The wife is the king of the palace

Before Jin Qi could speak, Lin Xu had already withdrawn his gaze. If it wasn't for the teasing in his eyes, Jin Qi would have suspected that he was suspicious.

Being ignored, Jin Qi choked his breath in his throat.

He was depressed, and Wan Yu, Minister of the Household Department, had already appeared on the list, Wan Yu said: "Your Majesty, I am afraid that the Household Department is powerless in this business matter."

"What do you mean?" Jin Qi still had a smile on his face, but the words he said sent chills down the spine of all the officials.

"Returning to the emperor, the matter of transporting weapons has just passed. There are still many things that need to be dealt with by the Ministry of Households along the treasury, Changle Province, the border and the river. If we add taxes at this time, I am afraid it will be delayed due to lack of resources."

Wan Yu's forehead was dripping with cold sweat, but he could only bite the bullet and refuse even if he was afraid of the emperor's prestige.

This collection of business tax seems to be a great thing to have a lot of oil and water, but in fact it is extremely tricky on the contrary.

Business taxes have always been low, and tax evasion has always been the most serious of all taxes.Now, although all officials agree to increase taxes, how much to collect is a huge problem.

There are countless Dayu merchants, and although there are countless ordinary merchants, the real big tax collectors are rich merchants, and most of these people have contacts with officials in the DPRK and China.With a sudden increase in taxes, these people will not be able to pay taxes honestly, and they will definitely interact with people in the court.

If you don't care about it, the money will not be collected, and it will be difficult for the emperor to explain, and the emperor will blame him.If you manage it, you will definitely offend others.

Being an official in the same dynasty, who is willing to do such a thankless job?

In addition, whether the money can be collected is also a problem, otherwise the first emperor would not have been helpless for so many years, and Jin Qi did not need to deliberately run short of the national treasury.

In the dead silence, Lin Xu, who had already guessed such a result when he noticed the meaning of Jin Qi a few months ago, quietly took a panoramic view of the expressions of all the officials.

After watching for a while, he has recorded all the ghosts in the hearts of the people in this court, and he has a certain amount of how to develop and how to deal with it.

"Then who do you think is suitable?" Jin Qi's eyes were cold, and Wan Yu's face was pale with cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

"I feel that the Ministry of Industry can take on this important task." Wan Yu was horrified, but he still didn't forget to pull in his arch-nemesis Su Fanyi.

Su Fanyi, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, immediately turned dark when he heard the words, and he quickly stood up, "Your Majesty, this is absolutely impossible. The Ministry of Industry has never been in charge of treasury matters, and it has never been involved in tax matters. What should I do if I miss out on a business trip?" ? I think it is safe for the household department to be in charge.”

"The Ministry of Household Affairs is too busy to be responsible, but the Ministry of Industry has no major issues recently, or is it that Su Shangshu is unwilling to help even with this little help?" Wan Yu said.

"It's not a question of whether to help or not. This is the job of the household department. Why let others intervene?" Su Fanyi sneered.

Seeing Su Fanyi and Wan Yu arguing, Jin Qi's face became colder and colder.

The two quarreled endlessly, and other officials kept silent, as if they were afraid of being noticed and causing trouble.

"The relevant people come to the imperial study, and the rest retreat." Jin Qi looked around coldly and said.

Hearing this, the irrelevant people fled away with a sigh of relief, while the officials who were left behind related to taxation were full of nervousness.

In the imperial study room, Jin Qi was writing, and the chief eunuch hurriedly stepped forward to spread paper and grind it.The relevant officials gathered in the Imperial Study Room lowered their heads and did not dare to make a sound.

Jin Qi dipped the brush in his hand, and after a little hesitation, the tip of the pen fell down, writing on the paper like flowing clouds and flowing water.In an instant, a sonorous and powerful character appeared.

As a prince, Jin Qi has been studying since he was a child. In his early years, he could at least write better than ordinary people, not to mention comparing with famous masters.

After he ascended the throne, he was influenced by Lin Xu, and would copy some famous works from time to time. After a few years, the words he wrote were quite tasteful.

Jin Qi seemed to be immersed in it, concentrating on writing, but the people who were called became more and more nervous, holding their breath and not daring to raise their eyes.

Headed by Hubu Shangshu Wanyu, his back was already drenched with sweat, and his dark blue court clothes were all black and blue.But even so, he still didn't say a word.

The deadly silence lasted for about half a stick of incense before it was finally broken. The person who broke it was Jin Qi. He put down the brush in his hand, and after carefully observing the words he wrote, he looked up. everyone.

"What do you think of the word Zhen?" Jin Qi was neither angry nor anxious, as if he really asked these people to watch him write, rather than discuss business matters.

The less anxious Jin Qi was, the more restless and tense the officials became. The people who stretched their heads and retracted their heads were also stabbed, and everyone who stood motionless and bowed their heads was hopeful at this moment, hoping that the unlucky person would be elected soon, and also hoping That person is not himself.

"Wanyu, tell me." Jin Qi glanced at the chief eunuch next to him, and the latter immediately stepped forward to hold up the ink he had just written so that Wan Yu could see clearly.

Wan Yu raised his head for a quick glance, and while bowing his head, he blurted out the compliment, "The emperor's handwriting is excellent, the words are vigorous and powerful, and the pen is strong, it is a rare masterpiece."

