Gangnam in early winter is beautiful. Catch a passenger ship from Hangzhou to Gusu on Friday afternoon, and you will be able to sail at night under the guidance of the lighthouse. Realize that the moon is falling and the sky is full of frost, and Jiang Feng is sleeping. Hanshan Temple outside the city of Gusu, the bell rings in the middle of the night to the passenger ship. ’

When they wake up the next day, they can go to Tianping Mountain to enjoy the maple leaves, and then take a passenger boat back to Hangzhou in the evening. There are naturally many advantages of this itinerary, and you can go to famous places in just one day. The disadvantages are also very obvious, the time is tight and the distance is long.

After attending once, Xiong Shang of the Ministry of Rites lost his enthusiasm for experiencing it again, and he chose to go to Taihu Ju on Sunday to drink. This hotel is at the foot of Phoenix Mountain, the biggest feature is that the yard is planted with maple trees, from the building, you can see the red and bright maple leaves on Phoenix Mountain.

Winter rain was falling in the sky, but it was not heavy but it was cold. When I entered the private room, I immediately felt warm. Xiong Sheng drank with Sun Qing and others this time, and with the current popularity in Hangzhou, it is naturally a lively hot pot eating. Everyone was dressed in clothes that were about to be washed, which showed the eating experience of the gang. Although the hot pot is good, it has a big taste. Sun Qing and other officials also stressed decency.

First, things like sliced meat, hairy belly, and gizzards came up. Everyone ate and drank at once, and cushioned their stomachs. This is followed by a small bowl of mushroom soup in a pot of mandarin ducks. Before the next round began, Sun Qing asked Xiong Shang, "Xiong Shangshu, doesn't the official family plan to negotiate peace with Mongolia this time?" ”

"How to make peace?" Xiong Shang asked rhetorically.

The territory of the Great Song Dynasty of the Zhao official family is quite reasonable, and all the territories of the Great Song Dynasty are recorded in the history books. For example, the northern part of Fusang Continent was owned by the Great Song Dynasty, but because the central and southern parts of Fusang Continent had Fusang Kingdom, the Great Song Dynasty did not mark it as the land of the Great Song Dynasty.

The Nanhai region has now been conquered by the Great Song Dynasty, and it has become the territory of China along with the abbot continent further south, which can be regarded as the contribution of the Zhao official family to China. The biggest difficulty at the moment is the land in the northwest. Xiong Shang looked up and saw a map of the Great Song Dynasty on the wall of the private room. Because there would be maps on the walls of public units such as the imperial court, this kind of four-color map became an ornament in many places.

Pointing to the map, Xiong Sheng asked Sun Qing, "If you were the Great Khan of Mongolia, what would you do?" ”

Sun Qing looked at the map and was speechless for a while. The map of the Great Song Dynasty includes Tibet, and it extends to the 'Persian Protectorate' that was briefly established by the Tang Dynasty. Without exception, these places to the north were included in the territory of the Great Song Dynasty, which was to the north to the North Pole. Most of the Mongol territories, including the place where the Mongols arose, were included in the Great Song Dynasty on the map.

"Official...... Sometimes it's too negative. Sun Qing sighed.

Xiong Sheng couldn't help but roll his eyes. Da Song can have today because of his strong war ability, Sun Qing's words sound very wrong.

As soon as the words of complaint came out, Sun Qing also felt that it was inappropriate, and he simply said the reason, "Trade in Tianzhuyang has begun to decline. ”

Xiong Sheng blinked, vaguely thinking of what Sun Qing wanted to say. What Sun Qing said was the decline in profits, and the Great Song Dynasty had been frantically exporting and importing a large number of dollars over the years. After 20 years of hard work, we have successfully absorbed all the commodities that can be traded in the Tianzhuyang area.

"These things are becoming less and less valuable, just like spices." Sun Qing knocked on the spicy hot pot, the hot pot ingredients are indeed mainly Sichuan pepper, chili pepper and minced ginger, and there are also some spices to increase the taste. These things used to be expensive and were exclusive to the upper echelons of the Great Song Dynasty. At this time, it also became an ordinary condiment used by everyone in the Great Song Dynasty. Just like the silk, cotton cloth and porcelain of the Great Song Dynasty, it became very common in the surrounding countries of Tianzhuyang at this time.

"Isn't Sinhala a place very profitable?" Xiong Shang asked.

