PS: Ask for a monthly pass, ask for a recommendation ticket, and ask for all kinds of support ~~~

Fortunately, during the Chinese New Year, he came into contact with Zhu Li's Hechun Hall, which allowed Xu Yuanzuo to understand the grassroots social ecology of the Ming Dynasty.

Tang Xing was originally the location of a wooden shop of a family surnamed Tang, and gradually developed into a town because of the sale of wood. At the beginning, a few branches of this family surnamed Tang stayed here to operate, and with the surname given by the slaves, they became the surname of Tang Xing.

After urbanization, other businessmen joined in the construction of Tang Bank, and established the Tang Bank Chamber of Commerce - Renshoutang with wood as the main body. With the change of times, timber trading is no longer their main business, and only cloth, silk, salt and grain are the main commodities today.

What Xu Yuanzuo wants to meet today is the head and face of Tang Xing, the three major shareholders of Renshoutang.

Gu Shuisheng, who was following behind Xu Yuanzuo, was a little worried. He knew that Tang Xing had a very high status in Yuan Zuo's brother's mind, so he came here to do market research with the most heart. According to Yuan Zuo's brother's construction, he also used a small amount of "public relations money" to deal with the town's sources, one of whom is still a local lizheng.

It was also through guò that Gu Shuisheng knew that several bigwigs of Renshoutang were not happy to see the Xu family appear in Tang Xing.

The Xu family is a very good business partner for them, and they can get all kinds of satin and cotton cloth of high quality and quantity. And as a Zaifu family, the Xu family's credit is definitely excellent. If they could, they wanted to work with the Xu family for generations. However, now the Xu family now wants to get involved in Tang Xing, and this is out of bounds!

Tang Xing has already arranged the seats, how many cakes are divided among each family, and how much scum is leaked to the following, there are regulations. If the Xu family squeezes in, should this secondary be rearranged? Should the bread be redivided? What's even more annoying is that the Xu family is too big to have a hard top. Unless it can be said that there are several other powerful families in Songjiang Mansion. Unite to resist Xu Jie...... This is simply wishful thinking. Those powerful people and Xu Jie are allies of interests, who will stand out for Xiao Tang Xing's showmanship?

Gu Shuisheng naturally told Xu Yuanzuo about these news, but it seemed that Xu Yuanzuo didn't think so.

"Yikes! Tang Xing even has a city wall! Xu Yuanzuo sat in the car, looked out of the car window, and could see the earthen wall more than a zhang high, which was about the appearance of the second floor. On it stood two archers dressed in coarse cloth attire. I don't know if it's pretending or if it's really a lookout alert.

Gu Shuisheng smiled reluctantly.

Xu Yuanzuo didn't look back, stopped the ox cart, jumped out of the car, stepped on the hard ruts, and almost broke his foot.

"Brother, be careful." Gu Shuisheng just came out and stretched out his hand to help.

Xu Yuanzuo had already stood firm, walked towards Tucheng, and found that there was one less archer on the city wall, and the other probably went to report the news.

Sure enough. More than a dozen people came out of the "city gate". The three of them were headed, all wearing satin clothes, although they tried to put on a polite appearance, but they still couldn't hide their arrogant expressions in their gestures.

They were followed by four flatterers, three of whom were neatly dressed, and who were supposed to be their elders. Another coarse cloth with a shriveled face. It is one of the people here who runs errands for these bigwigs all year round.

Behind the four. There are also loose five or seven people, like nephews and juniors, like followers, and like shopkeepers who come to cheer, anyway, they are all backgrounds that don't need to be ignored.

Xu Yuanzuo greeted him, and glanced at the first three to know who the real leader was.

"Master Yuan. Xiao Ke Xu Yuanzuo, this is polite. Xu Yuanzuo bowed currently.

That Master Yuan's name is Zhengchun, he is from the second list of Zheng'er Bajing, and he has the highest status in Tang Xing. He's over 60 years old now, and he usually works behind the scenes. The business is taken care of by his own sons and nephews, and this time he personally greeted it in front of Xu Jie's "grandson". Although he knew that Xu Yuanzuo was very young, he didn't expect to be so ridiculously young.

It's a bit disrespectful!

"Oooh." Yuan Zhengchun replied shallowly: "Young Master Xu is young and promising, young and promising." He turned sideways slightly: "This is a famous Confucian merchant elder in my Tang Bank, Mr. Cheng." ”

"Mr. Cheng." Xu Yuanzuo read Gu Shuisheng's report and knew that this Mr. Cheng had a single name, although he was a student, his status ranked second among the three leaders, but he was above another old man, Hu Chen.

