Chapter 555: Short of Money Again
Su Yue saw clearly that Murong Li was determined to send troops. She said, "Sending troops to attack Beifeng Kingdom will not only cost lives and money, but will also harm innocent people. I think you might as well try a different approach."
"Oh? In what way? Yue'er, tell me."
Su Yue touched her belly and said slowly, "Once the war breaks out, I don't know how many people will die. I don't want to see that situation. I'm pregnant, so I'll do some good for the children. You can just kill the royal family and then occupy Beifeng Kingdom."
Su Yue had seen too many deaths in her life and didn't want to see large-scale deaths again. She felt that it was not impossible to destroy the royal family without sending a single soldier.
Also, war does not necessarily involve killing people; economic control can also destroy a country.
With their abilities, they will be able to control Beifeng Kingdom within two years.
Murong Li was a smart man and immediately understood Su Yue's intention, but both had disadvantages and he liked to end the battle quickly.
He said: "It's not impossible to do so, but if we use such means to capture Beifeng Country, the local forces in Beifeng Country will definitely resist, and it will still cause unrest and war.
It would take too long to implement economic controls; I can’t wait.”
Su Yue pinched her brows and said, "Then wait until I give birth, then we can talk about it later."
Murong Li nodded: "Okay then."
Since Yue'er asked, he had no choice but to comply. However, since he wanted to take over the Beifeng Kingdom, preparations had to be made in advance.
"Then I'll carry you back to rest."
"Um."
Su Yue nestled in Murong Li's arms and nodded gently.
The next day, just as Murong Li was preparing for today's court meeting, his personal guards came to report that the Crown Prince of Beifeng Kingdom wanted to see him.
"Let him wait at the posthouse. I just went to court and don't have time to pay attention to him."
Murong Li said impatiently that the Crown Prince of Beifeng Kingdom was still very incompetent. As a crown prince, he couldn't even control a woman, who almost cost his child's life.
The guards left in a hurry.
Murong Li then started today's court meeting.
Now that Xifeng Kingdom is under construction, all the memorials submitted are requests for money.
Murong Li had a headache. He had just taken some money from his wife, and now he had to borrow from her again. He would have to empty her family's savings.
He looked at the court officials below and asked, "The national treasury is in a tight spot now. Is there any way to fill it up?"
After a while, a court official stepped forward, holding a tablet and saying, "Your Majesty, I believe we should open up maritime trade. Our Western Feng Kingdom is close to the coast, so we can establish a gateway like the Southern Feng Kingdom, allowing overseas merchants to land in our country and conduct trade with us."
Murong Li remembered that this person was a minister of the Ministry of Revenue, his surname was Wang, but he didn't know his full name.
This man is a conscientious person. He has worked in the Ministry of Revenue for more than ten years and is still a fifth-rank doctor. Murong Li knows clearly that this is the result of not being good at flattery.
However, the suggestion put forward by this person is worth considering. Originally, we wanted to build a port at the foot of the Qingniu Mountains, but the funds were never in place and it has not been built yet. If this is the case, then we might as well consider this suggestion.
Murong Li nodded: "Doctor Wang's suggestion is very good. Go down and write a set of rules and let me take a look at them first."
"Yes, I obey your order."
Doctor Wang retreated silently, but thought to himself that it was an honor for the emperor to know him, a minor official of the fifth rank.
He usually sat at the end of the table when attending court, and usually kept silent, like an invisible man.
It was the same when he was in the Ministry of Revenue. People only remembered him when they needed him.
Just as Doctor Wang retreated, the Minister of Revenue stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, you just said that the Ministry of Revenue is short of money. If we build a port, where will the money come from?"
The Minister of Revenue was not willing to accept the request for large amounts of money even though he hadn't earned any money at all.
Murong Li glanced at him and said, "That's why I asked you to think of a solution. You can't think of a solution and you don't want to spend the money. You are more anxious than I am. I didn't see you this anxious when I put in the money."
The Minister of Revenue's face turned red and white at what Murong Li said. He hated Doctor Wang in his heart. Doctor Wang was his superior, but he spoke nonsense in the court and in front of the emperor without his consent.
Building a port? What a joke. Doesn’t it cost little to build a port? It will empty the national treasury.
When the Minister of Revenue thought about spending money, he wished he could crush a piece of silver into pieces and spend it.
He gave out money in large amounts, as if he was cutting out his heart.
Originally, the houses of the three major families and Prince Huaian were raided, and there was money in the national treasury. But for some reason, the emperor went crazy and started the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, and most of the money in the national treasury was gone in one go.
Such a huge project would not be enough even if all the money in the national treasury was used.
The same goes for the borders on all four sides. There are no soldiers now, so the emperor also needs to build military defenses.
The emperor is really ignorant of the value of salt and rice. He spends money like water. Doesn't he know how hard it is to make money?
When the emperor ascended the throne, he issued a general amnesty and exempted all the people of Xifeng Kingdom from taxes for one year. However, this would result in a huge loss. The emperor did not even think about it. The national treasury had no income this year, and it was useless to rely solely on the taxes paid by the merchants.
"Yes, Minister Luo, you are in charge of the purse of our Xifeng Kingdom, but it only brings in money and never spends it. So, you should think of a way to earn more money and then you can stop spending the money in your purse."
When the Assistant Minister of War heard what Minister Luo said, he felt very unhappy and immediately retorted him.
Minister Luo is extremely stingy. Asking him for money is like digging into his flesh.
Especially their Ministry of War, which asked him for military pay for the soldiers every year, but he kept delaying and reducing the amount, even though he would rather not give them a penny.
Shangshu Luo snorted coldly at the Minister of War. The Minister of War was the person he disliked the most. They were the most demanding of silver. There was also the Ministry of Works. These two departments were annoying to look at. Whenever they saw him, they would ask him for silver. He didn't make silver, he was just in charge of silver for the emperor. Where would he get the silver to give?
"With so many ministers in the court, why do you have to let me come up with a solution? Besides, Doctor Wang has already come up with one."
Minister Luo's eyes were almost rolling to the sky. This group of people wanted to put him on the grill again, just like before.
Can you give me money by roasting him?
The Minister of War saw that they were about to fight again and immediately stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, why don't you send us to suppress the bandits?"
"Hahaha... Lord Zhang, this is a brilliant idea. There's a lot of treasure in the bandit's den. If we find ten or eight people to suppress them, we can also get a lot of treasure."
As soon as the Minister of War finished speaking, a minister laughed out loud and mocked him.
Minister Zhang: "You have a solution, why don't you help the emperor relieve his worries? What's wrong with me suppressing bandits? I am also eliminating harm to the people and I have property to hand over. Why can't I do that?"
It's not like he hasn't suppressed bandits before. When he was the retired emperor, he was often short of money. The soldiers on the border were hungry and waiting for his money, so he led his troops to suppress the bandits.
The bandit's den has everything: money, supplies, and weapons. Why not go and wipe them out?
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