Chapter 206: The candidate for the salt and iron envoy

Zhang Qiu was the left prime minister of Qiong, which made Li Linfu speechless, and his heart was filled with coldness. He had long expected that Li Longji would not let his party dominate. He always believed that Li Longji used Yang Guozhong as the spokesperson of the Yang clan in his name, but in fact, this was just an illusion. Li Longji would never use a despicable villain to play against him. His hidden line is most likely Li Qing. For this reason, he made an early arrangement, putting a spy next to Yang Guozhong, and instigating Yang Guozhong to deal with Li Qing.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Qiu Jianqiong was born out of nowhere. It turned out that this was the person Li Longji really wanted to use. The mystery of using Li Qing as the Minister of Revenue was solved. He was Zhang Qiu Jianqiong's disciple and Zhang Qiu Jianqiong's right-hand man in the future.

The two of them stopped talking, and the atmosphere in the room seemed a little solemn. At this time, Bian Lingcheng walked into the room and knelt down and said, "Report to Your Majesty, Li Qing, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, has been brought here, and is waiting for summoning outside the door."

Li Longji nodded, "Support him in!" He turned around and smiled at Li Linfu: "The martial arts event may have begun. The prime minister can take one step first, and I will come immediately."

"In this way, the old man will leave first!" Li Linfu slowly withdrew and was meeting Li Qing who came under the imperial edict.

"I have seen the Prime Minister!" Li Qing hurriedly saluted Li Linfu, but Li Linfu didn't say a word. He looked at Li Qing for a long time, suddenly patted his shoulder, shook his head and left sadly.

Li Qing was a little surprised. He kept staring at Li Linfu's back and walked away. Then he slowly turned around, but saw Gao Lishi standing at the door and waving to him, "Mr. Li, please hurry up, don't let the emperor wait for a long time."

Li Qing hurriedly accelerated his pace and walked into the room. He saw Li Longji playing with two walnuts in his hand, and was concentrating on reading a memorial, as if it was the "New Salt Method" he handed over two days ago.

He stepped forward and bowed to Li Longji and said, "My dear Li Qing, please see Your Majesty!"

Li Longji seemed to have not heard his words. He was still watching with all his attention, picking up a walnut and gently tapping the table. Li Qing stopped talking and just stood aside and waited patiently.

Li Longji turned another page and suddenly felt something. When he looked up, he saw Li Qing standing aside, put down the memorial and laughed: "Mr. Li has arrived, come! Sit down first."

He ordered Li Qing to sit down first, and then quickly read the remaining lines. Then he folded the memorial and said to Li Qing: "I have read your new salt method three times before I found that it is different from the salt method in the Han Dynasty. In the Han Dynasty, the government monopolized the entire salt industry. Except for those who cook salt, civil and commercial enterprises are not allowed to participate. However, your new salt method only monopolizes the first link. It acquires the original salt and sells it to civil and commercial enterprises at a higher price. I don't understand this very much. You can tell me your ideas first."

"And I will explain it in detail."

Li Qing bowed slightly and said, "The salt industry has a lot of benefits. It has been paid great attention since ancient times. This is not necessary to be mentioned. However, the salt law of Emperor Wu of Han and the salt administration implemented since the founding of the Tang Dynasty have not been solved, that is, the division of interests between the local courts. Take the current salt administration of the Tang Dynasty for example. Whether it is the salt field camp or the direct sales of brine in wells, it is done by local governments, and the profits are also paid to the court by the local government. Among them, labor expenditures, losses along the road, authority of the salt authority, and even local profits are all a confusing amount. They can clearly have millions of guan salt profits, but in the end, they only have tens of thousands of guan in Zuozang (central treasury), so they are not valued by the court.

Therefore, I believe that the salt administration court should resolutely collect power and set up direct agencies to conduct monopoly sales. There is no need to withdraw from the private households to serve salt service. Special salt households should be set up like military households to engage in salt production. The court should directly control it, and the court's special agency purchased it from it, and then sold it to salt merchants at an additional price. All the canal traffic and traffic are completed by the merchants themselves, and the government will not interfere. In this way, local governments can no longer interfere in salt profits, and the increased salt profits will be directly collected by the court in the form of taxes. My most conservative estimate is that the annual salt tax is at least three million yuan."

Three million guan, which is equivalent to the annual tax money of the Tang Dynasty. Such huge income made Li Longji's hands tremble slightly. With this money, many of his plans could be implemented, but he still did not understand the transfer of the civil and commercial operations. He couldn't help but wonder: "I agree very much with the benefits of salt to the court, but I don't agree with the business of two or three operations. Merchants are profit-oriented, and salt is a must for the people's livelihood. If they control the sales, wouldn't the people in the world have no salt to eat, or wouldn't they afford to eat even if there is salt?"

