(It's the beginning of the month, and if you have a free monthly pass, vote.) Guo Chong nodded, glanced at the ministers, and said in a deep voice: "Ladies and gentlemen, is there anything important to tell me?" ”

The ministers were silent for a moment, and an official stepped out of the crowd and bowed down and said, "Your Majesty, the drought in Gyeonggi has been serious recently. The imperial court ordered the water of the Yellow River to be abundant in the lakes and rivers of the capital, but manpower was tight and the progress was slow. The Ministry of Industry asked the emperor to decree that many people should be allowed to participate in this matter. It is unknown if it is possible or not. ”

Guo Chong frowned and was silent, the aggravation of the drought was worrying, and there were reports coming every day, but this matter could not be solved for a while. Diverting the water of the Yellow River is easy to say. Is it that easy to dig a water diversion channel? Tens of thousands of people have been requisitioned to dig ditches under the scorching sun for more than a month, and they are still gathering fifty or sixty miles away.

"Lu Zhongtian, what do you say? How can this drought be alleviated? Is it feasible to divert water? Guo Chong asked.

Lu Zhongtian bowed down and said, "Your Majesty, don't waste your efforts in this matter. Tens of thousands of people have been requisitioned, and with the addition of hard labor, the people will be miserable. Besides, with the current progress, it may not be possible to divert water in another month or two. By then, even autumn is already over, so what's the use of diverting water? In the opinion of the old minister, this matter should be given up immediately, so as not to suddenly waste manpower, money and materials. ”

"What about this drought? Do nothing? What if there is a famine in winter and next spring? Guo Chong frowned.

"The emperor can rest assured that the political hall has a plan, and is making every effort to mobilize materials and grain to gather in the major warehouses in the capital for standby. There will never be a famine or anything else. In addition, the emperor does not have to worry about the current drought, the old minister went to Si Tianjian yesterday to inquire, Si Tianjian Yue Zhongming watched the sky at night, he said that at the turn of summer and autumn, the sky was calculated, there would have been rain, but somehow it has not rained. The time is ready, and what may be missing is some manpower opportunities. Since the outbreak of the drought, the old minister has been thinking about asking the emperor to set up an altar to worship the sky, and the old minister thinks, I'm afraid now is the time. Can the emperor go to the Temple of Heaven to worship the heavens and ask for rain, maybe this is the opportunity that God is waiting for, and God will also rain from the sky. ”

Lin Jue in the crowd rolled his eyes, is this Lu Zhongtian serious? Do you really want to pray for rain from the heavens?

None of the ministers in the palace were as surprised and unbelievable as Lin Jue. They didn't regard this incident as a ridiculous thing, and they actually nodded their heads one by one, looking serious. Lin Jue suddenly realized and understood. The era in which I live is still an era when science is not developed, and respecting the heavens and the ancestors and believing in the gods are the basic ideas in everyone's mind. Asking for rain may be ridiculous on the earth in the afterlife, but it is not ridiculous at all here.

"If I need to do this, I will, but ...... Does it really work? I was skeptical. Guo Chong frowned.

"The emperor can't say that, the so-called respect for heaven is all in the heart. Where the heart goes, the sky can perceive. Whether it succeeds or not, it is providential. We do what we have to do. "Lu Zhongtian said.

Guo Chong nodded and said, "What you said is that I am just worried that doing so will fuel those rumors." Wasn't there rumors outside some time ago, saying that the great drought in the world was due to the appearance of traitors in the court? I don't want to fuel that. ”

Lu Zhongtian smiled and said: "What the emperor said is extremely true, but don't worry. In fact...... Lao Chen felt that some things could not be generalized, perhaps...... Maybe there are some things that are really unspeakable, and I don't know. This one...... If the emperor agrees, the minister will arrange for Si Tianjian to prepare for the sacrifice of the heavens and ask for rain. The Emperor asks the Holy Will to decide. ”

Lin Jue secretly glanced at the faces of Yan Zhengsu and Fang Dunru, and there was a kind of ridicule on their faces. Lu Zhongtian said vague words, saying that 'some things cannot be said and cannot be generalized', the meaning is actually heard by anyone with a discerning eye, that is, maybe the rumors on the street may not be false, maybe it is really because of the traitors who have caused a great drought in the world. Of course, he was not hinting at himself, but at the newly favored and powerful Reformers.

Guo Chong didn't seem to understand the meaning of Lu Zhongtian's words, or deliberately pretended not to understand, thought about it and said, "Okay, you can arrange it." Now there is any possibility of alleviating the drought, and I am willing to do it, and I am not afraid of what the people think. ”

"The emperor is sage, and the courtiers will arrange it." Lu Zhongtian returned to the train.

Guo Chong coughed twice, and asked aloud again, "Does Aiqing have something to discuss?" If not, I will have to announce a big event. ”

Originally, there were still a few officials who wanted to do something, but when they heard this, they immediately shrank back in recognition. The emperor has a big announcement, what else is he mixed with? This is when coming out and discussing other things is the most annoying.

Seeing that no one spoke again, Guo Chong nodded and said, "Okay, then I'm going to announce a big event." Yan Zhengsu, Fang Dunru, you come forward. ”

Yan Zhengsu and Fang Dunru agreed in unison and saluted side by side.

Guo Chong said: "I have read the "Changping New Law" presented by the two of you carefully. After consulting with the important ministers of the DPRK and China, I decided to approve the promulgation and implementation. This morning, the two of you will promulgate this law in the palace, announce it to the hundred officials and the world, and then prepare to implement it. ”

"The ministers obey."

