Fenghou

The Song Dynasty did not suppress land annexation from the beginning of the founding of the country. The Song Dynasty unified the world very smoothly. The fundamental reason was that it did not touch the interests of powerful and separatist forces in various places and won the support of powerful landlords in various places. From the Five Dynasties to the Song Dynasty, the land has always been in the hands of the powerful and powerful. In the hands of the government, it is difficult for local governments to collect taxes on land, and land tax revenue has not always been the bulk of the Song Dynasty's fiscal and tax revenue.

This also forced the rule of the Song Dynasty to vigorously develop commerce, so as to obtain commercial tax as fiscal revenue. This is an important reason for the high development of the commodity economy in the Song Dynasty.

Salt tax and wine tax have always been the biggest tax revenues of the imperial court. Of course, there are government-run mining industries and overseas trade, etc., so the flood of illegal salt will undoubtedly make up for the imperial court, which is increasingly struggling with financial revenue. It seems that the amount of military salary has to be paid, which will drive the emperor Zhao Gou crazy.

Zhao Gou issued a strict order to Meihuawei, to clean up the private salt in the Jiangnan area within one month, otherwise the Meihuawei will be disbanded.

This almost cost the life of Plum Blossom Guard. Everyone is mobilized from top to bottom. Everyone is busy cleaning up illegal salt, and extortion is temporarily ignored.

In the official office of King Yong's special envoy, Yan Xin, the commander of the Meihua Guard, visited the special envoy Lu Gang. Of course, Yan Xin had sufficient reasons to suspect that the private salt was related to the Yong Kingdom. The rise of private salt coincided with the time when Fujian Road was occupied by the Western Army. If it wasn't for the kingdom of Yong secretly selling salt, how could the private salt in the south of the Yangtze River be flooded so quickly?

Lu Gang understood Yan Xin's euphemistic and implicit expression, and he smiled and said, "Why didn't Yan Dutong just say it outright, asking us not to sell salt in the Jiangnan area?"

Yan Hard smiled and said: "Some things can't be said too bluntly, as long as Special Envoy Lu understands what I mean, that's fine."

"But Yan Dutong didn't have any evidence. He just took it for granted that we were selling salt in Jiangnan."

"This... I was also forced by the emperor to have no choice. If there is any offence, please forgive me!"

Lu Gang said coldly: "I understand Yan Dutong's difficulties, but I can tell Yan Dutong frankly that I have never heard of Yongguo or the Western Army selling salt in the Jiangnan area, and I can also tell Yan Dutong responsibly. Tong, we don't have this idea, the flood of private salt in the south of the Yangtze River has nothing to do with us, of course, if Yan Dutong is willing to listen, I can provide some clues."

Yan Xin quickly got up and saluted, "If Envoy Lu Te can provide you with clues, I will be very grateful!"

Lu Gang smiled slightly and said: "Since the year before last, we have been suppressing private salt dealers on Jiangnan West Road. We killed [-] of the thirteen private salt dealers, but there are still three private salt dealers from Jiangnan East Road. They escaped us, but we informed your Yantie Supervisor, Li Zengping from Xuanzhou, Luo Zhi from Ningguo Mansion, and Lu Guang from Health Mansion. The three salt lords are still at large.”

Yan Xin took a breath and said, "Could it be that the three of them are responsible for the flood of private salt?"

Lu Gang shook his head, "Things are not that simple. Even if they are making waves in the Jiangnan area, who will provide them with a source of private salt? Also, who will distribute it for them in various places? These salt lords are just middlemen. The source and the end are like a net of selling branches."

"I implore Special Envoy Lu for further guidance!"

Lu Gang said indifferently: "I can't talk about advice, it's just a little common sense. With the skills of the three salt lords, they are more active in a few states at most, but they spread to the entire Jiangnan in just half a year. Think about it, Yan Dutong, who can do it?" Has such a great ability?"

Even though Yan Xin was relatively dull, he also understood, "What does the special envoy mean, collusion between government and business?"

"I'm just guessing, but I don't have any evidence. This matter has nothing to do with us. In fact, it's easy to catch illegal salt. Yan Dutong might as well go back and torture the housekeeper in his house. Where did he buy the salt? One point, trace back to where the goods were purchased from, and find the second point, and then trace back to the third point, and trace it back one by one. I believe that within a few days, we can find Lin'an Mansion. Who is the private salt boss?"

Yan Xin scratched his head and said, "I checked our family's accounts, and the price of our salt is official salt, and we didn't buy private salt."

