Sun Xiyi sneered: "Hmph, can't you hand it over? I'm afraid it's not okay if you don't give it to that King Zhou, right? ”

The shopkeeper Yan shook his head and said: "This son, I'm afraid you have wronged King Zhou, Xiao Lao'er was fortunate to meet King Zhou, and he also listened to King Zhou's teachings, although the grass people didn't understand King Zhou's words very well, but Xiao Lao'er thought that King Zhou's words still made some sense." ”

"Old man Yan, didn't you take the [***] medicine surnamed Pang Na, how can you speak for him." A scholar on the side asked in surprise and anger: "The man surnamed Pang is a man without a king and a father, and now he has set such a ridiculous tax rate without authorization, and you still say that his words are reasonable, are you confused?" ”

Shopkeeper Yan shook his head, the gray hair on his sideburns kept fluttering on his face, he sighed tremblingly and didn't want to say anything, turned around and was about to walk back.

"Old man Yan, you stop for this son!" See, the shopkeeper wanted to leave, but Sun Xiyi and the others were not happy, this son has not spoken yet, do you dare to leave?

Shopkeeper Yan slowly stopped, turned around and asked, "What else is the matter with the sons?" ”

Seeing that a mere shopkeeper dared to despise himself, the son of the former secretary of the Ministry of Rites, Sun Xiyi couldn't help but be angry, "Presumptuous, did this son let you go?" ”

Shopkeeper Yan was also annoyed, he sneered and said, "Oh, could it be that the little old man can't walk around in Yangzhou City anymore, what kind of rules is this?" ”

As the saying goes, the sedan chair lifts people, and the face is their own, but the face is given by others, Sun Xiyi's domineering attitude has aroused the dissatisfaction of the Yan shopkeeper, Nima's, old man, I am polite to you, it is for the sake of your Lao Tzu is the former secretary of the Ministry of Rites, do you want to drink to me if you have not yet been lifted?

"You" Sun Xiyi was furious, and when he stood up, he was about to shout and scold.

At this time, Liu Ru stood up and persuaded: "Don't be angry, the shopkeeper Yan is just angry, not intentionally disrespectful to you, you don't go to your heart, besides, you are still speaking for that week, so he is out of shape for a while, don't be surprised, but the little woman is also very curious, how do you say that the tax rate in Qingzhou is also somewhat reasonable, could it be that what Pang Gang said is not true?" Can you sit down and take your time to solve our problems? Xiaocui, quickly serve tea to the shopkeeper Yan! ”

"Eh, here we go!" Soon, a delicate little maid brought a cup of fine tea to the shopkeeper Yan.

Liu Ru is worthy of being a singer in the south of the Yangtze River, although her surname is very arrogant, but in dealing with people, she is too strong for a pretentious son like Sun Xiyi, and in just a few words, the anger of the two of them was dispelled.

The shopkeeper Yan took a sip of tea, and the anger of Shicai disappeared, he put down the teacup and smiled at Liu Rus: "I have heard that everyone in Liu is not only beautiful and fragrant, but also bold and enthusiastic. ”

Sun Xiyi on the side snorted lightly, but he didn't say anything to refute it, after the anger, he also sobered up a lot, knowing that don't look at this Yan shopkeeper is just a grass people, but the energy of the Chamber of Commerce behind it is not small, if you really want to be your own and embarrassed, I am afraid that you will have some trouble.

As if she hadn't seen Sun Xiyi's expression, Liu Ru asked: "I also hope that the shopkeeper Yan will solve his doubts and tell the little woman about what Pang Gang was sitting in Qingzhou." ”

Shopkeeper Yan nodded and said, "Since everyone Liu wants to know, then Xiao Lao'er will be ugly." ”

The shopkeeper Yan cleared his voice before he said: "When the little old man went to Dao Qingzhou, it was the king of Zhou."

