Second, the Qing Dynasty developed the frontier, and the Jin people entered the Mongolian and northwest markets. At the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, Mongolia, Xinjiang, and ** were included in the Chinese territory, but soon Geerdan rebelled, and Kangxi's military campaign to suppress Geerdan lasted for a long time, and a large number of Jin merchants followed the army to engage in military supplies**, such as Wang Xiangqin, Zhang Jie, and Shi Daxue, the founders of Dashengkui, who were "Danmenqing" [45] with the army, as well as Jiexiu Fan's family and so on. After the rebellion was quelled, Kangxi issued a policy of rewarding people to go to Inner Mongolia to reclaim land for farming, encouraging people from the interior to go outside the mouth to reclaim and cultivate land. In the course of interacting with the Mongolians, they found that the Mongolians were not good at business and needed daily necessities from the mainland. At this time, catching up with the stability and development of the frontier became an important national policy in the early Qing Dynasty, in order to strengthen the management of the vast frontier, the establishment of a network of post stations with Beijing as the center. From Kangxi to the early years of Yongzheng, the Northeast traffic station was completed, and the traffic station in the north and northwest was also roughly completed in Kangxi to the beginning of Qianlong, on the one hand, it served to conquer Geerdan, on the other hand, it was necessary to inhibit the southward movement of Tsarist Russia, Mobei (Outer Mongolia), Monan (Inner Mongolia), Moxi (Xinjiang) post station management was strict, and the postal road was convenient. This huge postal route has also become a business travel route. In Shanxi, there were 125 Shanxi post stations in the Qing Dynasty, more than double the 58 in the Ming Dynasty, providing important conditions for Shanxi merchants to advance northward.
It has a favorable location and gives full play to its location advantages
First of all, Shanxi is located in the border pass, is the northern nomads and the Central Plains agricultural areas between the material exchange of the middle zone, since the Han Dynasty is the most active border trade area, the south to the tobacco, wine, sugar, cloth tea, the north to the cattle, sheep, camels and horses, in the north of Shanxi Great Wall pass mutual market. Shanxi people have the tradition and experience of trading with nomads at the border gates. The territory of the Qing Dynasty expanded, and the Jin people once again took the lead, going north and south, trafficking **, and occupying the geographical advantage.
Secondly, although the land in Shanxi is barren, it is rich in resources and has developed handicraft industry, especially in Shanxi, which is rich in coal and iron ore resources, which provides unique natural conditions for the iron smelting industry. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, iron weapons were manufactured. In the Song Dynasty, the country's iron production ranked first in the world at that time, and Shanxi iron-making, Lu'an, and Zezhou were the most prosperous. In the middle of the Qing Dynasty, Lu'an Yincheng iron cargo trading, with an annual average of more than 1,000 taels**. There is a proverb in the Shangdang area that "Gaoping Iron, Jincheng Charcoal, and you can't do it without Yincheng". There are ten famous products in Yincheng ironware, with various varieties and low prices, making Yincheng one of the famous iron trading and distribution centers in China. There are more than 1,900 iron furnaces of various types in Yincheng, and there are more than 14,000 iron-making workers. It also has a sales network in 19 provinces across the country, and some products are also exported to more than a dozen countries such as India, Nepal and North Korea. The business names in Beijing include Hengshengyu, Donghefeng, Xihefeng, and Tongyangtang, and Xiushenghe, Deshenghe, and Fengyucheng in Tianjin, and Wenhehao and Jinshengdian in Jinan, Shandong. Another example is Fengtai County, Zezhou, Jincheng, where steel needles are made, steel needles are sold, and those who are a lifelong artist abound. From the rebuilt temple stele that is now preserved in the needle Weng temple in Xizhen, it can be seen that there were 39 needle-making businesses in the town at that time, including 10 in Shangcun, 5 in Zhongcun, 9 in Xiacun, 8 in Nanzhuang, 3 in Hedong, 3 in Wanli, 1 in Shicun, Zhangzhuang and Zhaozhuang, in addition to more than 100 small handicraftsmen operating in the name of individuals, plus the needle-making industry in neighboring counties, there are two or three hundred in total. Civilians of all ages, young and old, all of whom had to participate in the labor, could be heard everywhere at night with the faint sound of hammering and grinding. Dayang steel needles are marketed to the northwest provinces with Yulin Mansion as the center, and Zhoukoudian as the center in the south to be resold to South China, while the Yellow River Basin is the main sales market of Dayang steel needles, and some are sold abroad.
