Shen Ao said grandly. One million taels of silver is naturally a lot for a small army of only two thousand people. It is enough for them to spend a long time. In order to let the horse run, Shen Ao had never been stingy with his subordinates when it came to money.
Just give money back to money, and proper supervision is still needed. Otherwise, who knows whether something too big to lose will happen.
"Thank you, Master." Feng Wanli and the two were even more excited when they heard that there was a million taels to be taken. They became more determined to follow Shen Ao's pace. After all, such a generous master gave them such freedom. Power is indeed something that can only be encountered but cannot be sought.
"We're all a family, so there's no need to be so outspoken and polite. Okay, if you don't have anything to do, please step aside." After talking about business, Shen Ao waved his hands to let the two of them leave. After all, their relationship is now in the dark. , even if we meet in person, it doesn’t take too long.
After finishing speaking, the two of them did not leave immediately, but looked at Shen Ao nervously.
"There's something else, let's talk about it together." Shen Ao asked with curiosity on his face.
"Young... Young Master, um... there are many brothers who were killed or injured in the battle. Their lives are very difficult. Do you think we can help them secretly?" Feng Wanli lowered his head, as if he was very nervous. After saying these words, he immediately lowered his head.
Although they know that their master is very rich and can make more money, after all, those people died and were injured because of their great work. Ordinarily, compensating them should be a matter of the court and has nothing to do with them, but now they But asking Shen Ao to help those people with money is a bit excessive.
"Haha." Shen Ao didn't expect that the two of them were talking about this matter, so he smiled and said: "Well, someone knows about this matter. Don't worry, the matter of increasing their pension will be done immediately. No need. Worry."
I originally thought that after saying this, Shen Ao would be reprimanded. The best result was that Shen Ao said that he would think about it before giving them an answer. But I never thought that the result would come out so quickly, which was still a good result. Now Feng Wanli and Sun Fuhu first looked at each other, and then knelt down in front of Shen Ao. "Young Master, I will take the brothers who died and were injured in the battle to thank the master."
The two people are so loyal and loyal, which reflects their excellent qualities. Shen Ao also appreciates it very much. He smiled and nodded: "In the future, if there is such a thing, just say it directly, as long as what you say is right. , don’t be too taboo. Okay, you can leave now.”
"Yes, Master, we will retire now." Feng Wanli and Sun Fuhu stood up with joyful expressions on their faces, and soon disappeared into the darkness outside the Pigeon Court.
Shen Ao had already made the decision to support the military dependents on his own, and the suggestions from Feng Wanli and Sun Fuhu further confirmed his idea. Although he also knew that doing so would inevitably make the dignitaries, courtiers, and even the emperor have ideas. So what, he only does things based on his heart, and as long as it is right, he will do it. As for what other people will think, he doesn't care about that much.
Shen Ao made up his mind, and two days later, after Han Ce compiled the list of those killed and injured in the battle, he quickly distributed money one by one.
Speaking of which, it does not require much money. There were more than 12,000 killed in the war, and a total of 220,000 taels was needed. There were more than 6,000 injured, a total of more than 60,000 taels, and the total was less than 300,000 taels. , to Shen Ao, it really can only be regarded as small money.
However, as soon as this incident came out, it quickly formed a huge influence in the court and among the powerful, and almost everyone was talking about it.
Ordinarily, what Shen Ao did can be called a good deed. Better compensation for the dead and wounded soldiers not only solved possible social conflicts, but also increased the importance of Daqian among the people. It is conceivable that if there is a war, , I think the recruitment work will be much easier.
For this reason, the Minister of War, Cheng Bolin, greatly appreciated and even publicly supported Shen Ao's move, saying that it was for the country and the people and should be strongly promoted.
However, Cheng Bailin was the only one in the entire court to publicly say this. The others either kept silent or secretly hated Shen Ao in their hearts. Otherwise, Shen Ao's actions gained the hearts of the people and made them, in comparison, As courtiers and dignitaries, they were compared to nothing.
Didn’t you see that those military relatives and wounded and remnant soldiers who had received money always talked about Duke Zhongguo when they met? Now in the streets and alleys, people are mostly talking about this matter, so much so that whenever someone mentions Duke Zhongguo’s name, Head, the people habitually gave a thumbs up.
There are even some people who hate the rich and use this as an argument. Among the ministers and dignitaries of the Manchu Dynasty, only Lord Zhongguo is considerate of the people, while the others are just dead bodies and selfish villains.
This is equivalent to knocking down a whole boat of people with one stroke. How can other ministers and dignitaries be happy?
