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Volume Three: The Wind Rises in the Southern Kingdom Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Virtue and Benevolence

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    It turns out that this tall and thin man's surname is Kong Mingzhang, and he is a descendant of the sage Kong from Qufu, Shandong. At the beginning of this dynasty, the north experienced many years of war, and there were not even one household registration in ten, and there was a lot of open land.  However, Jiangnan and other places were not damaged by the war, and the economy was very prosperous. Especially the textile industry in Songjiang (near today's Shanghai) was very prosperous. There is a saying that "Songjiang cloth and quilts are half the world."  Since the textile industry in Jiangnan requires a large amount of cotton, and cotton is a crop that likes dryness and hates wetness, it is not very suitable for Jiangnan because of its abundant rainfall. More importantly, Jiangnan is densely populated, and large tracts of land are used to grow higher value-added crops.  For cash crops such as silkworms and tea, there is not a large amount of open land to grow cotton on a large scale.  After this dynasty defeated the Manchus, the large open land in the north became an important place for growing cotton. Due to the large demand for raw materials in the south, the price of cotton rose to an astonishing level, so that for the same acre of land, the income from growing cotton was  Four to five times the amount of food grown.  In this case, despite repeated orders from the imperial court, it was of no avail to ban the abandonment of grain to plant cotton. In the open land in the north, large cotton estates emerged that exported cotton to Jiangnan cotton textile mills. Due to the lack of population in the north after the war, cotton cultivation  Compared with food, which requires more labor force, in order to ensure sufficient labor force, a forced servitude system with strong personal dependence between serfdom and slavery emerged in these cotton estates. Later historians used the term  A very vivid vocabulary name - "Mianke" system.  In the beginning, the main source of cotton customers was prisoners of war or their families. However, as more and more manors appeared, the labor gap continued to expand. Those greedy manor owners began to buy or even directly force their neighbors to become cotton customers, and  Incorporate those small plots of land into your own estate.  The Kong family in Qufu is one of the best.  As time went on, a large number of large cotton estates with an area of ??tens or even hundreds of hectares appeared in the north. However, as the cotton estates expanded, new problems emerged: the impact of cotton, a single cash crop, on the land.  The consumption is very alarming. Often, after a few years of cultivation, a piece of land will become too barren to grow cotton. The manor owner often discards it or rents it to cotton farmers to grow corn, sweet potatoes and other crops that are not very demanding on the soil. Even so,  Its yield is also pitifully low.  By the end of the seventeenth century, the population in the north had greatly increased, and the expansion of cotton estates became extremely difficult.  More importantly, as cotton production continues to increase, the demand for cotton in the South has not grown rapidly. The unit price of cotton has gradually declined, and cotton estates have gradually become less profitable.  In 1693, there was a bumper cotton harvest in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. The output was 25% higher than in normal years. The nineteen largest textile giants and cotton merchants in the south united to release previous years' stockpiles and announced that  The purchase price of new cotton that year was only 50% of previous years. Under this heavy blow, countless small and medium-sized cotton estates and small cotton households in the north went bankrupt. Because the income from the sale of cotton was not enough to pay for freight and the wages of picking workers, many fields  The cotton was simply left unpicked and left to rot in the fields.  On both sides of the Yellow River, looking from a distance, the fields are white, full of cotton pods that have cracked after maturity. Later history books call it "the white terror of 1993!" In this case, the cotton manor in the north was  The owner had only two choices, either to leave the business of growing cotton, divide most of the land into small plots, rent it out to tenants, and grow food instead; or to expand the size of the manor, lower the unit price, and improve the relationship with southern cotton merchants and textile mills.  The power to game prices.  At this time, the war between Shun and the Khalkha Mongolian and Oirat Mongolian alliances broke out. It turned out that after the fall of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, a temporary power vacuum appeared on the Mongolian plateau. The Jungar people who emerged at this time completed the Khalkha Mongolian alliance.  The Kamongol and Oirat Mongols allied and tried to forcibly annex the Inner Mongolia area that was already under the control of Shun Dynasty, while Shun Dynasty immediately sent troops to prevent new threats from emerging on the grasslands.  As a result, during the periods of Xuanzong, Zhezong, and Wuzong, China was involved in a 70-year war with the rising Junggar tribe on the Mongolian grassland. It was not until the mid-18th century that Shuncai defeated the Junggar attempt and advanced his power.  to today's Xinjiang and Outer Mongolia regions, and on this basis the four protective offices of Anxi, Beiting, Shuofang and Zhangbei were established.  The new expansion war resulted in the acquisition of large tracts of open land, and the climate and soil conditions in a considerable part of these lands were very suitable for growing cotton. For these cotton plantation owners, it was like a life-saving straw falling from the sky.  