Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

Chapter 213: Open a bank! Money will come
"Kowtow to the Emperor!"

Chen Jie quickly stood up and bowed with his fists clasped.

He was wearing thick armor, which was the uniform of the leader of the rebel group.

There's no way I can kneel down while wearing this.

So, he did not kneel down to kowtow to the emperor like other people did, but instead bowed with his fists clasped.

Before entering the palace, Chen Jie specifically learned about the etiquette of the Daqian Dynasty.

After entering the palace, not everyone needs to kneel down when seeing the emperor.

Although the Daqian Dynasty emphasized the hierarchy between the monarch and his subjects, etiquette, etc., it had a strict structure and would not tolerate provocation.

In general,

When ministers saw the emperor, they had to kneel down and kowtow.

However, some special people have certain privileges.

First of all, people who are older and have higher status, such as the Grand Tutor and the Duke, have the right to be exempted from kneeling.

When the emperor summoned these ministers, he usually showed great respect and even took the initiative to salute them.

This privilege of not having to kneel is a recognition of his lifelong glory and contribution to the country.

Second, peers within the royal family do not need to perform the kneeling ceremony.

The second is high-ranking members of religious sects with special identities, such as the Panchen Lama of Tantric Buddhism, etc., who do not need to perform the kneeling ceremony when meeting the emperor.

In Buddhism, they are regarded as symbols of supremacy.

Therefore,
When meeting the emperor, the emperor would take the initiative to salute them to show respect.

The last kind of privilege is that a general who returns victorious from the battlefield does not need to kneel when meeting the emperor.

Although Chen Jie was not a general appointed by the Ministry of War.

but,

He was the commander-in-chief guarding the Dagukou Fortress and the leader of the rebel group.

Therefore,
He naturally enjoys the privilege of being exempt from kneeling.

Before this, Chen Jie thought that he would be in awe and feel uneasy when he met the emperor.

but,

When I saw Emperor Li Zheng at this time, I found that it was just like that.

What embarrassed him most was that he actually dozed off in the side hall.

I'm afraid that only Chen Jie can sleep well when meeting the emperor.

this moment,
Chen Jie looked at the palace guards and the eunuchs around him at the door of the side hall.

These guys didn't even bother to warn the emperor when they saw him coming in.

I remember when I was watching TV in the past, wherever the emperor went, the eunuchs would shout - The emperor is here!
Now I realize that everything on TV is just a lie.

After the emperor entered the side hall, no one said a word. Otherwise, with their spiritual realm, they would not have woken up so late.

at this time,

Emperor Li Zheng looked Chen Jie up and down, his eyes becoming brighter and brighter.

He seemed to be completely unconcerned about bowing to Chen Jie and dozing off in a side hall.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is right. Young Master Chen is indeed handsome and in high spirits."

"Why are you standing? Come, sit down!"

The emperor seemed easy-going, not difficult to communicate with, and didn't put on airs.

That’s right, he is already the emperor, why is he still putting on airs?
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Chen Jie responded with a smile and was not in a hurry to sit down.

Emperor Li Zheng sat down on the chair and gave an order to the eunuch next to him.

He hasn't had a sip of water since this morning's court session.

After returning to the side hall, he was extremely hungry and exhausted.

After a few minutes,
The eunuchs brought several large plates of desserts and snacks and placed them on the table in the side hall.

The emperor saw Chen Jie still standing aside and said with a smile:
"Why are you still standing? Sit down and eat something first!"

finished,

Li Zheng picked up a piece of cake, put it in his mouth, and ate it slowly.

Chen Jie sat down and looked at the snacks in front of him.

smell good!
I don't know what this pastry is made of, but it looks and tastes good.

The key is,
His stomach was growling with hunger.

Since the emperor asked him to eat something, he didn't care and just grabbed it and took a bite.

hiss--!
It tastes good!
Only Chen Jie dared to sit with the emperor and eat snacks directly from the plate in front of the emperor.

The ignorant are fearless!
In his eyes, the other party was just an ordinary old man.

It seems that this old man is easy to talk to and very easy-going.

Before that, he might still be in awe of the emperor.

but,

When they came into close contact and both sides sat down to eat, Chen Jie no longer felt that awe in his heart.

"Your Majesty, what kind of snack is this? Why is it so delicious?"

"To be honest, this is the first time in my life that I've eaten such delicious snacks!"

Chen Jie stuffed a piece of dessert into his mouth and said.

Li Zheng smiled and said:

"Is it delicious? Then eat more. Someone, come and prepare two more servings!"

finished,

He waved to the eunuch in the distance.

A moment later, the eunuch brought two large plates of exquisite snacks to Chen Jie.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Chen Jie said to Li Zheng.

Next,
He was too lazy to talk and just ate something first.

People who learn martial arts tend to get hungry easily.

not to mention,
His martial arts skills are at the Bronze Skin and Bright Strength level, which is the level that consumes the most physical energy.

He hadn't had breakfast and it was almost afternoon, so how could he bear it any longer?

