Just when Wang Ding didn't know how to turn around, Zhuo Bingtian, the head of the household department, said: "The national debt is for a period of five years, and the total annual principal and interest must be repaid by 3 million, which is not a small pressure on the imperial court, can the term be extended and the interest rate reduced?" ”

Hearing this, Wang Ding secretly breathed a sigh of relief, postponed the interest rate cut, and the loss of this Jingyuan reacted quickly, and he was able to propose this method in a hurry, which did not damage the interests of Yuan Qi, but also saved Daoguang's face, I didn't want to, he didn't finish his breath, Yi Zhixin said categorically: "It's not appropriate." ”

As soon as these words came out, Zhuo Bingtian hurriedly shut up, and Wang Ding almost blew his beard and glared at him, secretly wondering why this kid was so ignorant of advancing and retreating! Daoguang looked at him expressionlessly, and the atmosphere in the warm pavilion was immediately condensed.

Yi Zhizhi did not raise his head, and said in a sullen voice: "The first issuance of treasury bonds by the imperial court, the term should not be too long, five years is the limit, for the gentry and businessmen, treasury bonds are a new thing, if you want to issue them smoothly, you must be attractive enough, one term can not be long, and the other interest rate cannot be low." ”

Speaking of this, his tone changed, "Of course, the imperial court is under great pressure to repay, and it has to be carefully considered, extending the term and reducing the interest are not feasible, the only thing that can be slightly flexible is the repayment method, the imperial court issues treasury bonds, there is no doubt in terms of credit, if the imperial court is under great pressure, you can only pay interest in the first two years, and pay the principal and interest in the last three years." ”

Zhuo Bingtian's eyes lit up when he listened, this method is feasible, if there is a war in the southeast, the pressure in the first two years is the greatest, if only interest is paid in the first two years, the pressure of the imperial court will be much smaller, he looked up at Daoguang, and then he slowly spoke: "If you only pay interest in the first two years and do not repay the principal, for the imperial court, this is more practical than reducing the interest." ”

This kid is not ignorant of advance and retreat, Daoguang turned his head and glanced at Zhuo Bingtian, did not rush to express his position, raised his hand and picked up the negotiation conditions of the British side from the case, opened it and closed it twice, and gently put it down: "Yuan Qi plans to implement a machine silk reeling factory in Jiangnan?" ”

Daoguang's words were light, but Yi Zhi's heart sank, the other party did not say customs innovation, but said that Yuan Qi intended to enter Jiangnan, which was simply intended to threaten, it seems that the other party is still not giving up, hoping that he will make concessions on the interest rate, and they all say that Guang is thrifty and stingy, it seems that the rumors are true, this is a miser.

After a slight sigh, he said slowly: "Back to the emperor, a machine silk reeling machine pays eight yuan a year in taxes, and the existing silk reeling machine in Guangdong is close to 70,000 units, and the three major silk weaving centers in the Qing Dynasty - Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Fujian, among which the silk weaving in Jiangsu and Zhejiang is prosperous, if the machine silk reeling factory is popularized in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the imperial court can increase the tax and silver by at least 800,000 a year.

In addition, in Europe, customs tariffs have always been an important fiscal revenue of various countries, the scale of foreign trade in the Qing Dynasty, the amount of money is the largest in European countries, but the tariff revenue is very small, if the customs reform can be successfully implemented, the Qing tariffs can at least double. ”

Hearing this, Zhuo Bingtian, who is the secretary of the household department, jumped in his heart, the current tariff of the Qing Dynasty is more than 2 million a year, doubling it means increasing by more than 2 million, and the machine silk reeling factory will increase by 800,000, that is, 3 million, and it will be easy to repay the principal and interest of the national debt.

Daoguang is also excited, the imperial court's finances are beyond their means, the treasury is empty, he strongly advocates open source and reduce expenditure, but no one in the Manchu Dynasty can put forward reasonable and feasible open source suggestions, although he took the lead in frugality, but with little effect, can increase the income of three million a year, how can he not be tempted?

However, when the other party said this, he was obviously unwilling to make concessions in terms of interest, and after a little hesitation, he said, "Kneel down first." ”

Kneel down? They just ended the conversation without talking about anything substantial? Yi Zhifen paused slightly, quickly got up and saluted, bowed and withdrew.

As soon as he retreated, Daoguang glanced at Wang Ding and Zhuo Bingtian, and said, "What do you think?" ”

This question was vague, Wang Ding and Zhuo Bingtian didn't know whether he was asking or what he was asking, but it was impossible for the emperor not to reply, and after a little groaning, Wang Ding bowed and said: "Back to the emperor, Yingyi has already increased his troops on a large scale, and the matter of issuing treasury bonds is decided as soon as possible." ”

"Hmm." Daoguang hummed noncommittally and said, "Kneel down." ”

The two of them retreated, he got up and got off the kang and paced back and forth slowly in the room, Yi Zhizu entered Beijing for the issuance of treasury bonds, which was somewhat unexpected by him, Yuan Qi's strength He was very clear, and the formation of Yuan Qi's group practice made Yuan Qi like a tiger with wings, but as the big shopkeeper of Yuan Qi, Yi Zhizhi entered Beijing alone because of Qi Shan's words, although he was stubborn and did not make the slightest concession in terms of interest rates, but it can be seen that the other party is more attentive than him and considers it more carefully.

