Taiping Inn

Li Xuandu had naturally thought about what Murong Hua said, and he also understood the reason, but he didn't take it to heart.

What troubled Li Xuandu the most was not the palace coups between the upper class, but how to change the lower structure.

The whole world is like a pavilion. What kind of foundation determines what kind of pavilion can be built. In other words, the lower structure determines the upper structure, so if you want to change the pavilion, you must change it from the bottom up.

With Li Xuandu's own strength, he can only change the superstructure, but he can't change the extremely vast lower structure, which requires a strong regime to do.

That's why the geomancer is obsessed with being the emperor, and Li Xuandu has to join forces with Liaodong.

Regarding the promotion of the new currency, Li Xuandu had several correspondences with Qin Qing, because now private casting has become popular, bad coins are rampant, resulting in chaotic circulation and cumbersome conversion. If the currency system can be reformed, it will be beneficial to people's livelihood, improve taxation, and hit the prestige of the Wei court. If an orthodox court cannot even unify the currency, what prestige does it have?

As for why the court could not implement it, it has something to do with fire consumption. The so-called "fire consumption" refers to the loss when the broken silver is melted and recast into silver ingots. Zhang Suqing began to try out the new policy as early as the reign of Emperor Muzong. One of the rules was that all taxes were collected in silver and handed over to the national treasury. The fire consumption was caused by melting the broken silver handed over by the people and recasting it into silver ingots.

When Zhang Suqing died, the new policy gradually became a means for officials to make money. When the "fire consumption" levied during taxation is greater than the actual "fire consumption", the difference belongs to the officials. In recent years, the "fire consumption" has been increasing. The fire consumption of general prefectures and counties is two or three coins per tael, or even four or five coins. Remote prefectures and counties have less taxes, and the fire consumption is several times the regular tax. Although the court has issued a ban, it did not work, and it was tacitly accepted in the future.

This is also the problem that Li Xuandu discovered when he went to Liaodong. The regular tax in Liaodong is heavier than that of the court, but no people complain. The regular tax of the court is very small, but it makes people angry, and the court's treasury is still in deficit every year. In addition to too many miscellaneous taxes and layers of exploitation, this fire consumption is also one of the important reasons.

If silver coins are used uniformly, there is no need to recast silver, and the "fire consumption" will be eliminated. This involves the financial path of countless officials. As the saying goes, cutting off someone's financial path is like killing their parents. How can it be implemented?

Qin Qing also agreed with Li Xuandu's opinion, because this time the new currency was only changed from silver to silver coins, not like the promotion of treasure notes by Emperor Taizu of the Great Wei Dynasty, so the risk is not great. Moreover, the key to minting money lies in the materials, that is, the materials of real gold and silver and anti-counterfeiting measures. Taiping Money House does a good job in this regard, and it is difficult for anyone to compare with it. In addition, since the beginning of this dynasty, the silver bills of major banks have gradually changed from deposit and withdrawal vouchers to transactions. There are countless private banknotes, which are also recognized by the court, so Qin Qing finally agreed to Li Xuandu's proposal to let Taiping Bank mint and promote the new currency.

For this reason, Li Xuandu decided to invite Mrs. Lu to join Taiping Inn and take charge of the financial power of the Ministry of Finance.

Compared with Mrs. Lu, Murong Hua's advantage is that she is familiar with the official situation in the imperial capital, has her own connections and intelligence sources, and has clear ideas. She can act as a qualified counselor and give advice to Li Xuandu.

Li Xuandu asked: "In your opinion, how should we guard against it?"

Murong Hua said: "If the Confucian sect wants to catch the cicada while the oriole is waiting behind, or to be the fisherman who benefits, the key premise is that the Confucian sect can stay out of the game and watch from the sidelines, and wait until the situation is clear before they decide to join the game. We naturally have to do the opposite, not letting the Confucian sect have the opportunity to watch from the sidelines, thoroughly muddy the water, and pull them into the game in advance. As long as they are in the game, there is no so-called lose-lose situation."

Li Xuandu leaned back in his chair and fell into deep thought: "If we are Confucian sect, how should we watch from the sidelines?"

Murong Hua pondered: "If the queen mother is unwilling to sit and wait for death, and takes the initiative to attack... We have to fight in a hurry, then the initiative of whether to help and fulfill the obligation of allies is in the hands of the Confucian sect. With the Confucian sect's style of doing things, they should delay and wait and see. If we win a big victory, it's okay. They may not dare to take risks. It should be just icing on the cake. But if we only win a miserable victory or even a big defeat , then the Confucian sect will immediately turn its face and refuse to recognize people. "

Li Xuandu said: "What Senior Sister Murong means is that the Confucian sect will make trouble from the Queen Mother, but now the Emperor's Party and the Queen's Party are irreconcilable, how can the Confucian sect persuade the Queen Mother?"

