Emperor Sui Yang

With the destruction of Tuyuhun and the surrender of Luo in the Western Turks, the Sui Dynasty's westward passage was completely opened, and trade with countries in the Western Regions became more frequent, including Persia and Tianzhu farther away.

Among them, five kinds of goods: seeds, medicinal materials, minerals, spices, and horses are not allowed to be smuggled, and only the imperial court can purchase and sell them.

The department in charge of trade with the Western Regions is currently the Si Nong Temple. After the Si Nong Temple was bought back, part of it was filled into the internal treasury for royal use and emperor rewards, and the rest was handed over to the Ministry of Civil Affairs for sale among the people.

In fact, it is quite chaotic. After all, the westward trade has just started on the right track, and the supervision of the entire foreign trade is not perfect.

Yang Ming was in the East Palace today, discussing with his subordinates how to smooth out the trade in the Western Regions.

"The customs duty of Yiwu City last year was 220 million yuan, 410 million yuan the year before last, and 500 million yuan the year before last, and it is getting smaller every year," Li Gang said with a smile:
"But everyone has seen with their own eyes that there are actually more and more Huren caravans traveling between the capital and the Eastern Capital. The trade volume is expanding, but the tariffs are decreasing. I don't know what Wang Wei did."

Wang Wei is currently the prefect of Yiwu, and he has been doing it for four years. He is the one who collects the customs duties of Yiwu County.

It is unreasonable for local officials to collect tariffs. Although Sinong Temple has a commissioner to supervise, it is mainly to supervise trade, regardless of tax collection.

Feng Deyi said: "Actually, it's not difficult to guess. Driven by profit, there must be someone enriching their own pockets. Now everyone knows that the trade in the Western Regions is a piece of fat, and smuggling is inevitable. Not only Yu Wenhuaji, but also many families have intervened. "

That's why Yang Ming only mentioned the matter of smuggling and smuggling in front of Yu Wenshu, but he didn't mention it at the court meeting, because some of the people at the court meeting were also smuggling.

The law does not blame the public, and there is no way to raise this matter publicly.

Then we can only find a way to stop their smuggling.

Yuan Wendu said: "When you enter the customs from the Western Regions, there are only three places to collect taxes. Yiwu is full tax, Zhangye is half tax, and when you arrive in the capital, it is merchant tax. For a good horse, Yiwu collects [-] yuan. Zhangye has [-] yuan, the capital only needs [-] yuan, as long as it avoids Yiwu’s customs duties, a horse can evade tax by [-] yuan, ten horses can get [-] yuan, and a hundred horses can get [-] yuan, such a big temptation, who would not want to do it?”

Nowadays, the cheapest price of horses coming in from the Western Regions in the capital is [-] to [-] yuan, and the better ones are [-] to [-] yuan. If they are sold to the south, the price can be raised even more.

The standard of a good horse is a horse from [-] yuan to [-] yuan. How much you can sell after entering the Central Plains is up to you. My tariff remains unchanged.

Horses are very valuable, because in the Sui Dynasty, they were equal to luxury cars.

Li Mi smiled and said: "When the tariff was set, Yiwu County originally planned to set the tariff on good horses from the Western Regions at [-], but then it was reduced by nearly half in order to facilitate trade, so that a large number of good horses from the Western Regions could be imported. With such a low price, smuggling is still rampant, so we have to think of a way.”

"I think Wang Wei's fault is not with Wang Wei," Prince Xianma Liu Xuan said: "Yiwu set up a county, because it is a border pass, so I specially entered it as Zhongzhong County, and the county guard is only from the fifth rank. Wang Wei is a fifth rank eunuch, who's He doesn't dare not give face, so smuggling is almost impossible, unless important officials are sent to guard."

Fang Xuanling said with a smile: "As an important minister, how could it be possible to go to Yiwu?"

Yang Ming nodded and said with a smile: "I don't blame Wang Wei for this kind of thing. It's the same for everyone here to go to Yiwu. Manchao Gongqing is not something that a prefect can offend. Who would be willing to go to that kind of place on the third rank?" ? Even if you let him go, if he can’t work for a year, he will find an excuse to come back. It’s not a long-term solution. It’s right to send important officials to sit in the town, but you have to make people willing to go and stay for a long time. You should think of a way.”

"This point is actually very simple," Li Xuandao said: "Give the right to seal the border."

Yang Ming was taken aback for a moment, and after pondering for a moment, he said, "Tell me in detail."

Li Xuandao said: "Ministers of the third rank and above, let alone go to Yiwu, Zhangye County and Wuwei County may not be willing to go, so can these counties be combined and formed as Longxi Road, with a general manager or a Xingtai Province?" ?”

"You have given too much," Li Mi disagreed, saying, "Now in the Sui Dynasty, there is no district chief, and there is only one Southwest Xingtai Province. This is still the crown prince who is also the minister. Who does Shang Shu order to do it?"

Li Xuandao said: "Naturally, the crown prince will also be in charge."

Du Ruhui shook his head and said: "This is not appropriate. Our original intention is to give power. If the Minister's order is gone, then we will shoot from the left and right of the platform. This is still a separation of powers. Separation of powers will form opposition. For the Zhenfu area, There is no benefit."

"Keming is right. If there is a Taoism, power must be centralized. Only one person can help the court keep a close eye on the trade in the Western Regions." Yang Ming nodded and said:

"However, the military and political powers still need to be separated. Those in charge of military power don't care about trade, and those in charge of trade don't have military power. This is the most appropriate way."

Liu Xuan said: "If this arrangement is made, two trustworthy talents must be sent. There are only more than [-] troops stationed in the Longxi area, and military power can still be given."

