Chapter 417 Sichuan Salt Affairs (II)

Compared with the newly emerged Hubei salt capital, Yingcheng, Sichuan, which has been born with salt refining industry more than a thousand years ago, there are undoubtedly too many entanglements in the interests of Sichuan!

During the Qing Dynasty, officials and emperors in all dynasties were interested in improving the salt administration, but they were not determined by looking forward to the front and back. The reform of salt administration was easier said than done. The ordinary salt involved too many interest groups. The salt merchants were just an open one, and behind the salt merchants were the countless and unclear chains of interest, bureaucrats, nobles, royal relatives, and even the salt workers on the salt flats and wells were all considered part of this chain of interest. If they wanted to completely solve the shortcomings of the strait guide system, they had to redistribute the entire interest cake. If they did not have enough courage and confidence, the salt law would become unchanged.

The interest groups behind the salt merchants were worried about losing this huge salt cake, while the emperor was worried about touching the forces that should not be touched and leading to political turmoil. In the end, the country was too deeply influenced by the distorted Confucianism, and too many officials and even promising emperors were affected by the distorted doctrine of the mean, believing that "it is better to have less than more things." It was the greatest achievement to calm the period of his rule. Therefore, in a flash, hundreds of years, many generations of emperors and famous ministers knew that there should be great profits behind the salt administration, but throughout his life, the meaning of salt reform could only be passed on paper and not implemented.

But now it is different. The Qing Dynasty destroyed the Republic of China and was the time of great change. Li Han also took the opportunity and believed that only by taking advantage of the current situation of the country that has not been completely stable, Yuan Shikai's Beijing Central Committee had the least influence in the country, the reform of the salt administration with a quick knife to cut the mess is the best! In his opinion, revolution is the reallocation of interests and the division and integration of power. However, it is obvious that some people also think that this opportunity is shared by everyone, and everyone should have the opportunity to seize a fruit from the revolution.

Therefore, compared with Hubei, which has basically completed the salt administration reform, Sichuan's salt administration reform has almost not taken any step. Even the regulations such as weighing were silently boycotted by Sichuan because of "not adapting to the local environment"!

These interest groups behind Sichuan Salt Administration are extremely powerful, so even the giants specially approved by Li Han, who were personally approved by United Salt Industry, must follow his rules in Sichuan. Because unlike the large-scale industrial production of Hubei Yingcheng Salt Industry, Sichuan's salt industry production in Fushun and Gong County is still stuck in human labor due to the influence of terrain and financial resources. The salt administration reform was distorted and spread to the local salt flats and salt workers on the wells, causing extremely bad influences. They even went on a dozen joint strikes for this. The first requirement they put forward was to ask the military government to abolish the salt administration reform!

Li Han naturally would not agree to this unreasonable request. Even because 70% of the salt wells in Zigong were suspended, he did not make any compromise. He knew why the salt workers had such an overreaction. On the one hand, it was indeed the cause of some interest groups behind the scenes, and on the other hand, most local residents had to make a living by refining salt, but some people deliberately spread the news of Yingcheng's large-scale industrial salt refining to their ears. He learned that there were less than 1,200 people engaged in salt refining in Yingcheng, but the annual output had reached more than a quarter of Sichuan, and it would even exceed half after next year. This news undoubtedly made tens of thousands of local salt workers directly or indirectly engaged in salt refining production feel threatened.

As a result, the mastermind behind the scenes just pushed it and disappeared. Instead, the local salt workers and small salt merchants took advantage of the time of the Congressional election to protest the salt administration reform. In order to save their jobs, some salt workers not only organized to attack the local military government headquarters, but even formed a "traitor-catching team" to threaten and intimidate those salt workers who are still working for the United Salt Industry are not allowed to supervise the military government's official business offices - United Salt Industry. In the past half month, hundreds of salt workers stopped working for United Salt Industry with various excuses in order to avoid disturbing and using various excuses, resulting in the number of mines that United Salt Industry has now reduced production to nearly 90%!

The military government has not compromised for a long time, and Li Han recently ordered the military government to turn the two battalions originally stationed in Zigong into a regular group and a reserve battalion, and the number of police officers in the state has increased from 77 to 192. Among them, the coefficient of 58 police officers from Zigong has been transferred to other areas. Now, foreign police officers in Fushun and several counties in Gong County have occupied 10% of them, and there is no local police officer at all.

The reaction of the military government in just a few days made the local forces feel uneasy, so they once again made a fierce move to encourage local salt workers. It was rumored that the military government wanted to suppress the salt workers' protests by force. After the rumors spread, the crowd was excited. Under the control of some forces, the salt workers gathered up forcibly attacked the United Salt Industry several times. The military government stationed. When the military government ordered the garrison to disperse, someone secretly fired several shots and injured several protesting salt workers. In the end, it caused conflict, causing protest workers to rush into the United Salt Industry station, smashed and smashed the machines, and caused the local officials and four others to die on the spot.

