When it was time to arrive, after everyone had entered, Shopkeeper Li was the first to walk in, and the two men behind him each grabbed the handle of a door, and pulled it in hard, and the heavy ironwood door made a creaking sound, and finally closed with a bang, so cut off from the outside world.

At this time, on the fourth floor of the Taibai Building, there are more than ten tables here, and these tables are now full of people, one is about fifty years old, sitting on the east side, wearing a plain robe, looking at everyone and standing up with a smile, and arching his hand to everyone: "Everyone, the old man Zhou Zhenglin is polite. ”

Everyone got up one after another to salute back, "Master Zhou is polite!" ”

Zhou Zhenglin is one of the largest landowners in Suzhou, and he also won the lifting of people during the Apocalypse, in addition to owning more than 100,000 acres of fertile land near Suzhou, he also operates many businesses such as grain and oil, cloth, pawnshops, salt, tea, etc., the largest is his family's several large silk weaving workshops, employing five or six thousand workers.

The ancestors of the Zhou family have been officials for generations, and there are many relatives in the south of the Yangtze River, and the current Suzhou Mansion is his nephew. He is also very good at being a person, with the identity of a person, but whenever the literati hold a poetry meeting, he will participate in the fun, so he is quite famous, even if Chen Hongmi, the prefect of Suzhou, sees him and has to be called "Zhou Gong".

Zhou Zhenglin's sharp eyes slowly swept over everyone, and said, "Today's high meeting, I think you all understand the meaning. Since August, the governor of Yamen has set up a city management bureau and began to collect so-called management fees from merchants in Suzhou, and now many merchants are miserable, so the old man summoned everyone to discuss countermeasures......! ”

As soon as his words fell, several excited businessmen stood up and shouted, "What bullshit management fees? This is clearly collecting taxes and collecting business taxes! ”

"One and a half, it's appalling! The commercial tax once set by Taizu was only thirty taxes and one, and this city management was so unscrupulous! ”

"The imperial court has never set up any city administration, who gave them the right to do so?"

"It's not fair, we must not endure such oppression!"

Seeing that the scene was a little out of control, Zhou Zhenglin pressed his hands and said, "Everyone, please listen to the old man!" ”

After everyone calmed down, Zhou Zhenglin said loudly: "I didn't call you here this time to listen to your complaints, but to discuss a countermeasure and how to deal with this urban management bureau." ”

After finishing speaking, Zhou Zhenglin sat firmly on the seat and drank tea, his eyes seemed to be closed, just peeking on everyone's expressions.

The merchants below exchanged heads and ears for a while, and none of them were willing to pay this money, and although they were making money every day, they had to take out a tael of silver from their pockets, and none of them were willing to pay it.

After the merchants below exchanged glances with each other, a businessman with a rather elegant appearance stood up, but it was Chang Ning, the cousin of Chang Dengfeng, the magistrate of Kunshan. After Chang Dengfeng took office as the magistrate of Kunshan County, the chickens and dogs immediately ascended to heaven, and the children of the family rushed to buy fields, open shops and shops, and they were also not to be left behind in many money-making "trends".

Chang Ning shook his head and said: "Zhongcheng's move is to compete with the people for profit, don't you hear about the disaster of the Wanli Dynasty's commercial tax?" The envoy of the conquest is anxious for the spark, and the order is as dense as a cow's hair. The scoundrel is dead, and the winged tiger wolf is attached. My Suzhou Mansion is a rich place in the south of the Yangtze River, and it is not easy for you to do some business in the shopkeeper, if the Lord Zhongcheng opens a business tax, I am afraid that I will have to look at Shu, today I will levy ten articles, tomorrow will collect one hundred articles, and the day after tomorrow will levy one hundred taels, and then you will be ruined and killed on the same day, this move must not be. ”

The businessmen below agreed, and seeing that they were affirmed by everyone, Chang Ning stopped with a slight humility and gestured to everyone, and then a trace of coldness flashed in his eyes: "The young man of Zhongcheng is ambitious, and it is inevitable that he will be frivolous and careless, and he will take Ruan Dacheng, the remnant of the eunuch party, as the head of the city management, and do such a boiling act of public resentment. I propose that all businesses collectively strike the market as a sign of our indignation. Seeing the surging sentiment of the people, Lord Zhongcheng will definitely wake up, and the shopkeepers will be able to operate with peace of mind in the future. ”

"Yes, strike!"

"By the way, I want to show it to the government. We are not soft persimmons that can be poked at will, we are going to strike ......! ”

Everyone applauded, and they all said that the shopkeeper really became a strategy, and said to them that the businessmen jointly boycotted the market, which was a big killer.

In the Jiajing year, the imperial court had forbidden the minting of private money everywhere, but as a result, merchants everywhere jointly boycotted the market, and the goods soared, and the imperial court had no choice but to scrape the ban. In the Wanli year, the current Chongzhen year, whenever the government wants to collect taxes from merchants, as long as the merchants strike the market, the government will be helpless.

By the end of the Ming Dynasty, the industrial and commercial class had become extremely arrogant, the local economy was completely outside the control of the central government, and the imperial court was full of spokesmen for their interests. It can be said that the central "government" at the end of the year no longer has the slightest financial control over the local economy.

Zhou Zhenglin stood up again and said: "Okay, Chang Da's shopkeeper's words are very reasonable, we will choose a time to strike collectively, and all merchants need to work together to tide over the difficulties." During this period, no one is allowed to operate privately, otherwise he will be severely punished by the guild. I hope that after the market is dismissed, Lord Zhongcheng will hear the voice of the people and be able to turn back. ”

The proposal for a strike was almost passed en masse, and then the details of the strike were negotiated by the merchants.

After most of the merchants left, Zhou Zhenglin left a few large silk weaving workshop owners to meet the prefect Chen Hongmi.

"Zhou Gong, how is the discussion?" Chen Hongmi asked.

"Back to your lordship." Zhou Zhenglin bowed his hand to Chen Hongmi: "We have decided to start a strike in the near future. ”

Chen Hongmi's hand stroked his long hair and smiled: "It can only be like this, this time not only you gentry and businessmen will strike the market, but also the scholars who are full of scholars will strike together, I believe that the governor will definitely understand the local difficulties and close down the urban management bureau." ”

It seems that Chen Hongmi has notified Suzhou Fuxue to act together, and Zhou Zhenglin made a statement of gratitude and said: "Thank you Lord Chen for your great help." ”

Then he lowered his voice and said with a fierce look in his eyes: "My lord, Ruan Dacheng and those chengguan should die, our few families have already united two thousand mechanics, and when the time comes, we will take advantage of the chaos to kill them and burn their chengguan bureau." ”

Several other owners nodded and said, "These people really deserve to die, and not killing them is not enough to anger the people." ”

Chen Hongmian was not surprised at all, because this was how the tax supervisors were dealt with during the Wanli period and the Apocalypse.

He reminded: "The tax supervisors back then were not comparable to Ruan Yuanhai, but Ruan Yuanhai had a Tiance army behind him, do you have countermeasures?" ”

Zhou Zhenglin smiled and said: "This is the spontaneous behavior of the mechanics who can't survive, I don't believe that he dares to kill these unarmed mechanics." ”

Chen Hongmi nodded and said, "If these mechanics are injured or injured, this pension cannot be enough for them." ”

Zhou Zhenglin stretched out his five fingers and said, "Don't worry, my lord, a life is five hundred taels." ”