Chapter 821: The Old Emperor Has Come to Collect a Debt

The matter of Qiao Yuan's rebellion in Liaodong has already begun to be investigated in depth by the Dali Temple.

Qiao Yuan is dead.

But there are still his family members, his harem, his subordinates, and even within the Longyan Dynasty, there are still some people who are inextricably linked to him.

This case is massive.

It is arguably the greatest act of rebellion in the Longyan Dynasty since Xie Tianyao ascended the throne, or perhaps even in several hundred years.

Rebellion.

What a joke.

Although the matter of rebellion can be big or small—some dare to rebel with a few hundred people, others dare to ascend the throne with a dozen—this rebellion by Qiao Yuan is no ordinary affair. He had an army of five hundred thousand. If not for Vice Minister Liu, this army of five hundred thousand might have long since broken through Wangchuan Valley. Although they might not have stirred up much trouble under the obstruction of the Qingzhou Armored Soldiers, this is war; once war breaks out, it is inevitable that the common people will suffer.

What every dynasty fears most is the instability of the people's hearts.

If one cannot even manage ideological work, how can this dynasty continue?

Xie Tianyao is very angry.

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The Dali Temple is very busy.

This has kept the Junior Ministers of the Dali Temple busy to the point of exhaustion.

They know that Xie Tianyao intends to use this matter as an example to make an impression. To describe it as "killing the chicken to warn the monkey" would certainly be inappropriate. At the very least, it is "killing the wolf to warn the wolves."

Investigate!

Investigate strictly!

Those with blood relations to Qiao Yuan, needless to say, are all to be arrested and held for legal processing.

Then, any officials or merchants who have had dealings with Liaodong are all to be brought in for questioning.

Then let's get to work.

With Xie Tianyao's authorization, the Dali Temple began making arrests of all kinds.

Following that, the prisons of the Feudatory Kings in various regions also began to be filled with people.

Responding to central policy, there is no other way.

For a time, the entire Longyan was in a state of panic and chaos.

The Heavenly Prison was packed full of people.

Throughout Longyan, the spectacle of beheadings began to be staged simultaneously.

Liu Zheng naturally had no thoughts on this.

If they were even a little slow in their actions, wouldn't that imply they had the same rebellious heart as Qiao Yuan?

Kill.

Following that.

Xie Tianyao sent a letter to inquire.

This is a feudal dynasty.

An army of five hundred thousand rebelling is no small matter. In such a situation, only beheadings can stabilize everything and consolidate the hearts of the people.

For the dignified Emperor of the Longyan Dynasty to ask him about how to make money is a posture that is truly quite low. Therefore, this letter came as a private missive, and Xie Tianyao strictly declared that it must never be leaked.

A two-billion order.

He asked Liu Zheng, "You made me reject the tea trade order from the Netherlands; how will you make up for this loss for me?"

Liu Zheng smiled.

But fifty million is already quite remarkable.

One must know that the previous annual fiscal revenue of the Longyan Dynasty was only twenty million.

Liu Zheng smiled slightly.

It sounds like a two-billion order is indeed not small, but in reality, considering the transportation and logistics methods of this ancient era, and then being squeezed by various local authorities and Chambers of Commerce several times over, by the time it reached the imperial court, fifty million taels of silver would likely be considered a lot.

Liu Zheng understood this well.

Regarding tea, Liu Zheng had his own ideas.

Therefore.

Xie Tianyao was anxious.

Liu Zheng was left between laughter and tears.

He certainly would not pay out of his own pocket to provide this money; Yintan City certainly had it, but he did not want to touch it.

But the meaning of Xie Tianyao's letter was actually already very clear. "You, Vice Minister Liu, want to keep the tea trade in your hands? Fine, then you must first offer me these fifty million. Once offered, the matter of tea can be handed over to you entirely to handle. If not, then wait to be punished."

Fifty million.

Under the shocked gaze of the Prince of Yong, Liu Zheng did not set a price for the Coal Ball Stove; he was going to sell the patent directly!

Thirty million taels, plus a ten percent commission for himself!

Thus, he set his sights on the wealthy individuals currently in Liaodong.

Therefore.

"What Coal Ball Stove? What is that?"

A group of wealthy men gathered together to warm themselves by the fire.

No bargaining, no promotions, no discounts.

Once this news came out, everyone was dumbfounded.

Absurd!

One person shook his head and said, "I really don't know, it must be something for warming by the fire, right? But this price is a bit too absurd."

These people were feeling quite broken inside at this moment. They had originally intended to follow Vice Minister Liu to Liaodong to accomplish great things, but they never expected that after arriving, their daily work would be warming by the fire, drinking strong liquor, warming by the fire, and drinking strong liquor. People began to suspect: did Vice Minister Liu deliberately trick them into coming here just to push the strong liquor he produced?

Excessive!

"Are you crazy? I think this Vice Minister Liu must have had his brain frozen and stopped working recently."

"Hahahaha, why say so much? Let's go, let's go to the Colosseum and see how my Weilong is doing!"

"What kind of thing it is, won't we know tomorrow?"

"Thirty million taels, my god, how many people can swallow that?"

After all, the wealth of the rich men who came to Liaodong this time is uneven.

To swallow an order of thirty million taels, I'm afraid it would require a large-scale Chamber of Commerce.

"Pah, what Weilong! Let's go, let's have a big go at it!"

A group of people sneered.

Tang Feng, from the Jingchu Chamber of Commerce, is a wealthy man holding massive capital.

Therefore, he was able to quickly buy a decent manor in the land of Liaodong, and incidentally, his family's steward and servants also moved in.

Chamber of Commerce

These merchants fought for a while in the Colosseum before returning to their own residences.

Of course, this was before Vice Minister Liu appeared.

When Vice Minister Liu's Grand Canal was already nearing its end, the commerce of Jingchu was still greatly affected.

"Master."

The land of Jingchu once had a very strong presence in the Longyan Dynasty; as a thoroughfare for nine provinces, its commerce was also extremely developed.

Indeed, the land of Jingchu has now lost its core competitiveness.

Facing the extremely shrinking trade revenue, Tang Feng began to think of a Method.

At the very beginning, Tang Feng was also resentful.

But later, he began to feel powerless.

He placed all his bets on Vice Minister Liu.

"Master, the weather is truly too cold. This Stove has been burning for quite a while, yet I don't see it getting much warmer. You should still drape a coat over yourself."

He began to compromise.

This time, Vice Minister Liu wanted to develop Liaodong, so he didn't say a word, brought all his wealth, and followed the team; he wanted to place a bet.

"Old Huang, do you know what a coal ball is?"

Tang Feng asked.

Returning to the room, Tang Feng still did not feel any warmth.

Furthermore, because of various firewood, the room was made foul with smoke.

He himself was also like a sick person clutching at straws.

Coal Ball Stove, Coal Ball Stove.

That old steward gave a bitter smile: "Master, in our Jingchu, we don't need these things; we don't even light stoves in winter, so how would I know?"

Tang Feng also shook his head.

Place a bet?

This Vice Minister Liu is not a person who shoots without a target.

He always felt that there was a great mystery within this small stove.

He looked at the firewood emitting sparks and fell into deep thought.

Patent

Is it really worth that much money?