Zai Chun finally compromised, and he revealed his final trump card, which was to return the person to me, but I don’t want the money!
Yi Xin was stunned, and the ministers of Mandong Nuan Pavilion also understood it. They all stared with big eyes and small eyes and couldn't believe their ears!
The brochure clearly states that there are many treasures in the palace, and the estimated amount of silver is 650,000 taels!
This is not small money! Regardless of the fact that these princes and ministers held the power of the empire, and the budgets approved in the brochures were millions or even tens of millions of taels of silver, but if you really look at the society at that time, there were actually not that many rich people at all!
In an agricultural society, the commodity economy is very underdeveloped, and a large amount of wealth actually exists in the form of land, houses, treasures, and even people, livestock, etc.!
If a certain family could have 10,000 taels of cash at home, then that family would already be a middle-class family in the Qing Dynasty!
In the society at that time, silver was not a necessary currency for life, and most people still used copper coins!
A very ordinary middle-class landowner has several hundred acres of land at home, a deep house, and a large family with dozens of people living together.
From a modern perspective like Xiao Letian, such a big family must spend a lot of money every year!
But that’s wrong. In the era of agricultural civilization, self-sufficiency was the mainstream!
There is no need to spend money on food for meals. The annual output in the fields and the catch in the mountains throughout the year are enough for food and drink. The need to spend money to buy food only accounts for a small part of all food consumption.
It is only possible to buy some meat, eggs, poultry and vegetables when you have guests or during festivals!
Wearing clothes is even more economical. Ordinary people sew and mend for three years, and then another three years! Many rural areas still retain the custom of weaving homespun cloth.
Those who can really wear silk and satin are only those from big families who have been officials!
Therefore, the real social wealth in the late Qing Dynasty was still accumulated in fixed assets, such as land, houses, etc. As for cash, it was only something that was valued by a thoroughly commercialized society.
Not to mention local rich people, even if you look at the composition of his assets carefully, even if he is a first- or second-rank official in the imperial court, cash will definitely not account for a high proportion!
It is known to everyone that Prince Gong is rich and powerful, but if he is asked to immediately take out 600,000 taels of cash from home, he does not have the ability!
Prince Gong’s Mansion is a priceless treasure, but it cannot be sold! You can manage the imperial estates awarded by Emperor Daoguang and Emperor Xianfeng as you wish, and the tenants there are all your domestic slaves, but you cannot sell them for money!
There are mountains of treasures in the palace, even a pair of chopsticks are made of gold inlaid with jade, ivory and silver, and the tea bowls used are all from the Northern Song Dynasty!
But these treasures that you enjoy every day are also a one-time investment. You can't buy a teapot from the Song Dynasty, drink it once and then smash it!
Treasures and antiques are not equivalent to consumer goods. Once the money is deposited in them, it is just like saving a time passbook!
Prince Gong’s family fortune is more than 10 million, but with cash flow, it would be difficult for him to get 500,000, let alone 650,000!
Even if someone likes to do business like Yi Kuang secretly distributes goods from the Northern Industrial Zone, his annual turnover will be only a few million taels, and the money will just roll around in the goods.
This is true for all princes, not to mention ministers like Bao Jun, Ying Gui, Weng Tonghe, and Li Hongzao. If their families can spare one hundred thousand cash, they will be considered rich!
But today, Emperor Tongzhi actually made a shocking decision. He didn't want the 650,000 cash!
There is a dirty talk in official circles. Emperor Tongzhi said that the stolen goods should be handed over to that yamen. In the end, the control of the money must be handed over to the master behind that yamen!
For example, if the money is handed over to the Ministry of Revenue, then the person in charge will naturally be Baojun, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. If he is corrupt, he will have many ways to redistribute the confiscated money.
The river works in the south of the Yangtze River, the salt channels in the Huaihe River, the bridges of the canal, the warehouses of the capital... Anyway, he could find 10,000 places to spend money and spend the 650,000 taels of silver.
Once the accounts are made, it is unknown how much will flow into his pocket!
What if the money is given to the Ministry of Internal Affairs? It's the same routine. Lian Xing will do various accounts. For example, the emperor ate three eggs today, a total of three hundred taels!
I drank two taels of Dahongpao and spent a total of one thousand taels!
There are ways to put money into the account and transfer it around! In the end, it will definitely end up in the pockets of a group of people!
Today, Zai Chun is being cruel. I won’t put this money in the Ministry of Revenue or the House of Internal Affairs. I will put it directly in your Jiumen Admiral’s Office!
How about giving you Yixuan and Yixin directly? Do you dare to ask for it?
In fact, many conflicts in the court are just like doing business. You make an offer and I counteroffer. If you insist on biting me, then you have to allow me to bargain!
Guiziliu's plan was very shrewd. He wanted to continue this case, steal all of Emperor Tongzhi's private money, and then regain the right to guard the lost palace gates!
The most important thing is to attack the imperial power and let everyone in the civil and military dynasties see that this little emperor is not good at all and is very weak!
But at the critical moment, Zeng Guofan came back and suppressed Guiziliu's arrogance. The old commander was also experienced in fighting and was able to attack the enemy from the source of intelligence!
Don’t you, Guiziliu, want to handle a big case? Then let’s have a public trial! You have to expose the source of the intelligence to us first. How on earth did you know that Manshun stole the treasure?
How come you know so much about what's going on in Ouchi?
Damn it, this is a big taboo, Guiziliu must have a disobedient heart!
After suppressing his opponent's arrogance, Zai Chun finally recovered and woke up from the dizziness caused by the combination of punches!
He knew very well that this matter must be settled today, and it was decisive immediately. It was necessary to cut off the tail to survive!
I don’t want the 600,000 taels of silver anymore, but people must exchange it for me. This is a must!
If the money is gone, you can make it again, but if you can't save Manshun today, who will dare to take refuge in him as the emperor in the future?
If people's hearts are broken, it will be difficult to lead the team!
Prince Gong felt unspeakably uncomfortable. What a great situation today, the best opportunity to beat the drowned dog!
He is very aware of the current internal ethics of the imperial court. Many things must be made decisively and iron-clad. Once it is delayed, various changes will occur!
In other words, whatever the outcome of today's struggle is basically the final outcome!
Once the court meeting is over and the officials have gone to court, the empress dowagers of the two palaces, Zeng Guofan's Hunan army and even the Chinese backers behind the little emperor will all take notice!
All the brokers in the capital will fly out like wasps, and you won't be able to detect all kinds of underground secret transactions!
Big cases will turn into small cases, and small cases will turn into peace and mud. The final result of peace and mud is to use a few innocuous scapegoats to settle the matter!
Not willing to give in! What a great opportunity, why did Zeng Guofan mess it up!
What's even more unexpected is that this little emperor is really an exception, and he doesn't want such a big bargaining chip!
Cixi, who was behind the curtain, was about to go crazy. She looked at Guizi Liu with hatred and suddenly burst out and shouted, "Gui Zi Liu! What do you want to do? Do you have to force the emperor to abdicate!"
"Okay! We, my mother-in-law, will fulfill your wish... let's go back to Shengjing, my dear child!"
"Li Hongzao and Weng Tonghe... wrote an edict to abdicate! This emperor is no longer worthy of the throne!"
"Queen Mother, calm down..." All the ministers in the palace knelt down!
