He was still thinking about Si Yiluo's previous humiliation of his face, but Zhou Chen's timing to find trouble was obviously wrong.
Si Yiluo pursed his lips and said: "His Royal Highness Chen has time to question Mr. Li's intentions here. Why not ask the emperor for permission to go to Xuzhou for disaster relief? The people of Xuzhou are in dire straits, and the top priority is to discuss disaster relief."
It's a good plan. If His Highness can come in person, the people of Xuzhou will be more grateful for the imperial court's kindness."
These words made Zhou Chen annoyed.
"Father, I just raised a question. Who would have expected that Mr. Si would be so sensitive? Maybe there really is an ulterior secret..."
"Okay!" Emperor Yao said angrily, "I think you didn't kneel enough!"
Because of the dispute between him and Zhou Rong on the court, the brothers were punished by kneeling at the ancestral tablet in the ancestral hall to reflect.
Zhou Zhan escaped because of his weak body, but the others knelt down honestly for two days.
How could Zhou Chen swallow this tone so easily!
When Emperor Yao spoke, Boge Lao advised: "Your Highness, King Chen, the Emperor has summoned us to discuss disaster relief. If Your Highness has any ideas, you may want to give it a try."
Zhou Chang also gave him a wink, saying that unimportant matters can be discussed later. He summoned them into the palace to discuss matters in the middle of the night, not to settle personal grievances.
Zhou Chen had no choice but to swallow this breath, take a deep breath, and soften his attitude.
"It's my fault. I shouldn't doubt Sir Si casually. My qualifications are shallow, so I'd better listen to the opinions of a few adults first."
Emperor Yao's eyes swept over Shen Jiaxing and others, and then landed on the princes.
"You have been following the Zao Dynasty for several years. Although I have never asked you to participate in politics, you should know something about political affairs. Let's talk about how to provide disaster relief first."
Don't ask about Shen Panxing and other ministers, let's ask them first...
Everyone present became excited, and Zhou Rong said: "Father, I think the court can first allocate disaster relief money and mobilize grain and grass from surrounding counties. Xuzhou is very close to Jiangsu and Zhejiang. As long as the money is in place, it will be easy to raise grain and grass."
"First help the victims overcome the immediate difficulties. The government will distribute relief money and seeds so that they can plant another crop of rice before winter."
Emperor Yao nodded and asked, "Is there more?"
Zhou Chen didn't want Zhou Rong to be in the limelight alone, so he continued: "The key lies in how to choose the imperial envoys to go to disaster relief. Money touches people's hearts. If someone gets their own pockets, the money will be sent out by the court, but it will not fall into the hands of the victims."
It doesn’t help anything!”
Emperor Yao was very pleased that he could think of this.
"Any more?"
This is an opportunity to prove yourself!
Zhou Yu stood up and asked for the order: "Father, my son is willing to invite me to Xuzhou to provide disaster relief! The people have just been hit hard, and my identity can not only appease the people, but I am also the son of my father, the prince of the Zhou Dynasty.
Naturally, I won’t be greedy for the people’s life-saving money! Please give me a chance to redeem my merits!”
Zhou Chang spat in his heart. This was what he wanted to say, but Zhou Yu beat him to it!
"Father, my son and I are also willing to invite ourselves to provide disaster relief!"
Zhou Rong is not willing to lag behind.
Zhou Chang stood up and asked for the order.
"My son is also willing!"
Now only Zhou Yun and Zhou Zhan were left standing upright. They looked at each other, Zhou Zhan coughed lightly, and Zhou Yun suddenly remembered that he was frail and sick, so he was the only one left.
"Son, I would also like to go!"
Xie Yun stroked his beard and praised: "Your Majesty, it is really a blessing to the court and the people that all the princes can have this responsibility."
Bo An snorted lightly.
"It is said that Xie Ge is always a noble person, but he is faster than anyone else in flattering him..."
After Bao Fan was overthrown, he fought openly and secretly with Shen Ganxing, trying to take over Bao Fan's rights. Who knew that Xie Yun would come out halfway? It's surprising that he could treat him well!