At this time, Sun Xiyi interrupted him and said: "Treasurer Yan, that traitor Pang Gang has been deprived of all official positions by the imperial court, and now he has established himself as the king in Qingzhou, I'm afraid it's not appropriate for you to call him the king of Zhou, right?" ”

"This" The displeasure on the face of the shopkeeper Yan flashed, but he still nodded and said: "Yes, it is Feng Na Pang Gang who led the troops to behead all the vice president of the Qingzhou Chamber of Commerce, Li Jierong, and confiscate all the family property, and stipulate that all businesses that do business in the places under their jurisdiction must pay 20% of the tax, otherwise they will be punished with heavy fines." The businessmen were not convinced, and went to the Zhou Wangfu to theorize, that Zhou Pang Gang was not afraid, and invited everyone into the mansion to argue with everyone. ”

"Oh?" Liu Ru is big eyes flashed a different color, and asked curiously: "Shopkeeper Yan, can you tell me, what did Pang Gang say?" ”

Shopkeeper Yan nodded and said, "Of course." At the beginning of the day, Pang asked everyone, now the population of the Ming Dynasty is hundreds of millions, but how many people are the royal family, gentry, businessmen and wealthy people? Then someone replied that it was less than 10%.

Then Pang Gang asked again: What is the amount of money and land that these people occupy in the world? Everyone was dumbfounded, and it took a long time for someone to answer, ninety percent. Then Pang Gang asked again, but now Daming is letting these ninety percent of the people use less than one percent of the world's money to feed the entire Ming officials, as well as the millions of soldiers and horses of the Ming Dynasty, as well as the hundreds of thousands of royal family of the Ming Dynasty, and all the expenses of the Ming Dynasty, is this fair? As soon as Pang Gang said this, everyone was dumbfounded, no one could answer, and Xiao Lao'er and the side were also speechless.

That Pang Gang said again: The royal family, the gentry, the businessmen and the rich people occupy all the money in the world, but they are unwilling to contribute to the Ming Dynasty, which is also the reason why the more and more the Ming Dynasty's rogues are suppressed, and the scale of the rogues is getting bigger and bigger. Could it be that after paying these two percent of the tax, the businessmen really have no money to make? Hearing this, Xiao Lao'er was also ashamed, speechless, and finally returned to Yangzhou after paying taxes and fees. ”

After the shopkeeper Yan finished speaking, the lobby was cold.

After a long time, a voice sounded, "Hmph, clever words, it's just nonsense!" Sun Xiyi on the side took the case: "Taizu once had a clear instruction: all commercial taxes, thirty and take one, the one who passes is judged to violate the order, is it possible that Pang Gang raised the tax to two percent, isn't this satisfying his arrogant and extravagant silver desire?" ”

Seeing Sun Xiyi's "righteous words", the shopkeeper Yan couldn't help but ask: "Sun Gongzi is a scholar, and the truth is naturally more than that of Xiao Lao'er, who is a businessman, Xiao Lao'er wants to ask, now I am worried about internal and external troubles in the Ming Dynasty, and my imperial court pays only four million taxes a year, but the imperial court spends five million taels of silver every day on the military expenses and various expenses of the nine changes. Is it still necessary to send more to the people? ”

"This"

Everyone is dumb, just now the words of the shopkeeper Yan have been very clear, now ninety percent of the wealth in the world is concentrated in the hands of less than one percent of the people, but all the expenses of the Ming Dynasty are all from this less than one percent of the wealth, and these wealth has to feed ninety percent of the poor, and to feed hundreds of thousands of troops on the nine sides, and to feed the officials of the whole world, this is no longer exploitation, it is purely sucking the bone marrow of the poor, if you add apportionment, even a fool understands that all the poor are going to rebel.

No one is a fool again, the words have come to this extent, even Sun Xiyi, the arrogant son, understands that this is a very acute question, the rich bureaucratic class controls most of the wealth and resources in the world, but will not take out even a penny of money, and put all the responsibility on the poor who can't even meet the food and clothing, but the problem now is that the poor people are starving to death even if they are going to starve to death, who should the Ming Dynasty ask for taxes in the future?

Seeing that everyone didn't answer, the shopkeeper Yan sighed lightly before saying: "That Pang Gang also said that now these officials and gentry and businessmen of the Ming Dynasty are like locusts, absorbing the people's bodies and desperately sucking the people's bone marrow, but they are unwilling to give the people the slightest strength. Xiao Lao'er has never studied, and I don't know if this is right or not, all of you are scholars, and you are more knowledgeable than Xiao Lao'er, everyone, Xiao Lao'er will leave. ”

After speaking, the shopkeeper Yan arched his hand towards everyone, and walked downstairs, the sound of the knock sounded, and the figure of the shopkeeper Yan disappeared in the eyes of everyone, and soon disappeared, leaving only the speechless people

After a long time, Sun Xiyi cheered up and said, "Okay, colleagues, let's not be disturbed by this old man's nonsense, and continue to drink and drink!" ”

"Yes, yes, drink!"

