Fu Tang

After Li Congjia heard it, he immediately asked, "What's the problem?"

Li Zhongyu also stared at Shi Xuehe, Shi Xuehe handed a letter to Li Congjia and said: "The news from the younger brother, it is said that Funan has been in frequent contact with Sanfoqi recently."

Sanfoqi?Li Congjia was slightly taken aback, and Li Zhongyu turned to Li Congjia in a daze and asked, "Father, Sanfoqi... where is it?"

Li Congjia directly asked Chunsheng and Taofu to bring over the map, and they had to take the largest one.

After the map was spread out, Li Congjia pointed to the lower circle of islands and said, "Did you see it? This is Sanfoqi."

Li Zhongyu looked confused: "They...why did they collude with Funan to deal with us Datang?"

Li Congjia didn't answer, but he also wanted to ask, what's the fuss about?

The country of Sanfoqi is very strange to everyone, even Li Congjia, after all, is a bit far away. If it is converted to the location of later generations, it is probably Sumatra Island, which is next to Malaysia.

This location is far from Datang in this era, and basically belongs to a state of non-interference, especially when there are several countries and oceans in the middle.

Li Congjia took a look at the letter written by Shi Xueting, and found that Shi Xueting's letter basically introduced a general idea, and didn't write anything specific at all. I think he just arrived there, and only found a few problems, and he didn't have time. deep.

Li Congjia asked someone to take the map away, and was about to go directly to Xuanzheng Hall, but after thinking about it, he asked Chunsheng and Taofu to take the map.

After all, the geographical location of Sanfoqi is very remote, and not everyone knows it.

When Li Congjia arrived at the Xuanzheng Palace, the chief executives of the cabinet and the Privy Council were basically there, and even the six ministries were present. Everyone didn't understand why Li Congjia was looking for them at this time. After all, they hadn't heard of any major events happening recently.

Oh, the biggest thing is that Funan has a sudden convulsion. It's just that Yang Ye has already led the army to the south. Funan is a small country, so there is no need to worry at all. After all, they even went to Japan.

Of course, this does not mean that Japan is stronger than Funan, but the cost of fighting Japan is much higher than that of Funan.

After Li Congjia came in, he didn't talk nonsense and said directly: "Funan has Sanfoqi's support behind the funeral, but I don't know what purpose Sanfoqi has at the moment, so I have to defend myself."

Everyone was taken aback, and even Fan Zhi asked, "What? Which country?"

Li Congjia asked Chunsheng and Taofu to unfold the map and point to the circle of islands and said, "Three Buddhas."

Everyone looked like they had seen a ghost. They would rather believe that it was the Kara Khanate's hand, and they didn't want to see another country get involved.

Everyone was guessing what Sanfo Qi meant, Fan Zhi coughed lightly and asked, "I don't know... where is the national teacher?"

At this time, I have to admit that the existence of the intelligence department is actually very good, at least they don't have to look dark and know nothing.

Li Congjia simply said: "The national teacher is leaving for Sanfoqi."

Everyone was surprised again. Shi Xueting's frequent outings were still when the intelligence department was first established. At that time, there were not enough manpower, and many of them were newcomers. He was worried, so he often went to various places to inspect.

In recent years, the intelligence department has stabilized. Basically, Shi Xueting stays in Beijing to make an overview, and rarely goes out.

This time, the Sanfoqi incident actually directly alarmed him, which shows that there are many problems in this incident.

Li Hongji immediately asked: "Do you want to send the fleet to Yazhou Port to prepare?"

Yazhou Port is located on the Hainan Island of the later generations. If they really fight Sanfoqi, unless they can destroy Funan in a short time, there is no way to fight from land. If they want to fight, they can only go by sea. , so Li Hongji asked this question.

Li Congjia was also a little entangled for a while. The money needed for the army to come and go is not at 01:30. Just after fighting Japan, the treasury is not very full. Thinking about it, he wasn't so frantic that he would ignore it just to vent his anger.

Fan Zhi turned his head to look at the Minister of the Household Department and asked, "Is there any pressure?"

Shangshu Hubu... I was about to cry. I just finished fighting Japan. The money was spent, but the follow-up income has not kept up. It will take years and years to show the benefits of taxation and so on, so I have to fight again. The most important thing It was Yang Yegang who led the troops to fight Funan, and this is also a sum of money.

Li Congjia saw the ashes on the face of Shangshu Hubu, so he had no choice but to say: "Let the fleet pass by as a cargo ship."

Li Hongji was stunned for a moment: "This... I'm afraid it will damage the prestige of the army."

