Having said this, Huang Qiong looked at the emperor who was also deep in thought after reading his secret book. After pondering for a moment, he added: "If the Guilin County Prince is not willing to hand over the power of trade, what other thoughts have he had? Even if other merchants gather enough ships to go to sea, I am afraid they may not have any good results. "
"Normally, you don't see a single person on the vast sea for hundreds of miles, and you don't even have to find an excuse to kill someone. The damaged merchant ship sank to the bottom of the sea, and even the corpses were not destroyed. Who can know who did it? The fleet of the Prince of Guilin is equipped with cannons and crossbows, how can ordinary merchant ships compete with them?"
"What's more, the Guilin County Prince has been in charge of our Daqi's foreign trade for more than a hundred years. All of our Daqi's routes to overseas countries are under his control. In terms of familiarity, I'm afraid no one can compare with them. More familiar. If the Guilin County Prince's Palace really wants to kill people and buy goods at sea, I'm afraid they don't even have to choose this position carefully. What's more, they definitely have the capital."
"Father, I face the sea to the east. Since the Tang Dynasty, many places have avoided imperial inspection and smuggled artifacts produced in China overseas. According to what I learned from envoys from various countries, except in the early years of the founding of the People's Republic of China, It has been more than ten years since Emperor Taizu issued a sea ban. There are also smugglers from our dynasty who smuggle goods overseas by sea."
"During the reign of Emperor Taizong, there were no longer any smugglers on our coastal roads to overseas countries. Whether it was Champa, Srivijaya, Chenla, the Lion Kingdom, Korea, or Japan, except for the Guilin County Prince's Mansion, Outside of the fleet, there is no merchant ship from China, not even a smuggler. Only in the past ten years have there been a small number of smuggling ships from China, but only to Japan and Korea."
"Father, there are many ports along our coast. Merchants are always seeking profits, and they dare to take risks for twice the convenience. During the Taizu years, the imperial court's maritime ban and the navy along the coast failed to completely prohibit smuggling. . But since the reign of Emperor Taizong, there has been no smuggling ship in the past hundred years. Father, do you think the Guilin County Prince's Mansion could achieve this if it relied on normal means alone?"
"What's more, I learned from those envoys that in addition to the various silk fabrics produced by the Guilin County and the tea gardens all over the south of the Yangtze River, other merchants in the south of the Yangtze River are also interested in all kinds of cloth, silk, and tea. Desperately lowering the price. I don’t even have the right to set the price. The Guilin County Prince’s government will pay whatever the price says.”
"The price given by the Guilin County Prince's Mansion was fair in the early days. However, starting from the Lizong Dynasty, the price was extremely low. It has reached the point where a shipload of tea leaves has been shipped overseas, and merchants can barely maintain their capital. As for the porcelain from the porcelain kilns in Jiangbei, each Except for the missing Ru kiln and Jun kiln porcelain, the rest of the tea produced in the tea garden was simply refused to be exported by the Guilin County and Prince's Palace."
"With such exploitation, there are so many merchants in Da Qi, guarding so many coastal ports, no matter it is Shandong Road or Huainan Road, no one dares to smuggle out to sea, this is already quite abnormal. Father, the Guilin County Prince's Palace can make merchants along the coast so fearful. Even if the imperial court really opens up the right to trade, how can they really not do anything?"
"Back then, they were able to make so many smugglers disappear along the coast, so now they are ostensibly handing over the right to trade, but they can secretly use their advantages at sea to do things. It doesn't take much, just three years, these merchants who are willing to go to sea will be able to They will quit. Is there any merchant in the world who can withstand such a huge loss?"
"The merchants can't even go to the sea, and the court can't collect the taxes it wants. It will even kill the goose that lays the eggs. At that time, what's the use of opening the sea? What's more, nowadays, shipbuilding, especially The craftsmen who can build ocean-going ships will most likely be in the hands of the Guilin County Prince. Other merchants, even if they have such financial resources and ambitions, may not be able to buy merchant ships or hire sailors."
"With no one going to sea, the imperial court will not be able to collect the taxes it wants to collect. When the time comes, I'm afraid the imperial court will be unable to survive first. Father, don't forget, the commercial taxes paid by the Guilin County Prince's Office every year account for a full 30% of the imperial court. Input. Without this tax, the life of the imperial court will be even more difficult. For the imperial court, this time of taking back the exclusive trade rights of the Guilin County Prince's Palace can only succeed and cannot fail."
"If the imperial court keeps doing this for two or three years, it will eventually have to take back the trade rights and return them to the Guilin County Prince's Palace. I'm afraid the court's prestige among the major merchants will be ruined. And the Guilin County Prince's Palace may not really Not to mention the losses, the reputation among the people is probably even greater than that of the imperial court. The control over our Daqi Jiangnan merchants will be even tighter."
"What I'm most worried about is the Guilin County Prince's Palace. How much copper, sulfur, and saltpeter has it hoarded over the years that can be used to make cannons? What does the Guilin County Prince's Palace want to do with importing so many horses, copper, and sulfur? Even if It’s to prevent pirates, but why are its fleet equipped with so many cannons and crossbows?”
"This is only part of Erchen's worries. What I am most worried about is that the Guilin County Prince's Mansion has such a large fleet and an elite semi-naval force. And all of them are making a living at sea, merchant ships They can be converted into warships at any time, and those sailors can also be converted into naval forces at any time. We have many coastal roads in Daqi. If the Guilin County Prince's Palace really has different intentions, what about this?"
