When a big official like Gao Hongtu retires, even if he is a state or county prefect, he will be given three points of thin face in case of trouble.

He is also the first to share the benefits of the place.

In the future, children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy the benefits of taking the exam as a matter of course.

And if you work hard for the emperor, like Zhang Jiangling, you will be scolded during your lifetime, and as soon as you die, you will be attacked by a group, not to mention that you will be liquidated, and even the sons of the two Zhongjin Shi will be deprived of their status.

Since then, there has been only one in ten thousand who is willing to help the emperor offend the scholars.

And Gao Hongtu, Jiang Yueguang, Zhang Shenyan and other generations, originally invited the world with a clear name, but the name was damaged, and it was not allowed to be in Shilin, unless the emperor could give him a title, otherwise it would not be cost-effective.

The lack of cooperation, and even confrontation, shown to the crown prince a while ago is nothing more than still inviting him to clear his name. Of course, there are more tangible interests in it, as far as Shi Kefa knows, Gao Hongtu himself did not invest money in the mine, nor did he have a sea vessel, but among the family, there are many people who do these two businesses.

Add the protégé and the old officer, not to mention.

Now that Qingjiang has an agreement with the gentry in Jiangnan, there are fewer people who are dissatisfied with the attack, why should Gao Hongtu continue to be aggressive, and in the end, he may not be able to get off the stage?

Those who have been officials for many years are also knowledgeable when they resign from office. Resigning like Liu Qidong is not nonsense, every time he resigns, his reputation in Shilin is a cut higher, and every time he resigns, it is to express his determination not to be an official, but to cultivate talents in the grassland.

Such a person, of course, is valued by Shilin and admired by the world.

Therefore, those who resign and do not do it are either for comfort or fame, and those who are really stubborn for the sake of the world or the moral and legal system have never seen one.

took the red envelope from Gao Hongtu's hand and opened it, Shi Kefa was surprised.

It is a dozen copper coins of different sizes, but it is obvious at first glance that it is not made of copper and lead, but pressed with silver.

On both sides of each piece, there are patterns and threads on the sides, which are very precise and meticulous, and they are also very beautiful.

The front is "two money", "five money", "one tael", "two tael" and other word patterns, the reverse side is the Chongzhen era year number words, the front is decorated with a large peony flower pattern, but it is decorated with a small single flower around the four periphery of the year number.

"It's beautiful."

Shi Kefa muttered: "This thing, it seems that the household department can't make it, right?" ”

There are more than 200 furnace houses in the household, [***] silver ingots and copper coins. With such a small scale of copper coins as the Ming Dynasty, there are really a lot of officials, officials, and craftsmen who support them.

What kind of fire paint, swirl edge, gold back and other money, are used a two, or even three or four more processes to cast out, the snowflake silver of the household, twenty-five two, the sidewall is neat and bright, the casting is very beautiful, even so, the discerning person knows at a glance that at the level of technology, the household is too far away from the present.

"This is from the Mint Bureau of the Quartermaster Division of the Qingjiang Camp."

Don't ask Shi Kefa to wait, Gao Hongtu himself said it first, because seeing Shi Kefa's ugly face, he felt a little sympathy.

He fought with the crown prince in the household department, fighting back and forth, and outsiders saw that he was a scholar who was a bit out of place.

In other words, at most, he is a selfish person, and he can't fight the crown prince with the strength of the household, so there is nothing to be ashamed of. As for the original sedition of the Governor's Mansion of the Five Armies, the Donglin Party and his Gao were not deeply involved, even if they were investigating the old bottom in the future, it seemed that there was nothing to fear.

It's Shi Kefa Shi Gong, but his face is just too ugly.

Big and small things, all by the emperor to adjudicate it, the cabinet is a real and nameless prime minister, the first assistant does not do things and is said to be mediocre, do more things, and be said to seize power, always have a good degree, so that the upper is not jealous, and the lower is not attacked.

And at the same time that the current emperor is very difficult to serve, there is also a crown prince who does everything in front of people, and the recent mission annihilation of the details, Shi Kefa is embarrassed enough, just when the aftermath is about to pass, there is such a pile of silver coins.

That is to say, Shi Kefa has worked hard enough to nourish his qi, and he thinks about himself, and he has changed himself a few months ago, and he is afraid that he will sweep these silver coins to the ground with one sleeve.

"The highest is no more than two taels, and the lowest is two coins," Shi Kefa held the coin in his hand, always looking at it, and in the end, he sighed and said with a wry smile: "I just don't understand, where did His Royal Highness the Crown Prince come up with so many ideas?" ”

"The prince is not so godly."

Although he has been repeatedly defeated by the crown prince, it is impossible to convince Gao Hongtu of a young man who is less than sixteen.

He said solemnly: "But the prince has a strength, he can use people, and he can use people's strengths." Like this coinage, I heard that it was the suggestion of John Tang of Tessie. The kingdoms of Taixi are all minted into gold and silver coins for use, and the right to mint coins is in the hands of the kings of their countries. ”

"Money?"

