"When I am in charge of the historical bureau, I accept the rules and regulations according to the circumstances, create a good impression, and tell the truth with a fertile heart. There are those who are eager to compile the details." Reply to Xu's nephew Gong Su's letter
Liu He narrowed his eyes slightly, briefly went through what he just said in his mind, and then said in surprise: "That's it."
Zhang Chang nodded and said: "Your Majesty spends too much money now. If you start training next year, in two years, the imperial court will have enough savings to launch an expedition. But now the imperial court has been conducting expeditions for many years. If you are not careful, you will fall into quagmire. Guanzhong How can the people's power be restored? If by then the country has no savings and needs to wage war with Guandong, it will be impossible without increasing taxes." At the end of the sentence, Zhang Chang's voice became much louder.
Liu He sat up straight and said: "Your Majesty is wise and wise and will not be unaware of this. For example, the minting of new coins by the Shuiheng Supervisor, Sili, the military and civilian farming carried out in various parts of the state, and the salt and iron monopoly, etc. You can’t accumulate wealth and grain. It’s just”
Before they finished speaking, the two of them looked at each other and realized in their hearts. What the emperor wanted to do was just trying to tempt the local powerful. Sikong Zhao Wen sounded nice in agreement, but they who were actually responsible for the execution were the first to bear the brunt. , it can’t be said that he has been hated to the core by others for a long time.
Zhang Chang said: "Therefore, I hope that the big farmer can try to persuade your Majesty that the discussion of mobilizing troops should be postponed for one year. When the warehouses are full next year and the new policies are effective, it is not impossible to go straight out of Guandong."
Liu He pondered for a while, then suddenly smiled and said: "Mr. Zhang is afraid of difficulties."
Zhang Chang was startled, and then said: "How is this fear of difficulty? It's just for the benefit of the country. If you want, Zhao Sikong persuades your majesty to mint Tongbao money and clean up the soldiers in the capital for the battle in Wudu next year. .If this battle is won, Zhao Sikong will definitely gain, but what will happen to the imperial court’s savings? How will we make plans in the event of disaster?"
Liu He glanced at Zhang Chang, somewhat hesitant in his heart, but then he thought about the emperor's unique luck in the temple in the past two years, but he still didn't believe that the emperor didn't foresee this, and he didn't believe that ministers like Zhao Wen only cared about their own interests. I don't know how difficult it is. Most of this is Zhang Chang's unfounded speculation due to his limited vision and knowledge and not knowing the plans of the superiors. Perhaps, there is also some jealousy towards Zhao Wen, so it is better for him to get less involved.
He said: "Although your Majesty is young, he has a calm temperament. Perhaps your Majesty and Sikong have already made a plan, but they just did not announce it. In addition, the matters of making money and farming are intertwined. Although it is difficult to handle, we are ministers. , is there any reason to be afraid of difficulties and not move forward? If the same difficult task is postponed, will it become easier? "
Zhang Chang did not expect that Liu He would say such generous words. He had always thought that Liu He's talent for financial management was not as good as his, which was indeed the case. But he did not expect that he would have such trust in the emperor. On the contrary, it seemed that he Being conservative is obsolete. If he hadn't been seeking something in his position, he wouldn't have thought so hard and considered so much for the court. Zhang Chang looked at Liu Hehao for a while and said: "In this case, you and I need to make plans as soon as possible. If I can't arrange money for the imperial court, and the big farmers are fine. I have no relatives or old friends in Chang'an, so I might be dismissed and sent back someday."
The investigation of Shanglin, the promotion of farming, salt and iron and other government affairs were all handled by Zhang Chang, the young man. There were many people offended behind the scenes. If he lost his power, it might not be as simple as being dismissed and sent back.
Liu He looked at Zhang Chang and was about to say something. Suddenly the car stopped and it turned out that he had arrived at Beigong Gate.
