Less than 7 million yuan, the cautious report seemed to form a wave of sound, constantly drilling into Emperor Liu's ears, directly invading his ears.
Of course, this was a huge sum of money, but it gave Emperor Liu a full sense of disparity. This is not to underestimate such a huge amount of money, but looking at the timeline of 20 years, the internal funds are less than 7 million yuan, which is really hard to accept.
"How come there are so few!" With a slightly gloomy expression and a cold tone, Emperor Liu glanced at Yantuo: "After twenty years of accumulation, this is all that's left? What's going on? Is there something fishy in it? Noticing Emperor Liu's eyes and feeling the suspicious tone, Yantuo hurriedly explained: "I'd like to report to the official family that in the early years, the state's fiscal and tax revenue was insufficient. The annual internal funds were less than 3 million yuan. Until the follow-up situation." To improve, it must increase year by year. Even so, less than 4 million guan will be put into the treasury every year after the Kaibao Year. Therefore, over the past twenty years, the total income from internal funds will be about 60 to 70 million guan. However, the daily expenses of the palace , the salaries of concubines and palace people, gifts during festivals, palace repairs, etc. are also consumed every year. In the first two years, there are still more than 2,000 yuan, excluding loans from the national treasury, as well as money spent in and out of the past two years, and internal money. There are only less than seven million strings left in the treasury..." After listening to Yantuo's explanation, Emperor Liu's expression finally softened, but the strangeness in his heart still existed. He frowned and said: " That's not right. The palace's expenses are so huge. How is the money spent?" In recent years, whenever the country's financial situation was in poor condition, Emperor Liu would
"Money" is very sensitive, and frugality is often advocated at this time and the palace's royal expenses are reduced.
Therefore, in his subconscious mind, the palace expenses were still moderate. As for daily expenses, how much could they have?
However, this is the Kaibao era after all. The world is peaceful, society is progressing, and the economy is developing. The so-called frugality, no matter how you do it, can never go back to the way Qianyu got up early.
"Hard work and simplicity". Emperor Liu was a man of great perseverance and will. He could do it, but it was not necessary. Moreover, he could not really make the harem full of people and the noble ministers of the dynasty like him.
There is a more comfortable life to live, so why be too demanding on yourself? After more than 20 years of martial arts, he has conquered a huge territory and created a peaceful and happy world. The person who did it will no longer continue to live a simple or even hard life.
On the other hand, Yantuo's report was still conservative. At least there were many expenses that were not detailed, such as the construction of dragon boats and dragon palaces, the expenses for various banquets for ministers during the weekdays, and the compassion and compensation for deceased veterans. There are even some just-in-time rewards, such as the expenses for the wedding of the prince and princess, such as hunting tours, whether there is an imperial city in Tokyo, and the maintenance expenses of palaces in various places, etc., etc.
If you really want to list it out one by one, the various expenses of the palace are really not small, and among them, the expenses surrounding Emperor Liu are also a large proportion.
And it seemed that maybe it was a habit that had become natural, or maybe he didn't reflect and pay special attention to it. Emperor Liu didn't realize this, and when he heard it suddenly, he even felt a sense of surprise.
Naturally, Yantuo did not dare to list these things to Emperor Liu, otherwise he would be hinting at his extravagance and waste, and would hit him.
The face of "simple and frugal". But who was Emperor Liu? How could he not be aware of it? He noticed Yantuo's reaction and felt strangely satisfied. He frowned and asked, "How many people are there in the palace besides the Imperial Guards?" Emperor Liu said this When the question came to a key point, Yan Tuo felt a secret in his heart and whispered: "Back to the official house, there are more than four thousand people in the harem, concubines, supervisors, servants, and maids in the palace... ..”
"There are so many people!" Emperor Liu's voice was slightly startled, his brows raised, and he asked: "Where did so many people come from?" Yantuo said softly: "In addition to the normal additions, the three cities of Houshu, Jiangnan, and Nanyue After the land is settled, most of the palace people of suitable age will be included in the harem." After saying this, Emperor Liu understood that in fact, the current size of the palace population was still due to the release of some over-age palace women.
However, Emperor Liu felt inexplicably heartbroken and his expression did not seem to relax: "How much are the daily expenses of the palace each year?"
"About more than two million yuan..." Yan Tuo answered.
