The Green Qi Villa that Lu Qian talked about is located in an inconspicuous alley in Changshoufang in the inner city. The alley is very short, only about forty or fifty steps from north to south. There are only a few houses on both sides of the street that is half a car wide, so naturally there are no signboards for business. This Green Qi Villa is not as green-tiled and pink-walled as the popular tile-roofed house in Beijing. It only has a small facade with a brick roof and tiled eaves. If it weren't for Lu Qian leading the way, and the plaque on the door with the words "Green Qi Bi¨¨fu" in regular Chinese characters in four regular scripts, Jiang Tuan would never have thought that there was a singing house hidden in such a place. .
Jiang Tuan's carriage and horses had just stopped in front of the door of Luqi Beppu. A person was immediately welcomed out of the door, with a smile on his face and an apology in his mouth: "The guests are here. Please forgive me for today." We have several distinguished guests here, and they have booked the whole hotel" In a blink of an eye, he saw Lu Qian coming out of the carriage, and immediately put on a sincere smile that made him feel at home, and bowed and bowed his hands. "Ah, it turns out to be Mr. Lu"
Lu Qian interrupted the concierge and asked, "Has the old gentleman left?"
"The old gentleman is still here. Just now he sent a message to tell you to hurry over when you come!"
Lu Qian then relaxed his tense expression and breathed a long sigh of relief. He got off the carriage, greeted Jiang Tuan and said, "Brother Zhenyun, please!" Then he said to Xun An, "Mr. Please tell me Mr. Xun's nickname." He said and apologized repeatedly.
Xun An suddenly turned green and turned red, and his mouth was muttering at a loss for words. How could he, an ordinary commoner, have any nickname?
Lu Qian never expected that the guest of Yingbo Mansion would not have a nickname, and he felt a little embarrassed. Fortunately, Jiang Tuan was beside him and took over the words and said: "Mr. The splendor is beyond my comparison. Otherwise, how could Mr. Xun teach Uncle Ying to treat him as a teacher and friend?"
Lu Qian didn¡¯t believe these words at all. But he did not doubt Xun'an's identity as a guest of Uncle Yingxian's house. Although he was very surprised as to why Uncle Yingxian would find such a guest, he still said polite words such as "No wonder I am shallow." So he took two people into Beppu.
Green Qi Villa seems to be divided into two courtyards, the north and the south. The south courtyard was completely silent and there was no one around, but the north courtyard could hear the faint sound of zheng, flute, sheng and bamboo. There were two men in entourage attire standing guard at the entrance of the courtyard. When they saw that Lu Qian was leading the people, they didn't say anything. They just looked Jiang Xun up and down and nodded slightly to let them pass.
After entering the courtyard, Lu Qian did not take Jiang Tuan and Xun An to the upper room. He walked around the verandah and walked through the moon cave door, passing through a secluded path between the whirling bamboo shadows, and found another courtyard. At this point, the originally faint and fluttering sound of the sheng and bamboo gradually became clearer, and only a soft female voice could be heard singing coquettishly:
¡°¡In the Seven Days Eternal Life Palace, in the middle of the night when no one is whispering.
In the sky, I would like to be a winged bird, and on the ground, I would like to be a branch.
"There will be a time, forever, and this hatred will last forever"
The closing sentence of the poem is repeated repeatedly, as if speaking tactfully or whispering, until the music stops and the singing gradually fades away, but it still feels like someone is lingering and weeping in the ears It is the poem by Bai Juyi of the Tang Dynasty. "Song of Everlasting Sorrow".
Jiang Tuan is not very good at sensuality, and rarely enters a singing house. But after hearing the singing of the woman in the courtyard, he couldn't help but exclaim in his heart: "Singing song!"
Someone seemed to be talking in the hall, but the voice was not loud. Jiang Tuan could not hear clearly what words of praise the person said. The only thing he heard was an extremely ordinary and bland "Not bad". He couldn't help but think that the teacher Lu Qian was really very arrogant
Lu Qian really respected his teacher very much. He stopped when he reached the window. When the people in the hall noticed and asked, "Is it Deyuan?", he lowered his head and held his hands in a solemn expression. He reported in a low voice: "Teacher, I have invited Mr. Jiang here."
"come in."
Seeing Lu Qian's cautious appearance, Jiang Tuan and Xun An naturally would not be presumptuous. But Lu Qian's teacher was too arrogant. When the two of them walked into the main room, he didn't even bother to stand up to greet them. He sat calmly behind the table and casually pointed to the empty seats at both ends of the table. He said: "Mr. Jiang, please take a seat. Deyuan will also take a seat" At this point, his words suddenly paused. It was only then that he noticed more than two people coming in.
