Because it was a formal visit, after receiving the post, Li Chengqian specially instructed the bureau to send a ceremonial staff to greet him.

There is no way, the status of these three is there, and the etiquette they should have cannot be lost.

"Fang Xiang, Wei Shizhong, Kong Shuzi, why did the three of you come together?"

Wearing the prince's costume, after the three of them finished saluting, Li Chengqian also returned the salute.

Fang Xuanling smiled slightly, and said: "Today coincides with the period of rest, and there are not too many affairs under the Zhongshu Gate, so the three of us can rest and rest. ”

Li Chengqian stretched out his hand to invite the three of them into the East Palace, although he was smiling, his heart was still puffing.

It's too weird, if it's just a trivial matter, these three people will run into the East Palace at most, and tell him directly, they can't make it a formal visit, saying that it doesn't look like a business, and they don't want to talk in private, I don't know what kind of dumb fans they are fighting.

As a place for the East Palace to officially receive guests, the Mingde Hall is actually rarely used, but the three of them officially visited, and it was not grand enough to meet in the study. Li Chengqian was tired of these twists and turns of the ancients, the same thing, at different times, in different places, in different places.... Under the influence of other variables, there will be a variety of strange properties, which is annoying.

After each of them sat down, Zhang Yun sent four pots of tea, then walked out of the hall and closed the door.

After taking a sip of tea, Fang Xuanling said with a smile: "Drinking and drinking, it is still the tea of the East Palace, which can always surprise people." This tea is mixed with autumn chrysanthemum, not only beautiful, but also a good thing to go to the fire, if His Royal Highness has more in the East Palace, why don't you give some to Weichen? ”

Li Chengqian smiled bitterly in his heart, but he could only maintain a normal smile and said: "The prime minister will see the outside world when he says this, if he thinks that there is something in the East Palace that suits his heart in the future, just come and get it directly." During this time, there are more people who rely on you in government affairs. ”

Kong Yingda said with a smile: "Since the old house is shameless, Weichen doesn't want it, just rob the old house." ”

Looking at Fang Xuanling and Kong Yingda, who were looking at each other and laughing, Li Chengqian's head was as big as a fight, and he became more and more confused, what the hell are the three of them going to do, they say so easily, and they are called very casually, obviously chattering. These three people are idle and have nothing to do to come to the East Palace for a vacation? If that's the case, then it's really idle.

"Fang Xiang, Wei Shizhong, Kong Shuzi, the three of you came to visit the East Palace today, not just to ask for tea, you three have rested, there are still a lot of backlogs to deal with here."

As soon as these words came out, Fang Xuanling and Kong Yingda immediately put away their playful expressions, and they invariably became clay sculpture bodhisattvas.

Seeing the expressions of the two, Li Chengqian shifted his gaze to Wei Zheng's face, and it seemed that he was really tied up by Wei Zheng as they said.

Wei Zheng coughed lightly, took out the fold from his sleeve, and personally handed it to the prince.

"Your Highness, Wechen came today to know why Wechen's excerpt was deposed? Doesn't Your Highness know how terrifying the Flood Beast will be when it loosens its shackles? ”

After looking at the folds, I knew what Wei Zheng and they were doing today.

After Wei Zheng inspected a large number of noble industries, he came to the conclusion that the share of commercial taxes should be increased, and it must be increased vigorously. After all, for Datang, there is nothing more dangerous than a large amount of wealth flowing into the Xungui family. The wealth is moving, and the nobles are not short of power, but now with the addition of money, the result of continuous accumulation is either to become a wealthy family with the same five surnames, or, it is a rebellion!

has experienced too much, Wei Zheng did not hesitate to make people's hearts uglier. When money is satisfied, it will bring dissatisfaction with power. But for many nobles, there is nothing more coveted than the throne. The so-called aristocracy is actually a candidate for the throne, as long as the royal governance of the country collapses, they are the ones who raise troops to fight again.

