Chapter 7158 The drunkard doesn’t care about drinking

Chapter 7158 The drunkard doesn’t care about drinking

Originally, Liu Tong had no questions about Chen Xi's explanation, because Chen Xi was in charge of internal affairs. She only needed to eat, and she didn't need to care about anything else. She believed that Chen Xi was the most correct person. Didn't she see that all the officials in the court were like this?

But Liu Tong still had some conscience. He had suffered in Luoyang and Chang'an and witnessed human tragedies, so he had some thoughts about doing humane things.

Okay, all of the above are just moral issues. The real issue is that Liu Tong's spiritual talent has been with Chen Xi for a long time, and Chen Xi has also explained some things to him. He didn't understand them in the early years, but now that he does, there's a saying that goes, "Once knowledge enters your mind, you can't ignore certain things."

Others may not have this understanding, or they may have had in-depth discussions with Chen Xi and would not directly bring up the topic of collusion between officials and businessmen in the court. However, Liu Tong is a typical example of someone who has this understanding, but Chen Xi has not specifically explained it to him.

Or to put it more bluntly, Chen Xi sometimes really treated Liu Tong like a clay or wooden sculpture, so at this moment, Liu Tong asked very directly.

These words were so harsh that they silenced all the officials present. They might have thought of this word before, but seeing it in person made them realize that their thinking was somewhat simplistic. They knew Chen Xi must have other methods, so they didn't dare to ask.

After all, authority is something that really works.

But Liu Tong is different. She trusts Chen Xi's morality, but that doesn't mean she trusts those who come after him. Just because Chen Xi can maintain his position by doing things this way doesn't mean that those who come after him can. There's a saying that things are accomplished because of the people involved. An imperfect system doesn't mean that human intervention can't reach the highest level. Similarly, a perfect system doesn't mean that human intervention can't produce amazing results.

So no matter what version it is, the idea of ​​"rule by man" is indeed incredibly powerful.

“I trust your morality, Chen Zichuan, and your abilities are beyond question. I also think that with a genius like Zhuge Liang still alive, it wouldn’t be a problem. You all have the ability to single-handedly destroy the entire bureaucratic system or reshape the morality of the bureaucratic system, but what about those who come after you?” Liu Tong said with a hint of dissatisfaction, crossing his arms.

No matter how irresponsible she was towards the country, Liu Tong, having experienced the chaos of the times, still hoped that this prosperous era could continue. After all, this was the land of the Han Dynasty, and she would not be lenient if it could leave a mark on history. Therefore, any possibility that could shake the foundation of the country should be eliminated when Liu Tong could see it.

"Does Your Highness mean that the system to be implemented from now on is subject to the influence of individuals?" Chen Xi was not annoyed by Liu Tong's question and answered calmly.

"To be honest, I think the current situation is all about people," Liu Tong said with a hint of provocation. Then, most of the court officials lowered their heads and began counting ants, while only a few watched this scene with interest. Those who could watch this scene so calmly were all superhumans who could say that this prosperous era was a source of pride for them!

"That's going too far," Chen Xi waved his hand. "What Your Highness is referring to as collusion between officials and businessmen is far too severe. It hasn't reached that level yet. After all, we have many policies that are designed to prevent such collusion, and these systems will be strengthened in the future. Besides, local officials aren't stupid; they can't all be corrupted, can they?"

“It’s not impossible. I saw it with my own eyes.” Liu Tong shook his head and said, “I was there during that incident in Yanzhou back then.”

Hearing this, Yi Ji, who was counting ants with his head down, was somewhat speechless. Why did this case always come up? To be honest, the Yanzhou case was essentially just about making some money. In fact, back then, people were too narrow-minded to have seen much money. Even the five major merchants had less than 10 billion in assets, so they thought more than 4 billion was outrageous.