There are always some counter-arguments to be made in the court to cause him some trouble, not to mention now!
Xie Yun was not angry at all, but added: "But disaster relief is not such a simple matter."
Zhou Zhan cleared his throat and then spoke: "Father, my sons and I read through ancient books and discovered a pattern. Plague is likely to break out after floods. In addition to food, disaster relief must also prepare some medicinal materials to prevent and treat epidemics. We must also cooperate with local people. The yamen explained to the people that they should not drink raw water and that putrid corpses were best cremated."
"To do this well, the government will also need to invest money to help the victims rebuild their houses. Calculated, this is a big expense. I am afraid that the government's allocation alone will empty out the national treasury."
He revealed what Pei Zhi, the Minister of Household Affairs, was thinking. Pei Zhi hurriedly took advantage of every opportunity to report: "Your Majesty, the treasury is empty. If it hadn't been for the raids on the homes of a group of criminal officials a few years ago, it would have been at the bottom by now."
"And since the Chinese New Year, there are banquets in the palace, expenses for repairing the imperial mausoleum, allocations for spring plowing in various places, cleaning up river siltation...all the things to be done are lined up."
"Xuzhou was hit by a disaster. Not only did there be no harvest this spring, but the river dams had to be repaired. After all, the national treasury was already half empty, not to mention the military salaries and pensions allocated to the military every year. Although the national treasury is now There is money in it, but we still have to make long-term plans..."
After this calculation, the money is indeed not enough.
Zhou Zhan suggested: "My son suggested that we could send imperial ministers to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to raise disaster relief funds, or organize a fundraiser for disaster relief grains, so that local wealthy households can contribute, so that the pressure on the court will be much less."
Zhou Zhan's proposal silenced the princes who requested disaster relief.
When they go to provide disaster relief with money, they just show their faces. To put it bluntly, they are gold-plated. The people underneath get things done, and they gain a reputation, but they don't actually have to do much work.
But it is difficult to prevent and control epidemics and raise donations. In order to prevent civilians from rioting, the local garrison needs to cooperate, one by one. If it is not done well, it will lead to a greater disaster.
Who is willing to spit out what they have eaten? Even if they are princes, they may not be able to eat well in the local area. Who is willing to do it if the effort is thankless?
"Seventh brother, do you have an idea?"
Zhou Rong asked the question to Zhou Zhan, who asked the question. Unexpectedly, Zhou Zhan shook his head.
"Brother, Xuzhou is more than a thousand miles away from the capital. No one can say for sure what the specific situation will be. We have to go to the local area to get a deeper understanding. Everything will be adjusted accordingly. I don't have any ideas at this time."
Zhou Rong snorted, obviously disappointed.
"However, my son suggested that my father could first allocate two hundred thousand taels of silver to mobilize food and grass from the surrounding areas to temporarily stabilize the situation, and then go to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to raise funds to assist in post-disaster reconstruction. This project is expected to continue. Two or three months. Third brother is right, the difficulty is not in disaster relief, but in whether the imperial envoys sent to provide disaster relief have the ability."
Emperor Yao asked: "Do you have any suitable candidates to recommend?"
It was obviously a hard job. Zhou Yu was hesitating when he saw Zhou Zhan standing next to him.
"Father, I would like to give it a try."
Zhou Yu was not willing to lag behind and spoke hurriedly.
"Father, I am also willing to give it a try!"
Those who stood up were all Shen Ganxing's sons-in-law. Bo'an winked at Zhou Chen, but Zhou Chen seemed not to notice. He didn't follow until Zhou Rong also asked for an order.
Emperor Yao's eyes fell on Zhou Zhan and asked: "Can your body bear it?"
Zhou Zhan kowtowed and said: "Father, I am only willing to share my father's worries!"
The four sons knelt in front of them. Emperor Yao felt relieved and said hello three times.
"I'm sure! But this is the first time for you to do something for me. Go back tonight and think about who can help you. Go back and draw up a list, and submit it to me tomorrow morning for discussion with the ministers!"