Speaking of harmony and inheriting the tradition of the Middle Way
One of the important factors in the success of Jin Shang is its humanistic spirit.
From the life **, since the Song and Yuan dynasties, Shanxi people gradually formed a deviant mercantile thought, Qing Ji Xiaolan said in his "Reading Wei Caotang Notes": "Shanxi people are more businessmen, more than ten years old from people to learn **, accumulate resources, start to induct women", even the Qing Yongzheng Emperor also in his "Zhu Criticism Decree" criticized: "The right of the mountain is about the first businessman, followed by You Ken Linong, the second is to enter the camp, and the lowest is ordered to study." In the people, a kind of "business to wealth, with wealth to keep the foundation" of the idea of business. There is a proverb in Jinzhong, Shanxi: "It is better to open a store than to sit in the county"; "Ten thousand good fields, not to reach the day into a penny"; "If you want to be rich, crops bring shops"; "Buying and selling is prosperous, and the money is earned, and it is not exchanged for a county official." Shanxi folk "Lullaby" fully reflects people's mercantile thoughts, the lyrics say: "I doll pro, I doll Dan, my doll is too big to pinch the blue charcoal, pinch the blue charcoal and can't eat; I doll Dan, I doll pro, my doll is big and go to Kanto, dark blue cloth, Buddha head green, shrimp and seafood can't be eaten. ”[46]
From the value of **, Shanxi people value profit and righteousness. Probably because of Guan Yunchang's hometown, Guan Gong was loyal to the liver and courage all his life, so that all the people admired, the worship of Guan Gong of Jin merchants reached the extreme, and once he made money, he repaired the Guan Emperor Temple, and constrained employees with Guan Gong's loyalty and righteousness, insisted on righteousness and then profit, and the values of righteousness and righteousness became a recognized social code of conduct for Jin merchants, opposing the use of any despicable means to defraud money, and ensuring the reputation of the enterprise at any cost. Yuci Wang Yaochang, in his 50s in the first year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty, later became a teacher, was hired to teach the children of businessmen, and wrote a poem "Che Niu Yuan (Thorn Heavy Jia Ye)": "Everyone in the world values Confucianism, and Confucianism He Xiaosuo; Everyone in the world is a cheap businessman, and those who are good start a pavilion. You don't see, the east neighbor went to buy tea the day before yesterday, and the fat horse and the light Qiu people sighed together; I didn't see it again, and the western neighbor Gusu went to the city to ,......Jin Bo and Jade Liquid. The cattle are tired and tired, and the far ones are far away. Kansai and Huaiyou, running around the hustle and bustle, Ande washed the customs and leaks, and the nongsang strings recited songs. ”
From the point of view of the spirit of innovation, Shanxi merchants sell tea in Zhejiang and Fujian, sell in the north of the desert, thousands of mountains and rivers, desert Hanhai, summer is the scorching sun, winter is catering ice and snow, thieves and wolves, day after day, year after year, rushing in the business road, indomitable, aggressive, and constantly innovating. Jin Shang sighed to himself: "Out of Jiayu Pass, the tears are not dry, the wild goose is looking forward to coming, and the family letter is worth 10,000 gold." Liu Lin's "Yang Family Genealogy" also requires children and grandchildren to be self-reliant and self-reliant, and work hard: "Heaven and earth give birth to people, and there is no one who has a career; Life is in the world, and every day of life should be diligent. The industry cannot be wasted, and the only way is diligent. Do not practice in vain, and specialize in your own business. The industry is also the industry entrusted by the body. ......Regardless of whether the soldiers, farmers, workers, or businessmen work hard to improve themselves, and if there is no shortage of security, then manpower will definitely be able to win the poor people today, and they will not be rich in the future."
