101 Three Commissioners
"The old rules, of course: outright robbery."
The following day at court, as expected, the imperial edict appointing Shen Suqin as the Minister of the Three Departments was met with unanimous opposition from the court officials.
Some court officials even claimed that Shen Suqin had married into the Xiao family, and that one member of the Xiao family controlled the Black Flag Army while another controlled the finances of the Great Liang, suggesting that she harbored malicious intentions.
These old tunes are always being played out in a new way. Emperor Xingwu sat high on his throne, frowning as he looked at the group of old ministers below who were speaking so eloquently. He was utterly disgusted.
He knew very well that the Three Commissioners were in charge of salt, iron, and tea. Once salt, iron, and tea were brought under the control of the imperial court, it would inevitably harm the interests of those local gentry and powerful families. This was exactly the same problem that was faced when the land system was reformed.
Back then, Marquis Anping took advantage of the chaos and almost killed the crown prince in the palace.
Thanks to the combined efforts of Shen Suqin and Xiao Pingchuan, he was rescued and taken to Jinzhou, thus saving his life.
Now, he wants to see if anyone still dares to have any wicked thoughts now that he's become emperor.
"Gentlemen, the Great Liang has been impoverished and weak for too long. If things don't change, do you want to sink with this great ship?" Shi Ye said in a deep voice. "Wake up! Do you really think that if the Great Liang falls, you can still keep your current wealth and prosperity?"
The Minister of Rites was heartbroken: "We cannot break the ancestral rules and allow women to enter the court. The Xiao family has no heir yet. Instead of staying at home and bearing children for General Xiao, Madam Xiao comes here to interfere. Isn't that like a hen crowing at dawn?"
Shen Suqin, who had been standing quietly at the end of the line, raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at the person who spoke.
The man continued, “Your Majesty, do not let such a fame-seeking person deceive your mind. Although Shen Suqin is known as the most talented woman in the world, apart from one or two beautiful articles, she has nothing to show for herself.”
Shi Ye raised his hand to interrupt him, "Lord Zhao, you are mistaken. Xingyuan Restaurant, Shenji Precious Goods Shop, and Ningyuan Ancient Ancestral Shop are all operated behind the scenes by Commissioner Shen. Do you know that their monthly revenue is equivalent to half a year's national treasury revenue?"
"Besides, Chief Envoy Shen only spent less than two years in the Northern Border, yet she increased its population several times over. Now, the state capital of Ningyuan has become a favorite destination for Liang merchants. Lord Zhao said she has nothing to offer, but do you have anything to offer?"
"I heard that the owner behind Xingyuan is surnamed Yan, and Shenji was only established with the help of General Xiao. How come Your Majesty speaks of him as if this Shen Suqin has extraordinary abilities?" After saying this, the man knelt down before Emperor Xingwu and said, "Your Majesty, let's not talk about the Salt, Iron and Tea Department. Just to say that you are entrusting the important task of replenishing the national treasury to such a fame-seeking person is really a bit risky."
"I second that proposal."
"I second that proposal."
“Your Majesty,” Pei Tingfeng glanced at the crowd, seeing that they were all waiting for him to speak, “without destruction, there can be no construction; the Great Liang can no longer afford to drag this on.”
Instantly, an uproar erupted in the hall.
"Pei Songchao, how can you face the Pei family and Prime Minister Pei?" someone questioned sharply.
"So, where exactly are you standing?"
If the Three Offices were actually established, they would have to give up all the profits they had in their hands. Who would be willing to do that?
Pei Tingfeng's words put the Pei family in opposition to the other aristocratic families. Everyone wanted to ask him: "Are you going to hand over the salt fields in Hejian to us openly?"
There are also those who try to smooth things over.
"Young Master Pei, you flatter me. The situation in Liang is clearly improving; there's no reason why it can't afford to drag on."
"That's right. Young Master Pei is still young. He should learn more from his elders and not follow disreputable people to learn all sorts of nonsense."
