Section 190 Ransom Fee

Although Li Fengjie thought it was feasible, when he thought of owing such a huge amount of money, he couldn't help but shake his head again and again: "If you borrow it, you have to pay it back, plus interest, this is a lot of money."

"In a few days, it will be the day of the autumn levy. Harvest a little per acre, and it will be smoothed. He Chengzong said, "If the thief doesn't leave, I'm afraid that this autumn fu will also be in great trouble......"

This zuihou sentence touched Li Fengjie a little, everything in the local government must revolve around taxation, which is the most concerned issue of the imperial court. The thief will stay on Henan Island and not leave, and send people and horses to collect grain and silver every day, how to levy the autumn levy that begins in November? He Chengzong was right, as long as the autumn grain was levied, the hole of 300,000 taels of silver could still be filled.

However, these three hundred thousand taels are not xiǎo numbers after all. Thinking of having to bear this debt for no reason, Li Fengjie's mood was very unhappy.

This kind of thing that has no benefit at all weishenme is going to fall on his head, this group of Australians has a big appetite, and thinking of this, he decided to bargain with the Australians, at least one hundred and eighty thousand.

At the moment, he was noncommittal about Ho Chengzong's suggestion. Just let him step back first.

He Chengzong felt inexplicable, and the next day, Gao Ju came to visit and asked the governor how Zuihou made a decision. He continued to send Yan Xiǎo hat across the river to meet with the Australians in the evening.

"Your Excellency is noncommittal." He Chengzong said, "The adults didn't say yes, and they didn't say yes." ”

"I'll have to think about it." I hold aloft and beat haha. Since we don't say "may", we actually mean "cannot". Most of the governors still have bargaining thoughts in their hearts. He secretly sneered: This is called toasting without eating and punishing wine.

Sure enough, in the next few days, Li Fengjie raised troops in the city of Guangzhou, requisitioned the people, placed artillery, and put on a "decisive battle", which made everyone confused. He Chengzong also thought that he really wanted to "live and die with the city", so he couldn't help but feel anxious, and he was persuaded several times, but Li Fengjie was not salty and indifferent.

Gao Ju knew that the governor was making a show to the thieves outside the city, so that they would be timid, so that they could be relieved of the issue of ransom fees.

Sure enough, one day later, Li Fengjie was going to the lotus huājīng house again to continue the peace talks.

"My lord, if there is no explanation for this ransom fee, I am afraid that I will not be able to talk about it in the next place."

"You are a businessman, can't you buy as much as others offer?" Li Fengjie was very dissatisfied with this attitude of exaltation.

Gao Ju said respectfully: "My lord, it depends on what kind of goods it is, if it is a strange goods, of course, I will buy as much as he drives." ”

"Alright, alright. Go and tell the thief, "Three hundred thousand pieces of silver are too much for the city to take out." Let them subtract. ”

"How much do adults think it's ...... reduced?"

"Well, doesn't it depend on your ability?" Li Fengjie sneered.

"Yes, yes, I will do my best."

Originally, some of the elders called for the large-scale use of rockets to attack Guangzhou, which greatly killed the prestige of the Guangdong bureaucracy, but a group of veterans, including Wen Desi, vigorously opposed it, which was of course not for the purpose of "protecting cultural monuments" or the like, but that Guangzhou, like all Chinese cities at that time, was a city with brick and wood buildings as the main body, and the indiscriminate bombardment of a large number of Hale rockets was bound to cause large-scale fires. Maybe the whole city will be burned.

Guangzhou is one of the richest cities in China, and you can imagine how much wealth and how many useful human resources would be burned in a citywide fire. As a result, many wealthy business associations went bankrupt and failed, with unimaginable consequences. The traversers were unable to use the city for several years after the war.

Now, Li Fengjie's attitude has brought the idea of shelling Guangzhou to the surface again. Several veterans of the team demanded this "show of force".

