One hundred and seventy-fifth chapters make matters worse
"Your Majesty, I think that although His Royal Highness the King of Zhou is quite reasonable, today is different from the past. I have just received an urgent message from the capital, talking about the severe drought in Yong, Hua, Pu, and more than 40 states this autumn and the loss of harvests, and the disasters in various places.
Seriously, the imperial court's food reserves are no longer sufficient. If we start fighting again at this time, it will inevitably be suspected of being militaristic. I beg your Majesty to draw a clear warning." After a period of unbearable silence, Li Jingxuan, the Minister of West Taiwan, took the lead to stand up and oppose Li Xian's proposal.
"What? How come I don't know when the news came?"
Not counting Jizhou (a small country attached to the Tang Dynasty), there were only 360 states in the Tang Dynasty. This guy had more than 40 states affected by the disaster, which was more than one-ninth of the total. Its scale
It's not a big deal, not to mention that most of these states and counties are concentrated in the Guanzhong area with the highest population density. How could Gaozong not be shocked? As soon as Li Jingxuan finished speaking, Gaozong immediately jumped up as if he had been electrocuted, and was extremely angry.
He roared loudly.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I just received an urgent message before I came here. I really don't dare to hide it."
When Gaozong became anxious, Li Jingxuan's face immediately turned pale, and he felt extremely wronged in his heart - it wasn't that Li Jingxuan didn't conceal it, but the news of the army's defeat was too shocking. At that time, Gaozong was furious.
Even if Li Jingxuan was given two more courages, he would not dare to report the bad news directly. He planned to wait until Gaozong's anger subsided before mentioning it tactfully, so as to have a buffer, but he did not expect that Li Xian was a guy.
Proposing to send troops again, Li Jingxuan was worried that Gaozong had approved Li Xian's memorial under unknown circumstances, so he had to report the disaster. After this report, it was obvious that he, Li Jingxuan, had to become a lamb for others.
Okay, it really makes him unspeakably miserable.
"Damn it, why didn't you report such a big thing earlier, hum!"
Sure enough, when Emperor Gaozong heard Li Jingxuan's explanation, he not only did not calm down, but became even more angry, and started scolding Li Jingxuan without giving Li Jingxuan any face.
"thump!"
As soon as Gaozong said these words, Li Jingxuan immediately couldn't stand it anymore. His knees softened and he knelt on the ground with his head lowered. He didn't dare to speak out any more words to defend himself. The last sentence - Gaozong's character
He has the flaw of being cowardly, and he rarely gets angry under normal circumstances, but if he does get angry, it is not a trivial matter. If he makes a fuss, he will lose his head. Everyone in the palace has been serving for many years, so naturally
Knowing the stakes involved, everyone looked at Li Jingxuan with a trace of pity and sympathy.
"Father, please calm down. I have already noticed this matter when I was in Beijing. A long drought without rain is a natural disaster, not a tyrant. As long as our court can work together, it will not be difficult to overcome it..."
Gaozong was hiding in the deep palace, so it was impossible for him to know the situation outside, but Li Xian knew it very well. This drought had long been expected by Li Xian, but due to various considerations, Li Xian did not reveal the secret, but
He was quietly observing the development of the situation. Seeing that Gaozong was furious and the ministers were silent, Li Xian sighed secretly, stood up from the side, and tried to persuade him with gentle words.
"It's not difficult. Well, it's not difficult. Tell me, how exactly is it not difficult? Hmm?"
Under the blow of two bad news in a row, Gaozong's anger was too strong. Not only did he not give face to his ministers, he even gave no face to Li Xian. He didn't even wait for Li Xian to finish speaking.
, and started scolding him angrily.
"Father, please calm down. I may have some strategies to solve this problem."
Li Xian dared to stand up at this time, so he had corresponding confidence. Facing Gaozong's anger, Li Xian calmly bowed down and replied in a calm tone.
"Huh?" Although Gaozong was very angry, his expression softened a lot when he heard Li Xian said that he could solve the problem. However, he did not ask immediately, but looked at Li Xian suspiciously for a while. Then he waved his hand hesitantly and said, "Xian'er has some good ideas, please tell me."
"Father, Emperor Mingjian, there are 360 states in our Tang Dynasty, with 5.11 million households and a total population of about 37 million. Taking the average state into account, the value does not seem to be large, but this is not the case. , the number of households in our dynasty is generally concentrated in Guannei Road, Henan, and Hebei Province, especially in the prefectures in Guanzhong. Today, the number of households in Guanzhong prefectures has exceeded one million, and the population has reached nearly 8 million. Nearly 30% of the population lives in Guanzhong, and the land has been insufficient for a long time. Fortunately, the weather has been good over the years, and no major disasters have occurred. Coupled with the grain transported by canal, Guanzhong can barely live in peace. With the current drought, the disaster will be serious. If we want to last forever To eliminate future troubles, we must fundamentally change this status quo. I believe that immigration is an urgent matter. Jing, Xiang and other southern states have a vast territory and sparsely populated areas. However, the land is fertile and managed properly, they can become the granary of our Tang Dynasty. If The disaster victims from the Guanzhong states can be allowed to move to the Jianghuai, Sichuan and other areas, which can fundamentally solve the disasters in the Guanzhong states. Secondly, the Guanzhong states are the most prosperous place in the Tang Dynasty. Although the food in the court is not enough However, there are many wealthy people among the people. We should encourage the people to donate money and materials to help alleviate difficulties. Thirdly, after several years of hard work, water transportation is now smooth. In addition to opening warehouses to release grain, merchants can be encouraged to transport grain northward. Part of the salt profit is a temptation, and those who follow it are bound to be like clouds. With these three things in place, why worry about the unsolvable misfortune? This is just my foolish opinion. I beg your father to investigate in detail." The reason why Li Xian did not reveal the secret of the drought was ultimately The fundamental core is to take advantage of the disaster to carry out immigration. Of course, in order to deal with the disaster, Li Xian has already made a lot of relevant arrangements in private, especially the food reserves are sufficient and can be used to relieve the victims at any time. At this time, he answered Gaozong's questions in a very orderly manner and with full confidence.
