I directed the Xuanwumen Incident

Chapter 573 Send troops to Tuyuhun? !Where does the military expenditure come from?The answer lies in smoke!

In the political affairs hall, all the ministers were filled with righteous indignation!

If you want to bite, you can bite Tuyuhun, why come to bite our Datang?
Is Datang still responsible for this matter?
"Everyone is right."

Xu Fenglei laughed.

He is still very satisfied with everyone's reaction, there is no soft-legged shrimp, which is strange to reflect on.

"Your Majesty, I think this letter of credentials from Tubo should be refuted."

Xu Fenglei said seriously,

"It's enough to explain two points—"

"First, Songtsan Gampo died in the territory of Tuyuhun. If you want to blame, you have to blame the Tuyuhun people, and if you want to blame, you have to blame them for not being safe enough."

"For such an important person, only 200 people were sent to protect him, and he even disguised himself as a businessman... What is this for? This is death!"

"Secondly, this marriage proposal was also made by Tubo to our Tang Dynasty. Our Tang Dynasty was not very interested in this marriage. He Songtsen Gampo wanted to come by himself, but he died on the way, it was him My own problem! I, Datang, have no responsibility at all!"

"Therefore, Datang expresses strong dissatisfaction with Tubo's letter of credence! And asks them to apologize!"

When the ministers heard the words, they all nodded.

"Yes, sorry!"

"What the hell is this new Zanpu, who dares to speak to Datang in such a tone?"

"That's right! Tubo is such a small shit country, how dare you talk about it?"

The ministers knew very little about Tubo. In the eyes of most people, it was an unknown small country on the plateau, and its national power was not even comparable to that of Tuyuhun.

A small country with such a big tone is naturally upset!

Of course, even knowing the strength of Tubo, everyone's attitude will not change.

No matter how awesome you are, you surpass our Datang?
Do it if you don't accept it!

"As it should be!"

Li Shimin nodded and said,

"Xuanling, if you draft the letter of credence, polish it a little according to the grand master's intention!"

"Then, send this letter of credence back along with it!"

"Even if Tubo has some strength, now that Zanpu is dead, there will be turmoil in the country. They have no strength, so don't talk to Datang in this tone!",

Fang Xuanling bowed his hands and said yes.

"I'll add one more thing."

Xu Fenglei suddenly added,

"Although Datang is not wrong in this matter, out of sympathy and indignation, he will help Songtsan Gampo, a potential son-in-law, seek justice!"

"After all, this is a serious attack that destroys the friendship between the two countries!"

"Okay, I see." Fang Xuanling nodded again.

The corners of Li Shimin's mouth rose slightly.

Next, we can talk about the topic.

"Your Majesty, I think what the grand master said is right! This is a major event that will destroy the friendship between the two countries!"

Li Jing said in a deep voice,
"It's really strange that Songtsan Gampo died in the territory of Tuyuhun!"

"After all, he was a caravan in disguise, and there were two hundred soldiers guarding him. However, the guards were fine, but he was killed—the murderer was obviously targeting Songtsen Gampo!"

"The purpose is so clear, it must not be an accident! There must be a conspiracy behind it!"

Li Shimin nodded slightly.

This end was supposed to be opened by Xu Fenglei, but Li Jing jumped out so quickly.

This old guy really wants to fight too much!
"I agree with Li Jing's opinion."

Li Ji also said,

"Killing Songtsan Gampo, the one who will benefit the most is undoubtedly Tuyuhun."

"After all, if Tubo and Datang marry, then Tuyuhun will be caught in the middle and suffer from the enemy."

"Thus, the Tuyuhun people must stop this marriage, and the easiest and most effective way is to kill Songtsan Gampo!"

"In this way, Datang can only marry Tuyuhun, and the benefits of the Murong family will be maximized."

The two generals analyzed it together, and it really looks like that!
"Then Murong Fuyun is courageous enough!"

Wei Zheng frowned and said,
"Is he not afraid of being besieged by the two countries afterwards?"

"No one with a brain can do such a thing!"

Li Shimin laughed.

"Could Murong Fuyun have brains? If he had brains, he wouldn't offend me and attack Liangzhou repeatedly!"

Li Erdao,
"This person is very short-sighted!"

"I think he can do this kind of thing!"

"I'm even [-]% to [-]% sure... They did this!"

[-]% left?

The remaining [-]% ​​is reserved for his face. After all, if he said [-]% to [-]%, then his skin is not that thick, and he is embarrassed to lie.

