Daming: I can’t kill such a greedy prince-in-law?

Chapter 586: All actions are attributed to interests (Please subscribe!!)
Some unruly people are just difficult to deal with!
Of course, even if they agreed with what Ouyang Lun said in their hearts, they would not express it at this moment.

At this time, Ouyang Lun spoke again: "Regarding what happened on the Beijing-Ping Railway, I asked someone to find out. The source of the news is a private newspaper called Daming Observation. With its low price and various eye-catching and extreme content, it has attracted the attention of many unruly people!"

"And this Daming Observation relies on continuous publication of articles to guide public opinion! This has caused public outrage!"

"The True Situation of the Beijing-Pingcheng Railway"

At this point, Ouyang Lun looked towards Li Shanchang and asked calmly, "Lord Li should know clearly what happened, right?"

"Do you want to let Qi Tai tell the story himself?"

Forehead.
Li Shanchang frowned. He had thought that Ouyang Lun knew the truth of the matter, but he did not expect that he knew so much that he even saw the "Da Ming Observation".

If this is the case, then Ouyang Lun is fully aware of what happened on the construction site.

If that’s the case, why didn’t Ouyang Lun say it at the beginning, but waited until now after it happened?

Could it be that he is teasing me? !
Thinking of this, Li Shanchang's heart sank.

"Prince Consort Ouyang, judging from the way things were handled, there really is nothing wrong with it. But what I'm saying is that you want to exclude dissidents and monopolize power. You can't get away with this!"

"Also, as the consort of the Ming Dynasty and the chief minister, how can you not respond to the doubts and complaints of the people?"

“You didn’t explain any of this clearly!!”

Li Shanchang did not back down. Now that the situation had come to this point, he had to persevere to the end!
At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Ouyang Lun, Li Shanchang is right. You must give a reasonable explanation for some things. You have to reassure the emperor, us and the people of the world. You have this responsibility!"

"Now the people are full of suspicions about you, and even the civil and military officials in the court have made demands on you. If the emperor and I do nothing, I'm afraid it will have a bad impact!"

"So, since you said that the public opinion outside is all rumors, then you should either provide evidence or come up with a solution. What we and the emperor want is very simple, that is, there should not be such a strong public opinion. If the people do not get a response in a long time, the consequences will be very serious."

"Ouyang Lun, you also want to cause trouble in Ming Dynasty, right?"

"My father and I agree!" Zhu Biao nodded, and then said to Ouyang Lun: "Brother-in-law, the public opinion outside is too strong. If we don't deal with it, it might be like the Confucianism incident before, and a rebellion almost broke out!"

You, the Zhu family father and son, are so good, isn’t it obvious that you want to leave the matter of satisfying public opinion to us?

I've gone through so much trouble just for this.

Fortunately, I have been prepared, otherwise I would have to carry you today. I immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Supreme Emperor, the handling of the Beijing-Ping Railway is quite standard. It is reasonable and legal to send two Huaixi boys to join the army!"

"If anyone disagrees, he can use the evidence to slap me in the face!"

"As for the people's resentment, it is obvious that there is a mastermind behind the scenes. If we investigate the Ming Dynasty Observation newspaper, we may gain a lot."

"The people are just the people. It is unrealistic to expect them not to cause trouble. Of course, not all the people are the people. Most of them are good people. They are just simple-minded and easily deceived. For these deceived people, we just need to use practical actions to tell them that the court is trustworthy!"

"Brother-in-law, do you have a solution?" Zhu Biao asked hurriedly.

Ouyang Lun nodded slowly, then glanced at Li Shanchang and said calmly: "According to what Lord Li said, of course, it is also the question raised by the Daming Observer newspaper, that is, I, Ouyang Lun, am arbitrary, exclude dissidents, and may be corrupt. These are the three points."

“However, even Lord Li himself admitted that the first two points were just speculations and there was no actual evidence. He also agreed with the punishment of the two Huaixi disciples on the construction site, which is enough to prove that I was slandered by Zhaoyao!”

"As for corruption, the reason why the people are so worried is because they are afraid that the wages that should belong to them will be embezzled!"

"As long as the workers' wage security and transparency issues are resolved, corruption will be solved."

