The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 172 The Emperor and the Crown Prince

After setting the fire, Liu Daniu did not run away, nor did he resist the Jinyiwei. He was caught on the spot and sent to jail.

The fire lasted for most of the day and was barely under control until the afternoon of the next day.

Liu Daniu personally killed thirteen members of Sheng Yongchang's family and set fire to eight newly built houses on two streets, resulting in the death of sixty-eight people in the fire and more than two hundred people seriously injured.

The entire Ming court was shocked, and the Ming Emperor ordered the prefect of Yingtian to investigate the matter quickly.

Facing the questioning of the prefect of Yingtian, Liu Daniu confessed his actions, and the prefecture of Yingtian also wrote the case report as quickly as possible.

On August 17th, the 41st year of Emperor Xianning’s reign in the Ming Dynasty, Wuying Hall in the Forbidden City of Yingtian Prefecture in the Ming Dynasty.

The prefect of Yingtian submitted an investigation report to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, explaining the details of the cases of Liu Ergou and Liu Daniu.

According to the report from the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, the circumstances of both cases were very simple.

Liu Ergou had a conflict with Li San and other workers from Wuchang, Hubei due to a verbal dispute. The two sides fought each other, resulting in Liu Ergou being seriously injured. He was sent to the hospital for treatment but died.

In order to pay for his brother's medical treatment, Liu Daniu asked his employer Sheng Yongchang for a loan but was refused, which made Liu Daniu feel resentful.

After Liu Ergou's death, Liu Daniu broke into the Sheng family's new house on the night of August 15th and killed Sheng Yongchang and his family while they were listening to a play and appreciating the moon.

Later, out of hatred for Sheng Yongchang and other wealthy owners, he set fire to the street where Sheng Yongchang's new house was located.

Liu Daniu's actions were extremely brutal and his crimes were extremely serious. He should be executed according to the law.

After reading it, the emperor asked with a stern face:
"Only this?"

The prefect of Yingtian answered honestly:

"Your Majesty, the circumstances of the two cases are simple and the facts are clear. Liu Daniu confessed to what he did. That is indeed the case."

The emperor was obviously dissatisfied:

“The Liu Daniu and Liu Ergou cases are the nth similar case this year?

“I am referring to the fights between local workers and disaster victims from outside, and the cases where workers attacked and killed their employers.

“Have you ever counted the specific numbers for both?

“This is the first time this year and the first time this month. How has the number changed in each month?”

When Yingtian Prefecture Yin heard this question, cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead:
"Your Majesty, this is the 1,563rd time this year that workers and disaster victims have fought, and the 206th time this month.

“Since May, the number has increased month by month…

“This is the thirty-seventh time that a worker has attacked a shopkeeper, and the eleventh time that the shopkeeper has died.

“But this is the first time that an entire family of the host has been killed and set on fire, causing serious damage.

“Although the number is not large, it is increasing rapidly.

“The situation is getting worse.”

The emperor heard the report clearly enough from the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, which showed that he was basically competent, and his tone softened a little:
"So what do you think should happen next?"

Yingtian Prefecture Governor immediately said:
"I ask Your Majesty to arrange for more Jinyiwei to patrol and dispatch the garrison troops of the Governor's Office to guard the city."

The emperor was not very satisfied, but he did not directly propose any adjustments. He waved his hand and asked the prefect of Yingtian to go back first.

Then he turned to look at the Crown Prince who had been standing next to him:

"Boss, what do you think of these things? Do you have any solutions?"

The Crown Prince Zhu Jiancan of the Ming Dynasty, the eldest son of the Ming Emperor Zhu Zhonglin, is forty-seven years old this year, which is not considered very old.

But now he looks very haggard, and his beard and hair have turned gray.

Zhu Jiancan was named the crown prince at the age of nine and has been the crown prince for thirty-eight years now. The mental pressure on him is already very great.

A few years ago, he had a younger brother who was an extremely talented person. In recent years, there have been continuous natural disasters and rumors brewing, which made him, as the crown prince, under extreme mental pressure.

If it weren't for the magical garlic oil medicine invented by Zhu Jianxuan a few years ago, the prince might have died from various minor illnesses that he occasionally contracted.

In response to the emperor's father's question, the prince carefully explained his views:
"I think Liu Ergou was brave and aggressive, so his death is not a pity.