The death was so great. Before entering Sichuan, the news of the chaos in Sichuan's salt capital reached Li Han, who was inspecting the construction of the production corps in Badong and other places, which made him furious. Within three days, he mobilized another regiment and three reserve battalions from surrounding southern Sichuan, Yazhou, Chongqing and other places to Zigong. The team fully armed and advanced with cannons and machine guns forcibly dispersed the salt workers' team the day before he arrived in Chongqing, ordered the arrest of 17 salt workers who were directly or indirectly injured, and five leaders of the demonstrations organized.

After they made a fuss, United Salt Industry's salt well in Zigong had basically been completely stopped. Zigong can produce about 1,200 tons of salt every day, and was tossed for more than half a month. Every day of production suspension is equivalent to United Salt Industry's wealth of up to 40,000 silver dollars. How could Li Han tolerate it? After getting off the ship in Chongqing, he mobilized a company of soldiers from the local area to come to Zigong together.

Chongqing has already passed the news of his coming first, so the lobby of Sichuan Salt Administration Office in Fushun County, Zigongzhou was already full of people. Among them, most of the local people had anxiety on their faces, and some even had a pale face, as if they had some serious illness. If they sat steadily, they probably only had a few small salt merchants dressed in very ordinary clothes and shareholders of United Salt Industry. The few words that could be heard occasionally in the hall were all heard from their team of people. According to previous historical experience, every time the country really wanted to make up its mind to rectify the government, there would always be a group of losers who had lost power and then a group of salt merchants who had gone the right way to make a fortune.

They were all waiting patiently, waiting for the arrival of the inspector and issuing a ruling!

According to officialdom, this is called "killing fat pigs". Of course, if the pig is fattened, you have to kill and eat meat. Who would raise pigs if you can't eat meat? Kill a batch of fattening pigs and feed them with piglets. After the fattening, there will be another cycle.

The country cannot do without salt and salt tax. Salt merchants are a crucial section of this social chain. No one can ignore their existence. Although they have always been regarded as fat pigs by the government, the government does not dare to kill all these fat pigs at once. Every time, as the fat and fragrant "big fat pigs" that eat fatty meat are slaughtered, the country always selects a batch of new piglets to fatten.

The status of merchants in all dynasties in China was not high, but the list of fat pigs for the country was always full. The reason was not because salt merchants had to eat more benefits during the process of being fattened.

Who will be unable to get along with the interests!

"The inspector is here! Salute!"

A team of soldiers carrying live ammunition trotted together and escorted several carriages to slowly arrive at the Salt Administration Office. Before the soldiers guarding at the door of the Salt Administration Office salute, the two teams of soldiers who accompanied them divided into one team to surround the entire Salt Administration Office and set up several temporary defenses nearby. The other team rushed directly into the Salt Administration Office and instantly took over the control of the entire Salt Administration Office.

With the command of the messenger, the soldiers followed by a "wow" sound. The soldiers were neatly stomping the rifle in their hands at a forty-five-degree angle. This standard military parade and gun ceremony contained countless sweat and scoldings on the training ground.

The hall, which was originally a little sound, suddenly became much quieter, and people stood up one after another. Looking at the door, an officer led a team of guards to enter the field first. The officers and soldiers on both sides of the main seats were blue-gray uniforms, boat-shaped hats, three-finger wide belts on their waists, and a pair of shiny military boots on their feet were stomping on the ground like a small drum. A huge gun box was erected on the right waist. It is said that this kind of small cannon was only equipped with the guard battalion of the patrol officer.

A moment later, a young man in a military coat walked in with several adjutants, waved his right hand to the main seat, and waved his hand to everyone and smiled.

This is Li Han and Li Yizhi, the inspector of the five western provinces, who are famous all over the world. Now the supreme ruler of the five western provinces of the Republic of China is now called the "Western King" by a group of ordinary people who have not yet left the "imperial system"!

"I've seen the inspector!"

"We have met the inspector!"

...

The room briefly had a chorus, a squeezing fists, a squeezing bow, and a squeezing kneeling, and a sensation. This was the first time that everyone had seen Li Han himself, but they had seen photos of this world-renowned inspector. Just like the Salt Administration Department, there was a bust of him wearing marshal's clothes hanging, two meters high and one meter wide. It was a half-body photo of him that was printed by the salt merchants in the city who paid for his own money and imitated the military government to help him. He asked the foreigners in the Chongqing Concession area to help him. It was somewhat pleasing to him.

