I, the Ming Dynasty, can still save me

Chapter 135 Lu Xiangsheng (please subscribe)
In the Ming Dynasty, temple fairs were very prosperous.

Among them, the Chenghuang Temple Temple Market and the Lantern Market in the inner city are the most prosperous. They are also called the Temple Lantern Market. Temples are opened on the first, fifth and fifteenth day of the lunar month. Markets are set up during the day and lanterns are lit at night. It is very lively.

Zhu Youxiao had also heard about it a long time ago, so under Zhu Youxiao's instructions, a group of people rushed to the Capital God's Temple Temple Fair.

It must be said that although according to history, it is only 23 years since the fall of the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty has not yet appeared to be in ruins, at least from the outside.

The market at the Chenghuang Temple was crowded with people, dignitaries and dignitaries were burning incense, good men and women were receiving blessings, and there was an endless stream of people coming and going.

Countless stalls are set up along the street selling cakes, food, wine, rice, incense paper, flowers and fruits, and children's toys. In particular, there are activities such as dramatists playing the roles of living beings and carrying Buddha statues in processions.

Zhu Youxiao watched and played with great interest. When he saw something he wanted to eat, he bought it and tasted it. He also stopped to watch when he saw people walking on stilts, carrying the city god, breaking rocks, playing with flower guns, etc., and shouted "good", cheered and applauded. Ichiban.

So they walked and played for an hour. Zhu Youxiao also found that he was a little tired and felt like he was breathing heavily.

"Master, there is a teahouse in front of you. Why don't we go there to have a rest first and have a sip of tea to quench our thirst, and then we can go shopping again."

When Sun Yingyuan saw this, he suggested to Zhu Youxiao to take a rest. There were too many people at the temple fair just now, and it was very difficult for him, Zhu Daoxin, and Guo Zuoguang to be vigilant and protective at all times, so he still wanted Zhu Youxiao to stay in a place with few people. .

Zhu Youxiao was also a little tired, so he nodded and let Sun Yingyuan lead the way.

Huang Dong has been helping in the teahouse these days. Now that the officials are on holiday during the Chinese New Year, the General Affairs Department will not accept submissions until the [-]th, so the sale of newspapers has naturally stopped.

So the teahouse owner called him back to help after he had resigned. Huang Dong was also a grateful person. When his old boss greeted him, he immediately came over to help without any complaints.

"Man, make me a bowl of Tiger Hill, remember not to use bitter water."

"Okay, Fourth Master Yuan, you will be here soon."

"Hey, Huang Dong, didn't the shopkeeper say you left? I also heard that you made a lot of money, why are you here again now?"

"Huh, there are so many people during the Chinese New Year. The shopkeeper is afraid that there are too many people to take care of him. I'm fine, so I just wanted to come over and help."

The person who came was none other than Mr. Yuan. Fortunately, he brought a newspaper that day, so Huang Dong discovered the business of reselling newspapers, and now he is making a lot of money.

Seeing Huang Dong's explanation, Mr. Yuan gave a thumbs up.

"Okay, okay, now the world is getting worse. Once some people make money, their tails are as high as the sky. You are good. You don't forget your roots after making money. I was really right at that time."

"Thanks to you for selling me that newspaper so cheaply back then. I'll take care of your expenses today. Have a good drink."

Huang Dong was a refugee from Shandong, and he knew benevolence and righteousness. The teahouse owner helped him a lot after coming to the capital, and he would naturally not forget it.

At this moment, five people came outside the teahouse door. A strong man over thirty years old took the lead and walked in. He looked around the teahouse, and then a young man in brocade clothes, with a face like a crown jade and eyes like shooting stars came in. The latter Followed by three young people who were also looking at everyone in the teahouse.

As soon as these five people came in, the noisy voice of the teahouse was instantly quieted down. The customers in the teahouse were originally acquaintances from the surrounding area. Although there are many people at the New Year temple fair now, many strangers will come in to rest, but the appearance of these five people's outfits is that Young Master Xungui went out to play, so they started talking about it.

Zhu Youxiao didn't care about the eyes of these people, and looked at the teahouse with interest. It was quite big, with more than 20 tables, and most of them were occupied. He looked at the Eight Immortals table in the window on the right and there was no one there. He immediately walked over there.

But after he passed, Sun Yingyuan and the others discovered a very embarrassing problem, that is, they did not dare to sit with Zhu Youxiao.

Fortunately, He Ning went over first, took out his handkerchief, wiped the table of Zhu Youxiao's stool clean, and stood directly behind Zhu Youxiao.Sun Yingyuan and others looked at each other, and when they saw this, they also stood behind Zhu Youxiao.

"What are you doing? Except for He Ning, I want you all to sit down."

Zhu Youxiao was immediately dissatisfied when he saw this. He naturally felt that it was nothing in the palace before, but now that he is out, he naturally does not want to be so restricted.

When Sun Yingyuan and others saw that the emperor had given an order, they could only pull out the stool and sit down next to the edge of the stool.

"Everyone, I look very strange. This is your first time here. What do you want to drink?"

Huang Dong also felt that the status of this group of people was unusual, but he did not dare to ask more questions. When he saw them taking their seats, he quickly came up to greet them.Upon seeing this, He Ning immediately gave instructions:

"Come here, bring out your best tea and brew it, and order some snacks. Remember to wash the tea sets and use the best ones."

"Okay, no problem."

Huang Dong shouted immediately and turned around to let the kitchen prepare it.

Zhu Youxiao was not interested in drinking tea. As an emperor, he had no good tea. He was more interested in the chatter of everyone in the teahouse.

