In the Song Dynasty, there was no law or order.

The business environment of the Song Dynasty was unique among ancient feudal societies, and Bianliang was the most unique among them.

There are four rivers in Bianliang, all of which are canals. From west to southeast is the Bian River, known as Tongji Canal in ancient times. It is an important section of the Grand Canal dug in the Sui Dynasty. The upper reaches are connected to the Wuzhi Yellow River, and the lower reaches are connected with the Huai River and then lead to the south of the Yangtze River.

Cai River flows into Bianjing from the southwest, and along the waterway can lead to what is now southern Henan. The Wuzhang River enters from the northwest and exits from the northeast of Kaifeng. Most northern material transactions are conducted through the Wuzhang River. There is also a river called Jinshui River, which connects the other three rivers.

Among the four rivers, the busiest for water transportation is undoubtedly the Bianhe River, which is known as the lifeline of the Song Dynasty. Jiangnan is the richest region in the world. The amount of rice transported to Bianjing through the Bianhe River every year reaches 5 million shi, accounting for more than 80% of the total.

In addition to basic rations, the ships plying on the Bianhe River also carried cloth, tea, salt, metal, feathers, glue, paint and other materials. In addition to the government, the traders who dealt with these goods were merchants.

At this moment, hundreds of boats are competing on the water of Tongji Canal, and the ships are sailing into Hongqiao Wharf. Countless cargo ships are coming and going, workers on the wharf are coming in and out, and the carriages going to and from the warehouse seem to have never stopped. The shouts of boatmen, The shouts of trackers and the shouts of merchants came and went.

There is another scene on the shore. There are many teahouses and restaurants, row upon row of shops, signboards swaying gently in the wind, and countless stalls of various kinds on the streets. Some people were resting in teahouses, some were reading fortunes, and some were eating in restaurants. There are many boats in the water and dense people on the shore, which together create this bustling scene.

When the Tian family's merchant ship arrived at Hongqiao Pier, several wealthy middle-aged people who had been drinking tea in the teahouse stood up and watched from a distance.

There is a large-scale wooden arch bridge on the Bianhe River. It is featured in "Along the River During the Qingming Festival". It has an exquisite structure and graceful form, just like a flying rainbow, so it is named Hongqiao. The Tian family's merchant ship was parked beside Hongqiao and was pulled into the parking position by trackers.

Then a few businessmen wearing silk and satin slowly came down from the boat. The leader was probably in his fifties or sixties, with a thin build. He only wore ordinary black silk clothes, but no one dared to look down on him.

Because he was Tian Chang, the largest tea boss in the Jianghuai region. During a tea business during the Tianxi period, he transported 200,000 kilograms of tea from Yangzhou to Bianliang, which shocked the whole of Tokyo.

Although he was mistreated by Prime Minister Li Di that time, he became famous because of it. After paying money to save his life, Tian Chang established a tea shop with 17 large tea merchants in Bianliang, Jianghuai and other places. Tianjia Tea Shop plays an important role in Liang's tea trading market.

Now is the time when tea is on the market.

Spring tea is best one month after the Waking of Insects, especially before the Qingming Festival. At this time, Tian Chang will buy tea leaves in Yangzhou, Jianghuai and other places, and then start steaming them immediately. After the tea is ready, it will be packed and put on the ship. Ship it to Bianliang.

Therefore, the tea leaves are picked from mid-March to early-April, transported to Tuancha, and then transported for another month. By mid-May, the fresh tea leaves will arrive at the Bianliang Tea Trading Market.

At this moment, Tian Chang Shiran got off the boat, while the housekeeper stayed on the boat to start docking with the dock workers off the boat. Most of the guards also stayed on the boat to maintain order. He only took seven or eight guards to climb the steps of the dock, preparing to go ahead. Go to Fanlou for a meal.

As a result, before I even hit the street, several people came over.

"Brother Tian!"

"oh?"

Tian Chang looked at them and wondered: "Brother Zhou, Brother Wang, Brother Li, and Brother Zheng, how come you have time to come see me today?"

These wealthy middle-aged people are also the owners of major tea merchants, and they have established a tea shop with Tian Chang.

However, after all, there are competing interests among colleagues. Although they established a tea shop together to maintain the chaotic order of the tea market, this does not mean that their relationship is very good.

So Tian Chang was still quite puzzled when he saw them approaching.

Everyone looked at each other, and then Zhou Yunsheng from the Zhou Family Tea Shop said: "Something did happen, Brother Tian doesn't know about it yet. I'll be the host today, and we'll go to Fanlou to eat and talk."

"All right."

Seeing their serious expressions, Tian Chang realized that something big might have happened, so he followed them.

Tian Chang was wondering what happened along the way.

Tea is a market subject to great fluctuations. Sometimes a new policy from the imperial court, an increase in the prices of daily necessities such as oil, rice, and salt, or a natural disaster in a tea-producing area may affect the price of tea.

When Zhou Yunsheng and others came here, it was most likely that something big happened this year that affected the price of tea, so they came to discuss market pricing with him.

What Tian Chang didn't expect was that the matter involved had nothing to do with the price of tea.

The group soon arrived at Fanlou. There were 72 top restaurants in Bianliang, and Fanlou was the most popular. It was rumored that there was a shadow of the Song Dynasty royal family behind it, so it became the most prosperous restaurant in Bianliang.

Fan Tower is very large and consists of five buildings in the east, west, south, north and middle. There are three floors facing each other, five floors facing each other, bead curtains embroidered on the forehead, lights and candles shining, flying bridge railings, and light and dark. The overall building has undulating heights, staggered eaves and corners, and corridors connecting each floor, making it magnificent.

