At that time, Shao Shude was summoning foreign envoys in the Zichen Hall. When Kong Guangsi came in, he met several Japanese who looked unlucky.
He didn't pay attention and hurriedly entered the palace under the guidance of the lieutenant.
"Meet Your Majesty."
"Please sit down." Shao Shude put down the memorial in his hand, glanced at the contemporary Yan Shenghou, and said.
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty." Kong Guangsi sat down at the bottom, without squinting, and sat upright.
Shao Shude pondered for a moment and asked: "Does Marquis Yan Sheng know what the Japanese mission is doing?"
"I really don't know." Kong Guangsi replied, a little surprised at the same time. Shouldn't the saint tell him about the Persian mission? I heard that it had arrived in the eastern capital.
"It's okay to tell you." Shao Shude said: "In recent decades, the Japanese missions to the DPRK have been real and fake. We can even put it bluntly, most of them are fake. They are either businessmen pretending to be public officials or private persons.
Forge credentials, fool the Celestial Empire, mix in some rewards, and hope that the Celestial Empire will buy their worthless goods."
How much are screens, folding fans, knives, shark skins and fishy-smelling dried seafood worth in total? The largest cargo imported from Japan to China was actually copper blocks full of impurities.
In the past ten years or so, silver has gradually become more abundant, but it is also looked down upon by others. Because it is not pure enough, it is often chopped off when exchanging Daxia currency. The country has the system, and foreign merchants come to the DPRK to buy and sell goods.
Exchange of silver dollars or silver dollar bills in the clearing house of the Shipping Department, private use of domestic currency or barter transactions will be cracked down.
Strictly speaking, this requirement is a bit unreasonable. In the past, when foreign merchants came to do business, the Central Plains court was very tolerant of them and accepted any currency, as long as it was precious metals. In later generations, a large number of large quantities of food, Persian silver coins and even
This is the reason for the burial objects of Eastern Roman gold coins.
But the Great Xia Dynasty was different.
There is a branch in the clearing bank, similar to a currency exchange house. All foreign merchants must use "legal currency" to conduct transactions in Daxia, that is, silver dollars (including silver dollar bills), Jianji Tongbao and other metal currencies for transactions.
It doesn't matter if you don't have Daxia legal currency. You can sell the goods first and then buy them after the funds are withdrawn. You can also take the gold, silver and copper bars you brought and go to the clearing house to exchange currency, but you will be ripped off, which is equivalent to paying seigniorage.
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This provision did not exist in the former Tang Dynasty, and to some extent, it extended the time for transactions. But in this era, the pace was very slow, and it didn’t matter if it took a few days. In the end, basically all foreign businessmen accepted it, including
Japanese.
"Businessmen pursue profit and become corrupt..." Upon hearing what the merchant said, Kong Guangsi immediately hit the snake and followed it with a stick.
"Okay." Shao Shude interrupted his "Sutra" with a smile and said: "There is no best of both worlds in the world. There are always pros and cons. Doing something is nothing more than weighing the pros and cons. I have been doing this all these years.
Do these things."
Dialectical thinking, things in the world have advantages and disadvantages. This is the knowledge engraved in Shao Shude's blood. Even though he wallowed in the quagmire of the late Tang Dynasty for forty years, he did not forget it.
Things in the world are not black and white, most of them are grey.
The degree of gray is also different, some are more to the left, some are more to the right, and some are just in the middle. Moreover, time has changed, and in different time periods, the degree of gray is also fluctuating.
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Refusing to look at problems with black-and-white diode thinking, looking at problems from a dynamic perspective of development, never cutting corners to find a sword, and insisting on dialectical thinking, etc. These are the underlying logic of Shao Shude's decades of governance.
Sometimes a thing has more disadvantages and sometimes more advantages. It all depends on how you use it.
Businessmen certainly have many problems, such as the appearance of a nouveau riche after making money, which makes it difficult for farmers to cultivate land with peace of mind, hoarding, etc. This is its negative impact.
But on the other hand, it speeds up the circulation of goods, promotes the development of handicraft industry, allows the government to receive large amounts of commercial taxes, maintains national finances, and provides better services to the whole society - in ancient times, mainly national defense services, and in the Ming Dynasty
If at the end it could be like in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, when commercial tax accounted for half of the national fiscal revenue, why would it be like this!
Shao Shude has never had boring prejudices or ideological baggage. He should try his best to use the good aspects and weaken the negative effects as much as possible. That's it.
"What your Majesty said is absolutely true," Kong Guangsi said immediately.
"The Japanese mission coming this time is real." Shao Shude said: "They asked me to order a sea ban and restrain pirates. What does Kong Qing think?"
Kong Guangsi was a native of Yanzhou and belonged to the Huaihai Road. He vaguely heard that many vicious people went to sea to plunder Silla, Taifeng, Baekje, Japan and even the distant Kuyi Island.
In recent years, there have been fewer people plundering the Three Kingdoms of Silla because the imperial court has banned the buying and selling of slaves from the Three Kingdoms. At the same time, they have cracked down on a large number of pirates and mobilized their relatives and township parties to persuade them. The effect is very good - if the effect is not good, the following is
The Texas soldiers came out, ransacked their homes and sent them into exile. The pirates could not withstand this move.