That small island nation in the Tianzhu Ocean is famous for its Buddhism. Now it is the source of black tea, spices and gems of the Great Song Dynasty. The Great Song family that can be opened up in Sengaro is all full of money.

The Sun Qing family actually sent someone over, but he wouldn't explain it. On the contrary, Sun Qing said with an expression of concern for the country and the people: "Sinhala is a little bigger. According to measurements, it is probably more than 60,000 square kilometers. ”

With the establishment of the metric system and the development of measurement technology, Dasong has become more and more able to provide accurate measurement results. Sun Qing is even more reasonable, "In recent years, everything has been falling. The price of black tea has fallen by at least 50%, and if Sinhala does not continue to cultivate, more tea plantations need to be cultivated. There have been a lot of tea mountains in Fujian, and in terms of distance and proximity, they are all near Fujian. It's not easy to make money now. ”

Xiong Shang listened a little tired. At this time, he already understood that Sun Qing hoped that the Zhao official family could negotiate peace with the Mongols, and then let the goods of the Great Song Dynasty be sold to the Persian side. It sounds reasonable, but it's not like that at all. After the price of silk plummeted, the Xiong family began to obey the arrangement of the patriarch Xiong Shang more and more. In the past year, one of the richest households of the Xiong family has actually bought hawthorn in Shandong and sold it to Jiangnan. The people of Jiangnan use hawthorn to add sourness to many meat dishes, and it can also make the meat more tender.

What Sun Qing said about the price of commodities falling by half is true, but what Sun Qing did not say is that the number of commodities entering the market has increased more than double, and many commodities have increased by ten times and dozens of times. These are not at all reasons for the Great Song to negotiate peace with Mongolia. If Sun Qing really looked at the problem like this, Xiong Sheng felt that this Hubu Shangshu was too incompetent.

Of course, Xiong Sheng was reluctant to accuse Sun Qing. The Ministry of Rites Shangshu said: "When will the official family give up their own ideas. How could Sun Shangshu think that I could convince the official family? ”

"It's not for Xiong Shangshu to convince the officials. I just think that Xiong Shangshu can talk to the official family, and the truce of the Great Song Dynasty is also a good thing. Sun Qing recounted his thoughts.

"I don't have the guts to say that." Xiong Sheng said it directly.

Sun Qing was so made reluctant to say anything more. The waiter who came next to him smiled and said, "Xiong Shangshu can do the position of this Shangshu, how can he not have such backbone." ”

Xiong Sheng was furious in his heart, to this extent, that is, he publicly said that Xiong Sheng could die for the interests of others, and such a thing turned out to be a squire, which is simply unreasonable. So Xiong Sheng said angrily: "I am loyal to the imperial court, loyal to the Great Song Dynasty, and loyal to the official family." I only know what it is to play tricks in front of the officials? Bullying the official's family is kind-hearted? ”

was scolded by Xiong Sheng like this, and the waiter's face became embarrassed, and he hurriedly explained: "Xiong Shangshu misunderstood. I had no intention of doing so. ”

Xiong Sheng took the opportunity to make his position clear, "I don't care what you mean, I'll leave my words here today." I, Xiong Shang, are only loyal to the official family, and the official family's policy of recovering the rivers and mountains of the Han family is not wrong at all. Since that's right, I won't ask the government to negotiate peace with Mongolia under any circumstances. ”

The banquet immediately became awkward. Xiong Sheng didn't talk nonsense, so he found a reason to get up and leave. The others didn't mean to keep Xiong Xiang, so they let Xiong Shang leave.

went out and got into the carriage, Xiong Sheng was not happy in his heart. But it didn't take long for him to hope that the Zhao Guanjia would know his loyalty. According to the current situation, the Zhao official family treats loyal ministers very favorably. For example, Liu Meng is loyal to the official family, loyal to the king, and honest for the official. The Zhao official family gave the Liu Meng's family the deal of pearl picking, and the Liu family began to make money in a blink of an eye. If the Zhao official family can repay Xiong Shang's loyalty in this way, the Xiong family will definitely be able to become a wealthy family in the Great Song Dynasty. Xiong Sheng also felt that he was worthy of being the patriarch of the family.

