Chapter 153: The Retired Emperor: Jia Ge Lao’s Capable Minister
……

Under the protection of his personal soldiers, Jia Rong came to the Yangzhou Coast Defense Office.

At this time, everyone inside knew that their immediate superior had been arrested and was being taken to the Three Courts of Kyoto for interrogation.

They were all a little uneasy.

There was no news at all beforehand.

You know, officials like Jiedushi were almost considered high-ranking officials at frontier provinces, and there would definitely be signs in advance if the imperial court wanted to move against them.

Either he lost the battle or he offended someone, there are always clues.

This time there is really not the slightest bit of it. The governor was fine yesterday, but today he became a prisoner.

Under the Jiedushi of Coastal Defense were the left and right commanders, and below them were six thousand-household commanders. At this time, they were all busy distancing themselves from Yuan Fuxiu, and it was obvious that they all thought that Yuan Fuxiu was finished.

After all, what Yuan Fuxiu did could not withstand investigation. Demotion and exile to a remote frontier were light punishments, and immediate execution was a possibility.

The Left Commander Xu Guangliang said with a worried look on his face: “Everyone, Young Lord Jia is here, we must come up with a plan as soon as possible, otherwise the consequences will be disastrous!”

The right commander Xiong Fu said: “What can we do now? The young minister came without any warning, and there are still a lot of cannons unloaded from the ship in the warehouse. They can’t stand inspection at all.”

“Fuck you!”

Xu Guangliang jumped up and cursed, “Why don’t you find someone to install it quickly? Are you going to die just by leaving those things here?”

Xiong Fu had nothing to say at this time, and said, “It’s too late to pretend. It depends on how far the young minister is prepared to investigate. If he really wants to investigate to the death, we can all go home and prepare our coffins.”

Everyone was silent for a while after hearing this.

A thousand-man commander suddenly stood up and said calmly, “Please don’t panic. I don’t think the young master has the intention to kill us all. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have the chance to sit here.”

Xu Guangliang had some hope in his eyes, and asked hurriedly: “Oh? What does Brother Zheng mean?”

Zheng Yan cupped his hands and said, “I think the young minister probably wants to punish the chief culprit. We just need to put all the blame on Yuan Fuxiu. What do you think?”

“it is good!”

Xu Guangliang slammed the table.

“That’s it.”

“There is one more thing.” Zheng Yan thought for a moment and said, “Now that things have come to this, everyone should stop being stingy and use all the money they have earned in the past few years to pay tribute. Even if it means spending money to buy his life, if the young elder accepts it, we will have an 80% chance of success.”

Everyone nodded, obviously understanding that money was nothing more than a thing outside of one’s body at this time.

……

“Young Lord, you have come to the Coast Defense Department. We are sorry for not welcoming you in person. I hope you will forgive me.” Inside the Coast Defense Department, everyone was sweating profusely but smiling.

“hehe.”

Jia Rong smiled and waved his hand, saying, “There is no such thing as a young minister. I am just a scholar. I went out to travel during the New Year holidays. When I arrived near Yangzhou, I heard that the maritime trade was booming, so I came to take a look.”

Xu Guangliang and others were terrified when they heard this. Wasn’t this clearly indicating that they were abusing their power for personal gain and opening the sea without permission?

Everyone looked at Zheng Yan, who was more eloquent.

Zheng Yan gritted his teeth and stood up. He walked to Jia Rong and whispered, “Young Lord, please calm down. We were all forced to do this. We had no choice but to go along with the evil. Please, young Lord, please show mercy to us because we didn’t commit any serious mistakes…”

As he spoke, he quietly handed Jia Rong a thick stack of bills of exchange: “Hehe, this is a small gift from us. Please have some tea, young minister.”

Jia Rong took the banknote.

Put it on the table.

Everyone’s heart skipped a beat.

Zheng Yan’s face turned even paler.

Jia Rong just laughed and said, “It’s not easy for everyone to make money, take it back.”

It was so difficult to catch these people, how could Jia Rong put himself in trouble just for a little profit?

“I would like to visit the warships of our Yangzhou coastal defense. Is that possible?” Jia Rong said with a smile, making an excessive request.

