"This statement," Zhao Zongji took a sip of tea and said with a smile, "is a bit alarmist. I have read a lot of history books recently, but I have never heard such a statement. - < > - Net."
"It's not an exaggeration at all." Chen Ke shook his head and smiled: "The reason why you can't see it in the book is that those who compiled the history books either had it in their heads or deliberately didn't say it."
"Why?" Zhao Zongji asked.
"Without it, people will always serve their own interest groups." Chen Ke said calmly: "Those civil servants who write history books are loan sharks at home. How could they take the blame for this on themselves?"
"Appreciate further details."
"Usury is like a pawn shop in the city, but it is a landlord in the countryside." Chen Ke said softly: "In all the dynasties before the Song Dynasty, although there were levies on cities, bans on mountains and rivers, and discussions on salt and iron, these were just side dishes, and the country's
The real staple food is agriculture and farmers. Agriculture provides the main tax revenue, and farmers also bear the main labor force. So let’s first only look at the harm of usury by landlords.”
"I know a little bit about the dangers of loan sharking. It makes poor people who borrow money penniless and their families ruined." Zhao Zongji said.
"Yes, but this is a superficial phenomenon, not a real harm." Chen Ke said: "The best situation for farmers in rural areas is that they have more than ten acres of land at home and a family of seven or eight. They grow their own food, cotton, and chickens.
Pigs can be self-sufficient, and then use the remaining agricultural products to buy some necessities such as salt, iron, etc. in the market, and there will be no money left. But because the only burden is the taxes from the court, life is still manageable."
"This is already a very good peasant family." Zhao Zongji nodded.
"But their ability to resist risks is extremely poor. Once they encounter bad years, weddings and funerals, birth, old age, illness, and death, etc., their income is reduced or their expenses increase significantly, they have to rely on debt to get through. - < > - Net. And borrowing money from the surrounding poor farmers is
It’s impossible, so we can only borrow it from the landlord.”
"Up to this point, this family is still thinking that if they work hard in the second year and tighten their belts, they can repay the loan sharks and live a normal life." Chen Ke continued: "But what he borrowed was
Usury, and it is usury that he has no bargaining power, it will be of no use even if he harvests the next year, because if he collects three to five bushels more, the price of grain will drop, and he will still not be able to pay it back."
"On the other hand, usury in rural areas is much more barbaric than in cities. The increase in interest every year often exceeds the meager income of farmers. Farmers who have been busy for a year can often only repay the newly increased interest. This is still
In a good year, but if in a bad year, even eating is a problem, how can we talk about paying off the debt? But the debt is compounded with interest, getting higher and higher. In the end, I can only lose my land, cattle, wife, children, and even
I will pay off my debt to the landlord."
"Once there is a famine year and large-scale farmers cannot survive, the result will be large-scale land annexation. Farmers will either become tenants or leave their hometowns and become refugees." Chen Ke told the young prince seriously.
The science of rise and fall that cannot be learned elsewhere: "There are two other factors driving this phenomenon. One is that the land will degrade after years of cultivation, the output will become less and less, and the number of people that can feed it will naturally decrease. The other
On the other hand, as long as there is no large-scale war, the population will slowly grow. Over time, the two-phase effect will lead to land annexation and farmers' bankruptcy will become more serious."
Zhao Zongji listened so seriously that he even forgot to ask questions and just took notes silently.
"For a dynasty, these two problems are fatal. Land annexation has gathered a large amount of the country's financial resources into the hands of powerful landowners. Compared with farmers who are as docile as sheep, landowners are cunning and powerful.
, through various political privileges, they can have a large number of tax-free acres. Then they bribe local officials to confuse taxable acres with tax-free acres, or simply conceal the acres. In short, there are ways to escape the tax burden. Then the court's income will inevitably drop sharply.
"
"The harm of bankrupt farmers is more serious. As I said just now, bankrupt farmers have two directions, one is to work as tenants for landlords, the other is to leave their hometown and become refugees. (-< >-Net.) No matter which one, it will lead to the country's
The number of taxpayers will decrease, and the number of people responsible for labor will shrink." Chen Ke said slowly: "This will increase the burden on farmers who have not gone bankrupt, causing more farmers to go bankrupt, creating more refugees, and leading to the rise of bandits and robbers everywhere.
Situation. Banditry is rampant and the people will not be able to make a living, and more farmers will not be able to survive. If we encounter consecutive years of famine at this time, there will inevitably be a large-scale peasant rebellion."
"And the country was already in deep financial crisis long before this. The army was disorganized and unable to suppress the rebellion. This eventually led to the decline and even death of a regime. Although some dynasties were not overthrown by peasant rebellions, they were first defeated by them.
After shaking the foundation, the ambitions of the heroes were ignited."
