Chapter 136: One does not get rich without ill-gotten wealth, and a horse does not grow fat without night grass

In Antonio's eyes, this type of flying ship was a miraculous product of the Great Ming, just like the First Porcelain Pagoda of the Great Bao'en Temple. However, the Great Ming seemed to have no intention of selling such ships to him; in fact, the Imperial Court had consistently denied their existence.

Antonio was not actually qualified to accuse the Great Ming of being thieves, because in the West, they also liked to steal—no, it should be called: "cultural exchange under the Great Voyages movement."

The greatest achievement of the Italian mathematician Bombelli, *Algebra*, was built upon the crystallization of the wisdom of Arab mathematicians five hundred years ago, adding bricks and mortar to their foundation.

For example, five hundred years ago, Al-Karaji solved quadratic equations, which were then recorded by Khayyam in his book *Algebra*, a systematic study of cubic equations. This work was quite popular in Italy.

For instance, the French mathematician Viète provided the relationship between the roots and coefficients of a unary quadratic equation, also standing on the shoulders of Al-Karaji.

This is the essence of scientific progress; no one can build castles in the air.

Therefore, Antonio could not accuse the Great Ming of plagiarizing their shipbuilding designs, because the Great Ming truly had the capability to protect its own maritime borders from being violated.

Gao Qiyu looked at that hydrofoil sailboat, also filled with emotion. This thing was not entirely a wooden ship; from the keel to the mast, it was built entirely of steel. A small boat was not meant to withstand wind and waves; its sole purpose was speed. Using the fastest speed to patrol the Great Ming's maritime borders, anti-smuggling, and transmitting messages—that was its mission.

"Prince, next time you come, we will be able to see this ocean-crossing ship set sail." Gao Qiyu led Antonio to begin boarding the ship.

"I would very much like to say, 'Take my silver and leave my ship,' but I do not have that kind of strength." Antonio looked back three times for every step he took as he left the dock and began to board the ship.

As the Prince's investor, the Great Ming naturally had to demonstrate its own strength, telling the Prince that as long as he had silver, any weapon he desired could be obtained from the Great Ming.

The reason the Imperial Court was willing to sell this item was entirely because it could increase the speed of iteration.

The old ships were definitely not perfect. The moment they left the dock, the shipbuilders at the shipyard would make targeted modifications based on the old flaws. By selling off the old ships and clearing the old accounts, they could continue to supervise the construction of larger, faster, and more heavily armed warships.

And faster iteration of products can iterate technology; this is beyond doubt.

After Gao Qiyu boarded the ship, he saw a large number of "Black Barbarians." Although he had read countless maritime journals, Gao Qiyu still sighed that the morality of the "Red-Haired Barbarians" was truly at the bottom of the pit.

Ocean-going ships inevitably suffer a large number of casualties, and this attrition was the Black Barbarians.

In one maritime journal, Gao Qiyu had clearly seen the cruelty.

When encountering storms, they would throw the Black Barbarians into the sea as sacrifices to those demons in exchange for a safe passage;

When the fresh water on the ship was insufficient, they would abandon a portion of the Black Barbarians to allow the ship to sail more smoothly;

When the ship suffered a leak, the Black Barbarians had to plug the leaking spot;

When conflicts occurred with local indigenous people, the Black Barbarians had to charge to the front;

The supply of food and water was even more scarce, yet the Black Barbarians did the heaviest and most tiring work on the ship, but could only eat the least amount of water and food. Death occurred at any time; being thrown into the sea was the best outcome. Many times, they would become part of the food supply.

The reason Antonio and these Westerners did this was because in their eyes, the Black Barbarians were more like tools with a limited working life. The reason they could do this was because Antonio held a firearm in his hand, while the Black Barbarians were unarmed.

As for morality, there is no need to discuss something that does not exist.

