"Thanks to Brother Li this time, otherwise..." Lian Shaohua said and shook his head helplessly.
"Brother Lian, you are very polite." Li Qi said, "I think eating vegetarian food all day in this temple may have an impact on your physical recovery. I will go back to make arrangements and have someone send you some meat..."
Lian Shaohua waved his hand and said: "Brother Li, don't bother me. I think it's good to eat vegetarian food. Besides, this place is such an important place of Buddhism. How can you break the rules for me?"
"Okay... I came to see you today because I have something to tell you." Li Qi said.
"Brother Li is going on an expedition?" Lian Shaohua asked.
Li Qi nodded: "Let's set off the day after tomorrow."
"Brother Li, are you ready?"
"It's almost done."
Lian Shaohua nodded: "What does Brother Li need from me?"
"Actually, it's not a big deal. You already know my situation. I made it very clear to you a few days ago..."
Li Qi paused and said: "As the crown prince, my first goal now is naturally to help the crown prince ascend the throne. My expedition to Feiyan Village this time will probably take one or two years. During this time,
The third prince is very likely to take action against the prince..."
"But the prince and I are not monarchs and ministers, what can I do?" Lian Shaohua asked.
Li Qidao: "Brother Lian has only one thing to do."
"What?"
"Winning over people's hearts."
"Winning over people's hearts?" Lian Shaohua frowned slightly.
"Yes, I hope Brother Lian will build a huge information network for me in Kyoto. From the imperial court to the market, no information can be let go... I also need Brother Lian to help me cultivate a group of dead soldiers." Li Qidao
.
Lian Shaohua pondered for a moment and said, "I'm afraid the two things Brother Li said are not that easy..."
"Brother Lian, what do you think is difficult?"
Lian Shaohua said: "It is not difficult to operate these two things, but it requires a huge amount of money..."
Li Qi smiled and said: "I thought Brother Lian had nothing to worry about. I have already arranged this matter."
Li Qi took out a jade pendant and handed it to him: "This is a token from my house. If you need money, you can just go to the housekeeper in my house. I have already told him that I am not here, and everything will be listened to."
your."
Lian Shaohua didn't know how much money Li Qi had, but seeing the prepared look on his face, Lian Shaohua thought for a while, nodded and said, "Brother Li, what else do you have to do?"
"There's nothing else going on... You escaped death this time without the help of the princess. No matter what, when you return to the princess's house in the future, no matter how false your feelings are, you should stabilize the princess." Li Qi patted Lian.
Shaohua's shoulder said, "I know you already have the woman you like in your heart, but it's obviously not a good time to go find her now... If you believe me, I will help you find a way to reunite you in the future."
Lian Shaohua was slightly stunned and looked at Li Qi, not knowing what to say for a moment.
"That's all I can say... You can take care of the other things." Li Qi stood up and said, "Let's go, take good care of yourself. If you encounter something difficult, don't take risks.
Just do what you can.”
Looking at Li Qi's leaving figure, Lian Shaohua held the jade pendant in his hand and sighed in his heart.
When Li Qi rescued Lian Shaohua, he had already thought that no matter who he was, since he had promised to be loyal to him, he would not break his promise.
…
When marching and fighting, Daxia has an unwritten rule: before the troops and horses move, food and grass go first.
Li Qi came here to do logistics this time. Perhaps out of consideration for his "brother," Huang Jin entrusted him with the task of escorting the grain and fodder.
Escorting grain and grass is a good job. You can make a fortune by passing through various cities and towns along the way.
And you don’t need to do anything. Every time you go to a place, the local magistrate will come to visit you honestly. Not only will the needed food and grass be prepared, but he will also give you some gold, silver and jewelry.
The reason why those local officials did this is mainly related to the customs of Daxia.
Officials in Daxia received pitifully little monthly stipends. If they were not greedy, they might not even be able to support themselves.
This also led to the formation of an unspoken rule in the Daxia officialdom, and there would be some additional taxes among the taxes promulgated by the emperor.
And those taxes went into the pockets of local officials. From the local area to Kyoto, officials at almost every level took the money.
Think about it, a month's salary for a county magistrate in Daxia, converted into the salary of Li Qi's time, was only more than a thousand yuan.
More than 1,000 yuan is just over 10,000 yuan a year, and you still have to support your family.
When you meet people coming down from above, you have to spend money to entertain them and give them gifts.
Just like Li Qi and others, they were ordered to go on an expedition. This was the emperor's order. If the officials didn't treat them well when they got to the place, not only would they not be able to keep their hats when they came back.
If you accuse any of them of not cooperating with the grain and grass collection, it is very likely that they will be beheaded on the spot.
Local officials in Daxia were most afraid of two types of people, one was the imperial envoys, and the other was the army.
Li Qi did not rise from a lower-level official position, so naturally he did not understand these things very well.
He used to wonder why he would receive a lot of gifts every time he escorted grain and grass to a place. It was only after Tang Yun explained it to him that he found out.
"Young master, I don't know. There are many unwritten rules in the Daxia officialdom. There are promotion fees for promotions. For example, if you are promoted, you have to pay a sum of money to the superiors... There are also visits to the capital, travel, and annual gifts.
…”
Li Qi couldn't help sighing: "According to what you say, there are no officials in Daxia who are not corrupt?"
Tang Yundao: "To this day, I have never seen an official who is not corrupt...it's just a few."
"Don't these emperors care?" Li Qi asked.
Tang Yun smiled bitterly and said: "The emperor is in Kyoto, and many things are reported to him by the people below him. And as long as there is no rebellion, natural disasters and other matters, he generally will not interfere."
"The people of Daxia are really suffering..." Li Qi sighed.
Tang Yun was silent for a moment and said: "Back then, Confucianism tried to reform, and it also allowed the people to live a good life... It's a pity that all the great Confucians in the court later lived in seclusion in the mountains and forests, and Daxia has become like this again..."
"Why do those great scholars live in seclusion in the mountains and forests?" Li Qi asked.
"I heard it was because the great scholars and the emperor reached an agreement."
"What agreement?"
"I don't know about this. There are many folk rumors. Some say it's because the emperor felt that the great Confucianists were too influential and found an excuse to force them to retire. Others say it's because the great Confucians were put under house arrest by the emperor... Anyway,
You name it, Confucianism has been completely eliminated in the past ten years..."
"So there are no Confucian people in the court now?" Li Qi asked.
Tang Yundao: "There should be no more, but some disciples of great Confucian scholars hold important positions in the court."
Li Qi shook his head helplessly: "It seems that Daxia is really riddled with holes..."