Wild North America 1846

Chapter 563 Prices and Civilian Income Levels

Author: Portuguese toothless

Chapter 563 Prices and Civilian Income Levels

After running around all morning, when it was time to eat at noon, Richard really felt hungry. He hadn't felt so hungry in a long time.

As expected, he wasn't hungry after eating stick noodles, rice porridge and steamed buns, so he found a restaurant outside the pier and prepared to feast.

These two days of experiencing the lively life of the lower class people gave him a real understanding of the current level of economic development in the empire;

This is a prosperous emerging economy, full of opportunities and high-spirited vitality, but it is not as beautiful and prosperous as imagined.

Take the British Empire for example;

The period from 1860 to 1870 in the United Kingdom was the most glorious peak of the Victorian period. During these 10 years, the income of British people increased rapidly by about 10% to 15% every year. The overall income level doubled

For a change.

In 1870, the overall growth level of the British economy dropped to about 1%, which brought the ten years of high income growth to an end, and what was left was a long period of decline.

average

The income of ordinary people in the Tang Empire is about half that of the British mainland, almost the level of France, and about twice as high as that of the Kingdom of Prussia. There is still a lot of room for growth, but it is already at the top level in the world.

The currency value of the Tang Empire was linked to gold, there was no inflation, and the purchasing power of currency was astonishingly high.

One yuan was worth approximately one tael of silver during the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty. The average annual income of ordinary workers in the empire was 77.2 Tang Yuan. The income level in Chang'an, the imperial capital, was higher, reaching 109.5 yuan per capita, which was approximately worth 28 pounds and 10 shillings. It was the highest average income level.

City.

In the homes of more than a dozen households in a large courtyard

There are only three households with an annual income of more than 100 yuan. The owner of one household is a low-level government employee, another is a bakery owner, and the other is a senior mold foundry worker at the Royal Chang'an Mint. The other households are all below 100 yuan.

The reason why the average level of the imperial capital Chang'an is so high is because there are a large number of top dignitaries, imperial government departments and world-class companies. The salary level has been raised a lot out of thin air, and the common people are the part that is averaged.

Los Angeles, the second largest city in terms of residents' income, has always been famous for its affluence. Three of the four major oil companies in the empire have their headquarters here. The per capita salary is only 91.2 yuan, which is far behind the imperial capital of Chang'an.

The million-level city with the lowest annual resident income is Mexico City, with per capita salary income of only 64.37 yuan, which is lower than the empire's average annual income.

This is because in the vast central region of North America and the more developed provinces along the Pacific coast, ordinary farmers, ranchers, and agricultural workers have benefited from the booming grain market in recent years, and their average annual salary income is not low.

The area of ​​these areas is less than 20%, but the population accounts for more than 2/3 of the empire. The average income is higher than the national level, with an average annual income of 84.6 yuan.

Lagging behind are Central and South America, as well as several overseas provinces, where incomes are generally lower than the national average.

in a restaurant

Richard ordered a portion of braised beef with potatoes, a 4-pound large yellow croaker roasted with green onions, grilled lamb chops and a plate of assorted fungus vegetables, plus a pot of Shaoxing rice wine and a plate of toast, all of which together only cost 1 RMB 3.

For dimes, this portion is enough to feed 4 people.

He sat alone in the booth separated by a screen, eating the soup dripping with joy.

The stewed beef with potatoes served in a casserole is generous in portion. The large pieces of beef are stewed soft but chewy. The potatoes that have absorbed the juice are soft and delicious. The thick juice is also very delicious when dipped in toasted bread.

There is also a large plate of braised large yellow croaker weighing more than 4 pounds. This is a real marine wild animal. The fish meat with garlic cloves is extremely tender. This plate only costs a mere 6 cents. How cheap is it?

In this era, wild yellow croaker was a common drink with wine and was not unusual at all.

Not to mention weighing more than 4 kilograms, it is common to weigh more than 40 kilograms. It is one of the largest species of marine fish caught by fishing boats at sea.

A two-pound can of salted yellow croaker in Seattle is a famous brand product exported to Europe. The price in London reaches 1 shilling and 6 pence, which is about 30.3 cents. The price is quite high.

Because this kind of canned yellow croaker has no thorns and only has a slight salty taste after salting, which adds to the delicious flavor of the meat, it is widely loved by the European middle class and aristocrats and continues to sell well.

While Richard was feasting, he also focused on listening to the chatter of the guests in the hotel. This could be regarded as a way to get to know the situation at the grassroots level.

The people eating in this restaurant are all people from around the pier, and the topics of conversation are naturally inseparable from things happening on the pier.

There are a large number of people who are trying to build relationships for dinner. Some merchants are looking for warehouses, some shipping companies are looking for unloading schedules, and some car owners are looking for conversationalists. The familiar ones will keep in touch with each other, and the unfamiliar ones will become familiar with each other.

There are also German merchants here entertaining guests, doing as the locals do, and playing games according to the rules of the Chinese world.

