Yang Zhumu looked at his nephew's dazed look and laughed, "How come you are as surprised as I was when I heard the news? This doesn't seem like the son of the Minister of Revenue."
Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, it feels especially good to say it out loud. The Yang family also has a relative who is an official in Beijing, and he is Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. My son is great, and my brother-in-law is very capable. Who knows, he might be promoted to the second rank one day.
Chang Yi digested the news and his mouth widened. This was really a great joyous event. "Uncle, let's not talk at the city gate."
"Yes, yes, your aunt is still waiting at home. Since she received the letter you sent today, she has urged me to wait at the city gate since early morning. I have already drunk two pots of tea."
Chang Yi smiled and said, "Uncle, please come with me in the carriage!"
Yang Zhumu: "Okay."
In the capital, Zhou Shuren and the Shangshu arrived at the Zheng Palace. The emperor was meeting with the Minister of War. After waiting for a while, the Minister of War came out from the inner room. He did not go out directly, but ran towards Lord Xiao.
Xiao Qing smiled, "Master Li, what a coincidence!"
Lord Li, the Minister of War, was puzzled. In recent days, he would block Xiao Qing whenever he had the chance, but Xiao Qing would run away every time. Even if he was blocked, Xiao Qing would have a bitter face, as if saying, "I really have no money. You will kill me if you ask for money." But today, he actually greeted him with a smile!
Lord Li frowned, "Do you have silver?"
Xiao Qing's mouth twitched. Except for the Ministry of Industry, which was at the bottom of the list, all the other departments asked for money when they met him. There was no politeness at all. They were really direct, "No."
"Then what are you laughing at? Don't think that I won't mention the silver just because you're laughing at me. Xiao Qing, the army is about to return to the capital, you can't let the soldiers down."
Xiao Qing's face darkened. "Lord Li, this is serious. You are all trying to get money every day. Do you really think I am guarding a mountain of gold? Hurry up and leave. I am annoyed when I see you now."
Xiao Qing felt a heart attack. The words of the Minister of Personnel were like a sharp knife in the mouth. Although Lord Li from the Ministry of War looked tall and strong, he was quite cunning. The Minister of Rites was polite when they met and did not hesitate when asking for money. After counting carefully, it was found that those who asked for money were not on good terms with the Ministry of Revenue!
Lord Li snorted. Just when he was willing to stop this old fox, he was also worried when he saw the number of casualties. The Ministry of Revenue was poor, and the Ministry of War was even poorer. The Ministry of War did not have any money at all!
Eunuch Liu came out and said, "Your Majesty, please invite Lord Xiao and Lord Zhou in."
Lord Li's eyes fell on Zhou Shuren. This man who came to Beijing was not low-key. His eyes lit up a bit, especially when he saw the memorial in Old Man Xiao's hand. He laughed and said, "Old Xiao, we have known each other for many years. If you have money, you must think of me first!"
Xiao Qing pretended not to hear and walked into the inner room.
Zhou Shuren followed him, but didn't move. He looked at his arm, "Sir?"
Lord Li relied on his height and strength to pull Zhou Shuren to a corner and whispered, "Do you have the silver?"
Eunuch Liu coughed, and Lord Li loosened his hand and patted Zhou Shuren on the shoulder, "Haha, I have always wanted to meet Lord Zhou, and I am so excited to see you today. Lord Zhou, we must have tea together when we have time."
Zhou Shuren only felt pain in one place. His fragile body hurt so much that his shoulder suddenly hurt. "Definitely."
Eunuch Liu felt heartbroken when he saw Lord Li's big hand. He looked at Lord Zhou with sympathy. Lord Zhou was so skinny that he couldn't bear to look at him.
Seeing that Lord Li had finally left, Zhou Shuren let out a breath and moved his shoulder. Well, it still hurts, it should be bruised.
Eunuch Liu moved his mouth but finally said nothing. The Minister of War was not someone to be trifled with, so he just pretended not to see it. Well, he didn't see it.
In the inner room, the Emperor was reading memorials, and Lord Xiao was chatting with the Crown Prince.
The prince smiled and said, "Master Zhou, please sit here."
Zhou Shuren, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Xiao Qing couldn't tell anything from Zhou Shuren's face, and he didn't want to ask Lord Li in the main hall to embarrass Zhou Shuren. Having said that, Zhou Shuren's smile seemed to have never changed!
The emperor quickly read through the memorial. His expectation was right. Zhou Shuren was indeed smart. "Not a bad idea."
Xiao Qing smiled and said, "Jewelry is easy to deal with. Just pack it up and give it to the merchants."
The emperor looked at Zhou Shuren, "What do you say?"
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Zhou Shuren coughed and said, "The jewelry stored in the Ministry of Revenue is not worth much silver. It is indeed suitable to be packaged and sold to sea merchants. I think we can first release the news of the tax increase, and then release the news that the Ministry of Revenue will deal with the jewelry. If anyone's price is reasonable, the tax increase can be exempted for half a year."
The tax increase in half a year is not small. Large maritime traders can save a lot of money in half a year. Half a year is enough for two short-distance trips, and the tax for a long-distance trip is always a considerable amount of money.
The emperor looked at Zhou Shuren with amusement, "My dear minister, please continue."
Zhou Shuren continued, "The major maritime merchants will definitely compete for it. They know what the most appropriate price is. And with this incident as a lead, the major maritime merchants will get involved, so raising taxes will be a natural thing."
This is a suitable price. The major sea traders have people behind them to support them. They are not short of money and can also take the opportunity to please the emperor. There must be someone willing to pay more money. There is no need to explain this to the emperor, he must know it.
The Emperor said, "My dear, you are indeed suitable for the Ministry of Revenue. Xiao Qing, I have given you a good helper."
Xiao Qing smiled and said, "I thank the emperor."
I thought to myself, Zhou Shuren's mind is really complicated, and I've achieved multiple goals at once, not bad, not bad.
The prince ignored Zhou Shuren. He felt that if he didn't want to suffer as much as his father when he ascended the throne, he must have a Minister of Revenue who was particularly good at making money.
Zhou Shuren was silent. "Prince, please stop staring at me. I feel a chill on my back. I am even starting to doubt whether I have done something wrong to myself."
Thinking back carefully, it’s no problem to kill two birds with one stone!
In Lizhou City, Chang Yi arrived at Yang's house. Chang Yi entered the yard and said, "Uncle, there haven't been many changes at home!"
The same number of servants came this time as last time.
Yang Zhumu said, "Your eldest brother-in-law is just a low-ranking military commander. We can't compare to your Zhou family. Look at your pomp and show. You travel light, but you have seven or eight servants. We can't compare."
I saved some money when my father was alive, but after he passed away, the family was divided and half was given to my second brother. The annual income is not as high as before. The annual expenses and the growing up of the grandchildren also require money. Just hiring a teacher costs a lot of money a year, and with the expenses of the whole family, I can only save a little money in a year.
These silvers cannot be touched yet. The granddaughter's dowry and the grandson's betrothal gift all require money. Yes, there are also personal relationships. It is good enough that the Yang family can maintain the status quo.
Chang Yi laughed dryly. The Yang family was indeed not as good as the Zhou family. His family had an extremely powerful father, and a mother who was always adding to the family's wealth.
Yang Wuchun walked in with a smile, "Cousin Changyi is here."
Chang Yi, "Cousin, aren't you busy?"
"My cousin is here. I rushed back to take care of things. Did you have a smooth journey?"