Wang Dahu, wearing a bright red official uniform, walked into the Huxin Pavilion with a smile. "The villain pays homage to Wang Shangshu." Although the wealthy businessmen were very rich, they had no political status, so they all knelt on the ground. "Haha, you don't have to be so polite, please get up." Wang Dahu knew that businessmen's despicable habits were hard to change. Merchants have been suppressed for more than a thousand years, and it has become the norm to naturally be a few inches shorter than officials. Wang Dahu suddenly stopped putting on official airs, and these wealthy businessmen were a little uncomfortable with it. The guests invited today were all listed by Li Zhongyi, and Wang Dahu just came forward to place the invitation. The highest official in charge of merchants in the imperial court personally sends invitations to entertain guests. Who dares not to come? Wang Dahu glanced at the Huxin Pavilion and saw that there were less than a hundred guests. However, they are all well-known wealthy businessmen across the country. To put it bluntly, these wealthy people invited have a minimum net worth of more than one million yuan. The big businessmen these days all adhere to the basic principle of not revealing their wealth, for fear of being targeted by the court and becoming fat pigs to be slaughtered. But, times have changed. After the national one-tax system, businessmen can hide their wealth, but the taxes they pay have to be collected to the Ministry of Household Affairs. Nowadays, all the government offices that collect commercial taxes are under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Shipping Department of the Ministry of Household Affairs. In the past, the proportion of commercial taxes levied by the imperial court was only 1 in 20 taxes, which was a tax rate of 5%. After Li Zhongyi became the ruling king, he personally made the decision to increase the commercial tax to the level of five taxes and one tax. However, while imposing heavy taxes, Li Zhongyi also abolished the bad habit of merchants collecting taxes once their goods passed through a city. From the actual effect, the national one tax system has greatly reduced the burden on businessmen. The tax burden on businessmen has been significantly reduced, and the price level of ordinary people has also dropped significantly. "Everyone, I invited you here today mainly because I want to discuss important matters of making money." Wang Dahu sat in the middle and talked eloquently in front of the wealthy businessmen. "The imperial court plans to expand overseas business on a large scale. For example, the Angkor Dynasty, Champa Kingdom, Srivijaya Kingdom, Quyue Kingdom, etc. are all our business partners. What the imperial court means is maritime business with Southeast Asian countries. , established a common company, namely the East India Company. Only merchants who have taken shares can participate in these maritime businesses for a period of ten years." Wang Dahu quietly dropped a bombshell. It¡¯s better to kill a fat pig, this was Lin Feng¡¯s first impression. Originally, Lin Feng was engaged in maritime business in Southeast Asian countries and did not need anyone¡¯s permission. Now, the imperial court has a monopoly on trade with Nanyang countries. Lin Feng cannot do business with Nanyang unless he participates in the so-called East India Company. Too domineering! Lin Feng felt very uncomfortable. ? ? Almost all the wealthy businessmen sitting here have the same idea as Lin Feng. Isn't this method of equity participation just the imperial court trying to take advantage of the businessmen? Seeing that the wealthy businessmen were silent, Wang Dahu couldn't help but nodded secretly. The emperor was very knowledgeable and had already foreseen the reaction of the businessmen. "Everyone, the emperor will also participate in the shares. The emperor has said that no matter how much money you all contribute to participate in the shares, he will also participate in the shares if he contributes this much money. Everyone will make money together and make a fortune together." Wang Dahu didn't think about it. Why did the emperor do this? " However, Wang Dahu does not need to understand the emperor's intentions, he can just follow the emperor's instructions. That's it. Wang Dahu showed his trump card, but no one among the wealthy businessmen present responded. Li Zhongyi had expected the current situation, and Wang Dahu said unhurriedly: "In addition to joining the stock market, the emperor can also borrow troops to protect our business. However, the expenses for the borrowed troops, horses and warships will be borne by The company is here to take responsibility." "Boom." Lin Feng's mind felt as if a thunderbolt had exploded, and his whole body was shaken to the core. The imperial court sent imperial troops to protect maritime business. This was the first time in history! Lin Feng has always been engaged in maritime business. Businessmen who go to foreign countries to do business can be said to have suffered a lot. Everywhere he went, he was exploited by officials from various countries in Southeast Asia. Although the profits are still huge enough, it¡¯s so frustrating! ????????????????????? If there is a powerful Imperial Imperial Army as the backing, the profits will be so huge that Lin Feng simply cannot think about it anymore. Precisely because he knows the situation of various countries in Southeast Asia very well, even if Lin Feng does not understand military affairs, he has a clear mind. In front of the imperial imperial army, the armies of various countries in Southeast Asia were as vulnerable as chickens and dogs. The reason is simple. Mingzhou is Lin Feng¡¯s hometown and is also the station of Donghai Navy.?. Not to mention anything else, the tyrannical strength of the Donghai Navy alone is enough to destroy a small country in Nanyang. "I have something I don't understand. I would like to ask Wang Shangshu for advice. Is it possible?" Lin Feng couldn't hold back his excitement and took the initiative to stand up and kneel on the ground. Wang Dahu said gently: "Get up