Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

A grand banquet was being held in Yangzhou Jiangyuan, where graceful maids served exquisite dishes. As the head of a salt merchant, his family's private dishes were of great quality. Bird's nest, shark's fin, abalone, sea cucumber and the like were common, but they were particular about the word "extraordinary". For example, this "bird's nest in clear soup" required ten old hens and ham to make soup, but only the clear soup was used to stew the bird's nest, and the chicken was discarded; for another example, this "honey chicken" was made by feeding hens with honey and slaughtering them after a month. The meat was sweet and translucent, how could it be considered a common dish?
The young and beautiful maid brought out a large soup plate, which contained processed pufferfish. The meat was tender and the soup was thick. It was the favorite of Jiang Garden owner Jiang Yan, who could not stop eating it. Even so, it was only eaten in winter. Master Jiang was particular about the seasons. In spring, he ate knife fish, which must be caught in the Yangtze River and delivered by special people and fast horses; in summer, he ate lotus seeds, which must be taken from the unopened buds of Slender West Lake to be fresh and tender; in winter, he ate pufferfish, which was cooked by the best chef in Yangzhou. Only by risking his life could the Jiang family show their pride as the head merchant.

The Jiang family's generosity comes from the national conditions of this era. If the treasury income of the Ming and Qing dynasties is likened to a "big pancake", then half of the pancake comes from the salt industry, and the other half comes from other industries. Among the half of the salt industry, the Lianghuai region, that is, the salt industry under the jurisdiction of Yangzhou, accounts for half. In other words, a quarter of the pancake is provided by Yangzhou salt merchants. It is not an exaggeration to say that the Lianghuai salt tax is "related to the national treasury and is the most important"! Lianghuai salt production accounts for one-third of the country, and the cost of one catty of salt is less than one cent. Because of the exclusive salt monopoly in the Lianghuai salt area (covering Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei and other places), salt merchants can sell it at a high price of thirty to fifty cents per catty, making a profit of more than thirty times, which is truly amazing! With money, you have the ability to pursue enjoyment, and it is not surprising to create these exquisite dishes.

The Jiang family originated from Jiang Village, She County (now Huangshan, Anhui). Jiang Yan's father Jiang Guomao went to Yangzhou to run the salt business. Jiang Yan was a student of the Ming Dynasty. He regarded himself as a Ming survivor and was unwilling to serve the Qing Dynasty. So he inherited his father's business and ran the salt business. In the early years of Shunzhi, he became the first general merchant of the Jiang family. Although he felt that he was a Han Chinese and was unwilling to bow to the Tartars, how could he not deal with the government when he was doing salt business? The relationship between the Jiang family and the Manchu government was actually good. He did not dare to be less filial and was praised by the Manchu court. After Wu Sangui claimed to respect the Third Prince Zhu and started his army, the governors and governors of Jiangnan came to him one after another. Mr. Jiang, who had always regarded himself as a Ming survivor, was ecstatic and donated a lot of money. Although Wu Sangui did not restore the Ming Dynasty afterwards, but established the Great Zhou Dynasty, in Jiang Yan's eyes, Wu Sangui was a Han Chinese after all, different from the Qingwei regime established by the Hulu, and coupled with commercial interests, he still spared no effort to support him. Because of his contribution in raising military funds, he was appointed as the Deputy Director of the Ministry of Revenue by the Zhou Dynasty court.

"I am honored to have you here. I would like to offer you a toast. Please!" Seeing that the pufferfish had been served, Jiang Yan smiled and toasted the more than 30 guests present. These people were all wealthy salt merchants who controlled the economic lifeline of the Lianghuai salt industry and even half of China.

"Excuse me for disturbing you, Mr. Jiang, please come in~" Everyone was smart and seeing that the host didn't say anything, they didn't ask anything and just kept toasting and flattering him.

After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere gradually became heated. Jiang Yan felt that the time was almost right, and said in a loud voice: "Thank you all for your kindness in recommending me as the general merchant. This position looks glorious, but it is actually full of storms and waves. If it weren't for everyone sticking together over the years, I would have capsized long ago. To be honest, I invited you all here because I have something important to discuss."