Everyone looked grim and remained silent.

Jia Rong continued to smile and said, “Is it not possible? If it is inconvenient, I dare not force you. I will go back and prepare for the New Year.”

With that said, he walked out.

Zheng Yan hurriedly whispered to everyone, “The situation has already come to this. There is nothing to hide. Let’s just give the handle to the young minister. We can just serve him with peace of mind in the future.”

Xiong Fu nodded and said, “I think it’s okay. The young minister is definitely more reliable than Yuan Fuxiu!”

“I agree!”

“I am willing to serve the young master.”

Whether they were willing or forced, the two commanders and six thousand households had made up their minds at this time to hand over the handle to Jia Rong and follow the young elder in the future.

Xu Guangliang hurried ahead and pulled Jia Rong, who was about to walk out of the door, and said with a smile: “Young Master, please take care. We are willing to take you there.”

Jia Rong smiled slightly: “Oh? Really? Would it break the rules?”

Everyone gathered around and said, “Young Minister, you are visiting the Coastal Defense Department and you are wholeheartedly serving the people. How could you break the rules?”

“You are welcome to point out the shortcomings of our Coast Guard Department. We will make good corrections in the future.”

“Xiao Ge, please.”

Jia Rong was surrounded by people and brought to the harbor.

Huge Fujian ships were docked at the dock, some of which were still carrying cargo and people coming and going, but the cannons on the hulls had long disappeared.

“Young Lord, we are all…”

“I know.”

Jia Rong interrupted him with a wave of his hand and smiled, “Maritime trade here is indeed prosperous, but safety must be guaranteed. Otherwise, what will we do if Japanese pirates invade?”

Everyone nodded quickly and breathed a sigh of relief.

Xu Guangliang said: “What the young cabinet minister said is right. We will rectify it immediately and install the cannon. We will make sure that we will not make such mistakes again in the future.”

Jia Rong nodded and said with a smile: “Let me tell you something. The court may lift the maritime ban. At that time, the Coastal Defense Department will have a heavy responsibility. You must work hard.”

Everyone was shocked when they heard this.

Why do they choose to smuggle across the sea?

Just because of the imperial court’s maritime ban, the Coast Defense Bureau was not taken seriously and the salaries of the nine frontier troops were often delayed for several months. What’s more, they often did not see any salary for half a year.

Even if the military pay is received, it is often less than half of it. How can the family survive if they don’t go out to sea to earn extra money?

“Are you serious, young master?”

Xiong Fu said excitedly.

Jia Rong: “It’s about right.”

Confiscating a few salt merchants cannot fundamentally solve the court’s financial difficulties. Opening up the sea for trade will be inevitable, but the time is uncertain, maybe a year or maybe half a year.

“Everyone, take advantage of this time to train the navy. Then, fight a few beautiful naval battles to show the might of our Great Xia navy. Then, won’t it be just around the corner for you to be made a marquis or a prime minister?”

Everyone was suddenly very excited.

“We are willing to serve the young minister!”

“wrong.”

Jia Rong waved his hand.

“We all serve the court.”

Everyone laughed and changed their words: “What the young minister taught us is that we all serve the court.”

In half a day, Jia Rong finished visiting the harbor and returned to the government office. Everyone had a banquet and both the host and the guests were very happy.

Finally, Jia Rong said with a smile: “Yuan Jiedushi probably won’t be back for a while, so I’ll have to trouble Commander Xu to take care of the affairs here. It will probably take some time for him to be officially appointed.”

Everyone immediately looked at Xu Guangliang with envy.

This guy turned a disaster into a blessing. Not only was he safe, he was promoted instead.

Everyone became more determined to follow the young elder.

Xu Guangliang was so excited that his face flushed red. He swore: “I am willing to die for you, young minister!”

“Ok?”

Jia Rong was slightly displeased.

Xu Guangliang immediately realized that he had said something wrong again, and hurriedly said, “Serve the court.”

Only then did Jia Rong laugh.

“The Coast Guard will definitely expand in the future. You all need to work together to develop the Yangzhou Coast Guard into the number one navy in Daxia!”

Everyone was excited and pledged their allegiance.

