My husband is pure and has few desires, but I gave birth to three children in a row

Lan family.

Mrs. Lan signaled for people to place several boxes of gifts in Lan's mother's yard.

Help her out to see.

Several grandmothers from the Lan family were checking the lists.

When they saw Lan's mother coming out, they all came forward and greeted her.

He took the list and explained to Lan's mother what the gifts were and which ones Lu Zhenzhen specially gave to her.

Lan's mother was so happy that she couldn't stop smiling. With her daughter-in-law and several granddaughters-in-law joining in the fun, she was even happier.

As they were chatting and laughing, Minister Lan, now Minister Lan, came back.

After greeting each other, Minister Lan glanced at the boxes that almost took up half the yard and scolded them, "You are young and ignorant after all. You just went to South Vietnam and you don't even know if you have established yourself yet, but you are spending money recklessly."

Although he said this, he had already touched an ivory snuff bottle in his hand and couldn't let it go.

Madam Lan knew that Minister Lan was saying one thing and thinking another, and she was so happy.

I don't want to see Minister Lan staying in this yard and affecting everyone's mood.

He pulled out the letter from the side that Lu Zhenzhen and Fu Zhiyi had written specifically for him and slapped it into Minister Lan's arms: "This is a letter from Zhenzhen and Brother Yi to you."

Minister Lan held the thick letter in his hand, took his leave from his mother, and went to the study room in front.

Arriving at the study, Minister Lan sat down and hesitated for a moment, but decided to read Lu Zhenzhen's letter first. After all, the letter from his daughter was more interesting.

I don’t like the letters from my eldest nephew, which are dry and full of official business, without any emotion.

As expected by Minister Lan, Lu Zhenzhen described in detail in her letter how prosperous the business in Nanyue was.

It also focuses on how much imported goods the ships from the South Seas and the West bring every time they arrive in South Vietnam.

How much were these imported goods bought for by local merchants in South Vietnam, and how much were they worth when they arrived in the capital?

……

At first, Minister Lan thought Lu Zhenzhen was just talking to him about family matters and local customs, but the more he looked, the more serious his expression became.

As the Minister of Revenue, he was particularly sensitive to money.

After reading the examples Lu Zhenzhen listed, I quickly did the math in my mind.

Soon he came up with a number that even made him stunned.

As the Minister of Revenue, he was quick to realize the business opportunities and the strangeness here.

I immediately understood the true meaning of Lu Zhenzhen's letter.

Over the years, the imperial court has always believed that Baiyue is a wild and barren land. Although it knows that there is a wharf there, it has become more prosperous than before because of the docking of overseas ships and the trade with merchants from the imperial court.

But in everyone's mind, the Suzhou and Hangzhou areas are the truly prosperous places of the imperial court.

But looking at the data listed by Lu Zhenzhen, among the land of Baiyue, at least Nanyue is not inferior to Suzhou and Hangzhou.

That being the case, the taxes paid by South Vietnam in recent years have not changed much compared to many years ago.

The weird thing here——

Minister Lan realized that Lu Zhenzhen had given him a great opportunity.

I read the letter carefully again, and the feeling in my heart became clearer and clearer.

He took a deep breath, put Lu Zhenzhen's letter aside, and picked up Fu Zhiyi's letter.

Light and weightless.

He opened it and saw a piece of paper with his previous guess written on it, and an extra line of words at the end: It is recommended to reopen the Maritime Customs Office, let the court control overseas trade, and fill the national treasury with the income.

This idea was exactly the same as what Minister Lan had just thought.

Minister Lan couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips. You little brat, you've finally made some progress.

At this moment, he could no longer sit still. He put the two letters in his arms and ordered outside: "Prepare the sedan chair and go to the palace!"

When the emperor heard that the Minister of Revenue wanted to see him, he was stunned.

I looked at the sky outside. Why did he come to see me at this hour? Is there something important going on?

He hurriedly asked someone to come in.

After thinking for a while, he carefully put the telescope on the table into the drawer, then sat up straight with peace of mind, waiting for Lan Lianghui to come in.

After Lan Lianghui came in, he bowed first and was allowed to sit down by the emperor without any formalities.

Then he asked, "Lan Qing, is there something important that you want to see me for at this time?"

Lan Lianghui briefly explained the whole story, then took out the letters from Lu Zhenzhen and Fu Zhiyi. The eunuch chief Zhao Quan next to him immediately stepped forward to take them and presented them to the emperor.

The emperor took the letter, read it quickly, and then put it aside. He tapped his fingers on the table and asked after a while, "Who is the commander-in-chief of the local garrison in South Vietnam?"

Lan Lianghui was naturally prepared before coming.

When the emperor asked, he thought for a moment and came up with the answer: "It's Ren Yuhai."

After a moment's thought, he added, "He once served under the command of the Prince Consort of Deqing. Five years ago, he disobeyed military orders and disagreed with his superiors, and was nearly dismissed from his post. However, because his daughter was a concubine in the Third Prince's harem, the Third Prince pleaded for him, and he was transferred to Nanyue to serve as a general."

The emperor's eyes darkened. It was Lady Deqing and the Third Prince again.

He said slowly, "What do you think about this matter, Lan Qing?"

Lan Lianghui was filled with righteous indignation. "Your Majesty, if this is verified to be true, then this matter must not be forgiven! The national treasury has been under strain in recent years, and the soldiers guarding the border haven't even found cotton-padded clothes for the end of the year. If the court had known earlier that overseas trade in imported goods was so profitable and established a customs office, the tax alone would have added at least a hundred thousand silver coins to the national treasury, which would have helped alleviate this urgent need!"

The emperor's eyes widened suddenly. More than one hundred thousand silver coins, it has been five years, it must be at least five hundred thousand!

Such a huge sum of money! Just gone like that!

Never mind whether his uncle and aunt could tolerate it, as the emperor he couldn't tolerate it at all.

He immediately gritted his teeth and said, "Investigate, investigate thoroughly!"

Lan Lianghui narrowed his eyes. It was not his job to verify this. He just needed to add fuel to the fire.

After saying this, Lan Lianghui brought up the matter of setting up the Maritime Customs Office.

The emperor was still a little hesitant, but as soon as Lan Lianghui mentioned tens of thousands of silver coins a year, he immediately stopped hesitating.

"You should start preparing for the Maritime Customs first! Hurry up, it might be useful in a while."

Lan Lianghui quickly responded yes.

Seeing that the emperor was in a bad mood, Lan Lianghui tactfully took his leave.

The emperor became angrier and angrier as he thought about it. He stopped approving the memorial, grabbed the telescope, and went to the Tianguang Tower next to the garden.

Tianguang Tower is a three-story building located in a remote area and not many people come here on weekdays.

The emperor went upstairs, leaving only Zhao Quan to serve him.

Then he asked, "I heard that the third brother passed a sign into the palace again today?"

Zhao Quan bent down and lowered his head as he answered, "Yes, today is the anniversary of Concubine Yi's death. The Third Prince would come to the palace to pay his respects every year. I think he has already entered the palace by now."

The emperor nodded, calculated the direction, and pushed open a window.

Then he set up the telescope.

In the camera, the third prince was walking slowly in from outside the palace gate. He was dressed rather simply today, probably because it was the anniversary of his deceased mother's death.

But at this moment, there was no sadness or solemnity on his face. Instead, his face was full of smiles, flushed with joy.

It doesn't look like he is coming to the palace to pay homage, but rather to receive a reward.