Prince Zhou Xiaoshi stood in the hall and glanced at his mother, Queen Yin Yu, who was sitting in the seat, feeling uneasy in his heart.
Yin Yu flipped through a book in his hand, which recorded the recent expenses and transactions of the East Palace.
Regarding his mother's usually very strict behavior, Zhou Xiao dared not say anything in anger, so he could only stand helplessly.
Yin Yu flipped through a few pages, put down the book, and said to Zhou Xiao: "Last month, the banquet in the East Palace alone cost 7,000 coins. Who did you invite? How did it cost so much?"
Zhou Xiao: "I just invited some friends..."
Yin Yu shouted coldly: "Seven thousand guan is enough to support hundreds of ordinary families for a year. How many friends did you invite? How much did you squander?"
Seeing that his mother was angry, Zhou Xiao quickly bowed down.
Yin Yu was still angry: "Not only that, you built a garden in Ansheng Garden in Bachuan, spending nearly 120,000 yuan... In addition to the rewards from the palace, you usually don't have much surplus at all. Where did you get it?
So much money?!”
Zhou Xiao did not dare to raise his head and whispered: "A few years ago, the Luo family wanted to give me a house. They said that Bachuan is prosperous. If we have a residence there on weekdays, it will be more convenient for Ai Qing and I to travel."
Yin Yu was stunned: "Luo family? The crown prince's home?"
Zhou Xiao nodded in agreement.
Yin Yu was silent for a while and said, "I understand."
Seeing this, Zhou Xiao breathed a sigh of relief and wanted to take this opportunity to say goodbye.
Yin Yu pointed to the seat next to him and said to Zhou Xiao: "Sit down first, I have something to say."
Zhou Xiao had no choice but to sit down as instructed.
Yin Yu: "Last month, the Ministry of Rites and the Internal Affairs Supervisor both submitted memorials, mentioning the draft. Your father said that the draft was a waste of money and waste for the people, and even intended to move all the slaves in the palace into living deeds, in order to lower the power of the palace.
expenses.”
Yin Yu looked at Zhou Xiao and said earnestly: "Your father cares about the country and would rather suffer than spend extravagantly. As the prince, you should set an example and learn from your father."
Zhou Xiao responded.
Yin Yu: "You are like this today. Speaking of which, I am also at fault... When you were still young, Your Majesty was ordered to travel far away and was not allowed to return home for several years. I was the only son like you at that time, so naturally I doted on you.
Plus, I rely on you for everything, but I never thought that arrogance is a problem. Moreover, after so many years with your father, we have had four children, but you are the only prince in this palace, and the rest are princesses, so I can only
I place all my hopes on you."
Hearing his mother's words, Zhou Xiao was a little moved, lowered his head and said, "The child will definitely live up to his mother's expectations."
Yin Yu nodded: "You have been in charge of political affairs in the court for many years. Have you ever received praise from His Majesty for your usual suggestions and motions?"
Mentioning his father, Zhou Xiao said with a grimace: "My son is afraid of offending his father, so he usually dares not make any comments in the court."
Yin Yu frowned and said: "Your Majesty values those ministers who are smart and active, but does not like those who are submissive. You should show yourself when you have the opportunity."
When Zhou Xiao heard this, he could only bite the bullet and nodded in agreement.
After training for a while, Yin Yu spoke up and told Zhou Xiao to go back.
The latter, as if he had been granted amnesty, quickly stood up and left.
Looking at Zhou Xiao's leaving figure, Yin Yu first sighed, then found the female official who was close to her and said: "Go and send a message to the Luo family. Tell her that I haven't seen Yingluo for a long time and ask her to come to the palace.
Talk to me."
The female officer bowed and said yes.
The news that Datang's North American fleet had brought a large amount of gold spread like wings.
No matter which state or county, no matter which market place, everyone is discussing how to bring back a shipload of gold from the North American continent.
Anshengyuan, located in Bachuan, was once the most prosperous residence of the rich and powerful in Chang'an City during the Kaiyuan period. Although it declined during the Anshi Rebellion, it has slowly recovered its vitality thanks to its innate geographical and commercial advantages.
The courtyard near Bachuan Inner Lake is the place with the best scenery and the highest housing prices in Ansheng Garden.
