In the imperial study room, there was complete silence.
The Emperor of Heaven, Zhu Di, couldn’t come back to his senses for a long time. He looked at Zhou Chen’s little notebook in a daze.
A total of 3.41 million taels of silver!
The annual fiscal revenue of the Ming Dynasty was only 3 million taels of tax silver, and the total tax revenue was only 30 million taels!
This second guy held a unique tasting event and not only sold the goods, he also sold a total of three million taels!
And, this is only the first day of the tasting!
Zhu Di’s eyes suddenly lit up, he looked at his son carefully, and then nodded happily.
‘Little nose, go and summon Xia Yuanji, Yang Shiqi and others.’
Xia Yuanji was Comrade Lao Zhu’s money bag and the Minister of Household Affairs in the Yongle Dynasty.
Zhu Di was known to spend money lavishly.
Not to mention anything else, just the three major projects of the Yongle New Deal, Zheng He’s voyages to the West, moving the capital to Shuntian, and compiling the Yongle Dadian, were all major projects that cost countless money to change the dynasty.
But in the end, all these big projects were completed in the Yongle Dynasty!
Behind all this is Xia Yuanji, the Minister of Household Affairs, who struggled to raise money and food, and managed to survive.
Otherwise, Zhu Di would not have become the Yongle Emperor who was famous for generations, but would have become the second Yang Guang who was so successful.
Now that Zhu Gaoxu had changed hands and used this huge sum of money, Zhu Di subconsciously wanted to call his own money bag to discuss the pros and cons of this method.
Soon Xia Yuanji and other important ministers came hand in hand and took their seats as usual.
Only then did Zhu Di talk about the tasting meeting with great joy, which made Yang Shiqi and others look at each other in shock.
Xia Yuanji wiped his eyes, took a deep breath, looked at Zhu Gaoxu and said, ‘May I ask His Highness the King of Han, is it really 3,410,000 taels of silver？’
‘The small books are all here. Those wealthy businessmen have already gone to raise money. The delivery will be completed within three days.’
Zhu Gaoxu’s clear voice resounded throughout the imperial study.
After hearing this, everyone started talking and were amazed at the earning power of these merchants.
‘Dad, businessmen make a living by pursuing profits, so it is not uncommon for businessmen to be rich since ancient times.’
‘My son is just trying to monetize the goods this time to fill the empty treasury and cut them some leeks.’
Cut leeks？
Zhu Di raised his eyebrows slightly, then smiled and said, ‘This is a good word, I like it very much!’
‘These businessmen are not engaged in production, but they have huge wealth. It is time to cut them off.’
Yang Shiqi and other important officials also nodded with smiles after hearing this.
They, the civil servants and officials, have always looked down upon the humble merchants who smelled like copper.
Not engaged in production, but only pursuing profits, these businessmen traveling around the country made no contribution to the court and would become the most unstable factor.
However, at this moment, an inappropriate voice sounded suddenly.
‘May I ask His Highness the King of Han, why are these merchants willing to let you cut leeks？ To force them to do so is probably not what a gentleman would do!’
Zhu Gaoxu was startled and looked at the person who spoke, but it was Huang Huai, Imperial College Scholar and Zuo Chunfang Bachelor.
This guy is also a famous minister of the Ming Dynasty. Together with San Yang, he assisted the emperors of the five dynasties. But why do I always feel that he has a strong opinion against me？
‘Well, firstly, these goods can allow middlemen to make a profit on the price difference and make a lot of profits.’
‘Businessmen have been in business all their lives to pursue profits. They have many ways to make profits from these batches of goods, so entrusting them with the task of cashing out the goods is considered to be the right person.’
Zhu Di nodded slightly, very satisfied with this son.
Putting aside everything else, the second child now knows how to know people and assign them well, which is a great improvement.
However, before he could be happy for a moment, what Zhu Gaoxu said next made him frown.
‘Secondly, dad and I were about to report to you that my son made his own decision and gave them nine places to donate to prison.’
Donate to prison？
Why donate prison？
Zhu Di felt confused and uneasy in his heart.
