The two Huai salt benefits are great, known as "the two Huai salt tax is the world's first".

Yangzhou Xiaguan is close to the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the most prosperous, where the industry and private business transport, there are often thousands of ships every year.

The two Huai salt envoys and the imperial history of the salt patrol are all here, and most of the Jin merchants and Hui merchants live here, which is convenient for them to have more opportunities to contact with the salt patrol officials.

When the news of the crown prince's northern tour of Yangzhou came, the salt merchants, who had been frightened for more than a year, suddenly exploded.

After the prince supervised the country in Nanjing, a series of reforms in tax administration had already made the salt merchants vigilant, and they all felt that the prince would not let go of the fat meat of the salt industry.

When the Northern Patrol Brigade entered Yangzhou City, Zhu Cihong had already heard the noise of gongs and drums outside the city, firecrackers sounding in unison, and the sound of chanting Chitose one after another.

Zhu Cihong exclaimed: "Yangzhou people are so enthusiastic, it is really a treasure of feng shui!" ”

When he was remembering the "Ten Days of Yangzhou" in history, Li Hu hurriedly came and reported: "Your Highness, I just got the news that the two Huai salt transport envoys committed suicide by throwing themselves into a well yesterday, and two salt merchants also ......hanged themselves at home."

Zhu Cihong was puzzled: "Huh? How did you commit suicide? ”

Li Hu replied: "Listening to the report of the intelligence officers, after they heard that Your Highness had been to the salt farm, they were so frightened that they committed suicide on the same day. ”

Zhu Cihong couldn't help but have black lines on his face, and said a little speechlessly: "They are quite happy." ”

The officials accompanying him were also speechless, Prince Tianwei, everywhere he passed, the officials trembled, all feared, and it was normal to be scared to death one or two.

Not long after, Sun Yingyuan, the Jingwu Bo stationed in Yangzhou, brought a group of well-dressed Yangzhou officials and a large group of salt merchants in brocade clothes to the honor guard.

Sun Yingyuan bowed: "Minister Sun Yingyuan, respectfully invite His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Jin An!" ”

"The minister patrols the salt imperial history Zhang Min, and the county commander Li Shang ...... the county"

"Get up, please!"

Zhu Cihong got up and got off the guard of honor, helped Sun Yingyuan up, and frowned slightly: "Why is Yangzhou so an official?" What about the people who transported the salt to the Yamen? ”

Sun Yingyuan smiled embarrassedly and said: "Your Highness doesn't know, the officials of the two Huai Salt Transport Envoys, such as Yuntong, Yundeputy, Yunju, and Promotion, all hanged themselves at home last night, and three salt merchants also hanged themselves, and their families hurriedly buried them in the morning......

"Suicide in fear of sin?"

Zhu Cihong was speechless again, the funeral was done so neatly, afraid that the palace would not leave them with a whole corpse?

Sun Yingyuan replied: "It should be a suicide in fear of crime, and the Yangzhou branch of Jinyi Wei has begun to investigate." ”

Zhu Cihong swept around the Yangzhou officials with fat physiques and fair skin, ignored their frightened expressions, and suddenly said: "What about the eunuch in Yangzhou, why didn't the palace see him?" ”

Everyone looked left and right, and someone said depressedly: "I saw Gonggong Han coming to greet him just now, why is it gone in the blink of an eye?" ”

At this moment, I heard a great chaos on the other side of the moat, and some officers and soldiers shouted at the top of their voices: "Oh no! Someone jumped into the moat! ”

Just listen to "Poof! With a few sounds, some officers and soldiers jumped into the cold river water and pulled the man who fell into the water up.

"It's Gonggong Han!"

Seeing the appearance of the rescued person, the faces of several officials who were familiar with the eunuchs in Yangzhou changed greatly, and even this old eunuch who covered the sky with one hand was so frightened that he committed suicide.

Zhu Cihong looked at Gonggong Han, who was drenched in soup, and frowned: "Why did you commit suicide?" ”

The eunuchs of Yangzhou not only managed the salt affairs, but also procured valuables for the court, reconnoitred the social situation, and were loyal servants of the emperor, but most of them loved money and looted a lot of people's fat and ointment.