Li Congjia raised his eyes and glanced at him: "What kind of prestige do you want? It's useless to show a big picture after losing a battle. On the contrary, as long as you win a battle, others will be in awe when they see the navy ships. Prestige is not for people. It is used by the people in this country, but it needs to be used by the outside world.”

Li Hongji shrank silently and did not dare to speak. To be honest, he really never thought of using warships as cargo ships.

Zhao Kuangyin began to smooth things over from the side: "Your Majesty, please calm down. His Highness the King of Shu's concerns are also justified. You should be more careful in shipping, in case you meet someone with a heart..."

Zhao Kuangyin didn't finish, but it was enough to make people think.

Li Congjia said bluntly: "Do a good job of inspection, so that at least you can subsidize the military expenses for dispatching. Anyway, the fleet may not be able to fight in the past, it's just a show."

Li Congjia felt that this was probably the first time in his life that he himself didn't want to take the initiative to attack.

However, Sanfoqi's sudden attack also made him realize one thing, that is, only one fleet is not enough for such a large country.

The cabinet and others came here not to make soy sauce, but to discuss some of the next countermeasures. After all, just after the war against Japan, Funan and Sanfoqi were immediately involved again. They felt that Datang could basically start to enter the state of national combat readiness. This kind of combat readiness The state is in all aspects, the first is to allocate financial funds to various places.

Zhao Pu hesitated for a moment and asked, "Your Majesty, do you need to increase taxes?"

Although there is still money in the national treasury, it’s not like the end of this battle will make life difficult. All the money cannot be invested in it. In this case, the money allocated by the national treasury will definitely not be able to support this battle. We must start to increase income and reduce expenditure from now on to plan for a rainy day. .

Li Congjia said decisively: "No, you can't develop the habit of raising taxes when you don't have money, otherwise you will make people's livelihood difficult."

Once this precedent is set, it is uncertain what will happen in the future. If one encounters an unworthy descendant who only knows how to eat, drink and have fun, and then starts to exploit the people, wouldn't that be fatal?

Zhao Pu also knew that Li Congjia might not agree, so he hesitated when he asked just now.

After Li Congjia rejected Zhao Pu, he still began to think about how to get money.

Li Zhongyu couldn't help asking: "Father, why didn't you increase the business tax?"

Li Congjia once instilled with Li Zhongyu that agriculture is the foundation of the Tang Dynasty, and most of the people are farmers, so don’t increase taxes lightly. If the tax pressure is too high, and there is a natural or man-made disaster, then people will rebel!

Li Zhongyu remembered this, so now he bypassed the agricultural tax and started to think about the commercial tax.

Li Congjia felt that the knowledge he instilled in Li Zhongyu was a bit wrong, so he had to patiently say: "This has nothing to do with any type of tax. The fundamental reason is that the court needs to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, not endless spending. Otherwise, if there is a financial crisis, the tax will be increased. What is the situation? There are many examples of uprisings in history, and don’t underestimate businessmen, businessmen are more ruthless than ordinary people.”

Li Zhongyu was a little puzzled: "Why?"

Li Congjia continued to explain: "Ordinary people are actually very resilient. As long as they are not at the point where they cannot survive, no one will rebel. However, it is the nature of businessmen to seek profit. Even if you do not persecute them, some of them They may not be honest, they will choose ministers and princes who are beneficial to them to support them, once these people feel that their interests have been violated a little bit, they will find a way to get the place back."

This is also one of the reasons why Li Congjia has not changed his status as a businessman. At least when he was in power, he did not want the society to be like a poor society. A country always has a bottom line.

Of course, it doesn't mean that businessmen are not good, but the more people occupy the territory, the more various problems will arise. Li Congjia has to consider the country as a whole.

Li Zhongyu didn't understand half of what he heard, but he also firmly remembered not to increase taxes casually, it should be within the affordability of the people, and even if taxes are increased, he should be more cautious.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help feeling a little annoyed: "But... Three Buddhas... Do you want to hold back this breath?"

Ever since Li Zhongyu could remember, he didn't have a particularly deep memory of the failures of the Southern Tang Dynasty. On the contrary, Li Congjia triumphed all the way and became the emperor of the whole country. Overbearing temper, if you provoke me, I will beat you.

Now seeing that this time it seems that he can only demonstrate against the other party, Li Zhongyu feels very aggrieved.

Li Congjia rubbed his chin and said: "Analyze the specific situation. In short, let's see what news the National Teacher will get. There is no need to stop Yang Ye's fight against Funan. Well, it would be great if he can support war with war."

Supporting war with war is what the grassland tribes often do. Even if the Central Plains countries attack a certain place, they will not destroy it too much. After all, it will still be their own territory in the future.

