Master Yuan, start!

After leaving the province, the tax had to be paid again every time the place was passed. Therefore, a piece of cloth that cost 500 wen in Suzhou would be sold for less than wen when it arrived in the capital, and the merchants did not make any profit at all.

Merchants all over the world hate this kind of policy of exploitation.

However, even with such heavy taxes, there were still corrupt officials who worked together to make money for themselves, eroding the lifeblood of the country. Often only one in ten of the silver turned over to the national treasury remained.

Since Yuan took office as the autonomous government in the three northeastern provinces, he has witnessed such chaos in China and has sighed and hated it in the long night.

Taking advantage of the emperor's new policy, I hereby announce to the world that from August of the 17th year of the Guangxu reign, anyone entering the three northeastern provinces, Korea and Yantai, Shandong will not be charged lijin, but will be charged commercial tax instead.

After paying in full, you can move freely through the three northeastern provinces and North Korea with the receipts. If the government collects money repeatedly, you can report it to the local military camp and the National Defense Army will be dispatched immediately to uphold justice for merchants from all over the country!

Guangxu Zhongun: In July of the 17th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, the Governor-General of the Three Eastern Provinces and the President of the National Defense Army, Yuan Shikai!

In the past two days, the streets of Shanghai were filled with discussions about the "Abolish Li and Reform Commercial Law" declaration.

Originally, Xu Shichang just wanted to issue a statement in the East-Asia Times and Shenbao.

After several years of hard work, the former has now become the largest newspaper in the north.

The latter, in accordance with the inertia of historical development, also became the largest newspaper in the South.

But Yuan Shikai said that he could not just issue a small statement, but also had to explain it clearly so that more people could understand what the abolition of customs duties and the change to commercial law would bring to them.

Therefore, not only were merchants watching and scholars discussing it, but even beggars on the street would pull people over to ask what this "abolishing customs duties and changing to business" was.

"No lijin tax at all, what a good policy!" Inside the academy, a young scholar with a short beard applauded! "Master Yuan has done another great thing that benefits the country and the people!"

"A good thing? That may not be the case!" Another middle-aged scholar snorted coldly: "This person has evil ambitions, who knows what sinister tricks he is planning behind the scenes.

The Yanshenggong Mansion is like this, I am afraid they have a backup plan for abolishing customs duties and switching to business!"

"The Duke of Yansheng's abduction and trafficking of children is an irrefutable fact. Even Confucius couldn't save them!"

The young scholar with a short beard refuted, "Besides, Master Yuan didn't abolish the lineage of Duke Yansheng. Don't we still have three descendants traveling around the world, waiting to inherit the title in the future?"

"But you can't confiscate their property. If you act like this, how is that any different from bandits?!"

"Emperor Renzong and Emperor Jiaqing raided the homes of corrupt officials like He, so why can't Lord Yuan raid the Kong residence that kidnapped and trafficked children? Even Confucius would have to say hello if he came!"

“你9..你！”4中年士子指0着青年短须士子，却不知说5些什么，最终6只能放下一句狠话离去：

"It is because of villains like Yuan Xiangcheng who only know how to flatter the superiors that evil will flourish, the country will be divided, and the holy way will decline. Just wait and see when this villain Yuan will be defeated!"

The young scholar with a short beard shouted towards the door, "What a joke! Who has been controlling the government all this time? We've been defeated again and again by the foreigners, and you can actually blame it on Lord Yuan?"

The young scholar with a short beard spoke very loudly, but the middle-aged scholar did not even turn his head. It was obvious that his three views had been formed and he would not listen to his rebuttal.

"Jian'an, why do you have to argue with him? You know he won't listen to any advice on governing the country and benefiting the people. Why don't you argue with him? It will be a waste of time and energy." Another classmate next to the young scholar with a short beard advised.

The man called Jian'an was named Sha Yuanbing. His ancestral home was Rugao, Jiangsu. Historically, he had a close relationship with Zhang Jian. He could be said to be the Rugao County version of Zhang Jian.

After the failure of the Hundred Days' Reform, the original time and space devoted themselves to expanding the family's business empire and establishing industries and education in Jiangsu.

"This isn't a fight out of resentment, it's a fight out of joy." Sha Yuanbing said to his friend with a smile, "Since the reign of Emperor Guangxu, apart from Yuan Shikai capturing Courbet alive and offering Korea as a gift, this is the third thing that has made me ecstatic.

You also know that my family runs a business. If Lord Yuan implements this measure, even if there is only half of the year left, I am afraid the surplus will double that of previous years.

