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"Master Li, I was racking my brains over this question last night and couldn't figure it out. Master Li, please help me."
"Master Yu, take it and have a look. What kind of question can stump you?"
Yunduan heard the sound and looked over, seeing his two assistants gathered together again to discuss math problems. It was already dark outside the window, and it was long past the end of get off work time, but half of the officials in the Ministry of Revenue were still handling the matters at hand.
Now that there were wars on three fronts, a large amount of money and food was consumed every day. Among all the departments, the Ministry of Revenue was undoubtedly the busiest one. From the minister to the petty officials, everyone was busy every day.
But even so, most officials in the Ministry of Revenue still studied mathematics in their spare time.
It is said that the mathematics of the King of Qin was even better than that of Xu Guangqi. He had made many improvements to Xu Guangqi's "Elements of Geometry". People like Song Yingxing, the Minister of Works, and Johann Adam Schall ...
Although the King of Qin did not emphasize that everyone should learn mathematics, if the leader is interested, the people will be more interested. Nowadays, whether it is officials in the Ministry of Revenue or scholars in the private sector, studying mathematics has become a trend, and Yunduan himself is also working hard to learn it.
In addition to mathematics, many people also began to study physics and chemistry under the influence of the King of Qin, not to mention the officials of the Ministry of Works.
Because the King of Qin also had extraordinary knowledge in physics and chemistry, it was said that the powerful yellow explosive newly developed by the Equipment Department under the Ministry of Industry was developed under the guidance of the King of Qin.
Yunduan was transferred to be a Langzhong of the Ministry of Revenue because of his great contribution in presenting treasures. When he first joined the Ministry, he was very uncomfortable with it. The first problem was the speed of the Ministry.
The Ministry of Revenue not only has the largest number of staff and the most affairs among the six ministries, but it is also the fastest among the six ministries.
Another special thing about the Ministry of Revenue is that most of its personnel were from grassroots backgrounds. Shangshu Liu Boquan was originally a minor official, Zuo Shilang Xu Yingjie was originally a lowly merchant, and You Shilang Yang Chao was better, as he was originally a scholar.
The highest-ranking official in the entire Ministry of Revenue was Yunduan. But even with this group of people, after the King of Qin appointed them in an unconventional way, the efficiency of the Ministry of Revenue was amazing.
One Shangshu and two Shilang can be described as devoted to the work. Under their leadership, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue were not only incredibly efficient, but also honest and self-disciplined. The censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate were the most stringent in supervising the officials of the Ministry of Revenue, but no case of corruption among the officials of the Ministry of Revenue had been found so far.
Corrupt officials were found in the other five ministries, except the Ministry of Revenue, which was in charge of money and grain. At first, the censors of the Censorate did not believe it and stepped up their efforts to investigate again and again, but still found nothing. All the accounts were clear and there were no mistakes or omissions.
In the past, most officials of the Ministry of Revenue were from the lower classes, so they were inevitably looked down upon behind their backs. But since then, officials of the Ministry of Revenue have stood up straight, and when the ministers of various ministries met the Minister of Revenue Liu Boquan, they would first greet him.
One of the reasons why the officials of the Ministry of Revenue were honest was not only because the chief officer was strict, but also because the Ministry of Revenue used the debit and credit accounting method, which was also something Yun Duan was not used to when he first joined the Ministry of Revenue. He had never heard of this accounting method before. It was said that this was also the first to be invented by the King of Qin.
Fortunately, this accounting method is simple and easy to learn. Yunduan learned it in three days, and the one who taught him was none other than his own daughter Yun Qiaoer.
At that time, Yun Duan was surprised and asked her how she knew all this. She said proudly: "I am the personal and confidential secretary of the King of Qin. In this world, besides the King of Qin, I am the first one to learn it."
Thinking of his daughter's playful look, Yunduan couldn't help but smile warmly.
At this time, the Left Assistant Minister Xu Yingjie came over and said with a smile: "Lord Yun's face is full of smiles, I think there must be something happy."
Yunduan quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Master Xu, you are joking. I don't have any happy events. It's getting late. Master Xu, why don't you leave?"
"I was about to leave. The war is urgent at the front these days, and the money and food are frequently transferred. I'm sure Lord Yun is very tired. How about this, I treat Lord Yun to a drink tonight?"
Xu Yingjie had no airs of a superior, and his face was full of smiles. He was a minister somewhat different from the ministers of previous dynasties. He was mainly in charge of finance and commerce. Now the largest source of revenue and taxation for the Qin State was not agricultural taxes, but bank profits and commercial taxes.