Li Chengqian naturally knew such a question, but when he was asked by Wei Zheng in person, he didn't know whether to say it or not.

After thinking about Wei Zheng's recital for a long time, he said: "Fang Xiang, Wei Shizhong, Kong Shuzi, what Gu wants to say next is related to the plan of his father and Gu for a long time in the future. ”

Seeing the prince say this, Fang Xuanling immediately had the idea of running away. Damn Kong Yingda really guessed correctly, the emperor and the crown prince really have a plan in this matter! What the emperor and the crown prince planned together, is it so easy to listen to? You shouldn't be here today!

However, he clearly wanted to escape, but his body had no intention of moving. Curious! The plan carried out by the crown prince and the emperor together is really curious!

After pouring a cup of tea again, the fragrance of tea that I had enjoyed just now was all gone, and the three of them all looked at Li Chengqian, waiting for the next step.

Seeing that the three of them had no intention of running away, Li Chengqian smiled slightly, stood up with a teacup and said as he walked: "It's very simple, this time, my father is deliberately conniving at Xungui. Since the Tang Dynasty was neutral in a hundred wars, the people have experienced too many wars, whether it is agriculture or anything else, they need to recover slowly, and the same is true for commerce. Although it is said that business is a cheap industry, it is precisely business that promotes productivity, which cannot be denied. ”

After speaking, Li Chengqian took out three pieces of silver from his arms, gave one to each of them on the table of the three, and asked, "What is this?" ”

Fang Xuanling said without thinking: "Silver." ”

Li Chengqian nodded and asked Kong Yingda: "What does Kong Shuzi think this is?" ”

Kong Yingda also said without thinking: "Wealth." ”

Without waiting for him to ask Wei Zheng, Wei Zheng arched his hand and said: "It can also be regarded as copper coins or gold, after all, these three are connected." ”

Li Chengqian smiled, swept the three pieces of silver to the ground, and said to the puzzled three: "Actually, the answer of Fang Xiang is right, this is silver, and it has nothing to do with wealth." The so-called wealth is based on how much copper, silver, and gold a person has. No, even if these three things are not lonely at all, but the house is full of jade, who dares to say that Gu has no money? The same, even if there are no these, Lone has several warehouses of grain, who dares to say that Lone is a poor egg? So, wealth, in fact, is something that you have, not silver and gold.

The three of them thought about it, if any pit in the ground could dig up silver, would this thing still be valuable? can only be like a stone, and I don't even have the heart to appreciate it. Therefore, copper coins, silver, and gold are all given value by us, and they have become the universal bearer of wealth. ”

Fang Xuanling thought about it for a while, and found that it was really very reasonable, but he still didn't understand what the prince was trying to express, so he could only arch his hand and ask: "Your Highness, the truth you said, the old minister has already understood, but you are obviously talking about business, why do you mention this first?" ”

Returning to his seat, Li Chengqian continued: "Gu said this to let the three of them know that wealth cannot be generalized, and real wealth is by no means something that can be represented by copper coins and the like, there are many things that can represent wealth, such as grain, linen, wood, coal, etc., as long as it is something that can come in handy, even if it is a stone, it is wealth. If you want to make Datang rich, the key is to develop productive forces. And productivity is precisely what can be driven by businessmen. As long as production is encouraged, who cares what he produces, as long as there is something to produce, it is the creation of wealth. Only when individuals become rich will they lead to the prosperity of the country. Blindly measuring wealth by the amount of grain produced is indeed the foundation, but it is by no means comprehensive. ”

Kong Yingda nodded, although he talked about very practical things at this time, but he didn't realize until today that there were such deep twists and turns in such a simple thing.

