Volume 3: Confrontation! The Run of Civilization Chapter 472: Shanxi Merchants Begin to Transform (I)
Flags fluttered, gongs and drums roared. On the first day of April in the third year of the Tianqi reign, the city of Datong was bustling with activity. Countless military households and civilians gathered on both sides of the official road outside the north gate, eagerly looking forward to the distant north.
"Hey, it's finally a tie."
"Yes, we have been fighting for more than two hundred years, but this expedition was the longest and most thorough."
"Yes, yes, the emperor is really amazing. In the past, we were passively defensive when facing the Tartars. This time, the emperor's northern expedition was a hearty one. It is said that General Cao, General Li and others fought all the way to Buir Lake, just as far as the former Han Guanjun Hou and this dynasty's Liang Guogong!"
"Well, Lao Liu, you are a veteran who has fought against the Tartars for your entire life, and you have killed several Tartars under your command. How long do you think the Mongols will remain quiet after this battle?"
"Humph! Didn't we kill their Khan this time? In my opinion, they should behave themselves for at least 50 years!"
"Well, that's great. We should enjoy the peaceful days."
"Hey, here they come, General Li's army is back!"
"Please bless me, Buddha, and pray that my child can return safely."
"Hahaha, rest assured, Miss Sun. I heard that during this northern expedition, our army of more than 100,000 only suffered a few hundred casualties. It won't be your son's turn, so don't worry."
"That's right, that's right. Let's go up and take a look at Li Shuai, who is as powerful as Huo Guanjun!"
As the people knelt down spontaneously to welcome him, Li Rubai led the Datong Town soldiers and appeared in everyone's sight.
Seeing the people on the roadside showing their heartfelt respect and the constant prayers, Li Rubai, who was already 68 years old, could not help but feel overwhelmed.
For thousands of years, the biggest threat to the Chinese Empire has always come from the north. Since Huo Qubing conquered the Wolf's Lair, this benchmark has become the highest dream and pursuit of countless Chinese men in later generations. Even veterans like Li Rubai had the dream of advancing thousands of miles and conquering the Wolf's Lair when they were young.
Unexpectedly, when I got old, this dream actually came true!
Although Li Rubai now knows that the world is so big because of the long-term guidance and propaganda of the six major newspapers, the distance from Datong to Langjuxu is just . Moreover, the Ming Dynasty is now strong, while Mongolia is weak and divided. After this battle, it feels a bit unfair. But in any case, this is still the highest honor for a warrior!
In short, Li Rubai was very happy: thinking back to the past, he was inferior to his elder brother in everything, and it seemed that he would be his elder brother's deputy forever. After his elder brother died in battle, he was forced to stand up on his own, but he did not do as well as his elder brother, and finally his eighty-year-old father had to come out to support the Li family. But now? I have become the Wolf's Lair! I will definitely go down in history!
So, personal ability is one thing, but following the right people is the most important thing!
With this in mind, the excited Li Rubai did not intend to limit the speed of his horse, so that the purebred Western horse he rode was getting faster and faster, and soon approached the gate of Datong. From a distance, the flags of the Datong military and political officials headed by the King of Dai were clearly visible.
"Huh~" Taking a deep breath, Li Rubai turned over and dismounted: I'm back, well, as a general, when you win a great victory, you must remember your duty. Next, the emperor will start a thorough investigation of the military households, and then reduce the number of soldiers and military households in the nine borders, right? With my father and eldest brother already dead, I have to greet everyone in the family as the head of the Li family. In the emperor's next move, you must fully cooperate, and there must be no resistance or dissatisfaction. Otherwise, the day of being sealed in the wolf's lair today and becoming a prisoner tomorrow, it is really hard to say how quickly it will come.
In any era, there are few fools who can succeed and continue to succeed. When Li Rubai won a great victory that will go down in history, he still kept a clear mind. At this time, in Puzhou City in the south, there were also people who had an extremely clear understanding of the situation.
"My elders, brothers, and nephews, I solemnly propose that from today on, our Yang family will give up 90% of the shops and reduce 90% of the caravans. We will pool all the surplus funds and then purchase local coal mines or land exploration rights from the court."
In the ancestral hall of the Yang Family, one of the four great families in Shanxi Province in Puzhou City, a clan meeting was held in front of the tablets of the ancestors of the Yang Family to decide the future direction of the family. At this time, the person who was talking in the center of the venue was Yang Yanming, who had been managing the household affairs of the Yang Family for many years.
