Time is like flowing water, and three years have passed in a blink of an eye. Now it is the midsummer season for the five years of Tianyou.

This is Shangyang County, Hexi Prefecture, Longyou Province. It is the hottest time of the year. The sky is so blue that it makes people dizzy, and even a cloud is rare to see. The hot sun makes the sky look like a steamer and the ground is like a frying pan. Before noon, the hot people can't breathe. The big trees that were ignored in the past have all become popular goods, and under the shade of the trees are covered with shirtless people who are cooling off.

It's said to be a cool breeze, but in fact they all have endless smelly sweat...

Although the weather was extremely hot, there were still traffic on the official roads entering the city, and there was a long queue, without any empty space at noon... The bare-armed porter and businessman in short shirt hid in the shadows covered by the car body to avoid heatstroke caused by the sun. The porters held their straw hats in their hands and fanned them hard, while closing their eyes to rest, resting, and resting their physical strength that was lost with sweat.

The merchants did not have the heart of these coolies. While cursing in a low voice, they looked at the city gate from time to time, and asked when it was their turn to enter the city. But after a while, they had to retract their heads back into the shade and pour water into big mouthfuls. It was too hot.

But the world is full of blessings, and not all places are so hot. Outside the west gate of Shangyang County, near the official road and backed by the stream, there are more than a dozen large willow trees growing, covering the sun, and the breeze brings a cool breeze, barely covering up a piece of shade.

Several old melon farmers with wrinkles pushed dozens of newly picked watermelons in the morning with a wheelbarrow, leaned under the shade of the tree, and then drew a few buckets of water from the well not far away. They brought the watermelons into the cold well water without shouting and shouting, the big and round green watermelon attracted passersby to the surroundings to enjoy the coolness.

"Is your watermelon sweet?" Someone asked what the big guy said.

"It's not sweet, no money." The old melon farmer wrinkled tightly and said proudly: "At first glance, you are a foreigner. Everyone in Shangyang City knows that the watermelons in Tianjia Village are big and round, crisp and sweet. Eat one piece to cool down and heat, eat two pieces of cold and sweet to quench thirst..."

"What if I eat three slices?" someone joked.

"You want to eat four more pieces." The old farmer was obviously a talkative person, which made people around him laugh and said, "Then let us have two." "I want three." "I want them too..."

After a while, many people sat around the melon stall, sitting under the shade of trees to enjoy the cool and eat melons, chatting and eating. It is said that "there is no gentleman in midsummer". Although the Rich peasants, industry and commerce are so clear, they are definitely full and have nothing to do. When the stingy sun is shining, they will all be able to show up.

No matter what kind of official and gentry, peddler, scholar, scholar, and young man, they were bare-handed, holding a watermelon and gnawing. They couldn't care about any etiquette and rules, gentleness and dignity.

But it was not all that way. In the northeast corner of the woods, there were a group of men who were dressed up, each with a strong back and waist, with a steady temperament. They were all trainees. They were all foreigners, and they did not participate in the chat of chatting around, but sat silently, observing the situation with all concentration. Even the tempting fragrance of watermelon did not distract them from their attention.

"What are these people doing?" The unusual scene of a single-gang businessman naturally aroused the strong interest of the melon eaters. Unfortunately, those people were very difficult to mess with at first sight, otherwise they would have gone to talk to each other in the morning.

"I guess I'm a man who traveled around the world." Someone guessed: "It's obvious that it was from the Red Escort Agency."

"Let's talk nonsense. What's the year now? Time is worth every inch!" A white and fat man said, "Not to mention the Red Escort Agency, even a small erotic account with more than ten tricks will never be idle."

This aroused the interest of the young man next to him, and he laughed loudly, "Is the current year a good time?" As soon as this said, he was immediately despised by everyone around him. The rich man shook his white chest and said, "Young man is just short-sighted. If the current year is not good now, then there will be no good year since the Zhenguan administration."

People around him also nodded and echoed: "That's right, we ordinary people are mean. If we didn't feel it in a real way, we would never have said good things to the court."

When the young man saw that he was angry, he quickly put his hands together and said with a smile: "Don't blame everyone, this is my first time going out. My experience is indeed very short. I was curious for a moment, don't blame me." As he said, he said to the old man selling melons: "Brother-in-law, buy a few larger watermelons, and I'll invite everyone to eat watermelons to apologize."