More importantly, Shen Ao's actions are tantamount to elevating the status of warriors, which is a provocation to those officials who have always emphasized the use of civility to control military force. They are afraid that the common people will side with warriors in the future, and young people People also have to give up their writing and join the army. If so, the status of literati will not only be in jeopardy, but also face the danger of disconnection.
Shen Ao's philanthropic act, because it leveraged the interests of the literati, they united for a while, and countless memorials were sent to the emperor's Long Case, including the impeachment memorials. It seemed that Emperor Qianwen was also one of the top two. , complained to Yan Fu, this boy is too capable of tormenting.
After this incident happened, Emperor Qianwen was also unhappy. Without it, Shen Ao's influence expanded, so when everyone said good things about him, would they accuse him of being a fatuous emperor? And once Shen Ao's If he has too much influence, will it threaten his imperial power?
Although Shen Ao is his son, to the royal family, the most valuable thing is family affection. For the sake of power, are there not many cases where brothers kill each other, and father and son kill each other? Not to mention, Emperor Qianwen was originally a man who controlled power. A very strong person.
Seeing that Shen Ao is not yet twenty years old, he has already performed so well in terms of financial resources. In addition, he is talented and learned, can write admirable sentences in literature, and can defeat barbaric enemies on horseback. If such a person does not If it is controlled, it will be fine in a few years. Who can control him?
If one day he passes away and makes another prince the emperor, wouldn't he still have to look at his face?
One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, unless there is one male and one female.
Emperor Qianwen decided that he wanted to bring down Shen Ao's majesty, at least not let him be too popular. He picked up a memorial that had been retained before, which was about an imperial censor impeaching Shen Ao for not going out twenty miles east of the city to greet him. Taking the emperor's seat is an act without a king or a father.
If it were before, such a memorial would naturally not cause the slightest disturbance. But now, Emperor Qianwen is determined to suppress Shen Ao and suppress his momentum, this memorial can have a greater effect. "Yan Fu, Chuan Purpose..."
...
Zhongguogongfu.
Just when everyone was blaming the loyal Duke Shen Ao in their hearts without daring to speak out, a decree from the emperor was delivered to the palace. Yan Fu personally delivered the decree and fined Shen Ao half a year's salary on His Majesty's order.
To say that it is only a half-year salary penalty, let alone a person with strong financial resources like Shen Ao, is nothing to most of the ministers. In the end, this can only be regarded as a signal that the emperor is not satisfied with Shen Ao. It's just a signal.
But then, the Ministry of Accounts sent people to Daqian Bank to audit the accounts, and suspended the supervisor Chang Hong, saying that he would not be allowed to start working again until all the accounts were audited. This signal was too strong. Some.
Daqian Bank is said to belong to the Daqian Empire. But in the final analysis, from the beginning of planning to the establishment until now it has grown in scale and is accepted by the world, Shen Ao does not know how much effort and effort he has put into it. But now, Chang Hong has been kicked out, and Shen Ao's efforts have not only been wiped out overnight, but at least his strength has been severely damaged.
For this reason, Chang Hong came to the Zhongguo Duke's Mansion with a look of defeat on his face. After Shen Ao saw all this, he was scolded, "What's wrong? It's just a period of rest, and the sky is not falling." Down, why is this so?"
"Master, my subordinates are fighting against the injustice for you. You wanted to be a big banker, but it's the result of your hard work for a long time, and now you are..." Chang Hong said full of grievance.
"Okay. Daqian Bank belongs to the Daqian Dynasty, not to any one person." Shen Ao interrupted the other party, "You were too busy a while ago. Now that you have time, just take a good rest. ."
Regardless of whether he was convinced or not, whether he had resentment or not, Chang Hong still retreated. Shen Ao was left sitting in the hall with a calm face. It was hard to tell whether he was happy or angry. But there was no resentment in his heart at all. ,That is impossible.
It should be said that Shen Ao acted completely based on his heart this time. He recruited those soldiers, and they died on the battlefield. Since he has the ability, what's the point of doing his part?
Shen Ao had no selfish motives in this, and he never thought about making any articles out of this matter. Everything was just speculation by others. Now he regards himself as a threat. This is really a crime he wants to inflict, so why bother? No words.
Thinking that this time he just gave out silver taels to meritorious military relatives, and he attracted such criticism? Then if he resists the royal marriage in the future, what kind of crimes may he be charged with? Thinking of this, he deepens his deep sorrow. Arrogant and determined to become a powerful force. Maybe he really should consider living in a place where the big officials can't control him. That kind of life would be free and easy, far from being like now, where he is afraid of doing anything. People who are afraid of their feet can't even do good things, which is really helpless.