"Then he really deserves to die!"

Xu Fenglei's face turned cold, and he ordered,
"Compared with King Murong Zun, Songtsan Gampo is more suitable to be the son-in-law of the Tang Dynasty!"

"So, what they killed was Datang's prospective son-in-law, His Majesty's prospective son-in-law!"

"Plus these years, they have repeatedly invaded the border of our Tang Dynasty, and the Murong family is extremely unreasonable. They have repeatedly offended His Majesty, and even played tricks on His Majesty!"

"I believe that Datang can send troops to destroy it!"

boom!
Xu Fenglei's words immediately caused a storm in the political affairs hall!
The grand master usually doesn't talk much, either dozing off or wandering, why is he so active today?
And the words are extremely tough!
To send troops to Tuyuhun!

These words immediately excited Li Jing, Li Ji, Duan Zhixuan and other military officers!

"What the grand master said is absolutely true! Datang should send troops!"

"Yes! Tuyuhun is too deceitful! Even dare to kill the son-in-law, what else are they afraid to do? In my opinion, they should have a taste of Tang's military prowess!"

"Hehe! I haven't used troops for five years. Perhaps the small neighboring countries have forgotten how the Turks perished! Everyone is so disrespectful!"

"..."

For a while, the voice of the main combat faction was one wave after another!
Everyone is suffocated!

There has been no war for so many years, and there is no place to make military achievements. Everyone's heads are going to grow grass!The weapons are going to rust!
Now that Xu Fenglei is taking the lead, they must rush together!Don't even think about it!
"This……"

Li Shimin pondered for a while, and said,

"It's true that five years are coming soon... what the love ministers said makes sense."

"I also feel that the surrounding small countries are becoming more and more disrespectful to me. When I destroyed the Turks, how respectful were Tuyuhun, Xue Yantuo, and Khitan?"

"But this year, the respect is not as good as before, and even the gifts sent are not as good as before."

"It seems that it's time to remind them."

"...What do other lovers think?"

Although he was asking, he had already expressed his opinion——

I want to fight too!
"His Majesty."

Wei Zheng got up and said,
"I think it's not very cost-effective to go to war with Tuyuhun for a so-called prospective son-in-law."

"As for Tuyuhun's disrespect... I think that now that Tuyuhun Prince Murong Zun is in Chang'an, His Majesty can personally hold him accountable!"

"Whether it's punishment or scolding, this matter can be resolved anyway."

"That's why I believe that we should not go to war, otherwise the country's economy will go back to five years ago."

Above the court, there is the main war faction, and naturally there is also the main peace faction.

Like Wei Zheng, he has never advocated the use of force to solve problems. After all, every time a war is launched, Datang will consume a lot of manpower and material resources.

Those generals only care about fighting and receiving military pay, they don't know how hard it is to earn money!

Those of them who are involved in internal affairs have managed to live a comfortable life for two years, and the economy is no longer so tense. As a result, these generals want to come again!

What about trouble? !
"Economy, economy, you can't talk about your poor money!"

Li Jing became anxious and scolded,

"Datang's prestige is now lost! No amount of money can make it up, it can only be earned back with force and fists!"

"This battle, I think it must be fought!"

"Otherwise, everyone will be able to shit on Datang's head in the future!"

This battle must be fought!

He has never really presided over a large-scale foreign war. He was the deputy commander of the Turkic war last time, and it has always been his regret!
So, this time he must fight for it!
"Broken money? That's fine, don't ask for broken money!"

Wei Zheng was also upset, and retorted,

"Prepare your own military salary and go to war!"

"If you can fight without asking the country for money, you can fight as you like! You can fight as far as the ends of the world! Go!"

"Broken money...hehe!"

When Li Jing heard this, he was also a little bit deflated.

In war, money and food come first.

Without money, why fight?If the soldiers are allowed to drink the northwest wind, no matter how good the commander is, he will not be able to withstand the risk of mutiny.

So, this rubbish money... He really must have it.

"Okay, okay, don't argue anymore."

Li Shimin coughed dryly, knocked on the table, and said,
"Now, everyone basically agrees to send troops, but there is no agreement on money and food."

"I also feel that we can no longer rely on the imperial court's appropriation for fighting wars. That would be too taxing for the people and money."

Wei Zheng: "???"

Wait a minute, what do you mean everyone basically agrees?

