Cultivation of chastity

Chapter 71 Taxes on Water Transport
Li Shimin looked at Li Chengqian calmly, but simply felt that Li Chengqian was innocent.

After all, the current Li Chengqian is still obediently studying in the East Palace, and he doesn't have any obvious power in his hands.

The most important thing is that others don't know, don't you know Ma Zhou?

He was almost excavated and promoted by Li Tai all the way from Weimo, this kind of person would not betray under normal circumstances.

Otherwise, the foundation of gaining a foothold in the court will be lost, and people with normal IQ will not do this.

Li Shimin glanced at Dai Zhou, Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, who handed over the "Water Transport Theory", and said:
"Since this "Water Transport Theory" comes from Gaoling, let Xuan Gaoling County Magistrate and County Chancellor analyze it after the court meeting.

Wait until they come to discuss water transport, now discuss the next agenda! "

"Follow the order." Fang Xuanling came out and said, "Director Li Jing has finished rectifying the troops, and will return to Chang'an after receiving the order.

Director Li also stated that after the defeat of the Turks, he rescued the people who were captured by the Eastern Turks, and those who were attached to the Turks after hearing of the defeat of the Turks.

Now there are gradually 10,000+ people in Shuozhou, and some tribes from the East Turks have even volunteered to vote. How should these people be resettled? "

"Will it..." Li Shimin originally wanted to settle it nearby, but thought of the plan to attack Goguryeo in the future, so he asked Fang Xuanling:
"What does Ai Qing think?"

"I thought I could listen to the opinions of all the ministers!" Fang Xuanling said with a smile.

Soon, ministers came out to express their opinions, but most of the courtiers proposed to divide their species, move to the north and south of the Yellow River, and live in scattered counties and counties. Give it a little digest.

However, just as the topic was over, Wen Yanbo came out and said:

"I thought that the Xiongnu should be placed under the Wuyuan Fortress and placed in Shengzhou, Fengzhou, just like when Han Dynasty built Wuyuan. The ground, and the second shows the heart of no guessing."

"No! Please play!" Wei Zheng hurriedly came out when he heard Wen Yanbo's words,

"Turks have been a problem since ancient times, and it is difficult to manage. Settling in the interior is tantamount to a heartache. Raising animals is also a problem. It is a good strategy to let them station in the frontier and live in their old land!"

"We will teach him etiquette, choose his chieftain, and send him to live in Huaide, what's the problem?" Wen Yanbo couldn't help saying.

"The barbarians are not my kind, their hearts must be different, the strong will be bandits, weak and humble, disregarding kindness and righteousness, their nature is also." Wei Zheng looked at Wen Yanbo and couldn't help shouting angrily, "You forgot about the chaos of China! "

Seeing Wen Yanbo and Wei Zheng quarreling constantly, Li Shimin felt a little helpless, and said:

"In this way, the Han people can first move to Jinkou, Youzhou to resettle, and let the pharmacist make proper arrangements.

As for the matter of the Turkic tribe's attachment, there is still time, and it can be discussed first, and then properly resolved. "

"Next topic!" Li Shimin said, pressing his temple.

Dou Lukuan came out and said, "Spring plowing is imminent, please let the sage decide the time for this year's spring plowing ceremony"...

All in all, Li Shimin didn't have much respite in the morning, and everything was arranged.

At this time, Li Tai was drinking Zhuyeqing with Ma Zhou. Ma Zhou took a sip and said:

"Sanchun Bamboo Leaf Wine, a Kunniao chicken string. This Zhuyeqing really lives up to its reputation!"

"You can still be so contented, hand in your memorial, I'm afraid the court will come to you later!" Li Tai joked looking at Ma Zhou's leisurely look.

"It's not just me, even the king of Yue is afraid that he will have to go!" Ma Zhou sighed to Li Tai, "If you don't object to this memorial, the imperial court will definitely pass the tax money smoothly, and it will be damaged at that time. It's you!"

"I expected it!" Li Tai sat down, wanting to take Ma Zhou's Zhuyeqing and pour some for himself.

But Ma Zhou snatched away the jug containing Zhuyeqing first, smiled triumphantly at Li Tai, and said:
"King Yue, you haven't performed the coronation ceremony yet. Drinking alcohol is very harmful to your health. I'll drink it for you as much as you want!"

"Hehe! Let me see, who said I want to drink!" Li Tai smiled awkwardly, feeling that Ma Zhou had a lot going on.

Bai He at the side chuckled, took out some preserved fruits and put them on the table for the two of them, and consciously came behind Li Tai.

Li Tai has always been approachable, so after a long time, he has a bit of freedom and presumptuousness towards the King of Yue.