Under the gaze of everyone, Li Han walked straight to the main seat and sat down. His face was still smiling for the time being, and his right hand gently raised to signal everyone to be quiet.

"All gentry, elders and guests, there is no need to be too polite. Now that the Republic has been established, our revolutionary army will not kneel down and worship. I am Li Han, whose name is Yizhi, is from Chongqing, Sichuan. He went abroad with his parents in his early years to make a living. Then he returned to China to catch up with the Great Revolution. He was praised by all the revolutionary comrades and the President of the Mongolian University, and was able to take charge of the five western provinces. Now that the Republic of China has been newly established, the domestic revolution situation is stable, and the whole country is waiting for the election. There is a new atmosphere in the state, and our people should also have a new atmosphere. Yizhi is willing to work together with all the gentry and elders in Sichuan to build a beautiful new. Sichuan!

...

The country is based on the people and the people are the most important. People cannot eat salt. However, the Qing Dynasty was injustice, and the Mo officials were rampant. The people suffered from the suffering of indifferent food. During the Xianfeng period of the pseudo-Qing Dynasty, the Taiping army prospered, and the world was in a state of dissatisfaction. The people in Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi Provinces were very bitter. Fortunately, the salt merchants in Sichuan were helpless. Sichuan salt was sold in the Central Plains and were very popular among the people. Unfortunately, the Qing Dynasty's officialdom was dark and corrupt. Officials and officials were in harmony with the Huaiyang salt merchants. The war was over and the people were invaded and seized the Sichuan salt bank. Not only did the Jiangxi coastal bank be lost, but there was not much left in Huguang coastal bank. After this defeat, the Sichuan salt merchants were in a slump. The former wealth and prosperity were no longer there. The once prominent "Wang Sanwei Tang" and "Li Siyou Tang" also disappeared. The salt capital in southern Sichuan became a place of sorrow, which is regrettable."

Li Han talked and hit the pain of Sichuan salt merchants every sentence. However, the speech in just a few minutes caused many salt merchants to sigh. However, if you really look carefully, you will definitely find that more people's faces are constantly sweating like water droplets. Fortunately, no one is paying attention now.

Li Donglai, who followed Li Han into the hall, sneered and swept over the faces of the salt merchants in the room, and finally looked at Qiu Zhengze, the director of the Sichuan Salt Administration Department who looked hypocritical and a bit righteous in ancient times, flashed a cold light in his eyes. After using a color with a guard of Li Han who was guarding outside the door, calmed down and listened to Li Han's speech!

Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, domestic salt merchants can be divided into two groups, one is Huaiyang Group, which was dominated by Huizhou in the early stage and Yangzhou salt merchants in the later stage, and the other is Sichuan Group, which is led by Fushun salt merchants. These two each control the members with an annual output of nearly 400,000 tons of salt. These two have been fighting openly and secretly for hundreds of years. Unfortunately, the Sichuan Road in Sichuan is difficult and the distance between the imperial center is too far away. In addition, the economy and influence are not as good as the Jiangsu-Anhui faction, so it is difficult to find a capable helper in the court. As a result, the struggle between the two major salt merchants mostly ended with the defeat of Sichuan salt merchants.

It was not until the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom War broke out during the Xianfeng period, and the Taiping Army and Hunan Army fought one after another along the two sides of the Yangtze River. The traffic of the Yangtze River was cut off and the Huai salt could not be transported in. Salt waste occurred in Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, Jiangxi and other places. The people complained and had no choice but to allow Sichuan salt to be transported in a small amount of Hunan and Hubei. Later, with the expansion and continued war, Sichuan salt obtained the salt sales shores in Anhui, Jiangxi and other places. A large amount of Sichuan salt was continuously transported and sold to various places from Sichuan. In those years, it was not only the period of the highest production of Sichuan salt, but also the most glorious period for Sichuan salt merchants.

The so-called "Wang Sanweitang" and "Li Siyoutang" rose during that period. At that time, the wealth accumulation of Sichuan salt merchants was close to that of Huaiyang salt merchants, and they also began to find more powerful spokespersons in the court. However, the good times did not last long. With the demise of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the recovery of transportation in the Yangtze River, Huai salt once again transported and sold to various provinces along the river. Relying on the strength and connections accumulated over the years, they quickly took back the lost shore. Under the planning of Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and others, the Qing court unloaded the donkey and ordered Sichuan salt to return to Sichuan and could not be sold to Hunan and Hubei.

