Northern Song Dynasty: Starting from the son of Song Renzong

Chapter 92: Free Slaves
Zhao Zhen finally eased the atmosphere and said, "From a certain perspective, this can be considered as work-for-relief."

Then someone else said, "But this embroidery may not work at all. The poor are already poor, and how can they get the materials to make it? Even if there are merchants who are willing to hire these people, some places are remote, and the shipping cost of the materials will probably be quite high."

“I think this idea is still difficult to implement.”

The person who spoke was Cai Xiang, an upright censor. He did not give in to Zhao Xin just because he was a little kid.

Instead, he stood up righteously and said so.

Zhao Xin also responded: "I was just giving an example. What to do next is naturally up to you to figure out."

"In short... just calling him Hou Nong Sang will definitely not work."

"As for the easing of rent and taxes, it is only a way to prolong the survival."

"You can hide this year, but you can't hide next year."

"Can this lenient rent and tax policy continue to be so?"

“To solve a problem, we must start from the root.”

Ouyang Xiu also asked: "What is that?"

Zhao Xin said, "Basically, the people don't know anything but farming, and they can only rely on the weather and luck to make a living. To put it bluntly, they don't have any other survival skills besides farming and relying on the weather for a living."

"You have to teach them other survival skills so that they have a chance to get better."

Ouyang Xiu then asked, "But what survival skills can we teach the people?"

Zhao Xin then said, "I've been to a brothel, and the people there don't need to farm to make a living."

Ouyang Xiu said: "But people like that are a minority after all."

Zhao Xin said, "But there is a way after all. It just depends on whether you are willing to think about it. If you haven't even thought about it, then of course this won't work and that won't work."

Ouyang Xiu asked, "What did Prince Yu come up with?"

Zhao Xin replied: "I definitely have some ideas, but... I don't want to tell you."

Everyone was amused by Zhao Xin and burst into laughter.

Zhao Xin ignored their ridicule.

He just said to his father: "Dad, if there are people who can't survive and are restless in the future, you can let me know. I am actually a little short of manpower."

Everyone looked at Zhao Xin, thinking, are you planning to do something bad?

but……

Zhao Xin is only five years old and should not be able to do anything bad.

Zhao Xin then asked, "Is it true that the Song Dynasty is now full of refugees?"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Zhao Xin also said: "It seems... I still need to go a little further and take a look at someplace farther away."

Zhao Zhen: "..."

Zhao Xin then added: "There are many places in the south. We can actually send all the refugees to the south. If they are about to starve to death, then keeping them in the north will only increase the unrest and we will just watch them starve to death."

"Send them all to the south. Even if there are only a few thousand people, it still counts as one person who can survive."

"What's your name? Yu Jing?"

Yu Jing: “Yes.”

Zhao Xin: "You said that the people have no private savings, and if there is a failure in the harvest in a year, where will they flee to?"

Yu Jing: "..."

Zhao Xin: "Forget it, I won't ask anymore. Just give me 100 families who have no private savings and little land."

Yu Jing: "..."

"What does Prince Yu want to do?"

Zhao Xin said: "Of course, we teach them survival skills."

Ouyang Xiu also said: "But he may still have land in his hometown."

Zhao Xin said, "You don't have any savings for this year, so what's the point of having land? You might as well give up the land and follow me. Well... it's not good to give up the land, so just count the other party's land, and then I will help them manage it."

In fact, Yu Jing was just being polite. He had no idea that the people there really couldn't survive.

Zhao Xin seemed to know his difficulties and said, "Those families who only have one or two acres of land, or even five acres, will definitely not be able to survive in the future."

"Go investigate and find me a hundred such people."

Ouyang Xiu added: "Then when these people leave, the taxes they will pay..."

Zhao Xin also said: "I paid for them!"

Ouyang Xiu: "Then Prince Yu, are you recruiting servants?"

Zhao Xin: "What I said is that I want to save the people from danger."

But Ouyang Xiu felt that he was clearly recruiting household slaves!

If these one hundred households knew that they would become slaves to the official's only son, I wonder what they would think.

People like Yu Jing and Ouyang Xiu were all censors.

If it were at any other time, he might have provided advice and prevented Zhao Xin from doing this.

but……

Today's situation is a bit of an exception.

Maybe they also want to know what Zhao Xin will do next.

therefore……

Then none of them objected.

But someone said: "If the people are to be slaves to Prince Yu, I'm afraid they won't be willing."

However, the reality is that the people are probably eager to rush to take the position.

Of course!
In fact, the other party was a little worried that this would eventually lead to forcing the people to become Zhao Xin's slaves.

If it is voluntary, then of course there is nothing wrong with it.

I’m afraid it will be forced in the end.

Zhao Xin also said: "Then we can find volunteers! I'll leave this matter to you, Yu Jing! It must be someone who is so poor that his family can't even afford to eat, and who might be starving to death in a few months."

Yu Jing: "..."

Yu Jing looked at the official.

The official also looked at him.

It seems to be saying, why are you looking at me? It was you who said the people have no selfish savings, so then you should bring those people who you said have no selfish savings to the Prince of Yu.

Prince Yu is kind-hearted and is willing to help one hundred families like this. This is a blessing for these one hundred families.

After a moment of silence, Zhao Zhen said, "Then just do as Prince Yu says. Does anyone else have any objections?"

Others actually think that this is not very appropriate.

only……

There’s nothing I can do!
Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Otherwise, the next hundred families would have to flee all over the place.

Yu Jing was wondering whether he should really do this.

Hi, that doesn't seem to be what he meant.

What he actually meant was to ask the government to reduce taxes for the people so that they could get by a little longer.

But Prince Yu is right.

You can avoid it this year, but you can’t avoid it next year.

then……

Yu Jing had no choice but to say, "I will try my best."

Zhao Xin also emphasized again: "It must be the kind of very poor! Maybe everything that needs to be sold at home has been sold, and the kind of family with nothing is best."

After hearing what Zhao Xin said, Yu Jing felt that Prince Yu was taking advantage of his slaves for free!

(End of this chapter)