Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 331, Section 330: No One Available
Madam Ba's loyalty was certainly not because she didn't value interests.

On the contrary, she valued it even more.

As the head of the Ba family, his every word and action was approved by many, and the reputation of the Ba family in Sichuan spread throughout the world.

This sense of accomplishment in my career far surpasses the emotional impact of getting married and having children; it's a completely different kind of emotional catalyst.

That's why she was so anxious and restless, spending the whole night thinking about the root of all this.

It's a right.

The right to manage the affairs of a family and clan was bestowed upon her by the Queen, so the clan readily agreed to her as clan leader, and her words carried more weight than ever before.

Therefore, when making choices, don't put the cart before the horse.

Any one of these gifts from the Queen could have greatly increased Ba's wealth, but Ba was already extremely wealthy, her children were still young, and as a merchant family, she was not allowed to wear fine silks and gold ornaments.

Would an annual income of 20,000 or 50,000 gold coins bring about a dramatic change in her life?
will not.

On the contrary, it will greatly increase the danger.

Madam Ba looked up and quietly glanced at Wuyou, who was glaring at her angrily.

She often envied Wuyou, whose business had been somewhat bumpy, since livestock was much riskier than cinnabar.

But he was the one who single-handedly promoted all the clan's businesses, and being a man, he was now the rightful head of the Wu clan, and no one dared to contradict him.

But since he's so wealthy, if Madam Barth were ever short of money and wanted to borrow some, he would be the first person she would think of.

Similarly—

When the Ukrainian merchant looked back at her, she quietly lowered her eyelids again—

Similarly, the royal family probably sees them the same way: the national treasury and private coffers are empty, while merchants are rolling in money. If the country needs money, then…

We are at their mercy, like fish on a chopping board.

...

Qin Shi didn't believe a word of Lady Ba's loyalty and sincerity.

The rich are not benevolent, and the benevolent are not rich.

To put it simply: every part of capital is stained with dirty blood.

What is a local powerful family? What is a noble merchant? The Ba family of Sichuan controlled the cinnabar mines of the entire Sichuan region, and the Wu merchants monopolized the livestock trade in the border areas.

Even Bai Qiusha, who is diligent in her work, why does the Bai clan own so much land in Guanzhong? Could it be that it was given to them voluntarily by the common people?

They are born knowing how to utilize every inch of resources, collect resources, and gather resources.

The rich own vast tracts of land, while the poor have nowhere to stand.

This seemingly casual remark from the Book of Han, however, came to light years later when a beggar named Zhu Chongba, unable to afford a proper burial for his parents, begged the landlord for alms without success…

Mrs. Ba and the Ukrainian merchants acted so humbly in front of him, without concealing their true nature as capitalists.

Throughout ancient history, the phrase "emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce" has been a constant theme. Indeed, wealth knows no bounds; wealth can move mountains!
However, scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants are the pillars of the nation. Without merchants, the national economy will decline, which will also lead to widespread suffering.

Therefore, Qin Shi and Ji Heng shared a tacit understanding on this point.

Merchants can use it.

However, while they remain within the realm of commerce, they can be used, but not granted real power.

Now that Madam Ba is unwilling to accept a reward in cash, it is naturally because she has greater demands.

However, Qin Shi did not resist this request.

If there is a request, there must be a way to make a request. Saving unwanted items and taking them to auction to make money, so as to earn more money for the Qin state, would naturally be a great thing.

Otherwise, if a country falls into poverty, it is not unreasonable for it to resort to any foolish move.

For example, after four consecutive fiscal reforms ended in disaster, Emperor Wu of Han actually implemented the "Calculation of Wealth" and "Reporting of Wealth" laws.

The former requires every taxpayer to voluntarily declare their assets to the government; those who lie or fail to declare their assets will not only have all their assets confiscated, but will also be sent to the border for a year.

The latter is even more outrageous, encouraging people to report taxpayers, with the promise of receiving half of the taxpayer's wealth upon successful reporting.

The Qin dynasty's proactive approach to accumulating wealth stemmed from two factors: a desire for the well-off to help others and a fear of the Qin state's instability.

Just as she advised Princess Wen, should she be the powerful queen of a mighty empire with all nations paying tribute, or the last queen whose life was like a drifting duckweed?

...

Thinking of this, her smile deepened, her expression both satisfied and reassuring, which quickly calmed Madam Ba's anxious heart.

"That……"

The queen seemed deeply moved, and after much deliberation, she finally spoke:
"Since Ba is so loyal, I cannot turn a blind eye—I previously said that I wanted to use Ba's 'Salt and Dan Road' to open up trade routes to the Western Regions and other border areas, and to collect more new species..."

Madam Ba's eyes seemed to hold sharp swords; she sensed that a heavy responsibility was about to be entrusted to her, and her back slowly tensed up.

