The political hall under the chairmanship of Zhao Pu has strict rules and regulations, with high-ranking bureaucrats and subordinates each occupying their own positions and taking care of their own affairs. They are busy but not chaotic, giving people a sense of efficiency and order.
Emperor Liu came unexpectedly, walked through the corridor, passed through the service rooms, and went straight to the back hall. Along the way, he saw the orderly appearance, and his eyes showed a hint of satisfaction.
Today's Emperor Liu pays more and more attention to rules, and he looks more and more like a serious and rigid feudal master. During his years as prime minister, Zhao Pu has also established rules and political style with his distinctive style.
In the hall, several ministers were sitting safely, each discussing state affairs according to his own case. Emperor Liu's arrival obviously surprised everyone, and they hurriedly stood up to salute, but they were not too nervous or surprised. In recent days, Emperor Liu's frequency of going to the political hall has become somewhat high.
"Everyone sit down! Everyone sit down!" Emperor Liu raised his hands, sat down gracefully, and looked around at the people: "It's almost dinner time. I'm here to try the food in the political hall. It's not easy for you guys to work hard for the big man. , if the food we eat is unpalatable, I will punish the chef!"
A small joke made the atmosphere in the hall much more relaxed. Zhao Pu and others also smiled and said: "It is an honor for me to eat with His Majesty."
It was rare that people were more organized today, and all the main ministers of the Zhengshi Hall, except Li Ye, were here. Of course, there is also a new face, Wang Pu, who was transferred from Tokyo and took office not long ago. Now he is the second most powerful figure, and Li Guoshu has always been the third.
"Qi Wu, you have also been in the Political Affairs Hall, but what is the difference between Xijing and Tokyo?" Emperor Liu asked Wang Pu with a smile.
Probably because he had been in Tokyo for the past few years, there was inevitably some unfamiliarity between him and Emperor Liu. Wang Pu was a little more cautious and answered with his hands raised: "Your Majesty, the importance of the prime minister is not where he is, but on his shoulders to assist the king and manage the life." People, whether it is Xijing or Tokyo, I only feel that my responsibilities are heavy and heavy, and I feel like I have a heavy responsibility."
Hearing Wang Pu's all-purpose answer, Emperor Liu smiled and continued to ask: "There should be nothing uncomfortable about it, right?"
Upon hearing the question, Wang Pu immediately replied humbly: "Thank you for your majesty's concern. Fortunately, your majesty's kindness and promotion, and the support of all the princes, everything went smoothly!"
His eyes wandered around Zhao Pu and Wang Pu. Emperor Liu suppressed his smile and sighed softly to Wang Pu: "Since I returned to the capital, what I have heard the most is that the national treasury is empty and the imperial court is financially strapped. It makes my ears tremble. It's time to get cocooned. Qi Wu, you are in charge of the big man's money bag now. It's not easy. It's even more difficult to manage it well. You have to worry more!"
"It's my duty, how dare I not do my best?" Wang Pu immediately expressed his attitude, as if he was grateful for the kindness.
Under the auspices of Zhao Pu, it was carried out in accordance with the general policy of rest and recuperation. Improving the financial system and improving the poor financial situation was one of the focuses. Many of the current tasks of the court were also centered around this matter.
The prime ministers of the Han Dynasty are now in charge of their work. Prime Minister Zhao Pu has direct jurisdiction over the staff and oversees everything. Wang Pu, who returned to the government, was directly responsible for the Finance Department. He also had this experience when he was the Prime Minister in Kaifeng. For example, Li Ye, the uncle of the state, is responsible for the guidance of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Industry...
Emperor Liu had always admired and trusted Wang Pu's attitude and ability. He nodded, looked at Zhao Pu, and said, "I have seen several reform measures proposed by the Financial Secretary and can start to implement them to improve the national finances." The method is nothing more than increasing revenue and reducing expenditure.
In terms of reducing expenditure, there is not much that can be done at present, so we should think of more ways to increase open source! However, salt, tea, grain and cloth are related to the national economy and people's livelihood, especially the reform of salt affairs. I know that this is an important financial source for the court, but don't be fooled by huge profits. No matter when, meeting the needs of the people will always be the first priority... ..”
In the past few months, the imperial court has been working hard on finance and taxation. It has been discussed and debated for a long time, and finally some concrete measures have been taken, and the salt issue is one of the relatively big actions.
The Han Dynasty's annual income has always been dominated by salt. However, the court has always been very strict in control. From production, transportation to sales, the government occupies an absolute dominant position. And a special salt law was formulated to crack down on illegal salt and salt-related crimes with extremely harsh penalties. The price of salt has also been suppressed at an extremely low level. In the past ten years or so, the price of grain has fluctuated repeatedly with changes in the current situation, but only the price of salt has remained stable.
This time, one of the measures taken by the Financial Secretary is to make a fuss about salt industry. The core purpose of the specific measures proposed is to relax the restrictions on salt industry. From now on, the government will be mainly responsible for production, while transportation, Sales will open some channels to merchants.
Emperor Liu did not have any guidance or interference in this proposal. It was entirely proposed by the Financial Secretary himself. And this, I have to say, is a big move.
