Many times, the emperor, "power and money", power is always ahead. This makes a few people, except those in power, mostly end in tragedy.
I have to admit that there are many accidents in history, but behind many accidents is inevitability. For example, at the end of an industry that earns too much money, there is an industry in history that is the most profiteering, and its income can even occupy half of the country's wealth.
Although, people who have this kind of "destiny" wealth basically have no good end, they have at least been brilliant and made outstanding contributions to the country's economy. They are salt merchants.
First, the rise of salt merchants.
As we all know, it was difficult to produce salt in ancient times, and sometimes salt was more expensive than gold. Coupled with geographical and climatic factors, many areas can't produce salt, such as the south. Before the Tang Dynasty, all the salt in the country came from pond salt in the north.
Pool salt, as its name implies, is the salt in the pool. "Siyan City" was established in Han Dynasty to manage salt ponds in a unified way.
People will really die if they don't eat salt. Why did many people in ancient times not live long, especially some ethnic minorities living in deep mountains and forests, because they could not eat salt?
Salt is related to people's health and is naturally related to the lifeline of the country. The country attaches great importance to it, so it is in command personally. Therefore, there is such a phenomenon;
Over the years in Tang Daizong, the national income was120,000, and the salt income reached 6 million. What do you mean by 50%?
It is conceivable how precious salt was in the Tang Dynasty. So, if you have a chance to cross the Tang Dynasty, please be sure to learn chemistry well before crossing.
With the passage of time and the change of dynasties, the population increased sharply, and the pool salt could not meet the needs of the national population more and more.
Pool salt has a huge disadvantage in weather. Facts have proved that relying on the weather for food is the most unreliable. After the Tang Dynasty, the government began to develop sea salt, which has good quality and high output, but there is another problem that comes with it, that is, transportation.
China is a typical landlocked country. In the ancient traffic environment, it may take half a year for a person to travel from one province to another. Not to mention that it is too expensive for the government to transport the salt from the seaside to all parts of the country.
In the third year of Hongwu in Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang promulgated "Kaizhong". It means to ask merchants to transport grain and salt. At first glance, salt seems to be an addition to grain. You know, in the peaceful and prosperous times with good weather, food is worthless and profits are not great.
However, there is no shortage of businessmen with a keen sense of smell in this world. Take "Western Merchants" (Shanxi and Shaanxi) as an example. Their eyes suddenly lit up when they heard the news.
Selling salt is a huge business. Salt is hard currency. Because of salt-making technology, salt is needed in all parts of China most of the time.
As soon as western businessmen took the lead, many businessmen recovered. In the face of huge interest temptation, hesitation will be in vain.
With the participation of businessmen from all over the world, a very powerful group appeared. They used favorable geographical conditions, financial advantages and strong business skills to successfully achieve the goal of catching up with and surpassing western businessmen. They are Huizhou merchants.
The group of salt merchants expanded rapidly and became a symbol of wealth. However, we need to understand that the emperor will never suffer, and the monarch will always be the biggest winner behind the scenes.
A decree of the emperor made many people own Jinshan Yinshan. Similarly, the emperor can make these Jinshan Yinshan owned by the state.
Second, the end of salt merchants.
The world often says: the heart is unpredictable, and the emperor's heart is even harder to imagine. When people have money and plenty of food and clothing, they have more choices, such as drinking, bribery and exploitation. Many salt merchants forget one thing. Who gave them the money?
Seeing that such a group of people became rich, the emperor began to act. Heavy taxes are the main measure, followed by various reasons to seal up property and take money.
During the Wanli period, the court promulgated the Outline Salt Law, and only salt merchants listed in the Outline could sell salt, further reducing the scale of salt merchants.
Few people, concentrated wealth, easy to start. In the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the government announced for the first time that it would stop the policy of "transporting grain for salt". In order to get a special license to sell salt, it is necessary to exchange silver.
It sounds simple to change grain into silver, but to change a chartered car, you have to use a car to pull silver. So, where did all the gold and silver go? Naturally, it is the national treasury. Where is the national treasury? Taicang.
Businessmen who live nearby don't have to worry, those who live far away will suffer. The mountain road is steep, robbers haunt, natural disasters and man-made disasters, and silver is no better than food, so it is always easier to throw it away.
Under the double blow of politics and "nature", salt merchants ushered in a decline, and all ended in a bleak way, and the endings were not very good.
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"profiteering" often comes at a price. In ancient times, this was the routine of kings. In modern times, there are various financial risks and wealth traps. Therefore, good things don't come in pairs, and disasters are not unique, embarrassing and emotional.