The ministers were shocked

Li Shimin didn't pay attention to Zhang Nuo's attempt to persuade him to stay, and instead took Empress Changsun with him and left.

He didn't even have time to consider the delicious new dishes that Zhang Nuo had promised for lunch. However, before leaving, he remembered the calligraphy piece he had obtained from Zhang Nuo and carefully held it in his hand.

As soon as he got on the carriage, Li Shimin commanded in a deep voice,

"Ben, arrange for changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, and Fang Xuanling to meet in the Liangyi Hall later. Also, notify the Zong Mansion that Hongyu, the female official in charge of the Lizheng Palace, has been adopted as a younger sister and given the surname Li."

Ben replied and immediately began to arrange for his attendants to bring out the hidden steeds from the alley and then split up to deliver the notifications.

After giving Ben his instructions, Li Shimin turned to Hongyu and said,

"Hongyu, you were originally a female official of the eighth rank in charge of the Lizheng Palace. Now that you have been given a national surname, you shouldn't be treated as just any ordinary lady. However, I have a high regard for Xiao Zhang and his marriage should not be taken lightly."

"But don't worry, your status is different from that of ordinary women. Even if a legitimate wife enters the household in the future, you and your child will be guaranteed by me and the empress, as if you were a true-born child!"

Hongyu was grateful and touched by his promise, even forgetting that they were in the carriage and stood up to express her thanks.

She was genuinely happy because this promise from Li Shimin was so important to her.

Although she already held an eighth-rank position as a female official, her rank was worthless once she left the palace. There were other female officials with higher ranks who became concubines after being given as gifts to certain high-ranking officials.

But with the national surname given by the current emperor and the empress's guarantee, it was a different matter altogether.

She was not worried about her future, as she had already found that Zhang Nuo was not a harsh person.

But she had to think about the future of her child!

The offspring of a concubine originally had no status, even if the family had many titles, they could not inherit them, and could only receive a small amount of money.

However, with Li Shimin's guarantee, it meant that her future child could inherit titles.

As for what would happen when the main wife had children in the future?

That was simple. Her husband was so capable, he could earn a few more titles!

Thinking about her future life, Hongyu, who was always cautious and prudent, couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Empress Chang sun looked at the little girl who had been by her side as both a handmaid and a younger sister, who was now excited about her own marriage, and she felt very happy as well.

At this point, Hongyu had been adopted as a younger sister and given the surname Li, so she was now even more like the empress's sister.

Empress Chang sun took Hongyu's hand and said with a smile,

"Hongyu, from now on, when we meet, you have to call me sister-in-law. Xiao Zhang is a talented person, and when you enter the Zhang family, you should get along well. In the future, when the husband and wife work together, it will not be in vain of the emperor and my kindness!"

Upon hearing Empress Chang sun's instructions, Hongyu quickly nodded in agreement.

She knew that this was not just a reminder, but also an important instruction.

Soon, the carriage entered the palace, and Li Shimin hurriedly changed into his dragon robe and walked towards the Liangyi Hall.

He was eager to announce the results of today's "exchanging clever strategies".

Upon hearing the emperor's urgent summons, several important officials did not dare to delay and hurried to the palace. Almost as soon as Li Shimin sat down, the officials had already arrived outside the hall.

The eunuch had already received Li Shimin's signal and did not need to announce anything. He led the officials directly into the hall.

After the officials had paid their respects and sat down, Li Shimin hurriedly said,

"My dear ministers, I have thought of a suitable way to address the issue of the empty national treasury, and I have called you all here to discuss this matter."

The loyal officials looked at each other, unable to say anything. However, they began to ponder in their hearts. How was it possible that there was a solution so quickly when they had not been able to come up with one during the morning court session?

At this moment, Li Shimin was not the carefree and amiable person he had been at the Zhang Nuo Wine Inn. He was a qualified emperor.

"Regarding the issue of the empty national treasury, I plan to impose a commercial tax!"

"When the commercial tax is imposed, the national treasury will have an additional source of revenue. At the same time, farmers do not have to worry about their livelihoods. When commerce is prosperous, farmers can also earn money by working in the workshops during their idle periods."

Changsun Wuji nodded in agreement. Indeed, commercial taxes must be collected from those merchants. As long as a reasonable tax rate is established, the national treasury will definitely have a significant increase in revenue.

Li Shimin continued,

"At the same time, no one under the heavens will be exempt from this commercial tax. Whether you are a commoner or a member of the imperial family, you must pay taxes in accordance with the regulations. Wuji, as a duke of the Great Tang and a member of the imperial family, you must set an example for others."

Changsun Wuji was first stunned, and then he smiled bitterly. Apparently, the emperor knew about his iron trading business. This was a warning to him.

However, he could not sing a different tune in front of Li Shimin. Therefore, he agreed to the commercial tax proposal.

When his business was established officially under the name of the Zhang and Sun families, he might even earn more money.

In a flash, Changsun Wuji had considered several possibilities in his mind, but he remained calm and nodded in agreement,

"Your Majesty, rest assured that Wuji will spare no effort to serve you."

Li Shimin was satisfied and nodded. With Changsun Wuji leading the way, this policy was likely to be implemented successfully.

"Afterwards, you can discuss this matter carefully with Dai Zhou and come up with a constitution as soon as possible. It should not harm the fundamental interests of the people, but should also be carefully considered so as not to leave the Ministry of Revenue in a difficult situation and end up with empty joy.

Is this a high demand? Of course, it is!

This means that the emperor has presented a problem, and you all need to discuss it carefully and come up with a satisfactory solution.

However, in reality, this is how Li Shimin communicates with his ministers on a daily basis. He has already given you the direction, so why can't you walk the path?

After discussing the matter of commercial taxes, Li Shimin began to show off.

"There is one more thing, also about increasing revenue, but it has nothing to do with the national treasury. It only concerns my personal funds. I could have made the decision myself, but seeing that you have been quite troubled by the matter of money lately, I'll share it with you all and relieve your boredom."

The several important ministers were once again stunned. What does he mean?

It turned out that His Majesty was not in a hurry about the matter of commercial taxes because he had other ways of making money, and it was for his personal funds?

Especially for Du Ruhui, he knew that His Majesty had just given 5,000 strings to the Ministry of War and another 5,000 strings to the tavern boss Zhang. According to reason, it should have been all used up!