Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 361: Keep lowering the price! Lower it to a level that those idiots in Jiangnan are willing to buy!
This sentence "let's discuss it later".

The anger in Qianlong's tone could no longer be suppressed.

Agui knelt down quickly, and all the ministers in the hall knelt down.

When the emperor got angry, all the ministers bowed down to him. The sacred imperial power of the Qing Dynasty could not be challenged by any important minister.

Everyone knows it in their hearts.
Ah Gui's era is over! The emperor may not do anything to him immediately, but he will definitely be laid off and deprived of his power.

He Shen was secretly delighted.

My bones felt a little lighter. From now on, the people in the court will have the final say between me and someone else.

He family army, rise up!

Qianlong regained his composure:

"My fellow ministers, please stand up."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Heshen, tell me about the situation in the Ministry of Revenue."

He Shen quickly stepped out and showed off his excellent memory:

"As of 10 days ago, the Ministry of Revenue has collected 932 million taels of silver in taxes and 311 million dan of grain this year. In addition, 220 million taels of gold and silver were confiscated from illegal Shanxi merchants. I estimate that this year we will collect 1700 million taels of silver and 500 million dan of grain."

……

Qianlong remained silent, and Heshen continued:
"According to last year's estimates, the Qing Dynasty's military pay, official salaries, government expenses, disaster relief, and river engineering expenditures, these five items of expenditure, converted into cash, are between 5 million and 2500 million taels of silver."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was a commotion in the hall.

He Shen continued:

"The year before last, that is, in the 2990th year of Emperor Qianlong's reign, the court's annual income was 830 million taels of silver and 5000 million shi of grain, which was equivalent to about million taels of silver."

[Data from the Qing History Draft.]

Qianlong nodded silently.

It is both a recognition of Heshen as a financial expert and a remembrance of the empire's past glory days.

Annual income of 5000 million taels of silver,

It is not only the first in thousands of years of history, but also the first among all empires in the world today.

It’s a pity that the plan was disrupted by Li Yu, a failed scholar.

Qianlong finally took over the conversation:
"My dear ministers, the three provinces in the south of the Yangtze River have been occupied, and the imperial court has lost half of its tax revenue. The Ministry of Revenue and the local governments have racked their brains to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, and can barely maintain this annual revenue of 3 million taels."

"But, if this happens, the court will have a deficit of 500 million taels every year! In 2 years, 1000 million taels! In 3 years, 4 years? Haha, I don't even dare to think about it."

……

Agui felt depressed. He couldn't understand why the court lost the customs tax.

That’s a net income starting from 500 million taels!

Qianlong's voice was calm and wise:
"Issue an order to abolish the Guangdong Customs. The Censorate and the Ministry of Revenue will send commissioners to the Changlu Salt Field and the Lianghuai Salt Field to investigate the deficits."

"The Emperor's Holy Might."

In the palace,

The ministers didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

The Ministry of Revenue was in a difficult situation, so it was reasonable for it to plunder merchants.

Salt merchants are extremely wealthy.

Ordering them to make up the deficit is also a way to make up for the sins they have committed.

No one expected,
Qianlong was not satisfied with this, but said coldly:

"The three judicial departments jointly sent personnel to Shanxi to investigate the officials who confiscated the Shanxi merchants. The eight famous Shanxi merchants, with wealth accumulated over six generations, actually told me that they only confiscated more than 6 million taels?"

"I can't believe it!"

"Do you dare to believe it?"

Heshen shuddered in his heart and met the gaze of Yu Minzhong next to him.

His micro-expression told Lao Yu, "I didn't know about it beforehand, it was the old man who suddenly made trouble."

……

The ministers could only cheer for the emperor's wisdom.

It is indeed too outrageous that the Eight Great Shanxi Merchants were buried with more than 200 million taels of confiscated silver.

Although this group of people used all their liquid funds to hoard tea, silk and porcelain, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse, and handing over a mere 200 million taels to the Ministry of Revenue was a bit insulting.

Qianlong said meaningfully:

"This Qing Dynasty not only belongs to me, but also to you."

"I hope you all will do your best to live up to your decades of hard study, live up to the black gauze hat on your head, and live up to me."

