Chapter 1777 - The Sweep

The Xue family couldn't be called philanthropists in the neighborhood, but they had no enemies either. They were richer than most families on the lane and were rumored to have dealings with the government. Yet the Xues didn't bully others with their power; masters and servants alike were quite amiable.

Zhang Yu watched the police nervously. Someone went up and banged on the door, shouting loudly: "Police! Open up!"

Then came the sound of the door opening, scolding, shouting, and women crying, all mixing together in the night. Before long, Master Xue, clothes disheveled, was dragged out the main gate. A chain was already around his neck. Though he looked relatively calm, his face was a terrifying shade of gray. Behind him, his wives and children wept. Zhang Yu couldn't bear to watch anymore and slipped back into bed, wondering secretly: What happened? What law did Master Xue break for the Australians to arrest him so suddenly?

Xue Guirong was taken to the Municipal Bureau for immediate interrogation. He confessed everything before midnight. He had never expected to be arrested; before the interrogation began, he even tried to "negotiate terms" with Mu Min. Holding to old notions, he thought the large police turnout was simply because the Australians felt his "tribute" was insufficient and were using this as a pretext to extort money. But a few words from Mu Min showed him he was completely wrong.

"...I know hiring thugs is a common practice for you people. You hire them, your opponents hire them. If someone is beaten to death, you buy a life to take the fall. That's been the old rule for years. The government doesn't care," Mu Min said. "But now, this is the Senatorial Council's world. We don't play by those old rules."

Mu Min paced slowly in the interrogation room. "The Senatorial Council will not pursue past deeds. But if such things happen now, you can't just buy a few lives to take the blame and muddle through. Take your hiring of thugs to commit violence in a busy market and attacking public and private institutions—in the Great Song, that matches the definition of mob violence, which is equivalent to rebellion..."

The words "equivalent to rebellion" scared the soul out of Xue Guirong. Rebellion was a heinous crime that implicated nine generations of one's family. If his hands and feet weren't shackled to the chair, he would have been kowtowing on the floor like a pounding pestle.

If this were still the Ming's world, he wouldn't be so nervous. Ming officials were experts at talking big to extort small change. When blackmailing commoners, they'd threaten them with death over trivial matters; a single terrifying intimidation tactic could make honest folk piss themselves and bankrupt their families.

But the brokerage firms were a special industry closely attached to the government, so that trick didn't work on them. The harsher the official spoke, the more they knew he had no good cards to play. After some bargaining, they could always compromise at a price acceptable to both. Officials traveled thousands of miles only for money; as long as the demands weren't excessive, the brokers would naturally satisfy them. After all, the two sides mostly used each other.

If the Australians were playing the Ming officials' game, they would follow the old script: jail the "criminals" who turned themselves in, release the captured beggars, and send someone to "negotiate terms" with him—how much for public fees, how much for private bribes, were twelve lives enough...

But arresting him directly meant entering judicial procedure. Though ancients didn't use that term, they knew that "once a character enters the public gate, nine oxen can't pull it back." Once a person was in the yamen, negotiating terms and pulling private strings became a matter of spending enormous sums.

Xue Guirong knew Mu Min wasn't bluffing. Terrified out of his wits, he begged for mercy repeatedly and spilled the entire plot of the brokerage guild giving the rice merchants "a little color." Mu Min had already received instructions from Lin Baiguang to gather as much information on the brokerages from Xue Guirong as possible, so she questioned him in detail.

The Guangzhou brokerages were massive, covering many industries. In theory, any goods entering the city had to pass through brokers' hands. But in practice, their control varied considerably.

For salt, a major necessity, the brokers had almost no influence. This was not only because official salt was in decline and private salt rampant, but because private salt traffickers were "evil owls" who feared not death. Let alone hired thugs, even government troops and runners would face drawn blades at a wrong word. Moreover, salt consumption was limited and the absolute value not high, so brokers lacked interest in expending great effort to monopolize it.

Greens, indispensable to the people daily, were another matter. Wholesale vegetables in the city were monopolized by the Guandi Temple network. Any farmer entering the city to sell had to go through them. The Guandi Temple gang had no government-issued license; they were "wild brokers." They relied on violence to make farmers submit. Naturally, the licensed brokers dared not compete.

As for the lucrative overseas trade, because so many officials and gentry were involved, almost every maritime merchant had a "big threshold" as a backer. The brokers held Ministry of Revenue licenses in vain; they could only eat leftovers.