"This is Mr. Xun. Mr. Xun is the first guest in Ying County's uncle's family."
"Oh?" He couldn't be moved by the fact that he was Lu Qian's teacher, no matter how profound his cultivation was. But after hearing about Xun An's identity,But he couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise. He looked Xun An up and down, not to mention his ordinary appearance. The key is that Mr. How could a submissive person be attracted by Shang Yanshan? He was confused, but his face didn't show it at all. He nodded slightly and said, "Since you are Uncle Ying's guest, you are also an honored guest. You should take a seat." Then he pointed to the right side of the table and asked Xun An sat down. Then he pointed to the drum stool in front of the case and said to Lu Qian, "Deyuan, sit here."
He looked back at Jiang Tuan. Jiang Tuan was already dark and thin, and he had just come back from outside the city. He didn't even enter the house. His face was not washed and his clothes were not changed, so he was dragged over by Lu Qian. At this time, his face was covered with dust. , even more depressed. However, Jiang Tuan had seen a lot of scenes after all. He had a calm demeanor and a calm manner. He bowed and thanked Shiran and sat down. While Meiji who was sitting next to him poured tea, he looked at Lu Qian's teacher. This old man should be around fifty years old, but he is very well maintained. He looks like a man in his forties. There is almost no trace of greyness in the finger-length beard under his chin, which can only be noticed carefully. , you can find very fine crow's feet in the corners of your eyes. He held up the cup, thanked Lu Qian's teacher, took a sip and said: "In front of the old gentleman, I don't dare to be called 'sir'. The gentleman calls me by his nickname. I don't dare to ask for advice, how about the old gentleman?" call?"
"My surname is Chen," the old man said. "I haven't heard anyone mention my name for many years, and I have even forgotten it. There is a nickname called 'Lian Gong'."
Jiang Tuan thought about it for a while, but he really couldn't remember the exact meaning of "Lotus Palace". He didn't know that the nickname "Lotus Palace" came from a line in the poem "Wandering the Temple" written by Li Xian of the Tang Dynasty. "When you have no home and are free, you can find the Lotus Palace." The meaning is actually "freedom". He couldn't recognize who Lu Qian's teacher was, and he didn't know what the nickname "Liangong" meant. He couldn't say a word of praise, so he had to find something to say. He said quietly: "It turns out to be Mr. Liangong. His surname is also Chen Yiyi, which is the national surname"
The old gentleman did not accept this and said: "I had some free time today and met Deyuan again by chance in the market, so I took him out to listen to music to relax. During the dinner, Deyuan mentioned Mr. Jiang" Jiang Tuan said quickly He didn't dare to be called "sir", so the old gentleman followed the good advice. " Deyuan and I were chatting casually on any topic, and we talked about you. Deyuan greatly praised you and highly praised your 'economic knowledge', so I asked him to invite you to sit down. Who knows Deyuan is really capable. Not only did he invite you, but also Mr. Xun An." At this point, he smiled meaningfully, and said to Xun An in a serious yet joking manner, "Mr. Xun is really talented, Liande Yuanye only dares to call him sir but not his last name. The nickname of sir is"
"Mr. Xun's knowledge is beyond my reach." Jiang Tuan quickly took over.
The old man smiled and said nothing, but he no longer bothered with Xun An. He changed the subject according to Jiang Tuan's words and said: "Just now Deyuan said, as early as the beginning of summer, Zhenyun pointed out that the capital area is very There may be a situation where money is precious and goods are cheap, and all industries are depressed. Then, as you expected, Gyeonggi and neighboring prefectures and counties gradually fell into disgrace. I don¡¯t know what kind of basis you had at that time to come up with such a truth. ?¡±
When Jiang Tuan heard this, he immediately became interested. He had been frustrated in the capital for a long time. Apart from Shang Cheng and Huo Shiqi, he only had Lu Qian as his confidant and friend. He was fed up with the ridicule and rumors in front of others on weekdays. Who would have thought that today a person he had never met would actually ask for advice on economics, which he was most proud of in his life? Moreover, the person asking him for advice was also a man who seemed to be a good person. Quite like an old man with status and background, he was naturally in an extremely comfortable mood. Immediately, I explained to the old gentleman one by one the various cultural and knowledge phenomena that I had learned, heard, seen, and thought about in detail.
The old gentleman didn't listen very seriously to what he said. While listening to him explain what "deflation" was, what "inflation" was, what "currency" was, and what "market" was, he occasionally said a few words to Mei Ji next to him. He also taught Xun An and Lu Qian from time to time that "there is no need to be polite and do whatever you want." However, whenever Jiang Tuan's interest was slightly disturbed, he would immediately ask one or two new questions, and these questions were exactly what Jiang Tuan was aware of. Prosperity. Jiang Tuan was scratched, and he was not willing to let go of this "good student" with extremely high understanding and profound knowledge. Naturally, he explained all the way endlessly, wishing that he could instill everything he knew and learned into this "good student". Mr. Chen Liangong, I wish I could have someone with whom I could talk freely about economics in the future.
