Every year on the first day of the Tang Dynasty, there was a great court meeting in Chang'an or Luoyang. Officials working abroad, if they were busy with official duties or traveling far away, could explain the reasons to the court and not attend the great court meeting. But before that, they must record their deeds for the year.
He compiled the political achievements into a book and asked the official post to send it to Chang'an for Kan's recording.
Right now, there is still one month left before the end of Tianbao's seven years.
Zhou Jun served as the supervisor of the Hexi Mutual Market, and also led the transfer envoy and interview envoy to Longyou. He had many responsibilities and heavy tasks, so the work that needed to be summarized was naturally complicated.
But among these tasks, only one is the most critical - Daqi Trade Road.
At the end of the sixth year of Tianbao's reign, Zhou Jun once boasted to Li Longji and Li Linfu about Haikou, saying that by operating the Daqi trade route, he could earn two million yuan for the court.
What is the concept of two million strings?
During the seven years of Tianbao, there were a total of 8.9 million households in the entire Tang Dynasty. Each household had to pay a household tax of 250 taels per year, which added up to only 2 million taels per year.
Therefore, to Li Longji and Li Linfu, the two million guan mentioned by Zhou Jun sounded more like the lofty ambition of a newborn calf not afraid of tigers.
Although the sage and the right minister did not refute Zhou Jun at that time and only said a few words of encouragement, they still did not believe this at all, but they just did not want to undermine the young man's self-confidence.
After all, the annual trade tax revenue of Dunhuang County in Shazhou is only a pitiful little more than 10,000 yuan.
In Li Longji's opinion, if Zhou Jun arrived in Dunhuang and managed Daqi Road for one year, if he could increase tax revenue to 300,000 yuan per year, he would have given a perfect answer.
As for the right minister Li Linfu, who has been handling taxation all year round, he is more conservative. He believes that Zhou Jun is worthy of praise if he can increase Daqi Road's tax revenue to 100,000 yuan per year within one year.
However, these two people never expected that Zhou Jun would abandon the Tang Dynasty government's business model of official tax collection and merchants opening stores on the Daqi Commercial Road, and instead use the official post to monopolize the food, drink, entertainment and supply sales of the entire trade road.
, completely replaced the private merchants with the Tang Dynasty government-owned enterprises, which not only collected taxes from the merchants, but also earned huge operating profits for Datang...
On this day, Zhou Jun and Hua Yue found a group of accountants in Yanqi after collecting the operating account books sent by Daqi Shang Road from the state government. After spending a whole day and night, they finally calculated the revenue of Da Qi Shang Road this year.
.
The Daqi Commercial Road was officially opened in May of the seventh year of Tianbao. By the end of November, it had received a total of 621 caravans of all sizes and more than 30,000 people.
The total amount of customs duties, transfers and market registers paid by merchants to Daqi Road in Shazhou amounted to more than 50,000 yuan.
However, the consumption, supplies, food and accommodation, etc. of the more than 600 caravans and more than 30,000 people on Daqi Road actually reached an astonishing 1.17 million yuan!
1.17 million guan. If averaged, the per capita expenditure for each traveler passing through the Daqi Trade Route would reach 35 guan.
When Hua Yue first saw this number, he felt incredible and asked Zhou Jun beside him: "It only takes a month to cross the Shazhou Desert via Daqi Road. How can these people spend thirty-five strings in one month?"
"?!" Zhou Jun looked calm: "A pot of Bingluo Shao in a wine shop in the south city of Chang'an only sells for 60 coins; if it is placed in the West Market, it will sell for 90 coins;
In the north of Pingkangfang, a pot costs three hundred cents...and in the middle of a desert under the scorching sun, with no village or shop, and selling it for the same price, isn't it expensive?"
When Hua Yue heard this, she understood, but she also wondered: "It is understandable that the selling price is high in the desert, but those merchants can also be patient and wait until they leave the desert to satisfy their lust?"
