The dinner at the Sun Residence wasn’t too extravagant since only Yan Liqiang and Sun Bingchen were dining together tonight. There was a pot of duck soup, winter bamboo shoots, a plate of stir-fried capsicum and cured meat, as well as some peanuts to go with the wine. Yan Liqiang’s welcome dinner consisted of three dishes and a soup to go with a jar of finely aged wine that Sun Bingchen brought back from Yue Province.
Compared to other wealthy clans in the Imperial Capital, a banquet like this was considered to be extremely frugal. Even so, Yan Liqiang didn’t mind. He knew Sun Bingchen had always lived a simple life and he wasn’t doing this on purpose. He never needed any extravagance to show anything to anyone. Having two non-vegetarian dishes and a jar of fine wine for tonight’s dinner was already considered a ‘rare exception’ for Sun Bingchen…
Sun Bingchen appeared to be very happy during dinner. Both of them were able to connect on a deep level. They didn’t talk about work on the dining table, just some interesting stories from the time Yan Liqiang escorted him from Gan Province to the Imperial Capital. The atmosphere was harmonious until both of them went to Sun Bingchen’s study after dinner. While sipping on some tea, Sun Bingchen slowly steered the conversation toward work by asking Yan Liqiang about the situation on the Gulang Plains. Yan Liqiang replied truthfully without concealing any facts.
Sun Bingchen swiped the cover on his teacup as he casually asked, “I heard you started some wool trade monopoly in Qiyun Prefecture by buying wool from the Shatu Seven Tribes at a low price and selling them at a higher price, generating a monthly profit of tens of taels of silver. Is that true?”
“Haha, I didn’t expect you would hear about this too…”
“How can I possibly miss such big news like this? No one even expected that you would be able to make the Shatu Seven Tribes submit to you, let alone gain a trade monopoly over wool. Did you know that because of this incident, the Grand Secretariat received so many reports from the high officials of the Ministries of War and Revenue? Everyone was talking about it!”
“Oh? What did they say in the report?” Although Yan Liqiang could pretty much guess the content, he pretended to be curious.
“You’re acting dumb again?!” Sun Bingchen shot a glare at Yan Liqiang, but he wasn’t angry. “You’re a smart one, I believe you should have guessed it. The report from the Ministry of War said that you are getting easy profit from the wool trade monopoly at White Stone Pass, so that money should be transferred to them as future military resources to maintain peace on the Gulang Plains instead of you hoarding it.
“The main reason for the loss of their troops at the Gulang Plains this time was because the military expenses were too huge, and the important court struggled to bear the burden. The report from the Ministry of War said that the Monopoly Bureau should be managed by the Ministry of Revenue and shouldn’t be preceded by the local Protectorate Office. So they are thinking of sending people to White Stone Pass to set up a Trade Monopoly Unit to take over the wool trade. The other local authorities also mentioned in their reports that the wool you are collecting from the Shatu Seven Tribes is cheap, around ten copper coins for a jin. Since they are collected at a low price, you should not sell them at a higher price and should instead resell it to the other workshops operated by the bureaucracy…”
Yan Liqiang started laughing coldly, “So they are counting their chickens before they hatch? The Shatu Seven Tribes have been running amuck in the northwestern region and the Gulang Plains for so many years, yet the Ministry of War has never taken any action on them and the Dark Ram Tribe. Now that they see something good on the Gulang Plains, they want to take everything for themselves? Nothing is that simple. If the Ministry of War is so capable, have them send their men to exterminate one of the Shatu Seven Tribes first, then we’ll talk. I’m not asking for a lot here, just bring me ten thousand Shatu heads back from the Gulang Plains and I’ll hand over the Monopoly Bureau to them.
“The only reason why the wool trade monopoly worked out was because I forced the Shatu Seven Tribes to give in by wiping out the Tuli Tribe and hanging their chief’s head on White Stone Pass. When the Shatu Seven Tribes came to the pass, that was when they realized they were going nowhere by just running their mouths. Same goes to the Ministry of Revenue. They should come to White Stone Pass if they dare. If they think that simply sending out a few people to set up a pass can make those Shatu Seven Tribes pay up, then they should give it a try. As for those other high officials who handed in their reports talking about the workshops operated by the bureaucracy… I think they just want to start their own woolen mills back home. Do they really take others as fools…?”