Pei Tingfeng had never heard anyone speak harshly to him since he was a child, and now he was practically being verbally abused to his face, so he couldn't react for a moment.
"Gentlemen," Shen Suqin stepped out from the back of the line, "you're quite adept at this 'burying your head in the sand' trick. Did you manage to get 50,000 taels of silver from the national treasury? Is this what you call 'improving'? You're lying through your teeth without fear of being struck by lightning."
Shen Suqin's words were no different from directly cursing in the street, which immediately made everyone present so angry that they were furious.
"Why does His Majesty want to interfere with the salt and iron industry? Why establish the Three Commissioners? Minister of Revenue, don't you think that if you were truly useful, I wouldn't have had this opportunity?" Seeing that he was about to speak, Shen Suqin didn't even give him a chance to breathe and continued, "If I were you, I would quietly listen to His Majesty's orders and preserve my integrity in my later years."
"Madam Xiao!" The Minister of Revenue probably couldn't hold back any longer.
"No, no, don't call me Madam Xiao. There is no Madam Xiao here. Please call me Commissioner Shen."
"His Majesty has not yet given the order, but Lady Xiao is already in a hurry," said the Minister of Revenue.
“I thought His Majesty had made himself clear enough in the Imperial Study yesterday.” Shen Suqin turned to look at everyone present. “Gentlemen, you have probably misunderstood one thing. His Majesty had already issued the appointment of the Three Commissioners. Today was merely an announcement, not a solicitation of your opinions, is that right, His Majesty?”
Shi Ye's brows relaxed slightly. "What Chief Envoy Shen said is correct."
Shen Suqin bowed respectfully.
"Your Majesty, please reconsider! The territory of Great Liang is vast. How can a weak woman who is not yet thirty years old manage the financial power? Your Majesty, please reconsider!" The crowd persisted.
“Your Majesty, what Lord Zhao said is also my opinion. The power of finance is of great importance and must not be treated so hastily.”
Shen Suqin clicked her tongue lightly, "Fine, no matter how much we made last year, I'll definitely double it by the end of the year, how about that?"
Last year, the national treasury had a surplus of 50,000 taels, and it wouldn't be a problem to multiply that several times over.
Therefore, the crowd did not agree.
"Three months. If you can triple the national treasury's revenue from last year in three months, why not give you this position? What do you say? Are you willing to take the gamble?" the Minister of Revenue said.
He was certain that no one would cooperate with her in nationalizing the salt and iron business, so he was deliberately making things difficult for her.
"Why wouldn't I dare? Let's calculate based on 50,000 taels, which will triple in three months; if that's not achieved, the Minister of the Three Departments will be replaced immediately. What does Your Majesty think?"
At the last moment, Shen Suqin remembered to consult Shi Ye's opinion.
The Minister of Revenue calmly added, "We won't count the poll tax; we'll only count the silver tax on salt, iron, and tea."
Shi Ye knew that this would put Shen Suqin in a difficult position, but since the money was going into the national treasury anyway, he was happy to see it happen, so he replied, "Then let's settle on this. But everyone, please remember to cooperate with Commissioner Shen. I don't want General Xiao to come knocking on my door and say that I'm bullying his wife."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The imperial edict appointing him was finally issued after much trouble and delay.
After the court assembly, Shen Suqin and Pei Tingfeng were summoned to the Imperial Study alone.
"What are you planning to do next?" Shi Ye asked Shen Suqin directly.
"How much does Your Majesty know about the current state of the salt and iron industry in Daliang?" Shen Suqin asked.
"The government records no more than ten salt and iron mines, and the annual tax revenue is only a mere tens of thousands of taels, which is really not much," Shi Ye replied.
Shen Suqin then turned to Pei Tingfeng: "What do you think, cousin?"
“Your Majesty is right. The quantity of government-mandated salt and iron is indeed limited, and the output is low. Before you mentioned it, we hadn’t even thought about how much silver we could make from it,” Pei Tingfeng replied.