In particular, Shanxi businessmen firmly believe in "harmony and wealth", adhere to the golden mean, and attach importance to the harmonious coexistence of all aspects of society. These are the spirit of Jinshang's success**. The Ming and Qing dynasties not only communicated the world with goods and the world, but also formed their own set of ideas and systems in terms of business organization, business ethics, and business culture. There is a proverb in the Jin Shang business: "Righteousness is the way to make money, and harmony is the pill of qi", "benevolence is a true gentleman, righteousness is a great husband", "benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, wisdom, faith, and faith are profitable, and gentleness, courtesy, frugality, let let the inside seek wealth". The ticket number requires employees to "value faithfulness, remove hypocrisy, moderation, conduct, loyalty, self-interest, fraternity, jealousy, hard work, abstain from luxury, he is such as perseverance, accessibility, discipline, harmony, integrity, leniency, courage, and wisdom." [47] Some people connect the common names of business names into seven laws, "Shun Yu Xing Long Rui Yongchang, Yuan Heng Wanli Gao Fengxiang." Taihe is prosperous with Qiande, and Qianji Gongren is associated with Dingguang. Juxin Zhongtong is full of faith, and Jiuheng is beautiful and healthy. The New Year coincides with the wide production and the prosperity of the Hongyuan Rich Blessing is long" [48], which can be seen from this.
The rise of Jin merchants not only produced the concept of mercantilism in Shanxi, but also had an impact in the academic circles, and a group of scholars led by Taiyuan Fu Shan in Shanxi in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties began to call for merchants to enter the mainstream society. Fu Shan proposed: "The market can rule the world peacefully." [49] Xu Jiji said: "The countries of Europa are all good and powerful, and they are based on merchants, and there are taxes but no land. Navigation and trade migration, do not hesitate to go far, within the four seas, set up Putou, solid because it is good at boating, but also because the national economy is all here, have to do it wholeheartedly. ”[50]
At that time, "Shanxi merchants not only monopolized the first and capital dispatch in northern China, but also intervened in the entire Asian region, and even extended their tentacles to the European market, from Hong Kong and Kolkata in the south, to Irkutsk, Siberia, Moscow, and Petersburg in the north, from Osaka, Kobe, Nagasaki, and Incheon in the east, and to Tarbagatai, Ili, and Kashgar in the west, all of which left the footprints of Shanxi merchants. Some businessmen can even speak Mongolian, Kazakh, Uyghur, and Russian to the northern minorities and ** people. It can be said that from the camel caravans in the Mongolian steppe to the merchant ships that are sailing out to sea in Wusongkou, there are Shanxi people who calculate the price, from the vinegar taste of Hulunbuir to the wine fragrance of Kweichow Moutai, there are Shanxi people brewing and selling there. They claim that wherever there are chickens and dogs, there are Shanxi people." [51]
1] Quoted from Chen Guying et al., Zhou Yijin Zhu Jin Translation, The Commercial Press, 2005, p. 650.
2] "Huainanzi Qi Folk Training", see Chuan Shi Zangshu, Vol. 2, Huayi Publishing House, 1997, 1st edition, p. 1541.
3] "Historical Records: The Records of the Five Emperors", see Historical Records, three volumes, Volume I, Tianjin Ancient Books Publishing House, 1993, first edition, p. 15.
4] The Great Atlas of Ancient Chinese Civilization, p. 4.
5] Qu Shaomiao, "Shanxi and the Silk Road", Shanxi Satellite TV Rural Network, August 10, 2006.
6] "The Great Atlas of Ancient Chinese Civilization: Tongshi", p. 5.
7] Historical Records, 3-volume middle volume, Tianjin Ancient Books Publishing House, 1995, first edition, p. 1294.
8] Li Feng, "Shanxi Ancient Economy", Shanxi Economic Publishing House, 1997, p. 206.
9] Cultural Relics, No. 4, 1972.
10] "Chinese Jin Yu IV".
11] Wu Hui, A History of Ancient Chinese Commerce, Vol. 1.
12] Li Feng, "Ancient Economic History of Shanxi", Shanxi Economic Publishing House, 1997, p.208.
13] The second volume of the three-volume edition of "Historical Records", Tianjin Ancient Books Publishing House, 1995, first edition, p. 3328.