Ignoring Wu You's eager expression, as if he wanted to jump up and raise his hand, Qin Shi pondered for a moment and then said:
“But if we do everything according to my requirements, it will greatly affect the amount of goods carried by the Ba clan. Such a way of benefiting me at your expense is probably not sustainable.”

"Absolutely not!"

Lady Ba actively expressed her loyalty, saying, "To be able to serve the Queen is something we in the Ba family would be more than willing to do, and we would never dare to have such thoughts."

Qin Shi slowly shook his head:
"The world is bustling with activity, all for profit. If the interests of both parties are at odds, then it will not last long no matter what. Since that is the case..."

She slowed her tone, "I intend to conscript men next year to go to the Western Regions and open up new trade routes... However, the country is currently in ruins and the surrounding areas of the Western Regions are not very stable. If we openly and legitimately confer titles on envoys, any slight misstep in our actions may cause a diplomatic incident. Therefore, I plan to first appoint a few people as junior officials..."

Mrs. Ba's breathing became heavy.

The official rank of Langguan is really not worth mentioning; you can find a Langguan anywhere in this Xianyang Palace.

But business and politics are inherently worlds apart!

Without the Queen's special permission, even if they were incredibly wealthy, they could never rise above this social class for generations!
Before she could speak, Wuyou, who was standing to the side, could no longer hold back!

What a joke! When it comes to business, he can patiently wait for years or even months.

But when faced with such a major event, if he remains calm and composed, and given how eloquent and persuasive Madam Ba is, he'll probably be left with nothing but scraps!
"queen!"

Wu Youyi bowed deeply, saying, "My Wu clan often resides in the border regions and has some understanding of the various tribes of the Western Regions. We are also seeing progress on new trade routes..."

His eyes burned with intensity, as if he wanted to shoot laser beams and carve two characters heavily onto the bluestone slab in front of the queen.

Pick me!

...

His aggressive competition caused Mrs. Bartholomew to gasp, her composure crumbling.

After all, pigs eat heartily when they're fighting for food, and the same goes for people.

Qin Shi was naturally pleased to see this happen.

It's not good for one company to dominate. Two companies competing with each other can keep an eye on each other and concentrate their strength.

"In that case..."

As if moved by Wuyou, the Queen above frowned and pondered deeply, causing Lady Ba to curse a hundred times in her heart.

but……

The Queen summoned the two of them together and brought up the matter at the same time. Who knows if she didn't secretly enjoy their competition?

In short, regardless of what they thought in their hearts, the two of them put on a resentful and defiant expression.

After some deliberation, the Queen indeed lived up to expectations:

"In that case, let's discuss the details after the auction."

……

There is never a shortage of people with good intentions in this world. It was no surprise that the merchants from Ba and Wu brought the register to Xianyang Palace.

In business, who hasn't used shills before?

However, the two returned from the palace in high spirits, which made everyone think deeply.

Why do we only see the benefits and not the difficulties of directly serving the royal family?

As for the matter of the Ba and Wu merchants promoting honeycomb briquettes to surrounding areas, both in the past and now—well, there are many young men in the tribe, so it doesn't matter who does it.
Moreover, the coal business, distributed through various post stations in cooperation with the two parties, although with low profit margins, has many buyers and is now visibly profitable.

If there is profit, there is no loss, so it can be done.

They even received a gold hairpin personally bestowed by the Queen!

There are many wealthy people in Xianyang, and there are many who do not take the Ba and Wu merchants seriously. But no matter how much wealth they have, they can only wear some wood or copper in their hair. How can they compare to the dazzling gold, silver and pearls?

Everyone gathered together, speculating about the various treasures at the auction, each with their own plans.

Among them, the young master of the Ren family, grain merchants of Yongcheng, no longer had the impetuousness and sharpness of before, but instead was calm and composed:
“Tell the head of the family that the Ren family wants to double the amount of money expected to be spent on this auction.”

The elder sitting below shuddered:
"Double it again? That would already consume a third of the clan's farmland and treasures!"

But he questioned it, yet dared not refute it.

This young man, Ren Ji, was not lacking in cunning and shrewdness. He was also well-educated from a young age, and after he came of age, he participated in many of the clan's businesses.

Now the Ren family's business in Yongcheng is becoming increasingly powerful, but unfortunately, there are always nobles with greater power suppressing them, and their annual income is exploited layer by layer.

So what if the Ren family are the world's largest grain merchants?
In terms of the wealth and power that the clan could control, they couldn't even compare to the Ba clan of Sichuan.

At the very least, the nobleman they were supporting didn't have such a voracious appetite.

With the Queen's support from behind, how could that powerless nobleman dare to oppose her?

If it weren't for the complex power struggles behind the scenes, how could the Ba family have so easily pledged their loyalty?