Everyone was relieved and laughed, "Thank you, this young man." The old man nodded with a smile, took a few watermelons and cut them open, and said with a shout: "Whoever eats them will take them, Yaya, I will know that I will bully the younger generation, and I will not be ashamed to panic." Everyone burst into laughter again.

Several watermelons narrowed the distance between the young man and the others. The young man said to the businessman who spoke first, "My brother, your surname is Taifu, you think you have a Zhongdu accent?"

The businessman smiled and said, "My surname is Zhou, and the single name is Qiang. It is indeed a native of Shizi Street, Kita-Chongqing, Kyoto." As he said that, he gnawed the watermelon in his hand out of green, then threw the melon skin off, and smacked his lips with unsatisfactory intentions: "You are also a man in Zhongdu City? Do you dare to ask about the name Gao?"

The young man nodded and smiled, "It's true that I met an old friend in a foreign land." As he said that, he handed a piece of melon to the man and introduced himself, "My surname is Tian, ​​with a single name of Yu, and he lives in Yandaixixiang Lane, Nancheng."

"When the fellow villagers see the fellow villagers, we are crying, so we have to get close to each other." The businessman suddenly became intimate and said, "Why are you from Beijing?"

"Oh, come out and do some small business and learn more. When it comes to this hot day, the road ahead is blocked and you can't even walk. Oh, it's really..." Tian Yu sighed.

The merchant looked him up and down for a while, and suddenly smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I think you are not a businessman."

"How can I see it?" Tian Yu was slightly surprised and asked calmly.

"We are all based on our eyes. If you can't even see your identity, you dare to come out to make a living?" As he said, the traveling merchant smiled and said, "Look at your hands, your slender and long, and your nails are neatly clever. Look at your face, white and red, and you feel refreshed. How can you have a little dusty atmosphere?" As he said, he pointed to the fan in Tian Yu's hand and said, "Don't look at your cotton shirt, you can get twenty taels of silver when you hold this sandalwood fan. Which one can afford to buy or sell?"

"You really have it!" Looking at the fan in your hand, Tian Yu shook his head with a little depressed depression, then smiled and said, "Then what do you think I'm doing?"

"Young Master tests me." The businessman Zhou Qiang laughed and said, "From your behavior and demeanor, you seem to be a child of a wealthy family, but that calmness and calmness are not something that ordinary young masters can do," he said suddenly and said, "Are you the former chief minister of the cabinet... No, the Tian family lives in Dongcheng, not in Nancheng."

Tian Yu shook his head and said without comment: "To be honest, I have been spoiled since I was a child. I have always had no worries about food and clothing, and I am a little unemployed. This time I went out, my father intended to let me practice it." As he said that, he scratched his head and asked curiously: "I remember that I walked through Longyou with my father four years ago, and I felt that the change was quite big."

"It's not just a big deal, it's simply a huge upside down!" Zhou Qiang laughed and said, "It's not that I boasted that the changes that our Daqin had taken in these three years are much greater than the combined past thirty years!"

"Is that amazing?" Tian Yu said disbelief.

"Of course." A man resting beside him said: "We ordinary people can't say anything about one, two, three, and four, but we can really try it out. The days are much better now than those when Zhaowu was. The most obvious thing is that there is surplus food in all seasons, so there is no need to escape from the famine anymore!"

"Yes," Zhou Qiang nodded and said, "My family was not full in the past. Every year, the spring famine was full of melons and vegetables. As for the remaining money, I dare not think about it." As he said, he smiled proudly and said, "Now not only does it have to worry about food and clothing, but my eldest brother can go to the bookstore to study."

"Since that's the case, Brother Zhou, why do you still have to go to the single gang?" Tian Yu asked strangely: "I often hear people say that this work is very tiring and hard, and the danger is not small."

"Brothers are talking about old calendars." Zhou Qiang shook his head and smiled: "I have had the Huaxia ticket number over the years. I saved the silver and took it out when I arrived at the ground. When I came back, I followed the caravan and there was no danger at all." Suddenly, he said in a daze: "But this is the last trip, and I will never run away again."

"What do you eat if you don't run away?" the man next to him interrupted.

"If you find a job in Zhongdu City, it's better than doing this." Zhou Qiang said with a dim look: "You think it's the previous two years, and it's enough to take a year to travel."

This made people sigh and nodded, "Yes, I could earn twenty taels a day ago, but it dropped to ten taels last year, and only five taels this year. It sounds like a lot, but after three months of back and forth, how much can I get in a month?"