After the dynasty dispersed,
As usual, it is a step to summon important ministers individually.

The first person summoned was Agui.

The west warm room of the Hall of Mental Cultivation,

As soon as Ah Gui entered, he fell to his knees:
"Your Majesty, please punish this servant."

Qianlong did not even raise his head as he flipped through the memorials:
"What are you guilty of?"

"After receiving the order, I should not have contacted the Anqing and Jiangbei camps without authorization, and I should not have delayed returning to the capital."

……

Qin Si, who was waiting outside the door, sighed imperceptibly.

I thought to myself, Lord Agui, you are out of your mind, is this the time to be sincere?

really,

It would have been better if he didn't say it. Once he said it, Qianlong got furious.

He picked up the inkstone and smashed it to the ground:
"I summoned you to the capital immediately, so I must have a mission that is earth-shattering. You knew that, but you still did this? What are you thinking?"

"I am guilty of capital punishment. I am eager to pacify Wu."

"I have read your secret report. You want to hold back the Wu army in the west and launch a surprise attack across the river in the north, right?"

"Yes. I think this strategy has a 6% chance of success as long as we have enough patience and determination, even if we sacrifice as many lives as possible."

Qianlong sneered:
"So you sent Fucha's son to be the vanguard?"

"Your Majesty~"

Ah Gui looked up in surprise. He knew that this was referring to the Anqing city defender, Mingliang.

He felt a chill in his heart.
I knew that Fu Cha was in the emperor's heart, but I didn't expect her to be so important!
"What do you want to say?"

"I want to say that as long as we can pacify Wu, no matter how high the price is, I can accept it. Not to mention sacrificing a Ming Dynasty soldier or tens of thousands of soldiers, even I can sacrifice myself."

……

Ah Gui didn't know what was going on, but he was being particularly tough today.

Kneel down and straighten your upper body.

Playing the role of a loyal minister and general, he speaks forthrightly and generously.

"I really don't want to miss such a good opportunity. The flood in Jiangxi is a good thing. It has held up the fake King of Wu and tens of thousands of elite troops. I beg the emperor to issue an order immediately, and the Anqing camp will cooperate with the Chaohu navy to cross the river immediately, capture Yanziji, and spread the war to Ma'anshan and Jiangning. This is the first wave of surprise attacks. The Jiangbei camp will then cross the river and attack Jingkou and Jiangyin. This is the second wave of surprise attacks. When the smoke of war rises in Jiangnan, the Huaixi New Army stationed around Huai'an will choose the opportunity to move south based on the results of the first two waves of breakthroughs, and either attack Jiangning or Jiangyin. This is the third wave."

"The Yangtze River is a natural barrier! The Yangtze River is a natural barrier! How can we cross the river without a navy?"

"The main force of the Wu army's navy is also lingering in Poyang Lake. There are not many warships below the Jiangning section. Once the battle starts at Yanziji, the few warships will be attracted there. Among the three surprise attacks, one will be able to successfully cross the river. Jiangnan is a flat land, so it is not difficult to penetrate it. The people in Jiangnan are gentle and the court still has its prestige. As long as the officers and soldiers land and plant flags, the gentry will naturally cooperate."

"Shut up!" Qianlong was furious, pointing at Agui, "Are you accusing me of wasting the best opportunity to fight?"

"The servant dare not."

Agui kowtowed, bang bang bang.

Qianlong threw down a memorial.

"Look for yourself. A small force of Wu's army attacked Jiangpu but was defeated by the government troops. What does this show? It shows that the government troops were on guard."

……

Qianlong looked coldly at this former trusted and beloved general and important official of the court.

"You should know why I summoned Yongyan and you to the capital when I was critically ill. You should be able to tell which is more important. However, you have disappointed me, and it is difficult for me to look at you the same way as before."

Agui just kowtowed and did not argue.

Qianlong took a deep breath:

"You, suspend all official duties and return home to reflect."

"I obey your order. But the war in Jiangbei is still in your hands, Your Majesty~"

"Get out, get out, get out."

Qin Si, who was outside the door, hurried in and helped Agui walk out.

He whispered:

"My Lord, why are you doing this? Let's go."

Qianlong rarely caught up with Agui and kicked him.

