Hui merchants: The first merchant guild in China during the Ming and Qing dynasties

Author: Pan Xiaoping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: There is a saying in China, "No Huizhou people, no town!" That means, if a place doesn't have Huizhou people, it's just a village. Once the Huizhou people moved in, they started setting up shops. Gradually, they expanded and turned the small village into a small town. — Hu Shi
Huizhou merchants pursued both commercial success and the advancement of culture and talent. They not only improved the quality and level of merchants but also created an official group, moving from " merchants embracing Confucianism" to "mutual benefit between officials and merchants." The remarkable achievements of Huizhou merchants lasted for 300 years without decline, largely thanks to the "mutual benefit between officials and merchants." — Ye Xuan'en (renowned Huizhou studies expert)
In the mid-Ming Dynasty, with the prosperity of the commodity economy, Huizhou merchants and Jin merchants rapidly rose to become the two most powerful merchant groups in China. The establishment of the salt transport system in the 45th year of the Wanli reign greatly benefited Huizhou merchants in controlling the salt fields of Lianghuai. Later, the influence of Huizhou merchants surpassed that of Jin merchants, allowing them to dominate the business world. — Ijū Sazō (Japanese scholar)
The Huizhou Merchants, written in an essay style with rich illustrations, provides an in-depth yet accessible introduction to the historical process of the formation and development of Huizhou merchants, their business philosophy, the characteristics of "embracing Confucianism while engaging in commerce," their relationship with Huizhou culture, and the historical reasons for their decline. Readers will gain valuable historical knowledge and aesthetic enjoyment. — Du Cheng (President of the Anhui Huizhou Studies Association)
This book, written in the form of essays, comprehensively and systematically introduces the natural and human historical environment that contributed to the rise of Huizhou merchants, the historical process of their formation and development, their struggles and the fields of business they engaged in, their influence on the economy, politics, culture, customs, and folk traditions of feudal China, as well as their business philosophy and the historical reasons for their decline.