He also probably felt the need to demonstrate their military might - seeing is believing, lest the bureaucrats hiding in the city lack an intuitive impression of the force of the traversers. The shelling of the southern city of Guangzhou was immediately approved. In order to avoid large-scale loss of life and property, the targets of the shelling were mainly the urban defense facilities in the southern city and the post station, reception hall, wharf and other facilities near the south of Mén

On the evening of 7 November, the Volcano Army fired more than 200 rockets from preset positions and artillery boats, completely burning down many defensive facilities near Mén due south, as well as post stations and reception halls. The officers and soldiers who guarded the south mén and the bravery fell into a great húnluàn. The rockets fired by the bombardment boats also concentrated on the majestic three-story castle tower on Mén due south. Under the concentrated bombardment of nearly 40 Hale rockets, the three-story brick and wood tower was soon caught in a raging fire that burned all night.

According to Chen Haiyang's order, several rockets were also fired at the deep government concentration blocks of Guangzhou City to show their might.

Li Fengjie spent a nightmarish night, when the dense rockets began to bombard the southern city, the official hall and the post station were on fire, and the city tower was burned, he thought that the thieves were about to attack the city. Hurriedly rushed to the southern city of Mén with some of his staff. However, before they could get there, the officers and soldiers who had fled from the southern city of Mén blocked the road. One by one, their faces were blackened by the fireworks, and one by one they panicked, and they even rolled and crawled through the streets, without the slightest concern for the officers who intercepted in front. It was easy to wait until the crowd was over, but he didn't dare to look ahead anymore - those terrible Australian fire meteors kept falling from the sky, and if they were smashed on the head, they would be over.

"Let's go, go back to Yamén," Li Fengjie hurriedly ordered. His own soldiers and family members hurriedly rushed back to the governor's yamén surrounded by others, and transferred 200 Fubiao soldiers for backup. Li Fengjie climbed the corner tower and looked in the direction of the south mén - the fire was blazing, reflecting half the sky, and he looked very frightened. A thought flashed through his mind, if the thief took the opportunity to break the city, he would immediately kill himself in the yamén.

At this moment, more than a dozen rockets pierced the night sky like meteors, flying straight into the deep area of the city, and from time to time landed in the streets and government offices, bursting into flames.

The water gongs were beating one after another on the street, and the brave men and the staff of the water society rushed to put out the fire in all directions, but fortunately, there were few rockets here, and the fire was thrown at the same time, so it did not cause more damage. But such a blow caused even greater panic.

Li Fengjie is not in the house, nor is he outside. The Grim Reaper who fell from the sky made him feel a great fear that he had never experienced before-as long as he hid behind the thick city walls, no matter what kind of golden iron horse outside, the bloody rain and bloody wind could not intrude on his head, but now the high city walls could not protect his life as in the past.

Fortunately, the thieves showed no signs of attacking, and after more than half an hour, the rocket attack stopped, and the fleeing officers, officers and soldiers bravely returned to the southern city to fight the fire.

On the second day of this attack, Gao Ju went out of the city and agreed to all the demands made by Wen Dehei.

As for the matter of raising money, Li Fengjie could not think about it, so he had to adopt He Chengzong's plan of "borrowing" -- we will talk about it after the current difficulties have passed.

The next day, He Chengzong went to Gao Ju's house and explained this method to Gao Ju. Gao Ju is the leading figure among the foreign merchants in the city, and his attitude can influence many people.

Exalted noncommittal. He raised his eyelids slightly, he couldn't imagine that He Chengzong could think of this method. The method originally prepared for Li Fengjie was also to start from "borrowing". However, the exalted loan is a charter, how to borrow, how to repay, and how much interest he has already calculated in xiōng. Yesterday, he was reluctant to say it immediately to his face, because he wanted to avoid suspicion -- in the eyes of the businessmen, the reputation of the government has not been very good, and if this loan is repaid one day, the peers will inevitably scold him for being "flattering" and make him famous.

Gao Ju has been thinking about how to make this suggestion to Li Fengjie, and now he has sent mén, of course, no better.