“We swear to be loyal to the court until death!”

Jia Rong nodded with satisfaction and clapped his hands gently.

A person walked in from outside.

It was Li Chongshan, the former captain of the Coastal Defense Department.

Jia Rong smiled and said, “Brother, you are all familiar with me, right?”

At first, everyone did not pay attention to the little person next to Jia Rong, but after taking a closer look, they suddenly realized what was going on.

No wonder Yuan Fuxiu was punished.

It was him!

The person who was pranked because of a beautiful girl is still alive!

“Brother Li! I didn’t expect it was really you!”

Xu Guangliang stood up in surprise, patted Li Chongshan on the shoulder and said, “We are all indignant about Brother Li’s affairs, but we are powerless. Now God has finally opened his eyes and the young elder has made the decision for me!”

“Yes, I have been missing my brother all these years.”

Li Chongshan calmly cupped his hands and said, “Thank you all for your concern. I am very grateful.”

……

After staying in the Yangzhou Coastal Defense Office for two days, he strengthened his relationship with everyone and discussed the future. After both hosts and guests had a great time, Jia Rong boarded the warship of the Yangzhou Navy and returned to the Yangzhou Salt Administration Office.

At this time, Yangzhou was shocked by an explosive news, as if it had experienced a real earthquake.

The then Lord Jia officially announced the abolition of the salt permit system that had been implemented for hundreds of years since the early Song Dynasty.

The salt permit system was changed to the salt ticket system.

The fixed salt merchant system was abolished. All merchants in Daxia, regardless of the size of their assets or what kind of business they were engaged in, could pay taxes and receive receipts from the Salt Administration Office, and the sales area was no longer restricted.

In a word, anyone can become a salt merchant, even ordinary people. As long as they pay taxes, they can get salt tickets and buy salt from the Salt Bureau.

As for the salt permits from the past, they could not be used to purchase salt directly from the Salt Bureau. They had to be exchanged for salt tickets at the Salt Administration Office before they could be used.

As soon as this news came out, Lianghuai was in an uproar.

The price of salt dropped more than ten times overnight, and was even much lower than the original price of salt.

The salt merchants who hoarded goods lost all their money.

The boxes were full of gold and silver, and in a blink of an eye, the family was completely wealthy.

Of course they were unwilling to accept this, so they secretly gathered people and planned to cause trouble, while at the same time urgently notifying their connections in the court.

Ye Xiaoge Lao, who was tracking down the hidden silver of the six major salt merchants, was stunned for a long time after hearing the news.

“Old man!”

“You and I are at odds with each other!”

“Someone, inform my father and impeach him!”

“Someone, get all the salt merchants to make a fuss!”

“I want chaos in Lianghuai!”

……

Kyoto, grand court meeting.

Today, Prime Minister Ye, who had been recuperating at home for many days, suddenly came back. The Emperor on the Dragon Throne smiled and said, “Prime Minister Ye, long time no see. Has it been a while?”

Ye Gao said calmly, “Your Majesty, I will come here for the sake of our country.”

“Oh?” The emperor said solemnly, “What happened?”

Could it be that the Tatars from the Nine Borders have moved south?

Ye thought: “I heard that Lord Jia abolished the salt permit system in Lianghuai!”

“what!”

“what?”

“Abolish the salt permit? What about the imperial tax revenue?”

“I impeach Jia Jing for bringing disaster to the country and the people!”

“I second the proposal.”

For a time, the court was very excited.

Ye Xiang saw this scene and smiled slightly.

Although he has not been in the court for many days, his power and connections are unmatched by others.

Lord Wen stood in the hall without saying a word.

Compared to Jia Jing, he was more afraid of Ye Xiang’s return.

Because he once stabbed Ye Xiang.

Ye Xiang will definitely not forgive him.

In an instant, he made up his mind to join forces with Jia Jing to deal with Ye Xiangqu.

As for the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver lost due to hoarding salt permits… compared with power, what are these mere taels of silver?
As long as he takes the position of Prime Minister, not to mention 300,000, even 3 million taels will be within his grasp.