"The reason for this suggestion is, of course, that the times have begun to change dramatically. If our Yang family does not actively engage in industry and still sticks to the previous pure business of buying low and selling high, it will not be long before our family will quickly become a stepping stone for the new wealthy merchants!
There are three reasons for this. First, the promotion of steam engine technology has caused the prices of many commodities to fluctuate dramatically. For example, a piece of silk produced in Nanzhili used to cost about 13 yuan when it entered Shanxi. We could sell it for 35 yuan when we transported it to Mongolia. After deducting the transportation cost and labor, the family's profit was 8 to 9 yuan. But now, the price of silk entering Shanxi has dropped to 6 yuan.
Some people said, this is good, we can continue to sell it to the Mongols for 35 yuan. Ha, the person who said this really doesn't know how to do business. Because of the legacy of Xiang Yi Gong (Yang Bo), my Yang family is not afraid of government officials in Shanxi, so we used to sell it to the Mongols for 35 yuan, and we could still make a profit of 8 to 9 yuan. But if ordinary merchants come to do this business, they will be exploited along the way, and the profit of 8 or 9 yuan will be swallowed up. If they sell it to the Mongols for 35 yuan, they will lose all their money. But if it is higher than 35 yuan, they will not be able to sell it. Therefore, this silk business was only done by our Yang family and other four families in the past, and other ordinary merchants could only do some small business that we don't care about.
But now it’s different, because the purchase price of silk has been cut in half, so ordinary merchants can also make a profit from this, and we will face competition from other merchants. This is the case with silk, and many other commodities. As a result, our profits will become increasingly thinner and even close to zero! ”
"Yanming, I have a question."
"Seventh Grandpa, please speak?"
"Well, can't we lower the price?"
"Seventh Grandfather, this is the second point I want to talk about, the changes in the administration and tax laws. Ladies and gentlemen, the court has changed the tax laws and unified the collection of commercial taxes. Officials are no longer allowed to take bribes in any name. Last year, 63 officials in Shanxi were dismissed and investigated, accounting for one-third of the officials who were punished for commercial taxes last year, ranking first in the two capitals and thirteen provinces. Nowadays, Shanxi's administration is better, but our previous advantages are almost gone. In pure trade, we will face strong competition from ordinary businessmen."
"My dear uncles and brothers." Yang Yanming spread his hands and said, "Our Yang family has been a big family since Duke Xiangyi. Now there are more than a hundred men in the family, and these are the close relatives. If we add the distant relatives, as well as the wives, concubines, and children of each family, the members of our Yang family are probably no less than a thousand! And what about those ordinary merchants? Those with 20 to 30 direct descendants are considered a lot. The difference in the number of people to support is too great, and the demand for profit is completely different. For a piece of silk, our Yang family needs a profit of eight or nine yuan to support the family. And those ordinary merchants only need one or two yuan to be satisfied. If it is a fair competition, we have no chance of winning!"
This speech made most of the people present speechless: the Yang family has been prosperous for hundreds of years, and most of the children in the family have also been rotting for more than a hundred years on the legacy of their ancestors. In fact, to be honest, Yang Yanming is indeed a legitimate descendant, but not the eldest son. But why can he control the household affairs? Isn't it because he can make the most money for the family to support this large family?
If you think about it carefully, Yan Ming has not had an easy time these years. The elders in the clan, in addition to the income from the land and manor under their names, also need to be supported by the shop at a monthly allowance of 500 yuan per person. Other adult men get 300 yuan per person per month. Even those underage people get pocket money ranging from 50 to 80 yuan per month. There are hundreds of men in the Yang family, and this amount alone is 20,000 to 30,000 yuan per month - this is pure profit!
Even so, Yang Yanming was able to allocate part of the funds for reinvestment, expand the number of shops, expand the supply channels, and establish more caravans. It was really not easy.
So, no one spoke anymore at this moment.
After seeing the ancestral hall fall into silence again, Yang Yanming took a deep breath and said, "Third, six years ago, my Yang family participated in the auction of the salt field. Although we won two salt fields, we also drained all the working capital accumulated by our family over the years. So when the war fund was established four years ago, my Yang family could not afford to invest much money. Therefore, we were ranked last in the promotion of the steam engine. Now, it is finally our turn. Once we get this machine, we should of course invest in industry, because only by entering the industry can the effectiveness of the steam engine be maximized!"
