in2ebook Chapter 237 Madam's auspicious words will surely lead to the unification of the world by our Ea
Chapter 237 Madam's auspicious words will surely lead to the unification of the world by our Ea
Qin Yizhen paused, remained silent for a moment, and finally sighed: "Fine, since it's her own choice and no one forced her, let her go."
Whether it's wealth and status or true feelings and sincerity, as long as it's what you're willing to do and you feel that your efforts are worthwhile, no one else can interfere.
If it were for genuine affection, perhaps they could still offer some advice to a scoundrel like Pei Yutang, shake the water out of her head, and see if they could clear her mind a bit.
But for the sake of wealth and status, there's nothing more to say.
This world is a giant arena of fame and fortune, and everyone wants to live a better life. It's perfectly normal for people to climb the social ladder for wealth and status.
Even Qin Yizhen and Cheng Yan wanted to keep their current wealth and status.
Even if you use every means to pursue wealth and status, as long as you don't harm others, it's understandable.
Lady Changting sighed as well: "Indeed, let her be."
"In a way, her actions were for her own sake and also for her younger brother. Although Prince Pei is muddle-headed, the Marquis of Changyang is still alive, and the foundation of the Marquis of Changyang's mansion is still there. As long as she manages it well after marrying into the family, things can turn out quite well."
"However, I believe that the behavior of the Lady of Zhenbei Marquis is ultimately inappropriate, and this trend should not be allowed to continue."
"If all generals were like her, raising their subordinates' daughters as goddaughters and then using them for marriage alliances, what would they take their subordinates and daughters for? Would they be tools for currying favor with court officials and forming cliques for personal gain?"
"Although Miss Shi was willing, if there are too many such cases, there will inevitably be girls who are forced into marriage. Those families, whose daughters are not their own, use them to exchange for benefits, regardless of who the girl marries or how she lives."
Qin Yizhen's expression changed slightly upon hearing this: "What you say is very true, Madam. This trend must not be allowed to continue. If it does, things will get out of control."
If everyone did this, what would they consider their subordinates and their daughters to be? Their private property, their servants?
If that's the case, where do we put their fathers who shed blood and sweat for their country?
Qin Yizhen's mind was in turmoil, and she didn't know how to resolve it.
"Madam, the Earl of Changting is also a military officer. How will the Earl of Changting's mansion handle such matters?"
Lady Changting shook her head: "They just give some money. Military families, if they have any conscience, are not rich. They think of the brothers who followed them for a long time, and now that they are gone, they naturally have to help take care of them."
"The imperial court did provide some money, but it didn't last long. Later on, we had to take care of some ourselves."
"There's nothing we can do about it."
The four kingdoms have been in a tripartite balance of power for fifty years, and border wars occur from time to time. The generals who can stand firm in the court are all ruthless and fierce. Furthermore, if you want your soldiers to follow you, you also need to have a conscience.
The Pingxi Marquis's mansion was extremely wealthy and glorious, and everyone praised the Pingxi Marquis as an unparalleled genius. However, the war was not something he could do alone. For every moment of glory, countless soldiers had to give their lives.
The Pingxi Marquis's mansion has been subsidizing the family with money, leaving it financially empty. The mansion's accounts have long contained only some money for future expenses and reserves.
"I wonder when the world will be at peace again, and there will be no more wars," Qin Yizhen sighed.
Lady Changting smiled and said, "Princess, you are wrong. It should be said that we don't know when Eastern Qin will unify the world and all the generals will be promoted and ennobled."
Qin Yizhen was delighted: "Madam's words are auspicious; it is certain that our Eastern Qin will unify the world."
"God bless them, it should be so."
"I'm sorry to trouble you to make this special trip, Madam. I just received some new tea a couple of days ago, and I would like you to have a taste."
"Then I won't stand on ceremony. Your Highness's tea is truly rare to find outside!"
The two sat in the pavilion drinking tea and chatting for a while about interesting things in Qin capital. After finishing three cups of tea, Lady Changting wisely took her leave.
After Lady Changting left, Qin Yizhen remained seated for a long time before returning to her study and pondering how to resolve the issues concerning the fallen and wounded soldiers.
Therefore, she called upon Green Qiao, Granny Jin, and Granny Gui to come up with ideas. As the saying goes, three cobblers are equal to one Zhuge Liang. She didn't expect them to come up with any good ideas, but who knows, they might actually come up with some.
Granny Jin said, "The current compensation comes from two sources: the imperial court and the commanders of the respective military camps."
Granny Gui shook her head: "Actually, these should be matters of the imperial court, but the national treasury only has so much money each year. Half of it is already used for war. The money that can be allocated is good, and the rest must be used for people's livelihood and other purposes."
The national treasury's annual tax revenue was not much, only about one million taels of silver a year. (This is in silver alone, excluding non-monetary items such as grain, and is roughly five to six million taels.)
You see, the territory wasn't very vast to begin with, and with the four kingdoms fighting each other, things were unstable. The annual harvest was so meager, and the country couldn't oppress the people to the point of exhaustion.
One million taels of silver was barely enough to keep the country running.
Half of this amount was used to support the army and fight wars, while the remainder was used for the people's livelihood and the salaries of officials.
As for people's livelihood, those funds were naturally used for farming, disaster relief, and other purposes.
There's only so much money, and the route for its use has been arranged. Even if there are corrupt officials, they won't be able to get much money out of the higher-ups, since the censors will probably find out soon if the money hasn't arrived.
Sigh, the imperial court is actually quite keen on confiscating property.
Qin Yizhen gestured and calculated, but finally had to put the pen aside: "In the end, it's because the national treasury has too little money. If there's any way to increase the national treasury's revenue, then everything might be solved."
"How can the national treasury increase its funds?" Granny Gui exclaimed in surprise. "Do we need to increase taxes?"
"Increasing taxes is certainly not an option."
In this world, life is already hard for ordinary people. Even if the country's territory is stable, the borders are not peaceful, and there are many conscriptions. Almost every household has someone serving in the army. Adding taxes on top of that, it's just not right...
Anyone who dares to say such a thing will be cursed to death.
It would be better to find a few corrupt officials and confiscate their homes.
"Ya Chun Ge is doing a good job. Otherwise, let the Minister of Revenue think of some ways to do some business. Teahouses and restaurants like Wan Xian Lou and Wan Shi Lou are doing quite well."
"You're too late. The Ministry of Revenue is also involved in business, and the money collected will have its uses."
Everyone was going to great lengths to make more money. The Ministry of Revenue even had its own teahouses and restaurants. Even Empress Dowager Cheng had several businesses in private, one of which was Jinxiufang. Occasionally, Jinxiufang would send her a couple of new outfits.
Green Qiao tilted her head and thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Since we can't make money domestically, why not try from abroad?"