A lovely banquet suddenly became a bit tasteless due to Zhu Yunxi's sudden arrival, and no matter how good the food was, it was like chewing wax.
Everyone ate some hastily, drank a few drinks, and ended in a hurry. There were some programs planned after the meal, but they had no choice but to give up.
Night has fallen, and the Chinese lanterns in Yingtian Mansion are starting to turn on, and the tourists are intoxicated like weaving incense, carriages, and BMWs.
In addition to the scholars walking together and the wealthy merchants in twos and threes, there are also colorful lanes full of rouge...
Zhu Yunxi walked slowly ahead with his hands behind his back, wandering on the street with some interest and some concern.
Zhu Gaochi was half a step behind him, while Wei Guogong Xu Huizu and Cao Guogong Li Jinglong were behind them.
"The food and wine just now were good!" Smelling the smoke of fireworks in the air, Zhu Yunxi said with a smile, "I didn't even use my chopsticks much. It's a pity to have a table full of food!" After saying that, he turned sideways and smiled and asked, "That table has a lot of food.
Money?"
"I ordered the best banquet for eight silver dollars!" Zhu Gaochi told the truth.
"Tsk, what a big deal!" Zhu Yunxi said with a smile.
Eight silver dollars is enough to feed a middle-class family of five in Yingtian Mansion for three to four months.
To make it easier to understand, during the Manchu and Qing Dynasties, an Eight Banners soldier could only earn between two and four taels of silver for a month's hard-core crops. An Eighth Banners vest could earn twenty two meters and ten shi of silver per month, which was enough to support him.
Family of eight.
After hundreds of years, all the silver in the world has flowed to China. After inflation, the value of silver has increased.
"Actually..." Zhu Gaochi smiled and said, "I am lucky that I have been favored by the emperor to enter the South Study Room to consult with the ministers on state affairs. But I also know how much I weigh, and I will need your help for many things in the future.
Instructions. So I thought, come out and set up a table to gain good popularity!"
Zhu Yunxi smiled and said, "You don't have to tell me this, I can still figure it out!"
Otherwise, Zhu Gaochi is smart. He is telling Zhu Yunxi that it is because I am new here and he wants to prevent others from ostracizing me, so he invites everyone out for dinner. There is no other meaning.
At the same time, he also took all the entertainment matters on himself and hid Xu Huizu. This also prevented Zhu Yunxi from worrying about Duke Wei's "protection" of Zhu Gaochi.
"You!" Zhu Yunxi continued to smile, "You have been with me for a short time, and you don't know me well." He said with a smile, "Do I look like a suspicious person?"
"You're not like that, you are!" Zhu Gaochi cursed in his heart.
With a smile on his face, he said, "The Emperor is naturally not a suspicious person, but it is my duty to inform the Emperor of everything in detail!"
Zhu Yunxi smiled but said nothing.
The flow of people ahead is getting denser, and they have reached the bank of the Qinhuai River, which is the busiest place at night.
Looking ahead, there are bright lights on the river, and countless boats with carved beams and painted buildings are moored on the water, competing for their beauty. Behind the screen windows are full of graceful figures of singing girls, and there is also the faint sound of silk and bamboo.
One after another, small boats sailed from the river to the shore. On the small boats were two-headed little girls, smiling as they invited the patrons onto the boat.
There are countless vendors, and the market cannot be seen at a glance, which can be said to be a prosperous and prosperous time.
Seeing Zhu Yunxi looking at the painted boat on the river, Li Jinglong, who was following behind, was moved in his heart and quietly turned around and walked back.
"Can such prosperity be found in Peking?" Zhu Yunxi stopped to watch and asked with a smile.
Zhu Gaochi shook his head, "Beiping is a frontier fortress with a curfew at night, so it's not as prosperous as the capital!"
This is half true and half false. Peiping's predecessor was the capital of the Yuan Dynasty. Even if it is not the capital of the Ming Dynasty, it is still a majestic city in the world, with merchants and merchants flocking to sing, dance, and wine shops all night long.
"Is there a table in Peking worth eight silver dollars?" Zhu Yunxi asked again.
