kingnovel Chapter 330: Royal Fabric Merchant
Chapter 330: Royal Fabric Merchant
That’s right, the emperor said that he didn’t want to disappoint Shen Zheng and the people.
He is the high and mighty ruler of a country, the true dragon emperor. If this matter happened to some other emperors, the people? They are just ants. Who cares?
But at this moment, the emperor seemed to have truly become the father of all people, which was very moving.
He spoke passionately, hardly taking a breath, and all the officials in the hall were moved.
That County Magistrate Shen is a minister, and so are they. How can they not be moved that Your Majesty protects and cares about them as ministers?
The emperor took a breath and said:
"Let's talk about the cotton loom. My dear ministers of the Ministry of Industry, please don't blame me for saying something unpleasant. It's fine that you haven't developed a cotton loom. But some of you come from a family of craftsmen. As Lord Ji said just now, the unique craftsmanship of your family is clearly beneficial to the people. Is there anyone willing to pass on the inherited craftsmanship to the world?"
Everyone in the Ministry of Works fell silent and lowered their heads in guilt.
will not.
Who would? That's a treasure that makes money. If it gets out, won't their whole family, hundreds of mouths, be left hungry?
The emperor let out a long sigh.
"But as soon as Shen Qing and the craftsmen of Liuyang Prefecture developed the textile machine, they sent a message to me. They were not afraid that I would take their things away. Instead, they planned how to promote the textile machine and benefit the people."
Liu Hongzhi no longer dared to look up at the emperor's expression, and cursed Ji Benchang in his heart.
It’s all Ji Benchang’s fault.
If Ji Benchang had not mentioned the Yue family's affairs, perhaps Your Majesty would not have thought so much about it.
His legs were shaking and he almost fainted, then he heard the emperor say:
"Liu Hongzhi, you are so concerned about the textile machine. I don't believe you haven't noticed that Liang Fu from the Ministry of Industry has now stayed in Tongan County! Isn't it obvious what the attitude of Tongan County is?! Why do you, an outsider, need to make decisions for Shen Qing!"
"And the transfer of the Canal Transport Department has not been concealed. I don't believe that you have not received the news. In a short time, Tongan County will cooperate with the Canal Transport Department! Since Shen Zheng dares to take the initiative to discuss cooperation, she is not afraid of people like you holding her pigtails!"
After he finished speaking, he glared at Baiguan, who looked bitter.
What is a person like Liu Hongzhi?
They didn't say anything. Didn't Liu Hongzhi say all the words...
It's really a disaster for innocent people.
After the emperor finished speaking, he remembered Liu Hongzhi's words "how can this be accomplished" and became angry again.
He tapped the back of his chair and pointed at the spearhead:
"Liang Fu from the Ministry of Works and Shen Xingjian from the Ministry of Revenue are both top talents from the two ministries. Now they are staying in Tongan County to assist Mr. Shen. If Tongan County still cannot accomplish anything, what will Mr. Liu do?"
You could hear a pin drop in the hall. Liu Hongzhi lowered his head and his arms trembled slightly.
It's over, it's over.
If Ji Benchang and Yue Zhenchuan, these two idiots, could stand on his side, he wouldn't have done this!
Seeing that he didn't say anything, the emperor said, "It seems that Liu Qing is talking about rice seeds and textile machines, but he actually means textile machines, right? If I remember correctly, the father-in-law of the eldest son of the Yue family is now... the royal merchant of cloth?"
Liu Hongzhi's eyes suddenly widened and cold sweat broke out.
How could Your Majesty remember such a trivial matter so clearly!
All the officials were shocked. No wonder!
"So that's how it is! No wonder Minister Ji wanted to keep targeting the Yue family. According to what Your Majesty said, the Yue family's relatives should also be in the fabric business. Wouldn't these two families dominate the market?"
"Master Liu's connections are really complicated. His wife's uncle's relatives? It sounds like they have nothing to do with his Liu family!"
Ji Benchang sneered after hearing this and added insult to injury:
"As long as there is money to pave the way, let alone eight hundred poles, we have to make a move! Madam's uncle and in-laws, on the surface, seem to have nothing to do with the Liu family, but inwardly... Otherwise, why do you think Lord Liu wants His Majesty to bring textile machines into the court?"
The people in the Ministry of Revenue were good at calculations and could sort out the whole matter in just a few words, but some people were confused.
Lu Botang looked left and right and found that most people understood it except him.
His old face turned red, and he pulled Ji Benchang's sleeve and asked:
"Master Ji, according to what you said, the reason why Master Liu wanted Tongan County to hand over the textile looms was because he was afraid that the cotton textile looms... would hinder the business of his wife's family and relatives?"
Ji Benchang showed an expression that said this child is incorrigible.
"Yes and no."
Lu Botang tugged at his sleeve again, "I hope Master Ji will give me some advice."
"It's easy to talk about."
Ji Benchang stroked his short beard and said:
"General Lu, cotton cloth is cheap and comfortable. It will only be a matter of time before it becomes popular in the world. Take the soldiers in your barracks for example. Cotton cloth absorbs sweat, is durable and washable, and has a very low cost. If you were to buy cotton clothes for them, would you be willing to do so?"
"Of course I do!"
Lu Botang thought without hesitation, "It's cold in winter, and many people will freeze to death while marching and fighting outside. If it's closer to the camp, it's okay, and we can carry the bodies back to place them, so that the soldiers won't be exposed in the wilderness. But if the place is far away... So if there is this opportunity, Lu will definitely not miss it."
This topic is a bit heavy, but it is the fact.
If the area was in the wilderness and there was a war, if the soldiers froze to death, there would not even be straw mats to wrap their bodies with. They would just dig a hole on the spot and bury them with two handfuls of mud.
Lu Botang felt it was quite a shame to die like this.
The strong and brave man did not die under the swords and guns of the enemy, but was frozen to death...
Damn it!
He clenched his fists, took a deep breath and came back to his senses.
"That's not right, Master Ji. Isn't this exactly the same as what I just said?"
Ji Benchang shook his head.
"General, what you said is that the two Ji families are afraid that Tong'an County will hinder their business. But I just said that the Yue family does not do business with ordinary people. It can only be considered an influence, but it is not entirely a hindrance."
Lu Botang wrinkled his face and said with disdain:
"Then they are not very smart? Their minds are smaller than the tip of a needle..."
Ji Benchang laughed and said to Liu Hongzhi who was kneeling on the ground:
"It's not that it doesn't work, it's that it works too well. As long as Lord Shen of Tong'an County hands over the textile machines, the cotton cloth business will belong to the court. Since such a large business belongs to the court, someone must be sent to manage it. Once it's managed, it will be the big deal. If cotton cloth is popularized, won't it have to be sold?"
"sell?!"
Lu Botang's eyes widened and he understood.
"You mean, once the cotton cloth business has passed through the hands of the imperial court, if it is to be sold, it is very likely to be in the hands of the imperial merchants. In this way, the matter will fall into the hands of the Yue family's relatives..."
Ji Benchang snorted.
"With me here, it's not certain that they will fall into the hands of these two families, but everything in the world can be manipulated, the only thing is that we can't guard against it."
Just like what happened with Yue’s in-laws becoming imperial merchants.