If the Great Ming Navy could not protect the safety of the Great Ming's maritime borders, the Great Ming people would likely fall into the same predicament. The reason the Red-Haired Barbarians were willing to pay taxes to do business, were humble and kneeling before the Emperor, presented gifts to request support, and sighed in admiration at the Porcelain Pagoda as a miracle created by Chinese craftsmen, was because the Great Ming military could protect the Great Ming.

The Red-Haired Barbarians had previously invaded the Great Ming and were completely defeated by the Great Ming.

If the Great Ming military could not protect the Great Ming, the Red-Haired Barbarians would be unscrupulous; this was inevitable. When they faced the Porcelain Pagoda, it would not be admiration, but rather finding ways to snatch it away.

The galleon had a total of three decks. The bottom layer was for ballast stones and the living quarters for the Black Barbarians; only when working would the Black Barbarians be let out. The second layer was where cargo was piled, and the top layer was where the Red-Haired Barbarian crew rested, with hammocks arranged neatly.

The captain's cabin was at the stern, the largest and most comfortable place on the entire ship. Moreover, inside the captain's cabin, there was a huge jewelry box filled with rare treasures collected from everywhere.

At the stern, there was a ship's lantern. When the night was pitch black, the lantern was used to dispel the fear of darkness.

"Oh, my dear friend, is this still my ship? Thank you to the hospitable Great Ming people for cleaning my ship inside and out. I cannot see those damn rats and fleas. This is the most pleasant maritime journey of my life. How wonderful." As soon as Antonio boarded the ship, he let out a heartfelt exclamation.

"The diplomat might not be clear: even in the most spacious captain's cabin, after opening one's eyes and seeing a big rat right in front of you, even the joy of making money is left with only damn curses."

Gao Qiyu said quite indifferently: "It's just that your ships are too dirty. Rats and fleas can potentially transmit plague. The Imperial Court absolutely does not allow any overseas rats and fleas to come ashore."

When the ship docked at the Songjiang Prefecture Maritime Trade Office, a comprehensive deep cleaning was carried out, handled by the Great Ming people. The water barrels were cleaned thoroughly, the ballast stones at the bottom of the ship were moved out, and a comprehensive cleaning was performed, including the barnacles on the bottom of the ship, which were all scraped off one by one. Moreover, it was towed into the dock, repainted with tung oil, and some damaged hull planks were replaced.

Shipworms are the enemy of all wooden ships.

Even those Black Barbarians who did not know how long it had been since they last bathed were thrown into pools soaked with sulfur and scrubbed clean.

Of course, this was not free. Every project at the seaport was charged. It was not expensive; each ship cost one thousand taels of silver, completed by three hundred shipwrights in half a month.

The biggest enemies on the ship were rats and fleas. Rats would steal food and water, making the already perishable food even harder to preserve. If the number of rats on a ship exceeded one thousand, it would be difficult for the ship to reach its destination smoothly. The rats would eat everything edible, including the sails in the storage room.

The method the galleon used to deal with this was to have the Black Barbarians catch the rats and reward them with rat meat to eat. This was not always effective because there were no cooking tools on the ship for the Black Barbarians.

But after this deep cleaning, the ship would not have to worry about rat infestation for at least a year, and of course, the same went for fleas.

The galleon had gained a new lease on life, and the maritime experience had changed from being terrible in the past to being not bad at all.

The reason the Great Ming provided this service was because the Great Ming people wanted to study the layout of the four-masted galleon to create a contingency plan for the design of the Great Ming's next generation of merchant ships. The despicable Great Ming people had once again plagiarized the design of the galleon.

To be ahead is to be ahead, and to be behind is to be behind. To be behind is to try every possible way to change the backward situation, rather than closing one's eyes and shouting that one is the "Celestial Empire" in order to seek temporary peace.

Obviously, the Great Ming had made a lot of effort in learning from Western shipbuilding methods.

After Antonio's three large ships left Songjiang Prefecture, their first stop was Naha Port in the Ryukyu Kingdom.