Mu Min learned from the interrogation that the brokerages generally bullied the weak and feared the strong. Wherever an industry had heavy gentry involvement or fierce gangs like the salt smugglers, the brokers often couldn't effectively exercise their government-granted monopoly rights. Overall, it was a standard parasitic industry.

As for human brokers and house brokers... these, though part of the brokerage world, were effectively a different trade due to their lowly status and trade secrets. There was a deep divide between them and the upper-layer merchants. Xue Guirong knew little about them and could provide no useful information.

After jailing Xue Guirong, the entire police force mobilized to hunt down relevant personnel. By daybreak, every suspect connected to the brokerages had been dragged from their beds to the detention center. Mu Min assigned people to interrogate them separately. Simultaneously, she ordered the seizure of their assets:

"The suspects' families and slaves are all to be detained temporarily at the Examination Hall. Send men to seal their houses, properties, shops, and warehouses—strictly prevent looting! Guard the families, key servants, and head clerks carefully; prevent escape or suicide!"

Although the Senatorial Council's legal system did not practice collective punishment, in a case like this, family and slaves were inevitably involved—after all, this was an era of family rule. From the Emperor down to the commoner, none were exempt. Where illicit money and goods were concerned, it was almost impossible for family and servants to be uninvolved.

The destruction of the brokerage guild's leadership overnight caused huge waves in Guangzhou. Following immediately was the Guangzhou Special Municipal Government's proclamation abolishing the brokerages.

The proclamation announced: Effective immediately, except for life-service intermediaries like house and human brokers (who could continue operating after obtaining a business license), all brokerages in the counties under Guangzhou Prefecture involving commodity circulation were abolished. Brokerage licenses issued by the Ming Ministry of Revenue, Guangzhou Prefecture, and county yamens were null and void. Goods could circulate freely after paying taxes according to regulations. No merchant or individual was allowed to obstruct this.

Once the proclamation was out, the oppressed itinerant merchants instantly held their heads high. Crowds of out-of-town merchants squeezed in front of broker-merchants' doors to demand payment and stock. Incidents of brokers being beaten and goods seized were reported everywhere. Fortunately, Mu Min was somewhat prepared and had increased patrols in streets dense with broker shops and homes, stopping the disturbances in time.

Immediately after, a notice regarding the brokerage cleanup appeared on the government bulletin boards and in the Yangcheng Express. The notice was posted by the Brokerage Aftermath Office. Since the brokerages involved many types of goods and numerous merchants—and Lin Baiguang knew from interrogations that because brokerage was a "white wolf from empty hands" business (making profit without capital), misappropriation of merchants' funds and goods was widespread. Some brokers lived extravagantly, creating huge deficits. The cleanup would inevitably involve massive legal issues. Thus, Liu Xiang decided the Legal Department's Guangzhou Circuit Court would take the lead, with the Commerce Bureau and Delong Bank coordinating.

"Mu Min just handles the arrests. The cleanup is yours," Liu Xiang told Liang Xinhu. "We have to do this well!"

"Understood." Liang Xinhu nodded gravely. "Since I volunteered to come to Guangzhou, naturally I want to show results."

"I've spoken to the Cheka to assign some auditors to you. Also, you can freely use the retained old clerks from the Revenue Section; they're more familiar with these old-style accounts and the tricks within." Liu Xiang said. "The brokerage guild is a small power group; we'll practice on them. There are plenty more things waiting for you to 'process according to law' later."

Liang Xinhu understood perfectly. Once the proclamation was published, he arrived at the Municipal Police Bureau. Subsequently, the police mobilized fully again, sealing all brokerage shops and warehouses in the city. A notice was issued: Brokers must report to the Aftermath Office within three days, surrendering old licenses and account books. Brokers, their families, slaves, and clerks were forbidden to leave the city, pending processing. Those who refused to report, fled, or transferred assets would have all property confiscated.

This thunderous strike was clean and decisive. The brokers in the city were thrown into chaos; by the time they reacted, they were all under control. Some, knowing Xue Guirong's clique had plotted against the rice merchants, cursed them for "failing to succeed but succeeding in failure." Others, having heard the Australians were "harsh in law," worried their own large deficits wouldn't be spared; thinking of the legendary "cruel" Australian tortures and fearing they couldn't withstand them, some actually hanged themselves.

The itinerant merchants everywhere congratulated each other. They had put up with the brokers' bullying and embezzlement for years. Now the Australians had not only vented their anger and abolished the system but were also clearing up the brokers' debts—how could they not be happy! For a time, Guangzhou's major restaurants were filled with toasting guests and singing courtesans; laughter was everywhere.

In just one day and night, Guangzhou City had seen some rejoice while others grieved.

(End of Chapter)