"Just now, I have said that over the years, the Confucian sect has deeply infiltrated the royal family and the clan. The emperor's children often die young, which must be done by people in the palace. Moreover, the Confucian sect has a habit of playing idle chess. A chess piece that was accidentally dropped many years ago is not a long-term plan, but just a casual move. Many years later, it may be the key to changing the situation. "Murong Hua said slowly, "This is also the advantage of the Confucian sect for many years. It can use decades to cultivate a large number of chess pieces. There are hundreds of idle chess pieces. If ninety-nine chess pieces are useless, one chess piece is useful, and it is also a profit. This is also Mr. Qingping's biggest shortcoming. The time is too short and too little. "

Li Xuandu understood a little and sighed: "In the world, you have me and I have you. "

Murong Hua continued: "Although I have no real evidence, I infer that the Empress Dowager also has a secret son set up by the Confucian sect. No matter what, it took only twenty years for the Empress Dowager to enter the palace, but the Confucian sect It has been planned since the Renzong reign and passed down from generation to generation, which has been passed down from generation to generation for nearly two hundred years. Even if the empress dowager is quick-witted, she cannot guarantee that her staff are all loyal and reliable. Maybe one of hers will start to do it before she can make a fortune. Her confidant in her work was also a casual chess piece that the Confucian clan had set up at the time. "

Shangguan Wan spoke: "It is indeed possible. When the Empress Dowager was in its prime, these people might not betray the Empress Dowager, and even no longer abide by the orders of the Confucian clan. Now the Empress Dowager is in trouble and no one wants to bury the Empress Dowager with him. Their Confucian clan identity Instead, it has become a retreat. They will definitely reconnect with the Confucian school and strive to make a fortune and lose their sins."

Lu Yanbing said: "If you think more deeply, maybe the Confucian Sect has never used these secrets, just to wait for a suitable opportunity, and now is undoubtedly the best time."

Murong Hua nodded and said, "What Sister Shangguan and Sister Lu said is right. The key now is not who the secret son of the Confucian sect is, but to consider that the Confucian sect really told the Empress Dowager to attack. How should we deal with it?"

Shangguan Wan hesitated and said, "Avoid the battle?"

Murong Hua shook his head and said, "In my opinion, we should follow the plan and pull the Confucian Sect into the water."

Li Xuandu asked, "How can I get into the water?"

Murong Hua's eyes flashed with light: "The Confucian school likes to suppress and kill people with moral integrity. We might as well give back to him by his own way, find ways to pretend to be the people of the post party or push the people of the post party to target the emperor in the name of the Queen Mother. The party wants people to take action, or even target the young emperor. Aren’t they calling for justice and righteousness all day long? Those civil officials and ordinary Confucian disciples will use moral integrity to force the great figures of Confucianism to take action."

This strategy has a complete style of the Earth Master. Before Li Xuan could speak, Shangguan Wan, who studied under the Earth Master, nodded in agreement and said, "I secretly controlled several young masters of aristocratic families, all of whom are children of the Later Party. Among them is Yang Lu's nephew Yang Tianfeng, who can play some role."

Lu Yanbing added: "These people alone cannot do it, but there are still several key figures, such as King Jin, King Tang, and Liu Yi."

Shangguan Wan smiled and said, "It's a coincidence. There is a secret son in the Confucian sect, and we also have secret sons. There is a woman next to the Tang Dynasty King Xu Zaixu. He is not only his lover, but also her half-think tank. Xu Zaixu He obeyed her words, and this person was the female official of the Female Sect. As long as the senior brother gave orders to Mrs. Leng and did something, he would not be afraid that the Tang King would not get involved in the trap."

Speaking of this, the three women all looked at Li Xuandu. The three of them were just giving advice, and the one who made the decision was Li Xuandu.

Li Xuandu pondered and said, "This method is feasible. What if the seven hermits of Confucian schools still endure to endure and force and not take action?"

"The Empress Party has made an attack, but the Imperial Party dare not fight back. What will those Imperial Party members think? What will the Empress Party members think?" Murong Hua asked back.

Shangguan Wan said: "The people of the Imperial Party will be dispersed, and the people in the Later Party will feel that this is a God-given opportunity."

Murong Hua whispered: "Water has no constant momentum, and soldiers have no constant shape. The key is to adapt to the situation. If this is really reached, why can't we join forces with the Queen Mother? Let the Confucian Sect suffer a great loss."

Li Xuandu shook his head and said, "Things of betrayal damage to credibility and are unfavorable in the long run."

Murong Hua immediately said, "Then let's withdraw from the imperial capital for the time being, and we will watch it on the wall."

Lu Yanbing asked, "What if the Confucian Sect and the Empress Dowager join forces to attack us?"

Murong Hua smiled and said, "It must be impossible, there are two reasons."

"For the Confucian school, moral integrity is a double-edged sword, and hurting others and oneself. They said that the "Hello Si Chen" that had been in chaos for so many years, and they had to believe it. It was difficult for the ship to turn around. I want to In such a short time, I have to capsize. This is one of them."

"It is inevitable that the two parties will fight, and the party is more important than the state affairs. For the Imperial Party, who harmed their vital interests? Who is living and dead with them? Are they the people of the rear party who are close to you? Or Liaodong, thousands of miles away? Naturally, it is the person who is close to the rear party. From the perspective of itself, Liaodong is a major concern of the court, but not their personal concern. They will naturally choose to use the foreign enemy to get rid of the party struggle first Even if there are one or two exceptions, it is not enough to reverse the trend. The second one is."

Lu Yanbing said with sincerity: "Sister Murong is very good at seeing, Yanbing admires it."

Murong Hua said humbly: "I dare not, I dare not."

"Sister Murong doesn't have to be too humble. It's really my plan." Li Xuandu said, "This plan is feasible."

Murong Hua was not too humble, but leaned forward slightly to Li Xuandu behind the desk to express his humility.

Li Xuan pondered for a moment and ordered, "Senior Sister Murong, Sect Master Shangguan and Bingyan, you three go to meet the cabinet ministers and start preparing for this matter, but don't do it in advance, wait and take action later."

The three of them stood up together and replied, "Yes."