"The Wei army is approaching, is it possible that the court wants you to organize a fund-raising again? Don't worry, Mr. Jiang, no matter how many there are, we can always get the job done if we all work together," said Cheng Zhiying, a salt merchant. He and Jiang Yan are from the same hometown of She County, and they have always been close.

"Yes, just say it, and we will fully support you!" said Ma Chengyun, another good friend of Jiang Yan.

"Please speak frankly, General Manager. We dare not disobey you." Everyone expressed their support.

"Yesterday, Lord Lei informed me that in order to resist the southward advance of the Wei Army, Deputy General Wang, Deputy General Lu, and Deputy Envoy Li have gathered more than 40,000 soldiers and soldiers, and they need 5 million taels of silver for military pay." Jiang Yan paused at this point.

"Five million taels?" "How could it be so much? Could it be that Lord Lei has added more levies?" Everyone whispered after hearing this. Yangzhou prefect Lei Yingyuan has been in Yangzhou for nearly ten years. During this period, he had several opportunities to be promoted, but he refused to leave because of his connections. He would rather stay in this nest of money. It is normal for an official who loves Yangzhou so much to add more levies.

Cheng Zhiying and Ma Chengyun looked at each other and said loudly: "Although five million taels is a lot, we can still get it together if we all contribute. You don't have to worry." Indeed, with the wealth of everyone present, it is not difficult to collect five million taels together.

"Alas~" Jiang Yan sighed, "If it's just some money, it would be fine. Deputy Envoy Li also requires all families to train all the strong servants to join the army, and the number must not be less than 3,000. Deputy Envoy Li has always been very intolerant. Jiang has already donated more than 300 servants from his own family. The rest depends on you!" After saying this, he kept bowing. Li Peizheng, the Deputy Envoy of Jiangsu Province and the Military Preparations of Yangzhou, has a very good reputation. He is not corrupt and sympathetic to the people. But there is one thing, he is iron-faced and impartial. Since the order has been issued, if you dare to disobey, you will definitely lose your head. Hearing that it was this gentleman who issued the order, everyone had no choice but to donate the servants who guarded the house, and at one time, they actually gathered 4,000 people.

After the banquet, Ma Chengyun secretly said to Cheng Zhiying: "Brother Cheng, if you just pay some money, it's okay, but if you send out servants to help, it will anger the guards! Deputy Envoy Li wants to tie us to the chariot of the Great Zhou!"

"Of course I know, but I can only obey at this juncture," Cheng Zhiying sighed, "The Wei army is ready to unify the world. I tried hard to persuade General Jiang to make plans early and not to get too close to the Great Zhou, but he just wouldn't listen!"

"Brother Cheng, why don't our two families secretly send someone to the guards to deliver some rewards, and then explain to the guards that Ding had no choice but to fight. This way we can avoid being implicated and establish a good relationship in the future. How about that?" Ma Chengyun said and looked at Cheng Zhiying.

Cheng Zhiying nodded silently.

They were not the only smart people. After Jiang Yan sent away the guests, he ordered his trusted butler Jiang Yi to take supplies worth 800,000 taels to the guard camp to entertain the troops.

"Didn't the master say that the Qing and Wei countries were both barbarians and that Wu Sangui was a Han Chinese at the very least? You have been organizing salt merchants to donate to the Great Zhou, so why are you helping the barbarians today?" Jiang Yi asked in confusion.

"What do you know?" Jiang Yan rolled his eyes at the servant. "I am no longer as carefree as I was in the past. As the head of the Jiang family, how can I not think about the family? Even a cunning rabbit has three burrows. We must leave a way out for everything!"

"You have always been on good terms with Master Cheng and Master Ma, why don't you invite the two families to go together?" Jiang Yi asked again.

"Alas! Which merchant doesn't want to be the general merchant? If the Wei army really occupies Yangzhou, and our family still wants to be the general merchant, we can't share the profits and favors with others~" Jiang Yan sighed leisurely. (End of this chapter)