‘The top nine merchants with the highest bids can recommend one of their own children to enter the Imperial Academy to study and cultivate virtue…’
Before he finished speaking, Huang Huai shouted angrily, ‘Absurd!’
‘The Imperial College is a place where the talents of our Ming Dynasty gather together. The style of study is simple and talented people come out in large numbers, and they continuously provide talents for our Ming Dynasty.’
‘His Royal Highness the King of Han is the first to allow unlearned and unskilled businessmen to enter the Imperial College. Not only will it ruin the atmosphere of the Imperial College, but it will also give reasonable excuses to those with evil intentions. This will put the Imperial College in danger!’
‘Your Majesty, I am impeaching the King of Han for his wanton behavior, making clever excuses to enrich his own pockets, and endangering the country and the country!’
Zhu Gaoxu ‘？？？’
Oh my god!
Is there something wrong with your brain？
I only gave nine quotas for donating prisons, how can you still impeach me for enriching my own pockets by setting up a pretext？
‘Huang Huai, I would like to ask, is your youngest son Huang Cai currently studying in the Imperial Academy and cultivating virtues by virtue of his status as a Yinsheng？’
The imperial students in the Ming Dynasty were generally divided into four categories. Juren who failed the examination had the opportunity to enter the Imperial College for further study, and were called ‘jujian’. Those who were recommended by the prefectural and county schools and had excellent academic performance and good conduct were those who went to the Imperial College to study in the capital, called ‘jujian’. ‘Gongsheng’, those who enter prison as tribute students are called ‘Gongjian’ and the children of meritorious officials, those who are specially approved by the imperial court to enter prison are called ‘Yinjian’, these students are called ‘Yinsheng’.
The last category is the students who donate money to prisons who have not yet appeared. Those who donate money are called ‘regular prisons.’
In other words, among the Imperial College students, only the Gongsheng students and Juzi students have real talents and practical knowledge and have passed the imperial examination to study in the Imperial College.
Those who rely on their father are called Yinsheng, and those who rely on money are called Tongjiansheng.
Both of them rely on the back door. How dare you impeach me here？
Huang Huai’s face turned red when asked by Zhu Gaoxu, and he didn’t know what to say.
Although his youngest son Huang Cai was somewhat talented, he was indeed a laggard in the Imperial College.
So, faced with this problem, he had nothing to say.
Seeing this, Yang Shiqi said quietly, ‘Your Highness, the King of Han, Yin Sheng is custom-made by Taizu, and these Yin Sheng themselves are not bad in learning. This is the key to the problem.’
‘Firstly, our Ming Dynasty has never set a precedent for donating prisons. Secondly, those businessmen’s children are full of copper odor and are illiterate. Allowing them to enter the Imperial College will only corrupt the atmosphere of the Imperial College and shake the foundation of our Ming Dynasty.’
When Zhu Gaoxu heard this, he immediately laughed.
These pieces of shit are really on the top of their game!
But if you let a few businessmen’s children enter the Imperial Academy to study and cultivate virtue, is it dangerous to the country and the country, and is it to shake the foundation of the country？
Zhu Di raised his eyebrows slightly, lost in thought, and never said a word.
Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu simply smiled and said, ‘Father, if that’s the case, then my son can’t hold this tasting party anymore. I’ll send someone to notify the merchants later. No need to prepare money, just go home and play in the mud.’
‘My son is incompetent and acts arbitrarily, endangering the Ming Dynasty. Please allow me, an unfilial son, to go to Yunnan to become a vassal.’
When everyone heard this, they were immediately dumbfounded.
Zhu Di put his hand on his forehead speechlessly, knowing that this bastard was acting stupid again.
But before he could speak, Zhu Gaoxu mocked him again, ‘My son is dedicated to taking care of the king’s worries, but he is being accused of doing whatever he wants and lining his own pockets. My son is really tired of it.’
‘In this case, it’s better for my son to hide far away and keep his peace!’
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Gaoxu turned around and left without any hesitation.
When Zhu Di saw this, his expression changed, and he was a little frighteningly cold.
Huang Huai and others froze in embarrassment, not knowing what to do.
I only impeached you for a few words, but have you given up？