Yes, there were times when the imperial court was in trouble and it borrowed money from Emperor Zun Pavilion for disaster relief.
That was one year, not long after Xiao Pingsi came to power, there were famines and wars everywhere, and the national treasury had very little harvest, so he had to borrow money from Taishan Bank in shame.
Although the money is still being repaid, it is still a bit short.
These arrears are really a slap in the face to Xiao Pingsi and the royal family. It would be too shameful not to erase them.
Since ancient times, how can the imperial court owe others money?
This day set a precedent.
However, this does not mean that only Xiao Pingsi's current situation has such a miserable situation, there have been many such cases in the past.
But the emperors in those years would not be willing to lose the face of themselves, the royal family and the court to ask for help from outsiders for the sake of the people.
Xiao Pingsi asked for help. He felt embarrassed, but he could bear the humiliation.
Now that he was finally rich, Xiao Pingsi thought that repaying all the money at once would be a worry.
"Not only the Tai'an Chamber of Commerce, I remember that the Ministry of Revenue also borrowed several million from Taishan Bank, right?"
Seeing His Majesty questioning him, Yan Lanfeng answered casually:
"Back to Your Majesty, the Ministry of Household Affairs purchased grain from the Tai'an Chamber of Commerce in previous years, and there is still 450,000 taels of silver left in the grain payment."
"As for the disaster relief funds borrowed from Taishan Bank, we borrowed 3 million taels back then, and now we still owe more than 1.8 million taels."
Speaking of this, Yan Lanfeng was a little grateful. The offer from Emperor Zun Pavilion was really timely.
At that time, no one thought that the court could borrow money from the private sector. After this idea was opened up by Xiao Pingsi, the relationship between Emperor Zun Pavilion and Daxia became increasingly close.
But no, it’s the uncle who owes money.
Over the years, most of the debt has been repaid, but there is always a shortfall of 1.8 million, because the national treasury has reached its limit.
If we don't increase revenue and reduce expenditure, it will be difficult to pay off the money in our lifetime. However, in such a big country, it is not easy to increase revenue and reduce expenditure.
To this day, Fang Jue took out fireworks and glass to truly make the Ministry of Household Resources open to the public.
Only then did Xiao Pingsi remember that it was time to pay back the money.
"When I first became a Dabao, I owed this huge sum of money. It has been more than ten or twenty years. It is difficult for me to repay the kindness of Emperor Zun Pavilion."
"Now that I have snatched away the successor of the old Pavilion Master, I owe you even more." Xiao Pingsi shook his head, somewhat self-deprecating, but his joy was beyond words.
Yan Lanfeng also nodded: "Your Majesty reminds me that it is time for the Ministry of Revenue to pay back the money. It is easy to borrow and pay back."
There was another half sentence left, and Yan Lanfeng choked back. He felt it was unlucky.
"Um."
After sighing with emotion, Xiao Pingsi had another thought.
"The total of these two sums is only over two million taels..."
Hearing this, Yan Lanfeng stared: "Your Majesty, don't be extravagant!"
He reminded quickly.
Good guy, if you have rice, you can eat a meal, but if you don’t have rice, you can eat grain seeds?
It has to be spent, right?
If there is another natural or man-made disaster, if you don't leave any money, who will you cry to?
I shouldn't tell you that there are still more than ten million taels. This is too much to tell you.
Next time I'll just give you five million taels and let's see what you do!
"Don't worry, Yan Aiqing, who do you think I am?" Xiao Pingsi said in a serious tone, "What I mean is that some state affairs that have been put on hold and projects that require money can be implemented."
"oh……"
Yan Lanfeng wiped away the cold sweat, it was pretty much the same.
Xiao Pingsi also sighed. Of course he wanted to spend money, but Yan Papi would never let go, so he didn't bother to mention it.
But if I spend money on national affairs, you can’t help but give it to me, right?
"I wonder, what state affairs are on hold, your Majesty is talking about?" Yan Lanfeng asked cautiously.
He is the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and any project must go through the Ministry of Household Affairs, because everything requires money.
Therefore, Yan Lanfeng knew a little about the backlog of national affairs. He knew the budgets of some projects, which were simply terrifying figures.
Yan Lanfeng was afraid that His Majesty would mention some expensive projects that were unacceptable.
Sure enough, when he stared at His Majesty and saw the shape of His Majesty's mouth, he knew it was coming!
"Floods in the south of the Yangtze River have been around for a long time. In the early years, the governor and the imperial censor came forward to suggest building water conservancy projects to solve the problem once and for all." Xiao Pingsi said seriously.
