I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 212 Zheng Shi
Tang Zhen had no opinion on this. He just accepted it and did whatever Yuan Shu said.

As for a series of daily life issues of the new emperor Liu Kui, Yuan Shu thought carefully and decided that he should focus on simplicity and avoid excessive luxury and extravagance.

"According to the information provided by the Minister of the Imperial Household, the court's expenditures have been increasing year by year over the past few years, but tax revenues have been decreasing year by year. In today's chaotic situation, we must be thrifty and not waste the slightest bit of money.

All royal expenses should be kept as simple as possible. The royal family should set an example to encourage officials and dignitaries to live frugally, reduce losses, increase revenue and reduce expenditure. Only in this way can the Han Dynasty become better and better."

Then, Yuan Shu looked around and continued, "All those rare flowers, birds, animals, etc. in the palace should be removed. These things come from all over the world, and the cost of transporting and raising them is very extravagant.

As far as I know, the cost of one meal for some birds and beasts is comparable to what a civilian family of five needs for several months. Humans are the most intelligent creatures on earth, and nowadays there are still many people who cannot even get enough food and clothing. How can we treat birds and beasts more expensively than humans?

Furthermore, there were thousands or even tens of thousands of eunuchs and maids in the palace, but there were only dozens of royal family members. How many eunuchs and maids had been in the palace for decades but had never seen a member of the royal family? Isn't this a huge waste?
We should strictly limit the number of palace people, whether eunuchs or palace maids, the number should be limited, and the excess people should be allowed to leave the palace and farm, which will be more beneficial to the country. "

Yuan Shu expressed his own views, and then looked at Yang Ci with burning eyes.

The Shaofu was in charge of the royal expenses, and Yang Ci was the person in charge of the Shaofu. Even if it was just a formality, Yang Ci had to take the lead in supporting it.

"Shaofu Yang, you are in charge of the Shaofu and are responsible for the royal expenses. In this regard, you need to take the lead and strictly limit the expenses of the emperor and the royal family. I hope that after you make improvements, the annual expenditure of the Shaofu can be reduced by at least 50%."

Yuan Shu's words were full of unquestionable meaning, which made Yang Ci realize that his so-called "hope" might not be just talk.

Yang Ci hesitated for a moment, weighed the pros and cons, and felt that Yuan Shu's request was a bit difficult.

Although the eunuchs who used to take advantage of the Shaofu’s funds are all gone now, this will directly save the Shaofu a lot of money, but how can a good thing like money be useless?

For a while, the various commissioners in the palace were intimidated by Yuan's military power and dared not act recklessly. But as time went on, many hands would inevitably reach out to the Shaofu and reach into the emperor's pocket to ask for money. How could this be solved with just a piece of paper?

Yang Ci wanted to say something, but when he looked at Tang Zhen and Liu Zu who were silent, he knew that he had no say in this matter. The situation was stronger than him, so he could only nod in agreement.

"I see."

Yuan Shu nodded, then looked at the chief ancestor Liu Zu.

"Liu Zongzheng."

"exist!"

Liu Zu straightened up with a start, looking nervous.

Although he was the chief of the clan, he felt an invisible pressure in front of Yuan Shu.

"Don't be so nervous, I'm not a cannibal."

Yuan Shu smiled and waved his hand, and continued: "Regarding the issue of the royal family, I would like to talk about my opinion. Since Emperor Guangwu's restoration, considering that the royal family has many members and heavy expenses, it is a heavy burden on the country, so he reduced the food and fiefs of the vassal states. I think this is a very correct decision. Emperor Guangwu's concern for the country and the people can be deeply felt by us now, even after a hundred years.

For a long time, the number of vassal states has been increasing, and the salaries the court has spent on them has also been increasing. Now the country is in financial difficulty, the treasury is empty, there is chaos inside, and there are powerful enemies outside. This is truly a critical moment for survival. As the pillars of the country, the vassal states should take the lead and fight together for the national crisis. Therefore, I suggest that the salaries of all vassal states be reduced by 30%. "

Liu Zu blinked and suddenly felt a little depressed.

As the head of the clan, he naturally had to consider the interests of the clan and vassal states. However, he also knew that what Yuan Shu said was true. Although a lot of cuts had been made, the Han royal relatives who were just getting paid without doing anything were still a huge burden on the country's finances.

But isn't this a matter of course?