Ryukyu, the sea bridge of all nations; Ryukyu, the lock of the Japanese. Whoever controls Ryukyu controls Japan.

Ryukyu was also one of the Great Ming's tributary states, although at present, Ryukyu was a place where Red-Haired Barbarians, Japanese, and Great Ming fugitives lived together.

Gao Qiyu took the thirty-plus members of the mission and wandered around Naha Port for a long time before returning to the ship. There was a very conspicuous person in the mission: Xu Jie's eldest son, Xu Fan. Xu Fan was the assistant envoy for this voyage.

And the two of them wrote furiously, recording everything they saw and heard along the way.

Gao Qiyu wrote: "The crew is rationed one catty, four taels, and five mace of biscuits every day. Biscuits are a food that tastes like chewing wax, far inferior to the Great Ming's 'light cakes.' Each person is rationed two taels and three mace of dried fish. These dried fish come from many sources and are all hung on the ship's side to air-dry. Collecting fish when it rains is quite an interesting anecdote."

"Meat is eaten after being soaked in salt water. Rather than calling it salt water, it is better to call it sea water directly. The taste is even worse than wax."

"Fresh water is one liter per crew member per day. Fresh water will deteriorate during long-term voyages, so it must be mixed with strong spirits, and some lemon juice or lime juice is added to prevent the curse of blood decay and prevent scurvy."

"The treatment of the Black Barbarians is very poor. The ration is only about one-third, so the Black Barbarians often fight for water and food at the bottom of the ship. This is also one of the means by which the captain controls the Black Barbarians. With insufficient water and food, the Black Barbarians fight and harm each other."

"There are often fights on the ship. After all, they are always drinking, and it would be strange if they didn't fight. So now, a tacit understanding has formed on the ship: after drinking, the Red-Haired Barbarians will pull the Black Barbarians out and beat them violently."

"All the crew members are gamblers. Their daily pastime is to gamble money non-stop. The wages for a month of risking their lives at sea all become chips on the gambling table, and then they lose it all."

"I can be certain that the captain is the dealer."

Gao Qiyu recorded every bit of life. This was his job: to collect the ugliness and beauty of various countries, the differences in customs, the differences in local products, the systems of territory, and compile them into volumes for the Imperial Court to consult. In fact, the Great Ming was very familiar with Ryukyu; even the King of Ryukyu was enfeoffed by the Great Ming.

In the 13th and 40th years of the Jiajing reign, the Imperial Court twice supervised the construction of the enfeoffment ships to cross the ocean to enfeoff the Shang family of Ryukyu as King.

Xu Fan wrote in his journal: "Shallow, greenish sea water is called 'Cang Water,' and deep, dark blue sea water is called 'Black Water.' This is because there are trenches in the deep sea. Crossing the trench and offering sacrifices to the sea is a common practice. The speed of the galleon is very slow; it took a full seven days to get from Songjiang Prefecture to Naha Port, while the hydrofoil sailboat only needs one day, or even less."

"The crew said that one only needs to drift with the waves, and after six months, one can reach the destination. What they rely on is the Kuroshio Current."

"The Kuroshio Current, a river in the sea, starts from Ryukyu, goes to Japan, and then from Japan all the way east. The voyage is tens of thousands of miles long, reaching a port named Acapulco. The crew said that this section would be very hard because there would be countless challenges."

"Strangely, it only takes three months from Acapulco to Manila, passing through the equatorial doldrums. The equatorial doldrums are a very calm section of the voyage; one doesn't even need to raise the sails, just follow the Kuroshio Current."

"I will do my best to observe and find the answer to the problem."

Xu Fan wrote down the date, recorded the weather and the rotation speed of the wind vane, before closing the maritime journal.

"General Chen said: 'There is a change in Ryukyu, and the Japanese pirates have the ambitions of wolves.' It is indeed so," Xu Fan said with a heavy expression.

