The social environment changes people, or in other words, the kind of environment determines the kind of people you become. This refers to ideology, regardless of whether a person is originally good or bad, kind or evil.
“Instead of sitting and starving to death, why not die stealing?” In the late Ming Dynasty, honest farmers picked up hoes and sticks and overthrew the behemoth Ming Empire in order to survive.
Just to have something to eat, just to survive, such a request is the most basic and humble. For this, they are willing to be beheaded or killed.
We're all going to die anyway, so the method doesn't matter anymore. Hunger drives people crazy, it's that simple.
But when society is stable, there is no worry about starvation, or when most people have enough food to eat, who would have the idea of rebellion?
Heroes emerge in troubled times. Regardless of whether Gao Yingxiang, Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and others in history can be considered heroes, it is only in such an environment that they can make a call and attract responses.
Now, even if Gao Yingxiang was so poor that he was about to starve to death, as long as he was one of the minority, he would at most rob houses and become a criminal that endangers society, rather than a rebel who attacks cities and captures strongholds.
Therefore, even if Gao Yingxiang couldn't become a horse dealer, he still had other options. For example, he could join the army. In his words, he could risk his life for wealth.
You must know that Gao Yingxiang made a living by trading horses. He was good at riding and shooting, and had extraordinary physical strength. This was his capital and also his hope of becoming rich.
"Wealth and honor are sought in danger. Since I have dared to join the army, I don't take my life seriously." Gao Yingxiang smiled nonchalantly and said, "There are many places recruiting soldiers, such as Ganzhou, Yansui, and Guyuan. I want to go to Guyuan."
Guyuan Town, also known as Shaanxi Town, is the hometown of Gao Yingxiang and Li Hongji. It is the first choice and is reasonable.
Li Guo interjected, "This time, we're recruiting mostly cavalry. As long as you have excellent riding skills, other requirements can be relaxed."
Li Hongji nodded and said, "When it comes to riding skills, my uncle is absolutely no problem." Then he turned to Li Guo and asked, "What about you? Are you going to Guyuan too?"
Before Li Guo could answer, Gao Yingxiang took over the conversation, "Yes, I want to take him there. I hope someone can take care of him."
Li Guo nodded in agreement and said, "Although I can eat at home, there's not much to achieve. Building roads, houses, and water conservancy projects are also quite hard work."
Work-for-relief is a disaster relief program that the imperial court and local governments had planned long ago. It was implemented when local disasters occurred, and considerable experience has been accumulated.
This year, it is being implemented on a large scale throughout Shaanxi, providing food or meals but no wages.
This form of exploitation was accepted by the people and met their basic survival needs. The construction and improvement of infrastructure laid a good foundation for Shaanxi's post-disaster recovery.
Moreover, corvee labor was abolished starting in the fifth year of the Tianqi reign. To be more precise, it was replaced by another form.
Villages close to the official road were responsible for maintaining the road, while villages close to the mountains were responsible for planting trees, digging ponds to store water, digging wells for irrigation, etc., which could all be considered as performing corvee labor.
The most important thing is that it is close by and people don’t have to travel far, which greatly reduces the burden on the people.
The people called the taxes paid from farming "grain" and the annual corvée labor service "service" (差).
In the history of the disasters at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the fact that the grain tax had not been reduced was the main reason why the hungry people rose up in rebellion and the uprising flags were everywhere.
Li Hongji highly appreciated his nephew Li Guo's words. It would be a shame for a man to just be able to have a meal.
"After serving for five years, you can get fifty acres of land after you are discharged from the army, be exempt from taxes for three years, and pay half the tax for six years..." Li Hongji is quite familiar with the treatment of being a soldier.
Gao Yingxiang smiled and nodded, patted Li Guo on the shoulder, and said, "Boy, as long as you survive, you will be a small landlord in five years!"
Li Guo laughed twice and said, "Maybe I can become a general!"
"Yes, fifty acres of land is nothing. Joining the army is about making achievements." Li Hongji agreed: "Striving for a title and a son, that's what it means to be successful."
Gao Yingxiang picked up the large bowl, drank half of it in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and said to Li Hongji, "How about we join the army together?"
Li Hongji thought about it, then shook his head and said, "I'd better wait and see. If I can rent a carriage, it would be a good business to transport people and goods."
Renting is similar to renting. The Chinese Chamber of Commerce expanded its trade routes in the northwest and opened a car dealership. People who rented a car had to pay according to the number of days they used it, which was similar to the taxi membership fee in later generations.
Li Hongji felt that he was familiar with horses and there was little risk in renting a car.
Moreover, with the growing prosperity of the tea-horse market in the northwest, the price of horses has continued to fall. It won't be long before he can buy horses and run his own business.
Border trade in the Ming Dynasty was always profitable, and the profits were huge. Silk, tea, ironware, cotton cloth, grain and other commodities were all in demand by the northern nomadic peoples.
The Ming Dynasty was not particularly short of horses, cattle, and sheep. As a means of controlling nomadic peoples, there was a quota for the amount of livestock that could be traded from each tribe each year.
Once the Ming Dynasty cut off trade, the lives of the Mongolian tribes would fall into hardship. Before the Longqing period, some Mongolian tribes were so poor that they could only cook meat in leather bags and wore tattered clothes in the summer.
The Mongolian tribes' reliance on ironware could only be met through trade with the Ming Dynasty. Fur was warm in winter but a source of heatstroke in summer.
Therefore, the Mongolian tribes attached great importance to mutual trade and haggled with the Ming Dynasty over the share of trade, hoping for as much as possible.
In order to stabilize the northwest and expand the western regions, the imperial court expanded the scale and duration of trade after pacifying Liao.
The original mutual market usually only lasted about a month a year, which was not enough to meet the demand for trade. Now a "small market" is set up, which is held once a month and is also called a "monthly market".
In this way, the lives of the nomadic peoples were improved and Ming merchants also gained huge benefits.
While the Chinese Chamber of Commerce had a monopoly on border trade, it didn't completely shut out other merchants. It was just that they were the only ones authorized to distribute strategic materials like ironware and grain.
The prosperity of commerce naturally led to the transportation of goods and the movement of people. As a postman, Li Hongji was well aware of this.
Seeing that his nephew had other plans, Gao Yingxiang did not force him. After talking for a while and explaining some family matters, he took Li Guoyu away.
How could Li Hongji treat him so poorly? He quickly got up, took his uncle and nephew out of the post station, and invited them to dinner and drinks at the inn next door.
The business station built on the basis of the post station has both a hotel and a warehouse. It is different from a store in the wilderness and is quite safe.
The trading post was also connected with the post station, and some letters and parcels were delivered through the post station, which could be described as a complementary and win-win situation.
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