"Let's talk about it, Xian'er, can these three methods work?"
After listening to Li Xian's long speech, Emperor Gaozong did not rush to express his position. Instead, he frowned and thought for a while, then looked around at everyone and asked in a slow tone.
"Your Majesty, I have three questions that I am puzzled by. I would like to ask His Highness the King of Zhou. First, immigration is very expensive. How to raise it? Second, although private fundraising is a good way, how much can be gained? I don't know what your Highness thinks. Do you have a few? Thirdly, salt and iron are of great benefit to the country. It is easy to let them go, but it is difficult to take them back. Does your highness have any countermeasures?" As the prime minister, Hao Chujun is very strict in his considerations, and it is obvious for the three strategies mentioned by Li Xian. The emperor had reservations, but when he saw Gaozong asking questions, he immediately stood up and raised three questions in a loud voice.
"Xiang Hao is very worried, but Xiao Wang thinks that these three questions can all be solved. The total population of the more than 40 states affected by the disaster is about seven million. If two million can be diverted, the disaster will be alleviated. The property needed seems to be very large, but it is not true. Today, disaster victims are often in desperate situations, but if there is a way to survive, they must take it. What the court needs is nothing more than grain and fodder along the way. Calculated according to the itinerary, there are eight thousand grains and fodder in more than two months. The stone is enough. Although this amount is a lot, it can be solved in three parts. First, the court can provide 30% of the grain storage, 30% can be raised from the private sector, and the rest can be raised by merchants in exchange for grain for salt. As for the raising What is the number? Xiao Wang thought that the court might as well exchange a virtual title for donations, and made it clear that this title cannot be inherited, but only the title of honor. The current Jia's status is low and rich, but he can use this to change his status. There are few people who are unwilling. Third , the benefit of salt and iron is the most important thing for the country, so it should not be taken lightly. However, it can be used to lead and restrain it. That is, one lead can only be used for one purpose, and it will be discarded after that. There will be no future troubles. These three strategies can solve the problem of the people. It is a disaster, and it can benefit the country, why don't you do it?" Li Xian came prepared, so he would not be stumped by Hao Chujun's three questions, so he calmly analyzed it point by point.
"His Royal Highness has spoken a lot, and I have learned a lesson from you."
Hao Chujun is an orthodox Confucian disciple and is upright. He still has reservations about Li Xian's obviously merchant-like approach. However, firstly, he himself has no countermeasures on how to solve such a large-scale disaster; It was really impossible to find any flaws in what Li Xian said. After pondering for a moment, he had to express his agreement against his will, with a hint of reluctance in his tone.
"Do you have any questions?"
Seeing that Hao Chujun had been persuaded by Li Xian, Gaozong's eyes fell on Li Jingxuan who was kneeling on the ground and Jiang Ke who was silent.
"I respectfully request His Majesty's Holy Judgment."
Li Jingxuan had just finished his meal and was still kneeling on the ground. How could he dare to speak casually? Jiang Ke was originally a frontier general and was good at military affairs. Although he was also quite proficient in civil affairs, he had just entered the court as prime minister after all. They were still familiar with the affairs of the court and had always been cautious in their words and deeds. Naturally, they did not want to say more about this matter. When Gaozong heard about it, the two of them almost unanimously handed over the decision-making power to Gaozong. in hand.
"Mei Niang, do you think this is feasible?"
At this point, Gaozong had already made a decision in his heart, but he still didn't have enough confidence in his heart. He turned sideways to look at Empress Wu, who had been silent all this time, and asked tentatively.
"Your Majesty, Xian'er is concerned about the country and is always concerned about government affairs, which is a blessing to the court. I should congratulate Your Majesty. If this can be accomplished, Xian'er should be the first to take credit. The people of the forty states are suffering today, and I, etc. We will do our best to reduce the harem's needs by half, and the remaining money and materials can be used for relief, which can be considered as a response to Xian'er's suggestion."
Empress Wu did not object to Li Xian's proposal, but there was a different intention hidden in her words, which was very provocative. As soon as these words came out, the expressions of Hao Chujun and other important ministers could not help but change, but no one dared to say more. These poor people can only pretend to be deaf and dumb and pretend to be wood carvings and clay sculptures.
"Well, okay, this matter is settled. Xian'er will go back and write a detailed chapter. I want to have a better life."
At this moment, Emperor Gaozong was happy that the disaster could be resolved, but he did not notice the subtext in Empress Wu's words. He stroked his long beard on his chest and agreed with Li Xian's suggestion with a smile.
Are you always concerned about court affairs? How old are you, this thief bitch is really vicious! How could Li Xianda, a shrewd individual, not be able to hear the insinuations in Empress Wu's words? She was so disgusted in her heart, but this Li Xian could only curse secretly in his heart, but his face was filled with sincerity and fear as he replied: "My father is wise, and I should do my best to think so, but my son is wise." I still have something to say, that is, the war as mentioned before cannot be delayed, and I would like to ask my father to give me a holy judgment!"
The crowd obviously didn't expect that Li Xian would bring the topic back to the war. They were all stunned for a moment, and the atmosphere in the hall immediately became a little strange...