Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 388 Ginseng
In the Hou Mansion, a middle-aged man stood outside the door with his hands behind his back, admiring the white-walled and green-tiled Hou family mansion. Behind him were seven or eight idle servants.

The middle-aged man was wearing a black robe and had a short beard. He was Zhang Hong, a clerk in the Household Department of Jiading.

The door of the mansion was wide open, but Zhang Hong and others did not break into the mansion.

The group of hangers-on behind Zhang Hong stood crookedly in the open space outside the door, chatting and laughing. When the people on the street saw the people in front of the door, they all looked frightened and hurriedly retreated.
Not long after, Hou Qi Zeng led Hou Xuanqi, Gu Tiankui and others to the door. Hou Qi Zeng looked at Zhang Hong outside the mansion. Before he stepped out of the door, he smiled and bowed.

"It turns out that Zhang Sili has come. Tea and cakes have been prepared at home. Please invite Zhang Sili to come in and have a chat."

Zhang Hong looked at Hou Qi Zeng, who was smiling, and smiled as well, revealing his sharp white teeth. He said

"Mr. Hou, thank you for your courtesy. However, I am here on official business, so there is no need for you to enter the mansion."

Hou Qi heard this, and although he kept smiling, his heart sank immediately.

Zhang Hong was the county's housing clerk. He was in charge of collecting the county's confiscated property. The Hou family had dealt with him many times before.
Zhang Hong usually asked for bribes whenever he came to the Hou family. However, Zhang Hong was acting out of character and refused to enter the mansion. It was obvious that he had bad intentions.

Zhang Hong didn't care about the expressions of the Hou family members and said directly

"This autumn, the imperial court has allocated a batch of Liao ginseng to the government, and the government is required to sell them to raise military funds to supply the frontline military supplies."

"The soldiers on the front line fight the Ming bandits every day to ensure peace in Jiangnan. The issue of military pay cannot be delayed."

"The court urged us to do so urgently. The county government was unable to sell the Liao ginseng at the moment, so we had to ask the big families in the county for help."

"The Hou family is a righteous gentry in our county. The county government would like to ask the Hou family to buy five pounds of ginseng to help with military supplies. Please do not refuse, Mr. Hou."

Hou Qi Zeng and the others in the Hou family heard this, but their expressions changed immediately.

After the Guangdong court invaded Zhejiang, in order to prevent the Ming army from invading Jiangnan, the number of troops in Zhejiang and Nanzhili increased day by day.

There are now no less than 100,000 soldiers in Jiangnan and Zhejiang provinces. Most of these people are Ming soldiers who surrendered during the Qing army's occupation of Jiangnan and Zhejiang provinces, as well as bandits who took advantage of the chaos in various places.

Originally, the best way for the Qing government was to recruit the best and most capable people, and then dismiss the majority of the mob as civilians.
This will not only reduce the burden on the court, but also free up manpower to resume production.

But after the Ming army entered Zhejiang Province, the Ming court was eyeing the Jiangnan area covetously, but the Qing court did not dare to lay off soldiers at this time.

The Qing court did not keep these soldiers to fight against the Ming army. Among these 100,000 people, only the four towns in Jiangnan and the 30,000 to 40,000 former Southern Ming main forces such as Fang Guoan in Zhejiang Province were still useful.

The remaining 50,000 to 60,000 people were all weak bandits who surrendered during the chaos. Even if the Qing government dismissed them all, it would not affect the combat effectiveness of Jiangnan at all. However, the Qing government did not dare to do so at this time.
If the Qing government retains the organization of these weak soldiers, it can temporarily stabilize these people. However, if the Qing government begins to cut troops on a large scale, then these tens of thousands of soldiers who have lost their livelihoods will inevitably cause trouble in Jiangnan.
The main force of the Eight Banners in Jiangnan was capable of suppressing these weak troops, but the real enemy of the Qing court at this time was not these rebellious troops.

