Chapter 443 Competing with the people for profit
Tea Masi also has a yamen in the capital, but due to its low status, the place is a bit remote and not in the inner city at all. Zhu Biao arrived at the gate of the palace and boarded the carriage driven by Zhao Huaian.
After this trip to Shaanxi-Gansu, Zhao Huai'an immediately became the hottest little **** in the palace. Wherever he wandered around, someone would give him some noodles, even the big eunuchs around the concubines in the harem.
Half an hour later, the car stopped in front of a rather remote mansion. The two guards standing in front of the gate were talking lazily. Seeing the carriage parked carelessly in front of the gate, they frowned a little .
It’s autumn. Although it’s not as good as it was in March and April, the tea and horse department is still quite lively, especially the tea merchants from all over the country will come to visit. After all, if you want to sell tea at a high price, it depends on your reputation.
Tea leaves can’t speak for themselves, and it’s impossible to brag for themselves, but tea merchants can. As long as they can bring the tea they grow to the imperial court and supply it to the royal family, then the tea will stand.
When the name of tribute tea comes out, why worry about high-priced customers?
The literati, inkmen, gentry, rich and wealthy all want to know how comfortable it is to be an emperor, but they certainly don’t have the guts to rebel, so enjoying the life of an emperor properly is the best choice.
The two guards obviously regarded Zhu Biao's car as a foreign tea merchant who came to meet him, and one of them stepped forward with a frown and said, "No horse-drawn carriages are allowed in front of the tea-horse office. Stop on the other side of the street, otherwise you will be beaten by Bingmasi, so don't blame me for not mentioning you!"
He has said this more than a dozen times. There are many restrictions on the basic necessities of merchants, food, housing, and transportation, but they are also more respectful. In addition, the current emperor has lifted some of their restrictions, which has caused some wealthy merchants from some places to come to Beijing. Son, I thought I was rich enough to reach the sky.
But I don’t know how deep the water in the capital is, and they have no roots and no bottom to swagger in the capital. If they meet that high-ranking official, then they are ready to be beaten to the bone.
After all, he was the benefactor who came to give the money, and the guard didn't say too much, but Zhao Huaian, who was in the car, jumped out of the carriage and frowned and said, "His Royal Highness is here, hurry up and ask someone to greet you."
"ah?"
The first reaction of the guards was disbelief. A cold yamen like the Tea Horse Department, not to mention His Royal Highness, has never been an official of the fourth rank or above in the four years since the founding of the country.
His eyes widened and he touched the saber at his waist, but he suddenly came back to his senses. If it wasn't for His Royal Highness, he would be found out later, and then he would be escorted directly to the Bingma Division. Going to the execution platform with the wine jug to watch the execution is considered venting.
But if this is His Royal Highness, the result after he touches the knife is that he will be punished instead of rewarded. Although he has not read any books, he still understands the principle of the two powers harming each other with the lesser, and immediately knelt down and clasped his fists: "The villain is going to report now, please wait a moment."
Zhu Biao, who was sitting in the car, was still looking at the detailed list of tribute tea from the palace over the years. He didn't need to understand everything, but he had to know some, otherwise the officials below would easily fool him.
According to the matter of the tea horse department, he could just summon the chief official to give orders, but thinking that although the tea horse department has little power in the officialdom, its nature determines that he is not small.
The sales of good tea still depend on the territory of Daming. Literati and scholars have a high pursuit of drinking tea and discussing Taoism. They are also the wealthiest group of people in Daming.
Again, it is too easy for the imperial court to earn money, because he has too many means of production and the monopoly of many necessities. The author must not take the influence of small ideas.
In fact, there is nothing wrong with this principle. In the countermeasures between Dong Zhongshu and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, there is a passage that says: "Those who are bestowed by the ancients will not eat from strength, and will not stay at the end. Those who are also accepted by the great should not take it." Small, agree with the sky. Husband accepts the big, and takes the small, the sky can't be enough, let alone human beings."
When Zhu Biao was still the son of King Wu, he was dragged by Song Lian to read it many times. He was in a high position, his family was rich and he enjoyed a generous salary.
There is nothing wrong with the truth. If an official can conduct business in an aboveboard manner, it will be terrifying and everything will be beneficial. The product no longer depends on whether it is good or bad, but on the rank and status of the official behind it.
The common people have also lost their choice. All industries are monopolized, commodity prices soar, the purchasing power of money declines, and inflation is severe. In the end, the people are struggling to survive...
This is also the reason why Zhu Biao has always been reluctant to intervene in the economy. He does not need to make any glass to do business. He can sell dung at sky-high prices.
Collusion between officials and businessmen has never been avoided, but as long as there are restrictions on the surface, then no matter how rampant they are, there is a bottom line. They will not compete with the people for profit. Not only the officials who are restricted, but the royal family are also restricted. The two check and balance each other.
Of course, the current situation naturally cannot talk about the mutual checks and balances between the officials and the royal family. The founding emperor Taizu is alive and strong enough to suppress everything.
In this era, a stalwart king does have the prestige and strength to suppress the world, whether it is the first emperor Hanwu Mingzu, they are the real emperors.
It's just that they will die, and after death, they are just a memorial tablet, and they can no longer talk about the supremacy in the world, so maintaining the rules of the system is more important than anything else.
But Zhu Biao's luck lies in the fact that he is Zhu Yuanzhang's son. He is Zhu Biao. Undoubtedly, Lao Zhu's body can still fight for another 20 or 30 years. According to current estimates, he should be able to take charge of Ming Dynasty after Lao Zhu leaves. Year.
This is an opportunity that Qin Huang, Han and Wu did not have. Neither of them can be regarded as the founding ancestors. The inherent power in the country is unavoidable, and it is difficult to give up, because they are already too deeply involved with the country and the royal family, and they share weal and woe. Emperor Qin, Han and Wu were not good at killing people ruthlessly.
Moreover, both of them are not very friendly to their heirs, and their attitude of suppression in the late period is quite obvious, and the prestige of the prince is not too strong.
The situation of Zhu Biao is indeed very different from them. Even though the founding nobles are powerful, but the founding emperor was built in the real sense of the first commander of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, whether it is Xu Dachang Yuchun or not.
Moreover, Lao Zhu is ruthless, and can kill all forces that interfere with the country. In a few years, Zhu Yuanzhang will be able to train the rebellious nobles into hawks and dogs that suit his wishes, and their minions will never hurt him again. Owner.
…………
(end of this chapter)