Lu Gang laughed, "Spend the money of private salt and report it to the account of official salt. This is the reason why private salt is flooding, and it is profitable!"

Yan Xin's face suddenly became extremely ugly. Could it be that the housekeeper dared to greed his own money?

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

Lu Gang laughed again: "Don't misunderstand Yan Dutong, I didn't investigate your family, but we have learned that many rich and powerful families are like this, so guessing that the same is true of your family is just a guess, it is not true. Evidence, don't blame if you guess wrong!"

Yan Xin stood up and cupped his fists and said, "Anyway, I would like to thank Special Envoy Lu for the clues, and I assure Special Envoy Lu that the Plum Blossom Guard will not harass newspaper offices and teahouses!"

He saluted, turned around to say goodbye, and when he walked to the door, he hesitated and asked again: "Surely it has nothing to do with the Western Army?"

Lu Gang said indifferently: "We don't need to do such lowly things to ruin our reputation."

Yan Xin smiled awkwardly, clasped his fists in salute, and walked away quickly.

Lu Gang watched his back go away, shook his head, and told the left and right: "Prepare the car and go to Changfeng Teahouse!"

Not long after, Lu Gang came to Changfeng Teahouse in a carriage. It was almost noon, and the street was hot like a fire, but the teahouses were full of tea customers. Ice cubes were placed in the walls of Changfeng Teahouse. It's very cool, and it's full of friends from morning till night.

The imperial court also knew that Changfeng Teahouse was an intelligence station of the Western Army, and the two parties signed an agreement. The existence of the intelligence station was limited to the collection of public information, and did not involve secrets, assassinations, arson and other vicious incidents. Similarly, the intelligence station in Lin'an, Jingzhao, was also safe and sound.

The intelligence station opened this Changfeng teahouse to collect public information, understand public opinion, and grasp the social dynamics of the Song Dynasty. Making money is not important, so you only order a cup of tea, even if you sit for a day, the teahouse will not drive people away.

The teahouse was full of tea customers, and all the seats were occupied. Several waiters were busy running back and forth. Of course, except for Bai Yuxuan, this elegant room was reserved by Hu Yun at the beginning. The lock does not open.

When Lu Gang came to Bai Yuxuan, he found that Wang Mu had arrived first. Lu Gang sat down and said with a smile, "It's such a hot day, I thought Brother Shaofu wouldn't come."

After getting along for a long time, Lu Gang and Wang Mu gradually became acquainted, and they were not as stiff as they were at first.

Wang Mu smiled slightly and said, "I want to have lunch too! If I don't come, I will starve."

Lu Gang chuckled, "Me too, I'm used to coming here for lunch every day, and if I don't come, I feel like I haven't done anything."

The staff came to serve them food, the two of them ate and ordered tea, Lu Gang took a sip of tea and said, "Yan Xin came to see me this morning."

Wang Mu smiled slightly and said, "But for private salt?"

"How does Brother Shaofu know?"

Wang Mu shook his head, "The entire Plum Blossom Guard is searching for illegal salt, and it's very frustrating. Apart from this, I can't think of anything else Yan Xin has to do?"

Lu Gang sneered and said, "It's true that he did it for the flood of private salt, but he actually asked us to stop selling salt in the Jiangnan area."

"He suspects that we did it?" Wang Mu asked in surprise.

Lu Gang spread his hands, "What do you think they are here for?"

Wang Mu thought for a while and said, "But it's normal for them to be suspicious. We are indeed the biggest beneficiaries of creating a financial crisis for the imperial court."

Lu Gang said lightly: "We didn't do it, so we have to make it clear, there is no need to blame others."

"That's right, there is no need for us to do this kind of thing anymore. I heard that His Highness is patrolling Fujian Road now?"

Lu Gang was surprised: "How do you know?"

"A businessman was talking about it just now!"

The shopkeeper, Dong An, walked in with a smile, "Businessmen are often the first to know about this kind of news, and they are the most well-informed."

Lu Gang nodded, "His Royal Highness is indeed inspecting Fujian Road, but it should be over now. The reason why the news is blocked is to worry that the court will jump over the wall. After all, he is not in Jingzhao, and many things are unpredictable."

Dong An sat down and said: "Zou Shuan came this morning and said that something happened in the palace."

Zou Shuan was the scoundrel who had just become Marquis of Plum Blossom Guard Yu, the elder brother of Yan Xin's concubine. He was coerced and lured by Dong An and became the intelligence station's eyes and ears. Under Yan Xin's arrangement, he entered the palace as the plum blossom guard Yuhou, secretly monitoring the palace maids, eunuchs and palace guards.

