Yang Yuanqing took out two copper coins, one was the new money he issued and the other was the old Daye money. He put the money on the table and said to everyone: "These two moneys are very familiar. I heard that someone used the difference between the two moneys between the Sui and Tang Dynasties to make huge profits. I don't know if anyone here did this. I want to remind everyone here that I have issued an order to the army to strictly prohibit Daye money from Guanzhong from entering Hedong. Of course, a small amount can be done. Everyone should not carry Daye money for more than ten hangs. First, warn half a month. Those who exceed 1,000 hangs in half a month will be arrested and imprisoned. The money will be confiscated. What if a merchant brings a thousand hangs? It's very simple. Go and buy goods and don't violate the ban again. I will remind everyone first about this matter."

A businessman said: "Report to Your Highness, we have heard of this, but we did not do this. For us, it is too risky to take huge amounts of copper coins to walk in Guanzhong. This is done by the merchants in Guanzhong. Your Highness prohibits the entry of Daye money, which blocks their way. I believe this matter will not happen again in the future."

"Okay! Since that's the case, I won't talk about this."

Yang Yuanqing stopped mentioning this matter. After a change of topic, he smiled and said, "It has been more than half a year since the new money was issued. We have reserved a large amount of exchanged Daye coins in our hands, all of which were piled up in the Jinyang Palace warehouse. We originally planned to destroy all the Daye coins, but I heard that Guanzhong and Bashu were still passing through Daye coins. I thought, instead of destroying them, there was no need to use them to buy some supplies from Guanzhong to come back. I know that you big merchants have their own ways. I want to hand over the money to you and buy supplies for me. Any supplies can be made, such as grain, oil and salt, cloth, tea, silk, cattle and sheep, wood, etc. If this is done well, I will record your contributions. How about it?"

Fifteen merchants stared at each other. They only now understood what the King of Chu asked them to do. After saying something that made them excited for a long time, they turned out to ask them to dig out the Tang Dynasty's family. It was not impossible to do it with their own way, but once they were seized by the Tang Dynasty, they would face the risk of seizing goods. Of course, the risk of goods has nothing to do with them, but the losses of people, mules and horses belong to them, and there is a huge risk in it.

After a long silence, the oldest businessman said, "Your Highness. There will be great risks in doing this. We are worried..."

Before he could finish his words, Yang Yuanqing waved his hand and interrupted him, saying lightly: "You are all famous big merchants in Hedong County. They are close to Guanlong commerce. I am an outsider and don't know how to avoid risks. But you should know that you can go back and discuss this matter! The money will be shipped from Taiyuan in two days, and I'm waiting for your good news."

.........

All the fifteen merchants went back helplessly. Pei Wenjing had to deal with it in advance, and only Yang Yuanqing and Du Yan were left in the meeting hall.

When Yang Yuanqing was talking to the merchants, Du Yan basically didn't say much, but he had a lot of worries in his heart. It was not until this time that he carefully said: "I'm not hiding the general manager, in fact, I think this matter is very risky. Once the Tang Dynasty discovers, they will indeed encounter great danger."

Yang Yuanqing didn't take this risk too seriously. He smiled and said, "Du Taishou doesn't have to worry about this matter. They have become elite businessmen. They know how to avoid risks. They will never put themselves in a dangerous situation. They know much more than the government. So many things might as well be left to them, and they will do better."

Du Yan saw that Yang Yuanqing was confident and that this matter had been settled, and it was meaningless for him to worry, so he thought of another thing. He said: "Actually, what I am really worried about is the chamber of commerce, which will unite the merchants. In the future, they will fight against the government. These merchants are very smart and sophisticated. If it is a mess, the government will be easy to deal with them. If they kill one, they will be afraid of others. But the chamber of commerce is different. They have enough financial and material resources to fight against the government. If they are attracted by the Tang Dynasty, it will be a big hidden danger. General Manager, I really don't agree with them establishing the chamber of commerce."

Yang Yuanqing held the tea bowl and sneered slightly, "You are thinking too much, too far away. Since ancient times, people have rebelled for life. When did they hear about merchants rebelling? Merchants are shrewd people, and they want profit, not power. If they twist ropes and fight against the government, there is only one possibility. Corrupt officials force all merchants to go desperately, and they will resist. Isn't this good? Give the censor a clue."

Perhaps because he felt that his tone was a bit too heavy, Yang Yuanqing relaxed his tone and smiled: "Premier Du, I understand your concerns. I also believe that every prefect will have the same concerns, but you should also think that when fighting for the world, merchants are a force that cannot be ignored. They hold a lot of money, but they have no status and are very low-key, so not many people noticed them. They are an invisible force. I asked them to form a chamber of commerce, give them a little more sweetness, and establish an image of valuing business, so that merchants will serve me, rather than serving the Tang Dynasty. Prefect Du, in the future, if you have no money to build bridges and run schools, you will go to the chamber of commerce and let them levy on their own. Isn't this better than when you knock on doors and mobilize them?"