If Chen Xi had kept pushing the issue back and forth like he has in recent years, with special funds of hundreds of billions of yuan being mentioned at every turn, the Yanzhou case would have been just so-so. After all, the scale of money involved is really expanding like crazy at this stage, and everyone has seen it for themselves. If you really think about it, 4 billion yuan is probably only the amount of money that one of the Ten Attendants would embezzle, or even less, compared to Chen Xi's current economic size.

"Okay, let me explain it in a simple way." Seeing Liu Tong's serious expression, Chen Xi felt that this matter couldn't be fooled, so he thought for a moment and spoke up.

"Serve tea to Marquis Chen," Liu Tong called to the maid beside her. She didn't think this matter could be explained so simply, since it was impossible to avoid the so-called collusion between officials and merchants.

“To talk about this operation that allows local governments to intervene in certain industries and build local enterprises, we need to start with an early operation.” Chen Xi did not refuse, and after taking the teacup, he began to explain, “First of all, our current businesses are divided into three categories. One category is industries that anyone can do, another category is industries that seem to have no threshold, but in fact have hidden thresholds, and the third category is industries that require licenses issued by corresponding national agencies.”

Yuan Shu, who had been feigning death with Liu Zhang, had his eyes light up upon hearing this. Chen Xi's words had answered many of his questions.

"Let's not talk about the first category. The second category is the most obvious one: the opera industry. This industry is very clear that there are no barriers to entry. Anyone can enter, but how many people can make a living from it? How many can become a real opera troupe and grow into a big and strong one?" Chen Xi glanced at Liu Luo in the corner. To be fair, the Yuan family is indeed powerful. Liu Luo was able to get into the Grand Court Assembly. If Chen Xi wanted to get a woman in, he would have to put in some effort.

"The third category is those professions that you all understand, requiring a license to enter. Of course, some people get on the bus first and then buy a ticket. That's not because they don't have a license, but because they are truly strong and need the Nine Ministers, or even myself, to personally seek them out." Chen Xi glanced at Yuan Shu, Liu Zhang, Zhou Yu, and the others with a look that suggested they were idiots. There was nothing he could do; these few scoundrels!
"With this premise, if you want to talk about collusion between officials and businessmen..." Chen Xi looked at Liu Tong naturally, "that is to say, you can only choose the first type of industry. The problem is that the first type of industry has another dead end, a dead end that everyone knows."

“The first category, those industries that everyone can enter, are highly substitutable. It’s actually very difficult to really grow them into large and strong enterprises. Of course, there are some truly capable individuals.” Chen Xi looked at Zhen Yan, who was hiding in the corner. To be honest, even Chen Xi thought Zhen Yan was really outrageous. He had just fallen from power, and now he was already rising again. “Then the question is, what will happen when these industries, which involve basic livelihoods, grow to this size?”

Chen Xi looked at everyone present and raised his question. The group looked at each other in confusion, and then Mi Zhu stood up and answered, "It's a guide price."

"Those of you who have built your businesses to this level and have encountered explicit price guidance from the government, please raise your hands," Chen Xi said to the crowd.

Then Mi Zhu, Cai Mao, Zhang Shiping, Su Shuang, and Zhen Yan stood up.

"These are the suggested retail prices for cotton and wool textiles," Mi Zhu said slowly.

"This is the suggested retail price for rice," Cai Mao said helplessly.

"This is the suggested retail price for salt," Zhang Shiping and Su Shuang said simultaneously as they stood up.

“This is the sugar industry’s suggested retail price,” Zhen Yan said, looking like he wanted to die.

“It’s obvious that these gentlemen are the real big businessmen.” Chen Xi glanced at Zhen Yan and said with a hint of sarcasm.

"What does 'guidance price' mean?" Liu Tong frowned, looking at the five people. He vaguely realized something, but he wasn't quite sure.

"It means that if they want, everyone else in this line of work can just die," Chen Xi said expressionlessly. "Of course, the Zhen family used to be, but they were later overthrown, and now they're probably going to come up with a new industry guideline price soon, right?"