The conversation ended here. As soon as the two of them came out, they saw fine snowflakes flying outside. The roofs of the value houses on both sides of the palace gate, the hoods of the cars on the roadside, and the road were all paved.
A light layer of snow.
It is now the end of November, and the first snow of this winter is long overdue.
A few days ago, ministers who had unknown accidents came to congratulate them, saying that the winter was warm and the poor people would not freeze to death. Liu He thought it was funny at the time. Some of these ministers who only knew the scriptures could not even tell the basic weather.
Good or bad, after waiting for so many days, it finally snowed for the first time, and the farmers outside should breathe a sigh of relief.
"It's too late for the snow to fall." Zhang Chang stood behind Liu He and looked at the fine snow all over the sky. He sighed: "But it's better to have snow than not to fall."
Liu He nodded, deeply convinced.
Also watching the falling snow were Liu He and Zhang Chang, as well as the emperor who had moved to the Greenhouse Palace.
The emperor stood by the window, watching the fine snow falling slowly from the sky, with a trace of worry lingering in his brows. He was not at all as comfortable as he was when he enjoyed the snow.
At this time, Mu Shun came in and said: "Your Majesty, all the ministers have arrived."
The emperor didn't respond, still looking at Xue intently. Mu Shun was a little unsure whether the emperor didn't hear it. He was about to say it again when he heard the emperor say very slightly: "Explain it."
At the end of the new year, senior planners from various counties and counties came to Beijing one after another to prepare for the examination by Fu Xun, the official official secretary of the Chengming Palace. Many departments and departments of the imperial court also had to follow the emperor's edict to summarize the achievements of the past year and submit to the imperial gazette.
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Today, all the princes of Chengming Palace, as well as Shaofu Zhang Chang, Da Sinong Liu He, Du Branch Secretary Han Bin, Shuiheng Duwei Zhou Zhong and other internal and external ministers in charge of financial management came together to attend the meeting, in order to report to the emperor the annual income of the imperial court this year and the income of the coming year.
In addition, there are some remote counties and counties that are in dire straits and have requested exemptions.
Sure enough, after listening to Ma Rixi's melodious reading of the memorial as if it were a classic article, the emperor immediately issued an edict: "Liangzhou is indeed in ruins and the people's livelihood is difficult. I have no intention of imposing taxes on this. The imperial court should exempt it. But
Han Sui cried in his memorial about being poor and miserable, saying how difficult it had been for him to appease the Qiang and Di this year, but I couldn't stand this look."
The emperor said with a cold face: "Yongliang came out of the same state, and we were both governors. Zhong Yuan often came and did not show his merits? It can be seen that this man only feared the imperial court in his heart, not respected him. He was always worried that the imperial court would do something bad to him."
"Wei." Zhao Wen said: "Even so, the imperial court is currently seeking peace in the northwest. If Liangzhou wants to be stable, it cannot do without Han Sui for the time being."
Ma Rixi seemed to look at Zhao Wen in surprise. According to his expectation, Zhao Wen didn't want to preside over the great success of conquering the Song Dynasty in Longxi? Why did he speak for Han Sui? Is it really as the scholar Sun Rui said?
I mean, his intention is not in Long, but in Shu?
"The restraint is necessary." The emperor nodded and said: "It was an expedient measure to make Han Sui the governor of Liangzhou as a special case in addition to the three mutual laws. Anyway, Liangzhou is indeed barren and cannot collect much tax. Instead of
It is better for county officials to go to the countryside to disturb the people than to free them of wealth and win the hearts of the local people. However, these taxes and calculations still have to be levied, otherwise how can we know how many people with registered households there are in Liangzhou?"
Ma Rixi said: "I promise that the people of Liangzhou will be grateful for your Majesty's grace."
The emperor thought for a while and then said another thing: "After the tax revenue comes up this year, how much food does the imperial court have? How much is the stock of warehouses in various counties and counties?"
Ma Rixi was stunned, hesitantly turned to look at Liu He and others, and shied away the responsibility: "You should know about this." 11