Chapter 15

Today at the small market, Zhang Han did not have his personal servant follow him all the time. Instead, he sent Zhang Chun back and forth between the market and home, constantly delivering good news to make the family, especially Chang Shi, happier. Business had been bad lately, and Chang Shi was very worried. Zhang Han was a considerate person, and having lived two lives, his only family was his mother, Chang Shi. Naturally, he put more thought into her well-being.

Seeing Zhang Chun run over, Zhang Han smiled and scolded, "You really have a good nose, can you smell the wine and dishes from so far away? Didn't they start the celebration at home yet?"

"Master, it's not good."

Zhang Chun's face was full of anxiety. He stopped in front of Zhang Han, caught his breath, and then spoke in a low, trembling voice, clearly showing his panic and fear.

"Don't panic, you're doing well."

Zhang Chun did not shout immediately, which Zhang Han found satisfactory. After all, he had been training him for so long. If Zhang Chun had not improved at all, it would be better to train someone else.

"Um..." Zhang Chun steadied himself and continued, "Master, something big has happened."

"Speak clearly."

"Near dusk, a clerk surnamed Song from the Qing Army Hall and the chief of the local militia, Tan Bin, came together. They said that our family has been chosen for the official purchase this year, and they also want us to be the head of the guild. After seeing these two, Mother fainted. We called a medicine woman, but..."

"What? Mother fainted?"

Zhang Han had just been praising Zhang Chun for his composure, but now, hearing that Chang Shi had fainted, he could not keep his cool.

Seeing Zhang Han's tense face, Zhang Chun quickly said, "The medicine woman said it's not serious. Mother is very healthy, but she was just overwhelmed by sudden anger..."

"Good, good, that's good."

Zhang Han felt a bit relieved, but he still felt a huge pressure. This kind of pressure was something he had never experienced in either of his lives.

If it weren't for today's incident where the garrison commander had brutally executed several smugglers, Zhang Han might not have been so anxious. But after witnessing it, he realized that his past experiences did not fully apply to the Ming Dynasty. At least, the rules of the Ming Dynasty were completely different from those of the later era. In the later era, there were corrupt officials and various injustices, but there was at least a bottom line and a set of recognized rules. In the Ming Dynasty, power was everything, and everything else was fake. Powerful people could do evil without being thoroughly punished, and what Zhang Chun mentioned was within the rules of the Ming Dynasty. Even worse, the forced guild system and the official purchase were initiated by the Ming emperors themselves!

The term "official purchase" actually combines two meanings.

The guild system can be traced back to the guild organizations of the Tang and Song dynasties, which were different from the Ming situation and need not be elaborated. In the Ming Dynasty, the government forcibly organized all industries into guilds, and all merchants in the cities were registered. During the Zhengde period, the "paijia system" was established, dividing the merchants into three classes: upper, middle, and lower, and "compiling them into paijia to work together."

What does "compiling" mean? Of course, it means that the merchants must supply goods, labor, and various services to the government.

Only the nobility, eunuchs, and gentry could be exempt from these duties.

"Official purchase" means that after the government registered the merchants, it could requisition and purchase goods from them. The term "purchase" is a joke; no one ever paid for the goods. Not only did they not pay, but you also had to bribe the officials, or your tasks would never be considered satisfactory, and the goods you supplied would always be of poor quality. Every time the officials got angry, they would beat you, and the old wounds would never heal. It was like being in hell, with no hope of escape.

Being selected for the official purchase was already a terrible thing, but being chosen as the head of the guild meant there was no hope of recovery.

The head of the guild was the official record of the main household responsible for the duties. The government would send people to "assist" the head, who was responsible for ensuring that all the required goods and services were provided. Some families could barely manage to survive the official purchase, even if it meant breaking their backs. But once you became the head of the guild, there was no hope of recovery, only death.

The best option when chosen as the head of the guild was to flee immediately!

This forced guild system and regular official purchase severely damaged the industrial and commercial sectors. In the early Ming Dynasty, countless large merchants went bankrupt due to the arbitrary nature of these policies and the lack of political status for merchants, who could be manipulated at will.

The origin of this evil policy came from the Ming Chengzu Emperor, who issued an edict stating: "The military families who open shops in the market, how can they refuse to supply the government with materials? Your department should issue a document to inform the capital: in the future, if there is a need for supplies, all shop owners, regardless of military or civilian status, should be required to supply them. Those who disobey will be punished without mercy."

This edict was followed by the government for the next two hundred years.

It wasn't until the seventh year of the Chongzhen era that the guild system was abolished. The Chongzhen Emperor repeatedly issued edicts prohibiting the requisitioning of goods from guilds and ordered the use of cash to purchase them. During the Longwu era, the Longwu Emperor said: "The guild system in the prefectures, states, and counties is a harmful policy that harms the people. Officials with a conscience still buy at official prices, which are usually 40-50% of market prices. Those without a conscience simply issue orders. The clerks take advantage of this, and all kinds of corruption arise. I have long known about these problems, and they should be abolished."