Sichuan salt merchants naturally refused to surrender and immediately launched a strong counterattack. Through the spokespersons in the court, they began a arduous tug-of-war. The two sides fought lawsuits in the Ministry of Revenue for several years. Huaiyang salt merchants made great contributions to Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and others to raise military expenses. These two officials from the border naturally had to repay their favor and strive to protect the interests of Huaiyang salt merchants. Sichuan salt merchants took the line from Zuo Zongtang and made great contributions to Zuo Zongtang's Chu army. The spokespersons of both sides were qualified to be loyal to the court. After this lawsuit, the two salt merchant groups were exhausted. Seeing that there was no hope of resolving the dispute in the short term, they had to take a step back and seek a settlement.

Finally, Sichuan salt merchants successfully obtained the shared rights of the Huaiyang salt merchants in most parts of western Hubei. The two sides took Yichang as the boundary, and returned to Huaiyan salt to the east, and shared the boundary to the west. However, soon after, Huaiyan automatically withdrew from the western Hubei. Since then, Sichuan salt dominated western Hubei. Apart from the small amount of "paste salt" in Yingcheng, there were almost no opponents. However, Sichuan salt also paid a price for this. Yichang Quotation Bureau obtained the power to collect salt from Sichuan salt. The successive general offices of the bureau were personally ordered by the Qing court's Internal Affairs Office, and the salt tax collected was directly supplied to the Dameni as powder money. While the court "comforts with the merchants", it still did not forget to blackmail.

In any case, the salt shore was saved, and the Sichuan salt merchants celebrated each other, as if they had won a battle. However, the Sichuan salt merchants did not relax for too long, and soon they met a new opponent, Jingyan. This opponent is much harder to deal with than the Huaiyang salt merchants because they are foreigners.

The most tasteful Chinese traditional salt is Huai salt, followed by Sichuan salt. In terms of appearance, Huai salt is not as good as Sichuan salt. Huai salt contains more impurities, its color is not pure white and yellow. The reason why Sichuan salt can defeat Huai salt in western Hubei is not only the price advantage, but the color is pure white and the taste is also good. However, with the import of foreign refined salt, Sichuan salt has lost its advantage in color. Under the blow of refined salt, Sichuan salt has been poorly sold in recent years, and there has been a backlog of goods in the warehouse. If Li Han had not controlled the two provinces of Sichuan and Hubei and then ordered the plan to reduce the price of salt, the price of salt produced in Sichuan and Hubei has been reduced by 15% compared with Huai salt in the past year, and 20% lower than that of foreigners' refined salt. It was because it was because of the low price that monopolized the market of Sichuan and Hubei by more than 95% of Sichuan and Hubei, leaving only a little soup for foreigners and Huai salt. I am afraid that Sichuan salt will no longer have a foothold now!

Li Donglai stood aside and felt complicated. Sichuan and Hubei salt administration was really successful and Li Han was defeated. If he had not revitalized this giant of tens of millions and had it regained the ability to create continuous benefits, how could so many forces that were already half-dead rushed in with jealousy. When the news of Li Han planning to rectify the salt administration came out, salt merchants of all sizes were trembling, and no one knew what the young man had planned to do. Anyway, with the historical experience of salt merchants, when the top spoke out that they wanted to rectify the salt administration, it was usually when the salt merchants sent a lot of money to the government, everyone knew the benefits of being a salt merchant. Those who became salt merchants were eager to keep going. The wealthy households who had not become salt merchants shook their heads and wanted to join this group. As for whoever was not, it depends on the government's words.

Therefore, according to the information he received at that time, after the military government heard that it was going to rectify the salt business, Hubei was fine. The salt merchants in Zigong, Sichuan jumped around and handed over money. In less than two months, the amount of information flowed from the salt merchants was no less than four or five million, which really fattened up a lot of corrupt officials' pockets. This is why, although the military government repeatedly emphasized that local governments should support strongly, after coming to Sichuan, there were still people wearing shoes and condoms, and in the end they completely changed.

The Intelligence Department handed Li Han the information they collected early. When he heard that so many officials had been bribed, Li Han wanted to kill the entire Sichuan officialdom immediately. He even thought about directly transferring troops into Zigong and copying all the gold and silver hidden in the cellars of the salt merchants as military expenses. However, he told him that this was not possible. In addition, he was in the condemnation of the whole country and could not leave a verbal condemnation, and he chose to remain silent for a while. While ordering the Intelligence Department to investigate, he ordered dozens of officials from the Independent Commission Against Corruption from Hubei to Sichuan to assist in the investigation and collection of evidence.

However, no one expected that as soon as the Independent Commission Against Corruption entered Sichuan, two people went to Zigong to collect evidence "infected with bandits" and their things were stolen. It seemed that his chess piece was alarmed. Before he could set up a chess game and asked you to get into the trap, there was a news that the salt workers riot attacked the military government's headquarters office, which eventually caused dozens of soldiers and several workers from the United Salt Industry, and several others were killed.
Chapter completed!