Ryukyu was full of Japanese pirates, and Ryukyu suffered greatly from them. Ryukyu could pay tribute every year, but Zheng Xian, the Senior Official of Ryukyu, and Zheng You, the Chief Clerk, and others had submitted memorials to request orders many times, but there were no results. Three out of ten people in Ryukyu were Japanese. They occupied the Yorazamorijo Castle near Naha Port and acted recklessly.

And this Yorazamorijo Castle was built to prevent Japanese pirates from causing chaos, but at this time, the Japanese pirates had already occupied the magpie's nest.

Chen Lin sailed his winged-sail ship to Ryukyu. After extensive inquiries, he became certain that King Shang Yuan of Ryukyu had been reduced to a figurehead. Since the fifth year of the Longqing reign, King Shang Yuan had moved to the Yuzhao Hall of the Yuanjue Temple under the pretext of recuperating from an illness. Yet, since that illness began, he had never appeared in public again, and all affairs of the Ryukyu court were controlled by various factions.

"We just record it truthfully. The rest of us thirty people in the mission can't do anything, right?" Gao Qiyu also saw the problem, but they couldn't solve it. They were just passing through Naha Port, not on a mission to Ryukyu.

After the galleon replenished its fresh water, it set off again, heading towards Japan.

And the tax auditing of the Southern Yamen also came to an end. A total of over 1.6 million taels of "Gold-Flower Bai Yin," 420,000 taels of silver from the three galleons, and 1.23 million taels from the Nanjing Li Zhizao's sale of silk and other items, totaling 3.25 million taels, were shipped from Songjiang Prefecture by three three-masted galleons, heading towards Tianjin Wei. This time, there were twelve hydrofoil sailboats accompanying them to prevent the galleons from capsizing.

On the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, the Mid-Wang Qiujie, Zhu Yijun received news from Tianjin Wei: 3.25 million taels of silver had arrived at the port. According to the accounting method of the State Treasury and the Inner Treasury, the Inner Treasury received a total of 1.625 million taels.

On the way to the Wenhua Hall, Zhu Yijun said to Zhang Hong: "We are rich now! One does not get rich without ill-gotten wealth, and a horse does not grow fat without night grass. It is indeed so. This money comes at just the right time!"

The wool factory needed money, and this investment was also funded by the State Treasury and the Inner Treasury respectively. Everything was ready, and now the money was in place.

On the Mid-Wang Qiujie, according to the system, there was a holiday, but the court session was held as usual. Because so many eyes were fixed on this 3 million taels of silver, as soon as the news came from Tianjin Wei, everyone knew that there would definitely be no holiday for this Mid-Wang Qiujie.

"Your subjects pay respects to Your Majesty. Is Your Majesty's holy body well?" The officials paid their respects, mostly in high spirits.

Zhu Yijun waved his small hand and said: "No need for formalities, let the court session begin."

After everyone was seated, Zhang Jizheng flipped out a memorial and said: "3.25 million taels of silver arrived in Tongzhou yesterday, escorted by Chen Lin, the Assistant Regional Commander of Songjiang."

Wang Chonggu almost jumped straight out of his chair!

3.25 million taels of silver!

Wang Chonggu knew the embarrassing situation where the Imperial Court was so poor it had to pawn its pants, and the Inner Court and Outer Court were begging each other for food. It had only been two years since he returned to the capital, and the Imperial Court had directly deposited 3.25 million!

This was money outside the budget. Taking the capture of Gulezhai in Liaodong as an example, making up for arrears in pay and so on only cost 150,000 silver. This sum of money could at least supply the expenses for 21 Liaodong victories.

Outside the budget meant extra income beyond the original budget.

Zhang Jizheng, this Grand Secretary, would probably swallow more than half of it! The Grand Secretary really had a way to make money!

Zhang Jizheng said with a full smile: "The State Treasury has deposited 1.625 million taels, and the Inner Treasury is waiting for deposit. His Majesty has issued an edict for the Ministry of Rites and the Directorate of Ceremonial to supervise the handling."

