"Father, this matter is a long story, please allow me to explain it slowly."
Li Xian made all arrangements just to wait for Gaozong to ask such a question. At this time, the good opportunity had arrived. Li Xian was naturally very excited, but he did not lose his composure because of it. He just smiled and bowed respectfully.
He replied.
"Well, let's talk, I'm listening."
Gaozong's curiosity had already aroused and he wanted to know the root cause of the matter. When he heard what Li Xian said, he hurriedly urged him.
"Promise!" Li Xian bowed and accepted the promise, pondered for a moment, quickly organized his thoughts, and then said unhurriedly: "So that my father will know that in the early years, there was a relative in the son's house.
Guard Zheng, his name is: Lin Hu, courtesy name Hanyu, a native of Jingzhao, he is an honest man, but later due to carelessness, he violated military regulations, and his son and ministers were not allowed to do so.
He couldn't bear the pain and expelled him from the palace and gave him some capital to make a living. Unexpectedly, he was quite talented in business. In less than ten years, he was already one of the few seafarers in the Tang Dynasty, with many large and small ships under his command.
Dozens of them have been making a living at sea all year round, as far away as Japan and as far away as Dashi, and their fleets are all seen."
"I remember that it was five years ago when I was still in Hexi. Because the Tubo invaded the country repeatedly, it was difficult to raise food supplies for the army, so I wanted to change the food types, but I couldn't find them everywhere. When I was in trouble, I happened to meet Lin.
The tiger came to visit and during a casual conversation, he said:
I rescued him while sailing overseas. According to that person, there is a continent thousands of miles away, called America. There are many rare birds and animals on it, and there are also many precious grains. My sons and ministers were very happy to hear this, especially
He was entrusted with searching on his behalf, and his subordinates followed suit.
I said it, but I didn't really take it to heart. It's probably because it's a long way from the Tang Dynasty to the Americas. The sea is thousands of miles away, and it's really difficult to reach the sky. But I didn't expect that Lin Hu would really lead a large group of people to go on a long journey.
A few years later, as far away as America, there was a lot of excitement
After many battles, he returned with good breeds, but his troops suffered terrible losses, which was shocking. When they left, there were more than ten large and small ships, but only three wrecked ships were returned. Three thousand loyal and brave men were buried overseas. I heard that
I couldn't help but burst into tears!"
Li Xian's eloquence was already excellent, and he had already practiced it for a long time. When he finished speaking, he was naturally very emotional and passionate. Everyone was moved by it, and many people were saddened by it.
"So that's it. This Lin Hu is truly a loyal minister of our Tang Dynasty. We must not treat him badly. He should be rewarded heavily!"
Gao Zong was originally a sentimental person. When Li Xian was so sentimental, his eye circles immediately turned red. He stretched out his sleeves to brush away the tears that had escaped from the frame, and said with emotion.
"Father, the Holy Ming, with Lin Hu's great achievements, according to the usual practice, he should be able to repay his merits by granting him a title of Marquis within the Pass."
Li Xian originally wanted to ask for credit for Lin Hu, but now that Gaozong had opened his mouth, there was no reason to follow the stick, so he hurriedly started talking.
"Your Highness, I am afraid that this proposal is inappropriate. Although Lin Hu has made a small contribution, firstly, it has not yet been proved. Secondly, setting a precedent for merchants to ennoble princes may be against the way of the saints. I really don't agree with this. I would like to ask you.
Your Majesty has made a clear decision."
As early as the Qin and Han Dynasties, the title of Guannei Marquis was second only to the princes, and it was considered to be a very high level. However, in the Tang Dynasty, it was just a virtual title. Not only did it have no fiefdom, but it also had no actual power.
With a smile that looks up to the saint
It's just a thin authority, and it's really not a great reward. But even so, Empress Wu's party didn't want to give Li Xian's line the slightest possibility of strengthening. No, before Gaozong could speak, Jia Chaoyin had already stepped out from the side.
, exhorted loudly.
"Well..."
Gaozong originally wanted to agree to Li Xian's request, but when Jia Chaoyin said this, he couldn't help but hesitate. For a while, it was hard to make a decision.
"What Mr. Jia said is wrong. What does it mean that merchants cannot be ennobled? My ancestors were also merchants. Later, they raised military resources for the great ancestor and were granted the title of duke. According to what Mr. Jia said, he wanted to rent out his residence to
Where, eh?"
Li Xian is not a good person. Asking for Lin Hu's credit this time is what he must do. How can he allow Empress Wu's party to be corrupted? Seeing Gaozong's mind wavering, he immediately and unceremoniously
The story of Empress Wu’s father, Samurai Yi, was brought out - Samurai Yi was a powerful figure during the Sui Dynasty
He was one of the world's largest timber merchants with a fortune of tens of millions. He almost died after offending Sui Prime Minister Yang Su, and later defected to Li Yuan. Not only did he donate all his family wealth, but he also used business as a means to raise a large amount of military supplies for Li Yuan.
With this merit, he was granted the title of Duke Ying.
"Your Highness, you are wrong. How can this be compared? Duke Wu's business was still for military purposes. Gaozu became successful because of it. It is indeed the right thing to do to become a Duke. However, although Lin Hu's move is a small effort, it is not comparable."
Jia Chaoyin was a well-known sophist in the court and was known for his eloquence both at home and abroad. He was not willing to show weakness in front of Li Xian, so he spoke out forcefully.