Although it is only a small hole, once it is opened, the impact it will have on the court, merchants, and people will increase over time. Allowing more merchants to participate will help the development of the salt industry and reduce the burden on the court. At the same time, it can also create greater benefits. The court will eat meat and the merchants will drink soup. But more significantly, it will increase the price of salt. , it is not so friendly to the common people who eat and use salt.
Therefore, Emperor Liu's words seemed high-sounding, but with the obvious benefits right in front of him, it was difficult not to be tempted. Furthermore, the common people of the Han Dynasty have been eating cheap salt for more than ten years, and now every family is getting richer. A slight increase in the price of salt will not really affect people's livelihood. After all, salt is not as consumed as food.
In the eyes of many people, the salt affairs of the Han Dynasty should have been changed long ago. In the past, there was a huge cornucopia, but it was always suppressed. It is also a good strategy to improve the embarrassment of the Han Dynasty's finances through salt profits. You know, in the Tang Dynasty, salt profit revenue accounted for almost half of the court's annual fiscal revenue, but today's Han Dynasty is just sitting on a treasure mountain.
"Your Majesty, rest assured that the Financial Secretary has formulated a complete set of reform measures and strengthened supervision measures!" Wang Pu responded: "And it will not be achieved overnight, but will be gradually relaxed. The court will also always pay attention to the price of salt. Once If there are any problems, they will be adjusted in time!”
"As long as you don't act too hastily, I believe you will give me and the Han people a satisfactory answer! I believe in your ability!" Emperor Liu said.
And through such a conversation, the matter has basically been decided. It is conceivable that around the important chain of interests of salt and profit, there will be another carnival among the big men. Even if it is just a piece of meat from the government, it is enough to attract people. Everyone is scrambling for food, and ordinary merchants may not even be qualified to participate.
Of course, hidden worries also exist. It is not that easy to take it back after opening this hole. It will only get bigger and bigger, and the rise in salt prices is almost irreversible. When merchants have enough say in sales, will there be a counterattack?
According to common sense, it is almost impossible. The Financial Secretary's reform of the salt affairs ensured a bottom line, that is, the most basic salt production is always in the hands of the court and is the responsibility of the local salt supervisors.
However, when new interest chains are formed, consolidated, and strengthened, these systems will inevitably be eroded. Someone will always be responsible, and someone may be corrupted.
Of course, everything has its pros and cons, and Emperor Liu is not someone who seeks perfection and blames others. At least for now, he is supportive of the salt reform. At the same time, this is also an attempt to support business development.
This is what happened with salt. If it succeeds, then wine, tea, cotton, etc. can follow suit and carry out reasonable and appropriate reforms.
"In addition, regarding the issue of commercial taxes, don't just think about raising taxes!" Emperor Liu also instructed: "Raising taxes can directly increase the court's income, but it is too simple and crude to be sustainable, and it is easy to dampen the enthusiasm of merchants. This is a way to catch fish while draining the lake.
Take the salt reform as an example. Under heavy taxation, how many people can be willing to participate? Even if they participate, in the end, for the sake of sufficient benefits, the price of salt will be increased significantly, and it will be the common people who will suffer.
I know that some of you will regard those merchants who raise the price of salt as profiteers, and the court can also crack down on them and clearly set the price of salt. But then, what’s the point of reform? If that is the case, it is better to maintain the status quo and directly increase the price of salt.
Therefore, in addition to merchants' business affairs, the court should also try to formulate more reasonable laws to regulate and restrict the behavior of merchants, support those who obey the regulations and pay taxes according to the law, and crack down on unscrupulous merchants who evade taxes, so that the government and merchants can benefit from each other. , is the long-lasting way..."
In recent years, business in the Han Dynasty has indeed been booming, and the commodity economy has begun to take shape, but the court's guidance and regulation are still at a preliminary stage.
In terms of ideology and culture, the imperial court, the government and the people all had certain prejudices against merchants and commerce. Scholars, peasants, industry and commerce were still the mainstream.
If Emperor Liu hadn't always had a better attitude towards merchants, merchants in Han Dynasty might not have such a relatively relaxed business environment today.
Even so, there are many twists and turns. In the past, there have been several incidents of cutting leeks. This time, the Financial Secretary has come up with a commercial tax reform plan, which is simple and crude, namely increasing taxes on commercial and trade activities.
Emperor Liu did not object to increasing taxes, because as far as the current situation of the Han Dynasty was concerned, the collection of commercial taxes was far from adequate, and the court could not do it in detail. After all, it did not have that much energy or manpower. .
Therefore, in these years, Han's business has been booming, and business taxes have increased every year, but compared with the profits of merchants, it is only a small amount. Therefore, Emperor Liu was also happy to cut a wave of leeks at the right time.
But judging from the plan proposed by the Financial Secretary, there is no problem in describing it as robbery. The appearance is too ugly, and Emperor Liu felt that this was an attack on the development of business.
It is even more like an act of revenge. The country is financially strapped, but some merchants are extremely rich, which directly attracts the hungry eyes of the court to them. During last year's Northern Expedition, many merchants in food, timber, shipping and various handicraft industries made a lot of money from the imperial court's military expenditures.
In the view of some Finance Department officials, the imperial court's money was all donated by the people, so how could it be earned by a group of merchants? How could the imperial court's money be earned so easily, so they tried their best to make them spit it out.
As for the last resort, raising taxes and imposing heavy taxes are all-encompassing. Emperor Liu will of course have to give some guidance on this...