The first time they met, Yi Zhixiang left him with the impression that he was still very good, with a tall figure, handsome appearance, calm and generous manners, and an excellent official dialect, unlike the official words spoken by ordinary Guangdong officials, which made him listen to it with difficulty, and it was rare that he spoke very methodically, and was very familiar with the situation of Western Yingyi, of course, the most important thing was that he would make money, and at the moment the DPRK and China urgently needed a talent like him.

Yi Zhizu walked out of the gate of the Qianqing Palace, and met Prince Rui Renshou head-on, he was a person with a clear mind, and naturally understood that it could not be so coincidental, so he immediately flicked his horseshoe sleeves, and pricked Qian'er and said: "Xiaguan Yi Zhizhi is content to ask Prince Rui to be safe." ”

When he got up, Renshou said with a smile on his face: "Lord Yi regained Dinghai, it is really very happy, this time into Beijing, this king should do a little bit of the friendship of the landlord, tomorrow in the mansion to set up a banquet for Lord Yi to pick up the wind and wash the dust." ”

What's this guy's idea? Yi Zhishu reacted after a slight change of thought, the other party enveloped him for nothing more than silver, he hurriedly arched his hand and said: "Lord Rui is very loving, and the lower officials are grateful, but I am afraid that it will not work tomorrow, and the lower officials will write two excerpts." ”

Dao Guang is still summoned on the day? Renshou was slightly surprised, and then smiled: "Lord Yi's holy family is generous, congratulations." After a slight pause, he continued: "It's okay, Lord Yi can have time whenever he wants." ”

"Thank you for your love." Yi Zhizhi said: "I will definitely visit the house another day." ”

The two of them had a greeting at the door, Wang Ding and Zhuo Bingtian had come out steadily, and it was indispensable to have a greeting, Renhou didn't dare to talk to the two of him, and he left after a few greetings, the court has rules, the clan relatives and nobles are not allowed to make friends with ministers, Yi Zhizhi is just a false title, the actual identity is still a businessman, he doesn't care, Wang Ding and Zhuo Bingtian are the Minister of Military Aircraft and the Ministry of Households, he is afraid of being criticized.

Sending Renshou away, Wang Ding looked up at Yi Zhicontentment and said: "The big shopkeeper of Yuanqi entered Beijing, I don't know how many clan relatives and nobles will compete for a banquet, be content and be careful, there has been no good banquet since ancient times." ”

This is for his good, I don't know how many people will be offended when this sentence is said, Yi Zhishu hurriedly arched his hand and said: "Zhongtang's golden and jade good words, the lower officials must keep it in mind." ”

"Let's go." Wang Ding said as he walked forward, and said as he walked: "The emperor will definitely summon him tomorrow, you know it in your heart." ”

Without waiting for Yi Zhizhi to speak, Zhuo Bingtian continued: "What is going on with the outbreak of the economic crisis in England, contentment may explain it in detail." ”

Yi Zhisuff said with a smile: "The economic crisis is not something that will be explained clearly for a while, otherwise, I will take the time to write a "On the Economic Crisis". ”

Wang Ding laughed and said, "Still taking time? I'll write it as soon as I go back, maybe the emperor will want it tomorrow. ”

Yi Zhizhi is worried that he can't ask someone to write on his behalf, his hand of calligraphy is not only slow to write but also not easy to see people, immediately hit the snake with the stick, "Write slowly below, two adults can write fast and good?" ”

Zhuo Bingtian smiled when he heard this, "Don't worry, I'll arrange two scribes for you." ”

The next morning, Daoguang summoned Yi Zhifen again, it was still the West Warm Pavilion, and he was a lot more relaxed when he met again, and after entering the Warm Pavilion, he presented the two folds written yesterday with both hands, and when he opened the folds on it, Daoguang frowned and said:

"Ask someone to write it for you?" Yi Zhishu had been on the fold before, Daoguang knew his handwriting, but he didn't know that it was also written by someone else.

The emperor can know his handwriting, which is a great honor for the courtiers, but Yi Zhizhi is content but panicked, and hurriedly said: "The emperor Mingjian, because he is in a hurry, and Weichen is not very familiar with some things that should be paid attention to when writing excerpts, so he asked the scribe to write on his behalf." ”

There are many cases where the minister's excerpt is written by the scribe or the master, but in the end, he has to transcribe a piece and submit it himself, like Yi Zhi's contentment to submit it directly without transcribing, which can be said to be very small, Daoguang glanced at him, and said in a light tone: "In the future, the excerpt is not allowed to be ghostwritten." ”

"Wechen obeys." Yi Zhi's mouth should respond, but his heart is secretly bitter, now he can work hard to practice calligraphy.

