In autumn, at the Tanggu City Horse Station, a long slippery carriage drove into the platform one after another. Now Daming's railroad has become a very hot industry. Capital from all walks of life flocked in - capital is certainly sufficient, otherwise how can capitalism be developed? Gold and silver from the Old World flowed in through unequal trade, while gold and silver from the New World were plundered to the Ming Empire.

And these gold and silver were not buried in the backyard and settled, because the rich people of the Ming Empire basically did not have to worry about their net worth by the officials. Because Chen Dexing did not build a traditional Chinese-style bureaucratic centralized empire. Rather, it was a state based on local autonomy dominated by the nobility (mainly minor nobles) and the gentry (mainly merchants), with a central and local decentralization. Merchants with gentry status are voters, and if they are bullied by officials, they can go directly to the local councilors. The kind of county order and prefect who broke the door were in the Ming Dynasty, and there was no basis for existence at all.

In addition, most of the wealthy merchants of the Ming Dynasty now live in the "Shang Market", which is the area with the "city" as the administrative unit. Except for "Beijing" and "Jiangdu", most of the commercial markets in Daming are the world of businessmen and gentry. Because the nobles in the Ming Dynasty did not have a public office, they would generally live in the countryside and run a manor. It is not likely to run to live in the "commercial market".

Therefore, the councils and political power of the "city" were usually in the hands of the merchants. They naturally adopt various systems and regulations for the protection of private property. It is quite safe to store assets in these "commercial markets", so these "commercial markets" have become gold absorbers to attract capital and businessmen. In the autumn of the sixth year of Tiandao, Tanggu City, which has only been established for seven or eight years, is already a very prosperous emerging city.

Chen Dexing sat in the luxury carriage provided by the Tanggu Municipal Government, just looking at the bustling night scene outside.

He was now sitting in a very luxurious carriage, and I don't know which rich man he borrowed it from. I saw that the carriage was inlaid with gold and jade, and the engraved transparent glass produced by the Ming Dynasty was installed on all sides. It is pulled by eight horses with a pure white head with high flower feathers on their heads. There are two rows of seats facing each other in the car, and there is a desk in the middle. The seats were covered with fluffy black fur, which I don't know what animal it had been stripped from. On the table were cups of tea and snacks, and the tea was made by the white slave girl named Natalie. Of the more than a dozen white female slaves that Chen Dexing bought that day, she was the only one who stayed. Now he knelt next to the desk and looked at Chen Dexing with affection. A few small snacks are made in the accompanying imperial dining room. I was just brought into the car by Mrs. Yang. In addition to Yang Po'er and Natalie, Chen Dexing, Li Cuixian and Baoyin were in the car. The five people sitting in the car didn't look crowded at all.

It was already dark outside, and on both sides of the street stood wooden poles used to hang lanterns. Dressed in a black robe, he admired the horizontal knife and hung a lit lantern. This was not hung to welcome the arrival of the Ming Emperor, but as a means of illuminating the market at night. Martial law was temporarily imposed on the roadside, and they were all Guards soldiers carrying six-year-style flintlock muskets. There were also some merchants who knelt down on one knee to greet them, and most of them were Han Chinese. Some also brought their families or white slave girls. There are still some horse-drawn carriages parked on the side of the road, I wonder if it is the car of these merchants?

The shops and restaurants on the street are brightly lit. The windows, whether papier-mâché or glass-inlayed, were closed, and curtains were drawn. However, you can still see the crowd inside.

Chen Dexing's motorcade drove along the stone road, with ringing bells all the way – most of the markets had a rule that vehicles and horses, mules, and donkeys had to hang bells when entering the markets. At the same time, a series of rules must be observed, and there is a special patrol to direct and manage the passage of people and vehicles, and there is a special carriage and horse road for vehicles and horses to pass.

In short, these autonomous merchant cities were well managed......

Chen Dexing turned his head and smiled at Yang Po'er opposite: "Po'er." What is the name of the governor of this Tanggu City? ”

Yang Po'er is the chief administrator of the palace, and Chen Dexing's trip to Tanggu was arranged by her. Naturally, I have dealt with the leaders of Tanggu City.

