Can I get to the other side?.

Chapter 414: Taxation Bureau! Zhang Liao and Lu Bu!

Jizhou, Yecheng.

The news that Lu Lingqi had given birth to a princess had spread throughout the court and the country, and many people breathed a sigh of relief.

You must know that Lu Bu was originally Duke Wen, a man with a unique title. His reputation in the army was at its peak, and he was also deeply trusted by the emperor. His honor had reached an unprecedented level.

Even the position of general was within his reach.

If the daughter gives birth to another prince, there is a great possibility that this child will be made the crown prince, and the Lu family will have another queen with the surname Lu.

Although Lu Lingqi was not Lu Zhi, the two words "Empress Lu" alone were enough to make all officials feel afraid.

So after learning the news that Lu Lingqi had given birth to a princess, all the officials in the court celebrated privately, and even the restaurants in Yecheng were full that night.

The reactions of all officials were reported to Liu Xie in detail by the embroidered uniform envoy, but Liu Xie did not take it seriously. What he really cared about was Lu Bu.

"How has Lord Wen reacted these days?"

Liu Xie asked casually while strolling in the Imperial Garden, gently touching a newly blooming peony with his hand.

Early spring has arrived and the climate is gradually warming up.

The flowers in the imperial garden are also in bloom.

Jia Xu pondered for a moment, then replied: "After the eldest princess was born, Lord Wen was very happy and has held banquets in his mansion for several days in a row."

"Just the other day Lord Wen invited me to a banquet."

Hearing what Jia Xu said, Liu Xie nodded slightly, and the last trace of worry in his heart dissipated.

Then he asked, "At the morning court today, all the officials again pleaded for Zhen. Wenhe, do you think I should take this opportunity to pardon Zhen?"

A few days ago, several elders of the Zhen family committed suicide in prison and left blood letters confessing their guilt. This incident caused quite a stir.

Although he wanted to take this step to pardon Zhen, he felt that it was too hasty to let her go, so he was hesitant.

Jia Xu replied: "Whether to pardon or kill Zhen is entirely up to your majesty... But I think that since Concubine Zhen is pregnant with the heir, it would not be auspicious to see too much blood."

"Besides, if the Zhen family is willing to hand over the financial power, it would be fine for Your Majesty to pardon their entire family on the grounds that the eldest princess was born. You only need to kill those who participated in the murder of the imperial envoy as a warning to others, and punish the rest for corruption."

"Of course, this is just my humble opinion. Your Majesty will decide how to deal with Zhen."

After hearing this, Liu Xie thought for a while and felt that Jia Xu's suggestion was indeed good.

Because usually when a prince or princess is born or on the emperor's birthday, there will be a general amnesty, so using this as an opportunity to pardon Zhen is a legitimate reason.

But in the final analysis, it was because he did not really have the heart to destroy the Zhen family, and the crimes committed by the Zhen family were not serious enough to require the extermination of the entire family.

"I do not intend to have the Zhen family withdraw from all industries. They are better at doing business. It would not be a good thing if the imperial court took over completely."

"So I plan to continue to employ the Zhen family's people to run the business, but I will set up another agency to supervise them... Let's call it the State Taxation Bureau."

"From now on, all commercial affairs, including salt, iron, trade, etc., will be managed by the General Administration of Taxation. What do you think, Wenhe?"

Liu Xie put forward another idea of ​​his during this period.

The Zhen family's assets were too vast. If they were all nationalized, the imperial court might not be able to manage them better than the Zhen family.

Therefore, the best option is to continue to employ Zhen's people to manage these industries. They can get a certain share of the profits, but the bulk of the profits will be taken by the court.

The establishment of a supervisory body is intended to prevent the Zhen family from holding financial power again.

"Tax Administration?"

Jia Xu was shocked when he heard this.

He had a very sensitive political sense. Just from the functions of the State Administration of Taxation described by Liu Xie, he realized that this was probably an existence that was no less important than the Metallurgical Bureau.

The future status and role of this State Administration of Taxation will probably be very important.

But putting this point aside, Jia Xu fully agreed with Liu Xie's suggestion to continue employing Zhen's people to manage various industries.

The Zhen family's business ability is obvious to all. They have developed the industry to such a large scale, so they must have their own unique features.

If the imperial court seized all the properties in one go, it would undoubtedly be killing the goose that lays the golden eggs and draining the pond to catch the fish; but if it continued to employ Zhen's people to run the business and gave them a certain share of the profits, it could avoid a lot of trouble.

"Your Majesty's idea is excellent. If you can do this, it will definitely greatly increase the court's financial revenue."

Jia Xu spoke up in support without hesitation.

Liu Xie nodded and said, "Then I will discuss this matter with Kong Ming and others later. If they have no objection, the State Administration of Taxation can be established."