"We're still a little short." Zhen Yan couldn't say for sure that they couldn't get it, so he could only grit his teeth and say that it would take some more time.

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Liu Tong frowned and said, "It shouldn't be like this, especially for the sugar industry."

"But with the expansion of the sugar industry, the inevitable result is that the Zhen family will win." Chen Xi said helplessly. You are playing this game with a trust that has completed everything from upstream to downstream, and even the distribution channels are all in their own hands. It is only a matter of time before you die. Especially since Zhen Yan is still expanding and is still working hard to divide sales areas, regulate commodity production, determine sales prices, etc., forming a supermodel posture that is both a trust and a cartel.

"So when these people develop to a certain extent, the state must restrain them. For example, if Minister Su doubles the price of salt, even if others are dissatisfied, they still have to eat it. This is a necessity." Chen Xi said something terrifying, but it was a reality that these people had all experienced.

So what if salt costs ten times more than grain? Does that mean you won't eat it?

Since you need to eat salt, no matter how high the price is, you still have to eat it, so you have no choice but to accept the high price!
So to be honest, without a guideline price, something bad is bound to happen sooner or later.

"No, no, I definitely won't sell salt at a high price." Su Shuang waved her hands repeatedly, indicating that unless she was brain-dead, she would never do such a thing. Chen Xi smiled when she heard this. Well, it's only because the country has enough control. Under other circumstances, even if Su Shuang didn't want to raise prices, those who wanted to profit from this would kill Su Shuang and make the salt price rise.

"I think I vaguely understand something." Liu Tong frowned. "It seems that those who can reach this level are themselves a very strong force."

“Yes, it’s become quite ambiguous whether they are businessmen or officials at this stage. In fact, the real problem is if they are not brought under the control of the state,” Chen Xi said earnestly.

Upon hearing this, Liu Tong seemed to be deep in thought. He then looked in Zhen Yan's direction and considered that if someone were to gain control over the pricing of new supplies, allowing them to continue roaming freely among the people instead of bringing them under state control would present a new problem.

"Now that you have this understanding, you all need to understand one thing: wealth is also a form of power," Chen Xi said very seriously. Everyone present understood this completely. Even Confucianists, who had studied the classics for countless years, recognized the value of money.

“With this consensus, it becomes clear when we look at collusion between officials and businessmen. There is no collusion between officials and businessmen, but rather a transaction of money and power. Using money to buy power, or to put it more simply, this is actually a form of selling official positions.” Chen Xi said with a smile, while Liu Tong frowned.

"Is this the explanation I gave earlier?" Liu Tong frowned as she looked at Chen Xi, somewhat puzzled as to what Chen Xi was talking about.

"What I mean is, since we can't avoid the practice of selling official positions, and since money and power are both forms of power, why not combine them and calculate them together? As long as the government doesn't suffer losses, that's a victory," Chen Xi said to Liu Tong with a touch of emotion.

We can't say it so directly in public, but we can say certain things that can't be said in public when we talk about it in private.

After all, we still need to talk about things like benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness.

“Treat power and money as forces, sum them up, and then convert them. You have to have a scale in your heart. This may not be the best way, but it’s the clearest way.” Chen Xi said with a sigh, while Liu Tong was struck dumb.

"This? This?" Liu Tong felt that all the principles of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness that he had learned had collapsed.

"If you include morality in it, it becomes even more realistic," Chen Xi said with a hint of wry smile. What is perfect capitalism? It's equality before capital. Of course, this is a conclusion reached after studying many things from a different perspective.

Chen Xi didn't really want to use this, but if worldly morality and human rights were combined into a total capital value for calculation and division, many things would become relatively clear. Although this way of thinking was quite cruel, it could make many things clear.

Therefore, discussing something as inevitable as collusion between officials and businessmen is meaningless to Chen Xi.