"The development of commerce needs to be driven by the Xungui family, and I have to admit that only the Xungui family has the ability to create a large number of goods transactions. Donggong opened a mine in Xiazhou to dig coal, and the families of rich merchants and nobles in Chang'an were burned by even civilians, and the miners who participated in mining in Xiazhou also earned money, and both sides were satisfied. And in this process, the East Palace benefited, and the treasury also benefited from it, a very simple thing, but it benefited all four parties. The same is true for other industries, as long as there is demand, there can be a win-win situation. And that's just for now. Three, think about it, when various industries rush to appear, and the imperial court changes the tax and adjusts the commercial tax to an appropriate level, how much will the treasury receive as a result? No need to overcharge, only take one-tenth of the net profit! ”

Fang Xuanling's hand shook, and the teacup fell to the ground and shattered.

Kong Yingda trembled like chaff, Wei Zheng opened his mouth, but he couldn't speak.

It is foreseeable that the treasury will be filled to unimaginable levels. At that time, it is not a big deal not to say that it is domestic construction, that is, to let the military go to war while building! If the treasury is rich, there will never be a situation where the troops are withdrawn halfway through the battle, and there will be no situation where Goryeo is clamoring, but the imperial court can only endure its anger and can only verbally threaten.

"However, all this has to be based on the fact that the output of food is sufficient, and people in the world do not even have enough stomachs, how can they have the energy to do these things? Once the situation of all the people doing business appears, it will be more terrible than natural disasters, and people will not starve to death in good years, in the final analysis, agriculture is the fundamental! ”

Li Chengqian clapped his hands and said to Wei Zheng: "Wei Shizhong is really in the same sentence, that's right, agriculture is the foundation." Because of this, increasing agricultural production will be a top priority for the imperial court in the coming years. What you don't know is that Feng Ang at this time is estimated to have led his troops to kill Linyi, and the high-yield rice in Linyi is very much wanted to be planted in our Datang. The north is not very suitable, as long as the south is developed, the grain production can be increased by I don't know how much. The development of the south has always been the long-cherished wish of the Central Plains Dynasty, but none of them have been realized. If you want to develop the South, you need a lot of investment, and to put it sadly, such an investment is even beyond the reach of the national treasury.

It is precisely because of this that it is necessary to mobilize the strength of the whole people, and when the development of the south can bring benefits to everyone, as long as the imperial court is the leader, there will be countless people following suit. When the production of grain increases, the prosperity of commerce will not be a tree without roots and water without a source. When the commercial tax revenue of the state treasury is enough to support consumption, it is still guilty of collecting grain from the people? How much is grain worth? At that time, I am afraid that collecting taxes from the peasants will be a burden on the imperial court, and who wants to bear the burden? In this way, there will be only one result, and the only result—no more taxes from the peasants, only from the merchants. After the realization of the agricultural tax, what will it be, I don't need to tell you alone. ”

Wei Zheng stood up suddenly, and the chair was even brought down by him.

No tax on farming?

These three words, when put together, are so luscious! As long as there is no tax on farming, he Wei Zheng will admit that he has not been in vain in his life! Even if you linger on the sickbed in the future, you will die of laughter.

Fang Xuanling also stood up, no tax? The peasants no longer pay taxes, and such a dynasty will no longer have to worry about the rise of the pole, and it is only possible to end the dynasty if the ruler collapses or the foreign enemy invades. But is it possible?

Kong Yingda was also so excited that she couldn't help herself, and sent the teacup to her mouth several times, but she couldn't send it to the right place, but instead wet her official uniform.

There is no tax on agriculture, this is a scene that only appeared in the era of the ancient saint king. As long as this is achieved, the Tang Dynasty? Such a title is not enough to describe such a dynasty, it is foreseeable that not only the emperor and the crown prince, but also these auxiliary officials, will also be famous for eternity!

The three people and the three reactions were all within Li Chengqian's expectations.

Seriously, when the emperor's father heard this, his reaction was not much stronger than theirs. It is precisely because of this that Li Shimin let go of the shackles around Xungui's neck. Otherwise, it would be too late for him to suppress it, how could he do such a dangerous thing. Even if it was more of the new aristocracy who let go of the restrictions, he wouldn't be willing. To support the new aristocracy and replace the old aristocracy, it must be carried out under one's own control, how can it be laissez-faire.