"That's 300,000 taels." Holding high and slowly knocking on the side of the coffee table with a fan, "No one has ever let go of such a large sum of money." ”

"Of course, so we must ask Gao Gong to contribute, know the reason, and ask all the merchants to work together. It will be easier for each household to share some. ”

Holding high and smiling slightly, He Chengzong's thinking is still the same as the government's "apportionment" and "persuasion". In fact, as long as the interest is large enough, you can borrow as much as you want. This Mr. He has not yet understood this reason. He deliberately took his attitude and said, "I'm afraid this matter will be difficult." ”

"I know it's hard, too. But is there any other way to raise these 300,000 taels now? He Chengzong smiled bitterly, "The thief's warship turns in the provincial river every day, and it is clear that if you don't give money, you will attack Guangzhou." This is also for the people of a city. ”

Gao Ju nodded: "I can save it." And he said, "If there is a solution, there will be a return." There must always be a charter: how to borrow, how to repay; How much interest will be paid and how much will it be for? Let's say it first, and see if it works? ”

"Borrow 400,000 - in addition to the ransom fee, you must also compensate for the loss of the Australian name, and you will get 20,000 or 30,000 silver. The thieves were very killed, injured and looted along the way, and the compensatory place also had to have some huā fees - zuihou is in the Jingli Palace, and it is indispensable to have some huā fees to avoid difficulties. He Chengzong sighed, "If you win the battle, it will be nothing more than a reward for the three armies, and there will be some expenses for cleaning up the aftermath on the ground." After losing the battle, the huā sales are really endless. ”

Since the fall of the Tiger Mén, 60,000 taels of silver have been spent on the treasury and the county treasury alone. However, the money lost was not only the appropriation from the feudal treasury, the "subsidy" from the merchants, the people and materials collected from the prefectures and counties, and the money from the townspeople......

How much silver was spent in this "Battle for the Defense of Guangzhou" is already a confused account. And Zuihou still has such a "ransom fee" of 300,000 yuan

Although He Chengzong did not know the famous saying "victory is always cheaper", he had an extremely full understanding that defeat is more huā money. It became more and more firm that he would later be a "master and a faction" or a "capitulation faction" rebuked by some Ming FQs.

Thinking about it, of course, the extra 100,000 yuan of these 400,000 li has various uses, but a large part of it must be a "false head", which is the benefit of the profits shared by officials at all levels. The money hasn't started to be borrowed yet, and the benefit account has been prepared. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel disdainful.

However, as long as it is profitable, and when the time comes, he can ensure that the principal and interest will be repaid, and he will not bother to care how this group of officials has to make money in the name of making money - if they are all as clear as water and as clear as a mirror, he will still do fart business.

"400,000, 500,000, let's not talk about it yet. It's just that there must be a clear explanation of how the interest on this silver is, how long the term is, how the interest is paid, and how to repay the principal, so that I can tell you about this matter below. ”

He Chengzong had already thought about this question: "The annual interest rate is three points." for one year. Repay principal and interest in a lump sum at maturity. ”

Gao said slowly: "Mr. He's charter, Gao can't say it." ”

He Chengzong secretly scolded "the xiǎo people who see profit and forget righteousness", but he had to ask for others at this time, so he had to ask patiently: "What about Gao Gong's opinion?" ”

"I don't have any 'seeing'," Gao Ju said, "borrowing money is not the official family to collect taxes and grain, you have to do what you say, borrowing money has to have a meaning of your love and my willingness." He coughed and cleared his throat, and a beautiful woman who was waiting next to him hurriedly stepped forward and knelt down, and both handed over an enamel colored phlegm box.

Holding up and spitting, he took the Australian color strip xiǎomáo towel from another maid, wiped his mouth, and took a sip of hot tea.

“…… The annual interest rate is three cents, and if there is such an interest rate of 300,000 taels to borrow, Gao himself wants to borrow it. ”

He Chengzong knew that this interest rate was too low, and he was secretly alert in his heart, and asked anxiously: "Gao Gong thinks that the annual interest rate is appropriate?" ”

"Don't hide it from your brother." Gao Ju said, "We are dismantling in the same industry, and in the off-season, we also have to pay an annual interest rate of two to two or four points." Now that it is the face of Lord Fujun, one point and eight points are indispensable. ”

Gao Ju went on to say his request: the term is one year, and only interest is repaid for the first half of the year; In the second half of the year, the monthly repayment will be made in six monthly installments. Pay it off by the 12th month.

It is said that it is borrowed for one year, but in fact, from the seventh month, the principal and interest must be repaid in installments. The actual interest is much higher than the repayment of principal and interest at maturity.

