Han Wen was so angry that he obviously planned to ask Yang Xianming to collect salt ditches, but the dead eunuch didn't lose a penny, just letting him pay his own private money, which made him feel very distressed.

To put it bluntly, he certainly knew the consequences of Yangzhou's fall. He was either caught and shot or beheaded by Chongzhen, but he couldn't understand it. Yangzhou was not his, so why should he pay money to defend Yangzhou?

In fact, it is not easy for him to be the prefect of Yangzhou. He is urged by the court to collect taxes every year. If he is not satisfied, he needs to find a way, otherwise he will seize the official position. The so-called way he wants is mostly to assign to the rich salt merchants. Although he is an official, no rich salt merchant can do anything backstage, and he cannot just spread it. He needs to give enough benefits to make it increasingly difficult for him to be an official.

He was also a Jinshi. When he first became an official, he had lofty ambitions. No one had the ideal to be a corrupt official, but the cruel reality smoothed out his edges and gradually became gray by the large dye vat of society.

His blood became cold, his heart became cruel, and only the word "fame and fortune" remained in his eyes. It was a heartfelt resistance to let him pay money to defend Yangzhou.

"Huh~~"

Han Wenjing exhaled and said reluctantly: "I will pay a thousand taels, and Eunuch Yang will take out some. After all, Yangzhou is broken, which is not good for us. I will raise some money from the yamen. The salt merchants also ask them to pay some. Everyone will gather together, get tens of thousands of taels and collect more than 10,000 salt ditches to defend the city. We should be able to overcome the difficulties."

"Okay, our family will also pay a thousand taels, and we will order people to get it immediately. Prefect Han quickly invites salt merchants from all over the country to discuss matters!"

Eunuch Zhang nodded.

"I'd better go to the Shanxi Association first!"

Han Wenjing bowed his hand and walked out quickly.

...

Yangzhou salt merchants are divided into Western merchants and Hui merchants. In "Yangzhou Bamboo Branch Ci" sings: The merchants are the most luxurious under the river, and the windows are covered with thin and wide yarn, and the salary is urgently limited to 300,000 yuan. The Western merchants still left their homes at a young age. This poem describes merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi. At that time, people called Western merchants. They lived in the most prosperous Xiaguan area in Yangzhou, close to the official salt transportation department and Chaoguan along the Grand Canal, to get rich by selling salt and dominate the country.

Western merchants prospered because of the opening of China and France. It was that private merchants sent grain to the border for salt, and exchanged them for about 30 kilograms of grain for one. Among the 260 prefectures in the Ming Dynasty, Xi'an Prefecture ranked fourth after Songjiang Prefecture, which was known as the granary, which made China and France the same as a preferential policy tailored for Shaanxi merchants. Farmers in the grain-producing area of ​​Guanzhong set off a wave of going to the city to do business and sell grain and sell salt.

However, in the fifth year of Hongzhi, Ye Qi, the Minister of Revenue, who was born in Huai'an, changed the method of opening China and France to exchange for citations. Merchants did not have to travel thousands of miles to send grain to the border, but directly used silver to buy salt citations. This move broke the inherent advantages of border merchants in Shanxi, Shaanxi, and gave Hui merchants who were geographically closer to the two Huai Rivers to enter the salt industry.

Since then, staying in the northwest border to grow grain has lost its economic significance. Shanxi merchants from Shaanxi came to Yangzhou, a salt transport hub of Lianghuai along the canal, and became professional salt merchants.

Until the fall of the Ming Dynasty, the strength of the Shanxi merchants was still strong. Hui merchants often wanted to buy salt from them. The Shanxi Association Hall was built alone in the Old Street of Dongguan, Dadongmen near the canal, while Huizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, Lingnan and other merchant gangs gathered in the area of ​​Xiaodongmen, emerging markets.

Shortly after Han Wenjing went to the Shanxi Association, Huizhou Association, Director Huang Qigan was smoking a dry tobacco while listening to the book boy chanting the account, but a middle-aged man rushed in and said anxiously: "Director Huang, Prefect Han has gone to the Shanxi Association!"

Among Hui merchants, the surnames Huang, Wang and Wu were the surnames, and Jiang Cheng, Xu, Zheng, Cao, Song, Bao and Ye were also very strong. They were either businessmen or transportation merchants. They each had their own ways to make money. The merchants specially purchased salt from stoves and sold them to transportation merchants. They usually used the principal to make profits and lowered the salt price to clean up the stoves. Some merchants also recruited salt and produced it themselves. The transport merchants specialized in attracting salt, purchased salt at extremely low prices, and sold at salt sales ports at high prices, making a lot of profits.