And Ma Zhou was somewhat informal, so after finishing their work, they would occasionally have a drink together.

To be more precise, it was Ma Zhou drinking, while Li Tai was watching Ma Zhou drinking while eating preserved fruit himself.

However, this pleasant time was soon interrupted, Xuanzhi's servant came over, saw Li Tai and said:

"I have seen the King of Yue, the sage has a decree, King Xuanyue, you and the Prime Minister of Gaoling County will meet Zhou!"

The servant hesitated for a moment, then said, "Ma Zhou played a copy of "Water Transport Theory" which aroused discussions inside and outside the court. This matter is considered one of the most lively matters at the court meeting today!"

"Oh..." Li Tai glanced at Bai He, Bai He immediately understood Li Tai's meaning, grabbed a handful of gold leaves and put them in the servant's hand, making the servant smile instantly.

But Li Tai took advantage of the situation and asked, "Apart from this matter today, what else is being discussed by the officials?"

The servant smiled and said: "It's about the Turkic enclave. Secretary Supervisor Wei Zhengjun and Zhongshu Lingyu Guogong are arguing so hard. Just like this, the quarrel has not yet come to a conclusion! "

I see!When Li Tai heard the servant's words, he suddenly realized something.

Li Tai said, "Please wait for me, father-in-law. I will go back to Chang'an with father-in-law after changing clothes."

"King Yue, you are so polite!" The servant said respectfully, "This is the duty of a servant, unlike some people who even lost the word "duty" in their behavior!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Ma Zhou with a look of contempt.

Uh... Relatively speaking, although the servants are basically disabled, it is precisely because of their physical condition that they look down on those guys who eat inside and outside.

From the servant's point of view, Ma Zhou, a guy who relied on Li Tai to get up step by step, actually wrote "Water Transport Theory" with the purpose of reducing Li Tai's income at the wharf.
Although this servant was only an eunuch, he also had incomparable contempt for people like Ma Zhou.

Ma Zhou took a sip of his drink, feeling baffled by the servant's contempt for him.

Of course, even if they knew it, they would only lament that Xia Chong was beyond words.

After all, Ma Zhou and Li Tai saw the rules and regulations, but the servant saw Li Tai's personal interests.

The two sides have no common vision at all, let alone anything else.

Li Tai changed his clothes and headed for Chang'an in an ox cart, while Ma Zhou rode behind the ox cart on horseback.

When they arrived in Chang'an, they were still waiting in the side hall, but this time, Li Tai was having refreshments, but Ma Zhou was not even eligible to sit down.

It was Li Tai who felt sorry for him, so he asked someone to move a chair over and waited slowly.

Finally, from noon until the sun was about to set, the guys in Tai Chi Hall finally thought of the two of them.

After the decree was announced, the two came to the Tai Chi Hall. Li Tai looked at the atmosphere in the Tai Chi Hall and always felt that something was wrong.

Other things are easy to say, but Wei Zheng and Wen Yanbo looked at each other angrily, and the electric light shot out of their eyes was at least much hotter than Li Tai and Li Chengqian's stare at each other.

"I've seen Aye!" "I've seen a saint!" The two of them hurriedly saluted Li Shimin after they arrived at the Tai Chi Hall.

Following the words of the two, the stagnant atmosphere in the main hall seemed to have an outlet to press towards them together.

Even though Li Tai was the prince and Ma Zhou was extraordinary, he was somewhat out of breath in the face of the collective attention of the big bosses of the court, but Li Chengqian, who was watching the play from the sidelines, showed some anticipation when he saw Li Tai's arrival.

There is no way, Wei Zheng and Wen Yanbo have been arguing about the settlement of Turkic tribes since the court meeting.

The first time Li Chengqian felt that even the omnipotent Aye had troubles, what the two ministers said made sense.

"I really want to cut them off, can't I just choose a method?" Li Chengqian thought helplessly.

Of course, this is just a thought. If he said it, Li Chengqian felt that he would definitely be reprimanded.

"Qing Que, you're here!" Li Shimin saw Li Tai and Ma Zhou coming, he really saw the savior coming.

After all, no matter who it is, after listening to Wei Zheng and Wen Yanbo arguing for so long without getting tired, they would be tired of eating melons.

Li Shimin glanced at Ma Zhou who was beside Li Tai, and directly faced Li Taidao, "Have you read Ma Xiancheng's "Water Transport Theory"?"

"Of course I've seen this before!" Li Tai clasped his fists together and said, "Qing Que thinks what Ma Xiancheng said is true knowledge!"

Hearing Li Tai's confession, the court officials present couldn't help but look at each other.

