Daming: The most ruthless tyrant in history

Chapter 417 Spending a Lot of Money

"Brother Emperor, let's have a cup of tea."

"Put it there."

Xiyuan.

Chongzhi Hall.

Zhu Youxiao was leaning on the recliner, covered with a thin mattress, and his face looked a little haggard. Zhu Youjian, who was holding a tea cup, saw his royal brother closing his eyes and concentrating, and there was a trace of worry on his face.

The imperial meeting for the Shaofu lasted for five days, convened at three o'clock in the morning and ended at seven o'clock in the morning. Apart from lunch, the rest of the time was spent on the debate.

In addition to the summary of reports from the various departments of the Shaofu on the first day, many of the contents discussed in the remaining days are aimed at the plans to be implemented in the second year of Tianqi. Even for these plans, it is emphasized that if there is a disaster, if there is a war, if there is an accident, , the Shaofu has a secretary on how to stabilize the situation.

"Brother Emperor, you are really tired."

Zhu Youjian put down the tea cup, lifted up his robe and sat on the brocade stool aside, "Didn't you say before that you should balance work with rest, and don't be greedy for too much? Even if this court meeting is very important, you can definitely hold it for a few more days. , there is no need for such a compact convening.”

"If that really happens, I'm afraid there will be a huge quarrel with Yousi in the outer court."

Zhu Youxiao slowly opened his eyes and said with a smile: "There is no airtight wall in the world. A large number of officials from the Young Mansion were summoned by me to the palace to hold this imperial court meeting. Even if there are officials in the outer court who don't know the actual situation, , but he didn’t leave the palace for five days and then went to Xiyuan to stay temporarily after the court meeting. Do you think some people won’t think too much about it?”

Ok.

Since the imperial court meeting was officially held, in order to avoid unnecessary trouble and save time, whenever the court meeting was temporarily over, the officials of the Shaofu headed by Sun Guozhen and Lu Guanxiang would, under the guidance of the eunuchs of the inner court, Go to the temple complex in Xiyuan to rest.

Xiyuan is not only a royal garden, but also has very complete internal divisions, including an area for foreign ministers to rest.

Whenever Sun Guozhen, Lu Guanxiang and the others rushed back to the resting place in Xiyuan, after a few bites of dinner, they would gather in groups to discuss the many topics discussed that day.

Because this imperial court meeting not only included the report and summary of the first year of Apocalypse, but also involved many plans and arrangements for the second year of Apocalypse.

Many of the ideas proposed in it have greatly touched and associated many officials in the Shaofu Yousi.

For example, if a disaster occurs in the northern provinces, and the imperial court has to provide disaster relief, how can the young government ensure the stability of order under its jurisdiction in the face of a shortage and soaring food prices.

For example, when the vassal Korea opened up Jeju Island, how to build the Jeju Port, which was isolated from the mainland of the Ming Dynasty, and how to enhance the exchange of supplies with North Korea to reduce the financial pressure on internal funds.

For example, how should the Ship Cleaning Department speed up the construction of the shipbuilding industry, ensure the increasingly prosperous maritime trade, meet the demand for various types of sea ships, and how to ensure the construction of various maritime forces established by the imperial court.

For example, with the development and expansion of the military industry system, how to standardize the specifications of various raw materials, how to name various iron materials, and how to layout the corresponding smelting industry...

This series of ideas put forward made Sun Guozhen, Lu Guanxiang and other young officials feel unexpected, and they also thought about these issues carefully.

The most stressful among them is none other than the economic, development, guidance, auditing, bond and other clean-up departments. It is because of these assumptions that they must take these factors into consideration when formulating policies. Who said this was proposed by the emperor? , even if it doesn’t happen in the end, it still needs to be considered!

"Your Majesty, Yousi will not only think too much, but there is a lot of noise in some places right now."

