"You gave it up just like that?"
That was a super iron mine. It had the most reserves among all the iron mines in the Tang dynasty. Needless to say, whoever owned the super iron mine would have the biggest say in the industry. What Mo Jiazi gave up was not only tens of millions of strings of fortune, but also his position in the industry.
"Are you sure?" Li Shimin was surprised. He adjusted his sitting position and looked at Merton.
Meton nodded and said, "I am sure. The mission of the School of Mo is to explore the most profound Mo techniques to benefit the world, not the most basic mining. Even if the value is tempting, the School of Mo will not neglect the essentials. If not for the fact that iron is the School of Mo's lifeline, the School of Mo would not have owned those small iron mines."
Meton's words moved the officials. Had the School of Mo changed? Of course, it was impossible for the School of Mo to not change from a dying school of thought to one of the prominent schools of the world. However, the nature of the School of Mo had not changed. It was still the School of Mo with the pure heart of a child.
"Good! I will remember the School of Mo's contribution. " Li Shimin said solemnly. The super iron mine was such a delicious cake that even Li Shimin could not refuse.
The Minister of Civil Affairs, Tang Jian, was delighted. This result was much better than the salt and iron official business that he had promoted previously. The Ministry of Civil Affairs had obtained the super iron mine and could collect mining fees. The profits would not be less than before and could finally relieve the financial pressure of the imperial court.
Zhangsun Wuji had mixed feelings. He had protected Zhangsun Tiexing, but compared to the super iron mine and the School of Mo's secret technique of restoring iron, Zhangsun Tiexing was of little value. At least for the next ten years, the price of iron in the Tang dynasty would be extremely low.
More importantly, Mo Jiazi had seized the opportunity this time. This made Mo Jiazi even more important in Li Shimin's heart. He realized that the current Mo Jiazi had already surpassed his position at Li Shimin's side.
After the court assembly ended, Li Tai caught up and apologized to Merton, "Brother Mo, I'm sorry!"
After all, the Mo family had paid the geography department tens of thousands of strings of cash. The geography department should have fought for the Mo family with all their might. Now, the Mo family had failed to protect the super iron mine. As for the Mo family's claim that the Mo family would not neglect the essentials, Li Tai did not believe it at all. After all, no one would complain about having too many mines, let alone such a super iron mine.
Meton looked at Li Tai, shook his head, and said, "Your Highness Emperor Wei is too polite. The Geography Faction has already helped the Mo Family a great deal by discovering a super large iron mine and dealing a fatal blow to the Ironwalking Alliance. Today's matter is the Mo Family's own decision."
Li Tai hesitated for a moment and said, "In that case, I will return the money to the Mo family …"
Meton shook his head and said, "There's no need for that. Although the Mo family gave up on the super large iron mine, they also took the opportunity to annex several small iron mines and control their own lifeline. This was all thanks to the geography department's discovery of the super large iron mine. The Mo family did not suffer a loss in this transaction."
"But …" Li Tai still felt guilty about taking the money but not getting it done.
Seeing this, Meton said sternly, "Admittedly, the super large iron mine is indeed tempting. However, although the Mo family gave up on the super large iron mine, they gained a treasure even more valuable than the super large iron mine, and that is the state-owned iron mine system."
"The state-owned iron mine system?" Li Tai couldn't help but be surprised and looked at Meton in confusion.
Morton explained, "Steel is indeed the House of Mo's lifeline. However, the House of Mo doesn't just need iron. They need almost all the metals in the world. Even if the House of Mo had a super large iron mine and solved the problem of iron, would they still need to buy copper, aluminum, tin …? The House of Mo doesn't have the money or the energy to do so. However, sooner or later, these metal mine owners will raise the price like the Ironwalking Alliance and even force the Mo family to make unreasonable demands. "
"Private mines are mercenary, but state-owned mines are not!" Li Tai suddenly realized. The state-owned iron mine represented the interests of the country, and it was impossible to deliberately target one.
Meton nodded. "That's right. As long as we have the state-owned iron mine, there will never be an organization like the Ironwalking Alliance. The Mo family will no longer be controlled by others. Compared to the future of the Mo family, giving up the super large iron mine is not a loss. Not to mention, the super large iron mine is located in a barbarian land. It will be difficult for a civilian organization to develop it. Only the imperial court has the ability to mine it."
The super large iron mine was located in the territory of the civil servants. For a long time, the civil servants' tribes had been rebelling. Only the imperial court could deter the civil servants' tribes. A civilian organization was no different from a sheep entering the tiger's den.
"Brother Mo is indeed wise!" Li Tai said in admiration. The first purpose of the state-owned iron mine was to raise money for the imperial court. Secondly, it was to regulate the fluctuation of the iron price so as to not affect the people's livelihood. Naturally, there would not be a situation where the iron was not sold or the iron price suddenly skyrocketed. Once the pilot of the super large iron mine was successful, it would be promoted to other mines. In this way, the Mo family would no longer have any worries.
Meton looked meaningfully at Li Tai and said, "The Mo family is not the only one benefiting from the state-owned iron mine system. This is an opportunity that is hard to come by for the branch of geography. It all depends on whether or not His Highness Emperor Wei will seize this opportunity."
"Please enlighten me, Brother Mo!" Li Tai said without hesitation.
Meton smiled and said, "The reason why the state-owned iron mine system is so successful is because the super large iron mine does not belong to anyone. If the imperial court forcefully promotes the salt mine system, it will definitely cause a huge uproar. The same goes for the other mines. If we want to promote the state-owned iron mine system, we have to find new mines. This way, not only will it not arouse the opposition of the people, it will also benefit the imperial court. And finding mines is the specialty of the branch of geography."
Li Tai was shocked. Originally, the branch of geography did not have the motivation to explore mines. This time, it was only because they were stimulated by the wealth of the Mo family. Now that the state-owned iron mine system was introduced, the branch of geography instantly had the desire to explore mines. From the perspective of the Hundred Schools of Thought, the branch of geography could find many mines for the imperial court. Naturally, it would be highly valued by the imperial court and would quickly expand. It was much better than him supporting it alone. From a personal perspective, he was a prince, so it was natural for him to help his father solve this problem.
"Brother Mo's words have truly enlightened me! I thank Brother Mo for his guidance on behalf of the branch of geography. "Li Tai bowed deeply.
Meton laughed and said, "I don't dare to accept your praise. This Meton also has his own selfish motives. The more mines His Highness Emperor Wei discovers, the more the Mo family will need. In this aspect, the Mo family and the branch of geography have the same interests."
Li Tai was moved. The branch of geography was a new branch of the Hundred Schools of Thought. Its foundation was weak, and there was no way for it to develop quickly. If it could cooperate with the Mo family, which had a thousand years of foundation, the benefits to the branch of geography were self-evident.
Meton and Li Tai looked at each other. Immediately, the two of them reached a consensus. The Mo family had gained another friend.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