quickly. Don't kneel down when you see me in the future. If you don't understand anything, just ask me. If I can't answer, I will ask the emperor." Lin Feng said respectfully. : "If the imperial navy and imperial army are accompanying them, I am willing to take part in the shares." Lin Feng's words shocked everyone. Lin Feng's step forward made the wealthy businessmen realize one thing. With the imperial navy and imperial army escorting them, they would be able to do business at sea. Business is no longer afraid of pirates. In fact, there are always a large number of pirates in Nanyang. Maritime merchants are all afraid of pirates. Pirates are not just stealing money. Once a maritime merchant is unlucky and encounters a pirate with a fast ship, the ship is often lost, the money is gone, and the person will have his hands tied behind his back and be thrown into the sea to feed the fish. "The villain seconded the proposal." A wealthy businessman's own son was killed by pirates, and his hatred was as high as the sky. Naturally, he responded positively. "The villain also seconded the proposal." This person does not really want to participate in the stock, but is a pervert who is forced to do so. "Everyone is willing to participate in the investment." Everyone stepped forward and knelt in front of Wang Dahu. Wang Dahu doesn¡¯t quite understand what¡¯s going on in business, but Li Zhongyi told him that even if everyone can participate in the business, not everyone can get what they want. One share, one hundred thousand guan, can only be more, not less. This will test the vision and strength of wealthy businessmen. Wang Dahu said with a smile: "Please wait and express your position quickly, I have something to say." "This time I invite you to discuss the plan to make a fortune. The emperor has said that it is all voluntary, and the court will never force you." Wang Dahu, on behalf of the emperor, I expressed my position in public, without any coercion, and it was purely voluntary. But who would believe these wealthy businessmen? Over the years, whenever the imperial court was short of money, it would turn to wealthy businessmen for money and food. If there was any slight disobedience, soldiers would enter the house and confiscate all the property. The men would be made slaves and the women would be concubines. Wang Dahu looked at the entire audience, and he could tell it from everyone's faces. Almost no one believed the emperor's statement. "Haha, everyone, let's change places and take a look, okay?" Wang Dahu secretly admired Li Zhongyi, and his third brother was surprised by the reaction of the merchants. So, at Wang Dahu¡¯s suggestion, everyone took carriages and went to the military dock in Kaifeng. The military dock is heavily guarded, with one post every three steps and one sentry every five steps. Except for Wang Dahu, who used his waist card, everyone else must have an invitation from the Ministry of Commerce to enter. The Lin family only had one invitation. Lin Feng went in, but the shopkeeper paid and had to stay outside the dock. Wang Dahu led the wealthy merchants to the river bank with a smile. I saw several tall, mighty, and very strange ships docked majestically on the pier. Wang Dahu led everyone and boarded one of the strange and slender warships. "Ouch." Lin Feng couldn't help but screamed when he saw the rows of huge artillery on the deck. Traditional Chinese merchant ships basically had several masts and could only hang a few vertical sails. The three main masts of the big ship in front of Lin Feng were not only covered with white sails, but were actually more than five times higher than the side of the ship? Furthermore, there are not only vertical sails on the main mast, but also several small horizontal sails. In addition, white sails are also hung on the secondary masts at the bow and stern. Lin Feng made his fortune from maritime business. He not only knew how to build ships, but also how to operate them. The basic logic of navigation is that the more sails there are, the faster the ship will be. How could Lin Feng not know that? When the merchants were looking at the strange things on the warship, with a crisp sound of copper bells and the shouts of the sailors, the warship slowly left the shore and headed towards the lower reaches of the canal. At this time, a section of the river downstream of the canal has been placed under martial law by the Yellow River Navy. I saw a traditional Chinese warship parked in the middle of the river. Just when Lin Feng and others were confused, they saw the strange warship under their feet slowly slowed down and finally stopped sideways on the river. Lin Feng is an expert at sea. He roughly estimated that the ship they were traveling on was about two hundred feet away from the war ship in the center of the river. Under Wang Dahu¡¯s invitation, everyone gathered near the side of the ship and collectively looked out, but no one knew what they were looking at. At this time, the main deckOn the deck above, twenty huge 24-pound cannons were loaded with powder, ammunition, and the shooting angle under the operation of the gunners. "Three rounds of rapid fire, let go!" "Boom, boom, boom" The wealthy merchants were caught off guard and suddenly felt the entire warship shaking violently. The choking white smoke floated up from the side of the ship under their feet, and soon completely enveloped the upper deck. "Cough cough cough" There was a cough on the upper deck. After the rumbling cannons stopped and the white smoke cleared, someone was shocked to find that many large holes had been blown out of the hull of the traditional war ship that was parked in the middle of the river, and the middle deck had also been blasted. It collapsed. "Ah" All the wealthy businessmen couldn't help but gasp, and were stunned. Lin Feng looked at the smashed traditional warship and murmured to himself: "With this artifact, why worry about the pirates being immortal?" Seeing that all the wealthy merchants were shocked, Wang Dahu couldn't help but secretly feel proud, hehe, Your Majesty You are absolutely right, facts speak louder than words.