manynovel Chapter 408: No Old Minister in the Court Can Compare to Jiang Youzhen
Chapter 408: No Old Minister in the Court Can Compare to Jiang Youzhen
"Do you know how much silver it takes to build a Grand Canal? At least one or two million taels. Who will pay for so much silver?"
The second prince shook his head repeatedly.
"It's the same old saying, take from the people and give back to the people." Jiang Youzhen said after thinking for a while.
"Are you saying that we should raise funds in the same way as we did last time when we built the new Tongzhou Wharf?" The second prince frowned.
"Those merchants are not fools. They at least had shops last time. What about this time? Although the opening of the Grand Canal is good for them, it is not worth them spending so much money."
Jiang Youzhen shouldn't be so naive! The second prince was puzzled.
"Just for the sake of fame, they certainly won't be so generous, so we can only tempt them with benefits." Jiang Youzhen smiled.
"What benefits?" The second prince's heart moved.
"Jiangnan is extremely rich and has many specialties. Tea, silk, grain, etc. are all good ways to make money. Don't they want to sell all of these to various places? After the opening of the Grand Canal, it greatly saved their transportation costs and time."
"But this is not enough to make them pay so much money." The second prince was absolutely sober at this moment. No one would be so stupid, right? Free fundraising? If it were him, he would not be willing to do so either.
"Then we can relax the permission for caravans to go to the border and reduce taxes a bit."
The Second Prince immediately shook his head upon hearing this, "Impossible! Father will not agree. Nowadays, wars are frequent at the border, and the enemy country has repeatedly tested them. The soldiers and the people are overwhelmed, and a war is imminent."
"If the authority is relaxed, the number of people going to the border will be too diverse, and they will be exploited by those with ulterior motives, which will be detrimental to stabilizing the situation at the border."
The second prince felt that Jiang Youzhen did not understand the situation at the border. The situation was so serious that anyone who made such a suggestion would definitely be rejected by his father.
"That's what I mean. Your Highness, instead of opening up the border trade, how about relaxing the tea ban? Wouldn't that be easier to accept?"
Jiang Youzhen looked at the second prince, only to see that he looked a little confused.
"Tea ban?" The second prince pondered for a long time and shook his head.
"That's unlikely. Tea has always been in the hands of the imperial court because those barbarians outside the Great Wall need tea, and the profit from tea is huge. Father will not agree. Losing such a huge profit from tea for the sake of the canal is not worth it."
The second prince rejected it again, but Jiang Youzhen's next words made his heart beat faster.
"I didn't say that the tea ban would be lifted completely! If we just loosen up a little bit for those merchants who collect donations and strictly restrict where they can sell their tea, the weight, quality, and age of the tea, wouldn't they flock to it?"
The second prince's eyes sparkled, brighter than night pearls.
"There is a time limit. In this way, the authority will be taken back when the time comes, and the control will still be in the hands of the court. If they are sent to the border, part of it will be returned to the government, and the rest will be allowed to be sold privately. In this way, the government can save manpower and material resources, and also save time. Isn't it killing two birds with one stone?"
"Plus, the opening of the Grand Canal will make things more convenient for them. If we give them some lower taxes or other privileges, I don't believe they won't be tempted."
Jiang Youzhen said
My mouth was dry, so I picked up the teacup and wanted to take a sip, but unexpectedly, my wrist was tightly grasped by a big hand.
The tea spilled and wet Jiang Youzhen's sleeves. Jiang Youzhen frowned, but the second prince said three times in a row, "Wonderful! So wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!"
"It's hot! Don't get excited, let go." Jiang Youzhen felt as if his hand was clamped by a pair of pliers and it began to hurt.
"I was right about you. You really have a way."
The second prince grinned with his mouth full of white teeth, which almost reached behind his ears.
"Don't worry, I will definitely ask my father for credit for you this time. That's great!"
The second prince reached out and put the tea bowl in Jiang Youzhen's hand on the table, then grabbed Jiang Youzhen's shoulders and shook him hard.
"What's wrong with your head?" The second prince was so excited. He thought that ten veteran ministers in the court could not compare to Jiang Youzhen!
"Stop shaking, or you'll become stupid!" Jiang Youzhen was speechless.
I still miss that moody and unruly prince!
"No! I have to go back to the capital immediately and cannot be slower than the fourth prince." The second prince let go of Jiang Youzhen and wanted to leave, but he stopped.
He sighed, "Oh! What a pity!"
"What a pity?" Jiang Youzhen straightened the jade belt on his head. These crazy princes were really unbearable.
"If you were already an official, you would have been promoted several levels with these, but now it's gone to someone else."
Jiang Youzhen curled his lips, "It's nothing. As long as you have brains, you can get things done."
She didn't want to say that she read the court bulletin over and over again every day, wanting to stare holes into every word.
"Do you have any other ideas?" The second prince's eyes lit up in an instant.
"No!" Jiang Youzhen immediately shook his head.
"That's right! Biting off more than you can chew."
The second prince immediately thought of something, and then said: "I am not as stingy as the fourth prince, and I will not repay kindness with enmity."
He paced in the study. "Well, I can bring this up at the court meeting, but if I write your name on the memorial, it would be a bit too deliberate."
Jiang Youzhen tilted his head and thought, "Then I have an idea. Your Highness is currently returning to Tongzhou Prefecture to supervise the construction of the new dock. Then it is natural that the one who is close to the water will get the moon first."
The second prince also thought of it and immediately said, "This plan is feasible, but my father is suspicious by nature. If he suspects you, I can't do anything about it."
"So what if I doubt you? As long as it's useful, I won't give up even if I doubt you. It's easy to capture a small farmer boy like me, isn't it?" Jiang Youzhen smiled self-deprecatingly.
"You are quite self-aware." The Second Prince smiled, "But you are not someone who can be easily fooled when you give advice to the Fourth Prince."
Here we go again! The Second Prince really holds a grudge!
A figure suddenly appeared in Jiang Youzhen's mind, and her brain was working rapidly.
I originally wanted to investigate his purpose. Isn't this a good opportunity?
"Does your Highness recognize that Luye hermit?"
"You mean Pan Changye? Of course I know him. He has some knowledge, but it's nothing. But the Pan family behind him is quite powerful. Although he is just a side branch, he has a big tree to lean on and has connections. What? You want to become his disciple?"
Jiang Youzhen really wanted to reply that he was not qualified enough for him to be his disciple.
Jiang Youzhen then asked about the Pan family, and the second prince gave a brief introduction.
It turned out that the Pan family was a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River. Their ancestors had been appointed as the Imperial Censor of Salt and had held real power.
Nowadays, there are still people from the Pan family working in the Ministry of Revenue, and several family members are officials in the court. Although none of them have high ranks, two of them hold real power.
"No wonder he is so rampant!" Jiang Youzhen sneered.
The Second Prince calmly sat down again, "Why? Did he offend you?"
"It's not really an offense, but has the Pan family joined anyone's army?"
Jiang Youzhen stared at the second prince closely. Could it be such a coincidence?
Fortunately, the Second Prince shook his head and said, "At present, I haven't found any close relationship with any faction."
Jiang Youzhen nodded, then smiled brightly, "Then it's him!"