"Liu Daniu committed murder and arson, defying the law, his crimes are extremely heinous and unforgivable.

“But they do these things for a reason.

"If a large number of disaster victims had not poured into Yingtian Prefecture, causing the wages of workers in Yingtian Prefecture to continue to fall, Liu Ergou would not have clashed with the disaster victims from other places." The key is that it is very likely that it would not directly turn into such a violent fight.

“If Liu Daniu had some savings, and if the medical fees at Yingtianfu’s clinic were not that high, the Liu Daniu brothers would be able to afford the treatment costs.

“Even if Liu Ergou eventually died due to ineffective treatment, Liu Daniu would probably just blame his brother for his bad luck.

"Most people will not retaliate against innocent people because of this.

“So I think the court should do something to prevent this kind of thing from happening again.

“I think that sending more Jinyiwei and garrison troops can only be a temporary solution. To solve the root cause, we must control the disaster victims around Yingtian Prefecture.

"Yingtian Prefecture is an important place in the capital of the Ming Dynasty and must remain absolutely safe and stable.

“Although the influx of disaster victims can provide enough workers, the disaster victims who have nothing are themselves a destabilizing factor.

"They're suppressing wages, which will directly lead to resentment among local workers.

“In the future, disaster victims can no longer be gathered around Yingtian Prefecture, but must be dispersed and relocated to other places.

“I suggest that we choose an isolated island with convenient water transportation and build a camp specifically for disaster relief, such as Chongming Island or Zhoushan Island.

"Now and in the future, when there are large numbers of disaster victims, they will be transported to these special disaster camps first.

“Let enough troops be stationed locally to provide centralized guard and management.

“At the same time, we must control the household registration of workers and farmers, and not allow landless farmers and disaster victims to work in factories or in other places at will.

“Local factories can only recruit workers who are registered as residents of the local urban area.

"Farmers from other places who fled to the local area could only wait in the disaster relief camp to be transported overseas, and then they could open up wasteland or work as workers according to the arrangements of the local vassal king.

"This will prevent disaster victims from affecting the stability of the capital, and also prevent conflicts between disaster victims and local workers."

The emperor thought for a while after hearing this:

"You are very thoughtful. The victims should indeed be managed in a centralized and specialized manner, mainly because there are too many victims in recent years.

"Let's choose Chongming as the place where both river and sea vessels can arrive, and it's just right for exchanging supplies and personnel.

“As for the restrictions on the household registration of workers and farmers, although they are certainly conducive to stabilizing urban order, they will inevitably lead to a rapid surge in labor costs.

"This will restrict the development of industry and commerce, and factory owners and employers will certainly resist it with all their might, so it will definitely be difficult to implement.

"The main task of the court now is to deal with the disaster victims. In the past, when there was no large-scale influx of disaster victims into the city, there was no problem with the order of the city and industry and commerce.

“The occasional small-scale influx of disaster victims and the continuous influx of landless farmers are conducive to the development of industry and commerce.

“So let’s not deal with the household registration issue for now.”

The Crown Prince immediately bowed and agreed:

"My son, I obey."

The emperor stared at his eldest son for a while, then told him an idea without commenting:
"I'm going to call your sixteenth brother back."

The crown prince's pupils shrank involuntarily, but his entire body and facial expression did not change at all:
"Brother Xuan has been away for five years. It is indeed time for him to return to Beijing to meet our father."

The emperor said with some complaint:
“When this guy went to America, he said he would come back to see me, but when he returned to Australia, he just stayed there.

"He is already eighteen years old and has reached the age of marriage, but he has not reported anything about this to me.

"I have to call him back, arrange his marriage, have him start a family and have children in the capital, and then we can talk about his official enfeoffment.

"I will be 70 next year, and it's rare for people to live to 70. It would be unreasonable if he didn't come back."

The Crown Prince had many thoughts in his mind, but he dared not express any opinion.

Regarding his father's age and his special younger brother, these two things are really too sensitive.

The Crown Prince's mood is extremely complicated now.

He hoped that the famine would end soon, but at the same time he was afraid that it would end by the time his brother returned.

The emperor kept thinking about Zhu Jianxuan and wrote a letter himself, arranging for the Honglu Temple to send it to the capital of King Wu in Australia, inviting King Wu Zhu Jianxuan to come to Beijing.

(End of this chapter)