But the numerous pirates must have somewhere to go, right? They must have a "living", right? Therefore, Kong Guangsi can fully imagine the troubles the Japanese are facing. The pirates who originally plundered four countries all flocked to Japan.
Can this be any good?
"In ancient times, the most important thing for government is to love people." Kong Guangsi took a peek and said.
The words are short and concise, but the meaning is clear.
"Do Japanese people also want love?" Shao Shude asked.
Kong Guangsi wanted to remain silent, but when he saw the saint looking at him, he said, "This is a great gift."
Shao Shude nodded, not wanting to continue discussing this issue with Kong Guangsi.
If he wants to argue sophistry, he can continue to argue, but it is meaningless.
Moreover, some pirates are actually not easy to control. There may not be many signs of it now. If we wait another twenty years, the "second generation of pirates" will be born after they get married overseas (such as Sakhalin Island and Hokkaido).
When you grow up, things change.
He vaguely remembered Tortuga, a famous pirate island in the Caribbean in later generations.
Most of the people living here are pirates from England, the United Provinces, and France who broke away from their motherland. When they got older, they settled on the island. Some of them gave birth to children, farmed, opened taverns, made firearms, repaired ships, etc., and worked for pirates.
We serve.
Pirates who come out from here will not have any belongings, and they will rob ships of any country.
In the waters of East Asia, there will definitely be more than one foreign land where pirate descendants gather in the future. By then, the sea transportation lines may be threatened, because these pirate descendants who were born overseas will have no influence on the Central Plains.
The sense of belonging is much worse than that of our parents. It is almost inevitable to disturb the flight route. The only suspense is the severity.
This is the negative effect brought about by the development of navigation, that is, there are advantages and disadvantages in dialectical thinking.
As long as the future kings of Bactria do not think in black and white, they will not stop eating due to choking.
"Let's talk to you about the affairs of Persia." Shao Shude changed the subject and said: "The Persian mission has arrived in Beijing, and all the affairs in the Western Regions have been discussed. You stay in Luoyang for a few months, follow the arrangements of Honglu Temple, and treat others.
After everyone has gathered together, let’s go west to Bukhara and have more interactions with the Persian monarchs, ministers, ministers and nobles.”
"I obey the decree," Kong Guangsi said.
"Don't agree so quickly." Shao Shude smiled and said, "You went to Bukhara, what are you going to say?"
"I heard that in the Persian country, there are many princes, just like the Spring and Autumn Period." Kong Guangsi said: "I plan to talk to the Persians about rituals and music."
Shao Shude nodded and said: "You can just let it go. Persia has been defeated repeatedly and has lost its spirit and confidence in front of Daxia. Spring and Autumn rituals and music are very suitable for their situation."
In fact, most countries in the world at this time have a lot of feudal nobles with fiefdoms, bureaucrats, and common people.
This system no longer has room for survival in the Central Plains. But over there, it is still the system of feudal kings and vassals. Due to their respective cultural traditions, climate and geography, etc., there are some slight differences, but they are similar.
When Persia and Daxia went to war, their nobles really led troops to fight for the king, just like in the Spring and Autumn Period of China, the princes led troops to serve the king when called upon by the Emperor of Zhou.
In this process, political ethics plays a key role.
Kong Guangsi was quite proficient in the knowledge of his ancestors. The values of Confucius's time might really fit in with the Persian system.
Of course, unlike China's Spring and Autumn Period, theocracy still existed in Persia.
The king (emir) tried to increase the power of the monarchy, weaken the big nobles, and form a bunch of small nobles.
The nobles united to resist the power of the monarch.
Divine authority acts as a lubricant between the two, and at the same time expands its own power, either overtly or covertly.
The three both struggled and united, and finally formed a political ethics that is generally acceptable to everyone.
Kong Guangsi's family education should be more in line with the appetite of the monarchy, and the nobles can accept it conditionally, because this system can also limit the unlimited expansion of the monarchy. As for the divine power, they are definitely not happy, because this is an ideological fight with them.
The competition for the territory is likely to be supported by secular noble forces. It would be strange not to be vigilant.
"I will obey the holy order and I will not let the Persians underestimate me." Kong Guangsi replied.
"Very good." Shao Shude smiled and said, "You can take the road from Beiting, Yili, and Suiye. You can wander around the Yili River Valley for a while. The time is not so urgent."
"I obey the decree." Kong Guangsi seemed to vaguely understand the saint's purpose.
This is to provide help to King Zhao. It’s just that he doesn’t quite understand how to do it. Give lectures to attract more Confucian disciples to go to Yili to take root? It’s better to just write a few articles and call on ambitious scholars to go west to Yili.
Beautiful.
After chatting casually for a few more words, Kong Guangsi stepped back in fear.
After Shao Shude finished reviewing the memorial, he put down his writing brush and called Wang Yanfan.
"Pass the decree that in ten days I will hold a memorial ceremony in the southern suburbs, conduct a military parade, and begin an eastward patrol," he said.
"According to the order." Wang Yanfan silently withdrew.
Shao Shude's eyes fell randomly on the dust in the air.
