Chapter 351: Zhendong Trading House

"...We already have lessons from the past. Ever since the eastern slaves raised their armies, they have relied on spies to seize many of our Great Ming cities. The recent upheaval on the Eastern Route was also instigated by Tartar spies. Fortunately, General Dingguo acted decisively and wisely, quelling the matter at once. This incident also reminds us, and everyone present here, how rampant the Tartars are."

"Our Eastern Route lies right next to the frontier; not far away are the northern barbarians. Those Mongol Tartars long ago surrendered to the Manchu Tartars. Should they use traitors and spies to coordinate an attack from within and without, the consequences would be unthinkable. Everyone seated here would face the ruin of their families and the destruction of their homes..."

"Therefore, to guard against spies, all merchants on the Eastern Route, in every department and every city, must follow the example of Shunxiang Fort and implement the merchant registration system. Only after registration and review will they be permitted to open for business. Every shopkeeper must also carefully scrutinize the assistants under their employ, watching for any shifty-looking characters. Those with unclear backgrounds must be noted with care, lest they implicate you in the future..."

"Outside merchants wishing to settle and operate on the Eastern Route must have a local person of unblemished background act as their guarantor, under a collective responsibility system. Should those merchants cause trouble, the guarantor will share the punishment..."

The main hall of the General's residence was packed to capacity, filled with gentry and merchants from all over the Eastern Route. Because there were so many people, seats were limited to a few locally prominent figures; the rest could only stand. The dense crowd stretched from inside the main hall out onto the steps beyond, and from the steps out onto the open ground outside. Merchants and gentry stood together without any self-consciousness, showing no signs of mutual exclusion, nor did any gentry look upon the merchants beside them with contempt. This was because, in the Great Ming, especially in its final years, those gentry and officials were themselves merchants, or the spokesmen of merchants. How could they exclude or despise themselves?

They listened with rapt attention as Tian Changguo, the Director of the Commerce Section above them, spoke. His gaunt, bony frame was now ramrod straight, and his two bulging eyes shone with a dazzling light. The half-awake, half-asleep expression he used to wear had vanished entirely.

At last, Tian Changguo's Commerce Section was fully established. Within it were many talents whom Tian Changguo had carefully recruited, all quite skilled in commercial management. Moreover, seizing the opportunity of the previous days, Wang Dou had decided to perfect the management of merchants across the entire Eastern Route. This heavy responsibility naturally fell upon the shoulders of Tian Changguo, Director of the Commerce Section.

Tian Changguo was determined to realize his grand ambitions and leave a deep impression on General Dingguo's mind. And with General Dingguo and Military Defense Circuit Intendant Ma Guoxi seated in the places of honor listening, his voice could not help but be a little louder than usual.

That all merchants within the circuit would be brought under management was something everyone present had already anticipated, so they felt no surprise. And upon hearing that outside merchants must have a local guarantor, the merchants of the Eastern Route exchanged glances, each seeing the delight on the others' faces.

In this way, the territory of the Eastern Route would be dominated by local merchants.

They listened even more attentively to Tian Changguo's next words.

With so many people listening intently to his words, and knowing that they would all be under his management from now on, Tian Changguo's spirits soared even higher.

He cleared his throat and continued, "...Registration and review are the first step. In our Great Ming, as early as the time of the Great Ancestor, the Exalted Emperor, tax bureaus were established to collect certain taxes, taking one part in thirty. Under the Illustrious Emperor, those whose annual sales did not exceed forty taels were even exempted from tax..."

"To encourage commerce, General Dingguo has decided to continue the benevolent policies of the Illustrious Emperor. Those whose annual sales do not exceed forty taels will still be exempt from tax; not a single cent or penny of tax will be levied..."

As soon as Tian Changguo spoke these words, the faces of many small merchants and minor gentry below lit up with joy. From now on, as long as they abided by the law, doing a little business on the Eastern Route would be easy. "For those above that threshold, whether traveling merchants or sedentary merchants, a commercial tax ranging from three percent to a maximum of ten percent will be levied respectively. I have already drawn up a detailed 'Commercial Tax Code' here. How the tax is to be levied is written clearly and plainly within. It will be posted in front of every market gate in due course, and everyone may examine it carefully."

Wang Dou had decided to levy a commercial tax, but the maximum was only ten percent, that is, 10%. In later ages, tax rates were generally 17% to 25%, with many additional surcharges. Compared to those later times, this was extremely light.

Yet as soon as Tian Changguo said this, many merchants and gentry below still pulled long faces. Compared to the not a single cent they had paid before, the commercial tax set by General Dingguo was clearly higher — even three times higher than the commercial tax routinely levied by the Great Ming.

To think that after all their strenuous efforts and upheaval, Wang Dou still intended to levy a commercial tax, and the tax burden was even heavier. Could this be General Dingguo's punishment for their previous agitation? With Wang Dou's lingering authority before them, they dared not voice opposition, but merely exchanged bitter glances.

Tian Changguo sneered, "There is a fine saying: paying taxes according to the law is glorious; evading taxes is shameful. The Commerce Section has been established and will strictly carry out its supervisory duties. Whoever dares not pay taxes, whoever dares stir up trouble... heh heh..."

