They also planned to take this opportunity to see if there was a chance to bring Qian Dai down. After all, the Qian family had no daughters taken into the harem by His Majesty Chu Fan, and they were not valued by His Majesty at all.
Qian Dai's suggestion to increase taxes on merchants is too dangerous, as it will actually reduce the interests of his own family.
Liu Wenshan remained calm at this critical moment. He slowly spoke:
"I believe that the profits from the refined salt that Your Majesty owns should not be included in the scope of taxation. After all, the method of making refined salt was personally thought up by Your Majesty Chu Fan, and Your Majesty Chu Fan has been continuously contributing various resources over this period of time.
"Aside from the money we collected during the previous confiscations, the imperial treasury has virtually no income left. We cannot simply focus on our own plight; we should also consider His Majesty and the long-term interests of the imperial family."
Liu Wenshan's remarks resonated widely in the court and were approved by many ministers, including powerful ministers such as Changsun Dechong and Qin Hui.
However, when Liu Wenshan continued to expound his views, the ministers who originally wanted to support his views wanted to kill him.
Liu Wenshan continued, "Merchants don't participate in production activities, yet they can easily make huge fortunes. In my opinion, Minister Qian is too lenient towards merchants.
I think it is reasonable for merchants to hand over 40 to 50 percent of their profits. After all, the state provides them with protection, and they should pay a corresponding price for it.”
As soon as Liu Wenshan said this, all the ministers in the court glared at him. They never expected that Liu Wenshan would be such a person.
Forty to fifty percent of the profits would be turned over, meaning their respective families would lose a substantial amount of income. This proposal undoubtedly affected their vital interests, causing the ministers who had originally wanted to support Liu Wenshan to defect and develop strong hostility towards him.
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