These cotton estate owners, who had strong economic and political power, strongly supported the war and quickly established larger and more cotton estates on the occupied land.  For this reason, some historians in later generations simply claimed that the war with the Jungar people was instigated by the cotton plantation owners behind the scenes, and called it the "Cotton War".  The new manor requires a lot of labor, because local people and Mongolians who are familiar with the local conditions are not suitableYi, mainly bankrupt farmers from the Central Plains, became a very profitable trade. Thousands of men and women tied into strings with hemp ropes were escorted by human traffickers riding horses and camels.  The densely populated Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, and Henan went to the border areas to establish cotton estates one after another.  In this cruel journey, the loss rate of "cargo" is very alarming. About one-third to half of the people will die on the way, but the profit is still very amazing.  Human traffickers transport people and various tools, and return cotton, fur and other raw materials. The profits from one round trip are as high as 150% or even 200%, and the Kong family obtains huge profits from this dirty trade.  gold, and used it to establish Renyi Bank, one of the largest private banks in the Shun Empire.  Kong Zhang was grabbed by Chen Zaixing's arm and couldn't walk. He flung open his sleeves, pointed at the short and fat man opposite him, and shouted: "Fat Liu, you don't have to talk nonsense in front of the second-ranked man. No matter how black the Kong family is, how can we still do it?"  Are they worse than you Southern barbarians? Those cotton travelers are poor men with no roof over their heads and no ground under their feet. They will starve to death if they stay in their hometown. It is better to go to the border and at least have enough food and clothing. Our Kong family  Sending them there is also a matter of doing good deeds. Compared to the workshop and mine run by your Liu family, it's really hard work. A strong man in his early twenties will become a decrepit old man in as little as three years or as long as five years.  Then you kicked me out to beg for food on the street. You are not running a workshop here, you are clearly the flesh and blood grinding mill of the King of Hell. You, the Liu family, have earned all the dirty money, and you still have the nerve to criticize us. At least you are old enough to be in your own business.  You will live your whole life in your house, and you will not be exposed like your workers on the street!" "Bah!" The fat man named Liu scolded: "To do good deeds, there is a large area of ??land in the border area where we can't open up wasteland for farming, so why go to the cotton farm to work for others?  Work? Those cotton merchants who go to the frontier are tied tightly by you and only untie their hands when they need to relieve themselves. Are there any people in the world who are so virtuous and do good deeds? No matter how hard it is for our Liu family to recruit workers?  It¡¯s fair to say that one is willing to fight and the other is willing to suffer. You, the Kong family¡¯s sage family, are really good at facial skills passed down through direct lineage for thousands of years. It turns out that the fat man named Liu can say this.  , whose surname is Liu Mingqing, is from Songjiang, and comes from a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River. It has been one of the few weaving workshops in the south of the Yangtze River since the Chongzhen period of the previous dynasty. Its workshop is famous for its efficient management and mean treatment of the craftsmen. After more than two hundred years of operation, it has established a good reputation.  bank.  Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, these two families have been hating each other for a long time because of the cotton price issue. Later, the two families became richer and became richer, and they both entered the bank business. They were colleagues and enemies. They can be said to have been enemies for more than two hundred years.  When they met today, they were even more jealous. If Chen Zaixing hadn't been standing in the middle, the two of them would probably have fisted and started fighting.  "You two, you two, stay here, stay here!" Chen Zaixing was caught in the middle, pulling the two of them, and said with a smile: "I'm looking for you two today, but it's for a big business. If you two continue to act like this  Go down, then I have no choice but to give up today!" Kong and Liu were scolding vigorously, but when they heard the words "big business", they immediately stopped.  The two of them have been in contact with Chen Zaixing for many years, and they know that this second-ranked man is not only good at the imperial examination, but also very good at doing business. He has created a large business in Myanmar in a few years, and his wealth is probably not less than one million. He said that he is "big".  I'm afraid it's not a lie.  Both of them are businessmen. As long as they make money, even if the enemy who killed their father is in front of them, they can still greet them with smiles, not to mention a little bit of lip service.  Thinking of this, Kong Zhang was the first to let go of his hand and snorted coldly: "Today, for the sake of the second best man, Kong will not be as familiar with you as a southern barbarian!" "Hmph!" Liu Qingyang snorted coldly.  , said: "If it weren't for the sake of the second place, I would definitely look good with you, a hypocrite!" Chen Zaixing hurriedly smoothed things over and said with a smile: "You two have been here for so long, I'm afraid you are a little hungry. I'm in the house.  We have some wine, why don't we go in and have a few drinks together before we talk about business?" After saying that, he extended his hand to invite me.  Liu and Kong followed Chen Zaixing into the house. Chen Zaixing ordered the maid in Luming Pavilion to present wine and food, and the three of them drank for three rounds.  