Mixed with salted fish in Hongwudang

Chapter 354 Little friend is too naughty, even playing tricks on the old man?

Doing business at sea is very troublesome. It takes several months for each transaction to receive goods in advance, store them, transship them, etc.

Therefore, they will hold several meetings every year to determine the share, then determine the trading location, and transfer the goods to the trading terminal in advance.

After Lu Shiyuan finished speaking, everyone immediately put aside the matter of the emperor's grandson and began to seriously discuss the details of the transaction.

Every year, with the cooperation of Songjiang prefect Deng Chushan, their maritime business goes very smoothly.

However, now that the emperor's grandson has sent his cronies to replace Deng Chushan's position, it will be a bit dangerous for them to trade in Songjiang Mansion.

Moreover, the emperor's grandson still has Ming's only navy in his hands. Once the port is blocked, they will lose everything.

"If it is set in Taizhou, it is too far away from me, and it will take me a month to transship the goods."

"Quanzhou isn't close either, it's quite far from us, and it's the land of the Fujian Gang, so they have to get a share of the pie!"

"If the court can set the tax rate and just charge a fixed tax, it's not unacceptable..."

At this time, they suddenly remembered the benefits of laundering and going ashore. If they paid some taxes to the court, they could freely trade with foreign merchants.

For a while, the restaurant fell into silence again.

Everyone's face was full of sorrow and helplessness, and finally turned into a heavy sigh.

The re-examination three days later came as scheduled, and there were very few people inside and outside the examination room.

After nearly [-] candidates were put in, there were even fewer people left on the square in front of the Shibo Department.

Zhu Yunxi had secretly ordered people to keep an eye on the person named "Lu Shiyuan" long ago, and also told the guards not to search the candidate's body, intending to give the "female son-in-law" an advantage.

However, to his disappointment, he looked around the examination room, but he didn't find the big white goose he saw last time, let alone Lu Shiyuan, whom he hand-picked the number one.

This made Zhu Yunxi very disappointed, feeling that all his arrangements had been wasted.

Since he didn't see the person he wanted to see, Zhu Yunxi didn't expect much from the candidates present.

Let them play freely, anyway, as long as the Shibo Department is established, it always needs to employ people.

It's always good to have these literate people working.

Erhu saw Zhu Yunxi's depression, and quietly approached Zhu Yunxi and said.

"Your Highness, the person you are looking for is outside the gate of the Shibo Division. He actually came today, but for some reason, he did not enter the examination room!"

"And the little lady next to him is also..."

"Do you want to catch them in the humble position?"

Zhu Yunxi was shocked when he heard this.

"Are they coming?"

"Uncle Tiger, please arrange a chance meeting for me!"

"Meet by chance?"

Erhu couldn't help frowning when he heard this, he hated to arrange this kind of drama the most.

Because this means that the identity of the emperor's grandson cannot be exposed, and the safety of the emperor's grandson must be guaranteed.

This will put great pressure on their Jinyiwei's security!
Erhu hesitated again and again, seeing the look of anticipation on the face of the emperor grandson, he could only grit his teeth and say.

"Impressive order!"

Outside the gate of the Shibo Department, Lu Shiyuan looked at the high-rise buildings in the Shibo Department with a sad face, his eyes were full of regret.

"Daddy, are you really giving up like this?"

"if not?"

Lu Shiyuan smiled bitterly.

"I really shouldn't have participated last time. Participating again this time is to play tricks on the emperor's grandson sincerely, and to live up to the kindness of the emperor's grandson to me!"

"Because no matter what the final results are, it is impossible for a father to serve the court and the grandson of the emperor!"

Although Lu Shi was unable to take the second exam because of his status.But he is still very grateful to the emperor's grandson for naming him first.

If it is placed in the imperial examination, the emperor's grandson can be his teacher, and he has to perform the discipleship ceremony.

"Since father has decided not to participate, why are we still here?"

"have a look……"

Lu Shiyuan now feels like a chess player in his heart. Even though he knows he can't take the exam, he still wants to know what the exam questions are at the first time, and then he goes home and secretly writes an article to refresh himself.

But there is no need to tell my daughter about this small thought, lest she be laughed at by her.

Just when Lu Shiyuan was growing up in his heart, wishing to fly into the examination room to have a look at the examination questions, a handsome young man in a scholarly shirt suddenly walked out from the direction of the examination room of the Secretary of Shibo.