"What about the Grand Secretary's share?" Wang Chonggu frowned. This added up exactly; what about Zhang Jizheng's share?

All the court officials looked at Wang Chonggu. Wan Shihe coughed lightly and said: "Minister Wang, be careful with your words."

"A slip of the tongue, a slip of the tongue." Wang Chonggu realized that this was the Wenhua Hall, not his Xuanda Viceroy's Office. Not everything could be said out loud, and it wasn't the case that whoever was the Grand Secretary had to take more than half of every sum of silver to support his own clique.

Zhang Jizheng did not blame Wang Chonggu for his slip of the tongue. More than just Wang Chonggu thought so?

In the entire world, except for the court officials who had been in the court for a long time, who didn't think that the Wenhua Hall was Zhang Jizheng's one-man show? He said one, and the little Emperor didn't dare say two. 3.25 million taels, he took 60%, and who dared say a word of 'no'? But the fact was, the little Emperor said one, and Zhang Jizheng wouldn't say two.

The monarch and his subjects had a tacit understanding; the resurgence of the Great Ming was the primary duty.

Zhu Yijun said with a smile: "The teacher has a way to make money. After three years of governing the country, the State Treasury and the Inner Treasury have finally gotten rid of the situation of begging each other for food and scratching each other's hair for a tael of silver. I reward the teacher for his meritorious service in governing the country; he should be promoted to Grand Preceptor."

When Zhang Jizheng heard this, he hurriedly stood up and bowed his head, saying: "Your Majesty, please allow your subject to explain. Rewards should be given for extraordinary achievements, and only then can one receive hereditary honors. Your subject is shallow and mediocre, only performing the duties of a literary official. What kind of hard work is there to deserve such a reward? Your subject cannot accept it."

"Teacher." This was not the first time Zhu Yijun had the intention to appoint Zhang Jizheng as Grand Preceptor. It had been two years, and Zhang Jizheng firmly refused to accept it.

Zhang Jizheng bowed his head again and said: "Your Majesty."

Zhu Yijun continued: "Everyone wants to be promoted and get rich, except for the teacher. I appoint the teacher as Grand Preceptor for his meritorious service in the wars in Liangguang, the war against the Douzhang Barbarians, the war in Luzon, and the war in Liaodong. Isn't this a matter of course? The promotion is already an imperial order; you should accept it and not firmly decline."

Zhang Jizheng thought for a moment and directly brought the matter into the open: "I hope Your Majesty will see your subject's sincerity, which has no affectation. Please withdraw the order. Your subject can perform the humble service of a dog or horse, and not reach the heavy blame of rapid downfall."

If His Majesty wanted him, Zhang Jizheng, to work well for a few more years, it was better not to appoint him as Grand Preceptor.

It was not easy to be a Grand Preceptor. If a living person were Grand Preceptor, he would inevitably be at the center of the storm and be criticized by everyone. Now, it was quite good to be the Grand Secretary, not reaching the heavy blame of rapid downfall, not reaching the crime of overstepping his authority.

The little Emperor was not muddled, so there was no need for him, Zhang Jizheng, to shout the words, "I am not a Zhang Yuanfu, but a Regent."

Zhu Yijun didn't mind Zhang Jizheng shouting like that, but Zhang Jizheng also saw the situation clearly. The little Emperor was not someone who could be fooled by a few words. If he, Zhang Jizheng, took a step forward to become Grand Preceptor, then the people under him would take ten steps forward. The things Gao Qiyu caused in Yingtian Prefecture would only happen again.

It was quite good as it was now.

Zhu Yijun saw that Zhang Jizheng had directly explained the matter, so he had to nod and say: "Alright then, let's continue the court session."

"Your subject thanks Your Majesty for the great favor." Zhang Jizheng stood up straight and sat down again.

Ge Shouli did not activate his "respect the monarch's power" skill, because Zhang Jizheng's refusal to be Grand Preceptor was respecting the monarch's power.