Li Zhongyu frowned and went back to continue his homework. In fact, Li Congjia had another idea that he didn't tell anyone, that is, if he really couldn't resist, he should issue national debt.

It's just that he only understands a part of this thing, how to operate and how to maintain it all needs to be formulated by professionals. Li Congjia can only put forward a general opinion, and can't interfere too much. After all, if he is asked to interfere, he will... Can't interfere with anything.

Moreover, the issuance of government bonds may affect all aspects, so Li Congjia is very cautious.

At this time, he was a little depressed. It would be great if Shi Xueting was here. With him, at least we can discuss it to see if this idea is reliable.

Although Shi Xueting may not understand all these things, but if the authorities are obsessed, at least Shi Xueting can interpret this matter from other angles.

However, apart from Shi Xueting, it's not like he can't find someone he trusts, and Zhao Kuangyin is one.

In history, Zhao Kuangyin was able to become the emperor, and his ability was very good. In this life, because of his position, his vision may not be as good, but he is a person who can negotiate.

Moreover, Zhao Kuangyin's daughter is the future princess and is a natural alliance with Li Congjia. Whoever expects Li Congjia's bad things, he can't hope for them.

Li Hongji may not be as good as him on this point. After all, if Li Congjia has some problems and Li Zhongyu can't help him, then Li Hongji is a ready-made heir.

In this way, Zhao Kuangyin was arrested and brought to Li Congjia's study. He had been to this place, and he was no stranger to it. He sat down and asked, "Your Majesty, when do you plan to marry the prince?"

Li Congjia almost spit out a mouthful of water, is it appropriate for you, a woman's parent, to force a marriage like this?What about reserved?You are so shameless, does your daughter know?

At present, it is obvious that he does not know, but he also understands Zhao Kuangyin's anxiety. After all, as long as one day is not married, the young lady of the Zhao family is not an official princess, which also means that accidents are prone to happen.

Li Congjia calculated silently in his heart and said, "I'll let the household department prepare for it later. The prince's marriage is different from other marriages. It should be grand."

As for the money issue, although he is worried now, it is because the treasury is short of money, not his private house. Li Congjia still keeps a clear distinction between the state's money and his own money. The ministers suppressed the emperor, that is, the emperor had no restrictions and was extravagant.

Of course, there are also emperors who can restrain themselves, but this one is too rare.

Zhao Kuangyin was a little relieved after hearing this, and asked, "Your Majesty summoned the minister, since it wasn't for the prince's marriage, what happened?"

Li Congjia was a little hesitant, this guy seems unreliable, who ever heard of a minister asking the emperor to force a marriage?Even if you don't care about face, you still have to care about etiquette, right?I am the emperor, okay?

But since they all came, he still asked: "Is the military expenditure of the Privy Council still tight?"

Although the Privy Council has its own financial system and military expenditures, the entire Privy Council does not have a lot of money, and the money is mainly for updating and upgrading equipment for the army, so Li Congjia had no idea of ​​spending this part of the money before.

It's just that at present, if it really doesn't work, the Privy Council may really have to pay some money.

Zhao Kuangyin seemed to have thought of Li Congjia's question for a long time, and reported a series of figures with confidence, and finally said: "The money is not a lot, but it can relieve the pressure on the household department."

Of course, the main reason why he is so generous is that there is no need for the army to change equipment recently. After all, even the research and development of new weapons takes time these days.

Datang's weapons have reached the cutting edge of current science and technology, and have entered a bottleneck state accordingly, so the Privy Council has a lot of spare money.

Li Congjia asked: "Will the use of these funds cause financial strain on the Privy Council?"

Zhao Kuangyin smiled lightly: "I'm still worried that the money will stay in the Privy Council, and some people will not be able to resist reaching out."

After all, whether the money will be used for a while or not, maybe someone wants to use it first and make it up later. Anyway, no one can find out, but the final result may be that the money is used, but the money cannot be made up. How many people will be abolished at any time.

Li Congjia was a little dumbfounded. The Minister of the Household Department was going to be bald because of Qian Ji, and the Privy Council here actually has long hair for Qian Xian. What's the matter?

He silently calculated, and found that the part of the money that the Privy Council can take out seems to be a lot, but it is really insignificant when it is included in the budget for the expedition, and there is still a part of the gap.

He thought about it and said, "I have an idea, but it may be a little immature, so it's not easy to tell the cabinet."

Zhao Kuangyin was refreshed: "What do you think, Your Majesty?"

He knew that this was the point of Li Congjia calling him, and it was not convenient to tell the cabinet, but he told him that at least Li Congjia trusted him very much.

