Only then did Zhu Gaochi realize that Zhang Meng was deliberately making fun of him and making a joke.
"These old coffin bastards!" Zhu Gaochi laughed and cursed in his heart.
In fact, he wasn't too angry. People joking with him proved that they didn't treat him as an outsider. It was better to joke than to be defensive and distant.
Nowadays, not only the atmosphere in the south study room is good, but the atmosphere in the entire court is also good.
The floods in Huaibei have finally subsided, the victims have a place to go and are resettled, and the main north-south roads have been repaired. As long as nothing goes wrong, this year will be another smooth year.
~
"I'm waiting to see you, Your Majesty!"
"Kowtow to His Highness the Crown Prince!"
Zhu Yunxi handed Yaya in his arms to the bastard, "Everyone is flat, watch your seat!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Zhu Gaochi stood in the front row. He first glanced at Zhu Yunxi, who was sitting cross-legged, and then at Liu Jin, who was sitting upright beside him.
"These two are the grandsons that the old man loves most!"
"Just now! Jie Aiqing told me something!" Zhu Yunxi said with an easy-going smile, "Someone has sued the imperial envoy comfort envoy and Xuzhou ancient road preparatory envoy I appointed."
"Huh?" Everyone was surprised.
"Xie Aiqing, tell everyone!" Zhu Yunxi picked up the tea cup.
~~
One thing can be said in just a few words.
There was silence in the palace, and everyone was silently meditating.
"Lian Aiqing, it was you who proposed the ancient road, and you decided the route. Let's talk about it!" Zhu Yunxi said with a smile.
Lian Zining looked solemn, stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I think you should be severely punished!"
He said, with an emphasis on tone, "Severely punish those who complain!"
"Oh?" Zhu Yunxi raised his eyebrows, "Why?"
Lian Zining gritted his teeth, "The imperial court's road construction is a good thing that benefits the country and the people, and even benefits future generations. It has been a blessing for hundreds of years. It's just that the ignorant people don't understand the imperial court's painstaking efforts. They bargain with the government for more, and even... sue
As an imperial envoy!"
"I think that if such unruly people are not punished, everyone will learn to do this in the future, whether it is the central government or local officials, they will inevitably be timid when they want to do things!"
"Well!" Zhu Yunxi did not express his position. He groaned and looked at the others, "Xia Aiqing, tell me!"
Xia Shu, the Minister of Punishment, thought for a while, "Your Majesty, I have always disagreed with harsh punishments and harsh laws to govern the world. But for these people who can't distinguish what is more serious and what is more serious, I believe that they should be punished and judged." After saying this, he paused.
He then added, "On the matter of the North-South Ancient Road, the imperial court spent more than a million dollars, and the people more than hundreds of thousands. How can a policy that benefits the country and the people be delayed by just a few households?"
"Yeah!" Zhu Yunxi nodded again, his attitude was very intriguing, "Bao Zhao is coming, what do you say?"
"Of course they will be severely punished!" Baozhao's eyes widened, "I'm sorry to say that this is the bad habit that our Ming Dynasty gave them! If it were placed in the previous dynasty, let alone the imperial court building roads and occupying their land.
Land, even if the dignitaries robbed and annexed their fields, would they dare to make such a fuss?"
"Not to mention occupying their land, even beating them to death, what can they do? Now the government does not want to give money, because it is too little. And they are still clamoring to go to Beijing to get a royal certificate? Let them come, and they should be held in jail with false accusations.
The world!"
"Yes!" Zhu Yunxi nodded again, his eyes falling on Zhu Gaochi's face, "Hong Xi, tell me!"
~~
"Father! I have something to say!"
Suddenly, a clear child's voice attracted everyone's attention, and Zhu Gaochi, who was about to speak, was also stunned.
"Nonsense! Is there any place for you to talk?" Zhu Yunxi frowned.
Liujin was not afraid of him, he lowered his head and said, "I'm not fooling around, I'm just saying that I love you so much. I don't agree with some of them!"
"What do you know?" Zhu Yunxi said, "I don't agree with you. Let's talk about it and say it carefully!"
