Guichou (22) in September of the eighth year of Yuanfeng.

Zhao Xu put down a letter written by Gao Gongji.

In the letter, Gao Gongji reported that he had successfully completed the task of buying horses this year and was still buying horses at the same time.

"I'm pretty motivated..." Zhao Xu smiled.

Buying horses was the most lucrative job in the Song Dynasty.

Because the Song Dynasty lacked horses, the court did not hesitate to spend a lot of money!

However, most of the horse trade is done in the form of things for things.

This is because iron money mainly circulates in Shaanxi.

The Tubo people refused to use iron coins - they wanted to use copper coins for trade.

The Song Dynasty would not easily give them copper coins.

Because copper coins can be cast into weapons after being melted.

Therefore, the actual transaction method is very complicated.

Generally speaking, the state procurement method is used - the central government pays money as the principal to purchase tea bricks, cloth and other commodities in the market, and then mixes them with salt and silver.

Then transport these things to Xihe Road and trade with Tubo people, Qiang people, and Dangxiang people who are willing to buy horses.

Yes!

Party members would also secretly sell horses to the Song Dynasty.

After all, fighting is a matter between Wuzu and Zhao Guan's family.

But the tribe is short of tea and cloth, but this is their own business.

The biggest characteristic of tribal countries is that the tribe is higher than the country and the family is higher than the tribe.

Zhao Xu thought for a while, then took this memorial to Gao Gongji and went to Baoci Palace.

He sent it to the two palaces and said: "Mother, Queen Mother, come and take a look. Uncle Xiang Guo and Gao Guoqin have made great contributions to the court this time!"

The two palaces took the memorial and read it again, and they both laughed.

"It's just good luck!" said the Empress Dowager: "The officials don't have to be so happy!"

The Empress Dowager also said: "What the Empress said is that Sixth Brother should wait until they finish buying horses next year, and then he will be happy again!"

But their proud tone has already betrayed them.

Zhao Xu said: "Mother, Queen, I heard that rewards and punishments are the prestige of a master..."

"Now, since the minister has done a good job on his mission, he should be rewarded!"

"How can we not reward them just because they are relatives of the emperor?"

"Besides..." Zhao Xu looked outside the palace: "I just want to take this opportunity to tell the ministers of the outer court... I am a relative of the Song Dynasty, and I can also be loyal to the country. It is not what they say..."

The Empress Dowager inexplicably thought of Sima Guang and the turmoil in the court when Xiang Zong returned and Gao Gongji was sent to Xihe.

His face suddenly darkened and he said: "The officials are right... we should let the scholar-bureaucrats in the outer court know that the relatives of the emperor of the Song Dynasty are no worse than them..."

When Xiang Zong returned and Gao Gongji were still in Bianjing, they were already considered by public opinion to be going to Xihe Road as a disaster.

The Queen Mother still remembers her feelings at that time - is my Gao family so unbearable?

Now, Gao Gongji finally gave her a break.

According to her temperament, she naturally wanted to publicize it in a high-profile manner.

The same goes for the Queen Mother.

Xiang Zonghui is her biological brother, but he is said so.

It’s strange that there is no fire in her heart!

"In the opinion of Sixth Brother, how should we reward him?" asked the Empress Dowager.

"The country has its own laws..." Zhao Xu smiled: "Whatever the laws are, let them be as they are!"

After the two palaces looked at each other, the Empress Dowager asked Liang Weijian, who was always by her side: "Liang Weijian, how do the national laws and regulations stand on this matter?"

"I am reporting to you..." Liang Weijian replied without thinking too much: "I remember that in the seventh year of Xining, the late emperor had a decree: to buy horse farms along the border roads, and those who bought sixty-seven cents of the horse's head that year,

If you are allowed to transfer to an official rank, for every additional 10% you buy after that, the officials concerned will spend one year working hard..."

"Now that the two national relatives have bought enough horses, they will each be transferred to the next level of officialdom, and their mills will be reduced..."

Therefore, Zhao Xu immediately said: "In that case, I will issue a decree and write it down to implement it."