Eunuch Han knelt on the ground and trembled, trembling: "The slave and maid are corrupt and pervert the law, and they are ashamed of the royal family, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is touring Yangzhou in the north, and the slave and maid know that they can't hide it, so they can only die and leave the whole body ........"

Zhu Cihong nodded and sighed, "You are honest." ”

Seeing the prince's tone, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and secretly said that there was still a turning point in this matter, and Eunuch Han was also relieved, but the next sentence made the officials and salt merchants in Yangzhou feel like they were in the ice cellar again.

I only heard Zhu Cihong say lightly: "Then as you wish, throw it into the moat and leave a whole corpse!" ”

After speaking, Zhu Cihong walked back to the guard of honor, beckoned, and the team continued to move forward and entered Yangzhou City, leaving only a group of officials and businessmen with frightened faces.

In the yamen of the prefect of Yangzhou City.

Zhu Cihong sat at the top of the hall, slowly glanced at the salt merchants, and said: "Since the forty-fifth year of Wanli, my dynasty has implemented the Gang Salt Law and implemented the monopoly of the salt industry, and you salt merchants have obtained hereditary arbitrariness. ”

The remaining few big salt merchants who were not hanged said repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes, we are grateful for the grace of the imperial court, don't dare to forget!" ”

Zhu Cihong said: "In this case, the salt tax stipulated by the imperial court is 626 yuan and 4 cents per quote, according to the ten outlines, each salt tax is 200,000 yuan, and each salt is 300 catties, and the annual salt output is 60,000 catties, and the annual salt tax due to the imperial court should be 13.28 million taels of silver!" But why did it only collect less than 1 million taels last year? ”

In the Ming Dynasty, one catty was equivalent to 596 grams now, the total amount was equivalent to 672 million catties now, and the imperial court salt tax revenue was: the retail price of a catty of salt in the Ming Dynasty was 0.3-0.4 taels of silver ("Continuation of the General Examination of Literature" volume 20, "Zhengyu Salt and Iron")

Now the question is, why did the imperial court's salt tax lose so much? The salt tax of 13.28 million taels of silver, which should have been received, can now only be collected by one-tenth of it.

The retail price is three taels of silver for one catty of salt, and 600 million catties is 180 million taels of silver, in addition to the insignificant compensation given to salt farmers (one salt for one stone of grain, less than five taels of silver), the imperial court should collect 13.28 million taels of taxes, and the remaining 160 million taels of silver are lost in salt tax.

Hundreds of millions of taels of silver a year, and the salt tax revenue is one million taels of silver, so it is surprising that the government only collects less than two pennies in taxes for such a pound of salt!

It is estimated that these silver coins have fed these salt merchants, and officials at all levels have plucked their feathers!

Zhu Cihong understands these truths, but he wants these deflated calves to say by themselves, what should I do?

Cold sweat broke out on the foreheads of several big salt merchants, and they all bowed their heads and were silent, not daring to touch their brows.

Zhu Cihong took a sip of tea and said lightly: "God has the virtue of a good life, and this palace is lacking today, I don't want to kill people anymore, as long as you honestly make up for the salt tax you owe in the past, this matter will be over." ”

"Your Highness, there are too many salt taxes owed, I'm afraid that they will go bankrupt!"

Several big salt merchants also cried and echoed with sad faces, feeling that the sky was falling.

Patrol Salt Yushi opened his mouth wide, and wanted to say something more, but saw Zhu Cihong wave his hand and said, "I have made up my mind, I don't need to say more!" ”

Zhu Cihong's gaze shot coldly, and the young and promising Salt Patrol Imperial Shi suddenly sweated profusely, and said continuously: "Yes, yes, just do what Your Highness wants!" ”

Zhu Cihong looked at the salt merchants and said coldly: "Before sunset tomorrow, the palace wants to see the silver, and a lot of it will be placed in this prefect's yamen!" ”

The salt patrol and the salt merchants withdrew, and they wiped the cold sweat on their foreheads one by one, and they all felt a sense of prostration.

The prestige of the crown prince makes people feel daunted, the pressure is heavier, and the tens of millions of taels of salt tax that have been in arrears for several years, how can this be made up!