Unfortunately, by the time of the Longwu era, the Ming Dynasty had already fallen.

Zhang Han had recently become aware that his family was too weak and had no protection. But he never expected that the evil policy he had once lamented would suddenly befall him.

Zhang Han's fear and shock lasted only a moment. With his character and composure, the current situation was not enough to make him lose control. After thinking for a moment, he instructed Zhang Chun, "Go inside, don't show any signs, and quietly bring out Zhou Zhaogeng and Liang Hong."

"Yes, I'll go right away."

Zhang Han's calmness also calmed Zhang Chun, and his thin figure quickly disappeared into the crowd.

A short while later, Zhou Zhaogeng and Liang Hong, both with flushed faces and unsteady steps, came out. Seeing Zhang Han standing outside, they were both startled, and their drunkenness subsided a bit.

Zhou Zhaogeng said, "Master, why are you standing outside? It's so cold, be careful not to catch a cold."

Liang Hong did not speak. He had already come to understand Zhang Han. Despite his young age, he was calm and had good judgment. Inviting Zhou Zhaogeng and himself out in such a situation must mean something important.

"There's something I need to inform you both."

Zhang Han was very composed. He first led the two to a quiet room and then told them about the official purchase and the head of the guild.

"Finished, finished..."

Zhou Zhaogeng's face twitched, and he slumped into a chair. Liang Hong was no better, his eyes becoming blank, and the usual bold and worldly air disappeared in an instant.

"Run, Master, run quickly."

After a long silence, Liang Hong suddenly came to his senses and said to Zhang Han, "Leave tonight, take out the family's gold and silver, and don't go to Tiancheng Wei or Datong. Go directly to Taiyuan or return to Puzhou!"

Zhang Chun, standing nearby, could not help but ask, "Liang San, is it really that scary? Can't we just pay half our assets and be done with it?"

Liang Hong replied bitterly, "If it were just the official purchase, we could try to pay half our capital and maybe get through it. But with the head of the guild... there's no chance. I know those people from the Qing Army Hall well. They won't stop until they've stripped us of everything, down to the last bone. Master, you don't know how ruthless they are. They've been officials for generations, and their hearts are black. They don't care if others hang themselves or drown their children. To them, it's just a joke. Their hearts are like stones soaked in a cesspool, with no trace of humanity..."

Liang Hong's deep voice, combined with the flickering candlelight, made him seem like a ghost rising from the ground. Zhang Chun was thoroughly frightened.

Zhou Zhaogeng wiped his face and said decisively, "Let's go to Master's house immediately and see what we can do... Master, Liang San is right. If we can run, we should run. I've seen large merchants in the capital flee their homes when faced with this situation. Those who managed to escape were lucky."

...

Lai Tongxin, the garrison commander of Xinping Road, lived on South Street in the fort. North Street was almost entirely commercial, including the neighboring alleys, which were mostly residential areas for merchants. Beyond North Street, there were many warehouses, shops, and money houses scattered throughout the city.

South Street was mainly government offices, with some gentry families also residing there. The most famous was the residence of Ma Fang, a famous Ming general who had served as a general multiple times and reached the rank of Left Grand Marshal. His estate covered several acres, with grand gates and beautiful walls. The Ma family still had two generals, Ma Dong and Ma Lin, and some of their descendants had reached the rank of garrison commander, making them a high-ranking military family. The Ma and Ma families were the top military families in the northwest, while the Lai family, to which Lai Tongxin belonged, was much less prominent.

Lai Tongxin had no hope of further promotion, and the Lai family's resources were limited, so they could not support him to the rank of general. In recent years, Lai Tongxin had shifted his focus entirely to making money.

After returning from the market, Lai Tongxin had his people calculate the day's gains.

He did not distribute a single coin of the government's reward money, keeping it all for himself. One reward was not much, only about 1,300 taels, but the cumulative amount was significant.

The commercial taxes collected were also subject to government regulations, but Lai Tongxin naturally had his people collect more than the required amount. After deducting the shares he had to distribute, he still had a substantial amount left.

The white silver was laid out in the hall. Lai Tongxin changed into comfortable clothing and half-leaned on a couch, watching his servants count the silver, pack it into boxes, and move it to the cellar. This was the moment he felt most comfortable, knowing that his hard work had not been in vain.

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Dear new and old readers, this book is a signed and bought-out work by Zongheng, with a stable guarantee that allows me to continue writing. Please feel free to collect it, and thank you all.

Additionally, the sensitive words for today are "protection," "umbrella," and "strike."

I wonder if my government has any connection with the "protection umbrella" company, which is quite puzzling.

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