Liu Jin grinned, missing a few teeth, "Bao Aiqing said that it was because I, the Ming Dynasty, was so good to the people that I got used to their bad habits. This sentence I think is wrong!"
Bao Zhao stood up and saluted, "Your Highness, please give me a clear explanation!"
"You said that Meng Yuan was not good to the people, so the people did not dare to say a word even if they were beaten to death. But I, the Ming Dynasty, was good to the people, so the people became unruly people. This is not right!" Liu Jin's clear child's voice echoed slowly. , "The death of Meng Yuan was because he did not regard the people as human beings. And the reason why the Ming Dynasty is stable is precisely because of the support of the people!"
"As Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty said, water can carry a boat but also capsize it. In the end, millions of lions in the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty perished in the hands of these common people who dared not speak out."
"He doesn't treat the people as human beings, and the people naturally don't treat him as our Chinese orthodoxy. The reason why the Mongolian and Yuan dignitaries dare to bully the people is because the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty did not treat the people as human beings, and treated them as slaves and livestock, the same as private property!"
"They consider themselves the masters, and the people will accept whatever they say. The people have no place to speak, no place to be reasonable, and no place to appeal. Therefore, if things go on like this, they lose the support of the people and make the people resentful and regard Meng Yuan as an enemy bandit. Eat its meat raw. The ancients said that those who have attained the Dao will have many helpers, while those who have lost the Dao will have few. This is what it means!"
"The Supreme Emperor raised his troops in civilian clothes and fought invincibly from south to north for seventeen years. In addition to the fierce battles of the Ming Dynasty, he also had a plan to ask for orders to reopen the Han Dynasty for the people!"
"The sage puts the people first. Our Han family has always treated the people with courtesy, allowing them to complain about injustices and punishing those who oppress good people."
"Xueshi Zhang said when he taught me how to read, the Supreme Emperor followed strict laws and liked to kill cruelly. However, he killed innocent people indiscriminately, and the people's lawsuits were often extrajudicial and lenient. Therefore, the people often praised the Supreme Emperor as a wise king!"
"The reason why the law is not tolerated is because the Ming Dynasty promised the people to follow the law. If the people have a place to reason, and the people can reason, then the court, local officials, and the people must reason with the people!"
"Being reasonable, whether it makes sense or not, is much better than treating people like pigs and dogs! There are unruly people in the world, but most of them are kind people. Is it because of unruly people that good people are not allowed to speak out?"
"If this is the case, it is not only a partial generalization, but also how will it be different from the Mongol Yuan Dynasty in the long run? The Ming Dynasty governs the people on behalf of the heaven. It cannot be because the Ming Dynasty is great, so the Ming Dynasty is right. It cannot be because the officials have power, so the officials are right. The people may be right or wrong. , there are laws and justice and human hearts weigh them. How can it be said in one word?"
Everyone was stunned, and then their eyes burst out with enthusiasm, making Liu Jin restless.
Especially Zhang Yan and other civil servants seemed almost too excited to control themselves.
It doesn’t matter if six pounds makes sense or not, right?
But for such a young child to be able to speak such truth, it is extremely commendable! Especially given his status, he is the prince and the future emperor. With a kind heart, he will not be wrong in the future.
"The sky has eyes!" Xiao Liujin was not annoyed by Bao Zhao. Instead, he said excitedly, "God has given me a wise and virtuous prince, and I will have a successor!"
"Nonsense!" Zhu Yunxi reprimanded him with a straight face, "You are talking nonsense because you know something! You don't know what you mean and you don't know what you are talking about! You are so young and you are talking so shamelessly. You have only been studying for a few years!" As he said this, he held the tea cup in his hand.
Send it over, "You are thirsty, moisten your throat!"
Seeing Liu Jin drinking heavily, he quickly said, "Just moisten it, this tea is strong!"
Then he smiled and said with a straight face, "Where did you hear these words from?"
"Bachelor Zhang, Bachelor Gao, and Bachelor Yang taught me!" Liu Jin said.