He had already decided who would be in charge of coordinating the State Administration of Taxation, and that was Fa Zheng.

Fa Zheng is also a talent who is good at internal affairs. This time he almost lost his life while checking the accounts, so his contribution is certainly beyond doubt.

And the key point is that there are conflicts between him and the Zhen family. If he is in charge of the State Administration of Taxation, there will be no favoritism.

In addition, letting Zhen continue to manage the industry is only a temporary expedient. In the future, he will use the bidding method to find someone to take over, which is the safest way.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Jia Xu responded respectfully, and then asked carefully: "Then, does Zhen want to..."

"No rush, just lock them up for a while."

Liu Xie waved his hand and said that although he intended to pardon Zhen, they would have to suffer a little and stay in prison for a longer period of time.

Otherwise his forgiveness would seem too cheap.

While Liu Xie and Jia Xu were chatting, Gao Lan walked into the imperial garden and reported to him: "Your Majesty, General Zhang Liao is outside the palace asking for an audience."

"Is Wenyuan back?"

Liu Xie's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he asked Gao Lan, "Did General Zhang come to see you alone? Did he bring anyone else with him?"

Gao Lan said: "He also brought an old man who claimed to be Zhang Zhongjing."

"Hurry up and bring it to the Xuanshi room!"

Liu Xie was overjoyed and immediately ordered that Zhang Liao did not disappoint his expectations and successfully brought Zhang Zhongjing back!

After Gao Lan left, Liu Xie hurried to Xuanshi.

Not long after, Zhang Liao came over under the leadership of Gao Lan, and with him came an old man in a linen robe.

"Your Majesty, I, Zhang Liao, pay my respects to you!"

Zhang Liao bowed his head to Liu Xie and continued, "Chang'an is a long way from Yecheng, and Mr. Zhang is old, so I slowed down my pace. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."

Zhang Zhongjing was old, and he didn't dare to travel too fast, so it took him a long time to come back, otherwise he would have arrived in Yecheng long ago.

"No problem, General Zhang, please stand up."

Liu Xie raised his hand slightly to Zhang Liao, then cast his gaze towards the old man beside him and asked, "Sir, are you the miraculous doctor Zhang Zhongjing?"

Zhang Zhongjing bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am Zhang Zhongjing, but I dare not take the title of miracle doctor."

"Sir, you are too modest." Liu Xie felt relieved when he heard that the other party was Zhang Zhongjing. He then said with a smile, "The Imperial Doctor Hua recommended you to me and said that your medical skills are far superior to his and that you are the best in the world."

"Moreover, you once served as the governor of Changsha. The name of Zhang Changsha is well-known, and I have also heard of your reputation for a long time."

Zhang Zhongjing's reputation is actually greater than Hua Tuo's. He came from a prominent family and once served as the prefect of Changsha.

Moreover, he did not stop practicing medicine after becoming a prefect, because there was a rule that officials could not enter private homes or get close to the people at will. So he chose to open the government office on the first and fifteenth day of every month. He did not ask about government affairs and let sick people come in. He sat upright in the lobby and carefully treated the people one by one.

This action also made Zhang Zhongjing famous. He was known as "Zhang Changsha", "Miracles Doctor" and "Bian Que", and was deeply loved and respected by the people.

Hearing that the emperor actually knew his name, Zhang Zhongjing was flattered and bowed repeatedly, saying, "I am overwhelmed."

At this moment, he felt extremely emotional.

His father and many of his clansmen spent their entire lives studying for a career in government but failed to achieve this, but Jian Zaidi achieved it with his medical attainments and reputation.

It can only be said that fate has its way with people.

After a few simple greetings, Liu Xie asked, "Mrs. Zhen is suffering from lung disease. I heard that you are good at treating typhoid fever and lung disease. I wonder if you can cure Mrs. Zhen?"

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Zhang Zhongjing said: "I have not yet treated Lady Zhen, so it is difficult to make a judgment at the moment, but I will do my best."

"Thank you sir."

Liu Xie nodded, then sighed and said, "Noble Lady Zhen is pregnant with a dragon heir. If you can keep her and the dragon heir safe, I will definitely reward you handsomely."

After saying this, Liu Xie asked Queen Guo, who was attending nearby, to bring Zhang Zhongjing to see Hua Tuo, so that they could treat Zhen Mi together.

Then he asked Zhang Liao, "Wenyuan, what is Ma Chao's current whereabouts? Have you found any trace of him?"

After Ma Chao was defeated, he fled into the territory of the Qiang people. The imperial court never gave up the search for Ma Chao. This guy would always be a serious threat if he was not eliminated.

Zhang Liao looked ashamed and replied, "Your Majesty, the Qiang territory is too large, and Ma Chao's whereabouts are unknown after he entered it."