"Yuan Jun, do you really want to do this?"

Liu Zu asked tentatively: "The salaries of the vassal states are not that high, and are even lower than before the restoration. If they are reduced further, I'm afraid it will cause doubts among all the vassal states."

"I don't want this to happen, but isn't this something I can do?"

Yuan Shu shook his head and said, "The Minister of Agriculture has already said that the treasury is empty and it is no joke. Eunuchs are ruining the country and the people, and it is normal for them to spend money before they earn it. If we don't find ways to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, it won't be long before the salaries of not only the royal family but also the officials of the imperial court will be reduced.

Liu Zongzheng, what do you think? Should we let the princes who do nothing and enjoy the fruits of others' labor live a hard life? Or should we let the officials who work diligently and work hard for the country live a hard life? "

Liu Zu was suddenly speechless.

He understood what Yuan Shu meant and knew that he could not refute it, because if he made such a comparison, he would definitely not choose to let the officials live a hard life.

After all, the Liu family was a minority, and they had no political power, military power, or influence on national affairs. They were soft persimmons, easy to squeeze. On the other hand, the officials were all fat and strong, and had their own base. To touch their interests was tantamount to asking for trouble.

more importantly……

Compared with the income of Zong Zheng, the income of this relative of the Han royal family is actually just a drop in the bucket.

Comparing the two, it is definitely the case that you are picking on the weak.

Then let the Han royal family suffer and bear the infamy and disgrace!
While chatting and laughing, the problems of Taichang, Shaofu and Zongzheng were all solved.

Then, Yuan Shu raised the last topic.

"When a new emperor ascends the throne, it is reasonable to change the era name to announce it to the world. Gentlemen, do you have any better ideas?"

Upon hearing this, everyone lowered their heads in thought and soon came up with many ideas, but they were all rejected by Yuan Shu one by one.

Either they are loud but not elegant enough, or they are elegant but not loud enough. Some ideas are indeed good but lack a sense of dominance, while some sound domineering but not low-key enough.

Yuan Shu was very dissatisfied with this.

Why isn't there a colorful black?!
No, keep thinking!

The officials had no choice but to continue brainstorming.

In the end, it was Tang Zhen who came up with an idea.

"Since the new emperor ascends the throne to rectify the chaos and return to the orthodoxy, the reign title should contain the word 'Zheng'. What do you think of 'Zhengshi'? It will continue the Han Dynasty and be the beginning of the orthodoxy!"

Tang Zhen's idea made Yuan Shu's eyes light up, and he immediately felt it was interesting.

Zhengshi, this era name is both elegant and loud, and also reveals a sense of dominance and low-key luxury.

It seems to herald the beginning of a new dynasty, and also implies the determination to rectify the chaos and return to orthodoxy.

Yuan Shu felt that this era name was indeed very appropriate.

So he took his results to find Yuan Feng and reported his ideas and results to him, especially emphasizing his idea of the reign title "Zhengshi".

Yuan Feng was quite satisfied with this reign title, and also appreciated the other achievements given by Yuan Shu. He praised Yuan Shu, then took out a bamboo slip and handed it to Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu unfolded the bamboo slips and was a little surprised.

"Appoint me as the Marquis of Yang'an County? With a fief of 5,000 households?"

Yuan Feng nodded.

"Well, this is a little idea of yours, you can see if it is suitable, if it is suitable, you can take it and stamp it on the emperor."

“Isn’t that a bit too much?”

Yuan Shu hesitated and said, "With my age and achievements, is it not good to get 5,000 food fiefdoms all at once?"

Yuan Feng shook his head.

"It is completely appropriate to confer you a county marquisate and five thousand fiefs for your merits. I even think it is a little insufficient. If you make more merits in the future, you can get more fiefs. As for the official position... have you thought it through? If you still want to change it, there is still enough time."

Yuan Feng looked at Yuan Shu and continued, "My father's advice remains unchanged. You can choose a county or even a prefecture to gain experience. This is safer and more appropriate. Don't you still want to do great things? Don't you want to be King Wu of Zhou? Then you must first stay alive. If you die, what's the point?"

Yuan Shu was silent for a while, then took a cushion and sat upright in front of Yuan Feng.

Yuan Feng's heart tightened when he saw his son like this. He knew that what Yuan Shu was going to say next would be extraordinary.

(End of this chapter)