The two palaces nodded.

Zhao Xu smiled even happier.

Sima Guang will enter the court soon, and this is the gift Zhao Xu prepared for him.

Let the two palaces review how Sima Guang treated the Gao family and the Xiang family.

As long as the two palaces' good impression of Sima Guang is interrupted, Sima Guang can only become an annoying opponent even if he becomes the Prime Minister and enters the capital.

After returning to Funing Hall, Zhao Xu wrote a handwritten edict to Gao Gongji and Xiang Zonghui.

Then ask Feng Jing to send him to the Tongjian Department and quickly send him to Xihe Road.

On the edict, Zhao Xu asked the two national relatives how they were when they passed by Xihe. Then he also asked about the local climate, precipitation and what the officials were doing.

Finally, we encourage them to keep up their efforts, not to be afraid of difficulties, and to make more achievements.

After doing this, Zhao Xu threw away his pen and went for a walk in the imperial garden.

…

Chenzhou, among the government offices.

Sima Guang was holding the yangsui and reading the Di newspaper that had just been delivered.

The capital's provincial notes published in the imperial newspaper made his face look a little ugly.

"Ms. Sir..." Jiang Zhiqi, who had just received an order to go to Beijing and came to Chenzhou to visit Sima Guang, looked at Sima Guang's expression and asked, "What happened?"

"Han Zihua and Uncle Lu Hui finally surrendered to Wang Jiefu's evil methods..." Sima Guang sighed, feeling a little lonely.

Jiang Zhiqi smiled awkwardly.

He and Su Shi had already exchanged letters, so he knew some things going on in the DPRK.

He tried to persuade: "To be honest with you, before I came to Beijing, I went to Jiangning Mansion to visit Duke Jing..."

Hearing this, Sima Guang looked at Jiang Zhiqi and asked, "How is Jiefu's health?"

"Jing Guogong is in good spirits, but his body looks thin and not what it used to be..." Jiang Zhiqi replied seriously after recalling the Wang Anshi he met when he paid a visit to Jiangning.

Sima Guang sighed: "Wang Jiefu is like an old man..."

His health is also not good.

The serious illness last year almost killed him. Although he survived with his strong willpower, he also knew that he had run out of energy.

He would definitely not be able to survive another illness.

Sima Guang felt that he had no personal grudges against Wang Anshi, but that he was just wrong about the situation and the person.

He still admitted that Wang Anshi's article was very powerful.

I personally also respect Wang Anshi’s moral character.

It's just that I can't stand Wang Anshi's new method.

Especially those laws that discourage people from making money in the name of financial management.

Jiang Zhiqi didn't know this and thought that Sima Guang was also moved by his old feelings - after all, Sima Guang, Wang Anshi, Han Jiang, and Lu Gongzhu were once the four friends of Jiayou, so he took the opportunity to persuade him: "Ms., the past is in the past. Already..."

"I heard that many of the shortcomings and bad policies of the new law are also being adjusted..."

"Now Grand Master Wen, Zhang Jiedu, Han Xianggong and other senior ministers are in charge of the government..."

Sima Guang waved his hand to interrupt what Jiang Zhiqi was about to say, saying: "Uncle Ying, don't say anything more..."

"I will never die in peace if I don't eliminate Wang Jiefu's evil ways in this life!"

Jiang Zhiqi bowed to apologize and said: "Mr.

"No need to say any more!" Sima Guang said solemnly.

Jiang Zhiqi sighed and had no choice but to say goodbye.

Sima Guang personally sent Jiang Zhiqi out of the yamen gate, then cupped his hands and said: "Uncle Ying, don't blame me..."

"What I worry about is not the present, but the future..."

He sighed leisurely: "I don't know, Han Zihua and others are already trying their best to improve Wang Anshi's new method, remove its disadvantages, and make it more convenient for the people..."

"Really...the one who started it all has no descendants?"

"Today, Han Zihua can change his ways to make things easier for the people, and let him be more defeated... In the future, if there are treacherous ministers who will deceive him, and in the name of 'reform', he will be more defeated..."
To be continued...