"What news?" Lu Gang asked.

"The emperor and the queen mother fell out."

"why?"

"I heard that Wanyan Zongxian of the Kingdom of Jin died. The queen mother wanted to take Wanyan Zongxian's two sons to Lin'an and make them kings. Of course the emperor refused to agree, and the two fell out."

Lu Gang frowned, "It's not that simple!"

Wang Mu smiled and said: "I also heard a piece of news, it should be the other half of this matter, or because the court's financial constraints, the court wanted the emperor to take part of the money from the inner treasury, but the emperor refused, so he ran to find the queen mother , asked the queen mother to give out 200 million coins, but the queen mother refused, I guess the queen mother wants to take the opportunity to get the two sons of Beidi back, so this is the condition for paying the money."

Dong An smiled and said, "That's right, but this matter is a scandal! How could the emperor agree?"

Lu Gang thought for a while and said: "It can be flexible, for example, if you are not in Lin'an, arrange it in Jiangning Mansion or Pingjiang Mansion. I think that as long as the Son of Heaven can get the money, he may agree if he is flexible."

Wang Mu pondered for a moment and said, "Special Envoy Lu said, should the Beijing News publish this matter?"

Lu Gang smiled slightly and said: "It can be published, but we have to wait until the raw rice is cooked and cooked. If it is too early, it will startle the snake."

Wang Mu and Dong An looked at each other, and they found that Lu Gang was more and more like Hu Yun.

……

Yan Xin's mansion is located in the west of the city. At this time, Yan Xin was furious and beat the second housekeeper with a whip.

How could Yan Xin not be angry? The second butler was in charge of purchasing the ingredients. He bought 240 Wen a catty of private salt, but he was charged [-] Wen a catty. He was greedy for [-] Wen per catty. After half a year, he bought hundreds of catties. , Calculate how much money he has embezzled?

It's just salt, and there are other ingredients, all of which are the most expensive, which drive Yan Xin crazy.

He grabbed the second housekeeper's skirt and said viciously: "How much money you have been greedy for me, spit out every penny left, or I will chop off your head and use it as a urinal!"

"I'll pay!"

The second steward cried and said, "I will hand over everything."

"Also, tell me honestly, where did you buy the private salt?"

"Yes... yes..." The second housekeeper dared not speak timidly.

"If you don't say anything, I will treat you as a private salt dealer!"

"Yes... I bought it from Feng Ji Dry Goods Store."

"what?"

Yan Xin was startled, and asked anxiously, "But Feng Daji's dry goods store?"

"Exactly!"

Yan Xin gasped, who is Feng Daji?Everyone in Lin'an knows that Concubine Feng De's father, who was named the King of Guangling County, actually sells private salt by his relatives. No wonder private salt suddenly spread in the south of the Yangtze River. It really has something to do with the rich and powerful.

At this time, a subordinate ran into the gate and said, "Dutong, the emperor sent someone to announce the decree and call Dutong into the palace!"

Yan Xin nodded, and said to the big housekeeper: "Prison this fellow and make him spit out all the money, otherwise he will be sent directly to the Plum Blossom Camp and punished for collaborating with the enemy!"

After explaining, he hurried to the palace.

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

Although the weather was scorching hot, the meeting hall of the Imperial Study Room felt a bit chilly. This chill was not the effect of placing ice cubes, but the chill brought about by discussing topics.

The imperial court's finances are exhausted, and they can't pay their salaries, nor can they pay their military salaries. It's hard for a smart woman to live without rice. It's rare for several prime ministers to have a unified opinion, and they put pressure on the emperor together, asking the emperor to take money from the internal treasury to solve the immediate financial crisis .

Of course, the emperor's internal treasury is rich. Last year, he forcibly issued 700 million guanzi to wealthy businessmen from all over the country. The imperial court got 1000 million guan, and the remaining 700 million went into the internal treasury.

Usually there is income from Huangzhuang, rental income from hundreds of houses in various places, and wine tax sharing, etc., there are at least one million yuan a year, and it has lasted for so many years. Imagine how much money is in the emperor's inner treasury?

Zhao Gou said hoarsely: "I remember that there are still a lot of light goods in Zuo Zang's warehouse, which can be sold for money."