Qin Si cleaned up the mess in the room and quietly left the west warm room.

He glanced and saw that Qianlong's hands were steady behind his back.

Based on his understanding of Qianlong, after a rage, his hands would tremble uncontrollably because of excessive excitement.

Could it be~
He shook his head and gave up the idea of ​​continuing to think about it.

Soon, he received an unusual oral instruction:

Select two loyal and reliable young eunuchs to go to Shanxi with the three judicial officials. Do not judge or ask questions, just listen. After returning, report secretly.

……

Qin Si was ecstatic. This was an honor that the Qing Dynasty had never had before.

Our eunuch is also beginning to show his talents!

He repeatedly told his two apprentices to do their job well and share their master's worries!
The master is short of money and is going crazy.

The Shanxi merchants must dig out enough silver to satisfy the emperor.

The news that Agui was stripped of his official position also spread widely.

This change is beneficial to Heshen and Yu Minzhong.

In front of the mansion,
The carriages were stuck in traffic, and people in red tasseled hats from all over the country came to visit one after another.

In just a few days, even the gatekeeper of the He Mansion earned a fortune of ten thousand yuan. The momentum of the He family army was more powerful than ever before.

……

Military Aircraft Department,
Several Zhang Jing were chatting about world affairs.

On the case are the empire's latest and highest military secrets.

The great victory at Jiangpu, the military disagreement between Mingliang and Hailancha, the floods in the south, the drought in Huaihe and Si rivers, the rising food prices in the north, the restlessness of the King of Burma, the uprising of hungry people in Gansu, the smashing of salt shops in Sichuan, etc.

"What a troubled time."

"Oh, that's wrong. In such a big empire, there will always be trouble!"

"That's true. The Three Feudatories Rebellion and the Dzungar Rebellion were both big issues that were finally contained."

"Go ahead and fight. Little Jinchuan has been fighting for more than ten or twenty years."

The two of them were muttering to each other and fanning themselves with palm-leaf fans.

Outside Longzong Gate, this row of simple wooden houses is the paradise that all scholars dream of.

As long as you enter here, your future career will be smooth and rapid.

He doesn't look down on a prefect who is sent out to a remote place, and he is almost the same as an inspector or grain commissioner.

In a word, anyone who can live in this row of low wooden houses will have a bright future!
……

As a result of the previous round of purge, many official positions in the capital were vacant.

Half of the people at the level of Shangshu and Shilang were replaced, and many new faces took office.

The new official takes three steps upon taking office.

As usual, old people are laid off and replaced by new ones.

During this process, many people cried and many people laughed.

From the police officers to the jailers to the chief doctors, there was a major change in personnel. The threshold for new officials had to be replaced with a new one every three days. There was no way around it, because it was always broken!

Many people who were originally not doing well in their lives suddenly became successful and held great power.

The major restaurants, banks and pawnshops in the capital were bustling with people and business was booming.

As usual, when a new official takes office, he or she has to go through a lot of procedures.

The process cannot be completed without thousands or tens of thousands of taels of silver.

Many people wore brand new official robes, looking majestic and awe-inspiring.

I was full of gratitude towards the barbarian swindlers. If they hadn't come all the way to deceive Emperor Qianlong, would there be so many empty chairs in the government offices? Would I have had the opportunity to rise to prominence?
Of course,
You must curse the barbarians, be filled with righteous indignation, and be extremely angry.

There is never a shortage of movie stars in this city!

……

According to the law of conservation, when some people are successful, others will be poor and miserable.

Many of the "former officials' confidants" were dismissed and sent home, their hearts filled with resentment towards the barbarians.

They cursed the barbarians in various places.

As a result, the people of the capital were in an unprecedented uproar over the culture of isolation from the outside world.

Even the country apprentices at Yutai Teahouse were filled with resentment towards the barbarians.

Although they didn't know where this hatred came from, the gentlemen in Beijing who drank tea with them all said so, so it must be correct.

Shopkeeper Wang is also a fellow trader.

Because the price of tea plummeted from the top of the mountain to the valley, and it was even 3% lower than the price in normal years.

He attributed all this to the "barbarians coming" and "barbarians leaving".

Shopkeeper Wang is a very down-to-earth person and doesn't understand any big principles.

