The Sun family's dinner was not luxurious. The only people at the table were Yan Liqiang and Sun Bingchen. They had a pot of old duck soup, a serving of fried winter bamboo shoots, a pile of peanuts to go with the wine, and a plate of stir-fried bacon with green peppers. There were three dishes and one soup in total, plus a pot of Yuezhou old wine that Sun Bingchen had found. This was the welcoming banquet that Sun Bingchen hosted for Yan Liqiang.
Compared to other wealthy and noble families in the Imperial Capital, such a dinner was extremely shabby, but Yan Liqiang didn't mind, because he knew that Sun Bingchen was such a person. It was not that Sun Bingchen deliberately treated him harshly, but Sun Bingchen had always been simple and had low requirements for life. He never needed scenes and luxury to show anything. Tonight's meal had two meat dishes and a pot of good wine. For Sun Bingchen, it was a rare "exception" to add dishes...
During dinner, Sun Bingchen seemed very happy. The two of them had a tacit understanding and did not talk about any business at the dinner table. Instead, they recalled the interesting experiences when Yan Liqiang escorted Sun Bingchen from Ganzhou back to Dijing. The atmosphere was harmonious. It was not until dinner that the two returned to Sun Bingchen's study and drank sobering tea that Sun Bingchen slowly turned the topic to business and asked Yan Liqiang about the situation in Gulang Grassland. Yan Liqiang told them the truth and did not hide anything...
"I heard that you, Li Qiang, run a wool monopoly in Qiyun County. You buy wool from the seven tribes of Shatu at low prices and sell it at high prices. The profit is more than ten times, and you make hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in a month. Is this true?" Sun Bingchen asked casually, gently fiddling with the teacup with the teacup.
"Haha, I didn't expect you, sir, also knew about this..."
"How could I not know about such a big thing? No one had thought that you could make the seven tribes of Shatu bow their heads, let alone that wool could be sold exclusively. Do you know that after you did this, the cabinet has received countless memorials from the lower levels in the past few months, all talking about this matter. The Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, and local officials all talked about you!"
"Oh, I wonder what those memorials say?" Although he had already guessed something in his mind, Yan Liqiang still asked with pretended curiosity.
"You are playing dumb again!" Sun Bingchen glared at Yan Liqiang, but he didn't seem angry. "You are such a smart person, I don't believe you can't guess. The memorial to the Ministry of War said that the money you made from the wool monopoly in Baishi Pass was too easy. The money should be handed over to the Ministry of War as military supplies for the Ministry of War to pacify the Gulang Grassland in the future. You can't use it alone. The important reason why the Ministry of War's expedition to Gulang Grassland failed this time was that the cost of military supplies was too high, and the court had a hard time bearing it. The memorial to the Ministry of Revenue said that the policy of monopoly should be under the unified jurisdiction of the Ministry of Revenue, and the local supervisory office should not set a precedent. They want to send people to Baishi Pass to set up a monopoly department to take over the wool monopoly. The memorials from the local officials said that the wool you collected from the seven tribes of Shatu was cheap, only ten copper coins per pound. Since the wool was collected cheaply, you should not sell it at a high price, but should resell it to the official workshops in various places at a fair price..."
Yan Liqiang laughed and sneered, "They are all making wishful thinking. For so many years, the seven Shatu tribes have been rampant in the northwest and Gulang grassland. The people in the Ministry of War have never chopped off the heads of any of the seven Shatu tribes and the Black Jie warriors. Now that they see the benefits, they want to monopolize all the benefits of Gulang grassland first. That's not that easy. If they have the ability, let them send people to destroy one of the seven Shatu tribes first. My request is not high. Just let the Ministry of War bring back 10,000 Shatu people's heads from Gulang grassland, and I will hand over the Monopoly Bureau to them. Why can this wool monopoly be established? It can be made The people of the seven Shatu tribes held their noses and bowed their heads to accept it. I killed them with my swords and knives. I destroyed the Tuli tribe with tens of thousands of tents and hung the head of the Tuli tribe leader at Baishi Pass. Only then did I make the seven Shatu tribes come to Baishi Pass to bow their heads. Do they think that just talking will work? The same goes for the Ministry of Revenue. If they have the guts to come to Baishi Pass and think that they can make the seven Shatu tribes pay by just sending a few people to set up a checkpoint, then let them come. Those local officials who submitted memorials said that they were government-run workshops, but they were just selling dog meat under the guise of selling mutton. I think they really want to open wool factories in their own families. Do they really think that others are fools..."