Shen Suqin found the two people's words somewhat inexplicable.
"Have you ever thought about it? There are tens of millions of people in Daliang, and everyone needs to eat salt every day. You probably haven't heard of any place that is particularly short of salt, right? So it seems that Daliang consumes an immeasurable amount of salt every day. Where does it come from? It can't just fall from the sky."
Shi Ye quietly added, "Smuggled salt."
"Yes, it's smuggled salt. If the imperial court could collect even a tenth or twentyth percent of the tax from smuggled salt, the national treasury wouldn't be so small."
“And then there’s iron. Iron is rather special,” Shen Suqin touched her nose. Even her own iron mines in the northern border were being mined quietly, without any way of handing them over to the imperial court. “Iron mines in Daliang are indeed scarce and strictly controlled. Why can’t we make money from them? What do you think?”
"Because many iron products are tax-exempt, such as farm tools," Pei Tingfeng said.
Shen Suqin shook his head: "This is only a small part of the reason. The biggest reason is that it was not managed by the people who should have been in charge. Iron tax should have gone directly to the national treasury, but most of it was intercepted at the prefecture and county level under various pretexts. Especially before, the management of official iron was chaotic, and each prefecture and county acted independently, so it was really difficult to ensure that all the tax was handed over."
Pei Tingfeng listened attentively; being caught up in the situation, it was difficult for him to step back and see these issues from a different perspective.
But he was puzzled: "How do you know so much?"
He had traveled throughout Daliang and gained experience in the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Revenue. He also had extensive contacts through his family's influence, but none of them were as thorough as Shen Suqin's.
It was as if she had seen it firsthand.
Shen Suqin blinked and mumbled, "Because I own a restaurant, and my restaurants are all over Daliang. What news could I not know?"
Shi Ye knew that she had a vast and meticulous intelligence network that spanned the entire Daliang and even the surrounding small countries. There was nothing she couldn't get if she wanted to know it.
Sometimes he also found this woman terrifying.
Sometimes I feel that perhaps her heart isn't in this, which is why she's only half-heartedly willing to help him.
“So the next step,” Shen Suqin continued firmly, “is to send people to search for hidden salt and iron mines within Daliang, and register the tea gardens as well. Tea can be a small business, so let’s not miss out on it.”
"And then?" Shi Ye asked.
Shen Suqin smiled mysteriously: "Of course, it's the old rule, outright robbery."
"Open robbery?!" Pei Tingfeng exclaimed in surprise. "How do you rob it? By bringing an army?"
"How could my cousin be so violent? Of course, you and I should go and rob him."
Pei Tingfeng: ......
Shi Ye sighed and rubbed his forehead: "Stop fooling around, let's get down to business."
Shen Suqin smiled and said, "It means finding salt and iron mines, finding a way to nationalize them, and then establishing corresponding salt officials to be responsible for mining, transportation, and sales. These people will be directly under the jurisdiction of the Three Commissioners and will not be under the local government's control."
"What if the other party is unwilling?"
"Bring His Majesty's imperial sword and His Majesty's imperial guards. If they're unwilling, then we'll use force. Of course, I believe that with my silver tongue, they'll most likely agree."
Pei Tingfeng had nothing to say.
Shi Ye, on the other hand, seemed to trust her quite a bit; whatever she said went.
"I have no objection. You decide what to do."
Shen Suqin pouted: "Of course you have no objection, all the benefits are yours."
Shi Ye wanted to say something more.
Shen Suqin said directly, "Don't worry, since I promised to come, I won't go back on my word, and I will do my best. Shall we stop here for today? Cousin, come with me, I have something I want to tell you."
Pei Tingfeng looked at her, then at Shi Ye. Seeing Shi Ye nod, he finally agreed to Shen Suqin's request.
The two rode in the same carriage when they left the capital, and neither of them spoke.
When the carriage arrived at Xingyuan Restaurant, Shen Suqin finally spoke up: "Cousin, let's go inside and talk."
Pei Tingfeng: "Mm."
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