Emperor Zhengde

Chapter 39 It’s better to teach a man to fish than to teach him to fish
Empress Dowager Zhang had always doted on her two younger brothers. When she heard Emperor Zhu Houzhao say this, she couldn't help but laugh and said, "You kid, since you have those glass treasures, why not give a few to your two uncles? Why do you have to ask them to buy them with silver?"

Although Zhu Houzhao knew that Empress Dowager Zhang loved her younger brother very much, he didn't mind making money from his uncles. Anyway, his two uncles were as wealthy as the princes and nobles and made no contribution to the court. It was a good thing for him to take back some money to give back to the people.

Zhu Houzhao then laughed and said, "Mother, you don't know that the reason why this glass treasure is so precious is that it is made of many pearls and agates. If my uncles want it, I have to ask the eunuchs in charge of purchasing to go to the south to buy pearls and agates in the name of the royal family, and then use the grain transport army to transport them back. All these things cost money. Even if I want to give them to my uncles, I don't have that much money to make glass treasures for them. Moreover, if I don't use the money, the officials will accuse me of abusing the people's power.

If my uncles were willing to pay the money, it would be a different matter. If I let the eunuchs in charge of purchasing goods spend money to hire the grain transport troops, there would be no gossip. The ten thousand taels of silver are just the money to buy pearls and agates and pay for the hard work of some craftsmen. I can't make a half tael of silver. Moreover, these glass treasures can be sold for more than twenty or thirty thousand taels of silver. Naturally, my uncles will make a lot of money.

My uncles have all started their own families and careers now, and they can't always rely on the royal family for support. Although they can't go into politics, they still have to make a living. Farming is impossible, but doing business is okay. It's better to teach a man how to fish than to give him a fish. Even if I give my uncles everything in the royal family, they can't stay rich forever. If they can make a living, it will naturally be different, and they can also learn to make a living. "

When Zhu Houzhao first said he was unwilling to give it, Marquis Shouning and Marquis Jianchang were a little disappointed, but now after hearing what Zhu Houzhao said, they were very pleased. They thought that if the glass treasure they bought for 10,000 taels was sold for 20,000 or 30,000 taels as Your Majesty said, they could earn 10,000 or 20,000 taels, which would be more profitable than selling salt. It would also be better than asking for one directly. After all, they could only ask for one, while if they bought more, they could naturally buy as much as they wanted.

So Zhang Heling smiled and said, "Your Majesty is right. We are embarrassed to ask the royal family for things all the time. We also know the difficulties of the royal family. If it is true as Your Majesty said, we are willing to buy it with silver and then find someone to sell it to Jiangnan. By then, we can really make a lot of money and have a career."

"That's right. This will also shut up those civil servants outside who say we are idle and not doing our jobs. Now if we earn some money honestly, it will also make the Empress Dowager and His Majesty look good," Zhang Yanling also laughed in agreement.

Seeing that her two younger brothers seemed very satisfied, Empress Dowager Zhang did agree with her son's view that "it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish". She also wanted to let her two younger brothers have a proper livelihood, so she smiled and said, "That's good. Then you can do this business. I am tired, you can continue to talk about serious matters."

Then, Empress Dowager Zhang was supported by her maid to go to the inner room. Zhu Houzhao ordered someone to refill the tea and asked Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling with a smile: "How many pieces do you two uncles plan to buy, and what kind of glass treasures do you want to buy?"

Zhang Heling looked at Zhang Yanling, calculated in his mind for a while, and then held up two fingers: "I want twenty items, including ten glass beads, five glass tables, and one crystal Guanyin!"

There are twenty pieces, each piece costs ten thousand taels, a total of two hundred thousand taels. The cost of one piece is between one tael and three taels. Assuming the cost is sixty taels, I can make nearly two hundred thousand taels of silver.

Zhu Houzhao was naturally very happy, but on the surface he pretended to think and said, "Twenty pieces is not too many, it's OK!"

Here, Zhang Yanling saw Zhu Houzhao said that twenty pieces were not too many, so he hurriedly said: "Then I will buy twenty pieces, just like my brother, ten glass beads, five glass tables, and one crystal Guanyin!"

"Okay, then the two uncles will sign with Wei Bin later, and he will be in charge of these things," Zhu Houzhao nodded, and he also specially instructed Wei Bin, one of the Eight Tigers, "Be polite to the two uncles!" Wei Bin didn't even need Zhu Houzhao's instructions, he was already smiling. He was one of the core figures of the Royal Industrial Company, so he naturally knew the value of these glass treasures. He also knew that he could make a lot of profit by negotiating a business with the two uncles, so he hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will definitely do a good job of getting the goods for the two uncles."

As he spoke, Wei Bin took the initiative to smile and said to Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling: "Please come in, my two uncles-in-law!"

Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling originally thought that this kind of trouble for the eunuchs under the emperor would make them unhappy and find it troublesome, but they did not expect that the emperor's personal eunuch named Wei Bin would be so attentive and considerate. They were a little surprised for a moment, thinking that maybe they also had some benefits in this?
But the two men could not think of any benefits, so they could only follow Wei Bin to sign and pledge, and agreed to send a deposit of 100,000 taels of silver within three days. At the same time, Wei Bin also promised to deliver the glass treasures to their house within a month.

"Your Majesty, these two uncles-in-law are really straightforward. They signed the deal worth 400,000 taels of silver right away. This time the Royal Industrial Company will make a lot of money again," Wei Bin came back and reported to Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao smiled faintly: "It can be seen that these royal relatives are all very wealthy. You must manage the Royal Industrial Company well and do not let anyone know our secret formula for making glass and soap. Find a few more royal relatives in the future and sell these to them!"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty! The eunuchs are watching closely," said Wei Bin.

At that time, Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling walked out of the palace very happily. They didn't feel that they had suffered a great loss at all. When they thought about making a fortune by selling tens of thousands of taels of silver in Jiangnan, their faces were filled with smiles.

Liu Jian and his companions, the chief minister of the cabinet, who happened to be standing outside the Wenyuan Pavilion, saw Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling. Seeing that they seemed very happy, Li Dongyang said, "I heard from the eunuchs that these two uncles-in-law came to ask Your Majesty for glass treasures, and it looks like they are getting them."

"The lady in the harem has always doted on these two uncles of the state. It's not surprising that she gave them whatever they wanted. However, we can't take care of these two uncles of the state now. I don't think they can cause any trouble. The key now is not to let His Majesty leave the palace again.
Only in this way can we find an opportunity to get rid of Liu Jin and others around Your Majesty. It would be best if they were all sentenced to death, so as to prevent these eunuchs from making a comeback, and to let those eunuchs around Your Majesty know the consequences of deceiving Your Majesty!"

The Third Assistant Minister Xie Qian glared and looked at the First Assistant Minister Liu Jian.

Prime Minister Liu Jian turned around and entered the Wenhua Hall Cabinet, sitting on the chair in the middle: "The Ministry of Works has sent a message that the Qianqing Palace will be repaired before Emperor Xiaozong's tomb is built. When the time comes, we will lead all the officials to ask His Majesty to move back to the Qianqing Palace and demolish the Leopard House! Now we need to contact the officials below in advance!"

"Let Yang Tinghe handle this matter. He is well-known among the upright people." After Li Dongyang said this, Liu Jian and others nodded.

(End of this chapter)