Save the country, save the country. This is the true way to save the country! It can destroy the enemy on the battlefield and benefit the people in the business world! "

Sha Yuanbing became more and more excited as he spoke, and took out a letter from his arms, on which were written five big characters: "Personally addressed to Brother Jian'an".

"Brother Gu, this is the letter that Ji Zhi Zhang Jian sent me from Fengtian a while ago. He asked me to go north to help him with business matters."

"How could this really happen? You usually shout out everything, so how come you could keep it secret for so long this time?" the man called Brother Gu asked in surprise.

Hearing that Zhang Jian wrote a letter to Sha Yuanbing but he himself did not receive the letter, Gu Xijue felt a ripple in his heart.

The three of us have been studying in the same school since we were first enlightened, and we have a very good relationship. Why hasn't Zhang Jizheng ever written to me?

But he soon figured it out. He was probably only interested in classics, history, and storytelling, and had never been interested in business or commerce.

If you think so, it is understandable that Zhang Jizheng did not invite me to co-organize the event.

Gu Xijue quickly adjusted himself and began to listen to Sha Yuanbing's reasons for concealing the letter.

"I didn't tell anyone about it, because it was my parents' wish. I thought I could spend another two years in the academy and at least pass the imperial examinations." Sha Yuanbing smiled bitterly as he recalled the past.

"But there's no word yet from the Southern Court about opening an imperial examination. If I go to the Northern Court, I hear they're going to switch to something like Western physics and chemistry.

The world is so vast, yet there is no place for scholars like us to write and paint. What a joke."

Hearing this, the scholar called Brother Liu nodded in agreement.

Since the Hunan-Hubei War broke out, the plan of the three governors-general in the south to jointly organize the imperial examinations was completely scrapped, and rumors of changes to the imperial examinations were also heard from the northern court.

Book search group

Faced with this situation, many traditional scholars who were interested in new studies but had not actually learned many Western subjects felt like a dumb person eating bitter herbs and unable to express their pain.

"If my official career is not going well, I have to make a name for myself in other ways!" After Sha Yuanbing figured it out, he felt that there was a smooth road ahead in life.

"Three Northeastern Provinces, here I come!"

Chapter 176 Finance and Outer Mongolia

When Sha Yuanbing was packing his luggage, Yuan Xiangcheng arrived at Incheon Wharf accompanied by a group of people.

Looking at the huge ship anchored at the dock, Yuan Xiangcheng's eyes lit up.

He took two steps at a time, stood up and walked towards the gangway to meet Yan Fu and his group who were coming down.

"Ji Dao, it's been a while since we last met." Yuan Xiangcheng tightly grasped Yan Fu's arm and shook it vigorously: "Thank you for your hard work!"

Before Yuan Shikai's invasion of the Pass, Yan Fu arrived in Incheon with the South China Sea Fleet, which was cruising around.

He was a typical naval education talent, but after arriving, he said that he wanted to stay in Incheon to study democracy and human rights ideas, and had no intention of returning to Li Hongzhang's command.

Yuan Xiangcheng naturally welcomed the arrival of such a great thinker.

In the days that followed, Yuan Shikai had several conversations with him, although Yan Fu did not completely agree with Yuan Shikai's approach of using Confucianism as a cover to carry out his own agenda.

However, Yuan Shikai was treated differently because he, as the governor, advocated for enlightening the people and learning Western knowledge.

Yuan Shikai naturally could not let Yan Fu sit idle. Just as the three warships imitating the Zhiyuan class purchased from the Germans were completed, he sent Yan Fu to lead the team to receive them.

"Weiting, I have brought back for you the nation's most valuable weapon." Yan Fu pointed to the brand new warship behind him.

"This is one of them. The other two, as ordered by you, have sailed to Jiangning to threaten the Governor-General of Liangjiang." Yan Fu sighed:

"Pointing the guns at Jiangning City, in the past, that was something only foreigners could do, but we never expected to be able to accomplish it."

"Don't worry, there will be more such things in the future." Yuan Xiangcheng smiled slightly and turned his gaze to the steel behemoth.

The armored cruiser was built in imitation of the Zhiyuan, with a displacement of 2300 tons, a speed of 19 knots, and armor thickness basically consistent with the Zhiyuan class.

However, in terms of artillery selection, it was not equipped with a large-caliber slow-recoil gun like the Zhiyuan, but instead chose a slightly smaller but faster rapid-fire gun.

There is a 1mm Krupp rapid-fire gun at the front and rear; and two 150mm rapid-fire guns on each of the left and right sides.

The six cannons with a caliber of over 6 are the main long-range attack firepower of this warship.

