Daming: I can’t kill such a greedy prince-in-law?

Chapter 510: Discussing Cooperation with Queen Ma (Subscription Request!!)
"Master, why are you here?"

Seeing Ouyang Lun walking in with his hands behind his back, Guo Zi hurried forward to greet him and asked questions.

Ouyang Lun rolled his eyes at Guo Zi and said unhappily, "That old man Li Shanchang is playing the empty city plan, but I'm not Sima Yi, so of course I have to come and see!"

Originally, Ouyang Lun planned to let Guo Zi lead the people from the Tax Inspection Department to keep an eye on Li Shanchang and the Ministry of Revenue. If Li Shanchang followed the plan honestly, the problems of the Ministry of Revenue could be solved this year, and he would be too lazy to take over the Ministry of Revenue. But he still underestimated Li Shanchang.

After all, Li Shanchang was a strategist who helped Zhu Yuanzhang establish the Ming Dynasty. Although he was not a top strategist and was old, his IQ was still online. He retreated to advance and used the empty city plan to attack Ouyang Lun.

Now, more than 90% of the officials in the Ministry of Revenue, including Li Shanchang, have taken leave.

It was obvious that he was telling Ouyang Lun that he, Li Shanchang, did not want to be Ouyang Lun's puppet and give his soul to Ouyang Lun's control!

Moreover, the timing chosen by Li Shanchang was rather insidious. It was the end of the year, which was the busiest time of the year for the Ministry of Revenue. If problems with the Ministry of Revenue broke out, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang would definitely hold Ouyang Lun accountable!

The current situation is no longer something Guo Zi can handle, and Ouyang Lun must step up.

"My Lord, Li Shanchang is so cruel to trick you!"

"Doesn't he know that he is the Minister of Revenue? If the Ministry of Revenue gets into trouble, he will be the one who bears the greatest responsibility!"

Guo Zi said with an angry tone.

Ouyang Lun smiled, "Li Shanchang is naturally very clear about this, but rather than being controlled by me as a puppet, he is now choosing a method of mutual destruction. Your Majesty is very clear about who is truly in control of the Ministry of Revenue. Since the Tax Inspection Department entered the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Revenue is no longer under the control of Li Shanchang."

"If something really goes wrong, Li Shanchang will have ten thousand reasons to put the blame on us. We have to say that in this matter, Li Shanchang took the lead!"

Guo Zi continued, "Sir, since Li Shanchang, as the Minister of Revenue, doesn't care about the Ministry of Revenue, then we shouldn't care about it either. Let's file a memorial to accuse Li Shanchang right away! Let His Majesty come and judge!"

Ouyang Lun shook his head again, "If we really do this, it will be just like what old man Li Shanchang wants, and we will only be more passive at that time."

"Why is that?" Guo Zi asked in confusion, "Isn't His Majesty the one who favors you, the Prince Consort, the most? The subordinates all heard about the last meeting in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. His Majesty almost wrote on his face that he is your backer. Li Shanchang and the officials of the Huaixi Party were scolded by His Majesty. What if hundreds of officials jointly reported the incident? What if someone beats the drum to report it?!"

"My Lord, you are still fine!"

Hearing what Guo Zi said, Ouyang Lun frowned instead, "Old Guo, please don't say such things again in the future. The reason why I, Ouyang Lun, am safe is that I am upright and dedicated to the Ming Dynasty, not because of your majesty's partiality! Your majesty is fair and strict!"

Hearing this, Guo Zi reacted immediately and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty is right, I made a mistake! Your Majesty is fair and strict, and Your Majesty is dedicated to the public!"

After saying this, Guo Zi couldn't help but twitch his lips. This was probably the most insincere thing he had ever said in his life.

"That's more like it!" Ouyang Lun nodded slowly.

"My Lord, what should we do now?" Guo Zi asked hurriedly, "Now the Ministry of Revenue has lost nine out of ten people. It can't even maintain normal operations. Many matters have piled up, and more importantly, tax revenue. Today's tax revenue has already been affected. If it can't be collected, the impact will not only be this year, but also the impact on the future!"

"This Li Shanchang is really vicious. In order to deal with you, his husband, he even disregarded the country and the people of Ming Dynasty."

Seeing Guo Zi's anxious look, Ouyang Lun said calmly: "Why are you in such a hurry?"

"The Ministry of Revenue is our territory. How can we lose on our own home turf? Do you think you are the same as those idiots like Li Shanchang?"

Hearing Ouyang Lun's words, Guo Zi immediately slapped his thigh and said suddenly, "Yes, how could I forget that we are originally from the Ministry of Households. We know everything about the Ministry of Households!"