After everyone quieted down, Wen Ting smiled at Ye Xiang and said, “Ye Xiang really cares about the country. Even when he is recuperating at home, he still cares about the people of the world. I just have one question. Did Lord Jia come to Beijing with a letter? How come I didn’t know about it in the cabinet? Instead, Ye Xiang knew about it first at home?”

The emperor looked unhappy and looked at Prime Minister Ye.

He hadn’t received any information in advance!
“Prime Minister Ye is recuperating at home, but he still cares about the world. I am very pleased!”

The emperor’s voice was a little cold.

Ye Xiang cursed Wen Ting in his heart, but his expression remained unchanged. He said seriously, “My son happened to be in his hometown for the New Year this year. After he found something wrong there, he immediately wrote to me. I didn’t dare to sleep that night after hearing the news.”

The emperor waved his hand.

“It’s useless to say more now. Let’s wait until Lord Jia’s manuscript arrives.”

Jia Jing did write a memorial to present to the court, detailing the disadvantages of the salt permit and the advantages of the salt ticket system. The memorial was brought to the capital before the court session ended.

“Your Majesty, there is a book handed over by Lord Jia from Jiangnan.” The young eunuch took small steps and ran forward hurriedly.

Eunuch Liu took it and carefully passed it to the Emperor.

The emperor opened it and read it right there without much hesitation. The more he read, the happier he became.

There is such a wonderful method.

Once this salt law was issued, there would no longer be any richest salt merchants in the world.

And the court’s tax revenue can be doubled!
The people also benefited because the fierce competition would inevitably lead to lower salt prices.

This is the best of both worlds!

Lord Jia is a capable minister who can govern the country well!

When everyone in the hall saw the expression on the retired emperor’s face, they all began to speculate secretly.

Seeing that the retired emperor is so happy, could it be that Lord Jia really has some good solution for governing the world that can replace the salt permit system that was implemented in the Song Dynasty?

If that were to happen, things would change!

Lord Wen smiled slightly.

In fact, he also learned the general news that Jia Jing had come up with some kind of ticket salt system. Although he didn’t know the details, judging from the expression of the emperor at this time, it must be good.

The two of them joined forces to get rid of Ye Xiang first!

As for whether Jia Jing would take advantage of him, Lord Wen was not worried.

In the cabinet, people are usually promoted in order. Since Jia Jing had just entered the cabinet, it was impossible for him to be ranked ahead of him.

The position of Prime Minister is just around the corner!
Ye Xiang’s heart skipped a beat.

His son only gave him one piece of news: Jia Jing had arbitrarily abolished the salt permit system and asked him to bring people to impeach him. He did not mention anything else.

Could it be that Jia Jing really had the talent to govern the country and came up with a salt tax system that was better than the salt permit system?
If so…

I’m afraid his time as Prime Minister has come to an end…

At this time, the emperor had finished reading Jia Jing’s memorial and smiled at the audience, “My dear ministers, please take a look.”

“Ye Xiang, take a look first.”

Ye Gao hurried forward and respectfully took the book, then read it carefully. The more he read, the more frightened he became.

At his level, he can naturally tell whether this policy is good or bad at a glance.

Beneficial to the court.

It is more beneficial to the people.

It can be said that it benefits both the country and the people.

Of course, it was not very friendly to salt merchants.

It seems unreasonable to insist on using the argument of keeping wealth for the people.

Prime Minister Ye frowned as he pondered over a countermeasure. Upon seeing this, the censor under him immediately understood and said, “Lord Jia changed the salt permit without the cabinet’s discussion or the emperor’s approval, disregarding the ancestral laws. I impeach him…”

The emperor waved his hand.

“Chen Yushi, please go down!”

“Yunnan is short of a county magistrate. You will take up the post tomorrow.”

Censor Chen was stunned for a moment, then he said loudly: “I am willing to be punished, but I still want to speak out and impeach!”

The Emperor said, “I gave him the power to reform the commercial tax. Is there anything wrong with Jia Ge Lao’s reform of the salt tax?”

“Did you get rich in front of Censor Chen? How many salt permits did you buy recently?”

Censor Chen: “…Your Majesty, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor: “Go ahead.”

……

(End of this chapter)