Xiong Shangshu chose his own position, and the people who stayed behind to continue eating also had their position. The waiter waited for Xiong Sheng to leave before he couldn't help but scolded in a low voice: "Xiong Sheng is really a villain!" In addition to flattering the official, what else will he do? ”

No one particularly echoed such criticism, and even Sun Qing felt in his heart that Shilang's words had been excessive. In the previous Great Song Dynasty, ministers criticized the mediocrity of the officials and accused the officials of misconduct, which was commonplace. Zhao Jiaren's Zhao official family is not the same Great Song official family, and most ministers know that Zhao Guan's family is the real Ming Jun.

Sun Qing felt that the financial situation of the Great Song Dynasty had been very bad. According to the previous experience in the issuance of banknotes, the issuance speed of the current Da Song Dynasty with an additional 100 million yuan of banknotes every year will definitely make prices soar and the people's lives miserable. In reality, there was no chaos during the reign of Jia Nidao, but prices were lowered and the people were rich. Many people suggested that Sun Qing could propose peace with Mongolia to the Zhao official family.

The Zhao family also signed the "Huaxian Peace Conference" and lived peacefully with Mongolia for several years. If peace can be maintained now, wouldn't the Great Song Dynasty be more peaceful for the country and the people. Since Xiong Sheng refused to propose a truce, these people began to look for a new target. Although Sun Qing supported the armistice, he was unwilling to be a bird. Xiong Sheng was afraid of losing the favor of the Zhao official family, and Sun Qing was also afraid.

After discussing it for a while, the gang couldn't think of anyone who could take advantage of it. In the end, these people thought of Wen Tianxiang, whom the Zhao official family admired very much. When Song Lizong was in time, Wen Tianxiang bluntly attacked Song Lizong. Those who had the courage back then should still have such backbone now. If Wen Tianxiang can still come out to express his position, everyone thinks that they can support this character.

Sun Qing is just one of many who want peace. Among the people who participated in the series was Li Tingzhi, who also went to meet his former boss Jia Yidao at this time. Back then, Li Tingzhi was appreciated by Jia Nidao and was quickly promoted. Now Li Tingzhi has been in charge for several years, and Jia Rudao has also returned from exile. The two of them were very embarrassed when they met.

Listening to Li Tingzhi's statement that he hoped to negotiate peace with Mongolia, Jia Yidao nodded slightly, and he said with emotion: "The official family was impatient when he was young, and I was deeply impressed by this. ”

Li Tingzhi nodded again and again. His good impression of Zhao Jiaren is very limited, and now that someone is willing to criticize Zhao Jiaren like this, Li Tingzhi feels very happy. Then Li Tingzhi listened to Jia Yidao and continued, "It's just that Mongolia has moved westward, and it is tens of thousands of miles away from the Great Song Dynasty. What's wrong with us taking this opportunity to reclaim the land that was taken from us? ”

"Ahem!" Li Tingzhi was almost choked by Jia Yidao's words, coughed twice, and then Li Tingzhi said: "Jia Gong, now Mongolia has come to sue for peace, and I think it is sincere. At this time, we should demand that the Mongols return the land that they had previously taken from the Great Song Dynasty. In fact, now it is just the land in Sichuan. ”

"What if Mongolia refuses to return it?" Jia Rudao asked. He had seen Li Tingzhi's self-righteous attitude in the early years, and if the Mongols had taken it for granted, they would not have the prestige they have today.

"The Mongols refused to return it, still worried that our Great Song Dynasty would not really negotiate peace. If Mongolia could really negotiate peace after returning the homeland of the Great Song Dynasty, they would not have fought with the Great Song Dynasty because of that bit of land. Li Tingzhi expressed his opinion.

"Sichuan is the hometown of the Great Song Dynasty. Western Xia occupies the land of Lingxia, is it my hometown of the Great Song Dynasty? "When it comes to knowledge, Jia Yidao's level is far above Li Tingzhi.

"This ......" Li Tingzhi was blocked by Jia Nidao's words, and there was no way to do it. Zhao Jiaren did recover many of his hometowns, but at this stage, there are still many Northern Song Dynasty hometowns that are still in the hands of the Mongols. If you talk about the hometown of the Great Song Dynasty, there is nothing wrong with it. So Li Tingzhi asked directly: "Is Jia Gong against the peace talks?" ”

"I have never been against peace talks. It's just that what the officials say now is really hard to say wrong. Jia Rudao expressed his opinion.