"My Ming Dynasty has developed rapidly in recent years. In addition to the continuous development and expansion of agriculture, the industry has developed even faster. Whether it is private or state-owned, there are many more workshops in the Ming Dynasty. These workshops have recruited a lot of workers. In essence, these workshop workers are no different from the workers on the construction site. The workers' technical level is also constantly improving, and the number of workers has shown an explosive growth!"

"Workers and farmers have become the mainstream groups in our Ming Dynasty. Their interests also need to be protected, so we need to set minimum requirements for workers' wages, and we also need to classify workers and farmers according to their technical levels. Workers with higher levels will also receive higher wages! At the same time, the financial details of the Beijing-Pinggu Railway must be made public so that the people know where the money for the Beijing-Pinggu Railway comes from and how it is spent!"

"Brother-in-law, do you want to use this to screen out the real workers and common people, and those who are...unruly people?"

Zhu Biao had indeed studied under Ouyang Lun for a long time, and he immediately realized Ouyang Lun's true intention.

Ouyang Lun nodded, "Your Majesty is wise, this is what I mean."

"All actions are attributed to interests. Ordinary people raise questions simply because they feel their interests have been violated. So we should protect their interests, let them do more and get more, make them understand their own importance, and give them fair treatment and due rights and interests!"

"And the real troublemakers want to muddy the waters so they can fish in troubled waters! The clearer the water, the less room they will have! By then, we will be able to see clearly who is causing trouble!"

"The fermentation of the Beijing-Pingcheng Railway incident was actually caused by the people's concerns about workers' rights. Farmers have their own land to rely on. The land is fair. The harder you work this year, the greater your harvest will be. However, workers cannot rely on the construction site like they rely on apprentices. Once a black-hearted boss or contractor embezzles their wages, they don't even know what to do. Sometimes man-made disasters are more terrifying than natural disasters!"

"Such concerns have always existed in the minds of the people, and they were completely aroused by the Beijing-Pingyuan Railway incident!"

"What I just said is the root of the solution to the problem, rather than running out to admit your mistakes to the people and then not doing much else!"

At this point, everyone in the Hall of Supreme Harmony fell silent.

Everyone seemed to be thinking about what Ouyang Lun said, and at the same time they were weighing whether Ouyang Lun's solution was useful and what impact it would have on them.

Li Shanchang's face looked a little ugly. He never expected that Ouyang Lun was so well prepared.

It was obvious that what Ouyang Lun said had grasped the core of the problem. If he opened his mouth to refute it at this time, it would be a bit unreasonable, and by that time, the emperor, the emperor emeritus and neutral officials might not necessarily stand on his side.

"Hmph! Ouyang Lun, are you so confident that this method can calm the doubts in the minds of the people? I..." Li Shanchang intended to continue to quibble, but before he could finish his words, Ouyang Lun spoke again.

"Of course!"

"The number of workers is huge, and they are extremely important to the court. It is much better to respond to their needs in a practical way than to promise them nothing!"

"In a word, it is very important to protect the rights of workers and allow them to work without any worries. In the past, many people treated workers as slaves. This concept is outdated!"

"If we establish a system to protect workers' rights, the workers will feel the benefits, and their doubts about the court will naturally disappear. They may even turn around and support the court, just like what you said, Lord Li. Justice is in the hearts of the people!!"

Forehead.
Li Shanchang was rendered speechless by Ouyang Lun's rebuttal. What made him even more uncomfortable was that the words he had used to criticize Ouyang Lun were now returned to him by Ouyang Lun!
So angry!

Ouyang Lun’s explanation ends here.

Everyone knew what Ouyang Lun was going to do.

One is to establish a worker grade system, where the higher the grade of the worker, the better the wages and treatment. The second is to establish a workers' rights protection system, so that workers can truly enjoy their due rights and interests, and it is no longer just empty talk!
I believe that no worker will refuse such a good thing, and they will even feel a sense of pride and belonging because of it!

This is indeed the best response!
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slowly in his heart, and he quite agreed with the method proposed by Ouyang Lun.

The Beijing-Pingcheng Railway Project is a huge undertaking, involving design drawings, drafting of regulations, selection of raw materials, supplier management, and on-site construction. It is impossible for a normal person to take care of everything, but Ouyang Lun did it, which is truly extraordinary.