Jin Qi laughed out loud when he heard the words, as if he was really happy.

Listening to Jin Qi's laughter, Wan Yu's scalp felt numb, because the word on Jin Qi's paper was the word 'tax'.

"What about you? Do you also think the word "Zhen" is good?" Jin Qi smiled and looked at the others.

When all the officials were asked, there was a burst of applause immediately, there were all kinds of vigorous and penetrating compliments, and some even compared the word to a masterpiece that is not as good as a famous master.

After some compliments, Jin Qi seemed to be really happy, and his smile was even bigger, but the cold and murderous look in his eyes became more and more undisguised.

While everyone was laughing, Jin Qi suddenly said coldly: "You can't do such a trivial matter, you can't do it, what do you think I still support you?"

The praises and laughter stopped abruptly one after another, and everyone seemed to be strangled by the neck, not to speak out, not even daring to breathe.

Jin Qi looked at the few officials at the front with murderous intent. These people were all important officials in the court, and Hubu Wanyu was the first among them.

"Your Majesty, I really can't do anything." Wan Yu knelt down, and then he slammed his head three times in succession.

The next moment, before Jin Qi could speak again, all the officials had already knelt down, and only Lin Xu and Xu Lan were left standing aside.

Jin Qi was furious at the moment, but the scolding on his lips turned into the word 'roll'.

When everyone heard this, they hurriedly left the imperial study room.

"A group of idiots." Jin Qi grabbed the inkstone on the side and threw it towards the door, so frightened that the people walking behind were so weak that they almost rolled to the ground.

"Get out too." Jin Qi scolded.

All the maids and eunuchs waiting in the study retreated immediately, and at the end, they did not forget to help close the door.

When the door was closed, Jin Qi scolded: "These trash are usually good at speaking, but when something happens, they all look like this."

He knew from the beginning that this matter would not be so easy, but he never expected that he would get to this point after careful calculation and secret planning all the way, but he got stuck at the last moment.

"This matter is deeply involved, so it's not surprising that they have scruples," Xu Lan said.

Jin Qi was angry in his heart, but he also understood the truth. He looked at Lin Xu thoughtfully, with hesitation flashing in his eyes.

Although there are many civil and military officials in the Manchu Dynasty who are on his side, the only ones who can really be used are Xu Lan and Lin Xu.

It's just that this matter is deeply involved, and he is really worried about letting Lin Xu go.It is too inappropriate to let Xu Lan go. As the Minister of Rites, Xu Lan has never cared about finances.

Xu Lan also understood this truth. He looked aside at Lin Xu, and it seemed that he was the one to blame.

Jin Qi and Xu Lan looked at Lin Xu one after another, but Lin Xu looked down at the big characters on the desk at the moment.

Seeing Lin Xu looking at the words he wrote, Jin Qi's extremely angry mood improved, "How does the Prime Minister feel?"

Lin Xu raised his eyes and glanced at the man who couldn't hide the grin on his face. He didn't speak, but just looked away.

"Does the prime minister think that my writing is not good?" Jin Qi asked again.

Although he wrote this word out of anger, but the choice of writing is excellent, in his opinion it is considered a good handwriting.

Lin Xu glanced at the words on the table again, and said slowly under Jin Qi's expectant gaze, "It's quite expressive."

Although Lin Xu only confided a few words, Jin Qi became excited in an instant. He took the words on the table and looked at them again. The more he looked at them, the more satisfied he became.

Influenced by Lin Xu, he has been practicing calligraphy for six or seven years, and this is the first time he has heard a good character from Lin Xu in so many years.

"Then how much does the prime minister think the word "Zhen" is worth?" Jin Qi asked.

Lin Xuxi is fond of calligraphy and painting, and has countless treasures in his family, including many famous works.Lin Xu treasured those calligraphy and paintings on weekdays, and never let people touch them casually.

Thinking of Lin Xu's precious energy, Jin Qi was moved, and said again: "How about I give it to you?"

Lin Xu likes calligraphy and painting, so he gave him calligraphy and painting with his own handwriting, so that he can keep them in his collection, which is really beautiful.

"How much is the emperor willing to give?" Lin Xu glanced at the big characters on the table again, looking at the characters that almost tore the paper, his dark eyes showed a bit of disgust.

Calligraphy and painting emphasize a rhyme character, and Jin Qi's character is really expressive. Anyone can see that when he wrote this character, his heart was full of anger, otherwise he wouldn't be able to puncture the paper.

"I feel that the writing of my words is vivid and full of spirit/rhythm, and it is worthwhile to say less—" Jin Qi stopped abruptly as he spoke.

After realizing it later, he turned to look at Lin Xu. He asked Lin Xu for the price, but Lin Xu asked him how much he was willing to pay. What do you mean?Is it possible that this person still wants him to pay for it?

"What's wrong with my handwriting?" Jin Qi, who was full of joy just now, slapped the handwriting carefully on the table, and immediately exploded.

"The matter of taxation will be implemented as soon as possible." Lin Xu glanced at the words on the table again, rolled up his sleeves lightly, and walked towards the door at a fast pace, which was faster than before when he was scolded The officials who escaped were even worse.

"Stop for me!" Jin Qi wanted to chase after him. After walking two steps, he went back to get his writing. When he went out again, the courtyard was empty.

He gritted his teeth and turned his head to get angry, but he saw that Xu Lan had already pulled up his clothes and ran away.