Yunduan bowed again and apologized, "I am really sorry. To be honest with you, Lord Xu, the King of Qin sent someone to pick up my daughter. She will leave Wuchang tomorrow. I owe her a lot in the past, so I want to have dinner with my daughter tonight as a farewell party. I hope Lord Xu will forgive me for my impoliteness. I will come to your house to apologize tomorrow."
"I understand, I understand. Lord Yun, please leave now. I will invite you to do the same next time I have time."
"Master Xu, please go first." Yunduan felt a little embarrassed.
"Okay, okay, then let's go together." Xu Yingjie knew the relationship between Yun Qiao'er and Qin Mu better than anyone else. Although Yun Qiao'er had no name or status now, with the special relationship between Qin Mu and her, she would definitely need to be a royal concubine in the future.
When they were in Ganzhou, Xu Yingjie's wife often visited Princess Yang Zhi. She once heard the maids in Yang's mansion talking about one thing, that the King of Qin had promised to give Yueyang and Dongting Lake to Yun Qiaoer. Others might think this was a joke, but with Xu Yingjie's understanding of Qin Mu, he did not think it was a joke.
I have never heard of any concubine in any dynasty having a fiefdom. If Yun Qiaoer really got her own fiefdom, it would mean that her status would not be much worse than Yang Zhi's.
When the two of them walked out of the Ministry of Revenue together, the dark clouds had already spread. Yunduan suddenly remembered something and couldn't help asking, "Master Xu, I heard that the court intends to increase the tax rate on commercial taxes. What do you think about this?"
"Of course, I will fully support the policies decided by the King of Qin." Xu Yingjie hastily expressed his opinion. The Xu family used to be the richest family in southern Jiangxi, and now they can be said to be the richest family in Qin. Their business is spread all over the south of the Yangtze River. If the tax rate is raised, the Xu family will undoubtedly suffer great losses.
But because of Qin Mu, the Xu family completed a brilliant transformation from being a humble merchant to becoming high-ranking officials in the court.
Xu Yingjie had worked so hard to complete this turnaround, and of course he didn't want to anger Qin Mu over this matter;
Xu Yingjie is a very courageous man. Not only does he decide to support Qin Mu as much as possible in the commercial tax reform, but he also decides to gradually transfer the family's business, try to erase the smell of money from the Xu family, and completely transform the Xu family from "merchants" to "scholars".
Yunduan sighed, "Lord Xu is a man of high moral character and selflessness. I admire him very much."
Yunduan is of course aware of the Xu family's strength in the business circles of Huguang and Jiangxi. With Xu Yingjie's full support, the resistance encountered in the tax rate reform will be greatly reduced, which means it will be halfway to success.
"Lord Yun, you are too kind. I am loyal to my master and I am only doing my duty."
The two exchanged a few polite words before leaving. Yunduan rushed to the palace, and the guards told him that his daughter had already gone to Tongbai Street. Yunduan hurried back to his own house on Tongbai Street and saw his daughter directing the servants to prepare wine and food.
The daughter was in her prime, standing tall and graceful. When Yunduan entered the house, she came up to him and bowed, "Daddy, you've worked hard. Come sit down and rest for a while. The wine and food are ready."
"Okay, okay, okay, Qiao'er, sit down and have a rest. Daddy still has something to tell you."
Yun Qiao'er was no longer so estranged from him. While ordering the maid to serve the dishes, she asked coquettishly, "Daddy, please tell me what you want to say. I am listening."
"The war in the front is still going on, why did the King of Qin suddenly send someone to pick you up? This... Qiao'er, do you know the reason?" Yun Duan felt happy and worried. He thought that Qin Mu suddenly took his daughter away with the intention of taking her into his room.
Yunduan is mentally prepared that his daughter will belong to the King of Qin sooner or later. It will be a blessing for his daughter if she can become an imperial concubine in the future. But isn't she a little young? Qiao'er is only thirteen years old after all.
Yun Qiao'er didn't know her father thought so much. When she mentioned this, she happily replied, "Dad, Brother Qin..."
"I've told you several times not to call me Brother Qin, but King Qin."
"Well, fine, then I'll call him the King of Qin. But the King of Qin still wants people to call him Big Brother."
"This... ... ... Since the King of Qin asked you to call me that, then it's up to you. But remember what your father taught you, you must be tactful in your actions and words, and never take advantage of your favor to become arrogant."
"Got it, Dad, do you still want to hear why Brother Qin wants to take people there?"
"Well, tell me quickly, why did the King of Qin want to pick you up at this time?"
"Hehe, Brother Qin said that we left Jinling together, and we have to go back together. Brother Qin wants to take me to eat pancakes."
"Go back to Jinling? Eat pancakes?" In just a few words,
.(To be continued..)
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