The bear child of the Red Chamber, Jia Cong

Chapter 920

The big case of Fuyuntang has almost come to a conclusion, and the king of Qin has mixed feelings.Zhao Wang had nothing to do, and he was going to spend the New Year in Chang'an, so he went to the Qin Palace to chat with Qin Wang.The King of Qin was originally a young man, although he was troubled by state affairs day and night, he couldn't resist being seduced by anecdotes, so he left all the case notes to listen to him.Mr. Cui read the scriptures for him.

When he was talking about it, the eunuch reported back, and the new commander of the inner guard, Ding Mei, asked to see him, saying that he had something important to do.Qin Wang looked helplessly at Zhao Wang.Zhao Wang muttered: "Disappointing." He got up and avoided going out.King Qin ordered Ding Mei to come in.

It turned out that Ding Mei had pried open Le Lan's mouth, and Cao Niangniang was not he but the official Bi.The man surnamed Bi was a secret agent of the Shu Kingdom, and he paid Le Lan a heavy bribe to win him over.After reading the confession, King Qin stayed for a long time, looking at Mr. Cui with some helplessness.

Mr. Cui pondered: "Your Majesty, go see Mr. Le and ask him what he thinks. The State Council of Qin really did not feel sorry for Le Lan, and the old scholar Le is indeed loyal to the State of Qin. Your Excellency’s Qin State can give it.”

King Qin clenched his fists and said, "I'm afraid I can't calmly ask these questions."

Mr. Cui said: "Then I should go and ask him, as long as the prince is listening." After thinking for a long time, King Qin nodded.

Ding Mei then accompanied Mr. Cui to visit Le Lan in prison, and King Qin changed into eunuch clothes and mixed behind them.

Going outside the cell and looking in, it was dark and cold, Le Lan sat alone on the old mattress in a daze.Mr. Cui asked Ding Mei and his entourage to wait outside, and he bowed in and called out, "Lord Le." Le Lan remained motionless.Mr. Cui sat directly across from him.After a long time, Le Lan said: "The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. What is Mr. Cui doing here?"

Mr. Cui thought for a moment and said: "There is something that Cui has not understood for many years, and I want to ask Mr. Le to clarify. Please tell Mrs. Cui some truth."

Le Lan finally took a look at him, and said flatly, "Please tell me, Mr. Cui."

Mr. Cui thought for a long time before he said: "Mr. Cui is from Hai'an, Jiangsu. Because he came to Chang'an to visit his relatives, he became the teacher of the prince by mistake. Back then, he was the middleman of the old lady of the Gao family. He only said that he was teaching. The young master of a rich family. I thought, he is only a child of six or seven years old, so he must be at ease. I don't want to..." He smiled wryly, "Babaer has broken his heart for two or three lifetimes."

Le Lan was silent for half a day. "Is it."

"Yes." Mr. Cui said, "I have no foundation in the Qin State. My uncle - I think all the adults know it. He is an honest and responsible local rich man who has nothing but money. Therefore, Cui knows it very well. Who am I and what do I do? In the past few years, apart from teaching the prince to study, he had no involvement in the government of Qin State. Cui doesn’t understand why Master Le doesn’t like Cui.” Outside, King Qin’s heart moved: Could it be this surname? Has Le's troubled Mr. Cui?The lonely king didn't know half of it.Mr. Cui was secretly afraid that he would suffer a lot, but he never mentioned a word.

Then Le Lan sneered and said, "Master Cui has no involvement in government affairs?"

Mr. Cui said sternly: "Later, I really got involved. Didn't you let the adults force you? But if you are able, can I, a teacher, take care of those things? I didn't care about anything during the years when Liu Feng was the prime minister. I was the most leisurely. but."

Le Lan closed her eyes slightly: "Liu Feng and you were originally in the same group."

Mr. Cui said: "This is inappropriate. The first time Cui and Prime Minister Liu met was in the palace. Eighteen generations of ancestors have never met each other."