Everyone raised their glasses one after another, but it seemed that their smiles were so reluctant and a little anxious, only a trace of curiosity and a hint of determination flashed in Liu Ruye's big eyes

In November of the eleventh year of Chongzhen, the weather has turned cold, the cold winter has arrived, the goose feather snow is coming as scheduled, everything in heaven and earth seems to be dressed in a silver coat, this year has not changed much compared with the past, the situation of the Ming Dynasty is still grim, Li Zicheng is actively developing troops in Shaanxi, Liu Zongmin brandished a long knife, driving seventy or eighty thousand Liukou to desperately attack Jiangxi, after paying a huge price, after three months of hard fighting, finally captured the two important towns of Linjiang Mansion and Nanchang Mansion, for a time, The two wealthy state capitals were immediately devastated in an unprecedented manner, with hundreds of civilians and merchants mercilessly slaughtered and looted.

The gentry of Zhejiang, Fujian, Anhui, and even Jiangsu provinces wrote to the imperial court as quickly as possible, demanding that the imperial court immediately send troops to exterminate the Liukou, otherwise they would not be able to guarantee that the taxes of the provinces would arrive in the capital on time when the Cao Yun arrived next year.

For a while, the world was shaken, and Chongzhen was furious in the court, and ordered the military department to immediately come up with the charter, otherwise he would be severely punished. The military department Shangshu Hong Chengchou is so anxious that his hair is gray, and he has done a lot of plans, but the most important problem at present is that the current elite soldiers of the imperial court are concentrated in Mongolia and the border of Liaodong, even if they want to mobilize the elite soldiers of the nine sides to go to Jiangxi to suppress bandits, but they are facing a fatal problem, that is, they must enter the south of the Yangtze River, Shandong and Henan are Pang Gang's territory, and they can't get by!

Hong Chengchou reported the problem to Chongzhen, and Chongzhen was dumbfounded, this problem is really difficult to solve, you can't ask Pang Gang to get out of the way, so Pang Gang has to turn his face with them, but if you don't send troops and horses over, you can't give Jiangnan to Liukou in vain, if you lose Jiangnan, Daming will not be far from extinction.

Some people say that they will simply send an army to recover Shandong and Henan, but some people ask rhetorically, which of you can guarantee that you will be able to beat Pang Gang, the 100,000 army in Pang Gang's hands is not vegetarian, but people dare to fight even the Tartars, if it annoys Pang Gang, he simply waved his troops north to directly attack the capital or blocked the road of Caoyun, which of you can bear this result. Moreover, at this time, the Manchu army has also been stationed in Guanning and Xuanda, if the Manchu Qing take the opportunity to meet the south again to the imperial court, what should it be? As soon as these words came out, those who shouted that they wanted to recover Shandong obediently shut their mouths.

In the end, Hong Chengchou came up with a way to let the provincial governors of the Jiangnan people form an army to resist the rogues, and the food and salary were also raised by themselves. Let them find their own way to go today, and Chongzhen will take care of it after seeing it!

After receiving the will of the imperial court, the officials and gentry in the south of the Yangtze River, who were in a hurry, looked at it, anyway, the army of the imperial court could not come, and it was better to ask for others than to ask for themselves, so it was better to find a way for themselves.

It has to be said that Liu Zongmin's three-light policy brought a powerful shock to the gentry in Jiangnan, and under the threat of life and death, officials from Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Jiangxi provinces joined forces to form tens of thousands of township warriors and launched a counterattack against the rogues in Jiangxi.

At this time, the Jiangnan gentry burst out with a strong explosive force, and the triumphant Liu Zongmin was caught off guard, and the unprepared Liu Zongmin retreated in defeat, and at the end of December of the eleventh year of Chongzhen, the army led by Liu Zongmin was miraculously driven out of Jiangxi, and Liu Zongmin, who suffered heavy losses, had to retreat to Hunan in disgrace.

