The pros and cons have been clearly stated in the court gazette and newspapers, and the salt merchants are well aware of it.

Previously, when lobbying in the capital, the emperor had expressed his firm determination to reform through his ministers, and asked the salt merchants to consider the overall situation and make compromises for the country and the people.

The words were not too harsh at the time, but were also to give salt merchants some buffer time, to find other jobs, or to build a salt sales network.

If the salt merchants had known this day would come, they would have made some preparations. Today they are just hoping for a lucky break and try to get their hands on it.

But Xia Zhongshi's words left no room for maneuver. How could the imperial court's policy allow for bargaining? Its unwavering implementation also dispelled the salt merchants' last shred of fantasy.

Not to mention the salt merchants banding together, even if there were tens of thousands of vassal states, the emperor would still not be polite.

Who dares to cause trouble by striking the market? Who is so stubborn and disregards his own life? The imperial court would rather confiscate your property and exile you. How could it tolerate you?

Not to mention the salt merchants, look at those gentry, many of whom were once high-ranking officials in the court, and they still acted in accordance with the policies.

No matter how great a scholar or celebrity they are, if they break the law they will still be exiled, and they will be miserable and lose face.

Considering their own weight, no salt merchant dared to speak out.

Continuing to work in the salt trade would earn them less, but thanks to their abundant capital and low costs of bulk transportation, large salt merchants still had a considerable advantage over small traders.

Moreover, everyone knew that Xia Zhongshi was selected by the emperor from the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce, and within a few years he was promoted from seventh rank to fourth rank, in charge of the salt administration. Such a man, with a bright career, would not be moved by money and ruin his future?

The salt administration reform in the north showed Xia Zhongshi's hard work, and the emperor gave him full support. This was the reason why he dared to sit here and speak without any hesitation.

Lin Xingzhao was the leader elected by the salt merchants. Although the Salt Merchants Association was not approved by the imperial court, it was just a name and it was not difficult to change it.

Seeing everyone's gazes shifting towards him, Lin Xingzhao gave a wry smile, bowed, and said, "Your Excellency is absolutely right. As salt merchants, we are not greedy or selfish people. We will fully support and implement any policy that benefits the country and the people."

After a pause, Lin Xingzhao added, "Your Majesty has repeatedly emphasized that merchants should value wealth and make it in a proper way, not forgetting morality for the sake of profit. We will keep this in mind and will not forget it."

Xia Zhongshi nodded, a smile on his face, and his tone softened considerably. He said, "I also believe that you are all upright businessmen. As long as you abide by the law, the court will treat you all equally."

As he spoke, he signaled the clerk to distribute the documents and said slowly, "This is the salt price of the salt factory. It will be implemented from today."

There was no room for negotiation or possibility of changing the documents. The only option for salt merchants to continue working was to become large wholesalers and enjoy lower preferential prices.

After receiving the documents and carefully reading the graded prices, the salt merchants had no choice but to accept them.

Xia Zhongshi just emphasized two points: one is to abide by the law, and the other is to treat everyone equally.

Obeying the law is the most basic principle. If you break the law and your property is confiscated and you are exiled, what business will you have? Treating everyone equally means that after the successful implementation of the salt administration reform, salt merchants will no longer be oppressed by the court, just like other merchants.

Look at the Maritime Merchants Association, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, and the later-emerging Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce and the Yangtze River Chamber of Commerce. They all received care and preferential treatment after helping the imperial court.

Let’s look at the salt merchants. Even the name of the chamber of commerce was carefully selected, and the word “salt” was not allowed to be included. The strictness also revealed the intention of the court.

No matter how wealthy one is, even if one is as wealthy as a nation, it is difficult to compete with the government. This is clearly seen by the maritime merchants, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce, and the Yangtze River Chamber of Commerce.

Moreover, the emperor seemed to have abandoned the practice of donations, a common practice in feudal dynasties. Even during the crucial period of suppressing the Liao Dynasty and suppressing the rebellion, he would rather spend money and raise funds than ask for donations from merchants.

This is the emperor's principle, and even more so his ability. For such a large country, is it really necessary to beg for money from merchants like a beggar?

This may not apply to the royal family. Even if they fall out later, what does it matter? The emperor still has the final say and can do whatever he wants.

But the emperor did not do so, thus preserving the dignity of the court and his own face.

Then, after pacifying the Liao rebellion, two strong armies in the north and south were trained, the emperor's reputation and authority reached its peak, and various reform policies were introduced, and no one dared to challenge him.

Don't underestimate authority. It cannot be seen or touched, but it exists in people's hearts.

In the initial stages of promoting benefits and eliminating disadvantages, violence can be effective, but when it comes to deepening reforms, public opinion will play a huge role.

Especially the common people, once they feel the benefits brought by the reform, they will not resist, oppose, or treat it negatively.

Therefore, the starting point of the emperor's reform measures was very clear: to benefit the people and get them to vote in favor.

This was the case with clearing military garrisons and paying salaries, clearing up arrears of money and grain, and reforming the salt administration.

The interests of the people were not harmed, but their taxes were reduced and they could eat cheap salt. How could they not be happy and praise the good governance?

As for salt merchants and the like, at most they can just complain in their hearts, but they can't cause any trouble, so there's nothing to be afraid of.

As for organizing strikes and labor strikes to put pressure on the court, there were indeed some such incidents, but they were not carried out by salt merchants. Instead, they occurred when cracking down on gentry and students with bad records.

When it comes to spreading rumors and misleading the people, the gentry and students are the most qualified and capable.

As a result, under the strict order of the court, local officials did not dare to compromise at all. The Pacification Office and the East Factory provided intelligence, and the army was dispatched to arrest people and confiscate their homes, suppressing the situation with thundering force.

The more violent the disturbance, the more people will be arrested, beheaded, have their property confiscated, and exiled. If we kill a few of those who stand out, the world will be peaceful and no one will dare to shout or make trouble anymore.

It didn't matter if something happened; in a way, it proved that the local officials were doing their job, and that the interests of the gentry and students were affected. Being able to keep things under control when something happened was what was called ability.

For example, Liu Lishun, although it was the Jinyiwei who helped him deal with the bad gentry and students, because he did not compromise with these local tyrants, he was promoted soon after and is now the Left Governor.

There were several officials who had similar experiences to Liu Lishun. Some were promoted, and some were dismissed. The court's tendency was obvious, and the officials below naturally understood the spirit and completely stopped the momentum of the gentry and students.

With the lessons learned from the past, the salt merchants dared not act rashly and had to accept the consequences. Moreover, they were afraid that someone would take advantage of this to cause trouble and make them take the blame!

In the middle of the summer, the salt merchants expressed their willingness to compromise, and the tough challenge of the Lianghuai Salt Administration was finally overcome. Although this was not unexpected, it was still a relief.

The emperor has been very kind to him, so how could he not repay his kindness with all his heart?

The ruler treats his subjects as his own brothers and sisters, and the subjects treat the ruler as their own confidant. The principle is so simple, but how many rulers throughout the dynasties can do it?