Chapter 245: Merchants Tightening Their Noose
On May 19th, even though it was early in the morning, the heat was getting stronger and the cicadas in Yujing were chirping louder and louder, but there was no place for stick-sticking in the homes of ordinary people like there was in the emperor's house.

Shen Chengen, the president of the Southwest Chamber of Commerce, suppressed his irritation and looked at the newspaper in his hand.

Tianjing News, “Memorial to the Emperor Proposing a Plan for the Implementation of the Luxury Tax Law”, Wu Qian.

Two months ago, all the bigwigs in Tianjing didn’t recognize who Wu Qian was.

But two months later, all the big shots in Tianjing knew who Wu Qian was, he was Zhou Tieyi's clerk in the God-Slaying Division!

This identity alone is enough for him to be sent to the Simin Palace with courtesy, and is enough for him to participate in the discussion of national affairs!
"When one person achieves enlightenment, the whole family will benefit from it. Nothing could be more true than this!"

Shen Chengen sighed.

Although Wu Qian was just a clerk who had not even passed the civil service examination and was not even officially employed by the God-Slaying Department, this "plan" he wrote today would definitely be submitted to the morning court by an important figure. It might even have been placed before the three officials, ready to be sent to the palace.

“Luxury tax law!”

Shen Chengen muttered that this law was obviously aimed at their business, and combined with the article criticizing the extravagant trend in the Legal Daily three days ago...

Shen Cheng'en only felt an invisible rope around his neck tightening rapidly, making it difficult for him to breathe. More importantly, he, like many other businessmen, had no idea whether the man holding the rope just wanted to scare them or really wanted to hang them at the Caishikou!

Zhou Tieyi, Zhou Tieyi!
Shen Chengen repeated the name twice in his mind.

Just as he was pondering what to do, the housekeeper hurried in, approached Shen Chengen, and whispered, "Master, the presidents of the Chamber of Commerce invite you to the old place for a gathering."

Shen Chengen nodded slightly, "I understand."

Then he drove out of the city in a carriage, and when he left Xuanwu City, he came to a courtyard.

After making sure everyone was present, the host activated a secret treasure that could isolate the inside and outside, and then said hatefully, "Qian Guangyun, the traitor!"

Shen Chengen sighed in his heart, this is another noose.

These days, Qian Guangyun was not only helping Zhou Tieyi to lower the prices of grain and cloth in Tianjing, but also began to purchase and occupy a large number of shops in Tianjing in accordance with Zhou Tieyi's instructions.

In particular, many shops of merchants imprisoned in the Zhushen Division had begun to suffer from declining business due to the criticism in the Tianjing Daily and the Legal Daily.

At this time, a shop opened next door that sold similar products and had a big new store promotion, while also advertising in the Tianjing News. Ordinary customers knew what to choose.

Not only ordinary customers know how to choose, but the suppliers are also starting to hesitate. As long as Qian Guangyun allows these new shop 'owners' to contact the suppliers, the suppliers should supply the shops under Qian Guangyun even if they do not want to offend both sides.

Now both the people and the goods are gone!

I guess it won’t be long before even the guy guarding the store is gone!

"Newspaper, awesome!"

Shen Chengen sighed out loud.

The person who had just spoken cursed in a low voice, "What do you mean by a newspaper for our merchants? I finally understand. From the beginning to the end, we were sold out to Zhou Tieyi by Qian Guangyun. I was wondering why the first reception was held at Wangluo Garden. It turned out that it was premeditated, premeditated!"

"Scolding and yelling is not a solution now. We can't just sit there and watch them continue. What's more, they not only want our shop, they may also want our lives!"

A big businessman said in a gloomy tone that his son is still detained in the Zhushen Division, and even though he confessed how much tax he had evaded, he is still not allowed to be released on the grounds of investigation.

"Don't you adults care about this matter?"

Many businessmen looked at the heads of several associations. Generally speaking, if the superiors had any instructions, they would contact the heads of association first.

Just like when Zhou Tieyi wanted to publish a newspaper, the first person he contacted was Qian Guangyun, the head of the Southeast Chamber of Commerce, and then asked Qian Guangyun to notify other businessmen to be present.

"How to care?"

"He has a good reason. Even if we confess, he can still check how much tax we evaded and lock us up. Even if he locks us up for a year or two, it's legal! Or do you really dare to tell us how much tax you evaded and then make up for the deficit?"

Many businessmen looked evasive.

"So the adults asked us to make a fuss about grain and cloth prices, so that they would have a reason to jointly write a petition, accusing Zhou Tieyi of disrupting the economy and affecting people's livelihood, and forcing him to release him. But now... the grain and cloth prices haven't moved at all!"

"Qian Guangyun is a traitor!"

Someone else cursed, "How long can he hold out with so many of us? I don't believe his food and cloth are endless!"

Shen Chengen thought for a moment and spoke first, "Of course his food and cloth will run out, but everyone, Zhou Tieyi in the court acted too quickly. He is also buying time for Zhou Tieyi. Who of us knows what tricks Zhou Tieyi will have after the luxury tax is passed?"

Shen Chengen's words silenced all the businessmen present.