After more than half an hour, Jiang Tuan finally made a detailed summary and explanation of the current situation in the Gyeonggi region and its possible development. Finally, he concluded that he was 80% sure that this was "deflation." "Phenomenon. Of course, he also mentioned that one of his division commanders did notI agree with his conclusion, but believe that the current situation is only a temporary phenomenon. When the general environment changes, that is, after the imperial court announces the Eastern Japan Strategy or the prospects of the Eastern Japan Strategy become clear, this short-term depression phenomenon will immediately disappear. will be relieved and the former prosperity will be quickly restored.
Jiang Tuan did not say who his commander was, and the old man did not ask. He just asked him: "Well, in terms of external conditions - the imperial court does not announce the Eastern Japan Strategy or the prospect of the Eastern Japan Strategy is not clear. Under the premise that when external conditions are uncertain, is there any way to alleviate alleviate the deflation phenomenon in the Gyeonggi region?" The old man said this with a frown, and sometimes paused. Think about it. It seems that he is not used to these new terms.
"Yes!" Jiang Tuan answered firmly.
"Oh?" The old gentleman's eyes flashed. He had been talking to Jiang Tuan with a very indifferent expression and tone, but at this time, a look of surprise suddenly appeared on his face. He hurriedly asked, "Please tell me, what measures can be taken to resolve the current difficult situation?"
"Increase the money supply, expand social demand, encourage production and commercial activities" Jiang Tuan said six or seven things in one breath, and explained each one in detail, and finally said, "These can alleviate the phenomenon of deflation."
This time, the disappointed look on the old gentleman¡¯s face could not be concealed at all. He understood everything Jiang Tuan said, but there was nothing he could do about it. The imperial court also wanted to mint more copper coins, but due to the limitation of the total amount of refined copper produced each year, there was only so much money that could be minted. Any more money would only be mixed with more bad coins made from lead. This actually did not increase the number of copper coins at all. The total amount will instead cause a more serious "money shortage" phenomenon. Jiang Tuan said that expanding social demand can also solve the market depression, which is also a general statement. Everyone knows that business is prosperous when there is buying and selling. The question is, how can we do this? Jiang Tuan didn't make it clear either. Of course, it cannot be said that Jiang Tuan did not make his words clear, but that the methods Jiang Tuan said are simply impossible to implement. Lower taxes? Increase people's income? What else can encourage private investment? Except for the second point, don¡¯t even think about anything else! Even this second seemingly feasible option has no room for implementation. Anyone can tell you to be obedient, the key is how to do it! Obviously, Jiang Tuan is not very clear about what should be done, or Jiang Tuan knows it in his heart but is unwilling to say it clearly and encourage production and commerce. Encouraging production is what the imperial court has always done, and encouraging commerce Haha, Jiang Tuan is probably the only one who dares to say such a thing, both inside and outside the court. This is truly a bold guy. From the Shang and Zhou Dynasties to the present, which dynasty in the past has not implemented the national policy of "respecting the principal and suppressing the weak"?
Xun An, who was drinking a lot of tea soup and filling a lot of snacks next to him, suddenly interrupted and said: "Actually, there is a way, maybe it can be done."
The old gentleman, Jiang Tuan, and Lu Qian, who entered the room with only his ears and no mouth, immediately turned their attention to him.
Xun An immediately realized that he was talking too much. How could he interrupt in such a situation? He shrank his neck and muttered: "I, II made a mistake. You guys talk, you guys talk"
The old gentleman stared at him with bright eyes, pondered for a moment, and said softly to himself: "No wonder" and then said, "Mr. It's just gossip. In a place like this, what can't be said, and what can't be said? Speaker, speaker well, you can say anything."
Jiang Tuan also encouraged Xun An: "What do you think? Speak out and let everyone listen."
Xun An hesitated and said: "Mr. Jiang just said that we should encourage business. I think this should not be difficult to do. That's right, I worked as a tax collector in Pingyuan Prefecture for a period of time"
Listening to his words, the old man and Lu Qian both had a look of "Sure enough" on their faces. They just said that this Mr. Xun An does not look like a scholar. I don't know how Shang Yanshan fell in love with him and invited him back to be the merchant's guest.