"Actually, this analysis is not difficult, but the vested interests in the past dynasties are unwilling to admit this - admitting it means that 'suppressing annexation' has become a national policy. In an era when land is wealth, you let the scholar-bureaucrats
What else can we do?" Chen Ke mocked: "Is it the land of the king in the whole world? All the land of the country belongs to the monarch. This is the legal basis for the people of the world to pay taxes. The essence of land annexation is actually the princes and scholar-bureaucrats.
Competing with the monarch for the benefit of the world. What is ridiculous is that many emperors were also deceived by the scholar-bureaucrats, and even allowed them to annex without collecting their taxes. Isn't this just helping to count the money after being sold?"
Zhao Zongji was deeply shocked. In the past, he only regarded Chen Ke as a close friend, and at most a good helper who could give him advice. But now he discovered that under the other person's unruly face, there was actually a kind of love that transcended the times.
Wisdom. This is knowledge that you can never learn elsewhere, but it is something that anyone who is aspiring to the world absolutely needs to learn.
Thinking of this, he bowed deeply and said, "Brother Zhong Fang, I would like to ask you for more advice in the future." His tone changed from affectionate to respectful.
"These things." Chen Ke regained his carelessness and said with a smile: "Actually, I am just saying it, so you can just listen to it. The country is just like people. It didn't start well at the beginning, and it becomes deformed. It needs to be changed.
Not coming."
"After all, a country is not a human being." Zhao Zongji said firmly, "After all, there are examples of Shang Jun's success."
"Throughout the ages, Shang Jun is the only one." Chen Ke shook his head and said.
"If there is one, there are two, and you are two!" Zhao Zongji looked at Chen Ke eagerly.
"I don't want to be torn apart by a car." Chen Ke shook his head and said: "Firstly, I don't have the talents of Shang Jun. Secondly, the problems of the Song Dynasty are more than ten times more complicated than those of the Qin Dynasty. It cannot be reversed by manpower.
"
"It all depends on man!"
"Haha..." Chen Ke couldn't help but smile bitterly. He had already started to have a sense of ownership even before he became the prince. However, he did not dampen Zhao Zongji's enthusiasm. He chuckled and said: "If you are really ambitious, from now on, you will be more Take a look at Han Feizi’s books and Li Kui’s Dharma Sutra.”
"Oh..." Zhao Zongji said with a smile: "I didn't expect you to be a Legalist."
"I am the Sa family." Chen Ke laughed and said, "I have no sectarian opinions, only right and wrong."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The two of them were chatting away up there, completely unaware of what kind of scene was going on downstairs.
In just two hours, more than a hundred loan applications were handed over to the counter. After review and elimination, there were still 60 qualified full mortgages, and the loan amount applied for reached 1.6 million yuan...
Qian Sheng and Li Da, who were the store owners and shopkeepers... He was Li Wei's nephew, and he was sweating at that time. Because the entire money account only had a total capital of 2 million yuan. It would take ten days at the fastest to get the rest of the funds. Arriving in place one after another.
But if you stop accepting applications right after it opens, it will be a fatal blow to the reputation of the money account. Only with great power and deep bottom can people have the confidence to entrust their money to take care of it. Otherwise, they will not be able to borrow money. The chicken lays the egg, so taking off is out of the question.
If it is acceptable, where can I find so much money? Once the money is not available, the situation will be even worse.
The two of them didn't dare to make up their mind. Chen Ke was waiting for guests again, so Li Da had to go to Jiaozipu to find Bai Yaming.
"We accept orders as long as they are compliant." Bai Yaming said unconcernedly: "In other industries, you can eat as much food as you want. But we can't do this. We have to eat ten times as much food."
"What if I can't exchange the money?"
"Don't worry, what are the bank notes used for?" Bai Yaming said confidently: "Tell those customers that the money they borrowed can be deposited in our account first. Not only does it not require storage fees, but also interest will be paid based on the deposit. When the money is used When the time comes, they only need to come to the account with the seller to complete the transfer, and the money will be the other party’s.”
"Remember, money is our lifeblood." He taught his brother-in-law in a deep voice: "We must do everything possible to keep it in our treasury, and at the same time increase the amount of loans. As long as we grasp these two points , you will be invincible."
"This is done, but there are still people who insist on asking for cash?" Li Da actually came to ask for help.
"If someone insists on asking for money, you must give it happily." Bai Yaming said: "I know you want to borrow some cash. But these days, I have a peak withdrawal period here, and the people don't accept their money, so I must ensure that there is enough money. Cash." He paused and said, "So you can only use the cash from the bank account to solve the problem."
Li Da's trip was in vain. When he returned to the money account, he met the boss who insisted on cash.
Qian Sheng pulled him aside and whispered: "This seems to be causing trouble. What I have in my hand is the land deed for the entire street of Xiaotianshui Lane. I want a loan of 800,000 yuan." Xiaotianshui Lane is the home of Daxiangguo Temple. A small street between Panlou Street and Panlou Street is part of the Wan surname trading market... It is the trading center of the entire Song Dynasty! It is worth more than one million yuan.
