This was a big blow, and everyone except Wei Zheng blamed him.

"Marquis Zhulu, I have never offended you. How could you involve me?"

"I am an honest official and have no wealth in my family. The family's industry has nothing to do with me!"

"Marty, I'm talking about the Turkic tribe, why is it still causing trouble? You are so serious. Your Majesty didn't say you wanted to steal your wealth, just to make you think of a solution."

Li Mu looked up at the faces of these people, and suddenly burst into laughter, making everyone confused again.

Li Shimin sighed helplessly and said, "Li Mu, I know that it is a bit too much to ask you for money. But you have to understand my difficulties. There are only hundreds of thousands of people in the Turkic side, and how many people are there in the Tang Dynasty? If you force them to get anxious, the consequences will be unimaginable. Although the beloved ministers present have a lot of wealth in their families, they are all property of the clan. When it comes to individuals, there are not so many. I definitely do not want to rob your property, but I just want you to help you think of an idea. Do you have an idea or no idea? Don't make trouble!"

Li Mu stopped laughing and said, "I have an idea, but I don't have it."

"So have an idea or no idea!"

"My idea depends on what Your Majesty and the Dukes think. If Your Majesty and the Dukes just want to take advantage of it, then I have no idea about this matter."

When everyone heard this, he said, "Okay, the plan is no longer possible. Li Mu is a treacherous boy, and it seems that he is going to pull everyone into the water."

Li Shimin glanced at his beloved ministers and thought about what Li Mu said. Indeed, it was not easy to pull the wool on a sheep. As the saying goes, thunder, rain and dew are all the kindness of the Lord, so it's better to get some of them. He immediately made up his mind and said, "Okay, let's make an idea. I will do my best to cooperate with you."

"There is still a condition!"

Li Shimin said annoyedly: "You have to finish or not, and you can stop at the right time, so what are the conditions?"

"This idea is over. Before the spring exam is over, I will ignore anything. I also have a master-apprentice bureau, so I have to concentrate on preparing for the exam."

When everyone heard this, they subconsciously looked at Wei Zheng. Wei Zheng's old face turned red and turned his head to the other side, looking like he was not related to his own business. Li Shimin held back his smile and nodded, "Okay, I agree too, can you say it now?"

Li Mu sat up cross-legged and said, "Your Majesty, I want to ask, the army is fighting against the Turks. I have read the statistics and only tens of thousands of Turkic gentry killed. Why did the Turkic tribes, which had always been rich, decline so much at once? Please ask Your Majesty to solve the doubts."

Li Shimin was tired after squatting for a long time. Li Mu refused to get up, so he had to sit on the ground and said, "You don't know that the Turks' hierarchy are very strict. The so-called wealth refers to the wealth of Turkic nobles, and the common people are no different from slaves. Women can be given as gifts, and the elderly and babies will even be abandoned when tribes are in danger. The Tang Dynasty fought against the Turks, defeated their army, and killed tens of thousands of people. Although it didn't seem to be many, they would not be able to relieve themselves within at least ten years."

“Isn’t this very good?”

Li Shimin shook his head and said, "Li Mu, you can't just look at one place in the situation. In the north of Hetao, there is Xue Yantuo. At the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty, in order to compete with Xue Yantuo, he joined forces with Xue Yantuo to help his weapons, cattle and sheep. However, when the Tang Dynasty fought against the Turks, Xue Yantuo did not provide help, but instead watched from the wall. After we defeated the Turks, Xue Yantuo took the opportunity to absorb the Turks' scattered soldiers and bravely and strengthen himself. Now it is a confidant. I have summoned the leader of Xue Yantuo, but Yi Nan did not come to take the disease. I know that it was a problem to raise a tiger."

"Now, helping the Turkic tribes is no longer a pity to their people. Instead, let the Turks pawn the vassal of our Tang Dynasty and exchange time for the rest and recuperation of the Tang Dynasty. After a few years, I will wipe out Xue Yantuo and let Yi Nan know the price of being unfaithful to me!"

Li Mu was silent for a while and said, "I know what I know and I have an idea."

"you say!"

"My idea is to trade and trade!"

Li Shimin was stunned and immediately showed a deep disappointment. Before he could speak, Changsun Wuji spoke first and said, "Li Mu, is this the idea you came up with? Do you know that mutual markets are more harmful than good for me, the Tang Dynasty. If the mutual markets are opened, it will make the Turkic tribes become stronger quickly, then at that time."

Before Changsun Wuji finished speaking, he realized the problem in his words.

Li Shimin just said that the purpose of helping the Turks was to make the Turks a vassal of the Tang Dynasty and to resist the Xueyantuo tribes. Then, making the Turks stronger became a definite decision. Trading between the two is the most effective means, so it cannot be said that Li Mu’s idea is inappropriate.