If these rebels were to cause chaos in Jiangnan, and the Ming army in Zhejiang Province took advantage of the chaos to attack, Jiangnan would probably fall directly.
Jiangnan is a rich land, and it should be enough to support 100,000 soldiers. However, most of the grain tax in Jiangnan has to be transported to the capital, and it is impossible to keep it in the local area.
The Qing government simply could not afford to pay the salaries of these large numbers of Green Camp soldiers who could not be laid off or employed.

The soldiers could not be laid off, and the Qing government had no money to pay them. What could they do? They could only let the gentry in Jiangnan suffer, and the Han officials would be the ones to bear the brunt of the curse.
In order to raise funds for the army, the first method the Qing government came up with was to impose heavy taxes in Jiangnan and at the same time severely pursue the arrears of taxes.
In order to win the hearts of the people, the Qing government announced the abolition of the three taxes as soon as it moved to the capital. At that time, all the gentry and common people shouted "Great Qing is wise and wise".

But the good times did not last long. After the Qing Dynasty wiped out the Hongguang court, it believed that the Southern Ming Dynasty had no chance of success, so it resumed levying Liao taxes.

At that time, it had been less than a year since the Qing government announced the abolition of the three taxes. It was embarrassing for the Qing government to go back on its word in just one year.
But no matter how embarrassing it is, the money still has to be collected. What to do? Naturally, the additional Liao salary is to be renamed.

During the Wanli period, the Liao tribute of the Ming Dynasty was called Jiuli Silver, so the Qing Dynasty changed the Liao tribute to restore the old Ming system and re-levied Jiuli Silver.
My Great Qing said that it would abolish the three taxes, but I never said that I would not collect the nine cents of silver.

During the Wanli period, the Ming Dynasty imposed an additional nine cents of silver to suppress the Jurchens in Liaodong. At this time, the Qing government once again imposed the nine cents of silver.

This matter is actually extremely absurd. The Ming Dynasty collected nine cents of silver in order to destroy the Liaodong Jurchens. In other words, the Qing court was collecting an additional tax silver to destroy itself.
Moreover, the Qing Dynasty had been collecting taxes and silver for hundreds of years, which was originally used to suppress the Jurchens, until the fall of the Qing Dynasty.
This is the essence of the so-called abolition of the three taxes by the Qing court. The so-called benevolent policies promoted by the Qing court in later generations were mostly based on this.

In addition to re-levying Liao taxes and recovering the taxes owed by the previous dynasty, the Qing government also used selling goods to raise military funds.
At this time, most of the ginseng in the Central Plains came from Liaodong, and the ginseng industry in Liaodong was almost completely monopolized by the Qing court. The Qing court held a huge amount of ginseng.

What should the imperial court do if it has no money to pay salaries? Then it should distribute ginseng to each province and order the prefectures and counties to sell ginseng to raise funds.

Ginseng was quite precious at that time. The Qing government did not rob people openly but was willing to sell ginseng for money. It seemed that they were quite law-abiding. However, if you look closely at the rules of selling ginseng, you will find the absurdity in it.
In the early and middle Ming Dynasty, although ginseng was considered a precious medicinal material, its price was not too expensive.

In the 12th year of the Wanli reign, a pound of ginseng in the Central Plains cost only one tael of silver. However, in the 39th year of the Wanli reign, the price of ginseng in the Ming Dynasty rose to ten taels per pound. By the end of the Chongzhen reign, the price of ginseng continued to rise, reaching a high price of fifteen taels per pound.

From the founding of the Ming Dynasty to the 12th year of the Wanli reign, the price of ginseng in the Ming Dynasty hovered at a low level for hundreds of years. However, after the Wanli reign, the price of ginseng soared more than ten times in just a few decades.

What is the reason for this? It is because during these decades, the Qing Dynasty began to rise.

The price of ginseng soared during the Wanli period, not because of the decrease in ginseng production, but because the Qing Dynasty completely monopolized the ginseng industry, so the price of ginseng soared.

Under the monopoly of the Qing court, the price of ginseng in the Central Plains was as high as 15 taels, but the Liao ginseng obtained by the counties in the south of the Yangtze River was priced even higher.

