Inside the Chongzheng Hall, Lü Qiang held the imperial edict of reward and read it aloud for a full half hour before finally concluding.
The largest amount was two million coins, like Chen Fan's, while the smallest was one million coins, like those upright officials.
In just one court assembly, all the civil and military officials present instantly became millionaires, and their excitement and exhilaration can be imagined.
In short, it's all worth it to serve and risk one's life for such an emperor!
After the last official happily expressed his gratitude and accepted his reward, Liu Hong, sitting on the throne, also stood up with a smile and looked at the officials.
"I have more good news to tell you all!"
"Your Majesty, what good news is it?"
Chen Fan couldn't help but ask.
The officials in the court also looked at Liu Hong with curiosity and a hint of excitement in their eyes.
Whenever the emperor announced good news, these people would receive some benefit, so they eagerly awaited to hear what the emperor's message was.
Meeting the curious yet slightly excited gazes of the officials, Liu Hong didn't keep them in suspense and said loudly:
"The Royal Trading Company is currently in its early stages of development, and you all have seen the profits and earning power it brings!"
Therefore, in order to enable the Royal Trading Company to develop better and make more money.
"I have decreed that, in addition to the salaries of all ministers, the Royal Trading Company will allocate 20% of its annual total revenue as rewards, distributed among the ministers, officials, and military generals of the Han Dynasty according to their rank and contributions!"
As Liu Hong finished speaking, the minds of all the officials in the court went completely blank for a moment.
They distributed over a million dollars in a sports meet that lasted only ten days.
Even if you don't earn as much on weekdays as you do on these few days, the total annual income is still incredibly high.
Although there were many officials and generals in the Han Dynasty, those who were central government officials were bound to take the lion's share.
With my diligent efforts, what problem would there be in earning a few million after a year?
Moreover, the Royal Trading Company has only been established for a short time, and its influence is limited to the Luoyang area, with only a few factories under its name.
That alone brought them such great benefits.
Once the Royal Merchant Guild's businesses grow and expand to all cities in the Han Dynasty, with tens of thousands of factories under its name, how much will it gain?
Moreover, the Royal Trading Company's trade is not limited to the domestic market. If those sought-after and high-end goods are sold to all corners of the world, the profits can be enormous.
It should be noted that last year, the national treasury received 20 billion yuan from just one simple trade transaction, and that was under strict restrictions on transactions.
If the Royal Trading Company develops across the board, both domestically and internationally, it's possible that it could earn 100 million a day, let alone 1 billion, or even 10 billion a day.
Royal Trading Company will earn 10 billion a day...
My God...wouldn't I be able to get tens of thousands of dollars every day?!
That's nearly tens of millions of dollars a year. You probably couldn't earn that much even if you were an official your whole life.
Even if you risk your life to embezzle and extort money, you might not be able to make this much in a year!
In the end, even the officials in the court swallowed hard.
Although this was their ultimate fantasy, they felt that with the support of the emperor, civil and military officials, and local governments and armies, it would not be difficult for the Royal Trading Company to develop to that point.
For a moment, the officials in the court were lost in their fantasies, and the entire Deyang Palace was completely silent.
Seeing the officials in the hall all staring wide-eyed and dumbfounded, Liu Hong couldn't help but smile.
Interest groups and economic ties, at the very least, can motivate these people to wholeheartedly support the development of the Royal Trading Company and build it into a vast commercial empire.
Then Liu Hong looked at the officials and said loudly:
"As you all know, the Royal Trading Company makes money because of its goods. If we want the people to be able to afford these goods, we must let them benefit from them and make money!"
Do you all agree with this reasoning?
"Your Majesty is right!"
All the officials responded in unison.
"If that's the case, then we need to do a good job of calculating the accounts. We need to have a clear understanding of how much money ordinary people can earn in a year!"
Then Liu Hong looked at Cao Song and said in a deep voice, "Grand Minister of Agriculture, you speak!"
"promise!!"
Cao Song, who had been singled out by Liu Hong, immediately stood up and said loudly:
"Your Majesty, according to my estimation, a worker's annual savings after deducting food, clothing and other expenses is about ten thousand coins."
Assuming a farmer cultivates at least five mu (approximately 0.33 acres) and, under favorable weather conditions, after deducting agricultural taxes and living expenses, he could likely save about six thousand coins!
Upon hearing Cao Song's calculation, the officials were all taken aback.
Cao Song's calculation method was quite conservative, but even this conservative figure shocked the officials.
Liu Hong couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect that ordinary people still have the ability to spend money! But why are they still living in poverty, and why are there so many refugees every year?"
"this......!"
Upon hearing Liu Hong's question, the officials were momentarily at a loss for words.
Because apart from Luoyang, there were no workers anywhere else.
Although they had never seen the situation of farmers, it was impossible for all areas outside of Luoyang to have a surplus as Cao Song claimed, otherwise there wouldn't be so many refugees.
Liu Hong then continued, “Ordinary people are capable of making money, but there are some people who exploit them and take their money for themselves.”
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