Brother Song Taizu

Chapter 220 The second and third eldest brother, tacit understanding and friendship
Fast forward four months later.

The so-called chaos in the world is indeed just that. When Cao Bin and Dongchang were investigating the imperial family, they were very useful. They directly followed the list of fallen soldiers of the beheading soldiers to find their family members and friends, and paired up with Dongchang to spy. He was directly given the power to investigate cases, specifically to investigate the cases of his own relatives. As long as they were truly unjust, there was almost no reason why they could not be overturned.

Moreover, the replacement of officials with officials did indeed cause the parents and officials in various places to lose control over the lower-level subordinates. Although there was a small chaos, it actually did not cause any major disasters.

Cao Bin also knew in his heart that the accountability this time would only reach the prefect level at most. The transfer envoys, defense envoys, and even the remaining local Jiedu envoys would not be touched. Of course, the most important thing is , these corrupt officials will not be sentenced to death as long as they do not go too far.

The sentences were already as light as possible. For some corrupt officials with good official reputations and minor crimes, Cao Bin even deliberately allowed them to use stolen money to participate in the stock auction of the branch company. Of course, Zhao Guangyi protected them in name.

Are you black-faced? At least more than [-]% of the officials at the prefect level were saved by Zhao Guangyi. As long as they are not heinous, they can end up with a smooth retirement, and then use the dirty money to buy factories, small businesses, commercial real estate, etc. that were dumped by the merchants. wait.

This is actually the advantage of not killing scholar-bureaucrats, at least it keeps those local officials from being too hysterical.

Zhao Kuangyin was also happy to see this happen, because he, the founding emperor, did not conquer the country inch by inch, not even those of the Liang, Tang, Jin, Han and Zhou dynasties before him. Local governance was extremely chaotic, and he had not seen some first-level officials from prefectures in various places. However, local forces are self-generated.

Corruption or not, he doesn't value it that much, and he doesn't even care that much about unjust, false or wrongful convictions. However, if the vast majority of local officials across the country can be replaced at a relatively small price, then this will Always a good thing.

On this day, it was Queen Wang who asked calmly: "The official family, I heard that the second and third sons have been having a lot of trouble recently. They say they are attacking each other, which makes the officials unhappy and the prefects everywhere. There are actually more or less problems among civil servants below, as well as shopkeepers above the head of commercial banks, but... I heard that many people have switched from officialdom to business? I heard someone said that there is a folk saying about this matter, called the atonement bank. ?”

Zhao Kuangyin nodded and said: "There is indeed such a statement. The second and third sons finally have a tacit understanding this time."

"Yes, actually I only saw it later. On the surface, this old man was trying to avenge the four thousand warriors who killed the heroes. However, in fact, it was precisely because of this that he turned the New Deal into a real force. As it continues to be implemented, the most difficult thing about the New Deal lies in the reform of the civil service. Through this matter, we have finally turned this discus-like officialdom over, and even killed two birds with one stone, solving many problems in the business."

Zhao Kuangyin sighed: "The third brother is a genius. He always does things so closely. If it weren't for the second brother criticizing the company, the company would not be able to reform so smoothly. The company would not be able to reform and sell off so smoothly." , the local reform of officialdom will not be so smooth. Replacing officials with officials and abandoning officials to engage in business finally left them with a little dignity. Although there were occasional rogue officials in the local area who forced the people to rebel and some bandits occurred, they would eventually No one has become the climate, but if you think about it more deeply, it is thanks to Luoyang Xinjian that all of this will be on target. If there is any one link within it, I am afraid that this thing will not be done so smoothly. ah."

To put it bluntly, it means to combine hardness and softness, to investigate ruthlessly, and even to spare no one at the same time, to cut out a huge cake and share it with everyone in the world. But many times, in places where the sky is high and the emperor is far away, these people are cut The cakes that went out and those who were investigated in this investigation are indeed the same people, or at least they are related.

Under the mediation of Zhao Guangyi, any official involved in the case can choose to resign voluntarily if he feels that there is no way to escape, and then use the stolen goods over the years to buy a workshop affiliated to a trading company and become the boss. By spending all the stolen money, Dongchang can forget about many things and turn a blind eye.

Of course, except for those who deliberately disregard human life or are heinous.

In this way, the social capital needed for the company's split and sale was also mobilized, and Zhang Ai and Song Qi also tacitly agreed to show mercy and did not kill all the corrupt officials in the company. After being kicked out, they were even allowed to open new factories privately.

These people all have connections and experience in the business. Even if they really start a factory or a private business from scratch, they can often do a good job. Even because their own factory makes money and spends it, they can often do better. .

Nowadays, Luoyang is undergoing great development, money banks are printing money, and there are simply not too many large-scale projects led by the state. In fact, at this time, as long as you can get the money, invest in it, and not be exploited and bullied by corrupt officials, don't be too stupid. , there is no reason not to make money in anything you do.

Of course, it costs a lot of money.