The phrase "paying taxes according to the law is glorious; evading taxes is shameful" had actually been spoken offhandedly by Wang Dou, and Xu Su had spread it throughout his system. Tian Changguo had promptly learned it and repeated it verbatim.

Wang Dou had also read relevant historical records. It seemed that in Zouxian County, Shandong, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, the land tax combined with the poll tax collected about fourteen thousand taels of silver annually. Yet the related commercial tax, calculated across dozens of types of goods, amounted to no more than nine hundred taels a year — and this was in a relatively prosperous inland area.

Not only was the tax collected paltry, but one also had to wear the great hat of "competing with the people for profit," enduring a tide of open attacks and covert schemes. Thus, the wily old Ma Guoxi shifted the responsibility onto the General Dingguo's residence; all policies were implemented by the General's residence. Privately, Ma Guoxi offered his moral support.

As for Wang Dou's willingness to share a portion of the commercial tax with him, Ma Guoxi expressed gratitude on the surface, but inwardly he was dismissive — what use was that pittance of silver?

For Wang Dou, he had dared to lay hands on the merchants and literati within the circuit; why would he fear a mere complaint of "competing with the people for profit"? The Commerce Section had to be established, the commercial tax had to be levied. No matter how much money it brought in, the point was to plant a subconscious notion in the minds of those under his rule: that merchants and literati who made profits must pay taxes just like ordinary commoners. Soon, Wang Dou would also investigate the landholdings of military officers within his jurisdiction, making them pay grain by the acre just like the new military households. From the ninth year of Chongzhen, when Wang Dou had garrisoned Shunxiang Fort, all officers and ordinary military households, after being allotted land, now paid taxes by the acre. There was no reason that the lands of those old officers should still not contribute a single grain.

This army, and the vast number of dependents behind it, was Wang Dou's greatest source of strength.

Unlike the old-style armies of the Great Ming, this army was full of vigor and had a high degree of literacy; everyone could already read. To put it plainly, this was a fierce armed force composed of landlords, yeoman farmers, and a large number of educated men. Wang Dou was the biggest landlord on the Eastern Route; the hundreds of thousands of acres of military farmland under his jurisdiction all essentially belonged to him.

Once the new military colonies were fully established, the land under the name of this "great landlord" Wang Dou would reach several million acres.

Wang Dou understood very well why the Shunxiang Army was victorious. All the old armies in Bao'an Department had been reorganized. With the support of his own army, investigating the lands under the names of those old officers was merely a matter of course. Moreover, with Wang Dou having suppressed the recent unrest stirred up by the merchants and literati of the Eastern Route, no one dared to challenge his edge.

After reorganizing all the armies of the Eastern Route and the lands of the old officers, this army of Wang Dou's would become even more "pure," united as one heart and mind. — A small soldier of the Ming frontier army, Baidu Tieba. Typed by Chongzi.

To Wang Dou's gratification, the officers under his command, such as Wen Fangliang, Zhang Gui, Tian Changguo, Lin Daofu, and others, had in recent days all come forward to advise him, expressing their willingness to submit the registers of their landholdings, to collectively incorporate them into the Eastern Route military land register and pay grain by the acre. Having long been part of this group, they presumably understood the principle of what was important and what was not.

Wang Dou had also proposed that Military Defense Circuit Intendant Ma Guoxi investigate the lands of the local gentry within his jurisdiction, but Ma Guoxi's face had turned white with fright at the time. He merely demurred, saying, "This matter is of great importance and requires long-term deliberation." The civilian households and gentry were not under Wang Dou's jurisdiction, so Wang Dou let Ma Guoxi have his way.

He watched as Tian Changguo's words made many merchants and gentry below pull long faces, their gazes shifting to Military Defense Circuit Intendant Ma Guoxi, who sat beside Wang Dou. Ma Guoxi remained impassive, only slowly sipping his tea. Whether it was due to the sweltering heat or the impending levy of commercial tax, many people below had sweat beading profusely on their foreheads.

Tian Changguo snorted a few times and softened his tone: "All of you are reasonable people; naturally, you would not commit such acts that violate the law."

"Moreover, as everyone knows, General Dingguo and the Military Defense Circuit are vigorously promoting civil affairs. In the future, the Eastern Route will be a place of limitless commercial opportunity. With several hundred thousand commoners migrating here, how much grain and rice will be needed in the days to come? And what of oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, timber, cotton, and the like? How much silver can all of you earn from these?"

"Not to mention other things, the grain, cloth, iron, and coal needed by General Dingguo's forces and the troops stationed across the Eastern Route are in vast quantities. How can the trifling profit of commercial tax compare with these?"

"Next year, when the military colonies flourish, the several hundred thousand soldiers and civilians of the Eastern Route — how much grain can they produce? How many pigs and sheep can they raise? In the current state of the Great Ming, as many cattle and sheep as there are, they will be bought; as much grain and rice as there is, it will be bought. The commercial opportunities within this..."

"Not to mention that with General Dingguo here, the Eastern Route is at peace. You may all focus on your business without worry. Elsewhere in the Great Ming, can you find such peace and contentment?"