Gaoyang State asked Wei to pay one million taels of silver?
As soon as the Minister of War said this.
Everyone present turned their heads, their eyes filled with unfriendly intent.
Even Wei Yunyi was stunned at this moment.
Gaoyang Kingdom.
It was a vassal state of the Wei Dynasty, located outside the Liaodong border.
Because of this vassal relationship, Gaoyang has always respected the Great Wei.
In addition to the required annual tribute, domestic officials and scholars would also be sent here to study.
Whether it is the economy or the culture, it is extremely similar to the Central Plains. Even the language is a must-master for the upper class of Gaoyang Kingdom.
Even the name of the country Gaoyang was given by Emperor Taizu Gao.
More importantly, the kings of Gaoyang throughout the ages.
It must also be canonized by the Emperor of Wei before it can be considered legitimate.
In short, except for the fact that Gaoyang does not belong to the Wei Dynasty in name, everything else needs to be controlled.
And now, there are floods in their country.
Actually asked Dawei to pay...
No wonder the expressions of the ministers present changed.
Just imagine, a country that has to send its people to the palace every year suddenly turns around and asks you for money. No one would like it.
"When did it happen?" Wei Yunyi thought for a moment and spoke.
"Just after the military report from the North arrived."
The Minister of War immediately said, "The Ministry of Rites is also aware of this. Minister Wang and I have also investigated. Gaoyang State did suffer a flood, but the situation is not serious. At most, it has reduced Gaoyang's financial revenue."
"As for the disaster that affected the people of Gaoyang, because it happened so suddenly, we don't know the specific circumstances."
After the military report from the North came?
When everyone heard this, they all frowned.
Although the flood did occur, this request came at a rather fortuitous time.
Everyone present was smart and they all smelled something unusual in it.
"What about the Ministry of Rites' solution?" Wei Yunyi nodded and continued to ask.
For exchanges between vassal states and other countries.
It is usually carried out by the Ministry of Rites.
At certain times, the Ministry of War would also intervene to negotiate.
As for the reason, it is very simple, because some things cannot be solved by just talking.
At critical moments, flexing your muscles often has a better effect than exaggerating.
"Reporting to Your Majesty." At this time, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet and the Minister of Rites also came out and said respectfully, "When the Ministry of Rites first received this news, they were very concerned and sent people to contact the Gaoyang Kingdom. After all, it was a natural disaster, so they did not make things difficult for them."
"Of course, it's impossible to come up with one million silver coins, so Lord Lin and I have come up with a solution."
"That means exempting half of Gaoyang's tribute this year. I have also been keeping an eye on Gaoyang's finances."
"Their treasury is still quite full. If they exempt the tribute, this problem should be able to be solved on its own."
Exempt vassal states from paying half of their tribute.
This kind of thing happens from time to time, not at other times.
Take the previous emperor's period as an example. It had been carried out five or six times, so there was no need for the emperor to make the decision personally.
"What's the result?" Wei Yunyi thought for a moment while recalling the relevant plot of the original novel.
"The Gaoyang Kingdom's attitude is very straightforward. They want us to pay."
Minister Wang of the Ministry of Rites hesitated for a moment before continuing, "They say that for over a hundred years, Gaoyang has paid tribute to the Wei Dynasty. If converted into money, it would be at least tens of millions of taels. Taking back only one million taels of silver is reasonable."
As soon as these words were spoken.
All the ministers, including Zhang Zhengming, were angry at the same time.
Exempting Gaoyang from paying half of the tribute was already a favor from the Wei Dynasty, showing its understanding of the difficulties they were facing.
Now the other party, not only does not agree, but also brings up the tributes paid for the past hundred years?
Which minister present did not know.
Isn't the reason why Gaoyang State became a vassal of Wei not only because Emperor Taizu Gao sent troops to invade at the beginning of the country and finally lost the alliance?
Moreover, over the past hundred years, although the Great Wei accepted tribute, it also sent people to give money every year to help the Gaoyang Kingdom.
Their private schools, classics, and even the reclamation of wasteland, which one did not the Great Wei participate in?
Without these, Gao Yang would be just a barbarian who was slightly better than the barbarians on the grassland.
Even during the time of the previous emperor, when Gaoyang State was invaded by an overseas island nation and nearly destroyed, it was the Wei army that sent troops.
This saved them from the danger of national destruction.
Now I am not only ungrateful.
And he's asking for money. How shameless!
"Your Majesty!" At this time, Zhang Zhengming thought for a moment, then stood up and said, "The Gaoyang Kingdom is shameless, but now the war in the north is about to begin, and there are 200,000 troops on the grasslands waiting covetously."
"The most important thing right now is not to interfere, so I think the silver must not be given."
"But we can take a step back and exempt Gaoyang from paying all tribute this year."
This sentence caused everyone to fall silent.
They didn't speak.
Because I know there is nothing we can do about it.
If at another time.
They could completely ignore Gaoyang Kingdom's unreasonable demands. At worst, they could just send troops directly.
But now, the war in the north is about to begin. Even with the Marquis of Shenwu in command, the specific situation is still difficult to say.
Even if they could repel the grassland tribes, what if at this time, Gaoyang Kingdom suddenly turned against them and launched an attack from Liaodong?
By then, Wei would be faced with a situation of fighting on two fronts.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