Zhu Gaochi quickly figured out Zhu Yunxi's intentions in his mind, and slowly said, "The best Shandong cuisine restaurant in Peiping, the best swallow-wing mat is only three silver coins!" He said with a smile, "In terms of price,
The land south of the Yangtze River is much higher than the north."
"It's not that prices are high, it's that there are too many rich people!" Zhu Yunxi said thoughtfully.
Then, he looked ahead, pointed to a tea stall and said, "Let's go over and have a seat."
~~
It was a small tea stall with a few benches here and there.
Zhu Yunxi and Zhu Gaochi were left alone, while the others could only stand holding tea in their hands.
"Do you know how much it costs to have a good night on the boat over there?" Zhu Yunxi asked after taking a sip of hot tea and looking into the distance.
Zhu Gaochi thought about it, "I have never been to the land of fireworks and willow lanes!"
"You are an honest person!" Zhu Yunxi smiled, turned around and said, "Li Jinglong, how much?"
Hearing this, the latter immediately stepped forward and said with a smile, "As I'm telling you, there are several different levels of the boat. Generally, it costs about two silver dollars to have tea and listen to music. If you want to have a banquet with wine, etc., the starting price of three yuan is not included in the price of the table.
.If you want to be alone in a room with a famous actress, it will cost you at least ten silver dollars. If you want to be a guest at the curtain, then you have to check it out.".caset
"I'm talking about the ordinary painting boats. Those famous girls, if the benefactor doesn't spend two hundred a head, I'm afraid they won't be able to get close enough to see their beauty!"
"Inlaid with gold?" Zhu Gaochi cursed in his mind.
"Look!" Zhu Yunxi said with a smile while holding a tea bowl, "This is the leader of Fengyue Squadron. He talks about these treasures!" He took another sip of tea and said with a smile, "I still remember that there were some people who wrote letters and talked about the capital.
There are too many places with wind and moon, it’s really indecent!”
Li Jinglong smiled and continued, "That's just a poor scholar who has no knowledge. Last year, Yingtian Mansion collected 180,000 in cash just for the license fees for the Qinhuai River Boat and Fireworks Willow Alley. Not to mention the surrounding areas.
How many people rely on this to make a living."
"You two are an emperor and a duke, why do you look like an old bustard?" Zhu Gaochi cursed in his heart, but he still had a naive smile on his face, looking silly.
At this time, Zhu Yunxi said again, "So, there are many rich people in Jiangnan! A table costs eight silver dollars, and diners have to line up to reserve a table. A trip to the boat starts with at least ten silver dollars, but you look like
There’s still an endless stream of people!”
As he said that, he looked at Zhu Gaochi, "What about the poor families? Take Yingtian Mansion as an example. If a common family has more than ten yuan in silver, it is considered a middle-income family."
"There is a huge gap between the rich and the poor!" Zhu Gaochi said subconsciously.
"That's right! Hit the nail on the head!" Zhu Yunxi nodded, "Why is there such a disparity?" After saying that, he looked at Zhu Gaochi expectantly.
Zhu Gaochi pondered slightly, "The south of the Yangtze River is heavy on commerce, and there are many workshops. The goods produced are sold overseas. The emperor also authorized the customs to allow maritime trade..."
"That's not right!" Zhu Yunxi said, "At least it's not entirely right! If that's true, at least the people can have some soup to drink and some scattered silver coins, but where does the money go? It's actually not clear in the city. You go
Have you ever been to the countryside and taken a look? Poverty abounds."
As he spoke, he sighed and said, "The rich are trying to get richer, so the big workshops merge with the small ones, and then they try their best to buy land. People without land can only work hard to earn a living, even those with land
Well, farming is just to make a living."
"This has happened since ancient times!" Zhu Gaochi also sighed with some emotion, "It cannot be changed without human power!"
"I understand this truth. Just imagine if we were rich people, we would naturally buy houses and land, but have you ever thought about where the roots are?" Zhu Yunxi asked again.
Zhu Gaochi thought for a long time and shook his head.
"The root cause is that the size of Jiangnan is too small!" Zhu Yunxi looked into his eyes and said seriously, "Do you understand the meaning of the word size?"