"No need for ancestors." Le Lan said leisurely, "You two are born together."

Mr. Cui was stunned: "Cui has no way to argue."

Le Lan said: "It's not that there are well-educated people in my state of Qin, why did you single out Mr. Cui as the prince's Mr.?"

Mr. Cui straightened his back unknowingly: "At that time, the state of Qin was in a complicated situation. The first son was dead, and the first prince still had many sons alive. At that time, the queen mother was still a concubine, and her mother's family was not in Qin. Even though she asked Mr. Le's family to teach the prince , do you Le family dare to give it? I'm afraid no one thinks that the King Qin's golden seal will fall on the prince's head." Le Lan was dumbfounded.Outside the door, King Qin thought of the past, and it was Mrs. Gao who sent charcoal in the snow, and was deeply moved.Mr. Cui went on to say, "Because Cui's status is simple, his talents are fair, and he has nothing to do with the Qin court, so the Queen Mother chose Cui."

"That's right." Le Lan nodded and said, "The same is true for Liu Feng. Both of you are talented and learned, and you are alone in Qin. You have no relatives and friends to worry about, and no old enemies to restrain you. So you will do whatever you want without any scruples."

Mr. Cui was puzzled: "Cui still doesn't understand Master Le's meaning. Did Master Liu and I do anything that is not good for the country?"

Le Lan said: "No. You are a lonely minister of the prince, and you only think of the prince. During the years when Liu Feng was prime minister, every national policy was for the good of Qin." He sighed quietly, "Mr. Cui, you are only for the good of the prince. , Prime Minister Liu Feng is only for the good of Qin. He controls the government outside, and you persuade the prince inside." He glanced at Mr. Cui, "I know you have no personal relationship with Liu Feng. But you will naturally agree with Liu Feng's strategy. Because it is not harmful to you and beneficial to Qin. Why do you disapprove? Mr. Cui is smart and hard to coax. Whenever someone wants to persuade the prince by going around the corner, you will puncture it in a daze."

Mr. Cui frowned and said: "If someone sincerely deceives the prince, Cui naturally can't open his eyes and watch. What's wrong with this? Aren't your lords also ministers of the prince?"

Le Lan said with a cold face: "If it weren't for the civil and military opposition of the Manchu Dynasty, Liu Feng would have almost imitated the Yan State in collecting land taxes."

Mr. Cui suddenly realized: "So..."

Le Lan sighed lightly, and said solemnly: "The king and the minister are not the same thing. You should not only care about yourself, but also your ministers. Mr. Cui, is there any truth in what I say as a prisoner?"

Mr. Cui said: "It's just that there are many ministers in the court who agree with Prime Minister Liu Feng's strategy."

"You mean Ding Bozhang and his ilk? Of course he agrees. His family doesn't have much land, how much can he pay in land tax? But there are so many factories and shops."

Mr. Cui said: "It's just that factories and shops pay a lot of taxes, which is what fills the national treasury."

Le Lan's mouth twitched: "The tax is high because they earn more."

"Why doesn't Master Le follow them and build some factories and shops?"

Le Lan snorted and said, "I dislike copper stink! The benevolent enjoy mountains, the wise enjoy water. They create a miasma everywhere, everyone is mediocre and philistine. Do you know that there was a time when merchants dared not give way to court officials! Because Liu Feng was originally the leader of the Shang Party, even though the whole group of people has no rank, no respect, no inferiority. Liu Feng added money to the treasury on the face of it, which really made Qin Guoli collapse, and the wake was thundering. Even the sixteen and seventeen-year-old students It’s said that it doesn’t matter if the words of the sage are good or not, as long as it can make money. There is nothing in the world that cannot be bought with money. If things go on like this, the country will not be a country.”

Mr. Cui nodded slowly: "So Master Le thinks so." Nai thought for a moment and said: "Actually, what the student said... seems to be true."

