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Chapter 315 Locust Plague ()

The great court meeting in Daliang is held on the first day of each month. On weekdays, major affairs of the state and the court are handled at the small court meeting.

The scale of the Great Court Meeting was huge, and officials of the seventh rank and above in the capital were required to participate. The vast Jinluan Hall could not accommodate so many officials. The low-level officials silently lined up in the back, and some even stood outside the Jinluan Hall.

According to the convention of a great court meeting, the ministers would sing praises to the emperor on the dragon throne, and then start some nonsense about peace in the world, and that would be the end of it.

The first official meeting of the first year of Taihe was disturbed by a sudden bad news.

"An urgent report has been sent from Youzhou. There is a locust plague in Yan County. Nine out of ten green seedlings planted in spring have been gnawed by locusts. Please take a look at it, Your Majesty."

A light memorial, but what came was extremely heavy and sad news.

Emperor Taihe held the memorial, and the veins on the back of his hand were exposed due to excessive exertion.

As soon as the words "locust plague" were heard, the expressions of all the ministers changed, and they all looked at the figure of the girl standing among the vassal kings.

This girl is slender and graceful, and her skin is as white as jade against the backdrop of the thick, complicated and gorgeous princess dress. A pair of black eyes flashed with sadness.

It was the Princess of Nanyang who presented new grain seeds in a memorial last year and predicted that there would be a locust plague in the north.

Emperor Taikang was still alive at that time, and Prime Minister Wang looked at the memorial from the Nanyang Palace and dismissed it at all. He publicly accused the Princess of Nanyang of spreading rumors to mislead the public and had ulterior motives.

However, this memorial from Yan County in Youzhou swollen Prime Minister Wang's face. It also made Princess Nanyang the center of attention.

"Your Majesty," Jiang Shaohua opened his mouth in front of everyone. To everyone's surprise, he did not sneer at Prime Minister Wang, but expressed his worries about the locust plague with a solemn expression: "Yan County is far away from the capital, and this memorial is on the way. It will only take half a month. Yan County is hit by a locust plague, and the government must help the people as soon as possible. Otherwise, there will be chaos like Pingzhou. "

Duke An Guo stood up without hesitation: "I believe that what Princess Nanyang said is absolutely true. I ask the emperor to issue an order immediately to have the Ministry of Household Affairs allocate grain to Yan County."

The Secretary of the Household Department took two steps forward expressionlessly, raised his hand and began to read: "The Household Department has tried its best to raise military pay. Now it is really impossible to allocate food."

Zhou Shangshu of the Ministry of Works angrily accused: "Ji Shangshu is in charge of the Ministry of Husbandry and is in charge of taxes, money and food in Daliang. Now that Yan County is suffering from a locust plague, Ji Shangshu doesn't think about what to do and just shirks. Such a lack of responsibility makes him unworthy of being the Minister of Husbandry. ”

All the ministers were shocked.

Jiang Shaohua's eyes turned cold.

This Zhou Shangshu was an important official of the imperial court supported by Prime Minister Wang. On weekdays he keeps quiet, but at critical moments he rushes out to hold the vat for Prime Minister Wang.

This move immediately shifted everyone's attention to the relief and comfort of the people of Yan County. Naturally, no one would mention the embarrassment of Prime Minister Wang ignoring the memorial and warning of the Princess of Nanyang last year.

In fact, now is really not the time to seek accountability. Yan County suffered from locust plague, what about the nearby places? Will there also be a locust plague in the northern counties and counties that have suffered from two years of drought?

The war in Pingzhou has affected five or six counties. Now there is another locust plague. Can Daliang still be able to withstand it?

"Whether I am worthy of being the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue or not, it is not your turn as the Minister of the Ministry of Industry to make irresponsible remarks." Minister Ji was a veteran of three dynasties and was the biological father of the late Queen. Today, I had to respectfully call my grandfather in private, and my waist was very hard, and I immediately sprayed it back.

Zhou Shangshu snorted coldly and tried to fight back. The young emperor sitting on the dragon throne couldn't help but stood up and said angrily: "Shut up, everyone."

"At this time, we should work together as one, think of ways to provide disaster relief and help the people. How can we have the time and energy to argue with each other."

The Minister of Ji and the Minister of Zhou each stopped silently and held up their hands to plead guilty: "I was so angry that I made a mistake. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

"I accuse you."

The young Emperor Taihe could not take on high-ranking officials at the first court meeting. Just a few words of scolding in a meaningful way, that's all.

At this time, Prime Minister Wang finally stood up: "Your Majesty, the locust plague started in Yan County. I don't know how many other counties will be affected by the locust plague next. We must deal with it as soon as possible."

If I had paid attention to my cousin Shaohua's memorial last year and made preparations in advance, why would I have been panicking and running around now?

Emperor Taihe felt dissatisfied, and his tone became a little lighter: "How does Prime Minister Wang think we should respond?"

Prime Minister Wang is old and strong, and his face is also first-class. Under such completely unfavorable circumstances, he remained calm and said in a deep voice: "Old minister, I think that the locust plague has become a reality, and there is no point in blaming others at this time. The court must get it as soon as possible. Measures to provide relief and appease the people of Yan County."

"When fighting in Pingzhou, we can't lack food and military pay. When there is a locust plague in Youzhou, we also need to allocate money to buy food." Shangshu Ji sighed: "It's not that the Ministry of Revenue is trying to shirk it, it's that the national treasury is really empty and there is no money to come out. Even if the emperor sends people there, The Ministry of Household Affairs will check the accounts, or choose another good minister to be the Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs. The minister is willing to give up his position. "

"Ji Shangshu, please be patient and don't be impatient." Emperor Taihe had to calm down and said: "I know that the household department is in difficulty, but the current situation requires prudent old ministers like Ji Shangshu to support the household department and support me. Overcome difficulties."

Prime Minister Wang opened his mouth to answer: "Exactly, Minister Ji cannot give up at this time. The current situation is not easy, everyone should think of a solution."

Shangshu Ji was not afraid to confront Prime Minister Wang, and pushed back firmly: "Fortunately, the border troops have not asked for an increase in military pay this year. Otherwise, even if I, the Minister of Hubu, beheaded, I would not be able to squeeze out any money."

This is a direct thorn in the heart of Prime Minister Wang.

Everyone knows that General Zuo of the border army belongs to Prime Minister Wang. Of the huge military pay of several million taels every year, at least 20% was sent to the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Prime Minister Wang's eyes flashed with displeasure, and he said calmly: "What we are talking about now is that Yan County, which is suffering from the locust plague, needs to provide relief. There is no need to talk about irrelevant matters."

After saying that, Su Rong held up his hands and said, "I have something to say, the capital is far away from Yan County. Not to mention the time it takes to transfer money to buy grain, the loss during transportation is also an astonishing figure. It is better to buy grain seeds in the north and send them to Yan County , let the common people replant."

Jiang Shaohua raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced at the cunning Prime Minister Wang.

Before Emperor Taihe could react for a moment, he blurted out: "There are many people in the north who are suffering from drought. Those who don't need the imperial court's relief will be fine. Where are the surplus grains and grain seeds..."

and many more!

There is a place where there is really a surplus of grain and grain seeds.

Emperor Taihe finally understood and looked at Jiang Shaohua subconsciously. All the ministers in the court also looked over.

Prime Minister Wang sneered in his heart, and he handed over to Princess Nanyang solemnly: "I have offended the Princess many times in the past, and please forgive me. This time, I also ask the Princess to be generous and relieve the difficulties of the Yan County."