenditure.

If they pay another 600 million, they will really lose money.

"You pay money to whomever you ask for salt. Isn't that normal? Now that the Tartars have no salt, you have to ask us to buy salt, so you can't pay us salt money and salt tax? You don't follow the Tartars What do you do to receive salt and pay them salt tax?"

"If you really want to pay, that's your business, but don't complain to us." Wu Yi interrupted them rudely.

The salt merchants were all crying, and it was the hardest thing to be caught in the middle.

"Now the Ming army controls most of the salt fields in the Huaihe River and Huaihe River, not to mention the canals for transporting salt and the Yangtze River and other waterways are all under our control. If you want to sell salt, we don't use the old rules. We will follow the new rules in the future. Follow the rules."

The salt merchants cried for a long time,
Only then did Cheng Bi come up with the real new rules.

"In the future, when we fetch salt from our salt storehouse, we will change it to [-] catties for each salt import. In addition to the salt price of [-] tael, we need to pay a salt tax of [-] tael per import. That is, a tax of one cent per catty of salt, plus The cost of one penny per catty of salt is two cents of silver in total.”

"Besides, we will no longer ask you to pay money from your nests, books, etc. In the future, you will not be limited to the status of salt merchants. Regardless of whether you have a license or not, you come to buy salt, and you can get salt after paying the money and taxes. After tax, we'll send you a quotation that can be sold anywhere."

"Of course, according to the current likin law, when your salt passes the customs, you have to pay [-]% of the customs clearance, and if you sell it in shops, you have to pay [-]% of the city levy, but this lijin is still very low. "

"Finally, there is a voluntary salt transportation insurance premium, that is, you can voluntarily choose whether to pay, and after paying, you can transport salt on the corresponding canal section or the Yangtze River section. As long as you have our insurance policy and insurance flag, we Your navy ships will keep you safe from raids and looting."

The implication is that those who did not pay the insurance will be responsible for being robbed.

One hundred catties of salt is one tael of salt tax, and the cost is one tael. One hundred catties of salt costs two taels of silver, and the cost of one catty of salt is two cents of silver. District, free to sell these, making these salt merchants frown.

It's not much for Guan Li to draw five cents of silver.

It's just that their monopolized salt merchants and salt districts have spent a lot of money.

But the Ming army refused to admit it, because the money was not handed over to them, unless 600 million was handed over.

They now control a lot of salt farms and salt warehouses. They have salt in their hands, and they only sell salt and don't care about other things.

As for things like per cent, market per cent, and transportation insurance, it's something else, and it has nothing to do with the salt tax.

Anyway, on the side of the Ming army, they are trying to simplify salt and salt tax as much as possible.

As for the salt that was confiscated by the salt merchants after the Ming army attacked the city twice, neither Wu Yi nor Cheng Bi mentioned it, and the salt merchants did not dare to say that they would return it. There is no return.

"Everyone, the Jianguo's salt law is more lenient than that of the Tartars. A catty of salt is only taxed for a penny, and nothing else is collected. You can enjoy it secretly."

The salt merchants were skeptical. Although this way, they would not be able to monopolize the salt profits in the future, but they did pay a penny for a catty, and they would not charge them extra money.

There are even quick-thinking salt merchants who are already thinking that after paying the money from the Ming army and receiving the salt for sale, if other salt merchants come to his salt area to sell salt, then they will ask the Qing army to help them fight against it. Private salt seller.

After all, the other end paid the money of the specialist merchant and the bank.

"How, is the matter settled like this?" Wu Yi asked.

The salt merchants nodded.

"Okay, then I will invite His Highness Jian Guo to come over and meet you."

Wu Yi came over to report to Zhu Yihai the results of the talks with the salt merchants.

"We only charge one penny per catty of salt, isn't that too little?"

Zhu Yihai smiled, "Actually, it's quite a lot. The salt is not produced by us. We collect salt from the salt farmers, and the cost is not much. We increase the price and sell it to the salt merchants at a penny per catty. It is already very profitable. , and now an extra penny is collected, which is a lot of tax."

"Besides, according to the old rules, we still need to collect pen stoves from the salt people, and collect taxes on both ends. We also need to collect customs fees, customs fees, customs fees, etc. for the sale of salt merchants, and even charge them an insurance premium. There are several collections here and there, and it’s just a few million taels of silver a year, isn’t it good?”

Wu Yidao, "The Tartars are even more ruthless. They charge 600 million taels a year from Yangzhou salt merchants."

"Don't worry about them, we accept ours, but since we have reached an agreement with the salt merchants, we have to tell the navy in the future. From now on, all salt sold in the canal, Yangtze River and sea that is not sold from our salt farms will be cracked down and confiscated. "

"We also have to protect our salt merchants."

Wu Yi didn't expect this, "It's still Jian Guo who has far-sighted plans."

"Well, let's meet these salt merchants. They are the richest people in the world. I heard that the eggs they eat cost one tael of silver. We sell salt and pay taxes to make money, so we have to give thanks.”

(End of this chapter)