Wang Chonggu felt a sense of sorrow. It was one thing for Zhang Jizheng not to be greedy for money, but he was also not greedy for position! Then what did Zhang Jizheng want? He wanted the Great Ming to rise again! There was no way to deal with such a person while he was alive!

Zhang Jizheng continued: "The Censor of the Huguang Circuit, Chen Guan, and others submitted a memorial saying: 'Heaven and Earth produce wealth in limited amounts; if it is not with the officials, it is with the people. There is no such thing as official silver that cannot be hindered.' They impeached the Nanjing Military Preparedness Eunuch Zhang Jin, the Inner Treasury Eunuch Cui Min, and others for supervising the Southern Yamen's weaving and competing with the people for profit."

"Since last year, Zhang Jin, Zhang Cheng, Cui Min, and others memorialized about silk trade. The Ministry of Works discussed it as appropriate. Since August last year, the Southern Yamen has woven sea-trade silk, totaling 【number missing】 bolts of silk. One bolt yields 12 taels and 5.5 mace of silver, totaling a profit of 1.23 million taels."

Of the 3.25 million taels of silver shipped to the capital this time, 1.23 million was the silver obtained by the Nanjing Li Zhizao from trade with the Red-Haired Barbarians, all of which was shipped.

Zhang Jizheng continued: "The talk of 'hindrance' arises from corrupt officials searching for public funds to fill their own pockets. Searching must involve hunting and fishing; hunting and fishing must involve levies; levies must involve suffering. How can this be something Your Majesty enjoys hearing? They say: 'Abolish the Nanjing Li Zhizao's sea-trade silk business.'"

"Your Majesty's comment on the memorial says: 'The court session has been decided; do not change it for the time being.'"

The Minister of Works, Wang Guoguang, was full of anger when he heard this, shaking his head and saying: "How is the Nanjing Li Zhizao weaving sea-trade silk 'hunting, fishing, and levies'?"

"Is it buying raw silk at a low price or simply not giving silver? Or have the weavers in this Li Zhizao not received their pay? Or have Zhang Jin, Zhang Cheng, and Cui Min led a group of inner officials to the streets to rob? If there were, the court officials in the Southern Yamen would have memorialized it. If there were none, why impeach this matter?"

"Just because the Imperial Court's business delayed their business? They themselves owe the weavers their pay and don't give it, and the weavers run to the Li Zhizao to work, and they blame the Imperial Court for paying the weavers? They themselves exploit the common people to buy at low prices to seek huge profits, and the Southern Yamen Li Zhizao buys at a fair price, and they can't buy raw silk, so they blame the Imperial Court for buying silk at a fair price?"

Wang Guoguang pointed out the core problem of this memorial: it might happen, and then they manufacture public opinion, carrying the banner of "competing with the people for profit" to exploit the common people.

"It is indeed competing with the people for profit." Wang Chonggu still spoke a fair word for the Southern Yamen official Chen Guan. The Imperial Court took the money, so how could the powerful gentry make money? If this isn't competing with the people for profit, what is it?

Wan Shihe hurriedly said: "Minister Wang, that's not the right way to look at it."

"The Imperial Court's Li Zhizao has no special privileges. It didn't order that raw silk must be sold to the Li Zhizao, nor did it order the conscription of laborers. There are 1,200 weavers in the Nanjing Li Zhizao. They are all women. There are too many people, and they have to be selected. Laborers are adult men. The Imperial Court did not deduct their pay, and it didn't forbid others from going to Songjiang Prefecture to trade with the Red-Haired Barbarians just because the Maritime Trade Office is a government office."

"They did their business poorly themselves; they can't blame the Imperial Court. Last year, if it weren't for the fact that Captain Antonio stayed in the capital for a long time, our Great Ming wouldn't even be able to weave silk for maritime trade, and we wouldn't be able to supply it. It was the Southern Yamen Li Zhizao that took out a portion of the silk intended for His Majesty's use, so that we wouldn't be embarrassed before foreign nations and be looked down upon by China."