After all, this is something that cannot be avoided. No matter how you revise the system, you will encounter situations that cannot be resolved, and there may even be some kind of bug. For example, did Gu Xi really not know about the large-scale coal mining in Changshan by Yanmen?
I knew, but Gu Xi didn't take a single penny from it. Instead, Gu Xi took the initiative to build a road towards Yanmen in Bingzhou, laying the groundwork for the large-scale sale of smokeless coal in Yanmen County.

If we're really going to talk about this, would it be considered collusion?

Calculate!
But Gu Xi didn't earn a single penny; he was focused entirely on developing Changshan and improving the lives of its people. And he did it flawlessly. Do you want to investigate?

There's no point in investigating; it's pointless. Even if you investigate, you won't find anything. Gu Xi says he doesn't know, doesn't care, and doesn't understand. You can only accept every word the other person says.

This is really ridiculous.

But this is reality, this is a bug, and what's worse is that this kind of bug can't be plugged by the system. You can't say that there's a problem with Gu Xi building roads to Yanmen, nor can you say that there's a problem with Gu Xi considering the development of the people of Changshan. But even an idiot knows that it would be a miracle if someone like Gu Xi didn't have doubts about the situation in Yanmen. But what can you say?
To put it bluntly, even if the local industries weren't developed this time, and the Yanmen officialdom was completely overthrown because of the coal mine issue, if Gu Xi were to peek over and say he'd buy anthracite, the next batch of Yanmen officials might still try to get on that bandwagon. At most, they'll find a more reasonable way to finalize the matter next time.

"So considering collusion between officials and businessmen is actually meaningless, because the general environment means that in the territory of the Han Dynasty, to become big and powerful, one needs to stay away from the officialdom, but one cannot leave the officialdom." Chen Xi said with a hint of sarcasm about reality. "It's difficult, but there is no other choice. The methods I used are less about preventing collusion between officials and businessmen and more about allowing strong people who take the business route to move forward relatively normally, without being affected by the officialdom."

This was a feudal era. Ordinary small merchants and vendors were one thing, but the slightly larger merchants were basically front men for powerful local figures or even influential families in the region.

For example, Chen Xi's father actually took over the business of the Yingchuan Chen family, which is why he was able to reach Bingzhou and even more distant places.

If we say that entry barriers in later generations are divided into different situations—in the financial industry, they are for controlling risks and protecting investors, while in conventional industries, they are for maintaining market order, promoting fair competition, and improving the business environment—the entry barriers that Chen Xi created in this era are, how should I put it, purely for filtering out those who are not strong enough.

In other words, if you can't even handle the entry requirements, it's best not to enter this world full of powerful people. Compared to the various brain-racking business warfare methods of later generations, the technology of humane destruction has developed to a considerable level in this era.

If Zhen Yan weren't Chen Xi's brother-in-law, given his current status in the liquor industry, he would be killed as soon as he stepped out.

Why did Chen Xi say from the beginning that in my place, either everyone should abide by the law and I will handle any complaints you may have, or you can do whatever you want with things like humane destruction and large-scale military expeditions? Does anyone really think this is a normal business environment?

Chen Xi is promoting genuine free trade, the kind of trade where the strong create freedom!

"In other words, you have absolutely no moral fastidiousness in this regard." Liu Tong suddenly realized a blind spot.

"Yes, whether they're making money or causing trouble, as long as the local people's living standards are improving and it doesn't affect my policies, just like with Yanmen County before, I won't pay special attention to it. But if they cross the line, even if I don't deal with it, someone else will. If they cause trouble, it'll be perfect for me to cut off the funding and use it to subsidize impoverished mountainous areas," Chen Xi said calmly.

"Isn't this...?" Liu Tong asked with some complicated feelings.

“It’s not a matter of punishing without warning. I will provide detailed review regulations and related implementation methods, but I certainly can’t stop them,” Chen Xi said with a hint of helplessness.

Someone actually thinks this can solve the problem? What are they thinking? How could this possibly solve anything?