Sure enough, seeing Zhu Youxiao and his entourage coming in without making any big moves, the teahouse became lively again, and chatting started again. "Have you heard that the emperor has distributed money to hundreds of officials again? Last year, my brother-in-law donated money to become a prisoner. He also said that he was given one tael of silver, and other officials were even more."

"The emperor still has money. He will give you one share before the new year and another share after the new year."

Some people couldn't help but sigh, not to complain, but to envy why they were not one of the paid ones.

"That's natural. Don't look at how lively the food market was some time ago. Many noble families have begun to sell their estates. I heard that some merchants from Shanxi, Shaanxi and Huizhou came to the capital and wanted to buy them at low prices. "

"Hmph, those poor households will also take advantage of the situation and let them take advantage."

A scholar who seemed to be a native of Beijing put down his tea cup and said dissatisfiedly.

He felt that he was the Shuntian Prefecture in Beijing and at the foot of the emperor, so he was already a bit angry. Now that some businessmen from other places came to take advantage of the situation, he felt unhappy.When the others saw that he was angry, they laughed at him.

"Wang Xiucai, don't be upset. Money is king now. What's the use of having a reputation? If you can't pass the examination, you can't be an official, and you can't make a living."

A wealthy businessman wearing a brocade hat immediately started sarcastically.

Zhu Youxiao listened and sighed in his heart. It is true. In the late Ming Dynasty, due to the developed commodity economy, although the status of scholars was relatively high, it was not as good as that of the Tang and Song Dynasties. Many people no longer regarded studying as the only way out. , instead he devoted himself to doing business.

Seeing what he said, Wang Xiucai was really powerless to refute. His family background was average, his fame was still low, and he had repeatedly failed to win the imperial examination. He couldn't refute even if he wanted to.

But then a voice suddenly sounded.

"This statement is completely false. Rich merchants have money to plunder land and hoard goods. They are of no use to the court. The annual commercial tax, such as customs clearance and miscellaneous taxes, is only about 100 million. Compared with the regular tax, It’s really a far cry from each other.”

When Zhu Youxiao heard this, he looked over and saw a tall and tall scholar with a fair complexion, thin face, and unusually thick arms at the third table to his left.

"Merchant transports goods all over the world. They take the excess and make up for the deficiency. Why are they useless to the court? Besides, although I am a businessman, I pay no less in taxes. Lu Xiangsheng, you are very prejudiced against us. Don't think that you are just a judge. Nonsense.”

The businessman seemed to know Lu Xiangsheng, and he immediately refuted his rebuttal.

This person is Lu Xiangsheng. Looking at the legendary Qilin Arm, Zhu Youxiao secretly thought that he did not come out in vain today.

"Haha, there is such a world of freight, and silk weaving is also developed in the south of the Yangtze River. Therefore, a lot of land in southern Zhili is abandoned to raise mulberry trees. The food has to be transported from Huguang and other places. I ask you if Huguang is hit by a disaster, how will the food rations of the people in the south of the Yangtze River be guaranteed.

You also said that you didn't pay a penny. Didn't you just say that all the previous discussions were under the banner of Marquis Yongkang, so no one had to pay. "

As soon as these words came out, the wealthy businessman was immediately anxious and about to refute, when he heard Zhu Youxiao clapping his hands.

"Okay, okay, well said. For the Ming Dynasty, merchants did have their benefits, but the court had too loose control over them, which led to their barbaric growth. Those merchants who made a fortune were not making a lot of money, and even officials and businessmen colluded to pay the court. However, there were very few taxes, which led to poverty for farmers and wealthy merchants. This is a major disadvantage of the Ming Dynasty and must not be ignored."

"Savage growth, this is a wonderful word. I don't know what this brother's name is. Lu Xiangsheng has learned a lesson."

When Lu Xiangsheng saw that the handsome young man next to him not only agreed with his views, but also used very clever words, he immediately wanted to get to know him.

"Hahaha, my surname is Wang. I agree with what you just said. You are a scholar rushing to take the exam. Are you here to participate in this year's Enke?"

Lu Xiangsheng immediately nodded in agreement.

"Originally, there will be an audition next year, but the new emperor ascended the throne and started recruiting talents, so I don't have to wait for next year."

"I've heard about this too, His Majesty the Emperor, I see that you are so young and have extraordinary conversation skills, I think you will definitely go to high school this year!"

Lu Xiangsheng is still very confident in himself. He was born in the 28th year of Wanli (1600) and is 21 years old this year. He is very young. The fact that he must pass every exam in Nanzhili, where there are many talents, is enough to illustrate his ability.

"Thank you for your good words, young master."

Lu Xiangsheng immediately thanked him and wanted to continue asking the young man for advice, but the businessman became even more dissatisfied after hearing Zhu Youxiao's words.

"Everyone sees me as a businessman and treats him like a bandit. The common people think that we are cunning and make every possible effort to ridicule and make things difficult for them. The government feels that we are not beneficial to the country. Privately, they exploit us in every possible way and engage in donations at every turn. The literati feel that we are It is a great harm to the country and does not benefit the country or the people."

"It is the nature of businessmen to pursue profits. I remember Wang Yangming once said that in ancient times, four peoples from different walks of life were in the same way, and they dedicated themselves to the same thing.

Regardless of whether they are scholars, farmers, industrialists or merchants, they are all the same. People from different walks of life have the same goal and strive to do their best. There is no distinction between high and low. As long as they work hard, they are all the same.This was widely spread in southern Zhili and Jiangnan areas. Why were merchants treated in this way when they arrived at Shuntian Mansion in the capital. "

　The first update and the second update are being written.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)