"Wrong calculation?"
The officer was stunned. He looked at him, shook his head and said with a smile, "No, the calculation is not wrong. The provincial governor has ordered that from now on, the merchants of the Qi Kingdom will be treated the same as those of the Jing Kingdom. Your tax will be calculated according to the new system, no more and no less."
The wealthy-looking man was rooted to the spot.
The merchants of the Qi Kingdom will be treated the same as those of the Jing Kingdom?
Who are you kidding?
Even if you want to deceive me, you don't need to use such a poor excuse. This is the Jing Kingdom. How can the people of the Qi Kingdom and the people of the Jing Kingdom be treated the same? I'm afraid that they will arrest me for tax evasion as soon as I pay the tax …
I haven't been here for half a year, but the officials of Shuzhou have become more and more evil!
He looked at the official, his legs went soft, and he knelt on the ground with a thud. With snot and tears running down his face, he cried, "Sir, I beg you to let this lowly one go. This lowly one has an eighty-year-old mother and an eight-year-old child. If anything happens to this batch of goods, this lowly one's family will have nothing to eat this winter …"
The officer's eyes were also a little wet when he saw him crying bitterly.
He also had an old mother to support, a little child to feed, and a squandering wife to spend money like water. For the sake of his mother's cooking, his child's snacks, and his wife's perfume …
For the sake of this month's performance, for the generous bonus, for the sake of a fat New Year, he had to clench his teeth and hold on even if he had to talk until his mouth broke!
They were all in the same boat. Why should they make things difficult for each other?
He helped the merchant of the Qi Kingdom up and said seriously, "You don't believe me, right? Come, come, I'll take you to see the notice. It's written clearly on the notice. If you still don't believe me, I'll take you to see the county magistrate and let him tell you personally …"
"Provincial Governor Chen is really a bastard!"
The officer cursed in his heart when he led the merchant of the Qi Kingdom to see the notice.
If it wasn't for the strict order of the provincial governor, he should be sitting at the door of the household and basking in the sun instead of arguing with the merchant of the Qi Kingdom here …
Provincial Governor's Manor.
Chen Chong, who was flipping through the files, suddenly sneezed. Third Miss Chen, who had just left the room, walked back in and reminded him, "The weather is slowly turning cold. Second Brother, wear more clothes. Don't catch a cold … "
Chen Chong put down the file and nodded with a smile. "I understand …"
At the same time, the low-ranking official led the merchants of the Qi Kingdom out of the county yamen.
The petty official looked at the merchants of the Qi Kingdom and said, "This is Shuzhou. Thanks to His Royal Highness Gyeong Of Silla's benevolence, he knows that it's not easy for you to travel far and wide. That's why he gives you such preferential treatment. You won't get such good policies anywhere else."
"Big Brother Official, I'm really sorry. I've gauged the heart of a gentleman with my own mean measure …" The merchant of the Qi Kingdom looked at the official apologetically and apologized.
At this moment, he finally let out a long sigh of relief in his heart. He even felt a little light under his feet.
The Fringe was no longer so chaotic. Shuzhou was no longer plagued by bandits. Even the officials of the Jing Kingdom treated the merchants as human beings and gave them so much convenience. Wouldn't their business get smoother and smoother in the future?
"It's a small matter, a small matter …" The low-ranking official looked at him and asked, "Where are you going on this trip?"
The wealthy-looking man smiled and said, "We're going to Qing 'an Prefecture first. When the time comes, we'll turn to the water route to the capital and sell these goods. Then, we'll buy some things from the Jing Kingdom and bring them back to earn some hard-earned money …"
Many merchants of the Qi Kingdom made money in the same way as them. They sold their goods at two different places and earned a price difference. The price difference was not to be underestimated. If they were lucky, the profit from this trip would be enough to make up for two whole years of their stay in the Qi Kingdom.
They were in the cloth business in the Qi Kingdom. Relying on the secret dyeing recipes passed down in their family, they had accumulated some family wealth. Initially, their business in the Qi Kingdom was doing well. However, ever since the high-grade cloth from the Jing Kingdom flowed into the Qi Kingdom and started to lead the fashion, their business was greatly affected.
