"All of you here are well-informed people, and you must know that ten days ago, Your Majesty issued a decree to reward your father and here, and now the will is still on the way. ”

In the face of hundreds of wealthy businessmen, gentry, and magnates, Lin Zhao talked eloquently: "However, although the will is on the way, there is a copy of the new salt law that has been copied and sent over early, and Your Majesty did not reveal whose performance it is, just to be able to discuss with you on this day to see if it can be implemented to the world." ”

"The new salt law?"

The other people present were just that, but the faces of the Yangzhou salt merchants changed greatly.

Although the Wei clan was wiped out, the official salt industry that they occupied 30% of the world did not fall into the hands of these people, but was privately shared by several officials in Yangzhou - and then distributed by them to those who paid more.

The salt merchants were originally nervous about this matter, for fear that the Yangzhou government would collude and deprive them of their rights and interests little by little, so when they heard about this new salt law, they were all nervous.

The big fat man Tong Zhaohe hurriedly asked: "Dare to ask Lin Dianshi, what new salt law was introduced by the imperial court, and what is in it?"

"Actually, it's very simple, that is, to change the quote to the ticket. Lin Zhao walked through the arena, his tone was indifferent, as if he was just talking to the people around him, but this voice appeared in the ears of everyone in the hall, as if he was talking in everyone's ears at the same time.

"As you all know, the dynasty produced 600 million catties of salt a year, and the price of one catty of salt was three coins of silver, which is a total of 180 million taels of silver. Among them, the two Huaihuai salt occupy 400 million catties, that is, 120 million taels of silver. According to the tax rate of ten taxes and one of the ten taxes of the dynasty, you can get 12 million taels of silver. But last year, it only received 1.5 million taels, not even a fraction. ”

Speaking of this, everyone's attention in the hall had been focused on Lin Zhao.

Listening to his red fruit directly announcing the amount of tax evasion and tax evasion by Yangzhou salt merchants, everyone was shocked.

We have worked hard, doing more than hundreds of thousands of taels of taxes a year, and we thought that our family was rich and noble, and these salt rats didn't do anything, and they actually evaded more than 10 million taels of taxes!

It's too easy to get this money, isn't it?

No wonder these salt merchants live a luxurious life, comparable to royalty!

Not only the gentry, but also the officials present were shocked.

I used to take a thousand and eight hundred silver from these salt merchants, but I already felt that I was too rich, but I didn't expect that this was not even one ten-thousandth of the tax evasion.

Wouldn't their income be higher?

These salt rats have beaten them too little in the past!

Only the salt merchants wanted to cry without tears.

Lin Zhao's words are good in theory, but in fact they are not like that.

There are many reasons for the loss of salt tax, what private salt, what old salt is introduced, and what salt is consumed, but the real cause of salt tax loss is the exploitation of the big forces behind these salt merchants.

Behind these big salt merchants, who is not a wealthy family at the level of prime ministers, national princes, and scholars? Otherwise, it would not have been possible to stand for many years.

It also caused a large loss of salt taxes.

Even if all the bigwigs behind these are chiseled out and the salt law is not fundamentally changed, a group of new salt merchants will only be cultivated, and a new group of powerful people will be produced behind the scenes.

At this time, there was already a noisy sound in the hall, but Lin Zhao was unmoved, and continued: "The note sent by Jingzhong, I have carefully studied it below, and the main content seems to be - abolish the salt guide book that can be passed down from generation to generation in your hands, and sell salt with salt tickets instead, and set up a salt ticket supervision and sales department directly under the imperial court, no matter who can go to the supervision and sales department to pay taxes and buy tickets, and then receive salt with the tickets, and the salt can be transported to any place for marketing. In this way, those Diao people and other merchants who do not have salt can also pay taxes and sell salt, and those Diao people can sell salt legally, and they can't risk losing their heads to sell illegal salt, and at the same time, the salt tax of the imperial court can also be directly collected, and the mouth for the loss of salt tax is also blocked. ”

"What?"

"It's going to cut our roots!"

"This salt tax is too vicious, not for the son of man, not for the son of man!"

Many of the salt merchants present changed color in unison, and roared in their hearts.

They are too proficient in salt administration.

As soon as I heard about this new law, I knew that it was extremely targeted.

Once this new salt law is implemented, no matter who sells salt, it can indeed play a role in reducing the illegal salt and blocking the loss of salt tax for the imperial court, but for them, it will deprive them of the privilege of monopolizing salt sales! Without monopoly, what can they do to make huge profits?!

The salt merchants were furious, but it wasn't just the salt merchants who were there.

There were also other merchants, gentry, and even wealthy families from Jinling, Suzhou, and Hangzhou.

The highest grade in this is Zhang Cheng, the chief housekeeper of the Zhen family in Jinling.

When the emperor was still the emperor, he had six southern tours, and four of them came to the Zhen Mansion, which is enough to show the strength of the Zhen family.

