The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

"Qiao Yelan, from the Tower of Babel?"

"Your Majesty is wise."

“When my father helped me ascend the throne, he told me that if one day I felt powerless and needed help, but didn’t know who in the world I could trust, I could go to you through Li Fang, and you would help me regain the world.”

The emperor's voice was calm and even, but the fact that he never left Qiao Yelan's sight still revealed his doubts.

“He said that this card is the only one that will definitely be kept for me and will not be given to that person—because I represent the Great Yan.”

"The late emperor's praise is too much; I am ashamed to accept it."

Qiao Yelan nodded and lowered her eyes.

The emperor did not speak immediately. He still couldn't understand why this man in the wheelchair, who looked like he couldn't even kill a chicken, was so highly regarded by his father. In fact, it could be said that this man was the minister entrusted to him by his father.

"Is the Tower of Babel really just a trading company?"

"Yes."

"Then I am curious, how will you assist me in regaining the Great Yan Empire?"

"Because I am very good at making money."

Qiao Yelan said with a smile.

"The world is bustling with activity, all for the sake of profit. Officials and soldiers who are truly devoted to serving their country will be loyal to the Great Yan and to His Majesty. But if they are driven by ulterior motives, their pursuit will inevitably be power and profit."

"Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, holding the power of the world in your hands. It is only natural for you to use power to govern people. However, the word 'profit' is complicated and fragmented. If I assist Your Majesty, Your Majesty can grasp both power and profit, and you will naturally be invincible."

The emperor stopped thinking and turned his gaze to Qiao Yelan's face, his eyes becoming playful.

"You mean you're a very wealthy businessman, so wealthy that you can fund my bribery of the officials?"

“Your Majesty is mistaken. I have no money. Babel Tower is just an ordinary trading company used to make a living. What I am good at is getting back the money that originally belonged to Your Majesty.”

This statement surprised the emperor, and his gaze became serious.

"Please tell me in detail—I am very curious about what kind of money, which should have belonged to me, has ended up abroad?"

"The minister obeys the order."

Qiao Yelan cupped his hands in greeting, and then, with his ever-present warm and friendly smile, began his remonstrance.

"Your Majesty knows that the national treasury's annual revenue mainly comes from taxes and the buying and selling of the Imperial Household Department. The tax revenue of the Great Yan Dynasty has remained relatively stable, since these are fixed amounts. The only thing that might fluctuate is the commercial tax."

The emperor was certainly aware of this.

The fluctuations are in commercial taxes, but the main source of these fluctuations is, of course, the Dragon Gate.

When Lungmen is in chaos, commercial taxes will decrease, while when Lungmen is peaceful, commercial taxes will increase significantly. Therefore, the delicate balance that Lungmen has maintained between the Governor of Lungmen and Kosichä over the past few decades is because everyone needs Lungmen's "peace".

"Your Majesty, ever since the marriage alliance with the Eastern Kingdom, the situation in Longmen has been constantly changing. As a result, commercial taxes have been decreasing year after year. Not to mention this year's major conflict, which has almost openly blocked trade between the two sides. Therefore, this year's commercial tax figures will not be very good."

Qiao Yelan's words immediately made the emperor grasp the key point.

"Openly?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. This year, Duke Wei took control of Longmen and fought fiercely with Kosichie. Longmen's security collapsed, and trade routes were disrupted. It sounds so appealing—but is it really impossible to open up these trade routes?"

Qiao Yelan always stated the facts and then left the listeners to think for themselves.

"Could Kosiché not know how much profit she could gain through trade routes? Even if she doesn't know, surely Lord Wei knows?"

"Grand Duke Kosichelle is extremely special in Ursus. Ursus has not had the energy or extra resources to support her in recent years, and the barrenness of her fiefdom is an open secret. So what is it that has enabled her to stand against Duke Wei for so long before finally being completely defeated?"

"As for Lord Wei, it's clear that the Great Yan Dynasty wouldn't allocate any funds to him, and Lord Wei himself has no other fiefdoms or estates besides Longmen. So how did he manage to raise a large army, one whose size and fighting strength are sufficient to drive out Kosichie, who has been entrenched in Longmen for decades?"

Qiao Yelan's words reached the emperor's ears and caused quite a stir.

"Both of these men are ruthless and ambitious. How could such men be willing to accept aid from others and thus be controlled by them? So the answer is obvious—they must have their own means of accumulating wealth to support their struggle."

“If you calculate the amount of commercial tax you’ve lost over the past few years, and then calculate how many people that tax revenue could support, you’ll understand how they’ve managed to conquer to this point.”

The emperor felt his fist harden.

Those two bastards fought a war in Longmen, and they burned my money!

After a long silence, the emperor finally spoke again.

"Forget it, it's all in the past now. Fortunately, Wei Yanwu has completely taken over Longmen, and the trade route has been reopened. After that, commercial taxes will gradually return to normal levels."

The emperor managed to calm himself down. After all, the money was already burned, and it was unrealistic to expect Wei Yanwu and Kosiché to return it now. It would be better to settle the score later.

“Your Majesty, as I said, I am skilled at helping Your Majesty get back what is rightfully yours—therefore, I have discovered something even more suspicious in the actions of those two men.”

