I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 166 The Choice of the Elders
Of course, another important reason for getting involved in salt is that salt itself can bring very lucrative profits, but compared with the previous reasons, Zhu Houxuan does not care so much about this.

Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu returned to the cabinet and were silent for a long time.

Yang Yiqing was still working in the cabinet. He looked at the two of them and asked in surprise, "What's going on with you two ministers? Why do you look like that?"

Yang Tinghe said nothing, and Liang Chu told Yang Yiqing everything that had just happened.

Yang Yiqing also frowned after hearing this, "What does King Jing want to do?"

"He just wants to profit from the salt. Isn't that why Your Majesty summoned him to the capital?" Liang Chu said.

"No." Yang Yiqing thought of something and shook his head and said, "Salt merchants make profits from salt because they have the qualifications, channels and markets to sell salt. From what King Jing meant, he wants to run the salt field himself, so he can just make hard-earned money."

Yang Yiqing was telling the truth. People who produced salt in the Ming Dynasty could not make much money. All the money was taken away by the middlemen.
In fact, this sentence applies to most industries in the Ming Dynasty. Most people engaged in production are exploited, so naturally they cannot make much money.

Liang Chu suddenly remembered that the King of Jing had just said that he would redeem the salt permits as usual. "I remember that the Changlu Salt Field has been affected by the Liu Liu and Liu Qi Rebellion in recent years, and the production has been declining. The annual salt permits cannot be fully redeemed, right?"

Yang Yiqing thought about it carefully and said, "Mr. Liang remembered correctly, this is true. That's even more strange. The King of Jing said that he would redeem the salt vouchers as usual. The salt he worked so hard to make has been redeemed. How can he make a profit?"

"Yes, I was shocked when I heard that Prince Jing wanted to interfere in the salt affairs. Now that I think about it carefully, this is a completely thankless task. Moreover, Prince Jing also said that we must pay 130 million taels of silver in salt tax every year." Liang Chu said with a frown.

"The King of Jing has never done a business that lost money. He must have something to rely on." Yang Yiqing said as he paced.

He thought for a long time but couldn't think of anything useful. "Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. I don't have the business talent of King Jing. But the sudden increase of 100 million taels of silver in salt tax every year is a good thing. With this 100 million taels of silver, we can do a lot of things!" Yang Yiqing suddenly raised his voice.

Yang Tinghe was awakened by Yang Yiqing's words. He also thought of what Liang Chu and Yang Yiqing said, but that's why he felt something was wrong, because the situation was too abnormal.
"I feel that King Jing has great ambitions, but I don't understand his move," Yang Tinghe said slowly.

Yang Yiqing and Liang Chu also remained silent after hearing this.

After a while, Yang Yiqing sneered, "The King of Jing only wants to manage the Changlu Salt Field, not the Lianghuai Salt Field."

Yang Tinghe's frown relaxed a lot after hearing this.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the salt fields in Lianghuai produced more than half of the world's salt. It has been said that "since ancient times, the profits from salt boiling have been greater in the southeast, and the highest in Lianghuai" and "the salt tax in Lianghuai is the highest in the world."

Moreover, the salt fields in Lianghuai are close to the most densely populated areas of the Ming Dynasty, which is conducive to the sale of salt. It is the core area of ​​salt production in the Ming Dynasty.

The second is the Changlu Salt Field. Changlu Salt Field is actually not a salt field, but a general term for a series of salt fields along the Bohai Bay. Changlu Salt Field produces about 20% to 30% of the world's edible salt every year.

The third is Sichuan's well salt. Although the cost of obtaining well salt brine is much higher than that of seawater, it also offsets the transportation cost. The fourth is the pond salt in the northwest, which has the smallest output.

The Changlu Salt Field has a much smaller output than the Lianghuai Salt Field, so its power is not as complex as that of the Lianghuai Salt Field.

Yang Tinghe closed his eyes and recalled the conversation with Zhu Houxuan today. Although he did not understand Zhu Houxuan's move, he knew that Zhu Houxuan was going to interfere in the salt administration.

In fact, he had wanted to change the salt administration for a long time. As an official of his level, he really wanted to do something. Moreover, he had no connection with the Huizhou merchants. However, the salt administration involved too many interest groups, so he was hesitant to make up his mind.

He recalled Zhu Houxuan's last words in his mind: "I have already rushed to the front, and the court can just sit back and reap the benefits."

The more Yang Tinghe thought about it, the more he felt that this sentence was to his liking. The salt administration was already in such a state, how much worse could it get?
It is better to let the Prince of Jing to try his best. Even if he cannot produce any results, he will have received the 130 million taels of salt tax this year. If he does produce results, the Prince of Jing will bear the pressure from all sides. He only needs to judge the situation and introduce corresponding policies to reap the achievements of reforming the salt administration. Even if he cannot reform the salt administration, the court will be able to collect an additional 100 million taels of silver in salt tax in the future, and his life will be better.

Thinking about this matter now, he was invincible, so he gradually made a decision in his heart.

"Let's do this! Let's spread the news of this matter in advance. I will report this matter to the court meeting the day after tomorrow and see what my colleagues and His Majesty think." Yang Tinghe chose the most cautious approach.

"Mr. Yang is still mature and prudent!" Liang Chu nodded with a smile.

The news that Zhu Houxun wanted to run the Changlu Salt Field soon spread throughout the capital, attracting the attention of various forces. Most people thought that this was a bad move, as it was not as quick to make money by directly selling salt as by producing it!
In short, Zhu Houchun's move did not cause any waves, because no one thought that Zhu Houchun's operation of the salt field would have much impact on the current salt policy. They all believed that even if the salt policy was to be reformed, it could only be reformed from the sales end, so everyone was waiting to see Zhu Houchun's joke.

The news spread like wildfire, and even Zhu Houzhao, who was obsessed with training border troops, got the news and ran over to inquire about the situation.

"Brother, what's going on with you? Why did you think of running a salt field? If you want to do the salt business, I will ask the Ministry of Revenue to approve several thousand salt permits for you first." Zhu Houzhao asked with concern.

"Your Majesty, don't worry. There is no need for any salt permits. I have my own plan in mind." Zhu Houxuan said with a smile.

Zhu Houzhao looked at Zhu Houxuan's confident look and said with a somewhat resentful tone: "I asked you about the benefits a while ago, and you said that there would be benefits in two years, but now you are preparing to give the Ministry of Revenue 1.3 million taels of silver."

Zhu Houxun looked at Zhu Houzhao and laughed, "If I don't give you so much money, how can the civil officials let me run the salt field? And don't worry, my brother. If the operation of this salt field goes smoothly, we will see the profit next year."

"Okay! Okay!" Zhu Houzhao wanted to hear this, so he patted Zhu Houxuan on the shoulder and said, "If you have any questions, just tell me. If you want to run this salt field, I will help you get it."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, brother."

(End of this chapter)