What's more, the gentry and the merchants, the bureaucrats and the businessmen are so intertwined with each other that there is no clear boundary between them.

Everyone knows that "most of the gentry in Wu are concerned with making money. For example, they run official shops in the capital, operate loan pawnshops in the six suburbs, and engage in salt and wine trading. Their methods are twice as good as those of the common people in Qi."

It is no secret that the gentry in the south of the Yangtze River not only have rich official purses but also make profits in the market. They swallow up the fat of the common people and exploit the weak and the common people in all kinds of ways, thus accumulating huge wealth.

Even if the court did not specifically target merchants, it could still take advantage of the situation by cracking down on gentry and involving some merchants.

All businessmen are dishonest, and it is not right to do business. This is regarded as a code of conduct by many businessmen. However, it was defeated by the "righteous business" proposed by the emperor, and became a despised bad behavior, and perhaps it will be a crime to be cracked down in the future.

A keen sense of smell is the specialty of merchants. When they realize that the situation is not right and the emperor is sharpening his knife on them, self-redemption and self-salvation become the only option.

You can earn money again if you lose it, but if you lose your head, your house is raided, and your relatives are exiled, there will be no chance of turning things around.

Tang Mo, who was of relatively upright character, was recommended by the merchants.

At the same time, they established the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce, hoping to change the emperor's and the court's attitude towards them. If they asked for money, they would give it, and if they asked for punishment, they would accept it. If they made mistakes, they would correct them. At least they would be given a chance to atone for their sins and make amends!

After several attempts at flattery, the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce's attentiveness was finally noticed by the emperor after the court introduced the silver dollar. Tang Mo and the others, who had been worried, finally saw a turning point.

Years ago, Zheng Zhilong came to meet several leading figures of the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce. Although he held a low-ranking official position, the news he brought made Tang Mo and others treat him as a guest of honor.

Although the emperor noticed the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce, he did not give any clear instructions or make any clear demands. He only asked the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce to formulate a charter, the main content of which was how to supervise the illegal behavior of chamber of commerce members.

Judging from this condition, the emperor is indeed very dissatisfied with merchants' tax evasion. In addition to normal government supervision and investigation, the chamber of commerce is also required to have such responsibilities, self-inspection, self-discipline, self-reflection and self-vigilance.

Zheng Zhilong also revealed some of the emperor's ideas, which is to reform the current tax payment methods and tax amounts of "traveling merchants" and "sedentary merchants".

Although the specific plan is still being determined, the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce can also put forward its own ideas and suggestions.