The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

Time flies, and for Chen Huai'an, the period from May to August has undoubtedly been quite fulfilling.

At least, he was no longer all alone. When he returned home, he could always enjoy a meal cooked by his sister and learn to read and write little by little with his niece.

Despite the famine years, official duties were busy, and there was no shortage of infighting in the court.

But now there aren't many people deliberately targeting him anymore, and no one dares to target him.

The system of government production, government approval, and commercial sales has been officially implemented for refined salt. Now everyone is so eager to worship Chen Huai'an that who would have nothing better to do than target him?

However, on August 18th, a piece of news broke the long-awaited peace.

Liang Bingyi from the Ministry of Revenue rushed to the door: "Minister, the Guandong, Henan and Longyou border prefectures have suffered from frost, and the autumn crops have been damaged on a large scale."

"The disaster is still ongoing, and the situation is not optimistic!"

Chen Huai'an, who was holding his niece and teaching her to read and write, frowned upon hearing this. Even though he had expected it beforehand, his heart still sank upon hearing the news.

Are there many people affected by the disaster?

Liang Bingyi's expression was very unpleasant: "Many people who had some surplus grain at home during the spring drought could at least hold on until the autumn harvest."

"And now, the autumn harvest has been hit by frost, and coupled with the previous drought, the number of disaster victims is rising rapidly!"

"Now that things have come to this, we can no longer just sit in Chang'an and watch. We must petition His Majesty to send people to various prefectures to provide relief to the people who have suffered from the frost."

"Otherwise, I'm afraid bad rumors will spread!"

Chen Huai'an rubbed his temples; he naturally understood what Liang Bingyi meant by the rumors.

During the Wude era, although there were many disasters, none lasted almost the entire year like this.

From the drought at the beginning and middle of the year to the frost in August, anyone can guess that there might be a snow disaster when winter truly arrives.

If the people are not appeased and disaster relief efforts are not made, the issue of Li Shimin's illegitimate ascension to the throne will likely be brought up again.

Once such rumors emerge, all sorts of trouble are likely to follow.

Because Li Shimin was still reducing the power of the regional military governors!

"Xiao He, go find your mother. Your uncle has something to do!" Chen Huai'an said softly.

Xiao He nodded obediently, climbed off him, and tilted her head back, saying, "Uncle, Xiao He is waiting for you to come back for dinner~"

"Okay." Chen Huai'an's gaze softened, and he pinched Xiao He's slightly chubby cheeks, watching her skip away.

"Minister, what should we do now?" Liang Bingyi asked anxiously.

In fact, any official with a conscience would be alarmed upon hearing this news.

Having barely survived the drought, this is now a frost disaster, and when winter truly arrives, there's likely to be heavy snow as well.

Who wouldn't be anxious?

"Don't panic." Chen Huai'an said thoughtfully, "Go back to the Ministry of Revenue first. This matter cannot be rushed. As the Vice Minister of Revenue, you must not be hasty."

"Yes, Minister." Liang Bingyi paused, realizing he had somewhat lost his composure.

"Immediately tell me the specific areas in Guandong, Henan, and the border prefectures of Longyou that have suffered frost, and the extent of the damage. Instruct your officials to quickly compile a rough estimate of the number of affected people," Chen Huai'an ordered methodically. "I need this detailed disaster report by September!"

"In addition, immediately count the 200,000 strings of cash and 200,000 shi of grain, order a reduction in the Wei River trade, and from now on, the government's grain transport must be guaranteed to be unimpeded and ready to mobilize resources at any time."

"Develop a route that can reach the disaster area as quickly as possible. If water transport is not feasible, then take the land route."

Liang Bingyi wrote everything down and asked questions from time to time, to which Chen Huai'an provided answers.

Soon, the two returned to the Ministry of Revenue. Chen Huai'an received the disaster report from below, and his face grew darker and darker as he read it.

In the Central Plains and Hexi Corridor, the frost usually falls in mid-to-late September. However, a severe frost suddenly struck in August. At this time, millet, sorghum, sorghum, and beans are in the critical period of grain filling and ripening. The heavy frost directly caused the straw to freeze and the grains to rot.

Nearly no harvest!

That same summer, a severe drought had already broken out in Shandong, and the early frost in August compounded the drought, resulting in disasters on both the north and south sides throughout the year.

More importantly, the border areas of Longyou, namely Liangzhou, Ganzhou, Guazhou and other counties in Hexi.

Having just quelled Li Youliang's rebellion and reclaimed military and financial power, the border towns were already in turmoil, with food supplies running low. The frost disaster further exacerbated the food shortage in the border areas.

"The situation is more serious than I imagined! The impact of this frost disaster is enormous!" Chen Huai'an said in a deep voice.

Liang Bingyi said helplessly, "Minister, that is indeed the case."

"Li Youliang had just been executed in Hexi, and the local people were not at peace. In addition, the Turks on the border of Liangzhou were already in a difficult situation, making it easy for them to raid southwards."

"Moreover, in the summer, His Majesty issued an edict to exempt Shandong from the annual rent and taxes. In August, there was no autumn tax to be collected due to the frost disaster. The court's land tax revenue was halved. At the same time, the shortage of food and fodder for the army on the Hexi border skyrocketed. Originally, they relied on local land reclamation and private markets to supplement their military pay. Now that the military power and finances have been taken back, they can only transport supplies from Guanzhong. The financial pressure is too great."

"This frost disaster almost completely covered the main tax-generating and military grain-producing areas in northern China, severely damaging them all."

"This has seriously threatened people's livelihoods and border defense!"

"Therefore, I said that if this is not handled properly, I fear rumors may spread."

Chen Huai'an pondered for a long time, then exhaled a breath of turbid air: "Immediately send someone to summon Chang Gui, Ouyang Shu, and Yu Shao. Send this disaster report to the Ministry of Personnel immediately."

"Yes, Minister." Liang Bingyi bowed and immediately left.

The lights flickered in the Minister's Hall, and Chen Huai'an's gaze was deep, as if he were pondering something.

Soon, Chang Gui, Ouyang Shu, Yu Shao, and Liang Bingyi all returned.

"Minister." The crowd bowed.

Chen Huai'an gestured for them to sit down: "Liang Bingyi should have already mentioned the frost disaster to the three of you, right?"

The three nodded heavily, and Chang Gui said bitterly, "I finally understand why the Minister would rather die than agree to send troops. Under these circumstances, sending troops will only drag the Tang Dynasty down."

"The frost disasters in the north and south are too severe. If it weren't for your methods of iron forging, salt production, and papermaking, let alone disaster relief and military expeditions, the very operation of the imperial court might have been disrupted."

Ouyang Shu sighed: "Yes, the Ministry of Revenue probably won't be able to collect much land tax this year. If it weren't for the Minister, the court would have a hard time functioning."

"Don't talk about these meaningless things." Chen Huai'an rested his chin on his hand, staring at Yu Shao. "I remember there are many coal mines in western Shanxi, central Shandong, and the Pengcheng Hills, right?"

Yu Shao was taken aback, not understanding why Chen Huai'an brought this up, but he still answered honestly, "Reporting to the Minister, that is indeed the case."

"But coal mines are not resources controlled by the government; they are mostly mined spontaneously by ordinary people and merchants."

"Moreover, this stuff... is poisonous. People wouldn't use it unless they had absolutely no other choice."

"..."