Hearing the sound of the chair falling to the ground, Zhang Yun anxiously opened the door of the hall and looked inside, seeing that the situation was weird, he could only quickly close the door and pretend not to see it.

"Your Highness will tell your majesty and your plan today, I'm afraid the old man is the help you are looking for. Now that the nobles have tasted the sweetness, when the tax rate is changed again, they will definitely be mixed up. ”

Fang Xuanling smiled bitterly, there is no doubt that he is the helper appointed by the prince, and he wants to let the decree of changing the tax rate pass through the court, especially to change the commercial tax from one out of twelve to one out of ten for pure profits, which almost cuts off the possibility of everyone playing tricks. However, how do you know if the business tax paid by a person is correct? Tax evasion, to put it bluntly, is done by almost all the nobles.

Fang Xuanling was about to ask, but Wei Zheng opened his mouth one step ahead of him: "Your Highness, you may not think too simply, do you want to thoroughly investigate the merchant's industry?" ”

Li Chengqian smiled slightly: "You are right, it is difficult to check the property of the merchants, but you can't help it, and when my father comes back from Qizhou, he will expand the household department, rectify the tax system, and promote the bookkeeping method of the loan law." At the same time, Gu also plans to integrate the East Palace and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to set up an organization called the bank, as long as the bank is there, the businessman's every move cannot hide the traces. ”

Rectifying the tax procedure is a foreseeable thing, but the bank has attracted Fang Xuanling's attention, and he can't help but arch his hand and say, "Your Highness, what is a bank?" Can you tell us about Wechen? ”

Looking at the sun outside, it was almost noon, Li Chengqian said: "It's just time for lunch, why don't we talk about it at the dinner table, if you want to talk about the bank, I'm afraid it won't be finished for a while, and when the lunch is over, why don't you three help the orphans deal with some government affairs?" Otherwise, Lone really has to stay up all night to deal with it. ”

The three of them naturally agreed, and followed the prince to the Chongjiao Palace.

Li Chengqian was also very happy to catch three laborers, so he explained to them the role of the bank.

Datang has no bank, and the predecessor money bank does not have it, which is ridiculous to say, the most lending is the ruffian, the largest number, and the most ruthless interest is actually Buddhism. The so-called "wishing power" handed in by the believers, under the rolling of some monks' donkeys, immediately brought considerable income to the temple.

When he learned all this, Li Chengqian had reason to associate the term "donkey rolling" with "bald donkey" in terms of interest....

Speaking of which, Li Chengqian admits that he has not studied the bank's system deeply, and hopes to explore it while doing it. But in any case, it is the essence of business and the essence of the bank, even if it collapses, at least, it will not lose too much.

After the meal, it is the handling of government affairs, and it is fast for the four of them to do things together, because Wei Zheng and Kong Yingda are here, and basically as long as they leave the East Palace, they will be sent to Shangshu Province after going through the motions under the door.

In the middle of the moon, the three of them left the palace under the escort of Chang He.

The curfew in Chang'an at night is very strict, but no matter how strict it is, it is not as strict as these three people.

After seeing these three, Wu Hou, who was patrolling the streets, not only did not check, but instead gathered his partners to escort them.

Stepping on the moonlight, Fang Xuanling breathed a sigh of relief and said to Wei Zheng: "Today really scared the old man, whether it is a farmer's tax or a bank, this is actually the prince's idea, I have really eaten for so many years in vain." ”

Wei Zheng also sighed and said: "In the past, the old man only thought that the prince was just a little smarter than his peers, but now it seems that he is really a demon!" ”

Kong Yingda said with a smile: "Now you know why Lao Li Gang claimed to teach the prince to lose his life, but don't be too surprised, the prince's magic is just that he doesn't stick to the old rules when thinking about things, and he will always find another way." Haven't you two seen it from the handling of government affairs during this time? More often, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince lacks experience. Only when experience comes up, such a prince is the most terrifying. ”