"How much are two hundred?" Emperor Liu's tone was stern. Yantuo was startled, then continued to lower his head and said: "I only know a rough idea. The specific amount needs to be checked in the accounting records."
"That's quite a lot!" He glanced at Yantuo, and instead of being reluctant, he fell into thinking for a while. After a while, he refreshed and raised his voice: "That's not right!" Emperor Liu said in a positive tone. He said: "I still remember that after Chengdu, Jinling, and Panyu were defeated, a large amount of goods could be shipped back. What about these?" Emperor Liu seemed to have a mentality of making amends at this time, as if he had discovered some problem.
Seeing this, Yantuo remained cautious and replied calmly: "The gold and silver jewelry, jades, calligraphy and paintings, precious armors and famous knives, silk brocades and satin, etc. obtained by the official family are all stored in the palace treasury, but all the money inside is The remaining money is indeed less than 7 million guan..." In fact, the property used by Emperor Liu or the royal family cannot be just a few million guan.
Twenty years of accumulation, property and property are a huge amount of wealth, not to mention the rare treasures, gold and silver royal utensils, famous wines and horses stored in the palace, which are the palaces, gardens and temples managed by the Shaofu. , farmland, and is a comprehensive industry that contributes a large amount of income to the royal family every year.
There are more than a hundred various imperial mansions around the two capitals alone, not to mention others. The annual income of the royal family is not only the taxes shared with the court, but also the annual tributes from foreign vassals and foreign envoys, and the donations of local goods.
Emperor Liu didn't ask any more questions. He pondered for a while, then suddenly raised his hand and gave instructions: "Inform the envoys in the palace and the young officials to inventory and inspect all the palace collections and royal properties, and then give me the detailed accounts of these years." Check it again, I want to check it!" Does the official want to check the accounts?
Yan Tuo was startled, but his reaction was not slow. He quickly agreed and left after taking the order. However, when he retreated, Yan Tuo's slightly rosy face looked paler, and his expression was particularly solemn.
Naturally, Yantuo had reasons to worry, and of course, it was not about himself. Although his hands and feet were not so clean on weekdays, he was very measured and never touched anything that violated taboos.
The key lies in the people under him. As the chief eunuch in the palace, although his authority comes from Emperor Liu, he also cannot avoid the support of his people.
Among the palace servants working within the palace, there are naturally many of his confidants who hold important positions in various supervisory departments. If these people have any problems, Yantuo naturally has a definite answer in his heart.
The Han court's expenditures were huge, and it was not just the extravagant enjoyment of the emperor's concubines. In the past, Emperor Liu didn't pay too much attention to it. Naturally, it was inevitable that there would be some dark corners in the sewers and nooks and crannies among the magnificent palaces.
However, when Emperor Liu paid attention, the holy light shone, at least bringing light for a certain period of time.
And Yantuo is almost certain that as long as he investigates, he will definitely find some problems, and find some problems that will make the emperor angry.
Once this happens, there will be another turmoil within the palace. As for Yu Yantuo, the only thing he worries about is causing trouble.
Moreover, there is no need to worry about not being able to find the problem. Yantuo understands this very clearly. How to solve it and how to escape from danger would inevitably give him a headache.
When serving Emperor Liu, it would be difficult to live without a clear mind for a long time. Yantuo couldn't help but use his brain, but after thinking about it, he still felt powerless in the end.
At most, he only took into account the situations that might involve him and took precautions. As for other things, it was inconvenient to do it. He deceived his superiors and subordinates in front of Emperor Liu, which was a fool's move. Yantuo considered himself a smart man, so naturally he couldn't do it. Will be stupid.
As the chief chamberlain for more than ten years, Yantuo always insisted on serving Emperor Liu wholeheartedly. This was the fundamental reason for his unfailing honor and favor.
Emperor Liu naturally didn't know that a simple order would cause so many thoughts and calculations from the chief servant around him. He just sat there, obviously in a bad mood, feeling depressed.
Through this interview with Yantuo, he once again felt enlightened. The result surprised him. This was an instinctive warning as an emperor.
Unconsciously, I am drifting further and further away from my past style. Previously, Emperor Liu often felt worried about the pursuit of enjoyment by the nobles, civil and military ministers, but suddenly looking back, he seemed to be no essentially different from them. Realizing this, Emperor Liu even felt hesitant and even frightened in his heart. .