Some people also enviously said: "You Kyoto people are blessed. At the foot of the emperor, King Wucheng is under the throne. Those monsters and monsters dare not make random things. It must be much easier to make money."

"That's natural." Zhou Qiang nodded and smiled, "My brother-in-law opened a fur shop, which is just a little bigger than a palm. You can get a 30 or 50 taels in a month. Why do you think I'm working hard?"

At this time, Tian Yu, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly said, "Why do I sound a little confused? You will say ok later and then bad later. Is this world good or bad?"

"That depends on how to compare." The rich man with white belly shook his head and said, "If it is compared with the Zhaowu period, it will naturally be excellent; if it is compared with the previous two years of the new policy, it will be far inferior."

The people around him nodded in empathy and said, "Yes, although it is pretty good now, if you continue to do this, you are afraid that in another three to five years, you will have to return to its original state."

Tian Yu's face became a little gloomy and asked in a low voice: "Why? The "New Deal of Heaven Blessing" did not say that once the law is promulgated, it must not be revised easily. Even if it is necessary to modify it, it must be more preferential to the people?"

"Is that? Is there any of these people who read the "New Deal" from beginning to end, and they knew nothing about the special terms in the appendix.

"It's true." Tian Yu nodded seriously and said, "I just saw it a few days ago."

"That's useless." Zhou Qiang shook his head and said, "Your Majesty and the prince love the people. We all know that this is not the case, otherwise we will not reform." As he said this, he suddenly lowered his voice and pointed to the city gate and said, "Did you see it? You have only been openly disobeying the Shengming in just three years!" Following his fingers, Tian Yu saw several policemen in the city gate, who were checking the vehicles entering the city with great power, and seemed to be charging the car owner the entry fee.

According to the new law's provisions of 'tax not heavy', merchants can pay a one-time tax at the purchase place, and they can be unobstructed throughout the country. Prefectures, prefectures, counties and government offices at all levels are not allowed to make clever names in their jurisdictions and set up card fees...

Tian Yuqiang suppressed his anger and said, "Are these people brave enough to eat the courage of the ambitious leopard? Are you not afraid that Your Majesty and King Wucheng will know?"

"Oh! Your Majesty and the Prince are extremely wise, but their second brothers are all in the Forbidden City, surrounded by so many people and coaxed them. Those people have already connected each other, and they have kept everything from the two saints, making them think that the world is peaceful and everything goes well!"

"Isn't there a way to get the test?" Tian Yu's face became increasingly ugly.

People around him complained: "Rules are dead, people live. The officials have already thought about ways to complete the tasks and get benefits."

Tian Yu's face became extremely ugly, and she said in a deep voice: "For example?"

"For example, there are too many." Someone said angrily: "I am a businessman, so I should take the 'loan' item in the 'progress of industry and commerce' that is closely related to me. We know that the prince's original intention is to be afraid that we small businessmen will not be able to turn around and lend us money to turn around. What a good thing this is."

"What's the matter?" Perhaps because of his anger, Tian Yu's face suddenly became quiet and his voice no longer became angry: "Is there anything wrong with it?"

"Of course it's not appropriate, it's not appropriate!" Everyone seemed to have a strong opinion on this article, and they said, "If we voluntarily ask for official loans, that's a good thing. But in fact, the government forced our five families to protect each other and then set a number for each family, which is called a 'scattered loan'. In order to ensure that the principal and interest are recovered, the government's targets are mostly middle-class and upper-class families rather than weak merchants with shortages and arrears, but they are afraid that the lower households will be unable to repay it! What else can we talk about encouraging industry and commerce? And we also have to charge two cents of interest, which is 20% of the interest per year. Even rich households are overwhelmed by this number."

"Yes, if the family had no money and could pay it back then, they might have to be in debt all their lives. It would not be enough to make some money to pay the interest."

"It's outrageous!" Tian Yu finally couldn't help but slapped his thighs hard and said, "Did these people take the courage of ambition? It's obviously half a share of the profit, but how did they increase it three times at once?"

"This is a routine." Zhou Qiang shook his head and smiled bitterly: "The young master is from a noble family, so he naturally does not understand these evil ways. The extra three points have their own places, and they are indispensable."

"Where is the place?" Tian Yu held the folding fan tightly in his hand and said in a low tone.