At this moment, Zhu Yujian walked in from outside the palace and said, "I was ordered to go to the Imperial Guards' Mansion. During the period when the palace was closed for the past few days, there were many remonstrances and memorials from the General Affairs Department to the Rites Supervisor. Even during this period, , many officials and censors gathered at the Meridian Gate, wanting to enter the palace to give advice on the holy regulations."

really. Zhu Youxiao showed a smile.

If such a situation occurs in the Forbidden City, there will definitely be unrest among the officials in the outer court. After all, before this, the matter of setting up the Emperor Ming Zong Army was a turmoil between the government and the public.

Not to mention that deep down in the hearts of most civil servants, they have always criticized the civil servants of the Shaofu. In their view, the many officials in the Shaofu are lucky ministers! It’s the official official!

This is not recognized by the mainstream.

Especially in the past few days, in the face of the increasing number of plans and arrangements, the Shaofu has held selection examinations several times to attract a group of scholars who had no hope in the scientific examinations, and even local officials who were illiterate. This is even more important. Many civil servants were dissatisfied.

Why!

They have studied hard for more than ten years in order to be named on the imperial examination gold list and then join the official career. How many sins and hardships have they suffered in the process? Why did the excluded group participate in the meeting held by the Shaofu? Can taking the selection exam lead to an official career?

However, Zhu Youxiao didn't care at all about the above.

In Zhu Youxiao's eyes, it doesn't matter whether the cat is black or white, as long as it can catch mice, it is a good cat!

What Ming Dynasty lacks is not officials, but officials who can do practical things!

Anyway, the Shaofu has been in charge of palace affairs since its establishment. Regardless of whether the civil servants recognize it or not, the civil servants of the Shaofu are not under the control of the outside court. Even their salaries are directly allocated from internal funds, let alone promoting a few ministers. Even if you promote a few bachelors, it has nothing to do with your foreign affairs!

However, Zhu Youxiao is not that extreme and does not want to aggravate this new conflict. After all, what the Shaofu has to do is related to the national destiny of the Ming Dynasty!

No time to waste.

"Brother Imperial, are you really not going to the banquet given by Chengguang Palace?"

Zhu Youjian thought for a while and said what he was thinking, "After all, this is the celebration banquet of the young master. If you don't go, will it make some people think too much?"

"If I go, they won't be able to let me go."

Zhu Youxiao smiled and waved his hands and said: "Just wait a little longer. When the banquet is almost over, I will show up in Chengguang Hall again. After all, these days are enough for them to be tired."

"Your Majesty, I am a little confused when it comes to this celebration banquet."

Zhu Yujian, who was standing, stepped forward and said: "Obviously the Young Master has many things to do. Even in the second year of Tianqi, the internal funds may not be enough to support the construction. Why do you still pay such a high salary in the name of reward?" If we really want to distribute the full amount of silver, the expenditure on this item alone will be as high as nearly one million taels."

"That's to motivate them."

Zhu Youxiao kept smiling and said: "After working hard for so long, in addition to the established official salary, I still need an extra reward to show my attitude. You can't make a fortune by being an official, but the life of the whole family must be ensured. Yes, it is good to be an upright official, but how many people can bear the poverty of an upright official?"

"Besides, I issue a high amount of money to support integrity once a year just to settle the accounts. The accounts for the first year of Tianqi should be settled now!"

When he said this, the smile on Zhu Youxiao's face disappeared and was replaced by a cold look. Zhu Youjian and Zhu Yujian felt their hearts trembling when they saw this.

Just seeing this expression, they intuitively told the two of them that there must be something in the young manor that angered the emperor, otherwise it would not be this expression.

It was also at this moment that the two of them seemed to have thought of something, but it was also like this, which made their expressions change. It was impossible, it would never be like this.

"Let's go and have dinner with me." At this time, Zhu Youxiao stood up from the recliner and said, "After dinner, follow me to Chengguang Hall. There are some things that need to be explained clearly."

(End of this chapter)