Le Lan frowned: "What does Mr. Cui mean?"

"What do Master Le think you can't buy with money?"

Le Lan puffed her chest out and said, "What will he buy for fame?"

Mr. Cui said: "I remember that in the case of Fuyuntang, there was someone who bribed the examiners to cheat in the scientific examination. That was after Liu Feng left office." Le Lan choked.Mr. Cui went on to say, "I have been able to donate officials since the time of my ancestors, and I can also donate to the previous dynasty. Therefore, the scientific examination is not the only way to become an official. The title can also be bought many years ago." Le Lan's complexion became more and more serious. It gets darker. "Besides, since Master Le thinks that Prime Minister Liu's policy is not good, isn't the policy of Shu Kingdom also similar?"

Le Lan puffed up her chest again and said, "The King of Shu has begun to realize that what he did was wrong in recent years, and he is planning to gradually revise the national policy."

Mr. Cui frowned and said, "Is there? How did you see it?"

"Master Bi told me."

Mr. Cui was startled: "What?"

"Official Bi told me." Le Lan said, "Liu Feng's home is in the Kingdom of Shu. He once asked the King of Shu for an official, but the King of Shu refused, so he came to the Kingdom of Qin."

Mr. Cui was stunned again: "Then... Master Le will believe it?" This time it was Le Lan who was stunned.Mr. Cui said, "The Kingdom of Shu has no intention of changing the national policy, and just copied an export tax rebate from the Yanzhao Federation a few months ago, which is clearly to encourage the establishment of factories. Moreover, there are more and more Confucian scholars in the court of the Kingdom of Shu Fewer and fewer." Le Lan became more and more dazed. "When it comes to not developing industry and commerce, Qi is the most important country in the whole country. Among the big countries, Qi is the weakest. Master Le, have you ever been to Qi?"

"Never."

"Cui has never been there." Mr. Cui said, "but Cui has seen the information sent from Qi State. The firearms and guns worn by Qi State officers and soldiers are not as good as those we eliminated in Qin State a few years ago; and Lu State Its firearms are already as strong as those of our country. If one day, the State of Lu wants to seize the territory of the State of Qi, it will be easy."

Le Lan frowned and said, "It's all caused by firearms. If it weren't for the fact that all countries are searching for money to buy firearms..."

Before he finished speaking, Mr. Cui interrupted: "When the world was not divided, the whole country didn't have many firearms, and the court generally searched for money. Saints seek wealth, old saints seek wealth, princes seek wealth, and court officials also seek wealth. .Firearms have nothing to do with making money."

Le Lan was dumbfounded.After a long while, he looked at Mr. Cui and said, "Actually, Mr. Cui understands what I mean, but he is just being sincere. Which one is more and which is less? It's different, how open and aboveboard it is to seek wealth now. Now the whole country seeks wealth, regardless of whether it is a scholar, a farmer, a businessman or a business!" Le Lan said heartbrokenly, "How amazing?!"

Mr. Cui smiled and shook his head: "I know Lord Le's intentions, but Master Le doesn't know what I mean. At that time, the court seeking wealth was the same as seeking wealth in other countries today. Even if there are no firearms, don't armors, knives and guns cost money? Fire The price of guns is not more expensive than silk clothing, and the price of artillery may not be higher than that of gold and jade vessels. In the early years, it was not easy for farmers and craftsmen to make money. Although it was easier for merchants, they had to bribe officials to seek protection. However, according to Liu Fengzhi's new tax policy, it is difficult for officials to fill their pockets. The procurement of goods by the government is done through bidding, and the lawsuits are transparent, making it difficult for the masters to ask for bribes. If the land tax is collected again, I am afraid that even people like Lejia will not be able to support them. Living a luxurious life. Master Le doesn’t disdain factories and shops, but he just doesn’t know how to do it and refuses to learn. It’s not easy to run a factory. If you send slaves to learn, I’m afraid they will run away after learning. There are escaped slaves every day these days ;If you let the children of the Le family go to learn, you can't let go of your figure." He stood up and said, "Cui has nothing to say to Mr. Le. I just want to persuade Mr. Le, saying, the dead are like husbands, don't let go Day and night. People can't compete with the times. If you don't believe it, just look at the country of Qi."