Sun Bingchen stared at Yan Liqiang’s face, then chuckled and sipped on his tea. “How rare it is to see you upset!”
“My lord, you’ve been to the northwestern region. Surely you know of their hardships and the perilous situation they are in. Back when there was nothing in the northwestern region, those people didn’t even care about us. Now that they see the profit from wool, they come rushing at us like a swarm of bees, fighting for a piece of the fruit. I am the one who invented wool fabric and the concept of trade monopoly. I am the one who slayed all those Shatu people with my men. What gives them the right to demand for it? I am not going to spoil them…!”
“What if the imperial court wants this? Will you share the burden of the imperial court, Liqiang?” Sun Bingchen set down the tea cup and looked at Yan Liqiang seriously.
“Haha, why would the imperial court fancy such a small amount of profit?”
“He who takes charge knows responsibility. His Majesty is in a rather tough spot now…” Sun Bingchen sighed and continued, “Many places have been hit by natural disasters for the past few years. The imperial court is getting fewer taxes but spending more over the years. Last year, the imperial court only managed to collect 170 million taels of silver. The money might seem a lot, but it was not enough for a big country like the Great Han Empire. Currently, there isn’t a lot left in the national treasury. When His Majesty appointed you as the Qiyun Protectorate General back then, he didn’t expect you to have a knack for good business and be able to establish a wool trade monopoly at White Stone Pass, thus making this much money…”
Yan Liqiang pondered for a moment as the Psychic Serpent in his brain stirred. He then spoke generously. “I will never allow anyone to intervene with my wool trade monopoly. However, I do owe His Majesty and you a favor from the past, so naturally, I should share both of your burdens. Truth be told, the Qiyun Protectorate’s Monopoly Bureau gets around thirty thousand taels of silver every month. Taking out the relevant costs and expenses, that leaves about an annual net profit of two million taels of silver. Since you asked, the Qiyun Protectorate’s Office will submit 1.5 million taels of silver to the imperial court’s treasury every year from now on.
“By right, there shouldn’t be a problem even if I submit all the profit that the Monopoly Bureau makes. But the current situation on the Gulang Plains has been worrisome, and I have only a small troop. To keep trade monopoly running over the long term and for the sake of our future plan in recovering the Gulang Plains, the Qiyun Protectorate’s Office still will need some resources. Hence, I will need the remaining profit from the Monopoly Bureau for the Qiyun Protectorate’s border security and military armaments. I will also need to reward and give incentives to many of my subordinates accordingly. I hope you understand…”
1.5 million taels of silver every year wasn’t exactly a small amount. Based on Yan Liqiang’s knowledge, the annual taxes paid by Gan Province might even be less than that. Even so, Yan Liqiang had no choice but to make such an offer at a time like this. This was a test from the Emperor and Sun Bingchen. In Sun Bingchen’s mind, he had set a baseline of one million taels of silver every year, so Yan Liqiang increased another five hundred thousand taels of silver on top of it.
“Hahaha, it seems like His Majesty and I weren’t wrong about you. I’m glad that you can see the big picture and prove your loyalty…!” Sun Bingchen praised.
“So many people are jealous of the Qiyun Protectorate’s Office right now. They have been submitting their complaints to the Grand Secretariat every day. You may appear to be losing some money with this, but it will save you a lot of trouble and silence those people once and for all. As for the annual profit of the manufacturing bureau, you can make it lesser on the reports. That will leave people with fewer things to say…”
“Understood, thank you for your advice, my lord!” Noticing that Sun Bingchen’s mood had been lifted, Yan Liqiang seized the opportunity to ask about the newspaper office.
“Oh yes, as soon as I arrived at the Imperial Capital, I heard quite a few people from ‘The Great Han Times’ newspaper office had been arrested. I am actually the founder of the newspaper office and in the past, I personally recruited those who were arrested. In fact, Fang Beidou and the others are my old friends. Do you know why they were arrested?”