Yuan Zhengchun introduced Cheng Zai, and then turned to the other side: "This is the second list of the high school Jiajing Wuwu Branch, Master Hu." ”

Tang Xing also has three people, two regular supervisors, and nine students, but they either do not have a high status in Renshoutang, or they have not joined this business organization at all, and they have not appeared at this moment.

Xu Yuanzuo saluted Hu Chen again and said with a smile: "You elders are too embarrassed. ”

Yuan Zhengchun smiled slightly, Pili Chunqiu is also good at kung fu, and he doesn't write his thoughts on his face. He said: "Xu Gongzi's letter has been read, I'll go to the public office to talk about it in detail." ”

Xu Yuanzuo followed the three of them into the city gate, only to see that the houses inside were like houses, the roads were clean, the main roads were all good brick roads, and the small streets on both sides were paved with bluestone slats. Although it can't be compared with Songjiang and other county towns, it also has the prototype of a county seat and can handle it.

- It's a really good infrastructure.

Xu Yuanzuo looked at it in his heart and bowed his head slightly.

The local infrastructure can be seen in the control power of the congregation. Because it is impossible for the government to manage so finely, the roads are well repaired and the bridges are built a lot, which shows that the squires here are willing to pay, which can naturally prove that the church has a greater control power.

Xu Yuanzuo did not believe that anyone would give generously simply for the sake of doing good.

When I arrived at Tanghang Street, I saw that both sides were full of merchant flags, and from a distance, from the street to the end of the street, there were all merchants, not to mention three or five hundred households. Salt and iron cloth sauce, ceramic catering, cultural toys and bookstores, jewelry, gold and silver...... It is almost the same as the antique commercial street of later generations.

Pedestrians on the street or ordinary people buy daily necessities, or merchants purchase and sell goods, and the flow of people is like weaving, even if it is said that it is shoulder to shoulder.

"Tang Xing is known as 'Fifty Miles', and it still looks humble." Xu Yuanzuo said to Yuan Zhengchun.

Yuan Zhengchun's face was pale, and he stroked his beard and smiled: "I Tang Xing said that it was fifty miles, and that meant the town." It's not even included in the city. ”

Xu Yuanzuo calculated: Fifty miles is 5,500 households, and if a household is calculated according to five people, it is 27,500 people, so the population of the town should be about 30,000. Counting the population of the city, 50,000 is already a conservative estimate.

Such a population base and market size are also natural to be set as county governance.

Thinking about it, Xu Yuanzuo has more confidence in squeezing into the Tang Bank market.

"This is the public office."

Everyone walked through the main street, turned into a bias, and after passing the square gate, they saw an ordinary people's house facing south.

There is no plaque on the house, and it should be a house of someone like Zhuli's Xu family - if Xu He can bring back the silver two normally.

For the head of a town, it is obviously a bit too low-key.

"Please." Yuan Zhengchun said that he had already taken the lead in stepping in.

Xu Yuanzuo knew that this was an expression of goodwill, but he didn't know what to do, smiled and let Cheng Zai and Hu Chen behind him in, and then entered inside.

This house has two courtyards in the front and back, and there are five houses facing the street in the front yard, and a gatehouse is set up in the middle. On both sides of the small courtyard inside the door, there are east and west wings, two small rooms each, the doors and windows are closed, I don't know what it is for.

Further inside, there is a tall and thick inner wall, which was probably set up by the owner's house for safety and etiquette.

Beyond this wall is the backyard, where there is a building where the hall and bedrooms are located.

This house has a compact land and a narrow courtyard, which is a popular small patio layout among the small people in the south of the Yangtze River.

"The public is ugly, and I hope that the son will not laugh." Yuan Zhengchun invited everyone into the hall, sat the proprietor seat, and invited Xu Yuanzuo to sit as the guest of honor.

Cheng Zai and Hu Chen are the main accompaniment, and the unknown surname Li Zheng is accompanied, each with its own evidence.

Gu Shuisheng didn't expect that he would also sit as a guest, looking at a circle of people who were older than his father, it was quite awkward. It's just that he is young and old, and he doesn't show it.

Xu Yuanzuo was very relaxed and comfortable, and tasted Tang Xing's pastries and tea with great interest.

The other backgrounds and the five-person delegation from Tang Xingdian went to the ear room to sit idly, and there were only six people here to discuss business.

Yuan Zhengchun looked at Xu Yuanzuo, who was "in Wuchengfu", and felt that he had deliberately arranged four people to deal with the two of them, and it seemed that he had bullied the weak with the outnumbered.

"The so-called lion elephant fights rabbit, and also uses all his strength!" Xu Yuanzuo took a sip of tea, and suddenly said to Gu Shuisheng with a smile. (To be continued......)