" When I was working as a tax collector in Pingyuan Prefecture, I often heard people commenting that the commercial tax in this dynasty was too heavy, and whether it was merchants or resident merchants, they were taxed every ten. This made some people very angry. I gave up the idea of ??running a business.¡±
The old man said: "The national policy of this dynasty - in fact, all dynasties and dynasties in the past have encouraged farming and mulberry cultivation and suppressed trade! This cannot be changed. Food is the foundation of the country, and it is also related to the foundation of the country. It must not be taken lightly. ! What would happen if everyone went to sell goods for huge profits? "
"I'm not saying what the court said is wrong." Xun An quickly defended himself, "But it can't be as one-size-fits-all as it is now, right? This dynasty's commercial tax is divided into residential tax and over-tax. Residential tax is for local shops."?I won¡¯t talk about the collection and payment of taxes by the merchants who operate the business. In fact, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to talk about it, it¡¯s just that there are too many joints in it, hey¡± As a tax collector, he naturally knows the joints in taxation. It¡¯s hard to talk about it and he doesn¡¯t dare to talk about it, so he only mentioned taxes. ¡°This dynasty earlier When Emperor Taizong was still Emperor Gaozong, seven categories of goods, including grain, tea, cloth and medicinal materials, were separately classified and allowed exemption or reduction of commercial tax. But the adults in the court never thought that among a hundred merchants, there might not be even one person who could do such large-scale business. If you can do large-scale business transactions, who would care about tax exemption? They all have backers, backgrounds and backgrounds. Actually, I think that the vast majority of merchants are people who make a small living in local states and counties and can travel three hundred miles to do business, less than once every ten miles. However, every time they pass through a checkpoint and a tax office, they have to pay 10% of the value of the goods as tax. Isn't this a bit too much? "
Xun An was born as a small government servant, so it was okay for him to gossip and talk about trivial matters, but when it comes to serious matters, his true colors would immediately appear. He was talking here and there, and the old man's mind became a little confused. He couldn't figure out what Xun An wanted to say for a while, so he simply asked: "What exactly do you want to say?"
Xun An avoided his impatient look and said hesitantly: "I just want to say, what, maybe if small traders and big merchants are levied commercial taxes separately, it might be able to alleviate the problems in the capital."
Nonsense! The old gentleman immediately commented on Xun An's words in his heart.
Lu Qian, who had never said a word until now, suddenly said: "Teacher, Mr. Xun's words may have some truth to them."
"Well?"
"Students remember that during the reign of Emperor Gaozong, the court once subdivided the residence tax and the overtax. Based on the value of the goods and the distance, the residence tax was divided into three grades, and the overtax was divided into seven grades. However, the implementation time was very short, before and after However, within three or four years, due to huge material concerns, it had to be abolished. However, it seems that commercial taxes did increase during the years when it was implemented," Lu Qian said.
Lu Qian¡¯s words were so vague that neither Jiang Tuan nor Xun An understood them clearly, but the old gentleman understood them immediately. The so-called "material debate" is huge, which means that the opposition from the government and the opposition is very loud; as for why the government and the opposition are opposed, it is because the court's measures are not good for some people. That is what Xun'an said, behind the big businessmen, there are often There are some people with status, background and background who can influence the court's decision
He took a deep look at Lu Qian, nodded almost imperceptibly, stood up and said, "It's getting late. I'll talk to you someday when I have free time." After that, he didn't even say hello. , and went away minding his own business.
Jiang Tuan and Xun An looked at each other, not knowing what the old gentleman meant. They have seen arrogant people, but they have never seen someone as straightforward as this person today. But Lu Qian just stood up and bowed his hands as if to say goodbye, but he didn't even take a step, let alone follow him to say goodbye. Not only did Lu Qian not go to see each other off, he also warned the two of them in a low voice: "As long as you stand, don't move! Do not move rashly!"
Although Jiang and Xun didn't know the reason, they saw that Lu Qian was extremely solemn in what he said, so they imitated him and followed him to stand in awe and give gifts.
I don¡¯t know how long it took, but I guessed that the old gentleman¡¯s car had already left Changshoufang for an unknown number of miles. Lu Qian then said softly: ¡°I¡¯m fine now.¡± After saying that, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and let out a long sigh. He took a breath, as if he was exhausted.
"This old gentleman, who is he?" Jiang Tuan asked.
Lu Qian did not speak, but led the two people to leave Luqi Villa silently.
When saying goodbye at the gate of Beipu, Lu Qiancai said in a voice like a mosquito's snort: "You two can keep today's matter in your hearts, and don't publicize it and show it off. This is the day of today."
Jiang Tuan was a little better, after all, he had already expected that the old gentleman had an extraordinary background. But after listening to Lu Qian's words, his face turned pale, and he could not close his mouth for a long time.
Xun An was even more unbearable. With a "plop", he fell down on the flat ground
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