Left with no choice, they could only become a traveling merchant. They traveled from the Qi Kingdom to the Jing Kingdom, passing through prefectures and prefectures. Fortunately, their cloth was unique. Even if they brought it back to the Jing Kingdom, it would still be extremely popular. In the Jing Kingdom, they also had regular business partners.
"It's not easy for you to travel all over the country …" The low-ranking official looked at him and said, "Since you'll be leaving in two days, it's fate that we've met. Why don't I treat you to a meal?"
The merchant of the Qi Kingdom looked at the low-ranking official and suddenly felt tears welling up in his eyes.
When they were doing business in the Qi Kingdom, the officials wanted nothing more than to extract all the oil from their bodies and pay taxes. However, when they were in another country, not only did the government voluntarily help them lower their taxes, the officials even wanted to treat them to a meal …
Comparing the two, in this Shu Prefecture, he actually felt like he was at home …
He sniffed and looked at the low-ranking official. He said solemnly, "Don't, thank you for your kindness. I'll treat you to a meal. May I ask which is the best restaurant here?"
"How could I …" The low-ranking official shook his head and pointed diagonally across from the yamen. "That's it …"
The rich man raised his head and saw that diagonally across from the yamen, the words "Ru Jia Restaurant" were clearly visible on the plaque.
In a private room on the second floor of the Ru Jia Restaurant, the two men chatted for a long time after three rounds of wine.
The low-ranking official looked at the rich man and asked, "I heard from Brother Hu that you've come this time to buy cloth and clothing from the Jing Kingdom. May I ask, are these things only available in Qing 'an Prefecture and the capital?"
"That's not it …" The merchant of the Qi Kingdom shook his head and said, "Brother Nie, you don't know this. Although other prefectures sell these things, we need a lot of them. You can only buy them in the capital and Qing 'an Prefecture …"
The low-ranking official shook his head and said, "The one who doesn't know is you, Brother Hu. Let me put it this way. Whatever you can buy in Qing 'an Prefecture and the capital, you can buy it in Shuzhou. Whatever you can't buy in Qing' an Prefecture and the capital, you can buy it in Shuzhou!"
The merchant of the Qi Kingdom was stunned. He asked, "Why is that?"
"Of course it's because His Highness Gyeong Of Silla has come!" The low-ranking official waved his hand and said, "Let's eat first. When we're done, I'll show you around and you'll know …"
"Alright, Brother Nie, I'll drink to you first!"
"Cheers …"
…
After a while, the merchant of the Qi Kingdom stood at the western gate and looked at the crowd working in full swing. He asked in astonishment, "Brother Nie, what are you doing? Are you building the city walls?"
"This isn't building the city walls." The low-ranking official shook his head and said, "Look, this circle of unbuilt buildings are all shops and workshops. They'll be finished in another two months. The higher-ups have said that this will be a shopping mall in the future. There are shops selling cloth, clothes, restaurants, cloth shops, and inns …"
He looked at the merchant of the Qi Kingdom and said, "Even you can rent a shop here. There are merchants from all over the world here. If you want to buy something, you don't have to travel all the way from Shuzhou to the capital. Whatever the capital has, you can find here …"
"Is that true?" The eyes of the merchant of the Qi Kingdom lit up when he heard this.
For merchants like them, if they could skip the trip to the capital, they would not only save time and travel expenses, but they would also greatly reduce the risk. If they calculated it carefully, they could save more than half of their expenses.
Moreover, time was money. Saving time was making money. The time they had to go to the capital was enough for them to make several trips between Shuzhou and the Qi Kingdom.
The difference in profits between the two was several times!
Not only that, the government of the Jing Kingdom also allowed the people of the Qi Kingdom to open shops here. From the information he got from Brother Nie, it was obvious that Shuzhou encouraged and supported business. This was rare in other places. It was also a great attraction for merchants from all over the world.
If this "shopping mall" was built, with Shuzhou as the center, it would definitely be a place where merchants from the Qi Kingdom, Jing Kingdom, and Wu Kingdom would fight for. If they could open a shop here — it would be like making money sitting on the ground!
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