Whether it is building Luoyang, building rivers, building official roads, building dams and hydropower stations, or building the so-called Song and Liao joint racecourse that is a testament to the friendship between Song and Liao.

All of them are super big projects. Among the emperors of the past dynasties, it is already a very good achievement to complete one of them in a lifetime. It is a great achievement to complete two in one day. However, Zhao Kuangyin was one All items were included in the tone.

Because the court gave money, and even when the project was subcontracted, enough profits would flow out to the contractor. This was the biggest difference between the Song Dynasty and the previous dynasty.

But although the court has become richer in the past two years, it is simply impossible for him to come up with so much money in one go. He can only borrow it from a money bank and pay it in installments, even with interest.

As for those who contract projects, many of them actually have to borrow large sums from money banks, and the money banks hand out are just banknotes. If they had given out real money, I'm afraid they would have gone bankrupt long ago. In fact, at this point For the sake of it, as long as you have a normal IQ, you will know after a little thought that the banknotes in the commercial bank have been seriously over-issued.

On the surface, banknotes and copper coins are interchangeable, because the essence of Song Dynasty banknotes is the bearer deposit slip of copper coins. Until now, those banknotes have smaller denominations (anti-counterfeiting costs), and the minimum denomination is one hundred Wen. , there are ten coins in large denominations, but in fact everyone knows that if everyone rushes to the money bank to exchange money at this time, the money bank will definitely not be able to get it out.

However, the credit of this banknote has not been affected at all. Although Zhao Kuangyin can clearly sense that the prices in Kaifeng are rising year by year. Last year, a liter of rice only cost eight cents, and this year it will cost twelve cents. House prices and rents The rise was even more exaggerated, and even he could see that it was related to the indiscriminate issuance of banknotes.

But banknotes still have the same purchasing power as the face value in the market.

Even the wealthy landowners now take out the money buried in the yard and actively deposit it into money banks.

But it made Zhao Kuangyin puzzled. In fact, all dynasties have never thought of printing money. Some famous ones, such as the leather coins made during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, or simple small and large coins, all made the people full of money. Being exploited and even leading to chaos in the world, even a wise and powerful man like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had to issue an edict of sin in his later years.

However, the leather coins of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty were also made from the skin of the special sika deer that was the best in Yulinyuan, and his turtle coins were also made from the shells of golden turtles from Wanli Nanxun. After all, these things were originally Luxury goods have their value.

But what is the value of Song Dynasty banknotes?
Zhao Guangmei only told him that it was too troublesome to explain. Anyway, as long as the court did not default on its debts, did not forget to repay the interest due, and all banknotes were issued for lending, the problem would not be too big.

Zhao Kuangyin didn't understand, but he believed in Zhao Guangmei.

Just the thought of the court having to repay the money in the next few years, and the amount of money that had to be repaid every year was still an astronomical figure, gave him a headache.

As for not paying it back, he really didn't dare.

Their family's shareholding in the trading company is only about [-]%. If they don't pay back the money, the board of directors will have trouble. If they insist on not paying back the money... I hope future generations will not forget that the Imperial Guard is the real master of the country. .The Imperial Army was completely tied to the trading houses.

But Queen Wang said: "Officials, we are a womanly family. We don't understand the twists and turns of the officialdom, but we also know that there are many demons and monsters among the people. Now that the world is implementing new policies, I am afraid that the financial pressure from the imperial court will also be great." Xiao, I heard from the people that the greatest good deed of the New Deal was that the court gave money to everything it started to do, but officials, do you think that once the court runs out of money, our Song Dynasty will be in danger of annihilation?"

Zhao Kuangyin also nodded and said: "The third brother told me that after the New Deal was implemented in the world, the court's debt line to money banks was the lifeline of the court. One day, if the court's debts were too much, the income would not even be able to repay the interest on the debts. At that time, the Song Dynasty will surely perish and the people will be in ruins. On the contrary, as long as the finances are still sufficient, there will always be solutions to huge crises. Today, our Song Dynasty is indeed different from other dynasties. The word money has been This is the lifeblood of our Song Dynasty. If you have money, you will have the country Zuo. If you don’t have money, you will directly perish. There is really no room for it."

Queen Wang said: "The imperial court's money should be separated from that of commercial banks. To put it bluntly, what we earn is taxes and fees. I heard that the third child in the New Deal has abolished all kinds of miscellaneous taxes to almost [-]%. There is no transaction tax. The thousand trading companies have not been dismantled. The third brother is in charge of the trading companies. Naturally, most of the profits of the trading companies go to the court. But now that the trading companies have been dismantled, he only controls a little. There is no guarantee that this tax will not be dealt with. Some people are evading taxes. I’m afraid the traditional tax collection methods are not suitable for the New Deal, right?”

Zhao Kuangyin nodded when he heard this.

"Taxation is naturally a top priority, but it can't be taken into consideration at the moment. Lao San said that in the future, [-]% of the [-]% of the taxes levied by the imperial court will be collected in the city. If taxes are not collected in the village, the imperial court's control ability will inevitably be reduced. Greatly strengthened, at least the people will no longer rise up because of excessive taxes."

