Yuangai Suwen knew very well in his heart that with the demise of Baekje, with only 30,000 soldiers and horses, he had no way to stop the pace of Datang's attack.

And it is impossible for the Wa State to devote the whole country to help him.

Therefore, in the end, Yuangai Suwen ran away again, led more than 30,000 soldiers and horses, and countless wealth, and ran to the Wa Kingdom by boat.

At this point, the entire Korean Peninsula has been completely controlled by Datang.

Datang's territory has been further expanded.

Immediately, the 50,000 navy was directly placed on the Korean Peninsula by Li Su.

Sooner or later, one day, they will go to take the Wa Kingdom, which is the closest place.

And the 50,000 soldiers and horses led by Xue Rengui, Li Su asked Xue Rengui to lead the army to return to Yizhou directly.

This time, the king of Shu, Li Su, stepped out and not only directly destroyed Goguryeo, but also included the territory of Silla and Baekje into the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

It made Datang expand its territory again, and the credit is immeasurable.

This time, Li Su's exploits, although he didn't dare to say that he was a wolf, he didn't dare to say that Yan Ran was a stone.

But the credit made is already extraordinary.

However, now his title has reached its peak, and there is no way to seal it.

This is also the ancient ministers, often because the credit is too much, too great.

In the end, it will lead to the unsealable, and eventually lead to the killing of the emperor by the emperor, which will happen repeatedly.

Because a wise emperor must do something, that is, rewards and punishments are clear.

And once your title is over, the emperor will reward you with nothing to reward, what should you do?

If you have to be rewarded, I'm afraid that there is only one way to be the emperor......

Now, Li Ke didn't care at all, but rewarded Li Ke with a lot of money.

But countless ministers were secretly frightened in their hearts.

The king of Shu single-handedly founded the Chinese Commercial Bank, which can be said to be rich and rival the country.

Does he care about the emperor's reward?

In the future, the king of Shu will make another contribution, what should he do?

These things are really scary to think about!

……

Emperor Li Ke didn't hear these rumors.

Or heard, and he didn't care at all.

He knew his brother very well, and knew that he would definitely not do anything unsubordinate.

If his sixth brother really had this kind of thought, the current emperor would still be his, and he would definitely not be able to fall on his head.

The sixth brother said that he would not do anything compared to himself.

And how can he not be the same for his sixth brother?

So, as long as their brothers are single-minded, does it matter what outsiders say?

At this time, Li Su and Li Ke, two brothers, were eating with Concubine Yang.

Although Taizong died this year, his eldest son is now the emperor.

His son was also reused, the two brothers worked together, and Concubine Yang was also very happy.

The two had a meal with Concubine Yang, and talked to her for a while, but they were driven away by Concubine Yang.

"Okay, okay, one of you is the emperor, the other is Shang Shuling, you have to deal with government affairs every day, so you don't have to accompany me here, go and get busy with your go!"

After leaving here, the two went directly to the imperial study.

After sitting down, Li Ke couldn't help but ask Li Su: "Sixth brother, now that the southwest has been pacified, Goguryeo and other small countries in the northeast have also been wiped out. ”

"The Turks have decayed, and within ten years, it is unlikely that they will be able to use a large sword. Now that the four seas are leveling, it is time to solve the internal troubles! ”

In the original historical trajectory, the Turks were not so teachers, and they have been constantly harassing the Tang Frontier.

Of course, this is also a nomadic characteristic.

Grazing faces a lot of problems, and once grazing alone is not enough for them to live, they will ride on horseback and grab it.

But now, because of the strong rise of the King of Shu.

The Turks are very close to the Tang Dynasty, and the great achievements of the King of Shu make their ears calloused.

Therefore, over the years, the Turks basically did not dare to harass the borders of the Tang Dynasty.

Now Datang, for the time being, there is really no external trouble.

Da Shi can be regarded as a strong enemy of Datang, but since Da Shi fought with Da Tang, he found that Da Tang was not easy to mess with, and he did not put the pace of aggression here for the time being.

There is no external trouble, but it is just the right opportunity to take advantage of this opportunity to solve the internal worries in one fell swoop.

And Datang's internal worries, there is no doubt that the five surnames and seven wangs.

The family is the silverfish of the country, and if the family cannot be eliminated or weakened, the family will sooner or later drag down the empire.

In fact, it's not just Li Ke, why didn't Li Shimin want to weaken the family at the beginning?

However, the family is really not so easy to weaken, and the entire royal family of the Tang Dynasty is not capable of doing this.

The real weakening of the five surnames and seven hopes relied on the rebellious dynasty.

As soon as they were killed indiscriminately, the five surnames and Qiwang were almost wiped out.

