Tibet

"Is there a difference between one hundred thousand and one hundred and fifty thousand?" Dugu Ming asked.

"Of course there are differences. One hundred thousand guan in taxes, population, and land and ports belong to the King of Qi. However, the appointment and dismissal of officials are still decided by the court. With 150,000 guan, the appointment and dismissal of officials are decided by the King of Qi, and the imperial court will not interfere."

Lonely Ming pondered for a while and said: "Then I can agree to it for the King of Qi for 150,000 yuan, but we have to say ugly things first. This is not a favor, this is buying the land with real money and silver. Since Quanzhou is owned by the King of Qi, Your Highness has bought it out, and I hope the emperor and the court will stop reaching out."

Li Fuguo narrowed his eyes and smiled: "That's for sure! In addition, as a bonus, the East China Sea Island will also be decided by His Royal Highness King Qi!"

Li Fuguo hurried back to the palace and reported his negotiations with Dugu Ming to the emperor Li Heng. The reason why he approached Dugu Ming was because Li Heng knew very well that many of Li Ye's personal affairs were handled by Dugu Ming, especially such private transactions. You can find Dugu Ming.

Hearing that Dugu Ming promised 150,000 yuan, Li Heng nodded with satisfaction. The tangle that had been tangled in his heart these days was finally solved, and he was not at a disadvantage.

"When will the money be given?" Li Heng asked again.

"Dugu Ming said that he would pay 50,000 taels of silver to His Majesty within five days. I'm afraid he has to report to Li Ye first. Tonight I will issue an order to commend his achievements and grant him the entire Quanzhou as a city."

That night, the emperor Li Heng issued several edicts, canonizing his second son Li Xi as King Yong and establishing him as the emperor's heir. The second edict commended Li Ye for his achievements in regaining the four states of Xiangwei, and conferred Quanzhou to Li Ye as the king of Qi. Yap.

The previous decree was reached by Emperor Li Heng and the Zhengshitang. The second decree was more sudden, but the Zhengshitang would not care about it, and the favor would still be given to the emperor.

Li Ye received the express report of entering the memorial hall the next day, and also received the eagle letter from Dugu Ming.

In the official room, Li Ye and two military advisors, Li Mi and Liu Yan, discussed the matter of Li Xi's promotion.

Li Bi smiled slightly and said: "This is just the beginning. Li Heng has made his attitude clear. He asked to make his second son Li Xi the crown prince, but it is obvious that the political hall did not agree, but only agreed to make him the emperor's heir, just like It was the same as when Li Dan was made the emperor's heir. The symbolic meaning was greater than the practical significance. If all the officials supported it, there would be no need to make an emperor's heir at all and he would be made the prince directly. Therefore, it would not be easy to make the prince a prince. It is normal to delay it for a year or two. "

At this time, Liu Yan asked: "What is the attitude of the eunuchs? Did Dugu Ming say anything?"

Li Ye nodded, "He said it, the eunuch remained silent."

Liu Yan sneered: "The eunuchs will never remain silent. I believe they will definitely have something up their sleeve."

"Your Highness, Commander Liu is right."

Li Mi agreed with Liu Yan's judgment, "The establishment of a crown prince is not only related to the country, but also to the family and life of the eunuchs. They care about the establishment of a prince more than anyone else. His current silence is just a tactic. They are like poisonous snakes, and they will definitely be there in the end. Attack at the critical moment and bite a fatal bite, and more importantly, they have the ability. Li Fuguo controls the Plum Blossom Guard, and Yu Chaoen controls the Shence Army. With the army in hand, they are the key force to establish the crown prince."

Li Ye agreed: "Now we still focus on observation!"

Li Mi reminded: "Your Highness, we also need to lay out a higher-level strategic layout. We must speed up the deployment of the eastern forces. Troops and materials must be transferred as soon as possible!"

Li Ye suddenly remembered something and said with a smile: "Speaking of the deployment in the east, I received a letter from Dugu Ming today. The emperor actually sold the entire Quanzhou to me for a price of 150,000 guan and asked to pay the money to the inner treasury. It feels like It’s really a bit ridiculous.”

Liu Yan smiled slightly and said: "Your Highness thinks it is ridiculous, but in fact this is the most real side. The emperor values ​​interests more than anyone else. Many things will not be recorded in official history, only the results will be recorded, but the blending behind them will not be mentioned, just like The emperor commended His Highness for seizing the four states to defend him and gave Quanzhou to His Highness as a city. Who would have thought that there was a deal worth 150,000 guan behind this?"

"Quanzhou and Donghai County will be taken over by Prince Qi's Mansion. I recommend Zhang Ping to be the first governor of Quanzhou!"

On the sea north of Quanzhou, a fleet of ten ten-thousand-stone ships is sailing toward Quanzhou. Standing on the bow of the first ship is a tall and fat young man. It is Zhang, the deputy secretary of the Trade Department. During the Ping Dynasty, he had been stationed in the south of the Yangtze River to purchase grain and other materials for Longyou, and established a huge trade network with more than 300 people under his command.

Zhang Ping had resigned and was promoted to the governor of Quanzhou. He came to Quanzhou with 500 soldiers and seven right-hand assistants to take office.

"Zhang Shijun, how could His Highness think of opening up a territory in Quanzhou?" Deputy Li Yuecong asked in confusion.

Zhang Ping smiled and said: "Twenty thousand troops will be stationed soon. Maybe this will be a springboard, or maybe we will start overseas trade. Let's not worry so much for the time being and consolidate Quanzhou first."

"I understand the humble position!"

Soon, the fleet entered the harbor and began to berth at the dock. At this time, the original governor of Quanzhou had resigned and was appointed governor of Wenzhou. Currently, the right chief minister Zhao Xin was temporarily in charge. He received the news that the new governor's The boat has arrived at the harbor.

Zhao Xin quickly brought state and county officials to the dock to welcome the new governor.

Of course, the officials knew that Quanzhou was now owned by the King of Qi, but they did not know whether Quanzhou now belonged to the King of Qi himself or the palace of the King of Qi. They also waited uneasily for the final result.

Zhang Ping got off the ship, and Zhao Xin quickly led everyone forward to salute, "Zhao Xin, the governor of Xiaquan, is here to see Ambassador Zhang!"

Zhang Ping had also been the magistrate of Chang'an County and knew how to communicate in the officialdom. He smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Zhao Changshi, for coming to greet me!"

Then Zhao Xin introduced other state and county officials to him, and Zhang Ping greeted them one by one.

At this time, Zhang Ping raised his voice and said to all the officials: "Everyone, first of all, thank you for coming to the dock to welcome me. As the governor of Quanzhou appointed by His Highness King Qi, I need to say a few words to you briefly. First of all, let's make the first point clear. They are not the personal officials of King Qi, but the officials of Prince Qi’s Mansion. From now on, everyone will be loyal to His Highness King Qi and accept the management of Prince Qi’s Mansion. "

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, becoming an official of Prince Qi's Mansion was also a formal official.

Zhang Ping continued: "His Royal Highness the King of Qi attaches great importance to trade. Perhaps you don't know that I was previously the deputy commissioner of the Trade Department and was stationed in the south of the Yangtze River to manage trade. This time I was appointed as the governor of Quanzhou. I only have three main tasks. One is The first is to expand overseas trade, and the second is to build big ships. I hope everyone can help me develop Quanzhou into one of the largest trading seaports in Datang."