"Returning to the sage, the magistrate of Tanggu City is called Qian Du, and he graduated from the Tiandao Department of the Tiandao Academy of Mingdu. He served as a Taoist temple in Tanggu, and later joined the Truth Society, and was elected mayor three years ago. ”

"That's a good job." Chen Dexing nodded, "This Tanggu is much more prosperous than when I came before last. There are a lot more houses, and there are street lights on the road. ”

Li Cuixian smiled: "Does the saint want to promote this Qian Zhishi?" ”

Chen Dexing just smiled and sat there without answering. Now who has not made some achievements in the various business markets of Daming? Although their abilities cannot be compared with those of the later generations of Red Dynasty cadres, they also have a lot of constraints in doing things. But compared with those imperial examination officials in the Great Song Dynasty, they are much stronger, and their responsibilities and powers are also clear. It is necessary to manage the business market well and develop it well. If you don't have the ability to do it, then you will naturally be exchanged for votes.

In addition, these selected magistrates also have a relatively reliable team of administrative officers available. The commercial and market affairs officials were well paid, but they were not those officials of the Great Song Dynasty who did not have any salary. Moreover, the affairs officer of the Ming Dynasty is not hereditary but is examined, and the exam is not the Four Books and Five Classics, but the ability to learn. The specific examinations are all in charge of the local councils, and the content is much the same, nothing more than arithmetic, law, engineering, and martial arts (the need to maintain law and order) and so on. They are all ministers who can do things, and the elected political officials and parliaments are naturally much better than those hereditary filthy officials who can only deceive and conceal them.

How could it be that the officials elected by a small elite (universal democracy of 100 million people was simply not possible in the 13th century), the officials who were examined, and the parliamentary oversight, and it was still a big situation waiting to be rebuilt, how could they not do it?

This is not the ability of Qian Dazhi City, but the credit of the more reasonable Ming system today.

The commercial market of Daming can develop so well, relying on the system. Then if the seventeen capitals of the Northern Ming Dynasty (the capital of the sixteen countries plus Panama) want to rise, there is no other way but to adopt a good institutional arrangement......

Thinking of this, Chen Dexing suddenly spoke: "Summons Qian Du to the palace, and I will use it with him for lunch tomorrow." ”

……

"Sage, the money in Tanggu has arrived."

"Announce him in."

The next day at noon. Chen Dexing sat down at the table accompanied by Li Cuixian, and Yang Po'er brought the guests. Chen Dexing looked at the person carefully, this person was only in his early thirties, his eyebrows and eyes were smart, but his demeanor inevitably showed the apprehension in his heart. Wearing a red official uniform and a black gauze hat. gave Chen Dexing a kneeling salute. Then he stood up with his hands down, trying to maintain a gentle smile on his face.

Chen Dexing looked at him, "You are the parent official here in Tanggu?" ”

This is the first time he has seen Qian Du, the emperor's shelf is big, but it is not an ordinary local magistrate who can see it when he sees it.

"The minister is the governor of Tanggu City." Qian Du's tone was respectful, but he was a little upset in his heart. For him, the Zhishi, the Ming Sage seems to be a heavenly figure, although he has been beaten twice, but he has not been summoned. I didn't expect to invite him to dinner this time...... Accompany the emperor to dinner! What a grace is this? How did it fall on me?

"Sit down." Chen Dexing said in a low voice. Then he beckoned to Natalie, who was waiting in the restaurant. The latter immediately stepped forward. Gently pulling a chair, and then a finger of a slender white palm.

Qian Du turned his head and looked at Yang Po'er, he had met this palace chief several times, and he had also given the other party a generous gift-it was sent on behalf of the merchants of Tanggu City, the purpose was to let the court passing by Tanggu not look for trouble, and if there was really any inconsiderate hospitality, he could tolerate one or two.

Yang Po'er accepted this gift unceremoniously. Of course, this woman is a corrupt person! However, she took the money carefully and would not make trouble for Chen Dexing. So Chen Dexing didn't know these things either. It was Li Cuixian who was aware of everything, but he didn't see it. This queen doesn't care about these subtleties. As long as Mrs. Yang doesn't stand in her way.

The anti-corruption efforts of this Ming Empire are really not very powerful......

"The saint asks you to sit down, and if you ask later, just answer truthfully." After receiving other people's money, Yang Po'er naturally wanted to give some hints.

Qian Du sat down with confidence, and he didn't dare to sit in a big way, so he sat on half of his ass. It's like a schoolboy who has made a mistake and is nervous.

