Princess Yongmu listened quietly. When she heard Li Yi talk about trading benefits, she inexplicably wanted to laugh.
"Li Lang's family is rich, but you still want to seek more benefits?" Princess Yongmu asked with a smile.
"Wen Tian, you don't know how expensive the rice is until you're in charge. It's not easy for me to maintain my small family, let alone the big families of the Tang dynasty. His Majesty sent troops to protect me. Don't you think I should think more for His Majesty? "
Li Yi looked like he was going to be a virtuous minister.
Princess Yongmu blinked. "Li Lang, you've worked hard."
"It's not that hard. It's just that the Turks are too hateful. They actually occupied Suiye Town and didn't let caravans pass."
Li Yi mentioned the Turks. The Silk Road on the land was broken. Otherwise, many good things would be sent over from the Silk Road.
Princess Yongmu asked softly, "You can't do business? Are the things there good? "
She was young. When the Silk Road was broken, she couldn't remember anything.
"We used silk, tea leaves, and ceramics to trade for horses and wool. The key was the seeds. The seeds that the Tang dynasty didn't have."
Li Yi explained patiently. He couldn't expect everyone to know what was exchanged on the Silk Road.
Princess Yongmu ate a mouthful of rice and looked up. "I heard that every year in Guangzhou, people from Kunlun come by boat to trade. Can't they go by sea?"
"Wen Tian, you're amazing. Not only are you beautiful, but you're also smart. Yes, two years ago, there was an ambassador from Annan City in the Tang dynasty.
However, that person had been studying technology and wanted to make fun things for His Majesty. His Majesty didn't want it. "
Li Yi praised Princess Yongmu first. Then he said that there was an ambassador from Annan City two years ago. His name was Zhou Qingli.
He followed the Persian monks to make things for Li Longji.
Li Longji didn't know what to think. He probably didn't want it because he was worried that it would be a waste of money and wouldn't benefit the people.
Princess Yongmu blushed slightly at the compliment.
Xiaolan listened and watched from the side. "Li Dongzhu, my Sister Wen Tian is naturally smart."
"Xiao Lan is also beautiful and smart." Li Yi praised Xiao Lan again.
"What about Guangzhou?" Xiao Lan was happy and wanted to study the business.
"Guangzhou should be the place to set up a Merchant Division to specialize in trading with outsiders.
Zhou Qingli shouldn't focus on making things, but on making money. His Majesty needs money, not toys. "
When Li Yi mentioned Guangzhou, he guessed why Li Longji didn't want Zhou Qingli's things.
The reason why Zhou Qingli was appointed as a merchant was to trade with other people, not to build things.
"Yes, Guangzhou. We can arrange it now. Take the things out and sell them elsewhere. We don't want jewelry. We want spices and food."
Li Yi had an idea. Food and spices in Southeast Asia were not worth much.
Some precious things, including pepper, could be sold at a high price by land or by boat.
The Tang dynasty took the initiative to go out with their fleet. Before the pepper in Leizhou and Qiongzhou became a large scale, they could use sea trade to make up for it.
Frankincense, myrrh, cinnamon, cloves, and other things.
There were also few spices. It was expensive to eat something in Zhuangzi.
There were many things in Guangxi, but the road was not easy to travel. From Guangxi to Chang 'an by sea?
"Why not jewelry?" Xiaolan's eyes lit up when she mentioned jewelry.
"Li Lang doesn't like luxury goods." Princess Yongmu said. She felt that she knew Li Yi better. Li Yi didn't want pearls and beautiful embroidered cloth.
Unless he could spend it as money, he preferred livestock and food.
"Wen Tian reminded me. I should take it. Thank you." Li Yi changed his mind again.
"I said it. I said the jewelry." Xiaolan emphasized her importance.
"Yes, you said it yourself. Wen Tian said that the luxury goods should be exchanged. Look, a ship of ceramics should be exchanged … "
Li Yi talked about economic accounts.
A ship of goods in exchange for a ship of food was not worth it. Spices were also not worth it.
Bringing empty ships to transport food was a waste of transportation capacity.
They could exchange for luxury goods and fill the ships with spices and food to transport back.
"Sell luxury goods to the rich and take money from them. We can't let them have too much money. The more luxury goods there are, the less valuable they will be."
Li Yi told the reason why he was willing to exchange luxury goods. He wanted to make the wealth of the rich shrink.
He wanted to use the money to repair roads, build schools, give things to students for free, and provide welfare benefits to the people …
"Why are you so bad?" Xiaolan's eyes widened.
"Li Lang must be thinking of benefiting the people." Princess Yongmu helped Li Yi.
"Wen Tian knows me best. Xiaolan, no matter how many luxury goods the rich buy, they still have ways to make money.
Poor people often give them money directly, but they still don't have money.
The idea I came up with is not to make the rich poor poor, but to make them earn money slower. The gap between the rich and the poor is not so big. "
"I knew Li Lang was kind-hearted and magnanimous." Princess Yongmu approved again.
"Thank you." Li Yi smiled. He was willing to listen to Princess Yongmu. Her voice was pleasant, and the key was that the content was better.
Xiaolan rolled her eyes and didn't want to say anything.
After dinner, Princess Yongmu said goodbye.
"Come and play when you have time. Taohong, find a few people to send you off." Li Yi didn't send her off and let Taohong arrange it.
Princess Yongmu left Zhuangzi and crossed the bridge. A group of people surrounded her and a car stopped.
She got in the car and looked at Zhuangzi through the window, then nodded to Xiaolan.
"Let's go." Xiaolan shouted, and the group headed towards the imperial city.
Li Yi returned to normal and went back to the study to write a memorial. The imperial court should build a memorial to the Department of Shipping in Guangzhou City.
Before noon, Li Longji received a memorial.
It said: If land trade is blocked, make up for it by sea. The Department of Shipping in Guangzhou City can collect taxes. There is a lot of food outside, and merchants bring food back with tax exemption.
Li Yi wasn't in the mood to write anything fancy with just this little content.
Li Longji read it and called for the prime ministers to come over and eat.
There was one more prime minister, and it hadn't been removed.
Under normal circumstances, two prime ministers were enough. Sometimes there were three, and one of them was bound to be removed soon.
The extra prime minister was Yuan Qianyao. Normally, he should replace Yao Chong.
But he couldn't take the blame. When he took down Yao Chong, he would also be taken down.
The four of them arrived and ate zhajiang noodles. There were many kinds of salted vegetables, each of which was a mouthful.
The weather was hot. It was just autumn.
During the meal, Li Longji didn't say anything and ate mouthful by mouthful.
The four prime ministers looked at each other, not knowing the situation.
When Li Longji finished the last mouthful of noodles and put down his chopsticks, the four of them were eating. What a coincidence.
A palace maid served tea. Li Longji said, "I heard that there are always Kunlun people in Guangzhou bringing things to trade."
"Your Majesty, I thought of someone. Zuo Shiyi, Zhang Jiuling, is from there. He just resigned and went home. He should be on his way now."
Lu Huaishen didn't express his opinion. Instead, he mentioned Zhang Jiuling.
Zhang Jiuling said a few days ago that his term was up and he resigned to go home.
Zhang Jiuling's home was in the south. It was better to ask him than others.
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