In addition, there are 6 37mm Hotchkiss machine guns and 4 57mm Hotchkiss rapid-fire guns.

In terms of absolute destructive power, this warship cannot compare to the Zhiyuan cruiser. After all, the maximum caliber of its artillery is only 150mm.

The Zhiyuan has two 2mm main guns at the stern and bow.

As for the comparison with the Dingyuan battleship, it is far inferior. The main gun of the Dingyuan is 305mm.

But in terms of relative firepower, the new warships equipped with rapid-fire guns can easily defeat the Zhiyuan.

If the two ships were to engage in a direct confrontation, by the time the Zhiyuan had finished firing one salvo, the second salvo wouldn't have even begun, but the new warship would have already fired its fourth or fifth salvo.

Yuan Shikai had already boarded the warship for a tour, while the important members of the Red Confucian Society were still staying at the Incheon dock.

Xu Shichang, Qu Nan, Han Bei, Kuang Chunhua, Li Siming and others admired this crystallization of industrialization together.

“Bigger is better!”

Kuang Chunhua sighed. As the head of the Incheon Machinery Bureau, he had an indescribable feeling towards this industrial behemoth.

"It's good, but the subsequent payments are really going to kill me." Han Bei was looking at the warship, but he was thinking about how to settle the accounts.

As the head of the financial department of the Red Confucian Society, he was responsible for handling tariffs and agricultural taxes in Korea, Northeast China, and bills for various companies and factories run by the Red Confucian Society.

Every year, he, the chief steward of the Red Confucian Society, would check and verify the authenticity before formulating the economic plan for the new year.

Han Bei was a member of the Han Army Banner. He originally helped his boss sell goods in the capital and was quite familiar with business matters. After the Red Confucian Society took root in Korea, he had been in charge of economic issues in the rear.

Although he didn't receive many years of education, he was able to read and write.

Therefore, during the Joseon period, due to practical needs, North Korea studied theoretical books such as Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations and Marx's Political Economy.

After opening the factory, Yuan Xiangcheng encountered many labor-capital difficulties. He did not have enough energy to deal with the frequent conflicts, nor did he want to use killing to establish authority like the Qing Dynasty did to promote industrial production.

Yuan Shikai was naturally very happy to see such a financial talent emerge in the Red Confucian Society, so he relied on him further and even let him try to implement a modern budget system in the three northeastern provinces and North Korea.

Ancient China has always had the concept of budgeting, but it has never formed a system. The classical "Four Pillars List" is more like a processing method such as inventory and accounting books.

Generally speaking, the traditional budget refers to the imperial treasury and the emperor's private funds. The emperor can spend the money however and where he wants. It reflects the emperor's will and is theoretically a secret finance.

The modern budget, on the other hand, embodies the spirit of contract. As the government's revenue and expenditure plan for the coming year, it must be made public to the whole society.

In modern budgeting, what is important is not the estimate or calculation, but the allocation, management and disclosure.

Only when the time came to settle the accounts did Han Bei realize how big the Red Confucian Society's business was and how weak its funds were.

The Northeast Railway is still under construction, and one million taels of silver are invested every year.

In addition, the National Defense Force is also expanding further. Although it is being built according to the second-line troops, it has also invested a lot.

More and more coal and iron mines are being opened in Northeast China. Although some have already been put into production, it will take at least several years to recover the costs.

Now faced with the final payment for three armored cruisers, Han Bei is scratching his head.

"Why does Manager Han always look so sad lately?" Li Siming, head of the Red Confucian Society's publicity department, quipped, "Could it be that he doesn't like this warship?"

"My dear Minister Li, please stop making trouble." Han Bei sighed and said, "After the general instructor abolished customs duties and changed to commercial duties, the customs revenue of the three northeastern provinces and Shandong Province dropped sharply. It's good enough to collect half of it.

Now that the warship has returned to port, the balance must be paid. Where can I find more than one million taels?"

1Except Xu Shichang, most of the senior members of the Red Confucian Society were of similar age, with a difference of only 5 years between them. Therefore, the atmosphere between them was harmonious and they often joked with each other.

Hearing Han Bei's concerns about not being able to collect taxes, Xu Shichang calmly said, "Don't worry too much about abolishing the customs duty system and switching to a commercial system.

When I was handling trade disputes in Yantai, I handled many cases where merchants paid 0 parts of lijin tax, and the officials guarding the customs wanted to embezzle 10 parts.

7 The remaining 3 parts had to be divided into the part to be handed over and the part retained. The actual amount of lijin received was often less than 2%.