The most amazing thing about Zhou Tieyi is that his strategies are linked one after another, and many of the foreshadowings are like antelope hanging horns, but in the end they are all found to be strokes of genius.

And they have experienced these strokes of genius themselves!

Just a few days ago, at the Train Chamber of Commerce!

At that time, they were still lamenting that Zhou Tieyi's methods were used on Si Lu, and Si Lu had no choice but to obey. Now that these methods have fallen on them, they have realized the pressure Si Lu has been under. And how can their physiques compare with Si Lu of the Legalist family?
Si Lu had no choice but to obey, at least he got to eat meat. Now Zhou Tieyi looked as if he was going to eat these businessmen alive. What was even more frightening was that Si Lu, who had been plotted against a few days ago, was now handing Zhou Tieyi chopsticks and a meat-cutting knife because of the Legal Daily!

"The adults asked us to think of ways to move the prices of grain and cloth! If we can't even do this, they will certainly not save us!"

"Anything will do?"

Someone suddenly asked.

No one answered this question, but many people already had this idea. It’s just that this idea cannot be expressed in public, even if everyone present is a participant in the conspiracy.

Since everyone has their own ideas, the meeting will naturally end here.

After leaving the yard, Shen Chengen took a carriage back, but he went around the four cities on the way. This was his habit, in order to avoid being followed by someone with ulterior motives.

In the carriage, he seemed to be resting with his eyes closed, but in fact his mind was immersed in a dream.

Merchants are the group that comes into contact with the most people, and the fifth-grade 'Tongbao' of merchants has the corresponding treasure-hunting ability. Under the premise that the Taixu Illusion Realm actively releases a large number of Taixu Illusion Faces, the probability of merchants obtaining Taixu Illusion Faces is also the highest, including Shen Chengen.

After entering the illusory world of Taixu, Shen Chengen skillfully came to the "market place" and contacted several familiar people through the illusory face of Taixu.

In the temporary room they rented, Shen Chengen said, "I want to issue a task."

"What mission?"

Even if they are very familiar with each other, in the illusory world of Taixu, everyone is used to being shrouded in fog, and even their voices cannot be distinguished between men and women.

"It's very simple."

"What you call a simple task is definitely not simple."

Shen Chengen didn't waste any words. "Burn a few granaries and cloth warehouses."

The rest of the people looked at each other and set fire to the warehouse. In the Taixu Illusion Realm, which was accustomed to killing and looting, this was already considered a "kind" and "simple" task. This place was originally a gathering place for chaos.

Although granaries and cloth warehouses are usually guarded, even if they are discovered, it is a simple matter for everyone to set them on fire during the battle.

"where from?"

"Tianjing."

After a brief silence, one person couldn't help but say, "You're crazy!"

“You can choose not to answer.”

Shen Chengen didn't waste any words and continued, "As long as one of Tianjing's granaries or cloth warehouses catches fire, I will pay 200 Grand Illusionary Coins for a large one, 100 for a medium one, and 50 for a small one. I only look at the results. In other words, you don't have to do this task yourself. You can entrust it to other people in Grand Illusionary Realm through your channels, and you can take a cut from it. The deadline is six days."

After stating his request, Shen Chengen did not plan to say more. He stood up and put down a bag of Taixuhuan coins. "This is the deposit."

After saying that, he walked out of the room. The more he spoke, the easier it would be for these people to guess his identity. It was already very dangerous to reveal the information about Tianjing, the granary, and the cloth warehouse.

But compared to publishing this information outside, it is undoubtedly much safer in the Taixu Illusion Realm.

After Shen Chengen left, someone asked doubtfully, "Is he a divine evil?"

There are all kinds of people in the Taixu Illusion Realm, but the number of real evil gods is very small. Those who can be called evil gods are either the gods themselves or their power comes directly from the gods.

But Shen Chengen had never shown any of this before.

"Maybe there are other reasons."

A man whispered that he was in Hezhou Prefecture, not far from Tianjing, and was able to buy the newspaper. Although it was one issue late, he could still see that some huge changes were taking place in Tianjing.

He stepped forward and counted the Taixuhuan coins left by Shen Chengen. "It's almost enough for each of us to get ten coins. Should we divide these Taixuhuan coins and ignore him, or should we follow his wishes and help him complete this task?"

"I want to give it a try. Anyway, I don't have to do anything. At most, I can pay some fees and earn some hard-earned money."

Shen Chengen can issue the task of setting fire to the warehouse through the Taixu Illusion Realm, and other businessmen will naturally show off their skills as well.

Zhou Mansion, guest room.

While playing chess with Hu Wenlang, Concubine Mo pricked up her ears and listened carefully to all the stories of Tianjing, big and small, especially those around the granaries and cloth warehouses. It was impossible for every place like these to have secret treasures or big figures that could shield the inside and outside.

Suddenly, Mo Fei laughed and said, "They are really stupid. In order to make it easier to burn the warehouse, they actually took the initiative to reduce the number of people guarding the warehouse."

Hu Wenlang smiled and said, "If we subcontract layer by layer, even the most rigorous operation will be full of loopholes, not to mention in such a hurry."

　I am planning to change the title of my book. What do you think of the title "The Saint, the Greatest Thief in the World!"?

　　
　
(End of this chapter)