"Your Majesty, I don't think so!"

Li Qing shook his head and said, "In the record of the Grand Historian, 'The world is prosperous and prosperous, and the world is clamoring for profit'. I am also a businessman. I know the nature of merchants to pursue profit. But everything has two sides. As long as I can be good at using its favorable side, minimize oligopoly and crack down on bad merchants, if necessary, the court can also set up permanent settlements to adjust and make it unable to hoard them. For law-abiding merchants, let them run, and the court collects taxes, otherwise everything will be done by the government. Not to mention that the huge personnel expenses cannot be afforded, and the secret operation in the middle cannot be prohibited. It is precisely from this perspective that my new salt law recommends to face the people directly with civil and commercial people."

While he said, he looked at Li Longji's expression. Although he was listening, he was obviously absent-minded and did not comment on his words. This made Li Qing sigh secretly. One of the important reasons why the business of the Tang Dynasty was not as good as that of the Song Dynasty was that the government had too many restrictions on merchants. On the one hand, it was subject to heavy taxes and set various rules, but on the other hand, it despised it from the bottom of his bones. As the king of a country, Li Longji despised merchants so much, let alone the civil and military officials below.

But this is not something that can be explained by Li Longji in just a few words. Only by tempting him and speaking with facts, letting him gradually accept his idea of ​​business and prosperity.

Thinking of this, Li Qing stood up long, with a firm and decisive expression on his face. He said, "Your Majesty, now the salt tax revenue is only more than 100,000 yuan a year, and the impact is not great. It is better to let me let you go and test it for two years. I am willing to issue a military order. If I cannot get three million yuan in tax revenue within two years, I am willing to be dismissed from the position of Minister of Revenue."

I don’t know if Li Qing’s firm attitude moved Li Longji or his promise of three million yuan moved him, Li Longji thought for a long time before finally saying slowly: “Well, I promise you this time that you can follow the example of the Jianghuai Transportation Envoy to establish a salt and iron envoy. However, this position is usually held by a minister-level official. You are not suitable for it, so you can serve as a deputy. As for the full position?"

Li Longji hesitated for a moment, but Li Qing immediately responded: "I am willing to recommend His Highness Li Chu, King of Guangping, to serve as the post of Salt and Iron Envoy."

"Chu'er?"

Li Longji was stunned, and then he smiled slightly and said, "You will lend him the 300 troops in this martial arts event!"

Li Qing was startled. He stepped forward and knelt on his left knee and said, "Report to Your Majesty, these 300 troops have been following the Wei minister since Nanzhao. The feelings are deep. I especially urge Your Majesty to transfer these 300 troops to the Ministry of Revenue or the envoy of salt and iron, so that they can continue to follow the Wei minister."

Li Longji remained silent for a long time. After a while, he stared at Li Qing and said slowly: "You took the Stone Castle City for me, but I have never been able to reward you. This salt reform seems simple. Even I know that it will involve the vital interests of many people, and even royal relatives. Therefore, I must ensure your personal safety. These three hundred troops will be granted to you. As your personal bodyguard, please be loyal to me! As for the matter of King Guangping as the salt and iron envoy, let me consider it again."

"Dong!Dong!Dong!"

The dull drums blew over the racecourse. Although the coldness in early spring was so cold that the wind blew the battle flags around. But the field was already crowded with people, and everyone was sweating profusely. The body was full of heat, and their eyes were red, and their voices were already hoarse.

The event gradually reached its climax, and the final showdown was about to begin. The two sides were Li Qiu, the son of King Qing, and Li Chu, the other side was Li Chu, the King of Guangping.

At this time, the shouts outside the court were shocking, but the Taichangqing, the son-in-law of the prince-in-law Zhang Ye, who was in charge of the game, did not issue an order for him to receive instructions from the prime minister, and the final final must be held until His Majesty and the Imperial Concubine come to the rear.

Li Qing finally found his seat. He was right next to the east of the big wooden platform. He happened to be sitting next to Yang Shenjin, the Minister of Personnel. He also came with his wife and daughter. Li Qing was not here, so he was taking care of Li Qing's family. Li Qing came forward to greet him. There were many people around him, so it was difficult to talk about the meeting between Yang Shenjin and Zhang Qiu Jianqiong. He greeted his wife and then came to his seat carefully.

"Sorry! I'm late."

Li Qing squeezed between Yan'er and Xiaoyu, and then he found that Li Jingyan was also beside him. The two of them looked at each other. Li Qing smiled awkwardly, but a dizzy flushed appeared on Li Jingyan's face, and she quickly turned her eyes away.

"Why did Li Lang go and come in one morning? It's almost over." Lian'er couldn't help but complain.