"These powerful gentry and wealthy merchants in the Southern Yamen couldn't weave it themselves, and couldn't even satisfy one ship. That's why the Imperial Court expanded the Southern Yamen Li Zhizao."

The Minister of Rites' words, translated, mean that the end of the world is taking the imperial examination.

The Southern Yamen Li Zhizao was the only institution in the Great Ming with female positions. The number of people who signed up was like a sea of people, shoulder to shoulder, which stunned Zhang Jin. Did the Imperial Court actually have this kind of appeal in the Southern Yamen?

Wan Shihe knew why Wang Chonggu said this. Wang Chonggu didn't want to run the wool factory. Once it started, it would weaken the Northern Barbarians. How would the clique continue to engage in special-interest economics to seek profit? But the Imperial Court was playing with open cards.

"Also, the wealthy merchants, their silk is rough and unbearable, not worth one-third of the original price. They don't distinguish between light and heavy. The Red-Haired Barbarians buy silk from the Li Zhizao instead of from the merchants' families. Is this also the Imperial Court's fault?" Wan Shihe added his own opinion and then concluded: "Minister Wang, be careful with your words."

"Minister Wan's words are reasonable." Wang Chonggu pondered it carefully and could only say helplessly.

Wan Shihe, this fence-sitter, could be called a weather vane. Wherever the public opinion blew, Wan Shihe pointed that way.

"What do you all think?" Zhang Jizheng did not hold a one-man show. After seeing Wan Shihe clarify the matter, he looked at everyone and asked.

Ge Shouli asked suspiciously: "Three galleons yielded 420,000 taels of silver. How do I remember that the first time there were 240,000 taels? Are these three only this much?"

Wang Guoguang said with a smile: "The Red-Haired Barbarians don't have infinite silver, as much as they want. The ships they brought this time also carried palm oil, brown sugar, cocoa, and other items, not just silver."

"So that's it, so that's it. I saw they were generous and thought they were sitting on a mountain of silver, and all three ships were full of silver. It seems that's not entirely the case." Ge Shouli then understood.

Hai Rui said with a smile: "Even if you are sitting on a mountain of silver, you still have to mine it and refine it into silver, right?"

Zhang Jizheng saw that no one supported the first proposal to abolish the Southern Yamen Li Zhizao's supervision of sea-trade silk, so he said: "Chen Guan also said that the tax auditing is too urgent, and there is much resentment among the people. He requests to extend the time limit for leniency."

When Wang Guoguang heard this, he was unhappy and said: "This is urgent? Since the court official feels that the Southern Yamen Li Zhizao is exploiting innocent common people, why not take it from the stubborn people who owe taxes! How about this: after investigation, the Southern Yamen, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, and other places owe a total of over 2.34 million taels of 'Gold-Flower Bai Yin.' Why not let the tax-auditing Embroidered Uniform Guards directly pursue the arrears."

Super-doubling. If the tax-auditing company hurt them, then super-double it and pursue the arrears!

Pursue the previous regular taxes together. Anyway, the Embroidered Uniform Guards could handle it, so let them handle it.

"Then pursue the arrears?" Zhang Jizheng felt there was nothing wrong with that. They owed it before and it wasn't escorted to the capital. Now that there was a ready-made tool, pursuing the arrears became a matter of course.

When Tan Lun heard this, he immediately said: "Pursue the arrears! Anyway, the tax-auditing office doesn't collect taxes from the common people, but it must prevent those villains who walk in the market in the name of the tax-auditing office and wantonly exploit people. Catch one and kill one. If you kill more, naturally no one will dare to impersonate."

Tan Lun was as always, just feeling that the excitement wasn't big enough.

I made money, I made money, I don't know how to spend it!!! Requesting monthly tickets, Aowu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 137 =====