"If only there were more subjects like you in the world, Your Majesty, this emperor's reign would be much more comfortable!"
Looking at the excessively young face, even Zhao Ji couldn't help but sigh. He was genuinely curious about how this young man came to be. Was it truly the lineage of Han Qi that produced such exceptional offspring?
"Your Majesty is too kind. Your subject merely fulfills his duties according to his position!"
"Well said, fulfilling one's duties according to one's position! At your age and with your current rank, if I were to reward you further, it would be to spoil you! Continue to do what you ought to do, and I will not forget your contributions. For the reclaiming of the Yan Yun territories, you deserve the foremost credit!"
After patting Han Mo's shoulder, Zhao Ji said with a smile.
Hearing Zhao Ji's words, Han Mo felt a sense of relief. Thankfully, the emperor hadn't made any rash decisions, like impulsively promoting him three ranks. Such a move would have made him a target for everyone's envy.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Summon someone, grant him a seat!"
Seeing the sincere and apprehensive expression on Han Mo's face, Zhao Ji smiled with satisfaction, nodded, and beckoned to a eunuch by his side to bring a brocade stool.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Are there any difficulties you've encountered in your work in the southeast?"
Despite Zhao Ji's incompetence as an emperor, Han Mo had, in just a few months, generated revenue that exceeded half of the national treasury's annual income.
Even a dissolute ruler like him found Han Mo increasingly pleasing to the eye at this moment.
"This…"
Upon hearing Zhao Ji's question, Han Mo immediately employed a tactic of feigned hesitation.
How could one snatch meat from another's bowl without facing any difficulties? However, he had already overcome the most challenging part; what remained was merely a matter of official recognition.
"We are the only ones present, sovereign and minister. This is not a formal court audience, but rather a casual chat between us. Speak your mind freely. You have rendered meritorious service to the court, and the military funds you've raised have alleviated my urgent needs. If there are difficulties that I can resolve for you, I will naturally handle them with due consideration!"
Seeing Han Mo's hesitant demeanor, Zhao Ji quickly added.
"Your Majesty is wise. It would be disingenuous to say there are no difficulties! Previously, Your Majesty, in your benevolence, could not bear to see corrupt officials exploit the common people, preferring them to be mere parasites within the national treasury, leading them to collude and nurture those overseas families into utter greed!"
"My reform of the Maritime Trade Supervisorate was fortunate to receive the full support of Your Majesty and His Highness the Prince of Xin. The establishment of the Mingzhou Navy, the preparation of the Quanzhou Navy, and the granting of command of all the provincial troops within their territories to my supervision, enabled me to narrowly suppress unscrupulous merchants like the Pu family!"
Han Mo spoke while carefully observing the emperor's expression. After all, complaining also required a sense of proportion.
A crying child gets milk, but if one cries too much, it becomes bothersome. One must strike a balance between getting what one needs and not being annoying.
"I am aware that this undertaking was not easy for you. Your capabilities were evident in the Battle of Mingzhou. I never expected that a young civil official like yourself would stand firm and decisively rout tens of thousands of rebels. Truly worthy of your noble lineage!"
Hearing Han Mo's words, Zhao Ji couldn't help but recall the events of the Battle of Mingzhou.
What made Han Mo's actions so astute was that in his memorial, he never exaggerated his own achievements nor excessively disparaged his opponents.
The actual strength of the opponents was not something Han Mo needed to articulate. After all, they had fought their way out of Taizhou, where the local imperial troops had collapsed at the first contact, clearly indicating the combat effectiveness of these rebels.
He had simply presented the sequence of events of the Battle of Mingzhou, the disparity in troop strength, and his strategic plans in a straightforward manner before sending it directly to the emperor.
Having read countless memorials that excessively boasted of one's own merits and inflated the enemy's strength, turning back to Han Mo's memorial, even an emperor like Zhao Ji, who had been raised within the deep palace since childhood, could discern the precariousness of the situation in Mingzhou at that time from the information presented.
"Your Majesty is too generous. Your subject was merely forced into a corner, only thinking of how to protect the military funds I had raised for Your Majesty from being seized by the rebels. Who knew that in the end, with the desperate fighting of several generals, we would muddle our way to victory…"
At this point, Han Mo specifically scratched the back of his head.
Seeing his simple and honest demeanor, even Zhao Ji couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"I know it hasn't been easy for you; I am aware of all these matters. Tell me something I don't know! What other difficulties do you anticipate?"
Hearing the emperor say this, Han Mo immediately understood. He had cried enough; now it was time to reveal his true intentions.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, my plan is to divide the primary revenue streams of the Maritime Trade Supervisorate into two categories. The first is to act as a central coordinator, regulating commodity prices. All goods entering and leaving our Great Song will require centralized pricing by the Maritime Trade Supervisorate. The advantage of this is that it will ensure our Song merchants are not incited by foreign traders to suppress prices!"
As Han Mo spoke, Zhao Ji nodded repeatedly.
Although he was not a great emperor, he was an extremely intelligent man. Simply put, this meant that whether it was goods sold or bought, he would take a cut from both sides.
In any case, the majority of this money would flow directly into the emperor's pockets. Moreover, Han Mo had justified it with such noble reasoning. What was essentially an act of taking money was presented as a beneficial endeavor for the nation and its people. Naturally, as the beneficiary, he had no objections.
"The second is to ensure reasonable commodity prices. The Maritime Trade Supervisorate cannot always operate in isolation, waiting for foreign traders to bring their goods. My suggestion is that the Maritime Trade Supervisorate take the initiative to assemble fleets, drawing elite escorts from the Mingzhou and Quanzhou Navies, and dispatching capable officials to personally visit the Southern Seas and assess the value of these goods overseas!"
"Of course, to cover expenses, they will also carry some goods when they set sail. Otherwise, even if the Maritime Trade Supervisorate earns a fortune daily, it would not withstand their consumption!"
After hearing Han Mo's words, Zhao Ji's gaze towards Han Mo immediately softened considerably.
This, he thought, was true talent!
What was it called to distort right into wrong?
What was it called to call a deer a horse?
This young man's silver tongue could truly turn the dead into the living!