"My maternal ancestors have made great contributions to the dragon, and it is natural that they should be granted the title of Duke. This is known to the whole world, and there is no need for Mr. Jia to explain it. However, Lin Hu is not afraid of hardships and dangers this time, and has traveled across the oceans to obtain fine seeds.
To benefit the world, it will benefit the present generation, and its merits will be felt for thousands of years.
Although Qiu's actions are not as good as the achievements of his ancestors, they are not far behind. Why is there any reason why he can't be sealed as a marquis? Could it be that Jia Xiang really wants to discourage the heroes of the world from serving the country? What is the reason for this? I don't know.
, please give me some advice!”
When it's the turn of eloquence, Li Xian is a real master. I didn't look at his previous life when he was in the officialdom and held meetings all day long. If he claimed to be second in the entire Tang Dynasty because of his ability to talk, no one would dare to claim to be the first. How could he be dismissed?
Jia Chaoyin refuted it with such a few words, but when he saw Li Xian's expression became solemn, he responded with a series of heart-wrenching questions without hesitation.
"It is not a blessing for the court to open the door to enter by chance, and a humble minister would not dare to do so."
Li Xian's words were extremely sharp, and Jia Chaoyin was sweating profusely, but he didn't want to give up, so he randomly found an excuse to stop him.
"Fortunately? What a lucky person! According to Jia Xiang's words, is it the right way to not reward people for their merits? This palace is strange. Why did Jia Xiang become the prime minister from a scholar? How?
Isn’t it hard work?”
Li Xian had always disliked Jia Chaoyin's behavior. Now that he was in such a mess, how could he miss the opportunity to beat him up? So he spoke unceremoniously and asked.
"Weichen, Weichen..."
Everyone in the world knows how Jia Chaoyin rose to the official position. It was not because of his great ability or the great achievements he made, but because of the favor and trust of Empress Wu. Others know this, but he himself
I knew it in my heart, but was forced to do so by Li Xian in public.
How could he dare to tell the truth? Besides, he really didn't have any commendable political achievements to show off. He was so suffocated that his face was red, but he couldn't even say a complete sentence. His usual eloquent and eloquent image was gone.
When I met the more eloquent Li Xian, I was instantly shattered.
"This matter is very controversial. Although these grains look good, who knows whether they can be promoted to the whole country? If they can only be limited to Dongdu, there is no meaning at all. We will wait until the dust settles. It’s not too late to discuss the merits, does Xian’er have any objections, eh?”
The dog under his command was badly beaten, and as the owner, Empress Wu could no longer sit still, so she waved her hand and ended the argument in a fair manner.
"What the Queen Mother said is true, and I have no objections. It's just that I have something else to report, and I would like to ask the Queen Mother for permission."
Li Xian didn't bother to argue with Jia Chaoyin at first. Now that Empress Wu was taking the lead, he was happy to end this meaningless verbal dispute. However, Li Xian had no intention of letting it go, so he dug a big hole. , waiting for Empress Wu to jump in by herself.
"explain."
Empress Wu originally wanted to use the power of the Queen to suppress Li Xian's pursuit of Jia Chaoyin, but she didn't expect that Li Xian actually refused to give up. When she heard Li Xian say that he had other motives, her heart skipped a beat. He vaguely felt that something was wrong, but at this moment, he could not stop Li Xian from speaking. He had no choice but to raise his eyebrows and squeeze out a word with displeasure.
"Thank you, Queen Mother, for your kindness."
Li Xiancai didn't care whether Empress Wu was happy or not. He was in a good mood when he saw that Empress Wu had half-fallen into the pit. However, despite the depth of the city, he didn't bring it to his face. Instead, he bowed respectfully and thanked her. After making a sound, he raised his hands with a smile and said: "So that the queen mother will know that I have obtained so many fine seeds, and I dare not neglect them. I not only cultivated them myself in my palace, but also specially commissioned them." The governors of six states including Qingzhou, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Xiangzhou, Lanzhou, and Yizhou tried to plant the seeds in dedicated fields. With the great help of the governors of the six states, the results of the six states have now been published. The reports of the governors of the six states are reported here. , Rong Erchen reported on his behalf that Di Renjie, the governor of Qingzhou, reported that a total of 100 acres of land were allocated and 30 acres of sweet potatoes were planted on trial, yielding 153,121 kilograms of sweet potatoes; 30 acres of peanuts were trial planted and yielded 153,121 pounds of sweet potatoes. 11,200 jins of shelled peanuts; 20 acres of trial planting of potatoes, the actual income is 21,724 jins; 20 acres of trial planting of corn, the actual income is 13,470 jins Eight pounds..."
"Buzz..."
Before Li Xian stopped speaking, the ministers and workers couldn't help but started arguing, not for any other reason, but because these yields were really amazing, even greater than what Li Xian planted per mu in the East Palace. It is higher than that of many people, especially Guangzhou and Hangzhou. The yield per mu is astonishing. The yield per mu of sweet potatoes alone has exceeded the 6,500 kilograms mark, which is higher than the output value of rice. It was more than ten times more than that. What made all the courtiers even more tempted was that the two large-yielding plants, sweet potatoes and potatoes, were suitable for planting in a vast area, and their requirements for soil fertility were not too high. They could be grown in China. If it is promoted over a large area, once it can be achieved, the people's food and clothing problems will be easily solved. Its value is so huge that it is no less valuable than opening up new territories. All the ministers and workers here are smart people. , this account was all calculated very clearly. Under this excitement, some of them inevitably lost their composure, completely forgetting that this was the imperial palace, and they were all as excited as excited children... ^-^^-^
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