"Exactly!"

is worthy of being the minister of the leading country, and he saw the most critical point of the problem at once. There are too many benefits of coinage, which are related to a country's control and control of its own economic lifeline and precious metals.

And the simplest and most direct reaction lies in the interest on the money.

Gao Hongtu said to Shi Kefa: "According to the people from the Finance and Taxation Department of Qingjiang, the coinage in Qingjiang today is about 10 million to 150,000 yuan, and the amount of money interest is at least about 2 million. ”

"So much?"

Shi Kefa was also shocked, but Gao Hongtu was in charge of the household department for a long time, and he was not completely expert in these financial and accounting matters, and when he saw Shi Kefa asking, he just smiled and nodded.

"Good proposition, good calculation, good calculation."

At this time, Shi Kefa only had the word admiration in his heart.

Speaking of this matter, Gao Hongtu still had a lot to say, he looked at Shi Kefa and said with a smile: "The prince is good at using people, it is really true." Their finance and taxation department, among which there are several Taixi people, are all first-class good hands. The accounts built can be known at a glance, and it is very convenient and appropriate for our household department to live within our means. Since Wanli, the household department has not had account books for decades, and after the Qingjiang Finance and Taxation Department, I think that the central government can not let the local government look down too much, and I have planned to hire some account masters from Taixi and Suzhou to build the account books of the ministry treasury. ”

This is a good thing, and it is also a matter of course for the economic state, and Shi Kefa can only nod in agreement with Gao Hongtu's consideration.

But the bitterness in my heart is even stronger.

Gao Hongtu was still interested: "There are many ore veins in Nanzhili, and the mining method is too low. Dozens of people sent by the prince to Ma'anshan, all of whom were masters, and the output increased by at least two to three times around the year before. At that time, there will be plenty of copper and iron, and the state will naturally be more abundant. As for Nanzhili, the household department plans to try to collect the true color this winter and next spring, and there is no need to ask the people to fold the color. At least two or three years later, when the copper mine mentioned by the prince is sufficient, and billions of copper coins can be minted in a year, the people will have abundant copper coins in their hands, and they will not have to worry about not having money to pay when paying taxes. ”

In fact, after the success of the Qingjiang camp and the fact that the people did not have to hand over the colored silver, the Jiangnan area already knew that this matter was inevitable.

Although in this matter, grain merchants, money farms, and pawnshops have big business transactions, and this political party will offend many people. However, as the head of the state's financial management organs, as well as those who are in power and uphold the country, they must not make things too ugly, and they must not be too fierce and ugly.

There are so many things for the convenience of the people that the state must not be able to take care of a small group of merchants and ignore the thoughts and voices of hundreds of thousands, millions of people.

If Jiangbei does not have a matter of handing over its true colors, the people will have nothing to say, and it will still be the same as before. Now that there is a precedent in Jiangbei, if you want to ask the people to turn in their sex, it will easily arouse anger and even civil rebellion.

Changing the color with its true color was originally just to facilitate tax collection and transportation. After all, if you collect too much food, the Jingshi can't use too much, and you can't leave too much food in various places, and it will become strong and weak.

The best way is to exchange grain for silver, and as for the loss of the people, they have no choice but to let it go.

A hundred years later, after the so-called whip, there are still a lot of miscellaneous taxes, but the land is collected and folded, and I don't know how many peasants and people have suffered.

Now that the capital has been lost, there is no need to transport grain from the north, and the south has been trading in recent years, and the people are unwilling to grow rice, only willing to plant mulberry and cotton, and even in the south of the Yangtze River, they buy rice with silver to eat, and the country's origin is gradually weakening, which is also an extremely important reason.

In addition, the exchange is inconvenient, and the silver is easy to be smelted and lost, so at this stage, it is very appropriate to pay taxes with grain.

It will be implemented for three years at most, and the boiling prices in various places must be beaten down.

And the price of goods is stable, the flow of silver coins, the enrichment of copper coins, the national economy and the people's livelihood, will only become more and more prosperous, there is no possibility of freezing and starvation.

This is an invisibly abundant national use, and it is also a big article for the rule of new officials!

And the reason why Shi Kefa wants to vomit blood is also very simple, this big article is not thought of by himself, nor is it led by the cabinet ministers, on the contrary, judging from Gao Hongtu's attitude, this matter can only be followed behind the crown prince!

"It's up to the Ministry of Households."

After half a ring, Shi Kefa sighed and said: "The matter of coinage is beneficial to the national economy and people's livelihood, and I can't stop it." ”

"Xianzhi, is it only about this?"

Of course, Shi Kefa's attitude is not strange to Gao Hongtu, but it doesn't stop there.

The crown prince's Cheonggang Mint has a high level of coinage craftsmanship and is easy to circulate. This is only a minutiae, but the real important connotation is not in the coinage.

What country has the right to mint coinage and the circulation of precious metals, and what money and interest income, this is only a small fraction.

For Gao Hongtu and others, what they really wanted, Shi Kefa didn't see it!

(To be continued)