In ancient China, it was always said that agriculture and commerce were valued and commerce suppressed, but commerce was never suppressed. Taishi Gong once said that if you want to get rich, farming is worse than worker, and commerce is worse than business. As long as the society is stable, no matter how the court suppresses commerce, commerce will flourish. However, based on the Confucian idea of ​​focusing on the foundation and suppressing the end and not competing for profit with the people, commercial tax collection has not been included in normal fiscal revenue for overall management.

Business development cannot be turned into the fiscal revenue of the court, but it has become the basis for the extravagant life of merchants. Officials can use their power to divide the weight from it. Merchants further monopolize the market through collusion with officials and make huge profits, but the court cannot make profits from it. Ordinary people do not gain any benefits. When the court wants to make profits from it, it does not establish a tax system, but monopoly business in the form of monopoly. The most typical example is salt and iron. The monopoly system of salt is the most exaggerated and lasts until the 21st century. In fact, in history, there are far more than salt and iron. All products that are in high demand and cannot be found in the people, such as wine and tea, were once the target of monopoly.

People often discuss why China did not produce capitalism, and some say that if it were not for foreign invasion, the Song Dynasty or the Ming Dynasty might have gone to capitalism. In fact, this is impossible. China controlled by Confucianism has never seen commerce directly. The development of commerce cannot become a source of fiscal growth, but may become a black hole for collusion between officials and businessmen.

Therefore, such strange things often occur in Chinese history. On the one hand, the business is developed, and the big merchants are rich enough to compete with the country. On the other hand, the court is short of finances and is stretched. The conflict between the court and the merchants intensified, and they often suffer both losses. As for the Han Dynasty, the most famous example is Emperor Wu of Han in his later years. Because of years of war, the court's finances were tight. Emperor Wu of Han raised funds from private merchants. The merchants had huge assets, but no one responded. Emperor Wu of Han issued a notice in anger, using his power to forcibly deprive merchants of their property. Of course, this was not a long-term solution. Although it solved the temporary financial difficulties, it destroyed the private economy and left a stigma forever.

If Emperor Wu of Han established a formal commercial tax system from the beginning, included it in fiscal coordination, and taxed according to the law rather than temporary additional taxes, there was no need for this to happen.

Sun Ce knew very well that war was burning money and the economy was the foundation. Since he forced the Cai family to switch from operating a farm to business, he naturally could not let it go. He saw that the rich profits were taken over by the Cai family. However, for now, Jingzhou or Yuan Shu had the final say. The conditions for his implementation of commercial tax reform were not mature, so he used this method to collect in disguise.

Zhou Yu knew Sun Ce’s ideas. Although he was unable to fully grasp Sun Ce’s plan at present, he did not object to Sun Ce’s “blackblacking” the Cai family. Instead, he felt it was natural. Of course, there must be benefits to support a family, otherwise what would he do?

After a while, Huang Chengyan rushed over. Zhou Yu told Cai Mao about the arrival of him and Sun Ce's plan to open a Mu Academy. Huang Chengyan was very surprised. It is understandable that setting up a martial arts lecture hall. During the war, well-trained middle and lower-level officers had an important influence on improving overall combat power. Moreover, military studies were a natural one, and they had long been a serious knowledge. But Mu Academy was not a very elegant place. Even someone who was very interested in Mu Academy never regarded it as a formal knowledge, let alone opening a lecture.

Strictly speaking, this is just a skill, and at best it is part of miscellaneous studies.

"The people around the general want stone throwing machines. The stone throwing machines are your hard work. How can they be taken away for nothing? But after the general has an order, we cannot ignore them, so we plan to provide help in the form of secondment. Each department sends two to three craftsmen to guide them. The organization of these craftsmen is ours and we will come back to us in the future. Considering that there will definitely be someone who knows the goods and wants to poach these people, we must raise the threshold in advance. You draw a list, select about ten people, divide them into three to four groups, each group leader, one to two team members, the annual salary of the group leader is 200 stone, and the annual salary of the group members is 100 stone. When the secondment goes out, the allowance is paid for 100 coins a day. What do you think?"

Huang Chengyan was shocked. "General, I can understand that you pay them a salary. Although two hundred stones are not small, we can afford it. I can also understand that the allowances are given when seconding out. It is to stimulate their enthusiasm, but is it too much for a hundred coins a day? A hundred coins a day is three thousand coins a month, which is equivalent to thirty or forty stones. We can charge fees for lending to other businesses. What should we do if we use them in the future?"

"So you have to try every means to improve the power of the stone thrower and shorten the battle time as much as possible." Sun Ce explained: "The army will spend more than a few hundred stones on a day of war? Besides, if you study for a few years, you can go to school and get a tax exemption. If you are a minor official, you can also get a salary of 100 stones. Why can't a skilled craftsman get a salary of 100 stones? There is no enough benefit. Even if I open a wooden school, I am afraid that few people are willing to come, and few people will study hard when they come."

Seeing that Sun Ce was determined, Huang Chengyan did not persist anymore. The reason why the martial arts lecture hall attracted so many town leaders and team leaders to participate was not only because of actual needs, but also because Sun Ce set up a reward chart. The wooden school teaches craftsmen, and it is impossible to lead troops like the students in the martial arts lecture hall. Without sufficient temptation of interests, it is indeed difficult to recruit people.

"Okay, I'll pick the right person right now."

Sun Ce nodded with satisfaction and turned to look at Zhou Yu. "Gongjin, thank you for your hard work, and tomorrow you will lead these people to see the Hou General."

Zhou Yu understood it and said, "Bo Fu, now only Mr. Yin is carrying the martial arts lecture hall, and he is going to open a wooden school. The staff is tight. Should we invite some more people?"

Sun Ce nodded in agreement. "Okay, if you have any suitable candidates, you might as well prepare a list. I will send someone to invite them. Whether it is just a martial arts hall or a wooden school, it is not Confucianism. Those who are dedicated to reading sages should not invite them, and they will only cause trouble. If you have a broad mind and a knowledgeable scholar who is proficient in the country and the people, you are willing to come and see it, and even talk about learning for a few days, we are very welcome. Sir, you have the best knowledge, so I will entrust you to do this."

Huang Chengyan laughed silently and bowed to take the order.

After the brief meeting, Huang Chengyan stood up and left the seat and waved to Pang Tong. "Shi Yuan, come on."

Pang Tong looked at Sun Ce, and Sun Ce nodded. Pang Tong stood up, sent Huang Chengyan out of the hall, and came outside the courtyard.

"Shi Yuan, have you ever had books recently?"

Pang Tong bowed and said, "My cousin studied at home and often passed by Caizhou. He had a great time talking to Master Sun, and he would make progress every day."

Huang Chengyan was very satisfied. "Xiangyang is too small, let him come to Nanyang. However, even if General Sun admires him, he would not dare to promote him."

"Sir, I'm worried..."

"Are you worried that the general will not forgive him?"

Pang Tong didn't say anything, but his eyes had already expressed his meaning. Huang Chengyan laughed and raised his hand to pat the back of Pang Tong's head. "Boy, playing these tricks in front of me is really a challenge. If the general is such a person, can you still serve him? Okay, it's right for you to avoid suspicion. I'll come forward."

Pang Tong touched his head and smiled.

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Chapter completed!