Seeing this, Lu Shiyuan hurried up to meet him, and bowed to the little scholar.

Because according to the rules established by Lao Zhu, the shirt is the exclusive clothing of scholars, and ordinary people cannot wear it casually.

Although Lu Shiyuan was as rich as an enemy, he didn't have the slightest fame, and he had to salute when he saw a scholar.

"May I ask if this scholar just came out of the examination room?"

"Yes!"

"I don't know what the question is for this exam?"

"Uncle, I see that you are also a good-looking talent, why don't you go to the examination room yourself?"

"me……"

Lu Shiyuan stroked his beard and laughed.

"The old man was unlucky and missed the last exam, so he is not eligible to take the exam."

Zhu Yunxi smiled slightly when he heard the words, and did not expose Lu Shiyuan's lie, but made a gesture of invitation.

"Since sir pays attention to the exam questions, why not find a secluded place, I will tell you the exam questions, and sir will answer the questions within a time limit, and then we will each come up with our own articles for comparison, and see whose article is better?"

Zhu Yunxie's words can be said to have touched the heart of Lu Shiyuan, an "examination fan", so he naturally agreed wholeheartedly.

"good!"

"That's a great word!"

"The old man will compare with the little friend to see whose article is better!"

After the two looked at each other and smiled, they immediately chose a teahouse next to Shibosi.

Originally, Lu Shiyuan wanted to round up the entire teahouse, but he could see that the people sitting in the lobby on the first floor were all Lianjiazi, so he didn't dare to say this.

When the two came to the second floor, only one tea room was empty, which made Lu Shiyuan even more unhappy.

"Little friend, this place is too noisy, let's change to another place."

"Sir, whether it is noisy or not does not depend on the environment, but on the state of mind. As the saying goes, it is not the wind, nor the banner, but the heart of the benevolent."

When Lu Shiyuan saw Zhu Yunxi casually recounting the story of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, he no longer insisted on changing places.

"Little friend is right, but the old man is showing cowardice!"

"In that case, please take your seat, little friend!"

"Please!"

Zhu Yunxi was not polite to Lu Shiyuan either, and sat down facing the door.

Lu Shiyuan saw that Zhu Yunxi was sitting in the chief seat, and he himself sat on the lower left hand of Zhu Yunxi, and then ordered his daughter to wait on him.

"Hong Fu, go make tea!"

"Use the little dragon balls we brought ourselves, and use the spring water we brought from Baotu Spring!"

"Yes!"

After Lu Shiyuan gave his daughter instructions, he said to Zhu Yunxi who was beside him.

"This place is remote, and there is no good tea, so let's use the things I carry with me!"

Hearing this, Zhu Yunxi was sweating in his heart, and thought who this person was, who was bigger than himself and the emperor's grandfather.

I am a dignified grandson of the Ming emperor, and I didn't say that I sent someone to Baotu Spring in Shandong to fetch water and make tea!

As for his hard-working grandpa, even Xiaolong Tuan was reluctant to drink it, and only drank the brewed bud tea.

"Little Dragon Tuan is a tribute, sir, you have a good family background!"

Lu Shiyuan waved his hands indifferently.

"Some mundane things are worthless!"

"I'm preparing tea, and Mr. Xiucai is asking you to prepare incense sticks for timekeeping."

When Zhu Yunxi heard this, he immediately took out a pocket watch the size of a palm from his sleeve, and pretended to be aggressive.

This thing is newly developed by their manufacturing bureau. Although the daily error is about half a quarter of an hour, it is already the smallest pocket watch that the manufacturing bureau can manufacture.

"I don't need incense sticks or the like. Here is something that can be used as a timekeeper."

Lu Shiyuan can be regarded as a well-informed person, and there are no goods from Nanyang that he has never seen.

However, what the young boy in front of him casually took out was beyond his cognition.

"What is this?"

"This object is called a pocket watch, and it is a portable timekeeping tool. The longest pointer makes one revolution for one minute, and fifteen revolutions for a quarter of an hour. The middle pointer makes one revolution for half an hour, and the shortest one It takes half a day to turn around the root."

Lu Shiyuan stared at the pocket watch that Zhu Yunxi took out for a while, and said in amazement.

"This thing is amazing, where can I buy it?"

Zhu Yunxi laughed when he heard the words.