"Brother-in-law, this is a good idea!"

"I have actually been thinking about how to manage more and more workers. When I heard your plan, I was immediately refreshed. If this idea can be realized, not only the workers of the Beijing-Ping Railway, but also any worker in the Ming Dynasty will be protected!"

"I don't quite understand the rest, but I know that the more things the workers make, the more value they create, and the better the Ming Dynasty's economy will be!"

"The more money the court has!"

Zhu Biao finished his excited speech, then looked at Ouyang Lun and asked, "Brother-in-law, do you think I understand it well?"

"Your Majesty understands it correctly!" Ouyang Lun nodded. "The Ming Dynasty is now in the process of transitioning from an agricultural society to an industrial society, and the social structure is bound to change!"

"And the working class is undoubtedly the core of an industrial society!!"

"If the core issue is not handled properly, there will naturally be various problems. I have been planning this for a long time, but there has never been a suitable opportunity. This time it gives me a good opportunity!"

As he spoke, Ouyang Lun looked towards Li Shanchang with a smile on his face, "Speaking of this, I have to thank Lord Li very much!"

Forehead.
After hearing what Ouyang Lun said, Li Shanchang almost died of anger.

So, after all this time of planning, I ended up making things easier for you?!
Impossible! Ouyang Lun must have said this to irritate me. Li Shanchang kept comforting himself in his heart, but his inner turmoil was getting bigger and bigger!

At this time, Zhu Biao clapped his hands and said, "Brother-in-law, what you said is good, and the method you proposed is also good!"

After saying that, Zhu Biao turned to look at Zhu Yuanzhang, "Father, I think if we follow the method suggested by Brother-in-law Ouyang and implement the measures regarding the workers, the workers' doubts and concerns about the court will be swept away!"

"This plan is much better than just giving an explanation!"

"I intend to do as Brother-in-law Ouyang said. What do you think, Father?"

Zhu Biao's statement made Li Shanchang, who was already emotionally unstable, look even uglier.

The worker classification and worker protection system proposed by Ouyang Lun was something Li Shanchang had never expected. He had just been shouting about the people being unruly, but now he was about to put the protection of workers' rights and interests at the highest position. What kind of brain does Ouyang Lun have!
Li Shanchang hurriedly observed the situation in the court.

Emperor Zhu Biao has already made it clear that he supports Ouyang Lun's policy towards the workers of the Ming Dynasty, and the officials on the side of the Prince Consort's party are all excited and will obviously give their full support. As for the officials from the neutral faction, they are all in a state of contemplation, and many have even lowered their heads, which clearly means that they intend to tacitly support Ouyang Lun's plan and no longer oppose it!
This is a big problem!

Li Shanchang was surprised to find that after a confrontation in the court, he, who originally had a great advantage, was now gradually falling into a disadvantage!

If someone in their Huaixi Party could come up with a better suggestion than Ouyang Lun's, perhaps it could directly turn the tide. Li Shanchang immediately looked at Huang Zicheng, but Huang Zicheng, who had been holding his head high, lowered his head in shame.

Huang Zicheng also wanted to come up with a better plan to compete with Ouyang Lun!
But the plan proposed by Ouyang Lun went straight to the core. In such a short period of time, he couldn't think of a better way!

If we force a solution, it will only be embarrassing.

Hey--

If Qi Tai were here, perhaps he could come up with a better idea.

Li Shanchang sighed inwardly. Since a better solution had been proposed, his last hope now lay on the retired Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang.

As long as the retired emperor Zhu Yuanzhang does not nod his head, there is still room for maneuver.

Ouyang Lun, do you think you are invincible just because you have extraordinary abilities?
His Majesty called you here this time, not only to respond to public opinion, but more importantly to take this opportunity to redistribute the huge benefits of the Beijing-Pingyuan Railway. I, Li Shanchang, can choose not to take it, but if you don't let the emperor take it, do you think the emperor will agree? !

Ouyang Lun, you are still a little immature after all.

Thinking of this, Li Shanchang felt a little relieved. Since he was no match for Li Shanchang, he had no choice but to let the emperor take action himself.

(End of this chapter)