Having said that, Madam Liu had no choice but to be relieved. What else could she do? She responded quietly and discussed with Liu Biping about saving her sister: "I know it's not easy for you to intervene now, and I don't expect you to save her, but... can you try to save her life..."
Liu Biping became irritated when he mentioned this matter. He laughed and said self-deprecatingly, "If I had this ability, why would Luo Yuan run away? Now the court has changed. Since the Yi family and the Peng family got into trouble, I have been unlucky. After Xia Song stepped down, those officials were replaced completely. Those who had a relationship with me fell, and those who had nothing to do with me were praying at home. At this time, can I still reach out to the court? You think too highly of me. If I had this ability, I wouldn't have to worry about Shen Chen!"
Don’t make promises about things you shouldn’t do, especially to people close to you at home, because you never know when this may become a hidden danger.
He knew how his wife felt about his sister, so he simply said the ugly words up front.
Mrs. Liu was indeed stunned by his words and didn't come back to her senses for a long time.
Seeing this, he said softly, "I am already exhausted from dealing with the court. There is really nothing I can do about the rest. Please understand me."
Having said this, Mrs. Liu had nothing more to say and could only nod.
Liu Biping then said, "Although it is impossible to save her, but... the children are always innocent. I will find a way to bring the children here. You can treat them as your own children and do them justice."
Mrs. Liu was still unhappy, but she had to agree quietly.
Liu Biping stood up and went to see his son. After seeing his son, he went to the study room outside to discuss matters.
Several staff members were already waiting in the study. When they saw him, they stood up and saluted. He waved his hand to excuse them and asked, "How are the preparations for welcoming the imperial envoy going?"
One of the staff members named Hu said, "It's almost done. The Maritime Customs Office has not been opened for a long time, and now it is suddenly reopened. Many big merchants are eager to try it out."
Liu Biping then fixed his eyes on him, seeming confused: "Why are you so eager to try?"
When Mr. Hu saw him looking at him, he knew that he was interested, so he quickly told him the results of his research: "To the minister, those big businessmen think that opening the sea will be profitable, and they are all looking forward to the imperial envoy..."
In fact, there are indeed a lot of profits to be made by opening up the sea.
Once the maritime ban is lifted, ships are needed, and ships require labor. In this way, the benefits for merchants who have ships, people and money will be extremely considerable.
No wonder they were talking about Shen Chen's arrival with great interest.
Liu Biping smiled and said, "What do you have to say?"
Since you can think of it, you must have a way to deal with it, so you came to tell him.
Mr. Hu followed up with, "Those big businessmen are from the aristocratic families of southern Fujian. They have complicated relationships, and the power of the southern Fujian clans is extremely strong..."
When he first arrived, even Liu Biping suffered losses at the hands of clan power. Because he did not know the market situation, he offended a noble family and was unable to move forward. He was in trouble for a long time.
If you offend them, your life will be difficult.
Liu Biping became interested and touched his chin to signal him, "Sir, continue."
Mr. Hu responded with a "yes" and said his analysis slowly: "The reason they have this attitude towards the arrival of the imperial envoy is simply because they think the imperial envoy can bring them benefits. But if the imperial envoy cannot... then they will not be as happy as they are now. After all, lifting the maritime ban will not benefit them, and it will also affect their interests. No one can accept this."
At this time, another staff member also took over the conversation: "Send someone to inform those big businessmen, let them know that the imperial envoy's visit is to cut off their livelihoods."
Mr. Hu knew that he could no longer speak half-heartedly, and nodded hurriedly: "If Shen Chen opens a maritime customs office, only official ships will be allowed to go to sea for trade. If private ships want to go to sea, they must exchange for a ship permit like exchanging a salt permit, and the price of this ship permit..."
If the profit is less than the cost, no one will be willing to do this business.
Shen Chen offended these noble families as soon as he arrived. He will be isolated and helpless and will be at their mercy.
Even Liu Biping couldn't help but curl his lips.
This method is feasible.
Only things related to interests are the best driving force. Those businessmen will embarrass Shen Chen without anyone telling them.
He didn't want to fall out with the court, nor did he want to surrender to the Prince of Jin - the Prince of Jin was already showing signs of decline, and he wouldn't be so stupid as to wade into this muddy water at this time.
But he also knew that the court would not let him go easily, especially since Shen Chen had already formed a blood feud with him.
Therefore, the only way was to prevent Shen Chen from completing this task. Then he would write to the court again to express his loyalty and run the Maritime Customs Office on his own. The court would not pursue the matter too much out of respect for this.
Now we have to deal with Shen Chen at all costs.
He nodded and glanced at Mr. Hu. "In that case, I'll let you handle this matter. The Imperial Envoy's ship will arrive soon. You must stay at the dock every day. Don't make any mistakes. It would be bad if you neglect the Imperial Envoy."
Mr. Hu responded quickly.
As they were discussing, a clerk knocked on the door and said that Lord Cheng from Zhejiang wanted to see him.
Liu Biping thought for a moment and said, "Master Cheng, please wait in the hall. I will be there soon."
He glanced at Mr. Hu and the others, fiddled with the tea lid for a while, and then said, "Old Cheng is here to borrow grain from me on behalf of Zhejiang. In your opinion, should we lend him this grain or not?"
He had been dealing with Lord Cheng in a perfunctory manner these past few days. In fact, he had not made up his mind and didn't know whether he should lend the grain or not.
Mr. Hu and another staff member looked at each other and nodded at the same time: "At this time, the adults will naturally borrow it."
Mr. Hu said this, and then he said, "Military expenses can be raised sooner or later, but Zhejiang is the most important. Your Excellency used to think that at worst he could surrender to the King of Jin, but now that he has changed his mind, he can no longer sit on the sidelines as before. He must first let the court see your intentions."
Liu Biping himself knew this truth, but he was really unsure in his heart - he had done too many things and was greedy for too many things, and the court might not be willing to let him go.
This is also the reason why he wants to throw the jar into the ground.
Although I want to turn back now, I still have to see if I can still get to this shore.
He still needs to think about it first.