Yan Zhengsu and Fang Dunru shouted in unison, their voices trembling with excitement. Finally, the first new law will be implemented. The civil and military officials below are also looking forward to it at the moment, because the rumors about the change of the law have been rumored for too long, and it has been almost 20 days since the establishment of the new yamen, and everyone is thinking, what are the busy people in the new yamen doing, why is there no movement? Some people even said in private that the so-called change was just a thunderstorm and a small rain, and Yan Zhengsu and Fang Dunru took the opportunity to seize power and take power, and there were no specific actions at all. But now, it's really here.

Everyone was talking to each other.

"The New Law of Changping? If you hear the name, you can guess that it is related to money and food. ”

"Isn't that right? It is said that it is to change the law to strengthen the army through financial management, but it can't be related to money and food? ”

"However, isn't Chang Closed almost completely abandoned because of the shortage of silver? What else can be written? ”

"Who knows. The two men didn't know what to do. Don't say it, let's just listen. ”

When everyone was talking, Yan Zhengsu had already taken a file from Du Weiji, the secretary of the regulations. Everyone's eyes were focused on the stack of files, knowing that there was the content of the new law.

Yan Zhengsu glanced at Fang Dunru, and Fang Dunru nodded. Yan Zhengsu bowed to Guo Chong, turned to the side to face the hundred officials, and glanced at everyone with a majestic gaze, and suddenly the hall fell silent.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Yan and Fang Zhongcheng were entrusted by the emperor to change the law for the purpose of enriching the country and strengthening the army of our Great Zhou. Master Fang and I deeply feel the great responsibility, and every day is like walking on thin ice, like facing the abyss, and we dare not slack off in the slightest. In order to achieve the goal of enriching the country and strengthening the army, after a great deal of investigation and scrutiny, combined with the personal experience of the official and what he has seen and heard, all the colleagues of the Regulations Department made concerted efforts to compile this first new law, which is called the "Changping New Law". Now this official test will explain this new law to you. ”

Everyone widened their eyes and ears, and listened carefully.

"For more than 100 years since the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the achievements of the Great Zhou Dynasty have made the people from all over the world admire and admire the world. There is no doubt about that. But there is no need to shy away from the situation that I am facing today. The "A Hundred Years of Nothing" I wrote to the emperor that day has already described a lot, and I know that many people don't like me to say bad things, but those are indeed the truth. I have come to the current situation in Dazhou, and the problems that I must face can no longer be avoided. What we want is to actively improve the predicament we are facing, and this is the original intention of changing the law. ”

“…… Your Excellency should be aware that one of the biggest problems facing my Great Zhou today is the sharp decline in finance, taxes, money and food, and the embarrassment of the imperial court not being able to make ends meet. I think that at the beginning, my annual tax revenue was 100 million tens of millions, the treasury was full, and the world was rich. And now. The annual fiscal and tax revenue is 50 or 60 million, a sharp drop of as much as 50 percent. And the imperial court expenditure more than doubled every year. Now there is a lot of money to spare, and there is no silver to use. Even the next year's taxes are advanced. If this continues, won't even the finances and taxes in ten years be spent? This situation will not change, and the Great Zhou will be in danger. ”

The officials lowered their heads and smacked their lips, although they didn't like to listen to these words, and some people were even dissatisfied with Yan Zhengsu repeating these scars in the same old tune, but they had to admit that this was the truth.

“…… Of course, we can pretend that nothing happened, and pretend that our Great Zhou is still in the prosperous world. Each of us does not have to worry about food and clothing, and the small life is also very nourishing. But these things are real things. We can bury our heads in the sand and be ostriches, but others won't. You are strong, others can see it. You are weakened, and others can see it. Just like the Liao State in the north, the Yanyun Alliance has a hundred-year repair covenant, and they say that it will be scrapped, and they threaten each other with swords. Just imagine, when my Great Zhou was strong, did they dare to threaten? It is precisely because we are weakened that they feel it, that they dare to be so arrogant. Therefore, if we still think that the world is peaceful, then the crisis is at hand. As the courtiers of the Great Zhou, how can we indulge in idleness anymore, we must take action......"

“…… The beginning of everything must start with the taxation of money and grain. Therefore, the main thrust of this first new law is to increase fiscal revenue. How to increase taxes on money and food? Some people say that increasing taxes is the most convenient move, but how can people live by increasing taxes? If there are still people who think that the people of Dazhou are still living a prosperous life, I will ask them to go to the homes of the people below and take a look. I've got a statistic here, and I'm going to read it to you. ”

Yan Zhengsu beckoned to Lin Jue, Lin Jue hurriedly stepped forward, handed the file in his hand to Yan Zhengsu, and turned back to the queue. Yan Zhengsu opened the file, took out a piece of yellow paper, and said loudly: "In the eighth year of the Great Calendar, the population of my Great Zhou is 12 million. Among them, 8.4 million are farmers. Among the peasant households, 4.2 million are of the third class or above. In the first year of Splendor, the population of the Great Zhou Dynasty totaled 18 million households. There are 8 million peasant households, and 3.19 million peasant households are of the third class or above. In the fourth year of Qingfeng, my household registration in Dazhou was 19.2 million. 7.5 million peasant households. There are less than 2 million farmers above the middle level. ”

Yan Zhengsu shook the paper in his hand and said in a deep voice: "Can you see the clue from this?" ”

Please remember that the first domain name of this book is:. Nine Heavenly God Emperor mobile version reading website: