Godsend Field

Chapter 340
The eldest prince learned that the most basic and most important goods related to people's livelihood in all parts of the country are currently in a period of shortage of goods and soaring prices, so he immediately started investigating!The Department of Civil Affairs clearly informed that there has been no shortage or suspension of production across the country this year, so there will be no shortage of goods, and the problem of soaring prices has appeared in the Ministry of Finance.Safeiros was the first to bear the brunt of the outbreak of the prince's anger!
"Reporting to the Regent, these problems are caused by the 'dangerous national debt'!" Safeiros stood up and cupped his hands.

"Nonsense! The 'dangerous national debt' we issued earlier was just to ask those merchants and nobles to temporarily borrow purple gold coins, which can be returned together with interest later. What does this have to do with soaring prices?" The eldest prince was extremely angry.

These days, I have worked hard to quell the annihilation of the Eastern Expedition Army. Fortunately, Nile came up with a plan. Using the achievements of the Northwest Army and the arrival of the saint, he successfully shifted the focus of the people and eased the Eastern Expedition. The panic caused by the army.Now there are soaring prices in the entire empire and the people are struggling to live, and there are already complaints everywhere!This kind of thing never happened during the father's reign!

"Saphiroth, since you became the acting minister of the Ministry of Finance, not only have you been unable to solve the empire's problems, but now you can't even do your own job well. What use are you for?" the eldest prince was furious.

"Prince Regent, although my subordinates are lacking in talent and knowledge, they are still conscientious and dedicated to their duties..."

"Shut up!" The eldest prince walked up to Sephiroth, stretched out his finger and pointed at the tip of his nose, "Salt, rice, sauce and vinegar, these goods are related to the livelihood of the empire. The empire has long stipulated that the price of these goods must be capped by the imperial finance department." , any chamber of commerce is not allowed to go beyond this line, and now the price of goods in the empire is soaring, I am afraid that it has more than doubled the upper limit, you, the finance minister, let it go, and dare to claim to be conscientious and fulfill your duties here, it is extremely shameless!"

Saphiroth said in distress from time to time.

"Don't worry, Regent. Let's listen to Sephiroth's explanation. If we can't convince the officials at that time, it's not too late to deal with it!" Nero hurried up and separated the two of them slightly.

"Okay! For the sake of Deputy Counselor Nero, I'll give him a chance! If you can't give a reason, don't blame me for being ruthless!" The eldest prince waved his hands, walked back to his seat and sat down again.

"Regent, Assistant Regent, ministers and officials! The empire has indeed clearly stipulated that it has set price ceilings for some commodities. For necessary food and condiments, the floating ceiling should not exceed [-]% of the average price of the past five years. Heating clothes It must not exceed [-]%. Among them, fruit and silk clothing are not within this range. Over the years, these things have been regulated and managed by our finance department, but this year there is some trouble! There was no problem a while ago. In the past two days, we Only then did I know that the price of goods has suddenly skyrocketed. By this morning, the price of goods provided by a large chamber of commerce in the empire has more than tripled, more than double the upper limit set by our finance department, but our finance department cannot intervene in the management!"

"Why don't you care, this is the responsibility of your Ministry of Finance! Why does the empire feed you!"

"Reporting to the Regent, it's not that we don't care, it's that someone doesn't let us care!"

"Who is so bold?"

"Regent, this person is you..."

"Me? When did I say that!" The eldest prince became even more angry.

"Although you didn't issue an explicit order, Regent, you mentioned it in 'National Debt at Risk'!"

The eldest prince was startled, "Is the national debt in danger?"

Sephiroth took out a sample of the 'dangerous national debt' from the space ring and handed it to the eldest prince, "Regent, please look, this last point says 'If the Eastern Expeditionary Army gains nothing or the entire army is wiped out, the chamber of commerce is allowed to increase the appropriate price to make up for it Temporary vacancy, you will not be bound by the price ceiling of the Ministry of Finance for six months!' And there is a stamp of the Regent himself, so although our Finance Department found out, there is nothing we can do!"

The eldest prince stared at the terms carefully with his eyes wide open. The first few points were all about how to repay the dangerous national debt. There was indeed such a sentence attached to the last point. His fingers trembled slightly, and the eldest prince suddenly gasped, "I... Why didn't I see it before?"

Saphiroth sighed, knowing that this would be the result, "Regent, do you still remember when you ordered our finance department to put aside all affairs and try our best to raise the 'dangerous national debt'? At that time, we were late with those big chambers of commerce. It was too late to reach an agreement. We thought that the conditions offered were already very generous, but they still felt that they could not be guaranteed, so they were deadlocked. At that time, I also talked about this matter with the regent, and mentioned these chambers of commerce This must be added. But at that time, the regent was in a hurry to raise purple gold coins, and he also said that the Eastern Expedition Army could not be wiped out, and the result would definitely be a matter of how much, so let me not pay attention to this Such a small matter, compromised with them, and quickly reached an agreement, collected the "dangerous national debt" and provided it to the Eastern Expeditionary Army! But I didn't expect that our Eastern Expeditionary Army was wiped out by natural disasters. According to the terms, in the past six months, We can't control them!"

"Wow!" The whole hall erupted, and all the officials whispered, looking at the stunned eldest prince above, they all cast strange glances.In the final analysis, it turns out that the root of the disaster lies in the regent!

The third prince sat beside him calmly, smiling coldly.

The eldest prince looked at the strange eyes below, and his heart suddenly became anxious, "Saphiroth, I have countless chambers of commerce in the Welsh Empire, have they all raised the price of goods? And the 'dangerous national debt', are they all related to those chambers of commerce? Was it raised by the chamber of commerce?"

Nero sneered, the eldest prince seemed to be in a hurry, he even messed up his questioning!

"Reporting to the Regent! The total amount of 'dangerous national debt' we raised can reach 8000 million, of which 500 million are from nobles and 500 million are from merchants. Among merchants, 500 million are from business alliances, and the rest are sporadic The Chamber of Commerce gave 1000 million! The Eagle Chamber of Commerce didn’t pay a penny!" Safeiros said like a few treasures.

Most of the wealth of the nobles of the empire are fiefdoms and population, but their territories have been reduced to the extreme by His Majesty's reforms.Compared with the nobles 60 years ago, today's nobles are poor!The wealth of merchants is all genuine purple gold coins, so merchants account for an absolutely large proportion of the "dangerous national debt" this time!Among the merchants in the empire, the Merchant Alliance accounted for [-]% of the strength, and the remaining [-]% was led by the Mesto Chamber of Commerce and the Eagle Chamber of Commerce, including the Baal Chamber of Commerce, which was recently evaluated as a large chamber of commerce!
"Bastard, the Eagle Chamber of Commerce has been operating in our Welsh Empire for nearly a hundred years, and they don't pay a cent!" The eldest prince suddenly became furious.

"Regent, the Eagle Chamber of Commerce is not the local chamber of commerce of our empire! They reached the same agreement with the four major empires in the early years, only doing business and paying taxes, and ignoring other things and not participating! So this is normal!"

"Regent, I don't think it's time to pursue anyone. The main problem now is to investigate the flow of supply and price trends, and persuade the major chambers of commerce to lower the price. Even if it can't be lowered, at least it must be suppressed , can’t go up anymore! Otherwise, our country will be shaken!” Nero stood up and reported.

Now that Nero doesn't come out anymore, it's unknown where the prince will go.The eldest prince seemed to have a well-founded question, but he couldn't grasp the essence of the matter after a closer look!
"Deputy Counselor Nero is right! You are right!" The eldest prince nodded repeatedly, "Saphiroth, you send someone to investigate now, and report the truth tomorrow morning! If there is any delay, please come and see me!"

"Yes, Lord Regent!" Saphiroth stepped back helplessly, I really don't know if this is the court or the barracks!Looking squinting at Nero, the assistant officer moved his mouth, and he was about to run with his head in his hands!I really don't know what kind of family the Kate family is, and there are such people in succession!

"Report~~" Just as Sephiroth retreated to his seat with a bitter face, there was a continuous burst of shouting from outside.

All the officials couldn't help but turned their heads to the outside of the hall. They have been very used to this movement in the past two years!
"Report~~" The soldiers rushed in hurriedly and knelt on the ground, "Eight hundred miles in the southern province, urgent military report!"

Southern province?All the officials suddenly trembled, that is an important place for the empire, where taxes and food are important, if there is another fight there, it will be even worse for the empire!

"Is there a war in the southern province?" The eldest prince asked eagerly.

"Regent, everything is fine in the southern province. This is the border general sent by the French Empire to us. The general ordered me to send it to the capital without stopping and hand it over to the regent!" The soldier replied.

The southern province is safe and sound, everyone can rest assured!
The eldest prince walked down quickly, took the military newspaper, glanced at it, looked at Marshal Lankers next to him, and handed the military newspaper lightly.The old marshal took the military newspaper in surprise, his whole body was trembling like an electric shock, his eyes were slightly wet, and the military newspaper in his hand was about to fall off.

"Regent?" Nero asked softly.

The eldest prince was silent for a moment, "General William is not dead, but he has been captured by the French Empire! This letter was written to me by Marshal Enrico of the French Empire. The two generals returned to us, but offered to exchange them with the city of weights!"

"Wow!" The hall was boiling again!
General William was originally a rising star in the military. He originally thought that the entire army was wiped out this time, and General William was doomed. Unexpectedly, William was still alive. . .

"Everyone, how do you think this matter should be handled?" the eldest prince looked around and asked.

There was a sudden silence above the main hall, deathly silence!

Even Nero is helpless this time!

If you don't agree, then William will have a dead end!As the most important grandson of the old marshal and the most outstanding young general in the empire, no one wants to see such a result happen!
If you agree, then Weight City must be handed over to the Faran Empire!Weight City is the gateway city of the southeast province, without Weight City, the southeast province will be exposed under the iron hoof of the French Empire.The 500-year history of the Welsh Empire occupying the southeastern province will come to an end, and the blood of countless soldiers will be in vain!More importantly, this will also get the infamy of a traitor!

Looking at the silent officials below, the eldest prince's heart burned like a fire.

The old marshal is my biggest support, if I don't agree, it will definitely break the old marshal's heart, when the time comes. . .The consequences could be disastrous!If I agree, I will be a disgrace to the empire, how will the thousands of people think of me?What face do you have to be the king's seat?

"Brother, it is a great fortune for our empire that General William is not dead. I hope that brother will come to a conclusion early so that General William will not be humiliated in the French Empire!" The third prince said with concern, especially when it came to the word insult. , The old marshal below trembled all over.

Seeing the concerned look of the third prince, the eldest prince was very annoyed, but he couldn't say anything!

"The Regent... The entire army of the Eastern Expeditionary Army was wiped out...William cannot escape the blame...Weighing City is the foundation of the southeastern province...It must not be..." The old marshal endured the twist in his heart Pain, every word!
From William's death to William's life today, the old marshal was extremely surprised, and now he has to crush this hope with his own hands. No one can understand the misery in this!
The old marshal closed his eyes, suddenly feeling dizzy. . .

"Old Marshal!" The eldest prince quickly ran down to support the old marshal, "Hurry up, send him to the side to rest, you go and call the imperial doctor!"

There was a commotion in the hall.

The order has been restored, and the eldest prince is still unable to make a choice!The courtiers also lowered their heads and kept their mouths shut. No one dared to say a word, or a word!If you don't do it well, you'll really lose your head!

"Regent, Assistant Regent!" Nero stood up again at this time, "From the beginning of the government to the present, we have talked about a lot of things. It must be that the minds of all colleagues are messed up now, and it is impossible to discuss any more. There will be some big progress. So I suggest that everyone should go back and have a rest, and come back to the court meeting tomorrow morning, and there should be new and good ideas by then!"

The eldest prince was stunned, "Yes, Deputy Counselor Nero is right! We will stop here today, and we will come to the court meeting tomorrow!"

The third prince glanced at him, "Deputy Counselor Nero, aren't you afraid that General William will be hurt if we delay our time?"

"I'm afraid! But it's been so long, I'm afraid General William has already suffered the damage he should have suffered. It's useless for us to worry. As long as he doesn't die, everything will be easy!" Nero said lightly.

The third prince nodded, "That's right, then we will wait for your good news tomorrow!"

Nero and the officials have resigned one after another!

Before taking two steps, he saw Safeiros running towards him again. Before he could speak, Nero first said, "Who is the finance department? You are looking for whom, I am the government affairs department! And don't blame me for not reminding you, except In addition to investigating the matter, you have to prepare countermeasures, otherwise your head!"

Nero smiled, stretched out his hand and gestured on Safeiros' neck!
Sephiroth shuddered.

Ni Luo didn't go to Antian Mansion to deal with official business, but returned directly to the Duke's Mansion!

After listening to Nero's description, Duke Kate couldn't help laughing, "Hehe, Sephiroth really has this expression?"