Du Yan nodded silently. He understood Yang Yuanqing's meaning. In troubled times, we must make full use of the power of merchants. When they become stronger and fat, we will consider new methods. This is like raising fish with water. One day, the fat fish will eventually become the ruler's meal.

.........

There is a big house covering an area of ​​ten acres west of Hedong City. This is the house of Zhang Yuanzhong, a big merchant in Hedong, who is the oldest businessman. According to the house order of the Sui Dynasty, merchants are actually not qualified to live in such a large house. No matter how rich they have, they can only live in a small house covering an area of ​​one or two acres.

It was only because of the war and the law was no longer binding, so Zhang Yuanzhong bought this big mansion covering an area of ​​ten acres. In fact, with his financial resources, it was no problem to live in a huge house of hundreds of acres, but he did not dare to show off. The ten acres of house still faced great risks, and it was also because Du Yan and Pei Yuanjing were both new officials and did not care about the violations of his residence.

In Zhang Yuanzhong's main hall, fifteen big businessmen gathered together to discuss the tasks assigned to them by Yang Yuanqing today.

A businessman said: "I guess the great money accumulated by the imperial court must be calculated in tens of millions. Once a large amount of money pours into the Tang Dynasty and buys goods, it will form a situation where money is cheap and expensive. The prices soar. The Tang Dynasty will immediately find that we are making trouble. With a decree, all the merchants in Hedong will be arrested. What should we do?"

Another businessman named Wang said, "It doesn't matter. Guanzhong's food and food supplies come from Bashu to a large extent. We just need to control the purchase volume and don't pour in and buy it all at once. Instead, we buy goods in a long and steady manner. In the end, it is Bashu, not Chang'an. Their prices also rise little by little. The court cannot understand it. If we persist in this for half a year, the purchase volume will be quite considerable."

The businessman named Li nodded and smiled, "Old Wang is right. The key is to be clever. I suggest that you do not touch grain at the beginning. Grain, oil and salt are too sensitive and can easily attract attention. The Tang Dynasty discovered it. You can start with cloth, satin, tea, wood, livestock, medicinal materials, and do not purchase large-scale caravans, break up the caravans, part of them, part of them, part of them, Pujin, and part of them, so that they will not be easily discovered. Maybe the Tang Dynasty is still very happy, trade is prosperous, trade taxes have increased greatly, and money is rolling in. When it is almost done, we will concentrate our efforts to buy grain. Once it leaves, it will be ignored. "

Zhang Yuan nodded heavily and said to everyone: "Actually, there is a solution. If it really doesn't work, let the merchants in Guanzhong deliver goods to their doorstep. We purchase them locally. Isn't it also risky? The reason why I complain about danger in front of the King of Chu is that I want the King of Chu to give us some more benefits. For example, after completing this matter, we can all be awarded the honorary official, so we can just ride a carriage, buy a house, and marry a concubine, and don't have to live a nervous life all day long. Do you think so?"

Everyone laughed and raised their thumbs up, "Old Zhang is still thinking far!"

Zhang Yuanzhong smiled bitterly again and said, "Actually, to be honest, the King of Chu is already very good. He promised to restore the nationality of merchants, remove all regulations that discriminate against merchants, and allow us to establish a chamber of commerce. Of course, we also need to pay. Over the years, we have only made money by ourselves and live underground like moles. What's the use of more money? Can we enjoy it? Without enjoyment, we still recruit people to scold and be discriminated against. The reason why the gentry is famous is that they treat their hometown people well and help the elderly and widows. Today, when the King of Chu called us gentry and Jiajia, my face was a little red. Everyone, we can't afford to be the word "gentleman"!"

Everyone was speechless. Zhang Yuanzhong was right. It was impossible to get respect from others just because he wanted to get it but refused to give. Some time ago, a large number of immigrants came to Hedong County. The famous families in various townships had money and strength to contribute, but these businessmen were all shrunk to the side, and no one was willing to stand up. No wonder they attracted hatred.

A businessman sighed: "Actually, I thought that I should pay attention to those displaced hungry people, but I also felt that my power alone was too small, and I also felt that it was a bit too disadvantageous for me to contribute money and others to do it, so I just thought about it and didn't put it into reality."

Zhang Yuan smiled and said, "That is why the King of Chu suggested that we establish a chamber of commerce and do it in the name of the chamber of commerce. Everyone can share the money and grain. In fact, each company does not have much, but the effect is very good. I suggest that we set up a chamber of commerce today."

Zhang Yuanzhong thought very well. Today, he established a chamber of commerce in his mansion, so the leader is Zhang Yuanzhong.

"What should I do if the King of Chu explains?"

"The money from Taiyuan will probably take two or three days to ship. After we set up a chamber of commerce, we can make plans and then divide the work and work together to minimize the risks."
Chapter completed!