"A thousand taels of gold, a hundred bolts of high-quality silk, a pair of jade bracelets…"
Just this?
Just this?
After reading the imperial edict Fang Xuanling handed over, Qin Feng rolled his eyes and casually threw it to Fang Xuanling.
Fang Xuanling's mouth twitched. He glanced at Li Shiming, but he didn't see any reaction from him. He then put away the imperial edict.
"Li Lao Er is really stingy!"
“……”
"Actually, the Great Tang's treasury is empty now, and there really isn't much that can be taken out. These are all things that His Majesty has been thrifty in giving to Young Master Qin.”
Qin Feng squinted his eyes. These words were a little funny.
"The Great Tang is prosperous, but there's nothing in the treasury. Do you still want Li Shimin to scrimp and save for this?”
"Failure, Li Lao Er, the emperor, has failed too much!”
Fang Xuanling lost his temper and looked at Li Shiming weakly. Li Shiming's expression was a little awkward.
Li Shimin explained," His Majesty is benevolent and is unwilling to compete with the people for benefits. The taxes collected are mostly taken from the people and used by the people. Although there are some flaws, they can't be overshadowed, right?”
Li Yuan pursed his lips. He really dared to flatter himself.
Qin Feng looked at Li Shi Min strangely,"How much did Li Lao Er give you to make you willing to be his troll army?"”
Li Shi Min: "???"
"I'll settle the score for you."”
"I'm all ears."
"Salt and iron have always been sold by the government. I don't need to say much about the profits, right?”
"The tens of millions of people in the Great Tang cultivate a vast area, so how much food do they have? Putting everything else aside, just the grain in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai was enough to support a war with the Turks, right?”
"Let's talk about business. The government doesn't compete with the people for profits. Alright, if Old Second Li doesn't do business, what about the customs duties? There were so many merchants in the Great Tang that even a thousand-percent discount would be enough to pay an army of a million soldiers, much less a hundred-percent discount!”
"Now that you're telling me that the national treasury is empty, where did the money and food go? Is it Li Lao Er's problem, or is it your problem?”
Qin Feng's words rendered Li Shi Min and Li Shi Min speechless.
In this way, the Great Tang was indeed quite rich, but the problem was, where did the money go?
"Young Master Qin, you've forgotten that since the founding of the Great Tang, natural disasters have occurred one after another. It's hard for the people to recuperate."”
"Bullshit! Even if there was a disaster every year, what about the grain produced in other places? If you say that someone is greedy, I'll believe you. Blame it on the natural disaster.”
"Who dares to be so bold?" Li Shi Min's face darkened.”
"Three years to clear the magistrate, 100,000 snowflake silver!" Qin Feng sneered.”
Li Shiming and Li Shimin were furious.”
Qin Feng waved his hand." What's the rush? If an official doesn't earn money, who would want to cut their heads and climb up?"”
The two of them fell silent.
Although the Great Tang was not a place where all things were inferior except for reading, the style of writing was becoming more and more prominent. Which scholar did not want to be named on the Golden Roll and be conferred the title of Marquis?
"You're right," Li Shi Min said in a deep voice,"I'll definitely report this to His Majesty when I return and investigate the corrupt officials!"”
Qin Feng chuckled." Corrupted officials can't be killed cleanly. As long as they are willing to do things, what's the point of giving them some benefits?"”
"Ridiculous!" Since he was an official, he must benefit the people. How could he fill his own pockets?”
Qin Feng glanced at him from the corner of his eyes. He felt that this person was a little chuunibyou. Now, it seems that it was indeed true.
Fang Xuanling coughed and asked,""Corrupted officials must be punished, but I believe that the officials of the Great Tang are not too corrupt.”
Qin Feng nodded in agreement." This is all thanks to Old Second Li. He established the country with martial arts and his personal charm is not bad. There shouldn't be too many corrupt officials. If there are, they are officials in some remote places with a lot of money.”
Li Shi Min's face was filled with pride as he finally heard a compliment from Qin Feng.
Fang Xuanling: " Young Master Qin is right. Firstly, the mountains are high and the emperor is far away. He can't control them. Secondly, there are too many benefits. It really makes people unable to sleep at night.”
"Of course. Corrupted officials are just trivial matters. Which dynasty hasn't had them? The most important thing is…"
Qin Feng stretched his body. Suddenly, his eyes lit up."He took the bait!"
Li Shiming and Li Shimin were speechless.
Whoosh!
"Good heavens, this one should weigh ten catties!”
Qin Feng's face lit up with joy, while Li Shi Min and the other two scratched their ears and cheeks.
Tell me, what's the most important thing!
"Young Master, mighty!"
"Stop flattering me. Hurry up."
Whoosh!
The bait entered the water.
Qin Feng laid down again and picked up a bunch of grapes.
"Qin Feng, what else do you have to say?" Li Shi Min couldn't wait any longer.”
"What?"
Qin Feng was stunned for a moment before he slapped his forehead."Oh, oh, oh, right. The most important thing is, of course, the tenants.”
"Tenants?"
"Which wealthy gentry doesn't have a few hundred acres of land?”
"That's true, but what's the problem?”
"Is the grain given to Li Er or the gentry?”
In an instant, Li Shi Min and Li Shi Min understood the meaning behind it.
Even if the Great Tang had many people and vast farmlands, once these lands fell into the hands of the wealthy gentry, they would have nothing to do with the national treasury even if they produced a lot of grain.
The gentry and wealthy families, the high officials and dignitaries, only paid so much!
"What a wake-up call!"
Li Shi Min sighed.
The Great Tang's annual income was far greater than the Great Sui, but every time it encountered a natural or man-made disaster, the national treasury would be emptied in an instant.
Li Shi Min was also extremely distressed. Why was the Great Tang more prosperous than the Great Sui, but had no money or food?
Now, everything was clear.
Fang Xuanling's heart turned cold as he looked at Qin Feng in disbelief.
This kid really dared to say anything!
This was a drastic measure!
If His Majesty really did this, it would undoubtedly be digging the lives of the gentry and wealthy families. Root!
Qin Feng smiled and glanced at Li Shiming. If this guy really dared to say it, I'm afraid that every gentry and wealthy family would want to burn his bones and scatter his ashes!
"Actually, I have another question…"
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