It snowed for half a month in the twelfth lunar month, and the whole area going north was hit by a snowstorm. People's houses were collapsed by the heavy snow, and there were countless deaths and injuries. In order to survive, many people had no choice but to leave their hometowns and go to the capital or to the south. The weather was extremely cold, and some people were hungry and cold before leaving their hometowns, and died on the way.
The number of casualties caused by the snowstorm continues to rise. At the same time, the price of food, cloth, and heating items such as charcoal is also rising day by day. Bad news is being spread to Beijing one after another, and there is an unharmonious voice among the people, because The saint was unkind and believed in evil ways, which led to heaven to send down punishment, and the emperor was now guilty of his own sin.
This news reached the ears of the saint, and he was so angry that he smashed a mutton-fat white jade paperweight and continued to put pressure on Hubu and others to provide disaster relief as soon as possible in order to regain his respect.
It’s not that the Ministry of Household Affairs doesn’t want to provide disaster relief, but the national treasury is empty. The saint had previously borrowed a lot of money from the national treasury to build some immortal palace, but the account has not been evened yet. Where did the money come from?
No, in the past, the princes vying for the throne would fight to gain fame for disaster relief, but this year they are pretending to be quail, and will not stand out if they can. Those who have no intention of fighting for the throne will be sued directly. 'Frost disease', for fear of being forced to make progress by the emperor's father.
After all, how can disaster relief be fun if there is no money, especially now that the victims have grudges against the saints and the royal family. They think that the saints will be punished by heaven for listening to evil spirits. If one of these grievances is not dealt with well, they may never come back.
Besides, it’s really too cold this year. Why don’t you have to go out and get cold in the winter?
So it’s better to do less thankless things.
Therefore, there were all kinds of quarrels about how to relieve the disaster, who to send as the imperial envoy, and at the court meeting.
But before the imperial envoys for disaster relief could be selected, bad news came again. Because the weather was too cold over the border, countless tribes of cattle, sheep and even people outside the border froze to death. In order to survive, groups came to the border to grab food and winter clothes and quilts. .
In the battle at the border, we won, but we killed one thousand enemies and injured eight hundred ourselves. Why, because it was too cold, the soldiers were too weak to freeze. After investigation, it turned out that the military pay and military supplies had not kept up, and had been embezzled. They were not happy at all after winning the battle, and almost triggered a mutiny.
Now the military camp at the border is going to have to pay for it, otherwise it will be a disaster if there is a mutiny.
They are asking for money everywhere, and all the officials in the Ministry of Household Affairs are bald. They almost have to ask the imperial adviser to turn stones into gold. There is nothing they can do, they are so troublesome!
This year is destined to be difficult!
Nowadays, in order to raise money for charity and save money in the palace, the concubines in the harem, starting with the queen, donated some personal money, and the officials in the court had no choice but to donate some money, but it was only a drop in the bucket, and some people turned their attention to wealthy businessmen.
After all, when it comes to wealth, one must be the richest man doing business.
But businessmen pursue profit and there is no benefit, so how can they willingly pay for it? As an old fox who is ups and downs in the business world, when it comes to calculations, can the abacus beads ring out and be heard overseas?
The middle court was still arguing about who should be selected for disaster relief, while the Ministry of Household Affairs was making every effort to get money as soon as possible. Cui Shixue, the newly appointed left minister, couldn't help but approach Qin Liuxi.
He is dedicated to the people and is also someone who wants to make achievements. He is also a new official. If he wants to light up this fire and secure this position, he needs to show the ability to match this position, so the current disaster relief person He couldn't miss the credit.
As for why he was looking for Qin Liuxi, he naturally wanted to get some advice from her, so his general direction was simple and clear.
In the eyes of others, this may be looking for shortcuts through detours, which is not advisable. But since there are shortcuts, why waste time and take detours? You can do a lot of practical things with that time.
As for whether the reputation is good or not, Cui Shixue doesn't care. He only needs to see the results. If the results can not only bring political achievements but also help the people, it is a good reputation.
Besides, he just came here to ask for advice from his friends. Is he just a scumbag?
When Qin Liuxi saw Cui Shixue coming to him, his smile was a bit inexplicable, as if he had caught you.
Cui Shixue felt very excited and looked at the door subconsciously. Shouldn't he be here today?
Many years later, when he recalled today, he felt so lucky to have walked through this door. It was really the right choice, even if the door was full of thorns.
After bowing to each other and sitting down, Cui Shixue asked straight to the point: "With this smile on your face, the master of the temple is sure that I will come?"