After Li Tingzhi left, Jia Rudao called his eldest grandson Jia Weixin. The two sat down, and Jia Rudao asked: "Da Lang, are there many people in the court now that Zhao Jiaren is too powerful?" ”

Jia Weixin was stunned for a moment, hesitated for a moment and said, "Azu, I don't think so. ”

"It's not you. You're different from those people. Jia Rudao sighed.

"Who are those people that Azu is talking about?" Jia Weixin was very puzzled.

"Some people just can't see the government being so strong. At that time, when I was engaged in the reform of public land, I had to print a large amount of money to buy land. Those people felt that they had suffered and held a great grudge against me. Now Zhao Jiaren issues more banknotes every year than I did back then. But Zhao Jiaren's power is even more stable! How can this not attract hatred! ”

"Azu is talking about the fact that the imperial court has the right to issue currency. This is a huge feat. Originally, the money in the world was copper coins and silk, but now only banknotes and gold and silver coins are gradually left, and the court is no longer afraid of money shortages. Jia Weixin said happily. He was already in charge of the Textile Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture, and Jia Weixin also contributed to the expulsion of silk from the ranks of currency.

"Oh! I didn't expect you to understand this. It's not simple. Jia Yidao was also a little surprised, and couldn't help but appreciate.

It's just that this appreciative tone doesn't seem to be fully understood by Jia Weixin, Jia Weixin replied a little unhappily: "Azu, I'm also on an errand in the Textile Bureau, if I don't even understand this, where can I still be on an errand." ”

Jia Rudao was silent for the time being. When he was prime minister, few of his subordinates could be as good as his grandson. However, twenty years ago, the ability to be the six Shangshu is a bit of a car in the current Great Song Dynasty, and Jia Rudao himself can't help but admire Zhao Jiaren's cultural and governance skills.

Of course, Jia Yidao did not want to forgive Zhao Jiaren. This treacherous little ghost looked at Zhang Yang back then, but he was actually a scheming and intriguing guy. This guy is still not satisfied after seizing the position of the official family, and now these guys who look at the support of peace actually want to oppose Zhao Jiaren to continue to expand his power.

For a court, the official family has to rely on the officials below to make money to maintain the operation of the court. In the past, the Zhao Guanjia was short of money, and the officials below still felt that they were equal to the Zhao Guanjia. After all, the Great Song Dynasty was a system in which scholars and officials ruled the world together. Now that the Zhao family has developed a new financial and monetary system, paper money has finally become the same as copper coins. The Zhao family no longer has to be trapped by those scholars, he can solve all the problems on his own.

Thinking of this, Jia Rudao took the test of his grandson, "Da Lang, do you know how the taxes were paid when I was in power?" ”

"Half of the copper coin, half of the money. If you have silk in your hand to pay taxes, you can do it, but at that time, no one would give silk to the imperial court. Jia Weixin replied very fluently, and finally couldn't help but brag to his department, "Now if anyone can sell silk to the imperial court, they will be very happy." ”

"Why does the imperial court have to pay half of the copper money and half of the banknotes?" Jia Rudao continued to ask.

"Because the court knows that the people don't believe in the credit of paying money."

"Why is it better to pay money than copper money now?"

"Because in many places, the imperial court does not recognize copper coins. And all the places where the imperial court is located, they recognize the banknotes. ”

Jia Rudao was happy in his heart. His grandson is indeed smart and capable, and he said the key to the problem. Copper coins may now have an advantage in private transactions, and as long as such transactions are related to the imperial court, the payment of money will not be left behind. In recent years, the hand of the imperial court has extended to various fields.

Sun Tzu was angry, and Jia Rudao gave the answer directly, "Recently, someone wanted to express their dissatisfaction with Zhao Jiaren by using the talk of peace. You must not get involved in it. ”

Jia Weixin smiled slightly after hearing this, "Azu, I am here today because I follow the official family and follow this turbulent era. I don't want this era to come to an end. ”

Hearing this, Jia Rudao was very emotional in his heart. Can't this rabbit cub take into account grandpa's mood when he speaks?

Qin Yuzhen's elder brother is now an official in Hangzhou, although everyone also calls him Uncle Qin, the title of Uncle is indeed worthy. But this uncle is only a director-level cadre of the Water Affairs Bureau at this time. It's just more than the top and more than the bottom.