However, the inherent thinking formed over the years still made Changsun Wuji feel uneasy. He paused for a moment, and then said: "Your Majesty, although Xue Yantuo has ambitions, his power has not been achieved. He dared not make any moves within at least one or two years. However, the Turkic tribes have been defeated recently, and their tribes, from nobles to civilians, all have hatred for the Tang Dynasty. If the mutual market is opened and the Turkic tribes are relieved, the border will be in chaos immediately."

Li Mu took the conversation and said, "Don't worry, since I proposed this method, there are naturally ways to solve hidden dangers."

"First of all, it is open to trade, but it is limited to open. The Turks need food, cloth, tea, silk, etc., and the Tang Dynasty also needs their leather, horses, cattle and sheep. Let the Turks first formulate a list of what they need, and then the Ministry of Internal Affairs takes the lead in charge of the orders of both parties. Assistance is also a situation of orders. All orders are paid in advance by the Tang Dynasty. For example, a merchant in a certain place needs 100 leather pieces, which is worth 100 guan. Then the merchant will pay the deposit of 30 guan first. The Ministry of Internal Affairs will take these 30 guan and buy the items needed on the Turkic tribe list first. After the cattle and sheep are fat and slaughtered in autumn, a hundred leather pieces will be transported, and the merchant will pay 70 guan to complete the order, and the money obtained will continue to purchase the things needed by the Turkic tribe. All trade must be completed through the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Once private transactions are discovered, both parties will be executed immediately and will not be tolerated."

"The advantage of this is that the Tang Dynasty can exchange domestic surplus materials for urgently needed materials, such as horses, cattle and sheep. All transactions can also be restricted from the outflow of prohibited materials, so as to avoid the national uncle's concerns."

Li Shimin thought for a while and frowned, "But how can you make sure that someone is willing to pay the deposit in advance, what if your plan fails?"

Everyone nodded, and Li Mu smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I have never failed to do business. But since Your Majesty is confused with the public, I am willing to solve my doubts. I ask Your Majesty something. Now, on Chang'an Street, all those who have wealth in their families are wearing leather jackets and leather boots. Where did these leather fur come from?"

"This..." If Li Mu didn't mention it, Li Shimin couldn't remember it, but when he mentioned it, Li Shimin also thought about it. Yes, where did it come from? There were not so many cattle and sheep in the Tang Dynasty for slaughtering!

"It's all smuggled!" Li Mu gave the answer, saying: "The so-called Hu merchants and merchants don't have that much leather. If they pursue their source, aren't they still nomadic peoples such as Hu people, Uighurs, and Turks? In other words, even if they don't have mutual markets, they can't stop smuggling. Because this is a fundamental need. If there are no such leather and fur, what will the wealthy families in Chang'an City wear? In this way, your Majesty might as well open a mutual market and control it."

"If it is implemented thoroughly, all traders in private will be killed. Then these merchants who do these businesses must place orders from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. If they do not place orders, there will be goods. The Jinyiwei will check them. There is no airtight wall in the world, and it is impossible to hide it. Therefore, Your Majesty does not have to worry about no one placing an order. They are willing to do it if they don't want to. If I set out for them, they have to leave, and if they don't leave, they will starve to death."

Li Shimin was speechless when he said this. Looking at the dear ministers beside him, they all looked strange and couldn't speak. Although Li Mu was talking about merchants, he was also talking to them. The merchants with names and surnames were behind them.

Wang Gui listened to it for a long time and couldn't help but say, "Mr. Marquis, there is another thing. I hope you can solve the problem. If you place an order, but there is no goods at the agreed time. Who will bear the losses here? Is it the Ministry of Internal Affairs?"

"Shizhong Wang asked the point!" Li Mu suddenly felt energetic, stood up and grabbed Wang Gui's hand, shook it vigorously, and said, "Everyone said that Shizhong Wang was cunning, it is true. You thought of the key points that no one expected. This is another powerful tool for my income for His Majesty's inner treasury this year!"

Li Mu took out a piece of folded rice paper from his arms, spread it out and handed it to Li Shimin, and said, "Your Majesty, please read it. This is my latest plan. The fourth golden idea after the Tang Dynasty Mining, Tang Dynasty Salt Industry, and Tang Dynasty Jianye, Tang Dynasty Insurance!"

"Insurance? What is this?"

Li Shimin looked carefully and recognized all the words, but he didn't know what happened when he connected them. Li Shimin looked at Li Mu and said, "I don't understand, just say it."

"That's probably what it means." Li Mu explained enthusiastically: "Take the merchant just now, he wanted to buy 100 guan leather and paid a deposit of 30 guan. As Wang Shizhong said, he must be worried. 30 guan is not a small amount of money. If there is no goods at that time, wouldn't it be a waste of money? This is the time for Datang Insurance to step up. When placing an order, he only needs to spend one percent of the order amount to buy a contract insurance. If the contract cannot be fulfilled as scheduled, the party who purchases the contract insurance will receive a compensation of half of the order amount."
Chapter completed!