Qin Liuxi pushed the tea over and said with a faint smile: "Master Cui is here, so I laughed."
“Is this Zen language?”
Qin Liuxi smiled and said nothing: No, you took the initiative to board the ship where thieves are causing trouble. I am very happy!
Cui Shixue took a sip of tea and said, "I won't beat around the bush because of the magical power of the temple master. I came here this time to ask you to give me some advice on how to enrich the national treasury."
Qin Liuxi raised his eyebrows and said, "Master Cui, do you want me to instruct the Ministry of Household Affairs on how to compete with the people for profit?"
If this is the case, she would not dare to give advice. If the Ministry of Household Affairs is still competing with the people for profit, then the people will have no way out.
"I dare not." Cui Shixue said: "You know that the imperial court is going to provide disaster relief now. I won't hide it from you. The money that the treasury can use now is only a million. Even if you are willing to provide disaster relief, it is difficult for a clever woman to do it without rice." . So I can only come here shamelessly and ask the viewer to give me some advice on how to make money."
What a pity, he was supposed to take office after the year, but as soon as he came to Beijing to report, he encountered such a thing and took office immediately. This was okay, but when he saw the account book of the Ministry of Accounts, which was almost in deficit, his eyes turned black.
Too poor!
Especially now that the saints have repeatedly put pressure on them to allocate funds for disaster relief. For this reason, which of their officials in the Ministry of Household Affairs has lost several beards?
“If it’s just to raise money for disaster relief, then I’m not helpless, what about this...” Qin Liuxi knocked on the table.
Cui Shixue was very wise. He quickly took out a small stack of banknotes from his sleeve, put it on the table, and said, "This is Gua Jin."
Qin Liuxi looked at the stack of hundred-tael banknotes and asked with a smile: "Master Cui, did you use public funds or did you pay for it out of your own pocket?"
“This is my personal request, so I will pay for it out of my own pocket.” Using public funds to ask for divination, is it because the people at the Yushitai are so busy that they have nothing to write down and hand over the clues?
Qin Liuxi only took out one banknote and said, "That's enough. Sir, just remember it."
Cui Shixue was stunned. Is this a favor from him?
What does she want to do?
Qin Liuxi then said: "I heard that since the time of the late emperor, many old ministers owed the court a lot of money, and they have not been paid in full for so many years. Even if the people leave, the debts will still be there."
Cui Shixue smiled bitterly: "You are thinking of the same thing as me. When I saw the deficit in the account, I also had the idea of this debt. I have looked through the past files, and I am not afraid of you making fun of me. I have the general ledger of the debt, each The total amount of the family's debt is more than two million taels. If you think it can be recovered, it will be very lenient. But it is so easy to collect debts, so there will not be such a backlog. Besides, if you have too many debts, you will not be burdened by them. Those old fritters Regardless of how upright they are, they are no worse than those bastards. When it comes to defaulting on debts, there is no one better than them."
In fact, this account is also a big problem in the Ministry of Revenue. Which Minister of the Ministry of Revenue does not want to settle this account? But those old ministers can't take it out so easily. They either can't afford it, or they are relying on it. If you go to collect debts, they will act rogue. You can argue, but you don't want money!
If you insist on being tough, others can go out of their way to kneel in front of a saint and cry for the late emperor. Who can beat them?
Qin Liuxi held tea and said: "That means there is no right medicine for the problem. As long as the symptoms are treated correctly, it is not difficult to collect debts. Which of these companies doesn't have weak needs? You have to take a pulse." Cui Shixue's heart moved: "If you please If the temple master takes action, everything in this vein must be accurate."
Looking at his eager eyes, Qin Liuxi was a little amused.
"Master Cui, I'm just a foreigner. If I do everything you should do, you should be ashamed to see others." It's just to collect debts. Of course she can, but why should she do it? She didn't take advantage of the imperial court. of salary.
Cui Shixue said with a formal expression: "As long as I can get it back, I'm not ashamed at all. I'm very thick-skinned!"
What is shame? Can it cure the disease of poverty? Hubu is already seriously ill and only money can cure it.
Qin Liuxi: “…”
I didn’t expect you to be quite shameless!
She ignored the other party's hot and expectant eyes and said with a smile: "Master Cui is a capable person. Since he is thick-skinned, he will definitely know his pulse. But even if he recovers these debts, it will be a drop in the bucket. If you want to raise a large sum of money for charity, you have to plan it from the outside.”
The main course is here.
Cui Shixue hurriedly asked: "For example?"