Chen Zaixing saw that the faces of Liu and Kong were getting softer. He knew that it was time to speak, so he made a gesture first. The maid on the side understood the meaning and quietly retreated. Only Chen, Liu and Kong were left in the room.  Three people.  Chen Zaixing poured himself a glass of wine, stood up and paid respect.  Liu and Kong stood up quickly, but Chen Zaixing motioned them to sit down and said: "You two, I'm inviting you today. It's not for anything else, but I have a business to do, but I'm short of money. I want to ask you two."  I'd like to lend you some." After saying that, he drank a full glass of wine and said with a smile, "Chen, please do it first!" Kong Zhang was impatient and wanted to overpower his old rival, so he quickly raised his head.  Then he drank all the wine in the glass and said with a smile: "The second place is serious. If it is a matter of money circulation, why bother? Send a servant to my shop with your famous thorn, which is one hundred thousand taels."  Silver, alsoIt was only a matter of five or six days.  "As he spoke, Kong Zhang's face was full of pride. At that time, a middle-class family could only earn a hundred years of silver in one year. He could take out one hundred thousand taels of silver with just one mouthful. No wonder he was so proud. Liu Qingyang thought but  Much more deeply, he also knew about Chen Zaixing's reputation in Hanjing. He was a bachelor of Hongwen Hall in his early twenties, and his teacher was a famous official in the court. He was almost certain of his bright future, but this man could give it up.  Just like me, I ran to Burma and built a million-dollar fortune in just five years. This kind of person actually served me a drink and even greeted me personally outside the courtyard. Is it just for a mere hundred thousand taels of silver?  Thinking of this, Liu Qingyang carefully took a sip of the wine in the glass, put it back on the table, and said with a smile: "Why don't you tell me the business you want to do and the amount required, and let me listen to see if it is within the reach of a small man?"  Talk again!  " Chen Zaixing glanced at the fat man in front of him with admiring eyes. People who have dealt with Houde Bank said that this manager of the Liu family really has an abacus hidden in his hair. He is always scheming people and is determined not to suffer any losses. Chen Zaixing  Putting the wine glass back on the table, he smiled and said, "You all know where I earned this family business, right?  Liu and Kong thought to themselves: Everyone knows that although Chen Bangyan comes from a prominent family in Nanyang, he prides himself on farming and studying. His family is not wealthy. Most of the current family wealth is earned by mining in Myanmar.  Come. The two looked at each other and replied in unison: "The second-ranking man made his fortune in Myanmar.  "    "good!  Chen Zaixing nodded and asked, "Let me ask you a question, how has your business been in the past few years?"  " Kong Zhang was stunned when he heard this, and after a moment's hesitation he replied: "To be honest, domestic business has not been easy to do in the past few years. The cotton, wool and other products in the west have been exhausted, and there is not much free time.  The Russians were secretly supporting the Tatars to cause trouble. The freight was so expensive that many cotton farmers and herders simply stopped growing cotton or raising sheep.  Although our bank is not directly engaged in these businesses, it is difficult for them and we will not be able to survive sooner or later.  "Speaking of this, Kong Zhang sighed, glared at Liu Qingyang across from him, and cursed: "It's all the fault of those barbarians who opened factories in the south for keeping the price down!  When the time comes, we people in the north will no longer raise sheep or grow cotton, and we will see how you open factories.  " Liu Qingyang sneered and said, "If you don't raise sheep or grow cotton, of course someone else will. Even if you don't grow it, there will naturally be ships of wool and cotton shipped to the dock.  Are you worried that you won't be able to buy anything when you spend your free money?  joke!  " "Calm down your anger, calm down!  Seeing that Kong Zhang was about to jump up, Chen Zaixing hurriedly reached out to stop him. When he calmed down a little, he turned to Liu Qingyang and asked, "Brother Liu, how is your business over there?"  " Hearing Chen Zaixing ask himself, Liu Qingyang's face became bitter, and sighed: "Hey, my business is getting harder and harder every year. The poor people in the north of the country weave their own cloth, and the cloth they produce is  It is rare to sell, but foreign goods from outside are flooding in. A few years ago, the foreign devils in Nanyang imposed heavy taxes on my Dashun goods, and the market there lost a large part of the workers' wages.  But it has increased by a dollar in a few years.  Alas, this business is out of business!  Kong Zhang sneered and said, "It's strange that you still give workers extra wages. It's going to snow in June!"  " Liu Qingyang glared at Kong Zhang fiercely, wanting to say something, but then sighed and said: "Who is willing to give those poor guys money for processing? It's just that the price of rice has been rising in recent years. This spring, Hanking  A bushel of brown rice has already cost two to five cents.  No matter what, the wages paid out must be enough to keep the workers fed and strong enough to work!  Alas, this is all the fault of the imperial court. The Thai rice that arrives in the port is only one or two or seven dollars, but the princes in the imperial court say, "If we import foreign rice, we are afraid that the grain will be cheap, hurt the farmers, and harm the country's foundation!"  ¡¯, a full 50% tariff was added to achieve such high food prices.  How can small farmers have so much surplus grain to sell? As a result, they end up being cheaper than those big grain farmers. All this money comes from us!  " Speaking of this, the fat on Liu Qingyang's face trembled. It was obvious that he was in extreme pain at this time.
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