Zhou Jun stretched out a finger: "There are two reasons. First, merchants traveling to the desert or colleagues in the caravan are familiar with each other. At first, when seeing such a high selling price, everyone would naturally tighten their purse strings.
Reluctant to spend money. But as long as someone takes the lead, eats meat, and shows off in front of others. The rest of the people, either because of face or being coerced by everyone, will hold the idea that they cannot lose their status and enjoy
Last time, as the saying goes, it is easy to move from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to move from luxury to frugality. As long as you spend money like this once, you will never get used to the hard life of living in the open, and you will only sink deeper and deeper, unable to extricate yourself.
"
Hua Yue's eyes widened when she heard this: "Erlang turns out to be a businessman. Do you still have this ability?"
Zhou Jun waved his hand and said: "This has nothing to do with business, but has something to do with criminal psychology. It's like a fraudster setting up a game, claiming to spend money to draw a lottery, and then hired a group of accomplices to act as trustees. The victim just watched at first, and when he saw
Some people keep winning prizes, so naturally they feel itchy and can’t help but get involved.”
Huayue was stunned and couldn't help but ask: "I seem to have heard someone say that on Daqi Trade Road, there are not only inns and restaurants, but also gambling houses... Could it be that Erlang specially found someone to pretend to be in the desert?
Merchants, deliberately waiting for the caravan to come to your door and then luring others to spend money?"
Zhou Jun quickly whispered: "Just knowing this matter... it would be really disgraceful to spread it out."
Hua Yue rolled her eyes and asked Zhou Jun: "Just now you said there were two reasons, what about the other one?"
Zhou Jun: "Another reason... In fact, if a long-distance caravan traveling along the Silk Road takes the Gaochang Trade Road, it will take more than a month longer than the Daqi Trade Road. The former's various expenses on the road will be added together.
It’s not a decimal. Everyone can calculate an account. The expenses for more than two months on Gaochang Commercial Road and the expenses for one month on Daqi Commercial Road are actually not much different in total. Since the money spent is the same, why?
Don’t you want to make yourself more comfortable? At least, you will save more than a month.”
Huayue said, "That's it."
After counting the income of Daqi Road for half a year, Hua Yue remembered something and asked Zhou Jun: "Erlang told the court years ago that the newly opened trade road can earn two million yuan. Now that we have calculated it, there is still a lot of money."
distance."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Zhou Jun was thinking in his mind and said: "The Daqi Commercial Road was only opened in May this year, and it is only half a year away from me and the imperial court.
There is still half a year left. However, it is November now, and the climate has changed, and the desert is no longer suitable for travel. From now on, until March next year, the income of Daqi Commercial Road will be greatly reduced.
."
Huayue: "So, Daqi Commercial Road will only be reopened in April next year in spring? In this case, only April and May next year are left to fulfill the agreement."
Zhou Jun: "The end of March and the beginning of April are the peak periods for merchants to travel. The revenue of Daqi Commercial Road will have an explosive growth, reaching almost more than 400,000 yuan. The rest will be in Liangzhou, Su
The mutual market tax from the state, Guazhou and other places will be used as a subsidy. If it is still insufficient, I will make up for the vacancy myself."
Huayue was a little confused: "Why do we have to make up for the two million guan? In the first year of opening the new trade route, the revenue was about 1.5 million guan, which is already an astonishing achievement."
Zhou Jun: "Kong You and I have discussed this matter and set the revenue of Daqi Commercial Road at two million yuan in the first year. It can only be higher but not lower. This is for future planning."
Hua Yue: "In the future? Erlang, have you ever thought that if the income of the new trade route is set so high in the first year, then in the next few years, I am afraid that the tribute to the imperial court will not be enough every year."
Less than this number would be too much pressure.”
Zhou Jun asked in a deep voice: "Think about it, if the new trade route is successfully opened and everything here goes on the right track, will the imperial court still let me stay in the Western Regions?"
Huayue was stunned in place, thinking for a long time, and finally understood the deep meaning of Zhou Jun and Kong You.
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