And Li Su shook his head slowly and said: "Your Majesty, the courtiers think that the time is not yet to weaken the four surnames and Liuwang!" The younger brother felt that we should raise the business tax at this time. ”

Li Ke asked puzzledly, "Sixth brother, why do you say that?" ”

Li Su said eloquently: "Brother Huang, it is not our goal to weaken the four surnames and six wangs. It is only a means to recover a large amount of land from them. ”

"Now the four surnamed Liuwang are very vigilant, but they will not touch anything that violates the law and discipline."

"And they have a deep background and a lot of talent, and they can always find business opportunities."

"Now it's hard for us to find the time and excuse to deal with them, we can't use trumped-up charges to take them all down!"

The four surnames are six wang, and the background is indeed too deep.

And among the family, there are many talents.

Don't think that in the family, there is nothing to be done with the scorn and the anointing.

In fact, the family's family education is very strict, and the education of the children of the family is the best education.

The four surnames and six wangs can be traced back to the Han and Han dynasties.

After hundreds of years of development, it is natural to have their own set of development systems.

The emphasis on children's education is becoming more and more perfect.

Let's just say that the current Datang is developing very rapidly.

But the entire business of Datang, except for the China Commercial Bank, is four surnames and six wangs.

Even, the Chinese Commercial Bank does not have the deep background of the four surnames and six wangs.

Now the four surnames and six wangs are suffering, but the loss is that they don't have excellent technology.

If the technology of the two sides is on the same starting line, China Commercial Bank will be far from being the opponent of the four surnames and six wangs.

The original five surnames and seven wangs once wanted to put the king of Shu to death.

But as a result, they have been suffering losses for a long time.

In the end, the Lu family was folded in.

So much so that now it has become four surnames and six wangs.

And with the new emperor ascending the throne, the four surnames Liuwang are now more honest.

They do business in a proper manner, and never do things that are treacherous.

What is the reason to weaken them now?

Of course, if you insist on finding faults, you can definitely find them.

But if you do do that, it will have a very bad impact.

And it can cause unrest.

After listening to Li Su's analysis, Li Ke had to admit that this was indeed the case.

Li Ke asked unwillingly: "Sixth brother, can we just let them go like this?" ”

Li Su smiled and said, "Brother Huang, of course it is impossible to let them go so easily. But now is not the time. ”

"When our warships are built and we can expand overseas, then we can really do something to them."

"And now the younger brother thinks that now we can increase the commercial tax, from the original thirty taxes to ten taxes."

"However, although the commercial tax has increased, we can also improve the status of the merchants, so that the status of the merchants is equal to that of the common people."

"At the same time, we can form a chamber of commerce to guarantee the rights and interests of businessmen. Even those who pay large taxes can be given certain rewards. ”

"Of course, these rewards can be in vain, let's say a knighthood."

After listening to Li Su's words, Li Ke couldn't help but fall into contemplation.

The merchants of the Tang Dynasty naturally have to pay taxes, and the current business tax is not high, only 30 taxes and one.

If the tax is raised to 10 all of a sudden, I'm afraid that some businessmen will make trouble.

However, the current board only hits the merchants, and it doesn't move those big families on the surface, so it shouldn't cause too much turmoil, right?

As for what Li Su said, it was just a reward for a false lord, Li Ke understood it very well.

This kind of title, which lasts from one generation to the next, will not be hereditary.

It's just that after being knighted, there are some privileges.

For example, they can be on an equal footing with magistrates, and their status has been significantly improved.

Of course, throughout ancient times, with the exception of the Yuan Dynasty, the status of merchants was quite low.

Li Ke felt that Li Ke's suggestion to improve the status of businessmen was very challenging.

As soon as this suggestion is made, I'm afraid everyone will oppose it, right?

Thinking of this, Li Ke couldn't help frowning and asked, "Sixth brother, to improve the status of a businessman, I'm afraid this decision is not easy to pass, right?" Is this really necessary? ”

Even the emperor is difficult to understand, which shows how difficult it will be to improve the status of a businessman.

Li Su sighed and said: "Brother Huang, the so-called no agriculture is unstable, no work is not rich, and no business is not living. ”

"If you want the country to prosper, you must develop business, and if you want to prosper, you must improve the status of businessmen."