I saw him eating the snacks with relish.

I don’t know what these snacks are made of, but they melt in your mouth.

In less than three minutes, he had finished off the two large plates of snacks in front of him.

good to eat!

He had a feeling that he wanted more.

in fact,

It’s not that Chen Jie doesn’t know his place, nor is it that he is ignorant and fearless.

He deliberately ate like this in front of the emperor.

the reason is simple.

Doing so will not only make the emperor less wary, but also gain more rights and interests for oneself.

How could he not know the purpose of the emperor summoning him?
At this time,

The other eunuchs nearby were shocked to see Chen Jie being so ignorant of etiquette in front of the emperor.

Who wouldn't be cautious in front of the emperor?

This kid was so good that he didn't even say anything polite and just started eating with the plate.

And after eating, she even stared at the snacks on the emperor's plate.

Is it ignorance or fearlessness?

Emperor Li Zheng was also staring at Chen Jie with interest at this moment.

The more the father-in-law looks at his son-in-law, the more he likes him!
For some reason, he had seen a lot of false courtesy, but he found Chen Jie's case a little interesting.

It was the first time he saw someone being so casual in front of him.

After Chen Jie finished eating, he picked up the teapot on the table, poured himself a cup, then stood up and filled the cup in front of the emperor.

After taking a sip of tea, he burped and said to Li Zheng:

"Thank you for the cakes, Your Majesty. They taste really good!"

"Okay! We've finished eating, let's talk business."

Li Zheng was stunned for a moment.

At this moment, he found that he could not look at the young man in front of him with common sense.

"You kid, that's interesting!"

"I have always wondered why Ximen Tang, a gangster force, has developed so quickly."

"Now I realize that the truly powerful person in Ximen Hall is you!"

"It's not unfair that Ye Zhicheng lost to you!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked up at Emperor Li Zheng in surprise. You know,
Ximen Tang is a gang of underworld heroes. At the Dagukou Fortress, they instigated Xiong Chao of the Tianwu Army to rebel and captured Yezhi City.

This was definitely not a glorious thing for the imperial court.

That is,

This matter is absolutely taboo for the imperial court.

Ye Zhicheng represents the regular army of the Ministry of War, while Ximen Hall is just a militia force verbally allowed by the emperor.

but,

In the Dagukou Fortress in Tianjin, Ximen Hall actually replaced Ye Zhicheng.

Most people would not easily speak of this matter openly, as it concerns the dignity of the court.

But what surprised Chen Jie was that Emperor Li Zheng actually made the matter clear straight away.

"Don't be so surprised! Although I am the emperor, Ye Zhicheng is not mine!"

finished,

Emperor Li Zheng let out a long sigh.

At this moment, his mood became extremely heavy.

To be honest, he has been very tired since he inherited the throne.

The factional struggle between the noble families, which has been passed down for thousands of years, has now reached a fever pitch.

Especially with the invasion of the Japanese, the warships of the Western powers opened the door to Daqian.

at the same time,

The West sold "opium" to Daqian and continued to reap Daqian's wealth.

He felt that his role as emperor was becoming increasingly incapable of doing things.

The imperial power has declined to an indescribable degree.

Even with the support of the Imperial Household Department and the Imperial Household Department, as the power of thermal weapons becomes more and more powerful.

The deterrent power of the Ouchi also seemed to be beginning to decline.

Princes from all over the country began to raise troops and establish their own regimes, and even the capital of the Daqian Dynasty was invaded by the Western coalition forces.

Unexpectedly, when the imperial court wanted to mobilize troops from various places, it encountered obstacles.

According to the previous plan, the Ministry of War planned to transfer 300,000 troops to Shanglinli to form the second line of defense for the capital.

but,

In the end, they encountered repeated obstructions and were unable to mobilize troops from all over the country.

The power of the aristocratic families and princes is becoming increasingly powerful.

Now we are entering the cold winter and famine is occurring in many places.

but,

The aristocratic families controlled the food, and no matter how hard Emperor Li Zheng tried, he was unable to change anything.

He had no choice but to issue an imperial decree to establish a chivalrous group.

The original intention was to use the power of the "militia" to put pressure on the aristocratic families, and finally contribute money and manpower to support the court in resisting the invasion of Westerners.

The final development, however, made Li Zheng feel incredible.

The family hasn't changed much and is still the same as before.

but,

However, a "Ximen Hall" appeared in the Jianghu militia, giving Emperor Li Zheng hope of breaking the situation.

Chen Jie was not from an aristocratic family. Although the development of Ximen Hall cost a huge amount of money, the imperial court did not find any trace of an aristocratic family behind Chen Jie.

After Ximen Tang's power grew, it actually directly challenged the Western coalition forces.

What surprised Emperor Li Zheng the most was that Ximen Tang actually burned down Piaoxianglou of Taiping, which was under the command of the Ninth Prince.

This is going to dig up the roots of the family!
Although Piaoxianglou is ostensibly owned by the Ninth Prince and Taipinghao, the real beneficiary behind the scenes is the aristocratic family behind the Ninth Prince.