"In this world, the richest people are just wealthy businessmen. They control almost 70% of Dafeng's money. But no one's money comes from strong winds. They all have to work hard to allow them to donate small amounts or large sums." If there is no benefit to money, don’t even think about it.”
Cui Shixue nodded: "So trying to get money from them is also a problem."
"This problem can be easily solved. If you are rich but not noble, then you just have wealth but no name. You are the lowest class of businessmen. They want wealth and fame. You just need to prepare from this aspect." Qin Liu Xi said: "Let's hold a charity auction in an official name."
Cui Shixue was startled: "What is this?"
"Charity auctions are euphemistically called charity. The money raised from the auctions will naturally be used for disaster relief, hence the name. As I said just now, being rich but not expensive is a sore spot for businessmen. They are not short of money. What they lack is fame and nobility, so they like to be arty and try their best to change the family's appearance."
Qin Liuxi held the tea cup and said: "It is difficult for business people to take the imperial examination. If there is this opportunity for reference, I will be happy to pay for it."
Cui Shixue frowned: "If you are a businessman and take the imperial examination, once you pass the examination and you are rich, I am afraid it will be detrimental to the people."
"This can be a condition. Those who pass the exam must give up their business registration and business. How can they grab all the benefits?" Qin Liuxi said: "And this reference opportunity is not for you to send to the street. What is an auction? Naturally, the highest bidder wins. We set five quotas and put them up for auction. How much money do you think they are willing to pay in exchange?"
"In addition to this reference quota, there are other treasures. Is it charity? Those who donate items are doing good, and those who win the auction are also doing good. Since those who are willing to pay for the auction, you must also have something, such as a saint's Calligraphy treasures, or some rare calligraphy and paintings donated by great Confucian masters, donations are based on personal volition, and all income is used for disaster relief. Isn’t this what everyone is famous for? By the way, prepare a few more vouchers, Once the amount of auction money paid by an individual reaches a certain amount, an official certificate can be issued. Even if it is a small bronze medal, it is best to come from a saint's calligraphy and be certified as a title of good deeds. If you want to achieve this reputation, who wouldn't want to pay for it?"
Cui Shixue's heart was beating fast. This was terrible.
“Actually, this is also a business, but it’s just covered with a charity skin to give it a better reputation. Once such an auction is held, just the number of admissions will already give it a good reputation.”
Just think about it, can ordinary people enter such an auction? This is not possible. People participating in the auction do not have certain capital and status. Who will let you join in the fun?
Those who can come are either rich or noble. When the time comes, the entrance badge will be a reputation badge.
Cui Shixue seemed to have seen such a feast. He took a sip of tea and asked: "How can you, a foreigner, understand this?" Don't you chant sutras and catch ghosts every day?
Qin Liuxi smiled and said: "I'm just picking up people's wisdom, it's not what I thought."
Gongbo Cheng’s title of golden sage is not false.
Cui Shixue said: "This is a good idea. But now that disaster relief is imminent, organizing such an auction cannot be done in a day or two."
"Jiu Xuan Auction Hall can set up the stage within two days, but if you want to make it look grand and grand, you can have more time and prepare it for the charitable people who come to participate. After all, donations have to be prepared, right? Those who want to come here to increase their reputation Nobles, you should also prepare fancy clothes and jewelry."
“If you have plenty of time, you can’t save the fire.”
Qin Liuxi smiled and said: "Jiu Xuan Auction Hall is the number one auction house in Beijing. We don't have much money, but it's not impossible to advance millions of dollars for charity."
Cui Shixue: Is there such a good thing?
“So in this auction, in addition to the official quota, Jiuxuan will sell the rest, right? The commission must also be 10%.”
Cui Shixue: “…”
Isn’t that what I’m telling you? Why are you still talking about business?
“Don’t worry. For this auction, Jiuxuan donated a bottle of An Gong Dan from Changsheng Palace, two bottles of top-quality Ginseng Yangrong Pills, and three bottles of Jade Snow Muscle, to contribute to this disaster relief.”
Cui Shixue stood up and said: "Then I will go back and discuss with Lord Shangshu about the auction..."
“Just ask someone to communicate with Manager Liu of Jiuxuan.”
"Okay." Cui Shixue agreed and left without having time to greet her.
Qin Liuxi thought about the scope of the snow disaster, and his smile faded. The natural disaster was irresistible, so he could only do his best to do good.
“Huh?” Qin Liuxi was a little surprised when she felt that she had merit and faith entering the spiritual platform. She counted with her fingers, and her face felt a little warmer, and she called Teng Zhao and Shen Shen out of Jiuxuan. (End of chapter)