Huang Qiong finished speaking, but the emperor did not answer him immediately. But after a long while, he raised his head and looked at Huang Qiong, and said with some relief in his tone: "Ajiu, being able to figure out these things in such a short period of time is enough to see you." You really put your heart into it. I really did not misjudge you. You did the right thing by taking precautions and being prepared for danger in times of peace."
"I'll tell you the truth today about the things you wrote in the secret document. They don't even have the North and South Town Fusi. I don't know what the Guilin County Prince's house is thinking in his heart right now. But there is one thing. It is still clear that the Prince of Guilin will never give up so easily and completely give up the solitary food he has been eating for hundreds of years."
"Since he is not willing to give in, he will definitely find a way to sabotage the imperial trade plan. Although he may not dare to do it openly, he is bound to be restrained secretly. Not handing over to various shipping companies and not selling merchant ships is the stupidest thing. Take Guilin County As cunning as the king is, he will not be so straightforward. But it is easy for those merchants who want to go abroad to disappear silently into the sea without returning to me. "
"Although I have never seen the sea, I have heard it mentioned by the Japanese envoy. The vast sea is boundless, and the water is hundreds of feet deep. Not to mention a person or a ship, it is just a stone as big as a fist. If it falls to the bottom of the sea, it will sink without a trace in an instant. In addition to the strong winds and waves, there are also huge monsters. A somersault in the sea can knock over a ship with thousands of materials."
"In the country of Japan alone, I don't know how many fishermen go out to sea every year and never come back. Just like you said, they kill people and silence them on this sea. Once the ship sinks, they won't even destroy the bodies or traces. Find them. There is no place to look for them. Those merchants who want to go to sea do not have the strength of the Guilin County Prince's Palace. Without further ado, the loss of two ships is probably unbearable."
"The merchants cannot go to sea, or they are so troubled that they dare not go to sea. The imperial court will not be able to collect taxes. Whether or not the right to trade is taken back, it is of no use at all. Even the right to trade will be taken back by the court. It’s a hot potato in our hands. And the Guilin County Prince’s Palace has given up the right to trade, so naturally the 30% of the imperial court’s annual income will no longer be available.”
"Once this situation occurs, the imperial court may not be able to sustain it in just one year, not just three years as you mentioned. Compared with what you said about the Guilin County Prince's Mansion being rebellious, I am more worried about their secret manipulation. Using Guilin The Prince's Palace has the innate advantage of being extremely familiar with overseas affairs. Intercepting other merchants' fleets at sea is truly fatal."
Speaking of what Huang Qiong just mentioned, the Guilin County Prince's Palace is hoarding copper, sulfur and other materials, which is very likely to have the intention of rebellion. The emperor's mouth was full of disdain: "If they really want to rebel, they can let me get rid of it once and for all. I am not afraid of them rebelling, I am afraid that they will not rebel. Even if their navy is strong, it is at sea and on land. How can he be the opponent of the four major battalions?"
Having said this, the emperor stood up, walked to Huang Qiong's side and said: "Although you are worried in this regard, although it is not unreasonable, you are still a little cautious. The Guilin County Prince's Mansion purchases a large amount of copper from Japan every year, and Sulfur may not really want to rebel, because most of the copper and sulfur they purchased were provided to the imperial court. A small part was used to cast bronze vessels."
"The copper mines currently mined by the imperial court every year are increasingly insufficient for use. Not to mention casting copper utensils, even coins are minted every year. The imperial court has to import a large amount of copper from Dali and copper-producing countries every year. Japan purchases a large amount of copper. Except for the copper purchased from Dali, which is purchased directly by the Ministry of Industry, the copper purchased from Japan is always purchased through the Guilin County Prince's Palace."
"The copper mines in Japan are better than ours. The money required to transport a ship of copper from Japan to our country is even less than what we mine ourselves. The same is true for sulfur. We are seriously short of sulfur. The sulfur in Japan is not only low in price, but also the same." It’s better than ours. Besides, even if they really hoard copper to make cannons and sulfur to make medicine, there’s nothing to fear.”
"Those cannons weigh several thousand kilograms and are extremely difficult to move. They are at sea, and there are thousands of large ships to place them. But on land, they can only be placed on city walls, and cannot be used for field battles at all. No matter how many cannons are cast, , and what's the use? So, I'm not worried that they are purchasing copper and sulfur to cast cannons. What I'm more worried about is that they are doing tricks in secret."
After the emperor said these words, Huang Qiong sighed secretly in his heart: "I, the emperor, am indeed very shrewd. But my vision is still a little short-sighted due to the limitations of the times. Nowadays, cannons can easily weigh several thousand kilograms. It seems that It is indeed not suitable for field battles. But the question is, it’s not that light artillery cannot be built, it’s just whether it is necessary.”
"Firearms are the future development trend. As for the firearms that are popular now, to use an inappropriate metaphor, compared with a few hundred years later, they are nothing more than a newborn baby. Artillery plus muskets, plus suitable With the formation, the cavalry may not really go there. What’s more, the Guilin County Prince’s Palace is also purchasing a large number of horses.”
Just looking at the emperor's face, Huang Qiong knew that even if he said it, the emperor might not really believe it. Obviously, although there are hidden concerns about accepting trade, he has similar views to himself. But I, the emperor, am still very confident in the combat effectiveness of the Qi army, or to be precise, the four major battalions, and I am not afraid of the Guilin County Prince's real rebellion.
Even judging from his words, he was still vaguely looking forward to the rebellion of Guilin County Prince's Palace. In order for him to completely uproot this hidden danger. Seeing that the emperor was full of confidence in this matter, Huang Qiong was slightly worried in his heart, but he could not resist disobeying the emperor's thoughts again and again.
