Zhang Xian met with Li Yan and said hurriedly: "His Royal Highness King Jianning, I heard that you just detained a few big food merchants in Dongshi who used fake money?"
Li Yan nodded and said, "That's right. Is this why Governor Zhang came here in a hurry?"
Zhang Xian said anxiously and angry: "Your Majesty the King! No! These big food merchants are very united, and that Arhan is the leader of the big food merchants. Your Highness detains these merchants, I am afraid that the big food merchants will detour to Gua in the future."
State!"
Zhang Xian also saw the prosperity of Dongshi.
Zhang Xian also admired the King of Jianning, but Zhang Xian was also worried that Li Yan was too arrogant. Officials in Longyou Road knew that they could not offend these big food merchants under any circumstances.
If you offend these big food merchants and they don't come to trade, then you will still be the unlucky ones.
That's why Zhang Xian found Li Yan in a hurry, hoping that he would not act out of anger.
Li Yan looked at Zhang Xian and asked: "Prefect Zhang, according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, are these big food merchants wrong?"
Zhang Xian was stunned for a moment. As a tribunal, of course he must be familiar with the Tang Law. He nodded and said: "Whether it is casting or deliberately using bad money, it has violated the Tang Law."
Li Yan added: "These big food merchants are using fake money in Guazhou. Is it good for Guazhou?"
Zhang Xian immediately said: "Of course it is bad. Using fake money will disrupt the order of Guazhou. If a large amount of fake money flows in, the local prices will also be chaotic."
Li Yan sat up straight and said: "Since the prefect knows that it is the Dashi merchant who is at fault, why do you continue to talk? Is it because the overall situation of what we are doing is important, and the economy of Tanglu and Guazhou is not important?
"
At this moment, Zhang Xian was also stunned.
Li Yan stood up and said: "The prefect advised me to put the overall situation first. I know you are also doing it for Guazhou's good. But what is the overall situation?"
"For the sake of a few big food businessmen, today I will ignore Tang Law and allow them to use fake money tomorrow. Is this the overall situation?"
Zhang Xian lowered his head and said nothing.
Li Yan added: "Prefect Zhang, what will ordinary people think when they see the overall situation you mentioned? What will the merchants in Dongshi think when they see it?"
"Just because the food merchants are so powerful, we will indulge them when they mint fake money and use fake money. Whose heart will be chilled? Whose heart will be hurt?"
"Over time, everyone in Guazhou City knows that as long as the situation is strong, they don't have to take Guazhou in their eyes, they don't have to take Tang Law in their eyes, and they don't have to take the Tang Dynasty in their eyes."
"Just because they are big food merchants, do we have to allow them to do whatever they want?"
Zhang Xian was stunned by Li Yan's words.
Li Yan continued: "If you ask me, it doesn't matter if this big food merchant doesn't come."
"They mint counterfeit money privately and we don't punish them for buying things with the counterfeit money. I'm afraid that the food merchants who enter Guazhou next will bring more counterfeit money. We use the goods we have worked hard to produce in exchange for a bunch of counterfeit money.
, then there’s no point in doing these businesses.”
Zhang Xian lowered his head, feeling more and more that Li Yan was right.
However, it has always been the norm for officials up and down the Longyou Road to indulge and tolerate big food merchants.
What Li Yan said today shocked Zhang Xian greatly.
Li Yan continued: "No counterfeit money is allowed. This is my consistent attitude! People cannot tell the authenticity of fake money. Could it be that these businessmen who have been traveling in the Tang Dynasty for many years can't tell the authenticity of money? No.
Maybe?"
"They deliberately use counterfeit money to disrupt the economic order of Datang, and we must not tolerate it!"
"Interrogate that Arhan carefully to see if it is these big food merchants who are making counterfeit money privately. If it is found that they are making counterfeit money privately, then handle it according to Tang law and don't ask me for instructions again."
Zhang Xian opened his mouth and swallowed Li Yan's words of advice.
King Jianning is right. When did the Tang Dynasty need to be lenient on the outside and tolerant on the inside to treat foreigners?
If these big food merchants don’t come, they won’t come! Anyway, Guazhou’s goods are now very popular in the entire Longyou Road, and these big food merchants are not bad either!
Zhang Xian resigned from Li Yan and took his people to interrogate these big food merchants in person.
The people in Guazhou City already knew about Li Yan's punishment of these big food merchants. Suddenly the whole city of Guazhou was excited, applauding Li Yan for impartially enforcing the law.
Anyone who does business in Guazhou has suffered losses caused by these big food merchants using fake money.
But the government has always tolerated them, and these businessmen are very wealthy, so they walk around in Guazhou City.
This time they suffered a big setback. Those Datang merchants who had dealt with the big food merchants and suffered losses were naturally very relieved.
Cui Tao returned to the military camp from the governor's mansion holding a few fake coins.
Today, Governor Zhang personally went to court to hear the case, and Cui Tao realized how troublesome it was to open a court in the Tang Dynasty.
Because making counterfeit money is a serious crime that leads to decapitation, every process must be recorded clearly.
When Cui Tao brought these fake money back, he first had to identify the authenticity of the money and make sure that it was all fake money.
Cui Ruoyun watched Cui Tao bring back the fake money and said with a smile: "Are you rich? There are several strings of money here, right?"
"Sister, these are all fake money, used for trial cases. Do you have a way to quickly identify which ones are fake money?"
Cui Ruoyun picked up a fake coin and said: "This is not simple. Kaiyuan Tongbao is a copper coin, mixed with iron, nickel, lead and other impurities. Your coin is obviously lighter. I am afraid it is made of zinc and a small amount of copper."
"In addition to the weighing method, the metals in coins can also be determined through displacement reactions. In addition, the metal ions contained in coins can also be determined through flame reaction."
Cui Ruoyun moved out a bunch of bottles and cans, and after doing experiments for a while, she said doubtfully: "Hey, this fake money actually contains a lot of iron, it's really weird."
Cui Tao quickly asked: "Sister, why is it strange?"
Cui Ruoyun said: "Copper is a precious metal, but iron ore is not easy to mine and smelt in this era, so there was also a tradition of using iron as money in ancient times."
"And since the Han Dynasty, the imperial court has implemented the policy of 'official salt and iron', and the iron mines are all controlled by the government."
Cui Tao nodded and said: "It was the same in the Tang Dynasty. The iron mines in the Tang Dynasty were all government-run and private mining was prohibited. Yes, since the iron mines were government-run, how could there be so much iron in these fake money?"
Cui Ruoyun said: "If we buy ironware from the market and then recast it into fake money, it will be even more uneconomical including the cost of craftsmanship. Then what is the point of making this fake money?"
Cui Ruoyun took out a magnifying glass that she had polished by herself, looked at the fake money and said, "This money is deliberately made old. The oxide layer is very new. It should have been cast recently."
Cui Tao's eyes lit up, he raised his head and said to Cui Ruoyun: "Sister, do you think this is possible?"