Li You's Tang Dynasty

Chapter 640 Merchant Status Li You Invites a Banquet
"Who are you.!"

The grain merchants all looked at a young man who walked in. The young man held an invitation in his hand and looked at the COFCO merchant in the room. The young man bowed slightly and said, "Someone is called Di Renjie, a student of His Royal Highness Qi. I am following the order of my teacher to send an invitation to all gentlemen, and I hope you can appreciate it.

At the moment of the application, we are waiting for you, gentlemen! "

After finishing speaking, Di Renjie left the invitation in his hand, and then walked out of the room. After Di Renjie left, the grain merchants looked at me and I looked at you, and then heard a grain merchant holding the invitation in his hand. Tie asked: "What's the situation? Why did King Qi invite us?"

"That's right, it's so strange. King Qi already has food, so we shouldn't need us anymore. Is there something wrong between King Qi and the Feng family?"

"I see, let's go for a while. King Qi invites us. We must give this face. If we don't give this face, we may be unable to move forward in the future."

As soon as these words came out, all the grain merchants nodded slightly. Although they didn't know what Li You meant by telling him to wait for someone to go, since Li You told him, it was best to go, because the status of merchants in the Tang Dynasty was still low. Not that high.

Many people may think that because Li Shimin was an emperor through the ages, the status of merchants in the Tang Dynasty is still good, because in the Tang Dynasty, there were still merchants who were officials, and their official fortune was not bad.

The most obvious representative is Wu Zetian's father, the warrior Xun in the early Tang Dynasty. You must know that the warrior Xun was a businessman. However, he was smart enough to give everything in the family to Li Yuan. It can be said that he used his greatest strength to support him. And he helped Li Tang win the world financially, so he was named Ying Guogong by Li Tang and became an official.

However, in the laws and regulations of the Tang Dynasty, it was clearly pointed out that merchants can make them rich in business, but they cannot be allowed to stand shoulder to shoulder with courtiers and gentlemen, sit and eat together, and the imperial examination is the main way to select talents. There are very high restrictions on discrimination and social status.Except for a very small number of special businessmen, they cannot become officials.

In the early Tang Dynasty, the election decree promulgated by the state clearly stipulated that "relatives of officials and above live together, operate their own industries and businesses, and their families inherit their businesses, and they are not allowed to be officials." "Tong Dian" also records, "Zi offender's family, the shift worker Jia Te, does not take the exam."At that time, the government of the Tang Dynasty treated businessmen and "zi criminals" side by side, which shows their low status.

Li Yuan made it clear that "Miscellaneous business and industry, no official work."Li Shimin also said: "The miscellaneous people in business and industry, who can check their wealth as much as their wealth, must not surpass the official ranks, stand shoulder to shoulder with wise men, and sit and eat together."

It can be seen that in the hearts of the emperor at that time, businessmen were pariahs and could not even eat with gentlemen.At the same time, the state restricted merchants from riding horses and wearing silk and satin.

The status of businessmen is very low.Folk industrialists and businessmen are often regarded as miscellaneous, miscellaneous, and cheap, and even such a concept has penetrated into the consciousness of bureaucrats, bureaucrats, and common people.They are regarded as villains who are only interested in profit, and they cannot enter the court of elegance, and it is even more difficult to become an official.

The entire civil society is influenced by noble farmers and lowly merchants. The social status of merchants is low, and it is difficult for merchants to enter official careers.This phenomenon is clearly evidenced in the poems of the Tang Dynasty. For example, Bai Juyi mentioned the folk merchants in a very contemptuous tone in "Pipa Xing".

Moreover, the regulations that businessmen can enter official careers and become officials are also mentioned in "Tang Liudian" and "Tang Law Shuyi".And there are clear examples in these two books that prove that it was difficult for businessmen in the Tang Dynasty to become officials.So all in all, it was difficult for merchants to enter official careers in the Tang Dynasty.

Because of this, Li You personally posted a post to invite these grain merchants. Although it was only a post, he had already given these grain merchants great respect, so that even though these grain merchants didn't know what Li You wanted to do , but still want to go to Li You's invitation place.

Even Li You's post caused a lot of competition later on, which was very interesting.

In this way, around the time of Shenshi, a group of about 13 grain merchants came to Li You's invitation place. This was not anywhere else, but the government office of Guangzhou Prefecture.

Di Renjie had already been waiting at the door early. Seeing the grain merchants coming, Di Renjie smiled and led the grain merchants into the government office. You must know that these grain merchants rarely have the opportunity to enter the government office, let alone I saw the prince in the government office, although everyone didn't know what the future would be, but they were very excited.

After a while, Di Renjie brought the thirteen grain merchants to the backyard of the government office. In a courtyard in the backyard, a banquet had been prepared. Di Renjie smiled and invited the grain merchants to the table.