They originally thought that this incident was caused by Li Chengqian, but they didn't expect that Li Tai knew about this incident from beginning to end.

Fang Xuanling glanced around, and met Wen Yanbo who had been arguing with Wei Zheng for a long time, "The king of Yue actually knew."

"Looks like King Yue's plan from beginning to end, fortunately I still have expectations for the prince!" Wen Yanbo couldn't help but look back.

"What do you expect from the crown prince!" Fang Xuanling narrowed his eyes slightly, and it seemed that he was smiling but not smiling.

"What! As a Zhongshu Ling, I can't expect anything from the crown prince!" Wen Yanbo glared angrily.

"It's a pity that it's not the prince!" Fang Xuanling lowered his eyes slightly, showing a little regret.

"Yes! It's a pity that it's not the prince!" Wen Yanbo also understood the meaning, and looked at Li Chengqian with a bit of regret.

"I said... isn't Qingque coming to ask questions now, what do you mean by looking at me one by one!"

Li Chengqian's original gaze was still on Li Tai, but when he glanced around, he felt that all the ministers were focusing on him, as if he had lost something invisible.

"Since you've seen it, why don't you tell me!" Li Shimin looked around.

After all, all the ministers cast their eyes on Li Tai again, as if they weren't looking at Li Chengqian just now.

"Let King Bin tell the story, after all, I've only read the "Water Transport Theory" and he was the one who actually wrote this thing!"

With a little calmness on his face, Li Tai pointed to Ma Zhoudao beside him.

Hearing that Li Tai had left this matter to Ma Zhou, Li Shimin nodded secretly.

The surrounding ministers looked at each other, but they also saw a bit of Li Shimin's shadow from Li Tai.

Li Shimin said at this time, "Then let Ma Xiancheng report back!"

Hearing this, Ma Zhou took two steps forward, and after saluting, he opened his mouth and said:

"The reason why the minister wrote the "Water Transport Theory" is that since this year, Gaoling has built a wharf, using the advantages of the Wei River to communicate with Guanzhong, ships, bustling with business travelers, Gaoling is prosperous, and Guanzhong is rich.

The minister saw with his own eyes that Gao Ling had grown rapidly after the construction of the wharf, and had absorbed a large amount of water transport labor, which can be described as a buzzing.

Because food is the most important thing for the people, the minister believes that heavy taxes should be imposed on non-agricultural things.

Although Datang had many restrictions on business affairs, there was no real tax collection method.

So I wrote "Water Transport Theory" as a supplement to taxation, specially for those merchant ships using Gaoling Wharf! "

"You mean, this "Water Transport Theory" is only aimed at Gaoling Wharf?" Dai Zhou said after hearing this.

"Yes and no!" Ma Zhou answered Dai Zhou's question,

"The Wei River is naturally nourished, and the people can naturally use it. We have never banned mountains and forests in our dynasty, so why should we ban rivers now?

Therefore, "Water Transport Theory" is indeed a tax proposal written with Gao Ling as an example.
But at the same time, I also hope to use Gaoling as an example to collect shipping fees from the whole world! "

"The collection of shipping fees has never happened since ancient times. If it is not implemented properly, it may cause irreversible disasters."

At this time, Wei Zheng looked a little dignified, and began to persuade Li Shimin.

Dai Zhou was not happy when he heard this, just kidding, as long as he is a minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs these days, would he still dislike the fact that he can collect less tax?
In a few years, the Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs will be renamed the Minister of the Ministry of Households, specializing in the management of taxation.

Now, finally, an official offered a proposal that would not arouse public outrage, but would increase taxes. If he rejected it, he would be nailed to the pillar of shame of the most stupid Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs in history, and he would never even be in this life. Think about it!

"Secretary Wei, you don't know the difficulties of our Ministry of Civil Affairs in the secretary's supervision.

Over the years, the imperial court suffered many disasters, and last year there was the Northern Expedition to the Turks, all of which cost a lot of money and food.

Now that the national treasury is empty and all wastes are being prospered, don't you interrupt my Tang Dynasty's national fortune! "

Dai Zhou jumped out decisively, and almost pointed at Wei Zheng and scolded the scholar for wronging the country!

But Li Tai couldn't help smiling when he saw Dai Zhou actually stand up for him, as expected, interests are the purest alliance!

Li Tai took a step forward and said, "Father, what Duke Wei said is not without reason.

It's just that things change with the situation, and the Tang Dynasty today is fundamentally different from the Sui Dynasty and even earlier dynasties.

Because we have the greatest legacy left over from the demise of the Sui Dynasty, the Grand Canal that communicated the entire north and south!

Therefore, the matter of shipping taxation will eventually be brought up sooner or later. "

(End of this chapter)