"Throughout history, wasn't there a lot of resistance? But without change, it will be difficult for the country to become truly rich and strong after all. ”

Li Ke nodded and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you!" ”

Li Su continued: "At the same time as raising the commercial tax, we can reduce the agricultural tax. The peasants could be directly exempted from forced labor, and they only had to pay taxes once a year. ”

"And when commerce really flourishes to a certain extent, it can even be exempted from agricultural taxes. When the time comes, the people will get real benefits and more firmly defend Datang. ”

Li Ke couldn't help frowning and asked, "Sixth brother, if you are exempt from agricultural taxes, won't the taxes of any country be greatly reduced?" When the time comes, I'm afraid it will be difficult to maintain the normal operation of the imperial court, right? ”

Li Su smiled and said: "Brother Huang, if you wait for commerce to really prosper, the commercial tax will be the big one. It's more than a tax on agriculture. ”

"At that time, even if the agricultural tax is exempted, the national tax will be much higher than now, of course, this is all a later story, and it will not be too late to discuss it later."

The courtiers believed that just by exempting them from forced labor, they could make the people grateful to the court. The additional commercial tax will not only make up for this gap, but will also be more than the current tax revenue. ”

Li Ke still has reservations about Li Su's statement.

However, Li Ke felt that the reform method proposed by Li Ke was worth trying.

Now after more than ten years of recuperation, the treasury is full and the people are rich.

The surplus of the treasury can at least ensure that Datang will not have too many problems within ten years.

If this reform really doesn't work, it's not too late to abolish it.

And once it works, it will be loved by the people.

Moreover, it can further crack down on the four surnames and six wangs.

In the end, Li Ke said to Li Su: "Brother Chen, I will leave this matter to you with full responsibility." ”

Li Su nodded and said: "Brother Huang rest assured, the younger brother will definitely live up to the trust of the imperial brother." ”

……

In the next early dynasty, Li Su played and put forward these suggestions.

And after making this suggestion, Li Su and the emperor were surprised to find that the situation was a little wrong.

Originally, they were ready to resist pressure, and they believed that all civil officials must be collectively opposed.

As for those generals, this kind of thing has nothing to do with them.

As long as it doesn't infringe on their interests, they won't care about these things.

But what Li Su and Li Ke didn't expect was that there were indeed some people in the court who opposed it.

But there are not many people who oppose it.

There are only a few imperial histories, and a few Qingliu, who are trying their best to oppose it.

"Your Majesty, this matter must not be done! The so-called no treacherous businessman, businessman valuing profit over righteousness, incorruptible and shameless, treacherous, how can this kind of person improve their status? ”

"Your Majesty, the commercial tax is thirty taxes and one tax, but the rules set by the emperor must not be changed at this time!"

"Your Majesty, I rule the country with Confucianism, and this kind of practice is simply insulting. In the long run, the country will not be a country! ”

In the face of these people's rebuttals, Li Su argued with reason.

However, in this kind of thing, the public says that the public is reasonable, and the mother-in-law says that the mother-in-law is reasonable, and it is difficult to convince the other party.

But because there are not many people who oppose it, it doesn't matter much.

If these few people are really against it, there is no way to really stop this matter.

The emperor and the king of Shu both felt that something was wrong.

Could it be that the remaining civil servants were caught off guard?

When they go back, will they discuss a bigger conspiracy?

But then, everything was calm.

Except for a few officials who were resolutely opposed on the spot that day, the other civil officials, after retiring from the court, did not play a single opposition.

The development of things made it difficult for them to understand for a while.

At the second court meeting, Emperor Li Ke once again took out this matter to discuss.

But what surprised him and Li Su even more was that this time, even the voice of opposition disappeared.

Last time, there were still a few people who objected, and this time, why is there not even one who is against it?

Puzzled, the two glanced at each other.

Only then did I find out that the few people who opposed it last time did not come to the court meeting this time.

After careful inquiry, it turned out that these people actually took sick leave collectively.

An old imperial historian accidentally fell to the ground and broke his leg, and he was afraid that he would not be able to go to court for a month or two.

There is also a royal history, who ate a bad stomach and pulled for a whole night, and couldn't stand up at all.

Several others fell ill one after another.

After hearing the news, Emperor Li Ke was stunned at first, and then a knowing smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

On the military general's side, they are talking to each other, constantly laughing.

On the civilian side, their faces are ugly.

But in the end, because no one objected, these orders were successfully passed.

After retiring from the dynasty, Li Su was left behind.

In the imperial study, Li Ke looked at Li Su and smiled.

"Sixth brother, this hand is playing well, so that all those who oppose it will not be able to go to court."

