After Du Yan left, Zhao Zhen met Yan Shu, the third envoy again. Yan Shu came to report on the trade with China.
Mainly, because of the tense wars along the border, the country also added feathers, horns, iron paint and other materials to the Chinese commodity list in order to make arrows.
As a result, it created ways for countless merchants to take advantage of opportunities.
These guys, by bribing and bribing local military officers and civil servants, used a large number of inferior products or even directly fabricated a batch of goods to defraud the country of imported goods - mainly salt.
Because of the war, the Central Committee of the Song Dynasty could only turn a blind eye to this kind of thing.
As long as the merchants don't go too far, they can tolerate it.
But now, as the war gradually turned to the Song Dynasty's advantage.
The evil nature of the ruling class was immediately exposed.
"Your Majesty, these cunning businessmen wantonly defrauded salt, causing the price of salt on Jingdong Road, Huainan Road and Kaifeng Prefecture to plummet, causing both public and private harm!" Yan Shu reported righteously: "I ask your Majesty to issue an edict to prohibit this.
They even discarded the salt they defrauded and continued to circulate it!"
For Sansi, this kind of thing is undoubtedly disgusting!
Because salt, tea, iron, wine, and spices are all pillar products of the state-owned economy.
In particular, salt, tea, and wine account for most of Sansi’s annual income!
Among them, the salt tax revenue is close to 10 million yuan every year!
In comparison, the state's two tax revenues add up to about 25 million yuan.
Now, these businessmen are relying on cunning means and exploiting procedural loopholes to defraud the national salt tax and usurp the vested interests of the three companies.
For Sansi, he is naturally a formidable enemy!
I didn't care about it before because the war was urgent and the country still needed these people.
Now that the war has eased, it is naturally time to settle accounts in the fall and seize the opportunity to loot homes and recover blood.
Yan Shu took action from the bottom of the cauldron and directly announced the abandonment of all the salt coins held by merchants. As long as the news spreads, I am afraid that people will jump into the river on the Zhouqiao Bridge one after another!
And this is not surprising at all to the ruling group.
Zhao Zhen listened, but shook his head: "Too many words are too serious...Too serious..."
"Of course there are cunning merchants..."
Zhao Zhen knew that not only businessmen were seeking war wealth, but ministers, relatives, and clans were also seeking it.
Moreover, the bulk of the money must have fallen into the hands of powerful relatives and officials.
The merchants were just taking a small profit and earning some money for running errands.
"It's just that... there is loyalty in the world..."
"If the Third Division is like this, wouldn't it also attack loyal people and law-abiding businessmen?"
"He waited thousands of miles to donate supplies to the country, and when he turned around, I issued a decree that destroyed his family and family. How can I bear it?!"
"Besides, if I waste my feathers today and replace my sinews with salt, in the future the Song Dynasty will have side affairs again, and the country wants merchants to lose, who would dare to lose?"
"The story of Zigong's redemption must be kept in mind!" Zhao Zhen looked at Yan Shu and said meaningfully.
Yan Shu listened, bowed his head deeply, and said: "Your Majesty is a benevolent and sage, I admire you greatly!"
"It's just that, in this way, the wealth of the Third Division this year will be..."
"I will let Zuozang receive two million guan for sealing stakes, and give Yizhou cast iron money 500,000 guan to be transferred to the Third Division..." Zhao Zhen waved his hand and said: "I will never make it difficult for the Third Division!"
"I am terrified!" Yan Shu paused deeply.
However, Zhao Zhen held his hand and said sincerely: "I have appointed the chief minister as the third envoy, and I want to entrust all the country's wealth, power and budget expenditure to the chief minister!"
"All you have to do is take good care of this home for me, take good care of this home, don't let the soldiers along the border be in danger of lack of food and clothing, and don't let any of my people suffer from floods, droughts and locusts!"
Yan Shu was moved to tears and finally bowed again and said goodbye.
Until Yan Shu's figure disappeared from sight.
Zhao Zhencai sighed leisurely: "Yan Shu is not easy either!"
Zhao Xin nodded beside him.
It’s hard to take this family of Da Song as real.
only……
Yan Shu came today. I'm afraid it's a lie that he wants to get rid of the salt, but it's true that he wants money!
Who doesn't know that Zhao Zhen is famous for cherishing feathers and would rather suffer than let the people suffer?
Just like there is a story in the imperial city, it is said that in the first year of Jingyou's reign, Zhao Zhen was bored in the palace in the middle of the night, so he took his servants to play with flying leaves.