"I was unable to find any trace of him."

Liu Xie frowned when he heard this. Ma Chao had a high prestige among the Qiang people. This time he escaped with tens of thousands of remnants of the Western Liang army. He might make a comeback in the future.

However, the internal troubles have not been eliminated yet, and it is not a wise choice to gather a large army to attack the Qiang people just for Ma Chao.

"Forget it, let's spare his life for now, and when we have the chance, we can send troops to defeat this villain."

Liu Xie finally gave up the idea of ​​sending troops and said to Zhang Liao: "General Zhang, you have worked hard on the journey. You should retreat and rest now."

He had to go to the bedroom first to check on Zhen Mi's condition. He didn't know whether Zhang Zhongjing could cure Zhen Mi's illness.

Zhang Liao also retreated immediately, but soon after he walked out of the palace gate, someone suddenly pushed him hard on the back.

He was caught off guard and was pushed, staggering and almost falling. He finally managed to stand steady.

"Thief Lu Bu! Are you sick?"

Zhang Liao started cursing immediately. Even without seeing the appearance of the person who pushed him, he knew who it was.

And his guess was indeed correct.

At this time, Lu Bu was standing behind Zhang Liao with his hands on his hips. He looked at Zhang Liao's embarrassed appearance and laughed, "You really have a poor sense of vigilance!"

"roll!"

Zhang Liao said unhappily.

Lü Bu was displeased when he heard this, and glared at him, "Zhang Wenyuan, you are so good! I learned that you were going back to Yecheng, so I waited for you outside the palace to invite you to a drink. Is this how you treat me?"

"Forget it. It seems that you don't have the good fortune to drink the imperial wine bestowed by His Majesty. I will go find Zilong to drink."

Lu Bu turned around and walked away, cursing.

Zhang Liao stood there with his arms folded, watching Lu Bu leave with a sneer, as if he didn't care at all.

After walking for a while, Lu Bu saw that Zhang Liao did not come to chase him, so he turned back and snorted coldly: "Forget it, I am a magnanimous man and I will not bother with you."

"You can do it!"

Zhang Liao rolled his eyes and said, "You just want to show off to me that you're a grandfather, don't you? How could I not know what you're thinking?"

"Having a granddaughter doesn't make you a grandson. Look how proud you are of it."

Zhang Liao and Lu Bu have known each other for so many years that it can be said that as soon as Lu Bu sticks out his butt, he knows what kind of shit this guy is going to do.

Lu Bu waited for him outside the palace specifically to invite him to drink. This was obviously a way to show off to him. How could he not understand that?
"What's wrong with my granddaughter? My granddaughter is the eldest princess of the Han Dynasty? Do you have any objection?"

Lu Bu looked Zhang Liao up and down with his nose in the air.

"You are already in your thirties. When will you be able to hold your grandchildren? I am still waiting to drink your wine."

Looking at Lu Bu's smug face, Zhang Liao's eyes twitched, and he had the urge to rush forward, pin this guy to the ground and beat him up.

But after seeing Lu Bu's fist which was a circle bigger than his, he calmed down, snorted coldly, mounted his horse and left.

"Really angry?"

Lu Bu was stunned when he saw this, and quickly jumped on his horse and chased after him, "I was just joking with you, are you so petty?"

"I'm really here to invite you to have a drink. You can't refuse to give me this honor. I've already prepared the banquet."

Zhang Liao glanced at him and said calmly, "Why are you so happy about not being a prince? Haven't you always wanted to hold your grandson?"

"Now that she has given birth to a princess, you can forget about the position of crown prince. If Concubine Zhen gives birth to a prince, your daughter's position as queen will probably be in jeopardy."

"Who can we old brothers rely on in the future? You have already stood so high, you have to think about your future."

"It won't take long to unify the world."

As a general of Lu Bu's faction, he hopes to see Lu Lingqi become the queen, and even more hopes that Lu Bu's grandson can become the crown prince.

Because this is the best way to ensure that these meritorious generals will not be purged after the unification of the world.

As the saying goes, when the cunning rabbit dies, the hunting dogs are cooked; when the birds are all gone, the good bows are put away. Zhen's current fate is a good example.

Although Zhen brought this upon herself, who can guarantee that the emperor would not take this opportunity to suppress her?

Zhang Liao believed in the emperor, but he couldn't help feeling worried.

"Wenyuan."

Upon hearing this, Lu Bu reined in his horse and looked at Zhang Liao with narrowed eyes. The smile on his face disappeared completely, and a dangerous light flashed in his eyes.

"It is your majesty's right to appoint someone as queen. I don't want to hear this again. You and I are just your majesty's subjects."

"Otherwise... don't blame me for being ruthless."

After saying this coldly, Lu Bu looked at Zhang Liao coldly and rode away.

(End of this chapter)