Of course, Zhao Kuangyin also knew that Li Congjia didn't necessarily distrust the cabinet, but that he didn't want to be educated by the old gentlemen in the cabinet. After all, everyone was not a brat anymore, but in front of those old gentlemen, they were still very young and would often be educated.

As an emperor, Li Congjia still has face to some extent, and it is too shameful to be taught often!

Li Congjia was a little hesitant. He thought for a while before saying, "What do you think of the current business tax?"

Zhao Kuangyin froze for a moment, did he just want to talk about this for a long time?He thought for a while and said: "It's okay, I haven't heard anyone complaining, but this tax rate is not too low. If your majesty wants to adjust the tax, you should be more careful."

Li Congjia has some regrets. He really wants to squeeze the import tariffs, but it is a balanced peace period with the Kara Khanate, and he really does not want to touch the Kara Khanate at this moment. As for the Khitan... the Khitan side Basically, except for raw materials such as cattle and sheep that will enter the customs, Datang sells more things there, no matter how hard they raise it.

After thinking about it for a while, he suddenly set his mind on the collection of the Japanese imperial family. After Shouhei brought Xianhei to Chang'an, he decisively handed in these things. For this point, he has to hand over most of it, otherwise he might not be able to keep this point.

Li Congjia directly turned over the map to Zhao Kuangyin and said, "Send someone to find this place on the Japanese island. There is a treasure of the Japanese royal family there. If the information is correct, at least it can support us to kill Funan, and then we are ready to start a war with San Buddha Qi." .”

Guo Yu has been transferred back, and it is really difficult for the people in Japan to take on such an important task.

As for why Guo Yu was transferred back... Li Congjia was really worried that this brat would do something again.

After Zhao Kuangyin got the picture, he couldn't help gossiping: "Your Majesty, didn't you say that the people over there are very poor? Even the royal family... may not have much money, right?"

Li Congjia chuckled: "Even the locals in Lingnan lived worse than the Japanese at the beginning, but their leaders had quite a lot of savings in their families. No matter how shabby a regime is, the people who are really shabby are the common people. There are still people at the top. If you have enough family background, this principle is applicable all over the world.”

Zhao Kuangyin thought about it, so he simply asked: "If we find it, will these things be shipped directly to Chang'an or..."

Li Congjia said directly: "You can go to the Minister of the Ministry of Households to discuss it, and see if you can ship it back and sell it directly in Dengzhou or what."

Zhao Kuangyin thought so too, and couldn't help but ask again: "Our Privy Council... can we keep some of it?"

Li Congjia was shocked: "Didn't you just say that you are not short of money?"

Zhao Kuangyin laughed and said, "I just don't think money should be kept there, it should be used. As for the others... who would think there is too much money?"

Li Congjia: ...

"Go and discuss it with the Minister of the Household Department." Li Congjia decided to ignore this matter, anyway, the money will not reach his hands in the end, so they can fight for it as they like.

After Zhao Kuangyin left, Li Congjia received a second letter from Shi Xueting. This letter was more like a family letter. It wrote many customs of Sanfoqi, as well as various delicacies. Shi Xueting He said that he is collecting recipes, and there are some spices that Datang does not have. When I see it, can I help Li Congjia cook something delicious when I go back.

Li Congjia couldn't laugh or cry when he saw it, what the hell are you doing here?I didn't know that I thought I was going on a trip!

Li Congjia put the letter away and sighed: "It's been ten days and three hours." When will I be back?

Li Zhongyu, who was doing his homework at the side, shook his hands, this page was considered useless, but now he always felt as if he knew something important.

Just when Li Congjia was missing Shi Xueting unabashedly, and Li Zhongyu was startled by his guess, Chunsheng came in and said, "Your Majesty, Rong Guo said that he has something to see."

Li Congjia was a little surprised: "What can he do?" After thinking about it, he said: "Let him come."

Shouping and his elder brother Xianping have stayed at home since they arrived in Chang'an. Even when they go out, they go to eat, drink and have fun. They have never troubled Li Congjia, which makes him have a good impression of these two people.

After Shouping was brought in, he saluted Li Congjia very awkwardly. After all, he was not very familiar with the etiquette of the Tang Dynasty, and he always had a taste of Japanese etiquette when he sat up.

Li Congjia didn't care about these things with him, but asked: "You said there is something important, what is it?"

Shouping nodded and bowed his head and said: "I heard that Sanfo Qi is not very friendly to Tang Dynasty recently. This... I really want to know the reason."

Li Congjia:? ? ?We don't know you say you know?What rhythm is this?