The main force of the Sui Dynasty, in Guanzhong, the number of frontier troops is actually not much, unlike Tang Xuanzong's period, when the outside was more important than the inside, the frontier army accounted for 80.00%, and the central army only 15.00%.

The Great Sui was just the opposite, with the Central Army accounting for [-]%.

If Longxi sets up a way, how can you give him military power? You can still bring 2 people into Guanzhong?There are 15 guards around the capital alone. Are you using mortars to fight?
The East Palace has roughly calculated that the country’s tariff loss due to smuggling in Yiwuguan should be between 400 million and 500 million every year. It doesn’t sound like much, but what if it takes ten years?That's tens of millions.

Therefore, it is imperative to prevent smuggling.

After discussing for a long time, Yang Ming finally said:

"The matter still needs to be decided by His Majesty. Everyone come up with a detailed plan. I will ask Your Majesty to do it if it can be passed. If not, find another way."

Liu Xuan and Li Gang are in charge of hosting the program, and they are the most experienced.

In Xu Guogong's mansion, Yu Wenshu has been training his son for a whole day.

"Are you so short of money? Why? I don't have enough money for you to spend? Or is my Yu Wenshu's family too small and you don't like it?"

Yu Wenshu was completely unaware of the matter of smuggling and smuggling. He thought that his son had stumbled in smuggling before and would change it. Well, it did change, from East Turkic to Western Turkic.

Hua and why are you so courageous?My father has the merit of destroying the country, how can I not be courageous?

"It's not that my son is smuggling alone," Yu Wenhuaji said, "There are many people who evade customs duties on Yiwu's side. Compared with others, my son earns a small amount of money."

Yu Wenshu sneered and said: "Do you know, when the prince said this to me today, I felt as if the prince held a knife on my neck. When I left the hall, I Only then did I realize that it was not the crown prince who held the knife, but you."

Yu Wenhuaji was taken aback, and hurriedly knelt down to his father: "Grandfather is serious, can't it be okay if your son doesn't get involved in the future?"

"Wolves eat meat, dogs eat shit," Yu Wenshu said in a deep voice:
"When will you be able to distinguish what is meat and what is shit? You are also a county magistrate now, but look at your actual position, without me, General You Yiwei, is it your turn? I don't want to think about how to go up , all you want to do is make money, do you think you are the son of Yang Jun? He is a prince, and if he does nothing, he is also a general of the army, who do you think you are?"

"Grandpa's lesson is that my son will never mess around again," Yu Wenhuaji said with a bow.

Yu Wenshu shook his head and sighed: "How much money have you earned from smuggling for so many years? Tell me the real number."

"Ah..." Yu Wenhuaji hesitated and said, "What's the matter, there are two or three million."

Yu Wenshu nodded: "Take out 200 million, divide it into one year, and send it to Shuyi one after another."

"Ah?" Yu Wenhuaji was dumbfounded: "This is my son's money. Give her 200 million, and I will keep 100 million? The son has been cautious all these years, for whom is he working so hard? Isn't it the old-age pension money you have saved?"

"Hehe, I don't need you to take care of the elderly, you think too much," Yu Wenshu said with a sneer, "The remaining 100 million will be given next year. You can send it to others in one go, and they won't accept it."

Yu Wenhuaji immediately said with a bitter face: "Why? Our family has given her a lot of filial piety on weekdays, and now Shuyi's attitude towards us has gradually changed. There is no need to give so much, right?"

"Remember," Yu Wenshu said: "When I die, how long you can live in the future depends on how long Shuyi will protect you. If she is only willing to protect you for one day, then you can only live for one day."

Yu Wenhuaji was shocked, and was stunned on the spot:

"Is it so unpleasant for the prince to look at his son?"

Yu Wenshu lowered his head, approached his son's face, and said, "If you weren't my son, I don't like you."

After finishing speaking, Yu Wenshu said coldly: "Send all the money out before the end of this year."

"My son knows," Yu Wenhua said with a dejected look, watching his father leave.

Yu Wenshu is a smart person. Yang Ming mentioned sex and smuggling to him in the hall, and he didn't mention it to you for nothing.

Originally talking about Liang Shidu, why did they turn to smuggling?
It means that the matter of the resumption of the war by the Ministry of War, whether I care or not depends on you.

That's why Yu Wenshu asked his son to spit out all the money and spit it out to Chen Shuyi, which is tantamount to indirectly honoring the prince.

Yu Wenshu knew very well in his heart that a subject is a lamb, when the king slaughters you, you have to be able to take out the meat, if you can't do it, you are not even a lamb.

So smuggling is not terrible, but what is terrible is not knowing how to feed the higher-ups.

Yu Wenshu has a banquet tonight, and he invites Chen Shuming, Minister of Honghe Temple, as the middleman, and invites Chen Shuda, Cheng Cheng of the Prince's Household, Chen Yi, Cheng Yi of Chang'an County, Chen Yun, the Tongyi Lang, Shen Zunli of Taichang Temple, Bo Shen Shu'an, the head of Jingzhao Mansion, and others. The children of Chen and Shen who have no real job in Beijing.

Among them, Shen Zunli is the younger brother of Shen Wuhua, and Shen Shuan is the younger brother of Shen Wuhua's family. The main wives of these two are the princesses of old Chen and the older sisters of Chen Shubao.

It is conservatively estimated that the Chen family and the Shen family have more than a dozen married couples, and the two families are about to become a family.

If Yu Wenshu wanted to please Chen Shuyi, he must also please the Chen family and the Shen family. In his capacity, he was condescending.