After listening for a while, Richard also smiled and turned his mind outside the window.

This time he was still sitting on the seat next to the window, but he was in a private seat on the second floor. From here, he could see trucks and heavy-duty carriages loaded with goods filing out and rushing to their respective unloading warehouses.

There are many kinds of goods at the bulk cargo terminal, and most of them cannot be stored in the open air. Therefore, there are many warehouses. There are warehouse areas on both sides of the street near the terminal. There are densely packed trading houses lined up along the street. I don’t know if there are any.

How many.

There are also many pubs, teahouses, hotels, and brothels, forming a very lively neighborhood. Here you can see all kinds of people, including British and French managers of trading houses, and Italians pulling carts.

It was a bustling place with Irish people, Dutch shipowners or Fuso prostitutes.

Fuso women's unique kimonos and men's getkidai are very recognizable, but they are generally looked down upon on the street.

The two patrol policemen were bored, so they gathered together more than 10 Fuso people, both male and female, and bowed to the passers-by.

Bow to every pedestrian you pass by to see who can hold on longer?

As a result, the short one lasted only five or six minutes, and the long one lasted less than 10 minutes. I collapsed on the ground from exhaustion.

The two military police officers seemed to have made a bet, and the one who lost the money angrily took out his baton and hit each of these unlucky Fuso people several times, causing the onlookers to laugh.

The Fuso men with Tsukiyo haircuts were short in stature and did not have the usual samurai swords on their waists. They wore wooden slippers on their feet. They nodded and bowed and said, "I'm sorry to disappoint you, sir." "I've caused you trouble."

But of what use are these words?

The traditional Fuso samurai sword never left the body, but this was not feasible in the Tang Empire.

As long as a Fuso man walks on the street with a knife on his waist, he will be stopped by the police and ordered to kneel down and hold his head in his hands for inspection.

It ranges from confiscating samurai swords to severely beating them and throwing them into prison. Those who dare to resist will be shot to death. They are not allowed to bring any weapons, including knives and guns.

Because they are not citizens of the Tang Empire, they do not have the right to hold weapons, let alone swords and guns, and longer wooden sticks must be inspected repeatedly.

While enjoying the tender and delicious wild large yellow croaker, Richard drank rice wine leisurely and looked at the bustle outside the window with relish, without any intention of stopping it.

Isn't this great?

The Japanese are afraid of power but not immoral, so they should plant the seeds of fear in their hearts early on. Taking obedience as the first priority, whip them with a whip when they need it, and don’t hesitate to use a gun to teach them a lesson.

If you treat the Japanese slaves as individuals, the Japanese slaves will really think that they can do just fine on their own.

Richard was thinking about the docks, which are rich in oil and water. Taxation could be mentioned again. Wouldn't it be nice to use the extra financial funds for the construction of education or medical facilities?

Just like Pier 9, if you just pluck out a piece of leg hair, you can build several more hospitals and more than a dozen schools every year.

The currency value of the Tang Dynasty in the Tang Empire was strong, and the imperial government had preferential policies for the construction of hospitals and schools. It first exempted and exempted taxes for five years, and gave preferential and even free land allocations. This saved major money in Chang'an, the imperial capital where land was at a premium.

expenditure.

To build a hospital, tens of thousands of yuan is enough.

Five to six thousand yuan is enough to build a standard primary school, which is just a dozen bungalows and a playground in the middle. The construction cost is not high.

The tuition fees paid by students can support the school's hiring of teachers. The basic expenses of public schools are partially subsidized by financial allocations. A primary school with hundreds of students costs about a thousand yuan, and the shortfall is covered by donations from enthusiastic people.

Today's Chang'an City

The total number of primary schools has reached more than 330, 47 middle schools, and 18 universities and various vocational colleges, forming a relatively complete education system, including royal charity education, government-run education, private education, and religious charity schools.

some of

Both royal charity education and government-run education focus on universal education. The high-end part of private education is elite education, where famous teachers gather. Education costs are also high and ordinary families cannot afford it.

For example, the famous Moling College in Los Angeles is an expensive private school. The annual tuition for a student is as high as more than 300 yuan. In addition, there are various additional fees. After all, 600 yuan a year is not affordable. Generally,

No middle-class family can afford it.

The school has custom-made school uniforms made of wool with the name of Moling College embroidered on them, ranging from hats to leather shoes. They are different in spring, summer, autumn and winter. They also need special sportswear for various sports, such as riding clothes for horseback riding and baseball for baseball.

uniforms, sailor uniforms for rowing, training uniforms for dancing, etc.

The more sports you participate in, the more fees you pay for a famous teacher.

Moling College employs all famous teachers. For example, the baseball classes are taught by famous retired baseball players. The salaries offered by private schools are high, and the fees are naturally high.

Although the price is expensive, there are still quotas, so if you don’t have good sports conditions, you won’t be charged!

Just asking if you are angry?

But the more arrogant he was, the more noble and wealthy families in the empire flocked to him and sent their children to Moling School one after another.

(End of chapter)