"It's still in the research and development stage. Daming only has this piece. If you want to buy it with silver, it will take a few months at the earliest."

"Oh!"

After hearing what Zhu Yunxi said, Lu Shiyuan also re-evaluated Zhu Yunxi's identity.

He originally thought that the young boy in front of him was just an ordinary scholar, but seeing that he could produce such exquisite and peerless objects, his status should be extraordinary.

"Dare to ask the scholar's name?"

"My surname is...Huang, and my name is Shiren. You can call me Huang Shiren..."

"Huang Shiren..."

Lu Shiyuan searched in his mind, but he couldn't find any rich family surnamed Huang in Songjiang Mansion.In the end, he had no choice but to stand up and give his name.

"In Xialu Wangchuan, if you don't give up, you can just call me Brother Lu."

"The little brother offended?"

"Little brother has met Brother Lu!"

"I've also met Huang Xiaoyou!"

After meeting again, the two sat down again. At this time, Lu Hongfu, who had just left, also brought up the tea making things with two servants, and cooked the tea himself beside the two of them.

Lu Shiyuan was used to this, but Zhu Yunxi saw it very novel and interesting, especially the small stove brought by the other party, which was more delicate than what he saw in the palace.

However, what shocked him the most was that what the other party burned turned out to be pine cones of average size.

When the stove was burning, a faint scent of pine came out from the fire, making the whole room much more elegant.

"Brother Lu is really an expert in tea tasting. This tea set is really unique and interesting."

Lu Shiyuan smiled heartily when he heard the words.

"My little friend, if you like it, I will order someone to give you a set another day."

Zhu Yunxi thought to himself, if you also give me the person who makes the tea, it's okay, I don't even care about a small stove.

It's just that I just think about it, and if I really say it, I will guarantee that the uncle will turn his face on the spot.

"Then I will thank Brother Lu for his generosity!"

Lu Shiyuan saw that his daughter had already made tea and the tools for timing were ready, so he immediately made a "please" gesture to Zhu Yunxi.

"Please come up with a question, my friend!"

Zhu Yunxi also looked away, with a serious look on his face.

"ask!"

"Which is greater, the benefit of the ocean or the benefit of the plain?"

Lu Shiyuan was stunned when he heard this question, and stared at Zhu Yunxue in a daze.

"End?"

"It's over!"

"This time, the City Shipping Department has asked such a question, please answer, Brother Lu!"

Lu Shiyuan held the pen and concentrated for a moment, then began to write on the paper.

This topic is really tailor-made for him.

He has been thinking about this question for decades, if he is an official of Daming, how to assist Daming to make good use of the benefits of the ocean and achieve the goal of enriching the country and strengthening the army.

However, he never expected that the second question asked by the emperor's grandson was exactly the question he had been thinking about for decades.

At this moment, he regretted not being able to take the exam.

If he went to the examination room, he would definitely be appreciated by the emperor's grandson with his ability.

Even if he is not used by the emperor's grandson in the end, he can still see the demeanor of a bosom friend.

Which is greater, the benefit of the ocean or the benefit of the plain?
If Daming is located in the sea, the plains will naturally benefit the most.If the Ming Dynasty is determined to forge ahead and sail overseas, the benefits of the plains will not be worth mentioning...

The ocean not only has the benefits of fish and salt, but also the benefits of commerce, spices, etc...

The more Lu Shiyuan wrote, the more excited he became, and he couldn't help reading it out as he wrote it.

"Therefore, I secretly believe that within a hundred years, the benefits of the ocean will not be apparent. However, after a hundred years, it must be a situation where thousands of sails are competing for deer on the sea."

"If Daming doesn't take advantage of this opportunity to seize the opportunity, future generations will be imprisoned in the sea, and there will never be peace..."

Lu Shiyuan finished writing the last stroke, dried the ink on the paper, and handed it to Zhu Yunxie respectfully.

"Also invite Huang Xiaoyou to comment!"

Zhu Yunxi took a look, and the more he looked at it, the happier he was, as if he had found a bosom friend.

"Mr. Lu, if you take the exam, you must be the champion this time!"

Lu Shiyuan had a smug smile on his face when he heard Zhu Yunxie's praise.

He also thought so in his heart, if he made a move, no one in Shibo Division would be an opponent.

"Little friend, do you think this article is acceptable?"

"It's not just acceptable, it's simply very good. It's just that the master's thinking is somewhat contrary to this one."

