Chapter 747 The Right Price
Yang Zhumu looked at his nephew's sluggish look and laughed, "Why are you as surprised as I was when I heard the news? This doesn't seem like the son of the Minister of Revenue."
Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, it feels especially good to say it out loud. The Yang family also has a relative who is a Beijing official, and he is Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. My son is really great, and my brother-in-law is very capable. Who knows, he might be promoted to the second rank one day.
Chang Yi digested the news and his mouth widened. This was really a great joy. "Uncle, let's not talk here at the city gate."
"Yes, yes, your aunt is still waiting at home. Since she received the letter you sent today, she has urged me to wait at the city gate since early morning. I have already drunk two pots of tea."
Chang Yi smiled and said, "Uncle, please come ride in the carriage with me!"
Yang Zhumu, "Okay."
In the capital, Zhou Shuren and the Shangshu arrived at the Zheng Palace. The emperor was meeting with the Minister of War. After waiting for a while, the Minister of War came out from the inner room. He did not go out directly, but ran towards Lord Xiao.
Xiao Qing smiled, "Master Li, what a coincidence!"
Lord Li, the Minister of War, was puzzled. In recent days, he would block Xiao Qing whenever he had the chance, but Xiao Qing would run away every time. Even if he was blocked, Xiao Qing would have a bitter face, as if saying, "I really have no money, and you would kill me if you asked for money." But today, he actually greeted him with a smile!
Lord Li frowned, "Do you have money?"
Xiao Qing's mouth twitched. Except for the Ministry of Industry, which was the most important department, all other departments mentioned money when they met him. There was no politeness at all. They were really direct. "No."
"Then what are you laughing at? Don't think I won't mention money just because you're laughing at me. Xiao Qing, the army is about to return to Beijing, you can't let the soldiers down."
Xiao Qing's face darkened. "Master Li, this is very serious. You are all trying to get money every day. Do you really think I am guarding a mountain of gold? You should leave quickly. I will be annoyed if I see you now."
Xiao Qing was upset. The words of the Minister of Personnel were like a sharp knife. Although Lord Li from the Ministry of War looked tall and strong, he was quite cunning. The Minister of Rites was polite when they met and did not hesitate when asking for silver. After counting carefully, he found that those who asked for silver were not from the Ministry of Revenue!
Lord Li snorted. Just when he wanted to stop this old fox, he also saw the number of casualties. The Ministry of Revenue was poor, and the Ministry of War was even poorer. The Ministry of War didn't even have a penny!
Eunuch Liu came out and said, "Your Majesty, please invite Lord Xiao and Lord Zhou in."
Lord Li's eyes fell on Zhou Shuren. This person who came to Beijing was not low-key. His eyes lit up a little, especially when he saw the folder in Old Xiao's hand. He laughed, "Old Xiao, we have known each other for many years. If you have money, you must think of me first!"
Xiao Qingdang acted as if he didn't hear anything and walked into the inner room.
Zhou Shuren followed him, but didn't move. He looked at his arm and asked, "Sir?"
Lord Li relied on his height and strength to pull Zhou Shuren to a corner and whispered, "Do you have money?"
Eunuch Liu coughed, and Lord Li loosened his hand and patted Zhou Shuren on the shoulder, "Haha, I have always wanted to meet Lord Zhou, and I am very excited to see you today. Lord Zhou, we must have tea together when we have time."
Zhou Shuren only felt pain. His fragile body hurt so much that his shoulder suddenly hurt. "Of course."
Eunuch Liu felt heartbroken when he saw Lord Li's big hand. He looked at Lord Zhou with sympathy. Lord Zhou was so skinny that he couldn't bear to look at him.
Zhou Shuren saw that Lord Li had finally left. He let out a breath and moved his shoulder. Well, it still hurts. It must have turned blue.
Eunuch Liu moved his mouth but finally said nothing. The Minister of War was not someone to be trifled with, so he just pretended not to see it. Well, he didn't see it.
Inside, the Emperor was looking at the memorial documents, while Lord Xiao was chatting with the Crown Prince.
The prince smiled and said, "Master Zhou, please sit here."
Zhou Shuren, "Thank you, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
Xiao Qing couldn't tell anything from Zhou Shuren's face, and he didn't want to ask Lord Li in the main hall to embarrass Zhou Shuren. After all, Zhou Shuren's smile seemed to have never changed!
The emperor quickly read through the folded paper. His expectation was correct. Zhou Shuren was indeed smart. "Not a bad idea."
Xiao Qing smiled and said, "Jewelry is easy to handle. Just pack it up and give it to the merchant."
The emperor looked at Zhou Shuren, "What do you say?"
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Zhou Shuren coughed and said, "The jewelry stored in the Ministry of Revenue is not worth much silver. It is indeed suitable to be packaged and sold to sea merchants. But I think we can release the news of the tax increase first, and then release the news that the Ministry of Revenue is handling the jewelry. If anyone offers a reasonable price, they can be exempted from the tax increase for half a year."
The tax increase in half a year is not small. Big maritime traders can save a lot of money in half a year. Two short-distance trips are enough in half a year. For a long-distance trip, the tax is always a lot of money.
The emperor looked at Zhou Shuren with amusement, "My dear minister, please continue."
Zhou Shuren continued, "Several large sea merchants will definitely compete for it. They know what the most appropriate price is. And with this incident as a lead, large sea merchants will get involved, so it will be natural for them to increase taxes."
This reasonable price has people backing several big traders. They have no shortage of money and can also take the opportunity to please the emperor. There must be people willing to pay more money. There is no need to explain this to the emperor, he must know it.
Your Majesty, "You are indeed suitable for the Ministry of Revenue. Xiao Qing, I have given you a good helper."
Xiao Qing smiled and said, "I thank the emperor."
I thought to myself that Zhou Shuren's heart was full of twists and turns, and he achieved multiple goals with one move. Not bad, not bad.
The prince ignored Zhou Shuren. He felt that if he wanted to avoid suffering as much as his father when he ascended the throne, he must have a Minister of Revenue who was particularly good at making money.
Zhou Shuren was silent. "Prince, please stop staring at me. I feel a chill on my back." He almost started to doubt whether he had done something wrong.
Thinking back carefully, there is no problem in doing more than one thing!
In Lizhou City, Chang Yi arrived at Yang's house. Chang Yi entered the yard and said, "Uncle, not much has changed at home!"
There are the same number of servants this time as there were last time.
Yang Zhumu, "Your eldest brother-in-law is just a low-ranking military commander. We can't compare to your Zhou family. Look at your pomp and show. You travel light, but you have seven or eight servants. We can't compare."
We saved some money when my father was alive, but after he passed away, the family fortune was divided and half was given to my second brother. This year's income is not as high as before. The annual expenses and the growth of the grandchildren also require money. Just hiring a tutor costs a lot of money a year, and with the expenses of the whole family, we can only save a little money a year.
These silvers cannot be touched. The dowry of the granddaughter and the betrothal gift of the grandson all require silver. Yes, there are also personal connections. It is good that the Yang family can maintain the current status quo.
Chang Yi laughed dryly. The Yang family was indeed not as good as the Zhou family. His family had an extremely powerful father, and a mother who was always adding to the family's wealth.
Yang Wuchun walked in with a smile, "Cousin Changyi is here."
Chang Yi, "Cousin, aren't you busy?"
"My cousin came and took care of things, so I rushed back. Did your journey go smoothly?"
I overestimated my handicap, so I haven't written much in the second chapter. I'll have to wait an hour, or maybe even earlier.
(End of this chapter)