Because the Zhen family and the Jia family are world friends, when Zhang Cheng came to Yangzhou, he made a special trip to the Lin family to meet him and kowtow to Jia Min - of course, Jia Min didn't dare to accept it.

Therefore, other gentry and businessmen may be afraid to speak, but Zhang Cheng is not afraid, he has already felt the huge profits of the salt industry, so he blurted out: "Lin Dianshi, is such a new law really fake?"

As soon as he asked this, the other businessmen were all shocked and looked at Lin Zhao together.

If they switch to the new salt method, they can make a fortune.

There is no need to watch the wealth of Yangzhou salt merchants roll in.

Although I don't know who played it, and I don't know if this law can be beneficial to the country and the people, I think a heart is good for the country and the people. ”

Lin Zhao took out a piece of music from his arms and said: "This transcription of the music is here, Your Majesty is in the palace, and you can see thousands of miles, so let this official get here, just to let you Yangzhou salt merchants also take a look and discuss it to see if it can be implemented?"

As he spoke, Lin Zhao handed this piece to Tong Zhaohe, the nearest big salt merchant.

This Tong Zhaohe's face was pale, and his fat body trembled, showing the restlessness in his heart, and when he finished reading this piece, he almost collapsed on the ground.

After the other salt merchants finished reading the recital, they were all as pale as the earth, with a look of despair.

But other wealthy families and businessmen were overjoyed and excited.

Because they found that their family could start a new business.

In the future, maybe you will be richer than the salt merchants of Yangzhou!

If this new salt law is implemented, almost all the people in the court will benefit, and there will be no enough people to oppose it.

Those powerful gentry will strongly support it.

As for the objections of the salt merchants in Yangzhou, I am afraid that the people behind them will not listen.

Lin Zhao didn't seem to see their faces, and continued: "Ladies and gentlemen, in my opinion, if the imperial court wants to implement the new salt law, it is nothing more than because of the serious loss of salt tax at this stage......

"Poof!"

"Poof!"

Before Lin Zhao finished speaking, those big salt merchants were already scrambling to kneel in front of him, what Tong Zhaohe, what Zhao Qixiang, one by one they couldn't take care of anything else.

"Lin Dianshi, we promise to the Yamen of the Imperial History of Salt Patrol that we will pay 40% of the salt tax every year, and we will never lag behind in the construction of roads and bridges by the local government, and disaster relief donations,"

"Forty percent?"

Everyone present was shocked, and officials at all levels in Yangzhou were even more dumbfounded.

Forty percent of the salt tax is 4.8 million taels.

Equivalent to one-fifth of the revenue of the national treasury.

And last year, they only handed over 1.5 million taels.

Lin Zhao just moved his mouth and took out a piece of music from the imperial court, and these salt merchants cried and shouted three million and three hundred thousand taels.

The contrast changes too much.

Lin Zhao nodded slowly, knowing in his heart that the profits obtained by these salt merchants had to be honored by officials at all levels, and they had to supply their behind-the-scenes forces and pay forty percent of the taxes, which was already doing their best.

Of course, it was the existence of government at all levels, from the court to the local government, that the salt tax in the Great Zhou Dynasty would be so low.

Lin Zhao nodded and said: "Since the salt tax can be handed over in time, the imperial court will naturally not rashly change the new salt law, however, Your Majesty ascended the throne last year, and the salt tax last year is so low, if Your Majesty is angry......

"Lin Dianshi rest assured, last year's salt tax, our Yangzhou salt merchants also paid forty percent!"

After more than 20 big salt merchants discussed, Tong Zhaohe, the big fat man closest to Lin Zhao, finally said with a sad face.

At the same time, he sighed in his heart: "This Lin Zhao is not only strong in martial arts, but also proficient in the use of Taoism in this officialdom! This Wei family is planted in his hands, and he is not wronged!"

"Oh, although this official is only a small canonical history, he also admires you and other loyal salt merchants! Within a month, the Yangzhou Salt Patrol Imperial History Yamen will receive last year's salt tax payment, and this official promises to persuade His Majesty not to implement this new salt law within three years. ”

Lin Zhao, the historian of Yangzhou Yushi Yamen, said with a smile.

Now that the Yellow Emperor has just ascended the throne, the foundation is unstable, and after three years, the emperor will sit on the dragon chair firmly, and he can free his hands to do things.

In an instant, the entire hall was silent, everyone's eyes were complicated, and the eyes that looked at Lin Zhao were full of admiration.

Although everyone knows that the official position of canonical history is not in the stream at all, and there is not even a rank.

And those Yangzhou salt merchants, usually even the prefect just bowed down and held his hand, but in the face of a classic history that did not even have a grade, they kowtowed again and again.

Lin Zhao, a real person.

Mu Tianyan, the prefect of Yangzhou, sighed again and again: "This is the Qilin'er of the Lin family, the Gusu Lin family, prosperous, and not far away!"