"I don't think the benefits of the sea are comparable to those of the plains."

"Oh?"

When Lu Shiyuan heard this, his eyebrows immediately frowned.

"What do you mean by this little friend?"

Zhu Yunxi laughed when he heard the words.

"My elders also have people who are officials in the court. We know that our Ming Dynasty once set up a city ship company in Quanzhou, Taizhou and other places, but the effect was very little. It was only a tax of 10,000+ taels of silver every year."

"On the other hand, Daming's grain tax, silk tax, etc. are more than tens of millions every year?"

"Brother Lu said in the article that the benefits of sea trade are in the tens of millions. Why didn't I, Ming, see it?"

Seeing Zhu Yunxi's ignorance, Lu Shiyuan felt a little angry immediately.

"Huang Xiaoyou doesn't know that the reason why the imperial court can't receive the customs duties of sea trade is not because sea trade is unprofitable, but because the court's actions are improper and merchants are unwilling to pay taxes."

"His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty has made great achievements in expelling the barbarians from the north and restoring China. However, he is not proficient in the way of merchants."

"He only knows how to follow the previous regime and blindly suppress and even humiliate merchants. Merchants are naturally unwilling to pay taxes."

"If merchants can be given a certain status and give up the closed-door strategy, the imperial court will naturally receive the benefits of sea trade!"

Zhu Yunxi smiled again when he heard the words.

"Brother Lu is thinking too simply?"

"The emperor's grandson reopened the Shipping Department, but still no merchants came to register."

"The emperor's grandson directly abolished the restrictions on the business and industry of scholars and civilians, and used talents in an unconventional manner, and no people of insight came to help."

"Brother Lu, how do you think the grandson of the emperor needs to be courteous to the corporals so that merchants can take the initiative to pay taxes?"

Having said this, Zhu Yunxi sighed helplessly.

"Businessmen pursue profit, and it has never changed."

"How difficult it is to get businessmen to pay taxes on their own initiative..."

Zhu Yunxi's words can be said to be talking about Lu Shiyuan's sore feet. In fact, he privately thought that the sincerity of the emperor's grandson was enough, but the maritime business groups have been used to the days of not paying taxes, so they rashly let them accept the court. How can they be happy with the control of the country?
Even he, who was willing to sell himself to the imperial court and pay taxes to the imperial court, was unwilling to take this risk before the old emperor passed away.

Otherwise, why would he give up the exam after taking the first place?

It was really the old emperor who was too decisive and thunderous, which scared them all.

Once they rashly took refuge in the imperial court and took the initiative to report to the Shibo Department, no one could say for sure how the old emperor would deal with them in the end.

It would be fine if they were only asked to pay some taxes, but if they were asked to make up the taxes owed over the years, then these maritime merchants would not be able to pay even if they went bankrupt!

Even if the emperor's grandson succeeds to the throne in the future, he plans to wait and see for a few years.Only when the emperor's grandson completely abandons the old emperor's tyranny will he take the initiative to serve the court.

"Xiaoyou Huang is right!"

"However, this matter has been going on for a long time, and it cannot be entirely blamed on the merchants for profit."

"There are also some insightful people among merchants who are willing to pay taxes to the imperial court in exchange for the imperial court's protection."

"Then..."

"Forget it, let's not mention it in advance, my little friend, let's talk about how you wrote it in your article!"

Seeing that Lu Shiyuan was still thinking about the comparison, Zhu Yunxi could only write nonsense.

The model essays are ready-made. Whatever Lu Shiyuan wrote in his article, he can just repeat it in reverse.

After hearing this, Lu Shiyuan frowned, and then smiled wryly at Zhu Yunxi.

"Little friend is too naughty, to play tricks on the old man?"

Zhu Yunxie smiled when he heard the words, bowed to Lu Shiyuan and said.

"To be honest, the junior did not take the exam."

"Oh?"

"What do you mean by this little friend?"

Zhu Yunxi smiled mysteriously.

"Because the younger generation is the one who set the question."

"How can the person who asks the question answer it himself?"

When Lu Shiyuan heard what Zhu Yunxi said, his face immediately showed horror.Lu Hongfu, who was making tea by the side, also became nervous when he heard this, and his little hands even reached into his sleeves.

There is a knife hidden there, which she usually uses for self-defense.

"You...you are the grandson of the emperor?"

"Exactly!"

(End of this chapter)