Liu Che briefly introduced to Zhou Yafu and Chao Cuo the current iron output of the blast furnace in Shaofuzhong and the operation of the sun-salted salt method in Jiangdu.
When he heard that the blast furnace could produce up to a thousand kilograms of iron in one day, and could also produce crude steel, Zhou Yafu's breathing became rapid.
As the prime minister, Zhou Yafu naturally knew what it meant for a blast furnace to produce a thousand kilograms of iron per day.
This meant that only a thousand similar blast furnaces were needed, not only to meet all the needs of the Han army, but also to meet the agricultural demand for iron.
Zhou Yafu was not just a general who led troops.
In fact, the starting point of his official career was in the civil service.
Before Emperor Taizong Xiaowen's sixth year in the Zhongyuan Dynasty, Zhou Yafu's official position was the governor of Hedong County.
This is also the portrayal of most prime ministers in the early Han Dynasty.
Mounting the horse can lead the army; dismounting the horse can bring peace to the people.
Those who cannot do this are not qualified to become prime minister at all.
"Your Majesty, I would like to see the blast furnace in the Shaofu..." After a moment of silence, Zhou Yafu made his request.
If what the emperor said is true, then the salt and iron official camp is not only feasible, but also has great potential.
The Han Dynasty court now earns half a million yuan a year.
But what is embarrassing is that 300,000 of the money went into the emperor's private treasury.
In other words, the country's treasury only received 200,000 yuan.
This money could barely maintain the operation of the court and military expenditures.
In case of war, the emperor often needs to use money from the treasury of the young man's government to support and subsidize the war.
If this person doesn't have money, he can't stiffen his waist.
Similarly, there is no money in the treasury. The ministers can't even speak loudly when facing the emperor.
At present, many yamen of the Han Dynasty rely on the support of the emperor's inner treasury to operate.
Under such circumstances, the emperor, who holds the money bag in his hand, can naturally assume great power.
The decline of the prime minister's status is precisely due to this.
If the prime minister's palace can be rich and no longer needs to beg the emperor for money, then the prime minister's power will naturally increase. Moreover, after having money, Zhou Yafu himself can transform Han Dynasty society according to his wishes.
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Since ancient times, when soldiers and horses have not moved, food and grass go first.
As a long-time veteran, Zhou Yafu certainly understands that financial power equals status.
Liu Che looked at Zhou Yafu and nodded with a smile.
Although Liu Che has promised that the Salt and Iron Order will be placed under the Yamen of the Prime Minister's Mansion.
But the crux of the problem is that without the Shaofu, the Yantie Order could only attack the streets.
What's more important is that the young master will not sit back and watch the prime minister's house snatch food from their mouths, and even bite into the fattest and most beautiful piece of meat.
By then, the young master will definitely take action.
You have to know that in the power structure of the Han Dynasty, the Shaofu only accepted orders from the emperor on the surface, but in fact, it was a complex yamen accepting multiple leaders.
In addition to the emperor, the empress dowager and empress can intervene in the operation of the young manor and order the subordinate officials of the young manor.
When the time comes, someone will definitely 'teach' everyone in the Young Mansion and go to the East Palace to cry.
With Dong Gong Dou's temperament, he would definitely intervene in this matter directly.
In other words, Yantieling Yamen was actually just a pie drawn by Liu Che for Zhou Yafu, and it was impossible to eat it!
The so-called life is like a play. It all depends on acting skills, especially the emperor.
But Zhou Yafu immediately resigned happily and went straight to the Shaofu.
After Zhou Yafu left, only Chao Cuo and Liu Che were left in the palace.
Originally, Chao Cuo planned to go with Zhou Yafu to see the blast furnace that could produce a thousand pounds of iron a day, but Liu Che hinted him to stay.
After Zhou Yafu completely disappeared outside the palace, Chao Cuo bowed respectfully: "Your Majesty, I have wrongly received the imperial edict!"
Seeing Chao Cuo's performance, Liu Che was very satisfied.