After saying that, Guo Zi looked at Ouyang Lun a little embarrassedly and smiled awkwardly, "I'm sorry, Prince Consort, being a supervisor is so comfortable that I almost forgot my original job."

"Do you know what to do now?" Ouyang Lun asked directly.

"Since you, my Lord, have said so, what else can we do? Since Li Shanchang and his men have resigned, we can just fill in. You brought all the brothers out of the Ministry of Revenue and arranged for them to enter the Tax Inspection Department. With just one order from you, we can directly take over the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue!"

"I guarantee it will be much better than what Li Shanchang did!"

"It is indeed necessary to transfer people from the Tax Inspection Department back to the Ministry of Revenue, but we cannot transfer all of them back at once. The Tax Inspection Department's mission is more important than the Ministry of Revenue. We will transfer a small number of key personnel, and the majority will remain in the Tax Inspection Department."

"But if we only select a small number of people, the Ministry of Households still won't be able to handle the situation!" Guo Zi said, looking at Ouyang Lun eagerly.

"You can ask Mao Youde about the manpower issue. He is now in charge of all state-owned and private enterprises. It should not be a problem for him to select some capable talents from these enterprises. However, these are all transfers and they will have to be returned after the problem with the Ministry of Households is resolved." Ouyang Lun said after thinking for a while.

"Your Highness is wise! I've heard that Mao Youde has many talented people under his command. It's absolutely reliable to get people from him!" Guo Zi immediately became excited.

But soon, Guo Zi became sad again.

"I say, Lao Guo, are you a melancholic personality? You haven't been happy for two minutes and you're gloomy again? People should be sunny and smile more. Haven't you heard that if you smile more, good luck will come naturally?" Ouyang Lun said unhappily.

"Your Majesty, although the problem of staff in the Ministry of Revenue has been solved, the most critical issue of taxation has not been solved! This is what His Majesty is most concerned about. If the taxes cannot be collected by then, His Majesty will definitely punish you." Guo Zi frowned.

"I have some ideas about this matter. You should take the people to run the Ministry of Revenue normally first. No other accidents can happen!"

Ouyang Lun said calmly.

"Your Majesty, have you figured it out?" Guo Zi's eyes lit up immediately, and he patted his chest and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry. Your subordinates will definitely take good care of the Ministry of Revenue. I have to let Li Shanchang and his people know how to manage the Ministry of Revenue well!"

Seeing Guo Zi's confident look, Ouyang Lun nodded and said, "I'm glad you have this confidence. I'll leave it to you. I have other things to do."

After saying that, Ouyang Lun planned to leave.

"Your Majesty, may I ask where you are going next?" Guo Zi asked hurriedly.

Ouyang Lun turned around and looked at Guo Zi with a smile, "Old Guo! You just want to ask me how I'm going to solve the tax problem? You must be feeling very uncomfortable!"

"Hehe, it still has to be the Prince Consort. The main thing is that if the taxation issue is not resolved, nothing we do will be of any use." Guo Zi said embarrassedly.

"I can't tell you the details right now, but I'm going to Kunning Palace next. If I can get the support of the person in Kunning Palace, this matter will be much easier!"

After saying that, Ouyang Lun did not stay and left.

Guo Zi was left standing there alone, pondering the words left by Ouyang Lun, "Kunning Palace" "Hiss!"

Guo Zi seemed to have thought of something and took a breath.

"The Prince Consort is going to look for Queen Ma!"

"That's right. Empress Ma is both virtuous and talented. She is easier to talk to and more understanding than Your Majesty. If the Prince Consort can get Empress Ma's support, this matter will probably be halfway accomplished!"

"The Prince Consort and the Empress have joined forces. Even His Majesty would probably just be obedient!"

Thinking of this, Guo Zi looked much more relaxed, with a slight smile on his face.

"Sir, what should we do now?" At this time, the subordinate came over and asked.

"What? Didn't you hear what the Prince Consort said just now? Go and call the brothers to come and do the work! From now on, the Ministry of Revenue will be ours. If you can't solve the problem, you can all go and plant sweet potatoes!" Guo Zi shouted angrily, "Go and call people. I'll go to the State-owned Assets Management Department!"

Kunning Palace.

Queen Ma was leading the concubines in the harem to do aerobics.

At this time, an eunuch came over and said, "Empress, Prince Consort Ouyang wants to see you!"

"Oh!" Empress Ma's eyes lit up and she said with a smile, "My son-in-law won't come to me easily. I'm afraid he must have something to do today. Go and call him in!"