Nero nodded, "Now he knows that the acting minister is not easy to do! I think he is a new duck in the stove, half-cooked! The last time about the pension, if Duke Maxtor hadn't advised him , he’s probably dead long ago, I don’t know what Duke Meister will come up with this time! Can we pass this test!”

"Nile, this is a businessman's business, so we don't have to worry! You came back so early today, I'm afraid you didn't tell me about Sephiroth's ugliness! Sephiroth is not suitable for the finance department. The ministry is where he can play, and when you become the minister of state affairs, he can be the deputy counselor!"

Nero nodded, "I know Grandpa!"

"Okay, the joke is over, let's get to the point!"

"Grandpa, William is not dead, he was arrested together with the other two generals, and now the French Empire wants us to exchange it with a city of weights!"

Duke Kate was taken aback for a moment, then fell silent.

"Nile, what do the ministers mean!"

"No one has an idea! Only the third prince pushed the eldest prince to exchange!"

"Third...huh! He's so narrow-minded, doesn't he just want to force the boss? What do you think!"

"Grandpa, it's very tricky. If you agree, you will betray the country, and the eldest prince will not even think about succeeding to the throne! If you don't agree, you will offend the old marshal and divide the army and the eldest prince. Although the old marshal killed his relatives righteously today, who knows if he will stay in his heart forever?" A thorn? So now both ends are difficult! Officials dare not say anything!"

"You have no idea?"

Shame Nero!

"This matter, in the empire, I'm afraid no one can handle it well! Except for two people, that is me and Your Majesty!"

Nero smiled, "I knew Grandpa must have a way!"

"To handle this matter well, you must not only know everything about the empire inside, but also know everything about the outside world! You only know everything about the inside of the empire right now, and you still need to know more about the outside world!"

Nero nodded. After following Grandpa all these years, he really knows everything about the empire. "This is all Grandpa's guidance!"

"One word, drag!"

"Drag?" Nero's eyes widened!

"Don't bother with it now, put it on the shelf, and drag it until the new king succeeds and solve it when the power is firmly in place!"

"Grandpa, what about General William? At that time, we don't know whether he is dead or alive. When the time comes, the old marshal..."

"Nile, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never end in a hundred battles! Who owns the Farland Empire today? The royal family? Wrong! The Farland Empire is ruled by Marshal Enrique! What is Enrique? This man is crazy and persistent. You can see how much he attaches importance to the southeast province by constantly attacking our southeast province! Go through the secret file, Enrique’s ancestor was a prominent nobleman 500 years ago, and his fiefdom is our current southeast province Province. His ancestors were killed by us, and the fief was occupied by us, so he attacked the southeast province crazily, and never gave up even if he failed again and again!"

Nero suddenly trembled, "I understand. Enrique attaches too much importance to the southeast province, but he can't win it. This time William is an excellent opportunity and his best hope. So even if we delay it, he will Will never kill William!"

"Another point is that Enrique is old, and most of his descendants are exaggerated children, and none of them can inherit his mantle, so he is getting more and more anxious now!" Duke Kate sighed, slightly hurting himself " Time is really merciless! One year goes by, one year goes by, one day goes by, one day goes by! "

Ni Luo suddenly remembered another thing, "Grandpa, there is another problem that you need to solve! It is the problem of the Chamber of Commerce's price increase that we are talking about today!"

Duke Kate narrowed his eyes, "Let Max take off his headache with this question!"

"It's not this, Grandpa. The main instigator this time may be the third prince, but the executor is the business alliance. Among the business alliance, the West Seat Chamber of Commerce is the leader, so I am worried that in the end it may be..."

Duke Kate sighed, "Back then, the old SEAT was still knowledgeable about current affairs, and His Majesty rewarded me for marrying them. In the past 60 years, SEAT has been smooth sailing. Now the little SEAT is not as good as his father, and he is messing around with the third prince!" Has he forgotten that the old Seat taught him not to participate in internal strife in government affairs?"

"Grandpa, I personally think that Uncle Seat is a bit ignorant and knows how to advance and retreat. There are so many things in the middle, I am afraid that Mann is fueling the flames and instigating behind the scenes..."

Duke Kate nodded, "Mann is a useless thing. You go to Seat, beat them for me, tell Seat and Ni, if they still let Mann mess around like this, be careful until the skin falls off in the end!"

(End of this chapter)