He simply looks at all problems from the perspective of his own circumstances.

This does fit with the incorrect logic that "for most problems in the world, there is no right or wrong, only perspective."

……

south,

The price of tea and silk can no longer be described as being cut in half, but rather cut at the ankle.

The Shanxi merchants who hoarded tea and silk are gone, but the goods are still there.

There are mountains of raw silk and tea in the warehouses of Guangzhou, Chaozhou, Ganzhou, Chengdu and Changsha.

These goods now belong to various creditors or local governments, and there are very few markets for them.

The Guangzhou port was blocked and all foreign merchants were imprisoned.

Even if they wanted to smuggle, no foreign ships would dare to come.

Since export was hopeless, the only option was domestic sales. However, the Jiangnan region, which had the strongest consumption capacity in previous years, refused to buy.

Minister of Commerce Hu Xueyu had already conveyed a clear message through the various chambers of commerce:

“Even if they offer 1 copper coin for 1 dan of tea leaves and 1 copper coin for 1 dan of raw silk, Wu will not accept it! We will let all this batch of goods rot in the warehouse and reduce the market’s expectations for tea and raw silk to the lowest level. From now on, everyone will tremble and avoid the tea and silk business as soon as they hear about it. Not only that, we will also sell the last stocks in our hands at a low price and completely destroy all upstream and downstream chains of the tea and silk industry under the rule of the Qing Dynasty!”

……

This policy,

This caused some of Wu's silk factories to shut down due to shortage of goods.

Self-damage 100, kill 5000 enemies.
But under the strict order, no one dared to act rashly.

Hu Xueyu wrote to these businessmen privately:

"Thanks to your majesty's guidance, you have already made a lot of money in the last round of the tea and silk war. Now you need to be patient and cooperate with your majesty's great cause. In a few months, silkworm cocoons from the Taihu Lake Basin will be back on the market. This is a national war, not a business war! You can take a long-term view and don't be tempted by the petty profits in front of you. Each chamber of commerce should supervise each other."

Under the rule of the Wu State, silkworms were raised in the vast land around Taihu Lake, with three harvests a year.

The vast mountains and forests in southern Anhui and northern Jiangxi are the main tea producing areas.

future,

The Jiangnan region will fill all the gaps in the extremely shrinking tea and silk market.

……

To achieve this strategic goal,

The important officials of the Wu Kingdom took the lead and called on all civil and military officials to stop wearing silk clothes within a year, and the government offices would no longer supply tea. The major chambers of commerce were also required to follow suit and resolutely stop consuming silk.

Monthly subsidies are given to all businesses, big and small, in related industries to force them to close down due to shortage of goods.

Those Qing court nobles who had a large amount of tea and silk on hand and whose identities were mysterious were extremely angry.

I just can't figure it out.
Why is Wu Zetian so cheap? He just refuses to take advantage of the opportunity that is delivered to his door.

The price offered:
From 7% off to 5% off, to 3% off~
The merchants in Jiangnan drooled but shook their heads resolutely, indicating that they were not optimistic about the market prospects and would not buy.

……

The tea inventory is still okay. At worst, we can make it into poor quality tea cakes and sell them to the Rakshasas.

of course,

It is definitely a loss to make tea cakes from fresh tea leaves, but it is better than nothing.

The storage of raw silk requires strict conditions. After half a year, it will begin to deteriorate gradually and irreversibly.

Guangzhou,

The former supervisor of Guangdong Customs, Yongxiang, ordered people to open the warehouse.

Instantly, a wave of heat hit me in the face, mixed with the distinct smell of rotting protein.

He casually grabbed a handful of raw silk from the basket and felt it was warm to the touch.

"Master, there's nothing we can do. We've tried our best to keep the air ventilated."

Yongxiang's red eyes:

"Those bastards in Jiangnan still refuse to buy it?"

"Yes."

"I only sell one load of raw silk (100 jin) for 20 taels of silver. Why don't they want to buy it?"

"Yes."

Yongxiang collapsed and kicked over the baskets of raw silk.

"20 taels per load, if made into silk, the profit will be 20 or 30 times! Are they crazy?"

"Why would they want to harm others and benefit themselves? Why? Why?"

(End of this chapter)