In the excerpt, Yi Zhizhi expounded them one by one in accordance with international trade practices, diplomatic practices, and other international conventions, and agreed with all of the six articles of the British side, but only made a slight comment on the establishment of a foreign-related court, and suggested that a Qing official should be in charge of the foreign-related court.

After reading it, Daoguang didn't say anything for a long time, and after a long time, he asked: "It's okay to allow Waiyi to open factories, schools, and newspapers at the port, you are the one who opened a bank, and if you are allowed to open a bank at the port, you don't worry about Yuanqi Bank being run on and going bankrupt?" The interest rate on loans in England is much lower than in the Qing Dynasty. ”

"Back to the emperor." Yi Zhizhi said calmly: "Of course, Weichen is unwilling to open a bank at the port, but economic aggression is the main purpose of Yingyi to provoke a war, and opening a bank is an important means of economic aggression. ”

Daoguang asked in a deep voice, "Do you win the fight?" ”

"You can't win." Yi Zhicontent said without hesitation: "But if you can't win, you must fight!" If you can't win at sea, you may not be able to win on land. ”

With the current strength of the sailors, it is indeed not the opponent of the Yingyi fleet at sea, Daoguang knew this, and he groaned slightly, before he said: "What do you think of this war?" ”

After hesitating, Yi Zhizhi said, "Can you tell what you really think in your heart?" ”

Hearing this, Daoguang couldn't help but smile, "Say it boldly, even if there are rude words, I will forgive you for your innocence." ”

"Your Majesty." Yi Zhizhi said for a moment, and then said in a deep voice: "England is known as the 'overlord of the sea', the navy is strong, invincible, the Great Qing Water Division is weak and poor, and it is impossible to compete at all, and the Great Qing Dynasty coastal defense is also a virtual existence, and there is equal to nothing, let alone resist the British fleet, even coastal smuggling cannot be effectively curbed."

Naval warfare, the Qing Dynasty does not have the slightest chance of winning, but the land war is not necessarily, an English army is not as strong as the navy, moreover, the Qing Dynasty is fighting on the ground after all, land warfare, the Qing Dynasty not only has the advantage of troops but also occupies the geographical advantages and people, if the command is appropriate, there is still a certain chance of victory, however, if you want to win the land battle, the emperor must be in person. ”

"The Imperial Driver?" Daoguang paused, and then said: "Let me go to Jiangnan?" ”

"Yes." Yi Zhizu said in a deep voice: "The British fleet moves quickly, holding the initiative to attack, even if the attacking force is only 20,000, but every time it attacks, the British army can concentrate its forces, the coastal towns of the Qing Dynasty are dense, although the total number of troops far exceeds the British army, but the troops are scattered, and it is easy to be broken by the British army. ”

Although Yi Zhishu said it was not very clear, Daoguang still understood what he meant, and it was indeed the same reason to think about it, although the Qing Dynasty had a large number of troops, it was necessary to divide troops to defend everywhere, and it was impossible to deploy more than 20,000 troops in various important towns along the coast.

Seeing that Daoguang was silent, Yi Zhizhi continued: "Weichen secretly thinks that fighting this battle with all his national strength, regardless of victory or defeat, will be beneficial to the Qing Dynasty. ”

"Huh?" Daoguang snorted lightly and said, "How do you say this?" ”

"Because England can't fight with the Qing Dynasty for a long time." Yi Zhizhi said: "One is that the logistics supply of England is not easy, the second is that the British are in an economic crisis and are unwilling to maintain a war with huge expenses for a long time, and the third is that the most fundamental purpose of the British invasion is to open the market of the Qing Dynasty to stimulate domestic production and get rid of the economic crisis as soon as possible, and they do not want to see the Qing Dynasty destroyed in the war."

The analysis is reasonable, Daoguang secretly praised, but he did not agree with fighting with all his national strength, for a war with almost no chance of winning, it is very unwise to fight with all his national strength, this problem, he naturally will not discuss it with Yi Zhicontent. He immediately changed the conversation and asked, "What do you think about the smoking ban?" ”

Hearing this, Yi Zhixin was stunned, why did he suddenly ask him this question? Could it be that Yiliang will plant crows in the vassal country. The proposition of the film was truthfully reported to Daoguang? He didn't dare to think about it much, and said with a little hesitation: "Your Majesty, Weichen doesn't smoke a lot, but he knows that it's easy to get addicted to big cigarettes, but it's hard to quit, and even if he can quit, the proportion of relapse is very high."

Wechen is in favor of banning smoking, and the imperial court must promulgate a strict law of torture to ban smoking, but the strict law of torture should be aimed at traffickers of big smoking, and those who smoke big cigarettes should be punished and forcibly stopped. Speaking of this, he realized that Daoguang was not asking about this. (To be continued.) )