Li Qing smiled apologetically, "It's too late to wait for the emperor to summon him."

He stood up and put his hand on the curtain to look at the field. But for a long time, he didn't see anyone in the game. He asked Yan'er, "Has King Guangping made a move? Is there any news about him?"

"He has won three consecutive games, and the following is his duel with the Prince of Xinping."

Li Jingyan is also a member of the royal family and is very familiar with these royal children participating in the competition. Unlike Yan'er and others, they are still confused after watching it for a long time.

At this time, there was a chaos on the wooden platform, and countless guards ran to the other side. From a distance, Li Longji and Yang Guifei appeared on the wooden platform, and were immediately blocked by a huge yellow umbrella.

Seeing that His Majesty and the Imperial Concubine had already entered the position, he immediately gave an order and a huge red flag was erected on the field, which was a signal of the start of the game.

"Wuwu" The low ox horn sounded, and five hundred elite cavalrymen from the Ten Thousand Cavalry camp entered one after another. They all had bright armor and shining spears. Tens of thousands of Chang'an people suddenly burst into cheers. The cavalry was divided into five teams. Under the leadership of Li Qiu, the prince of Xinping, five hundred long spears pointed straight into the sky. These were the elite soldiers selected from the Ten Thousand Cavalry camp. It was King Qing who asked Chen Xuanli, the general of the Yulin Army. His specific command was Du Qianyun, the leader of the family general.

Just as the citizens were anxiously looking for another team, someone could already feel the vibration of the eardrums, which was a drum sound, rhythmic, low and dull, and gradually the heart also jumped with the rhythm. At this time, a black dot appeared from the west, and the black dot slowly turned into a black ball, and then scattered into a black line.

It was also a cavalry, the three hundred black helmets and black armored Doulu cavalry, with a cold light on their stomachs. They were all low and speechless, pointing straight ahead with a long spear, and in front of the team, there were three horses, holding a horizontal knife in the middle, looking grim, looking at Li Chu, King Guangping. His waist was straight, his eyes were cold, and he stared at the front with no fear, full of confidence, and his body exuded a powerful kingly aura. Behind him, one left and one right, were the bandit leader Li Fei, a long face and a long beard,

Li Fei Shouyu, who was shining with wise eyes, was the other one who was fierce and vicious, with a fat face. Li Fei Yuanli, who didn't dare to cry when the child saw it.

"This is my eldest grandson, King Chu'er of Guangping."

Li Longji pointed to Li Chu and explained to Yang Guifei with a smile: "I can be literary and martial, but gentle and virtuous, I like him the most."

But his eyes secretly glanced at the beautiful and plain, but a trace of wild Poplar Flowers appeared. Poplar Flowers had already noticed Li Longji's secret gaze. She boldly teased the supreme Emperor of Tang with her hot eyes, especially putting her plump breasts high.

When did Li Longji see this kind of teasing in broad daylight? Suddenly, when she first saw her, she actually pinched herself. Her heart suddenly felt hot and she felt that her nose was difficult, her mouth was thirsty, and she had no saliva at all.

Suddenly, Li Longji's attention was attracted by the field. Li Chu's cavalry finally moved, as if the ice peak was broken and rushed out from the huge iceberg. The tip of the helmet shone in the morning light, like the twinkling little stars in the sky, three hundred cavalry rushed towards the field.

There was a silence on the field, and everyone was staring at this murderous army nervously. Everyone heard the sound of horse hooves rushing in the distance. Facing the spring breeze, the horses were rising and falling, and the black battle flags fluttered in the wind, galloping towards the competition venue.

The clear and loud trumpet sounds resounded in the field, and instantly turned into a thunderous roar. The cavalry general who suddenly rushed to the front of the cavalry was tall and powerful, strong and mighty. He was wearing a Tang military uniform and dancing with a long spear without a blade. His aura was strong. The cavalry behind him were all covered in iron armor, shining with cold light, and his movements were rapid and spectacular.

"Kill!" Li Chu waved his sword suddenly, and his short order was like a thunderclap, shaking in the ears of all the soldiers. "Kill!" In an instant, the thunderclap turned into a rolling thunder again, exploding continuously under the dark clouds. The strong wind roared, the horns were loud, the iron arrows were clanging, and five hundred long spears were raised high, turning into the horns of five hundred silver dragons. The spikes were shining with cold light, as fast as lightning, rushing, roaring, rolling up the momentum of thousands of troops and rushing straight towards the opponent. Li Qiu's face changed slightly. He tried his best to remain calm, but the war horse had retreated with a 'tap!'

This momentum shocked everyone. On one side was the hereditary guards who were well-treated and pampered, and on the other side were the iron-blooded warriors who came out of the pile of dead people. Without further ado, the outcome was already obvious.
Chapter completed!