"Apart from the one handed over to the national treasury for reference, these three are usually not accountable." Zhou Qiang, a businessman like him, is well-informed, from all over the world, from top to bottom, and from left to bottom, and he only heard him whisper: "One of them is Bing Jingtan Jing, dedicated to the Grand Secretary of the Beijing area and the Six Ministers and Nine Ministers, so that the adults in the capital can only speak good things and not bad things. The other is to deal with the purpose of His Majesty and the Prince, so that these people can become deaf and mute. The world will be completely peaceful, and they can also embezzle them to the fullest."

Tian Yu was already shocked by this sentence and couldn't speak for a long time. Zhou Qiang called him a few words, and then he came to his senses and said quietly: "There are so many uses and so many mouths, is this little money enough?"

"Of course not enough." The fat and fat rich man shook his fleshy cheeks and said enviously: "Except for the fact that the Tianshi is involved too much, they dare not interfere for the time being, but they have put in a lot of effort elsewhere, but they are trying hard to get money." He said, pointing to the city gate and said: "Did you look at the gate? If you want to go in, get the toll."

"It's outrageous!" The young man stood up, twisted his hands hard, twisting the hard sandalwood fan into a twist, and said angrily: "I have the "New Law of Heaven Blessing" in black and white, but I just don't hand it over, see how they can do to me!"

"Don't, don't." Zhou Qiang quickly stood up and said, "Young Master, we are away from home and safety is the best. It is always better to have less than more things than less, and it is better to have nothing to do than to have less things."

"Don't stop me, someone must be treated." Tian Yu shook Zhou Qiang's hand and walked towards the city gate. A man beside him who had been silent and almost ignored the existence also hurriedly stood up and followed.

"You are so young." Looking at his back, Zhou Qiang shook his head and smiled bitterly, then looked at the slice of watermelon that he still hadn't eaten, and cursed inwardly: "All right, who told us to be fellow villagers? You still invite me to eat melons? You can't watch him pick it into the fire pit." Then he hurriedly followed.

As the young man walked towards the city gate, the group of clay-like men in the distance also stood up and patted his butt and followed him.

As soon as he walked to a place not far from the city gate, Tian Yu heard a noise there. When he looked closely, he found that it was the tax collectors who had a dispute with a businessman.

He stepped up and got closer, and he could clearly hear the conversation between the two sides.

"You said you wanted five taels of money to enter the city, and I gave it a lot of money. Why didn't you let me in?"

"Five liang is the price last month." A tax collector with a gangster-looking face said lazily: "It's so hot that I kill people now, but brothers are working in a fierce sun in order to make you step up their journey into the city. I said up the peak and charged another cooling fee of one liang, which is a total of six liang."

"Six liang?" The businessman was anxious and said in a lost voice: "Can you still let someone live?"

"Don't make a noise, wouldn't you just have one or two more silver? What's the matter?" the tax collector said indifferently.

"The problem is big!" The hot-tempered businessman shouted: "From here to get to us, we have to pass through ten counties and cities. I originally thought that this trip would make ten taels of silver. If I added one tael in each place, my trip would be in vain for your government!" Many businessmen behind him also shouted loudly and said: "That's right, we only pay five taels!"

"What are you excited?" The tax collector said indifferently: "We don't know why we will collect other places. Anyway, if you don't pay this tael of silver, then don't think about going there!"

"I insist on passing!" The merchant was so fierce that he said at a glance: "People, get the car, let's go straight!"

"Who dares?" The tax collector waved his hand, and six or seven other tax collectors surrounded him. The idle gangsters lying under the trees to enjoy the cool air also stood up one after another, blocking the door.

If this is placed in Qi or Chu, those merchants will most likely give up. But this is in Qin. For these Western Qin Hanzi, it is necessary to face the challenge without hesitation, even if the challenger was initiated by the court.

The truth that the people do not fight with officials is obviously not feasible here. The Qin people believe that the winner is the king, and everything has to be done until the fight is over. Not only the merchant, but behind him, a group of merchants and porters who are not acquainted with each other, also picked up the guys and stood opposite the tax collectors.

"Ho, it's quite awesome." The city gate official sneered, "But you have been scattered in the wrong place, remember this lesson." As he said that, he waved his hand and said with a grim face: "Blow me hard and knock them down until you accept it." It seemed that this was not the first time that the situation was. Those rascals and rogues with their upper bodies took out some iron sticks, machetes and the like from behind, obviously they had been prepared long ago and wanted to be hard at critical moments.

The merchants were not willing to be outdone. Although the number was far smaller than that of the land, they responded without fear.
Chapter completed!