The Legalist ministers were all top-notch, and after accepting orders, they went all out, which made Liu Che very satisfied.
"I asked you to stay for two reasons..." Liu Che said unhurriedly: "The first thing is that the gold gift given by Zhuang Wuhou Song Chang this year is not of good quality and is missing ten gold...
"
Liu Che looked at Chao Cuo and continued: "You should know what to do about this matter..."
Of course Chao Cuo knew what Liu Che meant.
If he just wanted to punish Song Chang, the emperor did not need to personally explain to him, the imperial censor. He could just let the chancellor spread some news, and the censor would impeach him, and the court officials would follow up.
The current Tingwei Zhao Yu is young and full of energy. Since taking office for more than a year, this Tingwei has been looking at every noble official with a magnifying glass.
So far, more than a dozen unlucky descendants of princes and nephews from official families have been invited by this court captain to have tea and chat.
But he still lacks a significant political achievement.
The political achievements of the court officers of the Han Dynasty were calculated by how many princes or two thousand stone ministers they defeated.
The reason why Zhang Shizhi, the Imperial Lieutenant of the Imperial Court, is famous all over the world is not because of how many laws he changed, nor because he abolished corporal punishment in the Han Dynasty, but because of his frantic way of using the prince to gain reputation.
Song Chang's gold was not of sufficient quality and quantity. As soon as this matter reached Zhao Yu's ears, Zhao Tingwei would probably wake up laughing at night!
Therefore, Chao Cuo immediately said: "I understand!"
Since the emperor did not go through Tingwei, but directly through him, the imperial censor, he certainly hoped to dig deeper into Song Chang's affairs.
To pull out the radish and bring out the mud, it would be best to grab a few more lieutenants and do it together.
Because, if Ting Wei intervenes in this matter, then Song Chang will probably take poison and commit suicide immediately to apologize for his crime!
This is the unspoken rule of the Han Dynasty and the tradition that generals should not disgrace themselves.
Not only does the emperor save face for his ministers, but the ministers themselves also save face for themselves and preserve their dignity.
But if you go through the Yushi Dafu Yamen, you can take your time and find other less sensitive excuses to invite Song Chang to the Yushi Dafu Yamen for tea and chat. After entering the Yushi Dafu Yamen, Song Chang can't be helped.
Chao Cuo has been involved in politics for more than 20 years, so of course he is very aware of these tricks and tactics.
Seeing Chao Cuo accept the order, Liu Che nodded. It all depends on how Chao Cuo understands this matter.
In other words, after Liu Che gave the order, Chao Cuo could understand it however he wanted.
Liu Che will just sit tight on the Diaoyutai and wait for things to develop.
No matter what the final outcome is, Liu Che doesn't want to get his hands involved in this matter again.
Hypocritical?
Maybe very hypocritical!
But the essence of politics is hypocrisy.
Liu Che must maintain his image as a benevolent emperor, approachable, not ashamed to ask questions, benevolent and loving.
This is crucial to governance.
The common people will love and support an emperor who is full of humaneness and magnanimity.
But few people would respect a ruthless and selfless emperor.
Even though, this emperor actually envisioned it for them.
Liu Che did not want his image to become a skinned emperor like Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty.
After talking about Song Chang's affairs, Liu Che continued: "I heard that there are villains around the Empress Dowager in the East Palace recently. As a censor, you should pay attention to this. I will ask Wang Dao to contact you..."
Liu Che said leisurely: "Please go and investigate carefully to see who is disturbing the peace of the Queen Mother. Once we get to the bottom of it, we will never tolerate it!"
Liu Che didn't want to let go of any of the guys in the East Palace who helped Wang Quan and his sisters speak.
It's winter now!
The Lord of Winter is chilling, it’s the season of killing!
"No!" Chao Cuo immediately obeyed after hearing this.
This is the advantage of Chao Cuo.
He is not afraid of trouble, let alone death. As long as he accepts orders, there is no target he dares not attack! (To be continued, please search Piao Tian Literature for better and faster novels!