"You are not a big man, but you are not timid!" Zhu Yunxi scolded him again and said to the door, "You bastard, I will give it to the three bachelors of the East Palace. Each of them will be rewarded with one Korean ginseng and three pieces of silk!"
~~
"He is still young, and he is spoiled by the Supreme Emperor on weekdays. What he says will inevitably make people laugh! It is even a little unreasonable."
Zhu Yunxi looked at the ministers and said, "Let's continue talking about this case, Hong Xi, you can tell us!"
"Actually, I think that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is right!" Zhu Gaochi stood up and said, "It is wrong to deny the government land to the common people, but the court cannot punish him just because he is wrong. Their wrong, fundamentally speaking, is also for
Protect their own interests!"
Everyone looked at Zhu Gaochi, extremely puzzled.
"The land belongs to other people! Now the court is rushing to buy other people's land!" Zhu Gaochi continued, "Ordinary people live on one-third of an acre for their entire lives, and they may even stay rooted here for several lifetimes. It is not easy to move, even if
Even if you have money, you don’t want to find another way out!”
"They are talking like a lion, but official uniforms can sit on the ground and pay back the money, so they can bargain! If they label people as unruly people because they ask for a high price, doesn't that constitute forced buying and selling?"
Lian Zining was angry, "Your Highness, please be careful what you say, repairs are related to the livelihood of people in the north and south..."
"What does it have to do with them? Yes, building roads is a good thing, but does it have anything to do with occupying other people's land?" Zhu Gaochi said with a smile, "Oh, just because building roads is a good thing and the court spends money to hire people, so he wants to take over the land
Sell it to the government?"
"Just because it is good for most people, can this small group of people be sacrificed? Then, is it unfair to these small groups of people?"
"If this continues, will everything in the future be said to be good for most people, while a small number of people will hold their noses and admit it?"
"It's certainly wrong for him to threaten the government with sky-high prices, but it's even more wrong for the government to use force. Moreover, this case also involves assaulting people's lives and turning other people's houses into ruins! That's their home! The common people have been wearing their belts for generations.
I just saved a lot of money to build such a home! It was ruined like this!"
"Then, the government also said that he was a dishonest person. Does this make sense?"
"Then according to His Highness' opinion, let him charge ten times the price? Just let the construction period be delayed?" Zhang Yan said, "If other people heard about this, wouldn't everyone be like this? The imperial court..."
"I didn't say it!" Zhu Gaochi smiled, "Are you reasonable? The prerequisite is impartiality." After saying that, he paused and continued, "As His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said just now, the reason why the people dare to threaten the government and file a complaint is that
Because I, the Ming Dynasty, promise the people to follow the law!"
"In this case, land occupation cannot be used to exercise power." Zhu Gaochi added, "The government has given twice the land price, which seems like a lot. But think about it, where will they buy land with this money?"
"Which common people are willing to sell their land? Only prodigals sell their land! People who have lost their land cannot afford to buy the land with money, so they have to leave their homes. The money will eventually be spent, but the land belongs to the children and grandchildren!"
"I say this from the perspective of the common people. Now from the perspective of the government, the construction period cannot be delayed, the roads must be repaired, and the common people must not develop the habit of opening their mouths like a lion."
At this point, Zhu Gaochi smiled and said, "Why don't we just stop occupying his land and just go around it?"
"Wouldn't it cost more to go around?" Lian Zining said loudly.
"The cost is too much, but it's reasonable!" Zhu Gaochi spread his hands, "The government is afraid of spending more money, so it forces the land to occupy the land. That's unreasonable. It's unreasonable for the people to threaten the government if they want more money. Then go around and spend more
Money makes sense and everyone is happy!"
"My Ming Dynasty promises the people to follow the law, and allows them to reason with the officials, but they will not listen to falsehoods. At the same time, they will not occupy the people's land."
"You just said that if you give me money, then other people will learn to do this! Then go around and see who will respond! If someone doesn't sell, there will always be someone who wants to!"
"You..." Lian Zining was very angry, "You are full of nonsense!"