At this time, Natalie stepped forward with a bottle of wine, filled the empty glass in front of Qian Du, and then stood aside, looking at Emperor Chen with a pair of bright eyes still affectionate. These days in Chen Dexing's harem are probably the most comfortable days in the life of this girl who is not yet fifteen years old. Although only a slave girl. But everyone is very kind to her - who let Chen Dexing only drink the coffee she makes - and many big sisters will give her gifts, and there are three big sisters who tell her the truth of Tiandao (these are the three goddess sticks of Mo Ying Niang, Bao Yin and Xiao Ai). And the great emperor seemed to like her very much, always talking to her with a smile, and liked to take her with him, and did not know when he would take away her virginity, which was really exciting......

The mind of this new Europa girl, the others in this room don't care.

Chen Dexing just looked at Qian Du with a restrained face, it seemed that he would not let go of his belly to eat, so it was better to let him go after asking quickly.

"Qian Du, you are very familiar with the merchants here in Tanggu?"

Qian Du was stunned, and replied with a dry smile: "It's just a general acquaintance......

"Qian Zhishi, the sage's question should be answered truthfully." Yang Po'er interjected again.

Qian Du already had some cold sweat on his forehead. Then I heard Chen Dexing say: "Mother-in-law, there is nothing for you here." ”

Yang Po'er replied softly: "Sage, the minister will retire first." With that, he bowed and turned to leave.

"Qian Du," Chen Dexing took a sip of wine and began to ask again, "You are a city governor, you should know how a commercial market can rise quickly, right?" ”

"The commercial market is formed because of business, and businessmen gather because of wealth, as long as there is money to be made, the commercial market can naturally develop. If you can't make money, even the current bustling business market will soon decline. ”

"If I want to establish a trading market in a place where I am wild now, and there will be a bright future in the future, will any merchant be willing to go?"

"Now it's a barbaric ......" Qian Du frowned slightly, when it came to the development and construction of the city, he still had some experience. In his opinion, this thing can't be done brutally, it's not that Emperor Laozi Chrysostom will go as soon as he opens the big guy.

He pondered, "This merchant follows profit, this is the most important thing, and where there is no money to be made, it will not prosper." But where you can make money, it doesn't necessarily prosper, and sometimes everyone just makes quick money. For example, gold mining, cutting trees, hunting furs, catching black slaves, etc., these are all quick money, and they will leave when they are earned, and they may not be able to form a long-term industry. If there is a long-term industry, it depends on whether the transportation is convenient, whether the products are rich, and whether the climate is pleasant. In short, if you want to keep people, you can't rely on money alone, you have to make people live more comfortably......"

It's not easy to develop a city. In Chen Dexing's memory, the capitalist countries in the previous life often made jokes about ghost towns, and spent many years and invested a lot of money to build the city, but because the common people did not want to live there, it became increasingly deserted, and finally there was no one in the city. This is the case in the United States, Russia, and Japan.

And if the Ming Dynasty wants to build the Seventeenth of Mingzhou, it is by no means just a matter of grabbing some people and enclosing land. Therefore, this matter cannot only rely on the will of Emperor Lao Tzu, and across the Pacific Ocean, the supervision of the Ming court is completely equal to zero. When the money is spent, people send it over, and things may not be possible.

Therefore, the construction of the seventeen capitals of Mingzhou must involve commercial institutions, and the seventeen capitals of the Northern Ming Dynasty can only be a city governed by the Chen Ming Dynasty and merchants.

Chen Dexing groaned for a while, and said to Qian Du: "I am now going to develop Beimingzhou, where in the future it will be given to my heirs, sixteen feudal kingdoms will be established, and there will be a metropolitan city belonging to the Ming Dynasty, which will be established between the north and south Mingzhou." These sixteen feudal kingdoms also need a capital. In other words, in my lifetime, I will build seventeen cities in Mingzhou...... It's a big deal! But Mingzhou is tens of thousands of miles away, and the trading there cannot be controlled remotely by me in the Central Plains. My heirs are still young, and it is impossible for them to enter the country. Therefore, I wanted to build seventeen joint-stock cities. Find 17 commercial markets in Daming, and the businessmen of each commercial market and me will set up a joint venture to establish a public bank for urban construction, and I will contribute up to 50% of the capital, and the commercial shares can reach up to 70%. Any merchant who contributed more than one percent of the total capital of the public bank could become a great nobleman, at least one baron, of the country where the city was located. Any shareholder of a public bank who goes to the city to operate in person, as long as he holds more than 1,000 shares, can also be knighted. And the management of the city is also like the local commercial market of the Ming Dynasty.

Tanggu City is a large city in the Ming Dynasty, and it is also a commercial market established by me, so I want Tanggu and Mingdu to come out together to do a pilot. Qian Du, do you know what to do? (To be continued......)