The man who broke in was nearly 40 years old and was the head of the Wang family, Wang Huan, and his status among Hui merchants was second only to Huang Qigan.

"oh?"

Huang Qi frowned: "The old lady went to the Shanxi Association at this time... Tell me, what's wrong!"

Wang Huan sat down without any haste. Shutong served him tea, took a few sips, and then pondered: "The bandits made a sound of storm to attack Yangzhou, but the soldiers of Yangzhou were unable to fight. If they wanted to defend the city, they could only recruit Yan Ding. If I expected it, the prefect Han would have gone to the Shanxi and Shaanxi Guild Hall to raise money. I am afraid that they will come to our place to get some money back soon."

"this……"

Huang Qigan stood up and paced around the house. After a while, as if he was about to say something, he looked at the Shutong and waved his hand: "You go out first and invite Mr. Wu Shimin!"

"yes!"

The book boy gave a gift and retreated.

Wu Shimin is the head of the Wu family and one of the three giants in the Weizhou Guild Hall. She is in her sixties and has long stopped asking about things. Wang Huan couldn't help but ask: "Why do you invite Mr. Wu?"

Huang Qigan first stretched out his head and looked left and right. After confirming that there was no one, he closed the door and asked, "Brother Wang thinks Yangzhou can be kept?"

Wang Huan said without hesitation: "Yangzhou has a population of 600,000, Ding Zhuang has a population of 200,000, and there are still tens of thousands of salt dings in the surrounding salt fields. Even though the official army has no combat power, as long as the prefect Han declares that it is powerful, it will not be difficult to recruit Ding Zhuang to defend the city, and there are only more than 10,000 thieves. According to an isolated city in Gaoyou, it is probably difficult to take down Yangzhou."

Huang Qi smiled dryly and said, "Brother Wang is not authentic. You and I have been with each other for decades. You and I are like brothers. Why not say what you say in your heart? Well, brothers, I will tell the truth. I don't really like Prefect Han."

"Oh? How do you see it?"

Wang Huan said in surprise.

Huang Qigan waved his hand: "Let's talk in detail when Mr. Wu comes over."

Wang Huan nodded thoughtfully, no longer asked more, but took out his gun and smoked it.

After about half an hour, the old Wu Shimin arrived with the help of his family.

"Have you met Mr. Wu!"

Huang Qigan and Wang Huan hurriedly saluted, and supported Wu Shimin from left to right and sat on the middle Grand Master's chair.

Although the Huizhou Guild Hall was hosted by Huang Qigan, Wu Shimin was even older and was the previous director. It was nothing wrong with sitting in the main seat. Wu Shimin was also very satisfied. He grinned with his mouth with few teeth and laughed: "I'm old, I'm not doing well, so I've been waiting for you for a long time."

"Old Wu is polite!"

Huang Qigan laughed dryly.

After all, Wu Shigan saw the expressions of the two of them and knew that something must be important, so he turned around and said, "Go downstairs to wait for me first!"

"yes!"

The two family members bowed and left, leaving only the three giants of Huizhou merchants in the room. Huang Qigan personally brewed the best West Lake Longjing for Wu Shimin.

“Ha~~”

Wu Shimin gently rubbed the tea cover, took a small sip, and felt the fragrance remained on his cheeks. He couldn't help but scream, and said, "What are you talking about with your nephew?"

Huang Qi smiled dryly and said, "Brother Wang and I are discussing whether Prefect Han can defend Yangzhou. I wonder what Mr. Wu means?"

"It's hard to say, it's hard to say!"

Wu Shimin waved his withered palms and shook his head and said, "I think my nephew is hesitating when he asks about this, but that's the case?"

"good!"

Huang Qigan and Wang Huan nodded at the same time: "Just Mr. Wu just needed advice. Please rest assured Mr. Wu. There are only three of you and me here. No matter what you say, you will not be the fourth person."

Wu Shimin laughed and said, "You and I have a family friendship with each other. If I don't believe you, who else can I believe? Don't mention this again."

As he said that, he said with a calm expression: "Commander Li's newborn calf has a sense of courage. From the fact that he first defeated Gaoyou, then broke Huaian, and forced himself to retreat, he could see that he was proficient in military strategies. When he looked at what he did, he must not be regarded as a thief, but should be regarded as a person like Taizu and Zhang Shicheng, who had the idea of ​​seizing the world since he started his army.

Moreover, Commander Li did not take over Huai'an, but only took the grain, forcing Huang Degong to fight quickly. It can be seen that he had a proper advancement and retreat, and knew what he should do and what he should not do. Such people were born in a chaotic world and should have some achievements!"
Chapter completed!