After leaving the Prime Minister's Mansion, Zhao Kang returned to the shop.
As soon as he entered the door, he saw Cao Bailu leaning on the recliner, his figure swaying with the rocking chair, holding a cigarette rod in his right hand, and he was puffing away smoke.
Both of them seemed to have forgotten their earlier embarrassment. Cao Bailu said hello, "I'm back."
Zhao Kang smiled and said, "You are quite free!"
"There's nothing you can do about it. Who asked you to be a guest and not bring me as your wife? It's heartless."
Zhao Kang pulled up a chair and sat down, "Okay, okay, why are you so weird all day long?"
Cao Bailu stopped joking and stood up and said, "Anything gained?"
"good."
Zhao Kang recalled his previous conversation with Song Qingyan, "Except for wine, most of the other three products we sell are sold to women. Zhou Ming alone is not enough, if only her mother can help."
Zhao Kang clicked his tongue, "Originally, I could sell this batch for up to one million taels, but if Zhou Ming's mother helps, I'm sure I can sell it for double that."
"So many." Cao Bailu was surprised.
Zhao Kang "Don't underestimate the spending power of women, especially rich women, you're right."
Shopkeeper Ma, who was napping in the distance, heard this and quickly came over. "What are your orders, boss?"
Zhao Kangdao: "I heard that many high-ranking officials in the imperial capital died some time ago. Have you investigated this matter clearly?"
Shopkeeper Ma said, "Of course. You, the boss, don't know. Now the Emperor of Qi is seriously ill and can no longer handle the affairs of the state. However, the old emperor had previously issued an order that Prince Liu Jiyuan would establish the country and that Princess Liu Yanran would assist him."
Government, and the decision-making power of all government affairs lies in the hands of the Pearl Princess."
"So the person in power now is actually the Pearl Princess Liu Yanran. This woman is also a ruthless master. Some time ago, she ordered to increase the taxes on merchants by 20%."
"In an instant, it aroused dissatisfaction among the merchants of Qi State, but soon after, the Mingzhu Chamber of Commerce, the largest chamber of commerce in Qi State, announced that it would donate all its property to the imperial court, filling the national treasury and immediately silenced the merchants."
Cao Bailu analyzed, "The Pearl Chamber of Commerce should belong to the Pearl Princess, right?"
"right."
Shopkeeper Ma said, "The Mingzhu Chamber of Commerce used to be the largest chamber of commerce in Qi, but few people knew that the person behind it was Princess Mingzhu. This time, she donated millions of taels of silver in one go, leaving the merchants speechless."
"Subsequently, officials at court of fifth rank and above were asked to hand over taels of silver according to their rank. Before you boss came, a riot was triggered in Shengjing City because of this incident."
"As a result, eighteen officials and their families were immediately executed, and the number of exiles alone was over a thousand. Two of the third-rank officials died."
Zhao Kang narrowed his eyes, "The Emperor of Qi has been mediocre all his life, but now he has a magical hand."
"You mean, let Liu Yanran be in power?" Cao Bailu asked with interest.
Zhao Kang hummed, "Judging from the current situation, although Liu Yanran's methods were ruthless, he used the fastest and most effective method to avoid the financial crisis of the Qi court."
"As long as the imperial court still has money, it can continue to recruit troops to strengthen its national defense. If I am right, after the treasury is full, the next thing she will do is to recruit troops, right?"
Shopkeeper Ma exclaimed, "Boss, you are really good at predicting things. That's right, on the third day after the homes of those eighteen officials were ransacked, Princess Mingzhu issued an order for all states to collect troops."
"And this woman is very bold and directly implements a private soldier policy!"
Cao Bailu was shocked, "Are you kidding me? Private soldiers!"
Shopkeeper Ma nodded and said, "Yes, clans can recruit private soldiers on their own, but the number should not exceed five hundred, and they are not allowed to wear armor or have standard weapons, only swords."
"That's it."
in the north
He has also been working as a junior officer in the Zhenfu Division for a year, and Cao Bailu also knows a little about military affairs.
"If you don't wear armor and carry out military training, your combat power will never be comparable to that of the regular army."
"You are wrong."
Zhao Kang spoke at this time, and Cao Bailu was confused, "What's wrong?"
Zhao Kang's expression was serious: "I'm sure that after Liu Yanran's private soldier policy was implemented, the private soldiers recruited by the wealthy clans must include veterans who have retired from the army to strengthen the combat effectiveness of the private soldiers."
"When the war breaks out, Liu Yanran will not hesitate to ask these aristocratic families to hand over their private soldiers! She is actually using the financial resources of these aristocratic families to raise an army for Qi State! This guy is too courageous!
"
Cao Bailu was shocked. As both women, she realized the gap between herself and Liu Yanran at this moment.
Due to Liu Yanran's move, once the Qi State is in turmoil, these powerful clans with private soldiers will most likely kill the Qi State.
How dare she do such a thing, she is a woman with such courage!
Zhao Kangdao said, "Think about it from another perspective. She, Liu Yanran, has this confidence. When the war starts, those powerful clans will obediently hand over these private armies. This kind of thing cannot be done just by thinking about it."
"I'm afraid she has other plans. Tsk tsk, this Qi State is much more difficult to deal with than Zhou State!"
Zhao Kang suddenly became interested. After Xiao Feiyu was beaten to death by his own hands, another good opponent seemed to have appeared.
And she's still a woman.
interesting.
At the same time, inside the palace.
Pearl Palace.
A picture scroll is spread out on the display table. The woman is dressed in a light yellow simple palace dress and holds a pen in her hand, writing thick strokes of ink on the picture scroll.
Kneeling behind her was the most distinguished minister of Qi State who had just returned from other places.
The Prime Minister.
Zhou Yue.
"A total of 792 tribes from all over the twelve states have begun to recruit private soldiers. Most of the noble families from various places cooperate with businessmen. The soldiers and horses they have recruited have already been deployed into the army by lieutenant generals."
The woman sketched the last stroke and said calmly, "These people must be watched closely. I don't want to be distracted from dealing with them when the time comes."
Zhou Yue was sweating profusely and said respectfully, "Yes."
"A lot of money and food have been spent during this period. Have you found the person you recruited?"
Zhou Yue quickly responded, "Two thousand and eighteen people were recruited, half of whom were released from prison."
As he spoke, Zhou Yue raised his head cautiously, "Your Highness, what do you want these thieves who usually dig up people's ancestral graves to do?"
The woman's lips curled up, "Money is something that you can't take with you even after you die. Since people die, why do they need so much gold, silver, and jewelry to be buried with them? So I want to borrow some money from these dead people, and I guess they won't either."
I will refuse out loud."
Zhou Yue was stunned and looked at the princess blankly.
The other party is actually so brave?
At this time, the woman took out a sign and threw it to Zhou Yue, "From today on, you can take these two thousand and eighteen people to borrow money. If this matter is exposed, Mr. Zhou, the Prime Minister, I will not see it."
No need to do it."
Zhou Yue said quickly, "I obey, please rest assured, Your Highness, Princess."
"Well, since they are working for the imperial court, these tomb robbers can be considered officials. Let's call these two thousand or so people Captain Mojin. Let's go on."
Zhou Yue was sweating profusely. As the prime minister, he had broken his leg during this period. He didn't expect that he had to go on a business trip just after he came back, and he was going to dig ancestral graves.
After Zhou Yue left, Liu Yanran picked up the portrait she had just painted on the table. Looking at the man on the scroll, the woman whispered softly, "Where are you? Why did you disappear..."