Sun Bingchen stared at Yan Liqiang's face, smiled, and took a sip of tea. "It's not easy to make you angry, Liqiang!"
"You have been to the Northwest, so you know how difficult and dangerous the environment is. In the past, the Northwest was deserted and no one cared about us. Now that they see that wool can make money, they all rush here to grab the fruits of victory. This woolen cloth was invented by me, and the monopoly strategy was thought up by me. I also led my soldiers to chop off the heads of the Shatu people. Why do they come to rob? I won't indulge them..."
"If the court wants it, Li Qiang, can you share the court's worries?" Sun Bingchen put down the teacup and looked at Yan Liqiang with serious eyes.
"Haha, would the imperial court be interested in such a small profit from me?"
"You don't know how expensive firewood and rice are until you manage the household. Your Majesty is having a hard time now..." Sun Bingchen sighed and said, "In recent years, natural disasters and man-made disasters have continued to occur in various places. The court's tax revenue has been declining year after year, while expenditures have been increasing year by year. Last year, the court's tax silver was only 170 million taels. This money may seem like a lot, but to cope with such a large stall as the Han Empire, it has gradually become insufficient to make ends meet. The silver in the court treasury has long been running low. When Your Majesty appointed you as the governor of Qiyun, he didn't expect that you, Li Qiang, would be able to make so much money by setting up a wool monopoly in Baishi Pass..."
Yan Liqiang pondered for a moment, the thoughts in his mind moved, and then he said generously, "If someone else wants to interfere with the wool monopoly, I will never agree, but I have received the grace of your majesty and adults, so I should naturally understand your majesty and adults' difficulties. To be honest, the monthly income of the Qiyun County Wool Monopoly Bureau is about 300,000 taels. Excluding the corresponding costs and expenses, the annual net profit of the Monopoly Bureau is about 2 million taels. Since you have spoken, the Qiyun Governor's Office will pay 1.5 million taels of silver to the court every year. "I want to enrich the national treasury and relieve the worries of Your Majesty and the adults. It stands to reason that even if I hand over all the money from the Monopoly Bureau, it won't be a big deal. But now the situation in Gulang Grassland is worrying. I have few soldiers and generals. If I want to continue this wool monopoly for a long time, and even consider managing and taking over Gulang Grassland in the future, the Qiyun Protectorate will not work without some power. Therefore, the remaining money earned by the Monopoly Bureau, in order to prevent accidents, I have to invest it in the defense and armaments of Qiyun County. Many subordinate officials in the county also need incentives and rewards, so please understand..."
Paying 1.5 million taels of silver every year is no small sum. As far as Yan Liqiang knows, the amount of taxes and grain that the entire Ganzhou can pay in a year may be just that. But at this time, Yan Liqiang had to make a statement because this was a test from His Majesty the Emperor and Sun Bingchen. Sun Bingchen's bottom line was at least 1 million taels per year, and Yan Liqiang added another 500,000 taels to this bottom line.
"Hahaha, your majesty and I were right about you. Li Qiang, you really know the big picture and are loyal..." Sun Bingchen said approvingly, "Now many people are jealous of the Qiyun Guardian Office and submit memorials to the cabinet every day. In this way, although it seems that you, Li Qiang, have paid a little money, you have actually saved a lot of trouble, leaving those people speechless. That money can just be used to shut those people up. You can also report less of the annual income of the Manufacturing Bureau to the outside world, so that others will have even less to say..."
"I see. Thank you for your reminder, sir!" Seeing that Sun Bingchen was in a good mood, Yan Liqiang seized the opportunity to ask about the newspaper. "By the way, I just came to the Imperial Capital this time and heard that many people in the Han Empire Times newspaper were arrested. As you know, I founded that newspaper and I recruited those arrested people into the newspaper. They are all old acquaintances of mine. For example, Fang Beidou is my friend. I wonder what they did wrong and why they were arrested?"
(End of this chapter)