Chapter 563 Selling an official position and buying an official position
The person who stood up was a young man with a dignified appearance, but judging from his attire, he looked like he was only a sixth-rank official.
Wu Yuan looked a little strange at this man and turned to look at Yan Fei.
Yan Fei has done her homework, and there is no minister above the court that she does not know.
"Xiao Chenyu, the cabinet minister, is a sixth-rank official." Yan Fei said simply.
Wu Yuan was a little surprised. The people in the cabinet he had seen before were all old-timers, and the younger ones were about forty years old.
This Xiao Chenyu does look very young, probably in his twenties.
However, in this era, a person in his twenties is not that young, but compared with the ministers present, he is still young.
Cabinet ministers, to put it bluntly, are administrative staff of the cabinet who do some odd jobs and often do not participate in the important affairs of the cabinet.
But seeing that Xiao Chenyu was calm and not showing any signs of stage fright, we knew that this person must have seen the world.
"I have met Your Majesty, and the cabinet minister Xiao Chenyu dared to say a few words." Xiao Chenyu asked Wu Yuan.
Wu Yuan nodded, his first impression of this boy was good, but he looked like a pretty boy no matter how he looked.
After getting Wu Yuan's permission, Xiao Chenyu looked at Murong Haitang.
A trace of undetectable surprise flashed in his eyes, but it was fleeting and no one noticed it.
"Master Shangshu is polite. It's raining Xiao Chen. Maybe Master Shangshu has not heard of me, but he must have heard of the Xiao family in Jiangnan."
The Xiao family in Jiangnan?
Murong Haitang was stunned for a moment, then his expression changed. He looked at Xiao Chenyu in surprise and asked, "Is it the Xiao family, the number one tea merchant in the south of the Yangtze River?"
"Exactly, Master Shangshu is really well-informed. I never thought that he would actually hear of my Xiao family. This is my Xiao family's blessing." Xiao Chenyu said with a happy face.
I don't know why, although Xiao Chenyu looked polite and gentle, Wu Yuan felt unhappy.
Even if I can't find a single fault, I still feel unhappy.
But now that he is the emperor after all, he must be tolerant and give people opportunities.
Of course Wu Yuan could see that Xiao Chenyu stood up, probably to speak for Murong Haitang, and decided to listen. Speaking of which, the wealthy people he contacted were all from the Qianlu Chamber of Commerce, but the Qianlu Chamber of Commerce was already considered the ceiling.
's existence.
So I am also curious about what other rich people in this world are like.
Seeing Xiao Chenyu being so polite, Murong Haitang said: "The tribute tea in the palace comes from Jiangnan. The name of the Xiao family in Jiangnan is naturally known to the world."
Xiao Chenyu said that Murong Haitang felt a little complacent. Of course, he also had the capital to be proud of.
It seems that many other ministers know the origin of Xiao Chenyu.
I'm also a little surprised, and I don't quite understand that such a huge family fortune can't be taken care of at home, but come here to work as a sixth-grade official doing odd jobs?
Xiao Chenyu seemed to enjoy everyone's amazed gazes, but what surprised him was that although Murong Haitang was polite, his eyes were still calm, and there was even just a trace of surprise at the beginning, but then he returned to normal.
Murong Haitang didn't know what Xiao Chenyu was thinking, but asked calmly: "Since Mr. Xiao is a member of a noble family, why not ask Mr. Xiao to answer your questions, and the words spoken by Mr. Xiao will be more convincing?
"
Hearing Murong Haitang say this, Xiao Chenyu felt a little satisfied in his heart.
"Yes, I understand what you mean, Lord Shangshu, so let me speak on behalf of Lord Shangshu next."
Murong Haitang nodded, "Thank you!"
Xiao Chenyu smiled at Murong Haitang, and then said to everyone: "Actually, no matter whether they are merchants, gentry, or aristocratic families, they no longer pursue earning much money, because money can no longer bring satisfaction to these gentry's hearts.
.”
"But there is one thing that they care about most."
Everyone looked at Xiao Chenyu curiously. Many people couldn't understand. Money couldn't satisfy them, so what else did they want?
Xiao Chenyu also whetted everyone's appetite. After a while, he stretched out a finger and uttered one word, "Officer!"
"Officer?" Everyone was stunned.
Prime Minister Wen and Tian Wenxing looked exactly like that.
The corner of Xiao Chenyu's mouth raised, "You adults, don't be so surprised. Let me ask you, when you have earned enough money, who doesn't want to do something that will honor your ancestors? It will not only be worthy of the ancestors, but also be a tribute to future generations."
After hearing what Xiao Chenyu said, everyone suddenly realized.
This is indeed the truth. Even if you are not a child of an aristocratic family, when you are in the imperial examination and high school, you will be proud and proud, and your ancestors will be honored. People from all over the country will go to the streets to watch. What kind of magnificence is that.
For everyone who passes the imperial examination and becomes an official, it is an unforgettable scene.
Of course, I understand the pursuit of these aristocratic families.
After Xiao Chenyu finished speaking, he did not forget to turn around and say to Murong Haitang: "Master Shangshu, what I said is correct, right?"
"Yes, that's what I want to say, because I have even seen someone give a hundred thousand taels of gold in order to buy an official position. Finally, he got the official position of Jiupin County, and his face was full of joy."
"One hundred thousand taels, just for a ninth-grade sesame official?" The ministers in the hall all looked in disbelief. They never thought that this official position was so valuable?
It’s simply unbelievable. Then don’t they, officials of the fifth and fourth grades, get more than a million taels of gold?
I never thought that I would become so valuable, and many people feel a little confused.
However, Prime Minister Wen was very angry and said: "How dare someone sell his official position? How brave."
Hearing Prime Minister Wen shout this, others also realized that something terrible seemed to be involved.
Who is selling his official position, and where has the 100,000 taels of gold gone?
The qualifications for the appointment of minor officials of the ninth rank in the county must be from the state capital. Is the state capital of that place too bold?
Murong Haitang shook his head, "I'm sorry, I didn't know who the person who sold his official position was at that time? And it's been a long time, so I'm afraid it won't be easy to find out, but I believe this is definitely not an exception."
"Check!" Wu Yuan said sharply.
This was the first decree that Wu Yuan made after becoming the new emperor.
Xiao Chenyu below also didn't expect that the final result would be like this, and his expression couldn't help but change.
"Your Majesty!" Xiao Chenyu looked at Wu Yuan with some anxiety.
"What's the matter?" Wu Yuan's tone was calm, and he was not very interested in Xiao Chenyu.
"Your Majesty, I'm afraid this matter needs to be discussed in the long term." Xiao Chenyu carefully observed Wu Yuan's expression as he spoke.
Unfortunately, Wu Yuan remained silent and couldn't tell what he was thinking now.
Wu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly and continued to ask calmly: "Why?"