Ximen Tang's seemingly random actions achieved surprising results.

Xu Shichang was able to become the Minister of War because of Ximen Tang’s strength.

What does this mean?
This shows that Ximen Hall already has the fighting power to compete with the aristocratic families.

Otherwise, Chen Jie would have directly overthrown Ye Zhicheng and replaced him. Why would all the noble families who were in favor of 'ceding territory for peace' just swallow their anger?
This is also the main reason why Emperor Li Zheng specially summoned Chen Jie into the palace alone.

He wanted to convey a message to all civil and military officials.

I will fully support the development of Ximen Hall——!
"Your Majesty! If you have anything to say, just tell me!"

"I am a man of the underworld, I don't like these polite things, but let me make it clear that if you want money from me, I don't have any!"

"We need food, but there is none!"

"Now Ximen Hall is guarding the Dagukou Fortress. I am already overwhelmed with the problem of feeding tens of thousands of people. I don't have the ability to help you provide food!"

Chen Jie no longer concealed the truth and spoke straight to the point.

Li Zheng looked at Chen Jie who had a calm face, and he admired Chen Jie's character more and more.

Perhaps no one had ever spoken to him like this before, which gave him a feeling that was hard to describe.

He thought for a moment and asked slowly:
"I came to you not to borrow money or food from you, but to know one thing. Are you, Ximen Hall, guarding the Dagukou Fortress worthy of my trust?"

Having said that, Li Zheng sighed again.

The Daqian Dynasty has been passed down for thousands of years, and the imperial power was originally supreme.

Our ancestors expanded the territory and expanded Daqian's territory.

but,

After he ascended the throne, he watched helplessly as the imperial power gradually declined and its status became precarious.

He wanted to change all that and put a lot of effort into it.

But the results were minimal and it was not possible to shake the interests of the aristocratic families at all.

Over the years, he even felt that there were few people around him who he could trust.

The Daqian Dynasty is facing internal and external troubles!
With the invasion of Easterners and Westerners, the fighting between factions reached a point where it could not be reconciled.

Even many children of wealthy families reached agreements with Westerners and opened docks and ports privately for their own interests.

Many innocent people of the Daqian Dynasty were treated as pigs, sent to Western merchant ships, and sold to the West to build railways.

Simultaneously,

The Western "opium" flowed into Daqian, continuously reaping wealth.

Emperor Li Zheng naturally knew all this.

No one knows how many times the imperial court has issued an "anti-smoking order", but Western "opium" is still flourishing everywhere, treating the imperial court's ban as waste paper.

In order to investigate and punish Westerners who were trafficking Daqian people to the West as slaves, the imperial court established a special Human Trafficking Inspection Office.

However, little effect was achieved!
He is old and really tired!
The appearance of Chen Jie gave Emperor Li Zheng renewed hope.

only,
Is this young man in front of me worthy of my all-out support?

Is he worthy of my trust?
Next, Li Zheng looked at Chen Jie quietly without saying anything for a long time.

Chen Jie drank his tea without saying anything.

Is it trustworthy?

He couldn't answer such a subjective question!

Inside the side hall, silence fell and the atmosphere became heavy.

"Ximen Tang guarded the Dagukou Fortress in Tianjin, and I didn't give you any help!"

"What do you need? Tell me. If I can help you, just ask!"

Li Zheng suddenly realized that he didn't seem to have contributed much to the development of Ximen Hall.

If one wants to bind Ximen Tang to the imperial power, besides marrying a daughter to him, one must at least make some effort.

What is missing?
Chen Jie had never really thought about this question.

He thought for a moment and blurted out, "We need a banking license!"

In the past few days, Chen Jie has thought of many ways to make money.

Just relying on the transportation between the two worlds cannot support the large amount of money required for development.

Opening a bank is definitely the most efficient way to get the silver dollars in the hands of major families.

Li Zheng was surprised when he heard this: "Bank? You mean a Western bank? Something like a money house in Daqian? How did you come up with the idea of opening a money house?"

Chen Jie said seriously:
"There are many banks in the Daqian Dynasty, but they are all opened by business houses of various aristocratic families. The funds are very limited, and the management is even more disorganized!"

"Even many banks are not controlled by the court at all, but are controlled by aristocratic families."

"The imperial court has no money, so it can't do anything. It is naturally restricted by the aristocratic families."

"In this case, why not open a largest bank in the name of the court, replace silver with silver bills, and restrict the trading and circulation of silver!"

"If the major families want to obtain silver notes, they naturally have to deposit the silver in the bank. Wouldn't the court have money?"

"When the time comes, if the imperial court wants how much money, it can just issue government bonds and print silver bills!"

"In this way, His Majesty can get rid of the constraints of the major families, right?"

"—"

Emperor Li Zheng was stunned with shock when he heard Chen Jie's remarks!
He had never thought about this question.

Unify the transaction currency into silver notes and restrict the circulation of silver? !

(End of this chapter)