This result made the Ming court overjoyed, Chongzhen specially issued a decree to reward the governors and officials of the four provinces in the south of the Yangtze River, and for a time, the government and the opposition celebrated with crowns.

The goose-feathered snow fell on the ground, and the garden that was once full of flowers was silvery white, with only a few red plum blossoms blooming proudly in the wind.

It was icy and snowy outside, but it was a different scene in Pang Gang's study, Pang Gang was sitting lazily on the thick chair, the study was burning with red charcoal, and the burning charcoal baked the study as warm as spring, Wei Manyao was holding her sleeping son, and was sitting next to Pang Gang quietly looking at the information that Leng Yan had just sent.

"Liu Zongmin was defeated?" Wei Manyao's voice carried a hint of surprise, "Isn't Liu Zongmin a fierce general under Li Zicheng?" How could he be defeated by those old soldiers in Jiangnan? ”

Pang Gang said lazily: "What's impossible about this, Liu Zongmin brought the set in Henan, Shaanxi to Jiangnan, it's no wonder that he didn't fail?" It is necessary to know that Jiangnan and Shaanxi and other northwest regions are different, Jiangnan is a rich land, no matter how poor the people in Jiangnan are, they have something to eat, because the number of displaced people in Jiangnan has always been much less than in the northwest, and the number of gentry and wealthy households in Jiangnan has always been the largest in the Ming Dynasty, Liu Zongmin swept away the rich gentry in Nanchang and Linjiang Mansion as soon as he entered Jiangxi, which aroused the unanimous hatred of the Jiangnan gentry, if you don't let them live, they don't fight with you to blame. And which of the gentry in the south of the Yangtze River is not the lord with thousands of dollars, as the saying goes, there must be brave men under the heavy reward, they gathered the strength of the four provinces to attack the past, how can Liu Zongmin be undefeated? ”

Wei Manyao smiled slyly, rolled her eyes and smiled: "Lord Wang, is it because of this reason that you didn't send troops to Jiangsu or Anhui?" ”

"Yes!" Pang Gang said frankly: "Jiangnan is not so easy to fight, although I am confident that I can forcibly capture Jiangnan with a large army or sharp artillery, but in this way, the loss will inevitably increase greatly, and I don't know how many soldiers will be killed and wounded." I'm also afraid of smashing Jiangnan when I come, after all, a Jiangnan full of desolation is not what I want. ”

"So you want Liu Zongmin to explore the way for you first, and then you will be the prince, and your strategy has made great progress."

Wei Manyao on the side smiled like a flower and gave her husband a wink, and she had just finished breastfeeding, and she was half-undressed and reclined on the soft chair. The charming and gentle mother, the pink jade Jia'er and the puffy snow-white crisp breasts, like a holy and beautiful picture, the white skin reveals the color of rouge, and there is a wisp of strange fragrance like musk deer and blue and fluffy from her, sweet and greasy, swaying, Pang Gang knows that this is the unique taste of women who have given birth.

Pang Gang, who was a little horny, glared at Wei Manyao helplessly, this originally generous and virtuous daughter-in-law has now learned to seduce her husband and compete for favor.

With the continuous expansion of his strength and territory, the status of several daughters-in-law has also risen, and some problems have gradually emerged.

Among her six existing daughters-in-law, Li Xuezhu is a North Korean princess, and her status is the most respected, but the ancestor's sentence "If you are not my kind, your heart will be different" determines that she cannot have supporters here in Pang Gang, and although Chen Yuanyuan is the most beautiful among Pang Gang's wives and concubines, and is also very favored by Pang Gang, but after all, she is a singer and can also be crossed out. As for Ling'er and Qiao'er, the two concubines who were born as personal maids, are purely soy sauce-making, then only Kong Ruolan and Wei Manyao's children are most likely to be Pang Gang's heirs, and they both gave birth to sons, so the situation is even more delicate.

Although Kong Ruolan and Wei Manyao didn't say anything, and they were still very affectionate between their sisters and sisters, Pang Gang could still sense that there seemed to be a subtle emotion between the two.

Pang Gang is also very helpless about this, after all, where someone has interests, there are disputes, which are constantly carried out with the development of human beings.

"Alas" Pang Gang sighed lightly and stopped talking.

(To be continued)