Take Jiading as an example. The price of ginseng sold in Jiading County Government Office is as high as 37 taels, while the price of ginseng sold in the private sector is only 15 taels. The price of ginseng sold in the county government office is almost doubled, so no one would buy it.
The price had been set by the Qing court, and the ginseng was distributed. If the money was short by one ounce, the county official would be severely punished.
In order to complete the task, the county government naturally gave these ginseng to Hou Qizeng and other righteous men in the county.

Not to mention that the price of ginseng sold by the county government was extremely unreasonable. The county government forced the gentry in the county to buy ginseng, and they bought several kilograms at a time.

This is ginseng, not food. What's the point of the gentry spending a lot of money to buy a bunch of ginseng and take it home? Do they eat it as a meal?

Nowadays, in Jiading County Government, all the wealthy gentry are terrified of ginseng and try their best to avoid selling ginseng.
This so-called sale of Liao ginseng was just another way for the Qing government to plunder the gentry and common people in Jiangnan.
Hou Qizeng was embarrassed when he heard this, and said, "Zhang Sili also knows the situation of my family. At the beginning of the year, my family just bought three catties of Liao ginseng. Now my family has more than ten catties of ginseng in stock, and we really can't use so much ginseng."

"Besides, the imperial court is collecting the arrears of taxes this summer, and now the autumn harvest has not come in. Please be lenient with me, Mr. Zhang. My family really doesn't have the money to buy ginseng."

Zhang Hong's face darkened immediately after hearing this, and he said in a cold voice
"Master Hou, the Hou family is a prominent family in Jiading and a model of gentry. Do you really not want to help the court and purchase ginseng to support the military pay?"

Hou Qi had seen the unfriendly look on Zhang Hong's face. Although he was panicked, he gritted his teeth and said helplessly.

"Lieutenant Zhang, it's not that I don't want to help the county government, it's just that my family has no money left to buy more ginseng."

"How about this, Mr. Zhang? My family will try to buy another kilogram of ginseng to help the court raise funds."

Zhang Hong looked at Hou Qi Zeng, who was full of bitterness and kept shirking his responsibilities. A hint of coldness flashed across his face.

Zhang Hong glanced at Hou Qizeng in front of him, and a smile suddenly appeared on his face. He said

"Since the Hou family is unwilling to help, I will not force them to do anything. The Hou family does not need to worry about these five kilograms of Liao ginseng."

Hou Qizeng was shocked when he heard this. Zhang Hong was greedy by nature. Hou Qizeng was even ready to bribe him.
For the Hou family, even if they paid one more jin of ginseng privately, it would be more cost-effective than being assigned five jin of ginseng.
Hou Qizeng did not expect that Zhang Hong would actually waive the assignment, even the one kilogram of ginseng he had already agreed to give him, just by making such an excuse.

But Hou Qi Zeng was not happy at this time, but he immediately became alert.

Sure enough, the next moment, a skinny man behind Zhang Hong suddenly jumped out of the crowd and said

"Master Zhang, I, Xu Xiang, want to report that the Hou family has evil intentions and is hiding private property to avoid confiscation by the court."

"Huining Manor in the west of Jiading is owned by the Hou family. This year, the Hou family has been building a lot of buildings and digging waterways in the manor. The Hou family is obviously rich, but they are unwilling to buy ginseng to help with the military expenses. They must be resentful of the court. Please investigate, Master Zhang."

Xu Xiang was a well-known rogue in Jiading County. He often colluded with the county clerks to falsely accuse the rich in the city and then extorted money from them. He was already notorious in the county.

Hou Qizeng's expression changed drastically when he heard this, and he immediately shouted angrily:
"Xu Xiang, what are you talking about here, you rascal?"

Zhang Hong looked at Hou Qiceng, whose expression suddenly changed, but a sneer flashed across his face.

