《宋史·列传·卷一百四十三》
皇上由于国家用度不足，诏令宰相兼为国用使，参政同知国用使，叶颙于是说 ：今天费财养兵最严重，兵多那么就有冗兵，虚占兵籍之人，没有战事就已浪费很多钱财，一有战事他们又不堪使用。
上以国用未裕，诏宰相兼国用使，参政同知国用事，颙乃言： 今日费财养兵为甚，兵多则有冗卒虚籍，无事则费财，有事则不可用。
Because the country was short of money, the emperor ordered the prime minister to be the ambassador for the country's use, and the 参政 (sanzheng) to be the ambassador for the country's use, so Ye Yong said: Today, spending money to support the army is the most serious, and if there are too many soldiers, there will be redundant soldiers, people who occupy military positions in vain, and a lot of money is wasted when there is no war, and they are not worthy of use when there is war.