This made the grain merchants a little surprised, wondering what Li You was doing, how could there be a banquet here, could it be that His Royal Highness King Qi wanted to have a banquet with himself and others.

This thought went through the minds of all the grain merchants, but it felt impossible. After all, he was a miscellaneous person, and Li You was the prince. How could he be willing to eat with such a lowly merchant like himself.

You must know that last time Feng An invited a table of banquets, not only did Feng An not show up, even the big butler who came forward to pass on the message disdained to eat with businessmen like himself, so how could the prince Qi Wang be willing to eat with people like himself.

When everyone looked at the banquet and looked at each other, Di Renjie on the side said slightly: "Everyone, please take a seat, don't be cautious, His Royal Highness Qi Wang and Princess Jinyang will come soon, and now the two are washing, a little Wait a moment."

After finishing speaking, Di Renjie was about to leave, but at this moment, a grain merchant bowed to Di Renjie and said, "I don't know what to call this one?"

"I'm Di Renjie, a student of His Royal Highness King Qi, you can call me Di Renjie or Xiao Di!"

"How dare you, how dare you, then I will call you Mr. Xiao Di!" The grain merchant hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Mr. Xiao Di, I would like to ask you whether His Royal Highness King Qi and Princess Jinyang are coming together." What do you mean, could His Highness King Qi and Princess Jinyang come to have dinner with us?"

After the grain merchant finished speaking, the other grain merchants also looked at Di Renjie expectantly.

Di Renjie smiled and nodded at this time: "Of course, gentlemen, please wait a moment, His Highness King Qi and Princess Jinyang will come soon!"

Then Di Renjie bowed respectfully, and walked out of the courtyard with a smile on his face.

As soon as Di Renjie walked out of the courtyard, the grain merchants here became excited. One of the grain merchants looked at the other grain merchants with an incredulous expression and said, "I'm terrified, I'm not dreaming, am I? His Royal Highness King Qi and Princess Jinyang Your Highness wants to have dinner with us?"

"Yeah, I also don't think it's true, but that Mr. Di just said is very sure, let's wait and see, if it's true, then we can really honor our ancestors."

As soon as the words came out, all the grain merchants nodded together, and then as if they had agreed, the thirteen grain merchants sat upright in their seats, staring at the front door motionlessly, waiting for Li You and Li Mingda's arrival.

And Li You and Li Mingda did not disappoint everyone, and after less than a cup of tea, Li You and Li Mingda came to this courtyard together in royal clothes.

Li You's clothes, shawls and skirts are all made of sable.Smoked mink at the sleeve ends.On the shoulders of the embroidered text, there is one front and back dragons, and there are six dragons in the folds, with five-color clouds in between.Serious court clothes.

Li You came out this way to show his respect for these businessmen.

Sure enough, when these grain merchants saw Li You in court clothes, all of them immediately stood up and instinctively knelt down on the ground and shouted: "Caomin see His Royal Highness King Qi and Princess Jinyang!"

You must know that it is not fashionable for Datang to kneel down, but because the status of businessmen is really low, they suddenly saw Li You in court clothes, and they kneeled down instinctively. This is a kind of suppression by the hierarchical system.

"Please get up!"

Li You didn't help these merchants in a hurry, but showed enough kingly spirit, and gave the grain merchants present a little support with his right hand. After being invited by Li You, all the grain merchants also stood together Woke up, at this time, Li You smiled and said to the grain merchants: "Gentlemen, I am so sorry for inviting everyone here so abruptly.

So please don't be cautious, let's all sit down together! "

After finishing speaking, Li You asked everyone to sit down, but at first the grain merchants did not dare to sit down, but Li You made a strong statement, and the grain merchants finally sat down.

Just after the grain merchants sat down, Li You picked up the wine glass in his place and slightly raised it: "Gentlemen, my lord wants to say sorry to everyone, so I will punish myself first."

Then, Li You drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, then turned the wine glass upside down, indicating that there was no more wine in the glass, and all the grain merchants were shocked. At this time, Li You smiled and said: " The reason for the self-punishment is that the king actually tricked you into coming here because the people of Guangzhou Mansion simply cannot afford to buy grain at ten times the price.

Those people who bought the food were bought by the king himself, and the reason why the king deceived you here, I don’t know, gentlemen, can I listen to the king to explain a little bit? "

"Your Highness, please tell me, I will listen with all my ears." At this moment, a grain merchant spoke up immediately.

Li You thanked him slightly, then sat down in his seat and said, "Then let me talk slowly, first let me talk about what my sister, Princess Jinyang, saw behind a black door!"

Following Li You, he told what Li Mingda saw and heard after the black door that day. When Li You said, Li Mingda leaned slightly on Li You's body, even though this matter had passed It's been a long time, but every time he thinks about it, tears still flow from Li Mingda's eyes.

Seeing the lovely and pitiful Li Mingda, the grain merchants were also slightly surprised.

(End of this chapter)