"It's easy to control, that's relative. In the end, it's people who collect taxes. To put it bluntly, it's still in the hands of the trading houses. No matter how powerful the third son is on his own, he still needs help after all. You should check yourself, it's still too much." It’s more difficult.”

Zhao Kuangyin said in surprise: "Then...what do you think?"

"Isn't there already an East Factory? I want to build a West Factory and an Internal Guard on the basis of this East Factory. Not only must these two be completely separated from the court, but also from the trading houses. One is responsible for supervision. , pick up whether the court tax collectors and private merchants are maliciously evading taxes, didn't you also say that in the future, the taxes will be concentrated in the cities instead of the villages, so it will naturally be much easier to catch, and the internal guards will be responsible for picketing the east and west factories. "

"Since we are separated from the imperial court, we are also separated from the merchant houses... then only... relatives and eunuchs are left."

"That's what I said. I'm not targeting Lao San. I really want to help him. If the officials don't want to, then forget it."

Zhao Kuangyin was indeed extremely wary of his relatives and eunuchs interfering in politics. The main reason was that the eunuch rebellion in the late Tang Dynasty was indeed too scary. As a result, the eunuchs in the Song Dynasty had almost the least power in the past dynasties, and they were really just serving people.

As for his relatives, his wife’s mother-in-law is a top general in the Hedong region.

However, after thinking about it, he said: "Today is different from the past. The eunuch rebellion in the late Tang Dynasty was still essentially a rebellion among soldiers. The tooth soldiers were willing to support the eunuchs precisely because the eunuchs had better control. The emperor was the eunuch's puppet. It's true, but aren't the eunuchs puppets of the Yabing? Now that we have trading houses and military households in the Song Dynasty, how can we be disloyal? Didn't the troubled times end as early as when the third brother went to Yangzhou? It's just that …Who will be in charge of these two factories?”

There is something Zhao Kuangyin is embarrassed to say, that is, today's Wang family really has no one who can take action.

Who let Wang Jixun fail? He was killed by the third child. The other brothers are still young. No matter how you look at it, they don’t want to be old enough to be useful. Could it be...

"In the official house, the west factory can actually be run by Wang Jien. There are so many internal servants in the palace, so I think they can be used. As for the internal factory, I want to take up this position myself, and I am in the palace. To re-establish the post of Great Changqiu, at the same time, the two younger brothers and sisters actually have restless tempers, so why not organize them as well?"

"Ah... I see."

Zhao Kuangyin nodded, thought for a while, and then said: "I think... it seems that it is not impossible. The noble ladies and madams of various families are suitable for this job. Anyway, most of the people in the West Factory are eunuchs, but... I have to Why don’t you ask mother’s opinion?”

"Ah."

The news reached Empress Dowager Du, who also expressed her support in an open-minded manner, but said: "Old lady, now I just want to take care of my health, and then watch theater and listen to music. I don't understand what you guys are talking about." , There’s just one thing, if you do this... it won’t cause any more trouble between the second child and the third child, right?”

Queen Wang said quickly: "Don't worry, it won't happen."

"Well, that's good, that's good. As long as there can be harmony between the second child and the third child, I will never have any regrets in this life. The old lady cares about me and is a blessed person. She gave birth to All three children are so capable, hehehe.”

………………

On the other side, Zhao Guangmei was also hosting a formal banquet to entertain Cao Bin, who had just returned from patrolling the world.

"You're finally back. During this trip of more than four months, you visited seventeen prefecture offices and met with six transfer envoys. You've worked hard. Look, you've all lost weight. Come on, come on. How about the reception banquet prepared for you? How about sitting down? It went well, right? There should be no one you can't handle."

"No, Your Highness, I am ashamed. In April, I arrested a total of 74 corrupt officials, big and small. However, there was a place where I was incompetent and failed to go deep into it. I found nothing. I knew that this place was full of filth and evil, but I still found it. If we can’t investigate thoroughly, please ask Your Highness to blame it.”,

Zhao Guangmei was stunned when he heard this. You must know that this was a celebration banquet, and what he asked was purely polite. How could Cao Bin be so straightforward in front of so many people?
Moreover, there are actually people in this world that Cao Bin can't handle?
"Which government is so awesome that you can't even handle it?"

"Chanzhou Prefecture. The prefect is Du Shenzhao, and the general judge is Yao Shu."

Zhao Guangmei was stunned for a moment, and then her face turned red at the celebration banquet.

This Cao Bin is clearly deliberately trying to keep himself from getting off the stage. Can he say this in front of outsiders?

He sighed and said: "One is my uncle. My mother is still alive, and you want to kill me? The other... Yao Shu, was the former official of Kaifeng Mansion and the mastermind of my second brother? You... think about this matter in the long term, let’s eat first.”

Then he snorted dissatisfiedly and glared at Cao Bin.

(End of this chapter)