The tea merchants had already reserved seats in Fan Lou. After entering the box, various delicacies were quickly served. Zhou Yunsheng helped Tian Chang pour a glass of wine. Tian Chang was very puzzled to see his attitude was so low. Said: "What happened?"

"this"

Everyone looked at each other, and Zhou Yunsheng slowly said: "Brother Tian doesn't know yet, the court is going to implement the cash law again. Li Xianggong summoned us to the Taifu Temple to talk, saying that if we want to get tea permits in the future, we must transport more food and grass to the border."

His words immediately opened up everyone's chatterbox. Another head of the Wang family, Wang Min, said with a sad face: "Brother Tian, ​​you also know that we are not as big as your family. We rely more on the border and inflate some goods to support our family. Moreover, not only will there be no inflated valuation in the future, but we will also have to work harder and get more tea"

"Yes, isn't this going to kill us? Transporting food and grass to the border is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and the cost is extremely high. If you are not careful, It may cause losses. It doesn't matter if there is a loss, and it's good to get tea, but who can say for sure about tea? "

"The price of tea seems to have not fluctuated much this year, but if we want to get tea tickets, we must transport grain to the border this year, and we can get the best spring tea next year. If the price fluctuates next year, we may go bankrupt overnight. "

"Brother Tian, ​​you have to help us this time. You know a lot of dignitaries and can speak for them. If you can help, we will definitely remember this favor, don't you think so?"

"Yes, yes, Brother Tian, ​​say something."

Everyone talked at once.

Tian Chang frowned and remained silent.

People only think that tea merchants collude with border officials and suck the blood of the Song Dynasty court, but they don't know that tea merchants are not doing well either.

Because the tea market fluctuates greatly, for example, if a natural disaster occurs in a certain place this year and the court sends disaster relief rice, the price of rice in Bianliang may rise, causing the price of tea to fall.

If the Jianghuai Canal is blocked, the salt and rice ships capsize or arrive in Bianliang a few days late, the tea market may collapse and no one will buy.

No matter how good tea is, it can't be compared with food. Compared with daily necessities, tea can only be ranked below rice, salt and oil, and is far less important than the former.

So the tea merchants seem to be making a lot of money, but due to the continuous natural disasters in recent years, the rise in rice prices, and the difficulty in selling tea, the tea merchants' lives are getting worse and worse. Many people rely on sucking blood from the court to maintain a luxurious life.

Now the court does not allow blood sucking, and the income has dropped sharply. If the market fluctuates again next year, many tea merchants may go bankrupt.

Therefore, these people have united and hope to oppose the implementation of the new policy together.

However, Tian Chang doesn't want to get involved in this matter.

Because he is the largest tea merchant in Bianliang and even the whole country, in order to increase customer stickiness, Tian's tea shop even has a trademark.

There is an icon on the packaging of tea leaves wholesaled by Tianjia Tea Shop, with a tender green tea leaf in a square. The shape of the tea leaf is like a "cross", which is the "田" of Tianjia Tea Shop.

With such a great reputation, he would not go bankrupt unless no one in the whole Song Dynasty drank tea.

So others need to rely on sucking the blood of the court to make more money, but he does not need it. In the past, Tian Chang transported the most grain to the border, took the most tea permits, and falsely estimated the extra money. He would make money if he could, and it didn't matter if he couldn't make money. He didn't care about these little things.

And the most important thing is that Tian Chang is well aware of a truth, that is, the people should not fight with the officials.

He is from Jianghuai. Some time ago, he heard that Guo Chengyou, the governor of Bozhou, was arrogant and domineering, and he set his eyes on the famous Tang Dynasty paintings of the rich businessman Zhang's family in Bozhou, so he designed to destroy the Zhang family. There is also Sun Mian, the governor of Hangzhou, who directly robbed the women of the people, fabricated charges to frame the rich businessman Xu Ming, and raped the wife of others.

In his early years, Tian Chang was disciplined by Li Di. Although Tian Chang has made many friends with dignitaries and bought a nominal position in Taifu Temple, he is nothing compared to the real high-ranking officials.

Therefore, Tian Chang was reluctant to stand up for the people of the business and oppose the implementation of the new policy under the pressure of the government.

But if he refuses now, it may be excluded by all tea merchants in Bianliang. Even if he is the largest tea merchant, he can't stand the attack.

So facing the inquiries of the crowd, he hesitated for a moment and could only say tactfully: "I don't know the details of this matter yet. Let me go to ask Wang Panshi of Taifu Temple first."

Taifu Temple is in charge of official tea, and it has Jiaoyinku and Chaku under it. It can be said that it is the lifeline department of tea merchants and the department they deal with the most.

Tea merchants heard that Tian Chang had a good relationship with the officials of Taifu Temple, and they were overjoyed for a while and thanked him one after another.

"I'll have to trouble you, Brother Tian."

"If Brother Tian shows up, I'm sure everything will go smoothly."

"In the future, if Brother Tian gives us orders, we will go through fire and water without hesitation."

Everyone complimented him.

In the face of their flattery, Tian Chang just smiled bitterly, picked up a piece of meat with chopsticks and put it in his mouth. The delicious food in the past was like chewing wax at this moment.

He didn't know any top officials, so he was probably powerless this time.

Please, let me stay on the new book list for a few more days. I will resume the double update these days, and the single update will be on July 8, because the new book list will be removed on the 10th, and the new book list will be removed. Please keep reading, keep following, and don't give up.