"Six million taels ......" Zhu Cihong sighed, his face unbearable, "It's all people's fat and people's ointment!" The palace is going to be benevolent, and it will soon issue an order to exempt the three salaries and the additional payment, but now it has first levied an extra few million salt taxes, isn't it too undeserved? ”

Zheng Senzhengse, who was found by Zhu Cihong as a trustee, said: "It is precisely because His Royal Highness the junior brother wants to exempt the three salaries and the additional payment, that he should charge a little more salt tax. Only the salt tax can make up for the deficit of several million a year after the exemption of the three salaries! ”

"That's right." Zhu Cihong nodded solemnly, "It seems that this salt tax still has to be collected, but will the people not be able to eat salt because of the salt tax of millions of taels?" ”

"Probably not," Zheng Sen glanced at a few big salt merchants, "Will you sell salt at a higher price?" ”

"No, absolutely not!"

"The price of salt on the market has not risen for a penny!"

"The price of salt can fall a little ......"

Zhu Cihong nodded and said, "Since this is the case, then the palace will reluctantly accept the salt tax of 6 million taels this year."

As for the two Huai Salt Administration, including the Imperial History of Salt Inspection, all matters such as salt administration, salt industry, and anti-smuggling were all handed over to the jurisdiction of the Salt Industry Association, and the Salt Industry Association was jointly managed by the four major general merchants and a general merchant appointed by the palace. The five major salt merchants were all granted the status of imperial merchants and given the status of four official ranks, which were directly under the jurisdiction of the Generalissimo of the Fu Army, and they had the right to ask for the palace and submit the recital.

The officials and salt officers of the two Huai Salt Administration Divisions are also responsible for dismissal or retention by the Salt Industry Association. Be careful not to make a mess as much as possible.

In addition, the palace also chartered the Salt Industry Association to recruit 5,000 salt people, who could be equipped with armor and firearms, just like the official army, to detect illegal salt. However, the captured salt barons shall not be lynched by the Salt Industry Association, and must be escorted to the Huai and Yang governments for trial and disposal. ”

"Thank you for your great grace!"

"Thank you for the grace of the prince!"

"Grass people knock on the grace of heaven......"

Well, the tax has risen tenfold, and the four salt bosses still have to thank God!

If Chongzhen saw this scene, he would definitely believe that his son was really possessed by Emperor Taizu Gao......

However, these four salts are not pretended, they are truly grateful to Zhu Cihong. Because Zhu Cihong not only collected taxes with grace, but also contracted the Lianghuai Salt Administration to them.

This is truly a great grace!

Because the two Huaiyan political yamen themselves are bottomless officials, up and down the pit, that is not a gold-swallowing beast? After serving as an official in the Yanzheng Yamen for a few years, which one didn't make a lot of money? There are so many officials in the salt administration, the big guys are greedy together, and the small ones are greedy for the big ones, which year are not greedy for five or six million?

If the salt merchants were to take over the salt administration, the annual cost of one million taels would be skyrocketing. And if this million taels are spent, it will have the effect of a million taels.

And the original salt administration yamen, in fact, the imperial court spent money to hire people to help with corruption and smuggling salt - who can commit illegal salt on the ground of Lianghuai, who has not made money in the salt government yamen?

"Arise, all of you, and give your seat." Zhu Cihong smiled and gave a seat to the four salt merchants who had become imperial merchants, and then ordered left and right, "Xuansu old rice come." ”

Su Laomi is the fifth general merchant that Zhu Cihong wants to arrange to enter the Huaiyang Salt Merchants Association!

In the past few months, he has been in charge of the gold and silver that Zhu Cihong brought out of Beijing together with Soy Sauce Huang, Huang Dabao, Wu Sanmei and others. The management is quite good, not only the income and expenditure accounts are clear, but the amount of gold and silver lost in the process of running away is also very small.

"This is Su Sheng, the word is shengzhi, and Su Laomi is his nickname."

Su Laomi was soon announced to Zhu Cihong, and after the salute, he was introduced by Zhu Cihong to the four Hui Gang salt generals.

"He is an emperor who has followed the palace since Beijing, and he has been managing money for the palace, and he is the confidant of the palace."

Confidant, take care of it in the future......

The four salt presidents all cast flattering glances.

"In the future, he will work with you to manage the salt industry for the palace!" Zhu Cihong then said, "But he is not the Qincha of this palace, in the salt merchants' association, the five of you are all on one side, and he is not capable of taking care of you." Do you have any requirements, hand over the fold directly to the palace, you can also ask for it, got it? ”

"The Ministers Know ......"