The Qing court ordered Jiading to sell 200 kilograms of Liao ginseng within a certain period of time. After receiving the order from the court, the county magistrate distributed the Liao ginseng to each room in the county government.
If Jiading cannot sell these Liao ginseng within two months and raise enough money, no one, from the county magistrate to the clerks, will have a good ending.

Let the Hou family go? If they let the Hou family go, who would let Zhang Hong go? Would he have to pay for those rotten ginsengs himself? What a joke!

The Qing court did not care how Jiading sold the Liao ginseng. The county government could sell it for fifty taels or one hundred taels.

As long as the county government can pay the money to the Qing court at the price of 25 taels per catty in two months, the mission will be completed.

The price set by Jiading County Government was 37 taels per catty. As long as one catty was sold, the County Government could earn 12 taels of silver.

At this time, the sale of Liao ginseng was not only a court matter, but also related to the harvest of these officials this year. How could Zhang Sheng let the Hou family go easily?

The price of ginseng is too high. If it is distributed to the common people, hundreds of people may not be able to consume one kilogram of ginseng. If you want to sell the ginseng quickly, you have to look to the gentry and wealthy families in the county.

The Hou family was a prominent family in Jiading during the previous dynasty. If it had been a gentry family like the Hou family a few years ago, a clerk like Zhang Hong would probably not even be able to enter the Hou family.
But now it is different. Hou Dong was so rebellious that he dared to raise an army to resist the imperial court.
The Hou family had already been labeled as a rebellious family. Now the Hou family was a piece of fat meat and the best target for the county government.
This time, Zhang Hong not only wanted the Hou family to buy the five kilograms of Liao ginseng, but also wanted to make the Hou family bleed. As far as he knew, the Huining Manor on the outskirts of the Hou family's city was very good and could be used as his villa.

Thinking of this, a trace of greed flashed in his eyes. Zhang Hong's expression suddenly turned cold and he shouted:

"The Hou family was extremely deceitful, hiding their private wealth, evading confiscation, and deceiving the court. This is truly a heinous crime."

"Come here, come with me into the mansion to confiscate the private property of the Marquis. Today, we must make the Marquis pay all the taxes owed and return them to the court."

Upon hearing this, the group of yamen runners behind Zhang Hong immediately responded loudly.

Zhang Hong had already issued the order, so even if there was any problem afterwards, it would be Zhang Hong's responsibility and had nothing to do with them.
The Hou family is a well-known and prestigious family in Jiading. Everyone in Jiading County knows that the Hou family is wealthy. As long as they are allowed to move into the Hou Mansion, they can even make a lot of money from the land!
Xu Xiang, who was standing by, immediately brightened up when she heard this and said

"I once served in the Marquis' Mansion and know the situation there best. I am willing to lead the way for you, Master, and I will definitely find out the private wealth of these traitors in the Marquis' Mansion!"

"Who dares? My Hou family is a prestigious family in Jiading. Many of the adults in the mansion are old acquaintances of my family. Who dares to be so presumptuous in my family?"

Zhang Hong was not moved at all when he heard this. The Hou family was indeed a prominent family of gentry, but so what?
The Hou family had been labeled as traitors, and he now had evidence that the Hou family had deliberately evaded taxes. As long as he had evidence in his hand, who would dare to plead for the Hou family, a traitor family?
Xu Xiang and a group of yamen runners were about to rush to the Hou Mansion, while Hou Qi Zeng, Hou Xuan Xi, Hou Xuan Han and other Hou family members also blocked the door and pushed and shoved with the runners.

However, most of the Hou family members were scholars, so how could they resist a group of ruffians? Hou Xuanqi, Gu Tiankui and other Hou family members were soon pushed to the ground.

Xu Xiang and his gang were about to break into the mansion, but at this moment, a cold shout suddenly came from the street in the town.

"What a thief who takes advantage of others' power!"

On the street, a tall young man with a thin braid on his head led a dozen big men in black military uniforms to approach quickly.

A group of black-clad soldiers armed with knives and swords soon arrived at the mansion and surrounded Zhang Hong, Xu Xiang and other clerks and servants in front of the door.
(End of this chapter)