But he didn't see that Yan Lanfeng's expression suddenly changed, and he couldn't even breathe smoothly.
Xiao Pingsi didn't seem to notice Yan Lanfeng's strange behavior, and continued: "The cabinet and the Ministry of Industry also discussed it back then, and even came up with a plan. If there was no money and food, it would have been implemented long ago."
Floods in the south of the Yangtze River have existed since ancient times and are not a one-time disaster.
We need to build water conservancy there to avoid this problem forever, let the people in Jiangnan live and work in peace and contentment, and truly become the safest granary of Daxia.
Of course, there is another intention. As an emperor, he naturally hopes to do more good things for the people, so that he will be famous for generations to come.
Every year, floods in the south of the Yangtze River affect tens of thousands of people, resulting in countless deaths, injuries, and displacements. If this matter can be controlled, it will be a lasting achievement.
Emperors of the Great Xia Dynasty have thought about it, but they didn’t have the money or the technology. Now they have the technology, but they don’t have the money.
Now that he is well and has money and technology, Xiao Pingsi thinks it is time to arrange a wave.
"Aiqing thinks... Yan Aiqing?"
Seeing that Yan Lanfeng was a little distracted, Xiao Pingsi asked with a smile: "What do you think?"
Yan Lanfeng, who was awakened, would rather be immersed in the suddenness than face this problem.
But when asked face to face, Yan Lanfeng had no choice but to answer.
But he didn't want to give a direct answer, but analyzed it first:
"Your Majesty, I have seen the plan for the Jiangnan Water Conservancy Project back then. The Ministry of Industry and the Cabinet have done a very detailed job. There should be no mistakes."
"Then..." Xiao Pingsi was overjoyed. Did Yan Bapi change her gender today?
Yan Lanfeng continued: "But Your Majesty, even if we recruit some slave laborers, we can procure and make the raw materials for the equipment ourselves... But to complete the entire project, it will cost at least 12 million taels, and it will take at least four to five years."
"The Ministry of Household Affairs doesn't have that much money!" Yan Lanfeng gritted his teeth and said firmly.
No money, no money, just no money!
Your Majesty, are you drifting?
Fortunately, I didn't show you the real account book. If you knew the current income of the Ministry of Accounts, wouldn't you plan to build a canal next year?
Floods in the south of the Yangtze River are frequent, but each time the Ministry of Household Affairs allocates less than a few hundred thousand taels for disaster relief, which is really affordable compared to this water conservancy project.
"Yan Aiqing, don't be anxious..."
Xiao Pingsi stood up, walked to Yan Lanfeng, and took his arm.
Yan Lanfeng was not flattered, but only surprised.
Do you have to do this?
"Ai Qing is right. Jiangnan Water Conservancy is huge in scale, expensive and time-consuming, but I didn't say that I would allocate the entire amount at once."
"Didn't you say it will take four to five years to complete? Then let's take it slow. If we allocate several million every year, the pressure on the Ministry of Household Affairs will be less..."
As he listened, Yan Lanfeng felt that he had been fooled.
Your Majesty, you are not just saying this casually. You are so organized. Have you practiced it?
Did you just wait for me to say that the treasury has money?
Yan Lanfeng wished he could give himself a slap in the face. I shouldn't have said that the Ministry of Revenue has money, but I still have to cry for poverty!
"Yan Aiqing, I have made careful calculations and are starting to prepare now. The project will start after the spring of next year. The Ministry of Household Affairs only needs to allocate four million to start the preliminary project..."
Yan Lanfeng didn't hear clearly what His Majesty said, but "four million" hit his soul.
Xiao Pingsi raised his hand with a smile and made a sign of "four".
It seems to be saying, not twelve million, not eight or nine million, just four million!
Four million, you won’t suffer a loss if you give it, and you won’t be deceived if you give it!
"Four million...ten thousand?" Yan Lanfeng twisted his neck. He felt that he had signs of a stroke and his body was already twitching.
"yes?"
Xiao Pingsi smiled and said: "Start with four million, and then more than two million per year will be enough."
That’s it?
I……
"Your Majesty, the disaster relief in Suzhou plus the Northern Expedition may cost less than four million taels. The young division may even be able to earn some money back..."
Yan Lanfeng said unwillingly: "But if you throw these four million into Jiangnan, you won't even be able to make a splash!"
He wished he could faint on the spot.
But Xiao Pingsi was already on guard. When he saw him starting to convulse, he strangled Renzhong to death and was unable to faint.
"Pfft..." Wang Feng looked behind and wanted to laugh, but he almost couldn't hold it back.