Zhu Cihong nodded, "There is one more thing I want to tell you, that is, in the future, the tax package of the two Huai salt industries does not need to be untied." ”

The so-called unpacking is the unpacking of the treasury to the household.

"Don't solve the library?" Wang Wanchun was stunned, "Where to send it?" ”

Zhu Cihong smiled: "You salt presidents are also engaged in union tickets and loans, right?" ”

The so-called meeting ticket is the predecessor of the silver ticket, and its role is remittance. However, there is no professional money bank and ticket number, and it is usually run by powerful wealthy businessmen.

As for lending, it is a common means of accumulating wealth in wealthy families, but most of them are part-time, and there are basically no professional lending firms.

"Back to the Chitose Lord, we will indeed make a membership ticket, and we will also lend, but we will not release the money ...... print."

"Hehe," Zhu Cihong smiled, "This palace knows that you are all good businessmen with a conscience, so I want to open another way for you to make a fortune." ”

He paused, "You have to manage money for the palace, for the court, and for the officials and businessmen in the world who can trust you...... The specific livelihood includes depositing, lending, remitting, exchanging money, and being appointed by the imperial court to mint coins!

In order to do a good job in these transactions, the Salt Merchants Association should open a Salt Merchants Bank below! The four of you and Su Laomi each hold 20% of the shares. The commercial capital of the Yanshang Bank was set at 3 million taels, and each of them contributed 600,000 taels.

In the future, the salt tax of the two Huai was deposited in the Salt Merchants Bank, and when the imperial court needed money, it would be withdrawn with a meeting ticket. The silver deposited in the Salt Merchant Bank will only receive five cents of annual interest, and as long as you can pay for it, you can use it to earn interest.

To this end, the Yanshang Bank should also set up a head office vault in Nanjing, and store enough silver taels for use. Four salt chiefs, what do you think of this palace's proposal? Can this salt merchant bank buy and sell? ”

The four salt merchants were all in shock, and they couldn't even speak at once!

Prince Zhu is really good at doing business! Not only did he win the profits of the salt industry, but he also had to get involved in the lending business of the salt merchants in Huaiyang - this is another big deal! All the salt merchants in Lianghuai were lending, and the total amount of money used for lending was 20 million or 30 million taels. However, there is no "bank" that takes care of deposits, loans, foreign exchange, exchange, and coinage appointed by the imperial court, and the trading of this "bank" seems to have a lot to offer!

Prince Zhu, who was a financial practitioner in his previous life, certainly knows the importance of the banking industry to the development of the capitalist economy!

However, he has no plans to open a household bank at present, because the banking industry sells credit, and the Ming court is notoriously poor! In the Chongzhen Dynasty, it is even more difficult to make ends meet, and any corrupt official is richer than the imperial court, who dares to deposit money into the household bank?

And who will manage it after opening the account bank? Let the corrupt officials go or let the gentlemen go? Neither of them seems to be able to manage the bank well......

Although in theory the banking industry is the lifeblood of the state and should be firmly controlled by the imperial court, in practice it is not possible at all. Forcing the establishment of a household bank is nothing more than an additional yamen that burns money and accelerates the consumption of the rather limited financial resources of the Ming court.

If Zhu Cihong wants to make a difference in the southeast, he must develop a financial system.

So after thinking about it again, Zhu Cihong decided to push a commercial bank first! Yanshang Bank is just one of them. After meeting Zheng Zhilong, Zhu Cihong will also promote the establishment of Haishang Bank.

Of course, Zhu Cihong did not interfere in the operation of these two banks. Su Sheng is actually his white glove in the Salt Merchants Bank - the 200,000 taels that Su Sheng put into the Salt Merchants Bank were actually taken out by Zhu Cihong. And his salt industry general businessman is actually in charge of Zhu Cihong.

The reason why he wanted to use "white gloves" was because Zhu Cihong did not want the Salt Merchants General Association and the Salt Merchants Bank to evolve into two yamen.

And Zhu Cihong's other imperial merchant soy sauce Huang Huangjiang will become his white gloves in the Maritime Bank.

In addition, the headquarters of Yanshang Bank and Haishang Bank are to be located in Nanjing, which is right under Zhu Cihong's nose. Nanjing will also develop into the financial center of Daming in the future......

After taking control of Nanjing, a financial center. Zhu Cihong also planned to open a number of ports and commercial ports along the Yangtze River, or special zones, to gradually develop into centers of industry, commerce, and foreign trade, and of course to firmly control them.

With a financial, industrial and commercial center, and a foreign trade center in hand, Zhu Cihong's imperial court would no longer be short of money.