However, the Qin family itself is a Jinshi family, and the rise and fall of Qin Yuzhen's family is only a part of the family. When it comes to the strength of the family, this is certainly not ordinary. At this time, Uncle Qin's family gathered the powerful figures of the Qin family, and on the main seat was naturally the queen of the wife and the only wife of the current official family.

In China, the Empress and Empress Dowager were able to maintain their surnames reasonably and legally. Just like Zhao Jiaren's wife, Empress Dowager Chen, the official title is Mrs. Zhao, and calling her Chen's is a little disrespectful. But Empress Dowager Chen has no trace of disrespect in it. Just like the title of Empress Qin.

"I think you have all seen the meaning of this in the letter. I think our Qin family always has to have some real deals, growing ginseng and raising pearls in Liaodong, North Korea and other places, although it is hard to watch. It's actually very profitable. With the industry, our Qin family can stand. Qin Yuzhen said to the powerful people of the Qin family.

Since using the pearl powder provided by Liu Meng's family, Qin Yuzhen felt that her appearance seemed to have regained her youthful state. Those fine pearls are very good whether they are given away, used in one's own clothes, or made into jewelry. Qin Yuzhen was extremely satisfied with this. Therefore, Empress Qin felt that she had not made any contribution to the Qin family for so many years, so it was better to let the Qin family take the lead in this aspect.

"North Korea and Liaodong?" The educated people of the Qin family know where these places are, and their faces are not so good-looking.

"If you were allowed to go to Sinhala, would you think it would be good?" Qin Yuzhen asked.

Just hearing the three words Sinhala, many Qin family members had a bright face. It was a fabled land of wealth, and if you could get there, you would definitely make a lot of money.

"Twenty years ago, the government set out to go to the South China Sea. At that time, Sinhala was just a place that most people had never heard of. The officials felt that those places could make money, so they were not afraid of hardships and dangers. Now I tell you that the officials feel that in Liaodong and Korea, the participation of people in pearl cultivation is no less than that of Sinhala. This is what the official himself told me. Do you think the words of the officials are credible? ”

After Qin Yuzhen finished speaking, she stared at these Qin family figures. Hearing such a metaphor, those powerful people of the Qin family also felt that it was not easy to refute Empress Qin's face. But they probably didn't believe it. There was a person who did not have enough emotional intelligence, but he felt that his IQ was superb, and couldn't help but say: "If Goryeo and Liaodong are really so good, why didn't the official family go to Sinhala twenty years ago?" ”

Qin Yuzhen's face immediately became extremely ugly, she was already in her forties. In the first twenty years, when she was a daughter at home, she was dignified and beautiful, which was praised by everyone. Marrying a hero like Zhao Jiaren, although there is some hard work of running back and forth with her husband, she is loved by her husband. Now that she is the queen of the Great Song Dynasty, she didn't expect the people below to dare to speak like this.

Is it because they feel that the Zhao official family did not support their relatives like the official families of the Great Song Dynasty in the past dynasties, so they are dissatisfied?

"Saints. The official family is constantly fighting, and we will feel uneasy when we go to Liaodong and North Korea. Now many people feel that it would be the greatest blessing if the official family could negotiate peace with Mongolia and recuperate. An elder of the Qin family spoke.

Qin Yuzhen felt that she could understand the words of the Jinshi family. It's not the words of the Qin family, but the words of the Jinshi family. Because Qin Yuzhen also received such an education when she was a daughter at home. The reason why she married a guy like Zhao Jiaren who had been on the battlefield and led soldiers to fight was also because Zhao Jiaren was a jinshi. More than 20 years ago, that kind of warrior was regarded as a 'thief with an army'.

After following Zhao Jiaren for more than 20 years, Qin Yuzhen has certainly changed. One of the biggest changes is that Qin Yuzhen's level of logic has improved a lot. Therefore, Qin Yuzhen really wanted to ask these people of the Qin family, if there was no Zhao Jiaren to conquer the east and west, and constantly seize the land, where would there be the opportunity to go to Liaodong to raise pearls and go to North Korea to grow ginseng. Everything that these Jinshi families said was nonsense.

At this moment, a young voice said, "Auntie, I am willing to raise pearls." ”

Qin Yuzhen saw that it was her own nephew Qin Mingxuan. The child asked timidly under the gaze of everyone.