Le Lan said nothing.

Walking out of the cell, Mr. Cui questioned King Qin with his eyes, and turned his head inward; King Qin shook his head.So he never went to see Le Lan, King Qin pretended he hadn't been there, and the group left the prison and returned to Qin Wang's mansion.

Qin Wang had a lot of thoughts in his mind, and when he went to the study, he saw that Zhao Wang was lying on the imperial concubine's couch and fell asleep, he didn't think it was funny.With so many people coming in, it was inevitable that King Zhao would be awakened.He opened his eyes in bewilderment: "That Ding Mei left?"

Ding Mei said crisply: "No."

"Oh." King Zhao put one hand on his eyes, "Go ahead, I'll go back to sleep."

Mr. Cui said with a smile: "Zhao Wangmo don't sleep anymore. It's cold now, I slept too much during the day, and I won't be able to sleep at night."

King Zhao sat up and rubbed his eyes twice: "Have you been talking for a long time?" Ding Mei chuckled.

Mr. Cui shook his head: "The thousand-year-old Zhao Wang is really leisurely." He suddenly remembered something, "My lord, how do you collect the land tax in your country?"

Zhao Wang yawned: "Where does the lonely king remember so much? Anyway, the tax system of the entire federation is the same."

"Is it Yan's tax system?"

"Yes." Zhao Wang said, "Although the lonely king does not have the ambition of Peter the Great, he also knows that the stones of other mountains can be used to attack jade."

Mr. Cui frowned: "Who is Peter the Great?"

Ding Mei smiled and said: "Mr. Cui has read all the articles in the world, but he doesn't even know about Peter the Great? This man is the greatest king of Russia, never seen before or since." He talked about the great achievements of Peter the Great with great interest .Mr. Cui and King Qin also listened with great interest, and the unhappiness in the cell just now temporarily dissipated.

After listening, Zhao Wang said: "In fact, he is just after 'traveling thousands of miles', 'choose the good one and follow it'."

Mr. Cui nodded repeatedly and said: "Very true!" Nai thought, "The same is true for Jia Cong of the Yan Kingdom. Choose the best policy in the world and follow it."

Zhao Wangdao: "The lonely king has traveled to several countries in the past two years. Many things are useless if you don't go to the local area to read, just read a few letters. Brother Qin Wang, why don't you travel with me." Everyone was stunned. .He rubbed his neck and said, "Since Mr. Cui mentioned the land tax, surely your country of Qin also wants to change the land tax?"

Mr. Cui said: "It's just that the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty refused."

Zhao Wangdao: "Brother Qin Wang is only pretending to be sick in bed, and you and I go to see the world together. How can you build a car behind closed doors. You are not as lazy as I am, and you don't want to take care of everything. Look at Yan Guo, look at Zhao China, look at Qi State, visit Ping'an Prefecture, Guangzhou, and Dajiala. Just like Peter the Great, you can see what other countries are like with your own eyes. Don't talk about anything else, just talk about Yue. Since the founding of the country , a change in a year, a big change in three years, is not the same as Wu Guo. If you don’t see it with your own eyes, you can’t feel it.”

King Qin was taken aback.He had seen the photos taken by Zhao Wang's mother and son, and he was envious in his heart.The young heart is also eager to walk around, but it's just that the constraints of identity cannot escape.After a while, he murmured, "Can you?"

"Yes!" Zhao Wang said, "Entrust the government to that Zhu Tong. He has a scapegoat, and he has done those things in Lu State anyway. When you come back, the land tax should be changed."