Li was stunned and said, "Brother Huang, this matter is not a duck made by me!" ”

Li Ke laughed and said, "Don't make trouble, it's not you who still has-"

Suddenly, Li Ke looked at Li Ke's face and couldn't help but say in surprise: "Sixth brother, it's really not you?" ”

Li Su said solemnly: "Brother Huang, it's really not me. If it were me, would I still need to lie in front of you again? ”

Hearing Li Su's words, Li Ke couldn't help frowning and said, "This is strange, if it's not you, who did it?" Who is secretly helping us? ”

After pondering for a while, Li Su said: "Brother Huang, my brother thinks that this person who made a secret move may not be helping us!" ”

Li Ke showed a thoughtful look on his face, and then asked: "Sixth brother, what do you mean?" ”

Li Su said: "Brother Huang, originally this change, the ministers and brothers have been ready, and all the ministers will be prepared to oppose it collectively. But in fact, there were not many people who objected. ”

"And the people who opposed it early last time are actually sick collectively today. This morning meeting, no one objected, and it was successfully passed. Don't you think it's weird? ”

Li Ke couldn't help nodding and said, "Yes, it's quite strange." ”

Li Su continued: "Brother Huang, according to the observation of the younger brother, these officials have no objections. The vast majority are officials of the four surnamed Liuwang factions. There are a few who are not, but it is very likely that they have been bought by them in this matter. ”

Li Ke couldn't help frowning tightly and said, "I don't know what the hell they're doing?" ”

After pondering for a moment, Li Su smiled and said, "The younger brother thought about it and felt that they deliberately wanted to pass this decree. ”

"This change was proposed by the younger brothers, and the emperor strongly supported it. If you don't do this well, you will inevitably be attacked by them. ”

"These four surnamed Liuwang, the thief's heart is not dead, waiting to see our jokes! Hmph, sooner or later, let them know how powerful this king is! ”

After listening to Li Su's analysis, Li Ke reacted.

However, what these four surnamed Liuwang did also indirectly helped them.

Otherwise, I'm afraid of tearing up the stove on top of the court, and I don't know how much time I will waste.

Soon, it took only three days for the decree to be transmitted to all parts of Datang.

The speed at which the decree is delivered is unusually fast.

Of course, not by train or bus, these are fast, but they are not so fast.

They delivered the message directly by telegram.

With the size of Datang, it only takes three days to pass on the news.

As soon as the decree was delivered, it immediately caused an uproar in the entire Tang Dynasty.

More of a round of applause.

Because for the entire Tang Dynasty, the vast majority of people are ordinary people.

After that, they abolished the forced labor.

They only need to pay the agricultural tax once a year.

And now, because of the promotion of several new crops, even in the most remote areas, as long as there are strong laborers at home, the problem of food and clothing can be solved.

After all, at this time, the population is still relatively small, and each family can get dozens of acres of land.

As long as you have strong labor, as long as you are not lazy, you will never go hungry.

If there are really special circumstances, families with only the old, weak, sick and disabled left at home can apply for agricultural tax reduction.

The people paid less taxes, and of course they were grateful to the court.

Especially when they heard that this proposal was put forward by the king of Shu, and it was the emperor's strong support that was implemented despite public opinion.

They are even more supportive of the Tang royal family.

The other group of the edict is the merchants.

Some of the merchants were happy, and some hated and cursed.

Of course, the vast majority of people are hating and swearing.

After all, the commercial tax has been raised from the original 30 taxes to 10 taxes and 1 tax.

All of a sudden, it's tripled!

It's a real deal, and it's going to cost twice as much money.

It would be strange if you didn't feel distressed.

On the other hand, this time it has also improved the status of businessmen.

In other words, now their status has become as high as that of the common people.

The status of the peasants and the workers has already been promoted.

Now at last they are the merchants, and they are on the same level as the peasants and the workers.

And those merchants who pay a lot of taxes can even get knighthoods.

For those big businessmen, it was a bonus.

In short, some people rejoiced and some cursed this change.

But on the whole, the joy is greater than the curse.

And for the vast majority of businessmen, even if it is ten taxes and one, they have a profit.

It's just that a part of the profit is missing out of thin air.

Although it is difficult to accept, they have no way to resist and can only passively accept it.

In fact, the most interesting thing in this is the big families such as the four surnames and Liuwang.

These families, whatever the family, have huge business operations.

This time, the commercial tax was raised, and it was actually them who paid the most.

But will these families really pay the business tax honestly?

Not to mention that it is now a commercial tax of ten taxes and one tax, even when it is thirty taxes and one tax, they have not paid much tax.

If the time comes, you can only collect the taxes of those small traders, but not the taxes of these families.

……

At this time, a rebellion case suddenly broke out again that shocked the government and the opposition.

The protagonists of this rebellion are none other than the famous cuckold royal bereaved love, and his wife, Princess Gao Yang.

Their accomplices also include Xue Wanche, Princess Baling, and Chai Lingwu.

After hearing this case, Li Ke couldn't help but be furious.

I didn't expect these people to be so bold, my father's bones were not cold, and they were going to rebel!

Li Ke ordered the three divisions of Dali Temple, the Criminal Department, and Zongzheng Temple to try and examine this case of rebellion.