"Yes!" The eunuch quickly turned around and went outside the hall to invite Ouyang Lun.

When Ouyang Lun came in, he happened to see Empress Ma and the concubines in the harem doing aerobics.

"My Lord, please wait for a moment and have some tea. The Queen has ordered that she and the concubines from the other palaces will come to see you after they finish this dance!"

The eunuch led Ouyang Lun to a seat at the side, where cakes and fruits had already been placed.

"Yeah, I'm not in a hurry. I'll just sit here and you can go do your thing."

Ouyang Lun was not reserved either. After sitting on the chair, he picked up an apple and started eating.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I'm right beside you. If you have any instructions, just call me." After the eunuch said this, he slowly retreated.

Not long after, Empress Ma and the concubines finished their aerobics.

Empress Ma went straight to Ouyang Lun.

Seeing Empress Ma approaching, Ouyang Lun quickly put aside the apple he had not yet finished eating, then stood up and saluted, "Your Highness Ouyang Lun greets the Empress!"

"Ouyang! There's no need for all these false formalities between us. I like you to call me the Queen Mother-in-law, or just call me mother-in-law." Queen Ma waved her hand, signaling Ouyang Lun to skip the formalities.

"Okay, Queen Mother-in-law." Ouyang Lun also didn't like those red tapes, so he nodded.

"Well, this is not bad." Queen Ma sat on the first seat and asked with a smile: "Ouyang, the aerobics you asked Anqing to send over is really good, more comfortable than square dancing. Since I started doing this aerobics, I found that my body has become much better, and even my sleep has improved a lot!"

"You just saw the aerobics we performed. As the creator, what do you think?"

Ouyang Lun quickly shook his head and said, "To answer the Queen Mother-in-law's question, this aerobics exercise was not created by me, but I learned it from various sources and thought it would help with health, so I specially asked Princess Anqing to present it to the Queen Mother-in-law!"

"As for what the Queen's mother-in-law just did, it was definitely the best aerobics I've ever seen! It's no exaggeration to say that it was the best!"

Hearing Ouyang Lun's words, Queen Ma smiled brightly, "People outside have said that your mouth is poisonous, but today your mouth is like honey!"

"I dare not use poison when talking to the Queen Mother-in-law, or your Majesty will cut me into pieces." Ouyang Lun said with a smile.

"Are you afraid of Chongba?" Queen Ma looked at Ouyang Lun with suspicion.

"Hehe." Ouyang Lun scratched the back of his head and did not continue talking about this topic.

"We have been busy chatting. I would like to ask, Ouyang, is there anything that brings you here today?" Seeing that Ouyang Lun was unwilling to continue talking about this topic, Queen Ma immediately changed the subject.

"I don't see you here often!"

"Uh." Ouyang Lun said awkwardly, "In reply to the Queen Mother-in-law, I usually ask Princess Anqing to greet you on my behalf. In addition, I have an official position and a lot of court affairs to attend to! So I can't come to see the Queen Mother-in-law often."

"Don't be nervous, I'm just talking. If you really come to me every day, Chongba will probably be the first to have an opinion. You give me a lot of filial piety on weekdays. Anqing, the girl, often personally brings me delicious and fun things. I remember your kindness!" Queen Ma said with a smile.

Hearing this, Ouyang Lun finally breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you, Queen Mother-in-law, for your understanding."

"Well, that's enough. Now that we have reminisced about the past, just tell me what you want to talk about this time!" Queen Ma looked at Ouyang Lun with a pair of wise eyes.

Seeing that Empress Ma had asked directly, Ouyang Lun did not beat around the bush and said, "Empress mother-in-law, it is almost the end of the year, and taxes are being collected intensively in various places. However, due to the problems that occurred in the Ministry of Revenue before, today's tax collection work has become a little difficult."

"So, you need my help?" asked Queen Ma.

"That's true." Ouyang Lun nodded.

"Ouyang, I remember that you have always handled tax matters very well before. Has the problem become so serious this time?" Queen Ma asked with a frown.

"If I say it's not serious, I guess you, the Queen, won't believe it. The tax collection work went smoothly before. In addition to the many incentives we used, the more important thing is that the Ming Dynasty is developing rapidly. Both businessmen and ordinary people are making money, so everyone is naturally active in paying taxes. However, today's situation is a little worse than in previous years. Coupled with the exaggeration and instigation of some private tabloids, many people and businessmen have opinions about the court, so they are naturally unwilling to pay taxes!"

"We must not carry out forced collection, as this will damage the court's image in the eyes of the people."

"Then what can you do?"

(End of this chapter)