However, this condition is very suitable for the financial state of the government, and He Chengzong knows very well that it is impossible for the Guangdong government to come up with 470,000 taels of silver when it is due. It's easier to do piecemeal.

"This one makes." He Chengzong nodded, "But this matter still needs the approval of the army."

"This is natural." Nodding his head, he asked, "What will you pay back then?" ”

"Of course, I made up my mind in the autumn fu. A few cents per mu will be flattened. As long as Gao Gong went to tell the merchants like this, couldn't they still trust the province's land endowment as a guarantee? ”

Gao Ju sighed: "Brother He, you are really a scholar. To borrow money, one is to have a certificate in black and white, and the other is to have a mortgage as a guarantee. As you old saying, how can people be willing to take out money? ”

He Chengzong was at a loss for a moment, in his opinion, wasn't the governor's words enough? In this Guangdong Province, there are not many people who say a sentence of 10,000 sentences.

"The credibility of the governor is not enough?"

"Of course, but what about this credential?" Gao Ju saw that he was not enlightened at all, so he had to open his mind and say, "Lord Li has benefited the whole province and Li Shu, and there are many opportunities for the day, in case there are many things at the moment, and he forgets about this matter-you said that we must not hang all those who borrow money?" ”

He Chengzong was speechless. It is not unheard of as a person who is an official who pays his debts and does not count his words.

“…… Even if you have an IOU, you have to have some headlines. Gao Ju said with a smile, "One day Lord Li was promoted, and before the money was repaid, another adult was promoted, and he said: I didn't borrow this money, I don't care." Everybody has to hang themselves again. ”

He Chengzong knew that what Gao said was true, but the IOU was mortgaged. He was in a quandary. The governor of the government issued a loan, which is an unheard of thing, and if one or two of them are obtained by the imperial historian, Governor Li will definitely have to walk around without eating.

Gao Ju knew that he might not be able to take out this IOU, but fortunately, he had other plans.

"The governor has an IOU, which of course is the best guarantee. However, as long as there is a guaranteed item, it is sufficient. ”

The exalted mortgage is the salt citation. According to the total amount of principal and interest, some salt catties are added as transportation and marketing expenses as appropriate, and the merchant who borrows is paid as collateral at one time. Salt quotation is the most reputable securities in the hands of the government, and businessmen will never refuse to accept this as a guarantee.

"The salt can be used when it is in hand, and it can also be resold under sī, what if the illegal merchants take the opportunity to resell it?"

"It's not hard. As long as the salt is stamped with a mark: it can only be used after a certain year, a certain month, and a certain day - this date is the day when the final repayment is due. Gao Ju said, "When repaying, let everyone bring salt to exchange." ”

"It's a very good law." He Chengzong was convinced. There is indeed some way to exalt this. He Chengzong was not a corrupt scholar - otherwise he would not have been a close adviser to the governor, but he knew very little about the way of doing business. Hold it high and broadcast it a little bit to draw inferences. The two sides negotiated secretly for several hours, and finally an agreement was established.

The agreement was not drafted or written, but there were assurances to each other that the oral agreement would not be reversed. The agreed approach and conditions are:

First, the total amount of borrowings is 400,000 taels of Kuping silver; By holding up the head and soliciting businessmen to take loans.

Second, the annual interest rate is 1.8%, and only interest is paid in the first six months, and the principal is repaid monthly in the second six months. The principal and interest will be paid off after one year.

Thirdly, the loan shall be secured by an equal amount of salt issued by the governor of the government. Add an additional 3% discount. Salt lead on the stamped term. The amount of monthly repayment of principal and interest shall be paid to the governor on a monthly basis.

These three methods were told to Li Fengjie by He Chengzong after he returned. Li Fengjie heard that he used salt as collateral, and he said in his heart that this exaltation really had some ghost ideas, and he agreed to it one by one at the moment.

It will take some time to raise the silver, and Li Fengjie is afraid that he will be bombarded by the Australians with rockets again, so he ordered a temporary payment of 100,000 taels from the Fankuli first, which will be delivered by a special person, and sent to the camp of the Australians at night. Yan Xiǎo also went with him, and asked Wen and Chen for another three days, so that they could raise all the remaining silver.