At that time, on the banks of the Jinshui River outside the imperial city, a boat was sailing down the river, with drums, harps and reeds, and the sound of singing and dancing reaching the palace.
At that time, some attendants were dissatisfied and said: "Your Majesty, our palace is deserted inside, but outside it is very lively, with singing, dancing and promotion!"
Zhao Zhen said meaningfully at that time: "It is precisely because our palace is deserted inside that it is so lively outside! If I were busy inside the palace, I am afraid it would be deserted outside!"
This story is widely circulated.
But no one can verify whether it is true or false.
But one thing is undoubted - Zhao Zhen, whether in history or in Zhao Xin's previous life, has been in power for decades without adding a single tax to the people or hurting merchants. Like Zhenzong, he did everything for money. He didn't even touch the changes in China's trade, the Tea Law, and the Salt Law.
A few years ago, Li Zi's tea tax reform was personally stopped by him because it might harm the interests of small farmers - even though Li Zi's tea tax revenue increased significantly after Li Zi's reform!
"Erlang..." Zhao Zhen looked back at Aizi, stroked Zhao Xin's hair, and asked, "Do you think Aye is a little pedantic, or even too much?"
He smiled and said to Zhao Xin: "I was raised by the Queen Mother Zhang Hui. The Queen Mother taught me a truth since I was a child..."
"I will tell Erlang this truth today..."
"You are so benevolent!"
"My family is rich in the world and benefits from all over the world!"
"The mountains, lakes and salt ponds are all for the benefit of my family!"
"Therefore, sometimes, it might be better to be a little more pedantic and suffer a little loss..."
"Erlang, look, why does flying money work today? Isn't it because Aye is pedantic?"
At this point, Zhao Zhen laughed.
Flying Money of the Song Dynasty was his favorite work. Copper coins were heavy and inconvenient for merchants to carry. Therefore, during the reign of Emperor Taizong, the Song Dynasty had already begun to have the system of flying money. Merchants submitted an ultimatum to the Third Division in the capital to apply for depositing the coins. After receiving the application, the Third Division will count the coins, deduct a handling fee of 20 yuan for each min (one thousand yuan), and then give a securities issued by the Third Division. The merchant can take this securities to the local state officer. Cash withdrawals from the government can also be used to pay commercial taxes and purchase salt, tea, and wine.
However, merchants have always been worried about changes in national policies and the loss of their savings, so the scale of flying money is not large.
It was not until Zhao Zhen took office that Song Fei's money business boomed. Every day, merchants would line up at the entrance of Sansi Zuozang Yamen to submit ultimatums.
As merchants became more and more willing to deposit their wealth in Zuozang, the shortage of money in the Song Dynasty was alleviated.
More importantly, this also greatly reduces the transfer costs of national fiscal and taxation.
The direct and indirect economic benefits that the country gets from this every year are probably in the millions!
"Besides, if what Yan Shu said just now has actually been done, I'm worried that the small businessmen and citizens will be harmed in the end, while the big businessmen and dignitaries are unscathed and may even take advantage of the opportunity!" Zhao Zhen finally said meaningfully,
He had read history books and knew that whenever the state intervened in the private economy, powerless common people would die, and powerful officials and dignitaries would benefit!
Zhao Zhen listened, nodded, and said seriously: "Erlang has remembered Aye's lesson!"
But in his heart, he knew that what Zhao Zhen did was to tolerate and support the traitor.
You are indulging those powerful nobles!
It will only make those people more unscrupulous in appropriating national interests and embezzling national wealth.
If Zhao Xin handles this matter...
hey-hey……
Unfortunately, now, Zhao Xin cannot make the decision and does not have the ability to do this well.
So I can only endure it for the time being.
I'll settle the accounts with those guys in the future.
"If you eat mine, spit it out for me!"
"Pay me what you owe me!"
Zhao Zhen has a good temper, doesn't want to care about things, and is willing to suffer losses. That's Zhao Zhen's business.
But Zhao Xin has a bad temper, has unclear ideas, and wants to find someone to settle the score with. That is also his business!
And how to deal with these guys?
Zhao Xin already had rich experience in his previous life.
Don’t they like playing capital games very much?
Then use legal procedures to kill them in the capital market!
No one in the contemporary era can play the game of capital better than a king who has national resources and a vision that far exceeds that of the contemporary era.
"When I take power, I will let you know why the flowers are so red!" Zhao Xin was gearing up in her heart.