Did he agree?
However, Wei Zheng still agreed with the second half of the emperor's sentence.

Things that cost the people and waste money, and make Datang's economy go backwards... must not be done, and he must be against it!
"Then why don't you ask the Grand Master to support you?"

Li Jing looked at Xu Fenglei, and said cautiously,

"Fenglei Bank has money, why not..."

Xu Fenglei stared.

"I opened Shanzhuang, right?"

He said angrily,

"The last time the bank supported military spending, it took several years for the bank to slow down. At that time, the war was fought with money from depositors!"

"I don't even have any money now! Banks have branch offices in various places, and cash is in short supply. I want to call on you to save more!"

"Don't even think about Qianzhuang, it's impossible this time."

Fenglei Bank is a private property jointly opened by him and the Li family!
Last time, there was no other way. We took money from the bank to fight the war because we had no money.

Now that the country is rich, how can we still get it?

"This……"

Li Jing also made a mistake this time, he said helplessly,
"It would be great if I could make money. I can make money, and I will pay the military salary myself."

Xu Fenglei couldn't help laughing when he heard this.

"Hahaha... Pharmacist, pharmacist, you really want to fight like crazy, can you say such things?"

he joked,

"Even if you have money, you are not qualified to pay soldiers."

"Only the imperial court can send money to them. Are you sending money to them privately in order to develop them into your own private army?"

When Li Jing heard the words, he realized that he had said something wrong, and quickly waved his hands.

"No, no... that's not what I meant..."

He looked embarrassed, and his heart beat a little faster.

He sneaked a glance at Li Shimin—fortunately, there was nothing unusual on the emperor's face, but there was still a smile on his face.

"Okay, stop chatting."

Li Shimin said,

"I have already figured out a way to deal with military expenses."

"You don't need money from the state, you don't need money from the bank, you just need it—"

Swish.

He took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and put it on the table.

All eyes were on the past.

"cigarette?"

This thing has become popular in the Tang Dynasty. Many wealthy businessmen and nobles carry it with them, and they will take out one if they have nothing to do, and smoke it.

Many folks are proud of owning a box of premium cigarettes.

The sales of medium and low-grade cigarettes are actually very good, and the supply is often in short supply.

Ever since, you can see the farmers in the field, and occasionally they will come to one when they are tired.

The work in the hotel, in my spare time, I will also come to one.

What they bought was naturally the lowest and roughest smoke, but even so, it was enough for them to use this stuff to relax their bodies and minds.

All in all, smoke has entered thousands of households and is familiar to the common people.

"The imperial court has a cigarette tax, which is not included in the national treasury and is calculated separately."

Li Shimin said with a smile,

"A box of medium-sized cigarettes is priced at about 50 yuan, and the supply is often in short supply. The cigarette workshops are operating crazily every day."

"But in fact, its profit is not high. The profit of each box is only about 5 Wen."

"Do you know why?"

All the ministers looked at the emperor and listened carefully.

"Because I have paid heavy taxes!"

Li Shimin said seriously,

"A box of cigarettes, aside from production and transportation costs, costs 35 Wen, and I will take [-] Wen as tax!"

"That's seven out of ten!"

The ministers: "?!"

Seven out of ten!
This is too hard!There has never been such a heavy tax in ancient times!

Generally, one out of ten is considered a heavy tax!
"With such a heavy tax, there is still money to be made from selling."

Li Shimin lit a cigarette with a smile and said,

"Since last year, I have been collecting tobacco tax. After one year, this tax alone has collected nearly one million taels of silver!"

"This is still when cigarettes have just entered Datang, and most people are not yet familiar with them."

"I estimate that by next year, this number should be doubled, or even several times!"

All the ministers widened their eyes when they heard the words.

A million taels of silver? !

This is almost comparable to the annual agricultural tax of several rich and wealthy state capitals!
How can this cigarette make so much money?
Several civil servants and military generals took out cigarette cases from their arms one after another...

That's right, they all smoke.

After all, this thing is addictive, once you smoke it, you will become dependent!

Xu Fenglei couldn't help but look bitter as he watched the ministers take out their cigarette boxes.

Sorry!
After all, this thing is a harmful thing!Although it can increase considerable tax revenue for Datang, it can also reduce the average life expectancy of Datang!

This is not what he wants to see.

If I have time, I have to discuss with Sun Simiao how to deal with it...

There is no way, I have to find a way to clean up the Pandora's Box I opened by myself...

(End of this chapter)