Many dignitaries in the court like to build houses here, firstly for peace and quiet, and secondly for the convenience of gatherings.
On this day, a secret interview was taking place in a courtyard east of Neihu.
In the huge main hall, Jin Yiwei Nanzhen Governor Gong Zai sat on the right seat.
Opposite him, sitting at the top of the left seat, is the current head of the Luo family, Luo Anyuan, General Yu Linwei and Senior Guard.
In addition to these two people, Wang Jin, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, Sun Yan, the chief minister of general affairs, Zhai Zhuo, the young Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture, and more than ten court ministers were all present.
Yuan Zai put down the teacup in his hand, straightened his head, and asked, "Is the prince not here yet?"
Luo Anyuan: "The prince is under tight guard now. It's not easy to get out of the city. Let's wait a little longer."
Yuan Zai looked around at the people in the hall and asked with a smile: "Speaking of the fleet on the long voyage, it took Ye Jiazi a whole month to sell the goods on the ship at the Chang'an market. Guess what?
, how much did you earn from this one trip?"
Everyone in the hall looked at each other in confusion. Some people guessed 100,000 guan, while others guessed 200,000 guan. Yuan Zai shook his head after hearing this.
In the end, Yuan Zai simply raised his right hand and spread his fingers.
Wang Jin saw this and smiled slightly: "It turns out to be five hundred thousand guan."
Yuan Zai emphasized: "Five million strings!"
Upon hearing this number, all the officials present were so shocked that they forgot to speak.
Wang Jin was in a daze for a long time before two words came out of his mouth: "Seriously?"
Yuan Zai: "How can there be any falsehood in the data just compiled in the three cities of Chang'an, East and West? Moreover, maybe Ye Jiazi also sold some goods that were inconvenient to sell on the black market. So, five million
However, this number may still be low.”
When Luo Anyuan heard this, he couldn't help shouting: "Five million guan, that's almost equal to half a year's taxes of the Tang Dynasty!"
Yuan Zai chuckled: "On a long voyage, one can become as rich as one's country. That's exactly what they say."
Wang Jin lowered his head, thought carefully, and said: "With such huge profits, the people will definitely flock to it. If more people sail to the east, the tribes there will definitely notice that something is wrong, and the price of trade will be reduced again and again."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Yuan Zai: "Wang Shilang is right, there are only two types of people who make the most money in this kind of voyage business. The first type is those who do the second type.
A person who discovered this trade route; and the second one..."
Wang Jin: "He is the one who monopolizes this trade route."
Hearing this, Luo Anyuan shook his head and said, "If you want to monopolize this trade route, you have to squeeze out everyone else. It's not easy."
Yuan Zai glanced at Luo Anyuan: "If you want to monopolize the trade route, it's easy to squeeze others out. It's rare that you don't get discovered."
Luo Anyuan was stunned and looked at Yuan Zai with a puzzled expression on his face.
Wang Jin explained: "With your skills in the officialdom, as long as you cleverly create names and use threats and inducements, you can squeeze out all those competitors. But the trouble is that this cake is too big. If you eat it alone, it will still cause public outrage.
Secondly, I am afraid that it will cause His Majesty to be angry, which is the most troublesome thing."
Yuan Zai: "That's right, Your Majesty will not allow officials from the DPRK and China to line their own pockets and interfere with trade routes."
Luo Anyuan: "In that case, doesn't it mean we have no chance to enter the game?"
Yuan Zai shook his head and said: "Your Majesty does not like courtiers to exercise power for profit, but what if we are seeking profit for the palace?"
Luo Anyuan: "To make profits for the palace?"
Wang Jin: "What Duke Yuan Du means is that if we want to share the big pie of voyage trade, we alone will definitely not be able to do it. We must find a way to bring the palace in. Those nobles in the palace are all the current emperors."
If their family members benefit, then the Holy Spirit will benefit. In this way, the palace will get the big head, and we will eat the small head, and everyone will be happy."
Luo Anyuan chewed these words carefully and couldn't help but nod.
At this moment, a voice came from outside the door, saying that the Crown Prince was here.
Yuan Zai stood up from his seat, smiled at everyone and said, "The person in charge of today's discussion has arrived. Everyone, please follow me to greet him."