Light goods refer to valuables such as cloth, silk, satin, colored silk, porcelain, jade, lacquerware, etc. Xu Xiantu sighed and said, "I have counted all the light goods in the Zuo Zang warehouse, and the total income of all the light goods can probably be one million guan, but We have owed three months of military salary and hundreds of official salaries, which add up to 180 million guan, and there is still a gap of 80 guan. The warehouses in various places are empty. We have thought of all the ways we can think of, unless we sell official land and real estate , but even selling land and houses will take time, and now the water is far away and the near thirst cannot be quenched."

Zhao Gou was silent for a moment and said to Qin Hui: "I remember Qin Xianggong said last year that 3000 million guan can be issued, but in the end there were only 700 million guan. The gap is so big. What is the reason?"

Qin Hui was speechless, no matter what he said, the wealthy family ran away, but Qin Hui reacted very quickly and found a reason.

"Your Majesty, the minister said that the issuance of 3000 million Guanzi actually included a lot of unowned properties and land. Later, most of them became government property and were not sold. In addition, there was no time to issue clubs on Fujian Road..."

"Is there no potential to tap?" Zhao Gou asked again.

"Your Majesty, either you are a local wealthy family, or an official and dignitary."

"They can't touch them, they will shake the foundation of the country. What I mean is, spread out and spread out. There are more than a few wealthy businessmen in the world."

What Zhao Gou meant was, don't just stare at the rich and powerful, issue clubs to ordinary businessmen, and gather together to form a tower. He also knows that local rich and powerful families cannot be touched, officials and dignitaries cannot be touched, and the people at the bottom can't squeeze out oil and water, so they can only submit to them. The entire merchant class was under the knife.

Everyone is silent. Once the scope is enlarged, it may cause a strong public opinion backlash. No one can afford the consequences.

Zhao Gou ignored them, knocked on the table and said, "You guys have to find a way! Use a suitable excuse and opportunity to promote the meeting, businessmen! The court has supported them enough, now it's time for them to repay the court."

The issue came back to the original point. Even if the merchants are forced to issue clubs, they will not be able to get the money in a day or two.

But everyone also knew that the emperor proposed to expand the scope of issuance of Huizi because he was unwilling to spend money. At this time, Zhang Jun said: "Your Majesty, maybe we can use a compromise method to borrow a sum of money from the inner treasury by the imperial court. Return it to His Majesty immediately!"

Xu Xiantu also said: "Your Majesty, the soldiers have not been paid for two months. I heard that the Wenzhou garrison has shown signs of mutiny. If the salary is not paid, the situation will be beyond control."

Qin Hui also said: "Your Majesty, more than half of the officials and craftsmen from Shaofu Temple and the Military Weapons Supervision have left, and their whereabouts are unknown. Especially the craftsmen have not been paid for five months. If the problem is not solved, all the craftsmen will run away. I'm afraid we won't even be able to make a single bow." come out."

Zhao Gou had no choice but to compromise due to the continuous pressure from the Prime Ministers. He pondered for a while and said, "Forget it, let's use Zhang Aiqing's plan! I will pay the imperial court in advance, how much do I need?"

Everyone glanced at each other with happy faces, Qin Hui hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, at least 300 million guan is needed!"

Zhao Gou was stunned, "You want so much?"

Xu Xiantu said: "Your Majesty, we not only need to make up for what we owe for a few months, but we also need to keep two months in reserve. If the salt tax situation has not improved, I am afraid that two months will not be enough."

There was silence in the meeting hall, and the salt tax was the key. Without the source of taxation, it would only become a stagnant pool in the end, and in the end even the political power could not be maintained.

Zhao Gou suddenly asked angrily, "Why hasn't Yan Dutong come yet?"

The eunuch hurriedly said at the door: "Yan Dutong has arrived, wait outside!"

"Show him in immediately!"

After a while, Yan Xin, the commander of the Plum Blossom Guard, walked in quickly, knelt down on one knee and gave a military salute, "Your Majesty, my humble minister!"

"Sit down flat!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Yan Xin sat down on a chair beside her.

Zhao Gou asked, "How's the progress of the inspection of private salt?"

Yan Xin secretly rejoiced that he had found Lu Gang in the morning, otherwise he really wouldn't be able to answer.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, there is a little clue."

Zhao Gou was refreshed, and quickly asked: "Tell me, what clue?"

"Your Majesty, I have found three salt lords, Li Zengping from Xuanzhou, Luo Zhi from Ningguo Mansion, and Lu Guang from Health Mansion. They are the ones who transport the private salt from all over the south of the Yangtze River. I have sent people to investigate secretly. Find out where they are, and arrest them immediately once the location is determined!"