14] Zhu Hua, "Three Jin Currencies", Shanxi People's Publishing House, 1994, p.6.
15] Twenty-five History, 1, Shanghai People's Publishing House, Shanghai Bookstore, 1986, first edition, p. 349.
16] Lü Simian, History of the Qin and Han Dynasties.
17] See Qu Shaomiao, "Shanxi and the Silk Road", Shanxi Satellite TV Rural Network, August 10, 2006.
18] Twenty-five History, 1, Shanghai People's Publishing House, Shanghai Bookstore, 1986, first edition, p. 297.
19] See ** TV International, "Exploration and Discovery", December 10, 2003.
20] Quoted from page 4 of Shanxi Foreign Trade Chronicles, a series of local historical records of Shanxi.
21] Twenty-five History, 3, Shanghai People's Publishing House, Shanghai Bookstore, 1986, first edition, p. 2543.
22] Quoted from Peng Xinwei, "The Monetary History of China", Shanghai People's Publishing House, 1965, p. 390.
23] Quoted from Peng Xinwei, "The Monetary History of China", Shanghai People's Publishing House, 1965, p. 391.
24] "Kang Jitian: Jin Cheng Soulu", vol. 20.
25] See Li Feng, "Shanxi Ancient Economy", Shanxi Economic Publishing House, 1997, p. 215.
26] Quoted from Li Feng, "Shanxi Ancient Economy", Shanxi Economic Publishing House, 1997, p. 215.
27] See Li Feng, "Shanxi Ancient Economy", Shanxi Economic Publishing House, 1997, p. 216.
28] Qu Shaomiao et al., "On the Camel Gang of Shanxi in the Qing Dynasty**", Jinyang Journal, No. 4, 1983.
29] Ibid.
30] (Ming) Zhang Han: "Dream of the Pine Window", vol. 4.
31] (Ming) Zhang Siwei: "Tiaolu Tang Collection" Volume 20, "Haifeng Wanggong Seventy Glory Return Preface".
32] "Ming Shilu", volume 558, Wanli, 45 June, Bingshenhai.
33] "Qing Shizu Record", May Yihai of the first year of Shunzhi.
34] "Guangzhi Interpretation".
35] (Ming) Xie Zhaozhen, "Five Miscellaneous Quirks", Shanghai Bookstore Publishing House, 2001, p. 74.
36] Xu Dixin and Wu Chengming, The History of the Development of Capitalism in China, Vol. 1, People's Publishing House, 1985, p. 172.
37] Xu Dixin and Wu Chengming, The History of the Development of Chinese Capitalism, Vol. 1, People's Publishing House, 1985, pp. 319-329.
38] Xu Dixin and Wu Chengming, The History of the Development of Capitalism in China, Vol. 1, People's Publishing House, 1984, p. 319.
39] "Xuanfu Zhenzhi" Jiajing Edition, Volume 20.
40] Li Hua, "The Industrial and Commercial Guilds in Beijing since the Ming and Qing Dynasties", Historical Research, No. 4, 1978.
41] Takeshi Hamashita, "The International Opportunity of Modern China", China Social Sciences Press, 1999, p.62.
42] "Shanxi Dedication", volume "Cheng Huapeng".
43] "Shanxi Ticket Number Historical Materials", Shanxi People's Publishing House, 1990, pp. 510-511.
44] Fairbank, The Great Chinese Revolution, World Knowledge Publishing House, 2000, p. 68.
45] Mongolian, meaning merchant.
46] Liu Wenbing, "Chronicles of Xugou County." Folklore ** Transcript.
47] Wei Juxian, "Shanxi Ticket Number History", Chongqing Shuowen Society, 1941, p. 327.
48] Cao Zhenwu, "Jin Shang Customs".
49] Quoted from Wei Zongyu, "Jinyang Humanistic Spirit", Shanxi Ancient Books Publishing House, 2003, pp. 225-226.
50] Xu Jiji: "Yinghuan Zhiluo", vol. 4.
51] Kong Xiangyi, "Merchants and Commercial Capital in Modern Shanxi", Shanxi in Modern Times, Shanxi People's Publishing House, 1986, pp. 235-236.