In short, after some deliberation, the elder finally agreed: "I will send a letter right away."

Yongcheng was the former capital of the Qin state, and there was frequent communication between them. It is expected that some more lists will be sent before the auction.

I wonder what these properties and treasures would fetch at an auction? And what if the Queen insists on shamelessly trying to drive down the price…

The clan elder sighed as he recalled all these troubles.

If only someone from the Ren family could become an official.

Even an insignificant young official, if he could just manage to tear open a small opening...

……

Each member of the clan had their own thoughts, and the clan elders considered both their own interests and the interests of the clan.

But Ren Ji, who was young but sat at the head of the table, was deep in thought.

Having lived in Yongcheng for many years, he had already seen his future.

After the clan elders retire, he will take over the reins and control the clan's businesses, which often involve tens of millions of strings of cash.

When she went out, she was surrounded by attendants; everyone knew the Ren family of Yongcheng.

However, at the same time, he had to bow down and grovel before the royal nobleman above him, offering up seventy or eighty percent of his clan's hard-earned wealth in order to receive his protection.

No, to be precise, it's about not interfering.

Those glittering gold ingots and copper coins, one or two strings of cash, lingered briefly in the Ren family's warehouse before quickly disappearing like flowing water.

As the business grew, so did the appetite of those above.

As expected, he will likely live this kind of life day after day for the next few decades.

But what young man doesn't have lofty ambitions?
He had heard of that young man from the Bai family in Guanzhong when he was doing business there.

Although he was well-educated, he was not particularly outstanding.

The Bai family was only wealthy in Guanzhong, but they were still far inferior to the world's largest grain merchants.

Yet these young men, supported by the clan, could easily follow the queen and even be appointed as envoys simply because of the offering of meager sums of money and grain!
Although this is a new position appointed by the Queen, it was still personally bestowed by the Queen!

Why can he do it, but I can't?
The clan initially thought the auction was to please the queen, but to him, it seemed to be a hidden path to heaven being slowly paved.

He plans to spend one-third of the clan's money and grain at this auction, whether it's one item or ten, the money will be spent.

He asked for a chance.

An opportunity to make the Queen remember him, and an opportunity to gain entry into the Xianyang Palace.

He paused, then gave the following instructions:
"Bring me paper and pen. I need to write a letter and send it to Yongcheng immediately."

It is said that the Queen is a celestial master from Kunlun, who employs people without regard to background, because in her eyes all people are like straw dogs, without distinction of rank.

In that case, his half-sister, who was also well-read, often assisted him in managing the family's shipping operations and never made a mistake.

Why can't my sister have a copy of that recruitment order?

only……

Ren Ji pondered for a moment.

My younger sister is not only very talented, but also incredibly beautiful.

As her beauty grew, her clan had been keeping her at a lowly residence for several years—there were countless former nobles of the Qin state in Yongcheng, and with her looks and their lowly status, if they were to reveal themselves too early…

It's probably more of a curse than a blessing.

Is sending such a person to the Queen meant to let the Queen see her talent, or to let the King see her beauty?

There's no way to please both.

Choosing the King of Qin would likely mean never having the chance to truly cooperate with the Queen again in this lifetime—a superficial cooperation might be possible a few times, but once interests are infringed, they would instantly become mortal enemies.

He paused on the paper, and a blob of ink slowly condensed, then dripped down, eventually seeping through the not-so-good quality paper, creating rough, fuzzy edges.

but……

Ren Ji quickly made up his mind:

Having served the King of Qin for over a century, had no other opportunity to do so?
No.

The king doesn't need people like him, nor does he need to give them opportunities.

But the queen was different.

Everyone says the Queen is a Kunlun Immortal Envoy, but they forget that if she were truly a Kunlun Immortal Envoy, she would have absolutely no power or background in the Qin Kingdom.

It's no wonder that the Queen personally bestowed gold hairpins upon Ba and Wu, hoping to earn their loyalty and serve her commands.

Because... she had no one else available.

Yay! The novel next door, "The Chronicles of Song Tan," has reached 400 million words! This month's milestone achieved!

I hope Qin's Moon can reach 80 words before the Chinese New Year...

When Zhang Qian first went on his mission, he was a court official.

He spent 13 years in prison (most of which he was a prisoner), and upon his return, he was appointed as Taizhong Dafu, an official position that served as a political advisor to the court.

He was appointed as a general with real power during his second mission to the Western Regions.

"Heaven and earth are ruthless, treating all things like straw dogs." Ten years ago, when I first entered this industry, I used this phrase incorrectly. It actually means—

Heaven and earth have no human-like "benevolence" or bias; they treat all things the same as straw dogs used in sacrifices, showing them all the sameness and letting nature take its course.

Straw dogs are dogs made of straw and used in sacrificial rites.