Qiao Yelan's attempts to ignite a fire never let it go out on its own.

"The merchants in those caravans were willing to pay tolls to the two local tyrants, Kosich and Wei Yanwu, just to grit their teeth and continue trading. That was naturally because the profits were so considerable—meaning that even with the tolls, they could make a fortune!"

"Merchants are the most timid and the most daring people. They cherish their lives but are also greedy for money. The fact that they are willing to risk their lives and be exploited by toll collectors means that they can earn much more under such circumstances than when they paid taxes to the Great Yan in peacetime."

The emperor was stunned.

He genuinely hadn't considered this aspect. Originally, he was only concerned about the commercial taxes collected over the years, but after Qiao Yelan's reminder, he remembered that the commercial taxes were simply the money collected that belonged to him—

What happened to the money that wasn't collected and ended up in the hands of those merchants?

How many would that be?

It is in a businessman's nature to pursue profit, so they will do anything that is profitable. High risk and high profit are twins; the higher the risk, the higher the profit, and the higher the profit, the more willing businessmen are to take higher risks.

They pay taxes to Kosiche, they pay taxes to Wei Yanwu, and they even risk being double-crossed, robbed, and even killed infighting to engage in this trade—would they take such risks without sufficiently high returns?

That must be because after going through so much, the profits they receive are much higher than the profits they receive after paying taxes to the Great Yan during peaceful times, which is why they do this!

"How could a small business dare to engage in such cross-border trade? It is only large caravans with powerful backers that dare to continue to travel across the Dragon Gate during this period. Therefore, the money naturally ends up in the hands of the people behind the caravans."

Qiao Yelan's voice carried a hint of provocative anger.

"Your Majesty, think about it. With the national treasury not even well-off, these people are holding huge sums of money. Do you think they would be content to just bury this money in their cellars?"

Of course not!

The emperor roared these words in his heart.

Now everything is clear.

According to the ancestral rule established at the founding of the Great Yan Dynasty, the army was not allowed to engage in commerce. Therefore, the only ones who could support cross-border merchant caravans were the Prime Minister and his group of civil officials.

It is precisely by taking advantage of the pretense of war that these people have made enough profits from trade in and out of Longmen, which has made them increasingly unruly in recent years.

No wonder when Father Emperor was seriously ill, these people just worked peacefully in the court, while I have only been in charge for two years and they are already openly opposing me—it seems they have made a lot of money while Wei Yanwu was stirring up trouble in Longmen!

That's all my money!

They take my money and then turn around and oppose me, saying it's for the sake of the Great Yan—do they expect me to thank them?!

The emperor crushed the cup in his hand; the sharp edge cut his palm, and drops of blood fell.

"Your Majesty! Take care of yourself, Your Majesty!"

Qiao Yelan exclaimed in surprise, trying her best to stand up from the wheelchair, but she was completely powerless. She could only support herself on the table with her arms, trembling as she tried to hand over a silk handkerchief.

The emperor stood up, took the handkerchief, and covered his wound.

"Sit down, Minister Qiao. I am in good health. Occasional pain actually makes my thinking clearer."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Qiao Yelan shakily released his arms, slumped back into his wheelchair, and, panting, continued to explain to the emperor.

“Your Majesty need not be too agitated. I have just returned to the capital and am not very familiar with the situation there. However, I know that this money is ultimately still within our Great Yan Kingdom, rather than flowing abroad. Therefore, it is not impossible to get it back—but this matter can only be dealt with slowly.”

"The situation in the capital is clear, and I know who is involved in this matter—but you are right, this matter should be dealt with slowly."

The emperor nodded, his gaze toward Qiao Yelan becoming even more amiable.

His father really did leave him a regent. Such vision and such thinking are unparalleled in business. Not to mention, his loyalty to him is obvious to all.

As Qiao Yelan said before, when you have both power and profit in your hands, you will naturally be invincible.

-

-

-

PS: Regarding the existence of eunuchs, as long as the imperial harem exists, there will inevitably be eunuchs. This has nothing to do with any political system; it is essentially a requirement for the purity of the bloodline.

This is fundamentally different from the situation where a priest castrates a boy to preserve his physical characteristics; let's stop fussing over such trivial details.

Chapter 81 The Escape Route is the First Step of the Plan

"After your explanation, I understand the matter of commercial tax. However, whether it is waiting for the normalization of commerce in the Longmen area in the future or wiping out those who have been evading taxes in recent years, both will take time."

The emperor sat down, managing to calm himself down.

"The capital is in chaos now. The Prime Minister and the court officials are in cahoots, always using the empty treasury as an excuse to thwart my decrees. I am not an impatient person, but their previous behavior has made me worried. Even if commercial taxes are restored, they will still have the ability to spend them all on the books."

"Therefore, I need a plan that can be implemented immediately and yields visible benefits—you can choose any position below the second rank within the Six Ministries, except for the Minister."

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your great kindness, but please be patient, as I have something to say."

Qiao Yelan caught her breath and regulated her breathing before speaking again.

“Your Majesty, as I said before, the national treasury’s income, in addition to commercial taxes, also includes the sales of the Imperial Household Department. This money goes directly into the palace without going through taxation, and therefore, it will not be intercepted by any official or department.”