"If it weren't for your Majesty's insistence on promoting industrialization, clearing up the Qinghe Industrial Zone, and building railways, this disaster would not have happened this year!"
"Oh my God! From the preparation to the start of production in the Guangqinghe Industrial Zone, one hundred thousand migrant workers work here every year, and there are no less than one hundred thousand workers working on the Beijing-Tianjin Railway!"
"This does not include the people who provide services for these projects. If we include the auxiliary personnel, Zhili will reduce its labor force by 300,000 to 400,000 people every year!"
"It's great now! The Beijing-Hankow Railway has also begun to be built, and the labor consumption is several times higher! Your Majesty! Do you know how much manpower is needed to maintain these industrial projects now?"
"It's not the more than 300,000 people written in the accounts! Those are the people who directly receive money and food from the court...are they providing food, clothing, housing, transportation and other services to these more than 300,000 people?"
"What about the workers who dig mountains and dig rocks, dam rivers and shovel sand, coal from Shanxi, iron from Yanshan... where are the various raw materials produced?"
"More than a million strong laborers have been dragged into your majesty's industrial plan, and the trend is that more and more people are involved!"
Weng Tonghe was ready to fight. He no longer cared about the dignity of the little emperor and had to tell his story even if he died.
"These are all people! These are all strong laborers. If these people are taken away, who will you let to farm the land? Can we produce a lot of food? Without food, how can we provide disaster relief?"
"Nowadays, Zhili and Shanxi are the most serious, and Henan and Shandong are also very worried... In rural areas, some old people, women and children are taking care of armor, and young people who are light and strong have gone out to work!"
"My students wrote to me during the first month of the year. Nowadays, it is too common for young men to leave their hometowns in rural areas. One or two migrant workers who return home can take away a dozen or even 20 or 30 young people after the Chinese New Year! "
"They abandoned their ancestors' huts and tombs, left their parents, wives and children, and left their hometowns to work for a little money! In the end, the fields were deserted and food production dropped sharply. This is the root cause of the current disaster!"
The old man was really crazy. Even Prince Dun was dumbfounded and didn't know how to persuade him. This old guy simply didn't want his life! Emperor Tongzhi behind the Long Case, his face turned red, white, and livid!
Zai Chunqi's head was buzzing, and he even experienced symptoms of deafness for a few seconds. When he saw the old man's mouth moving, he could guess what he was saying, but he couldn't hear it, and he was so angry that he became deaf!
"That's enough!" Zai Chun stood up, angry and all the blood in his body rushed to his head. "In order to save...save the Qing Dynasty...I tried my best to promote industrial reform..."
"In your words...I have become a fool for eternity! You are the only one who is wise and has educated a bunch of bastard officials who deceive superiors and deceive subordinates!"
"Pull it out... the Meridian Gate Staff! Give me a hard beating!"
Um? All the ministers have 10,000 questions in their minds. Why is there a court staff? Do you want the Meridian Gate Staff? Take off your pants and spank?
Third Master Qing knew that Zai Chun was confused, so he quickly said, "Your Majesty... this is not possible. The Meridian Gate Staff is a mediocre Ming Dynasty system. How can it be used in our wise Qing Dynasty!"
"Absolutely not. Mr. Weng spoke a little too hastily, but what he said makes sense... He is also concerned about the country and the people!"
In any case, even the officials present who didn't like Weng Tonghe had to say something nice at this time. We couldn't let the emperor restore the Ming Dynasty's court stick system, right?
If he recovers, he will take off his pants and be spanked every day. Who can bear this?
Prince Dun could no longer remain silent, "Old man, you still haven't apologized to His Majesty... What you're saying is all nonsense! Natural and man-made disasters are disasters for all living beings. How can you blame Long live the Lord?"
"Your Majesty, please have mercy..." All the ministers present knelt down.
The old man also lost his temper and regained his composure. "Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...
"Industry is not bad... but industry must be developed slowly. If so many people are taken away at once and agriculture is destroyed, what will we eat..."
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu" Weng Tonghe knelt on the ground with his forehead on the gold brick. He stopped cursing at this moment and simply cried.
Zai Chun's eyes were spinning with anger in the foreground. He was full of energy but didn't know how to vent it. He really wanted to push these annoying ministers to the Meridian Gate and beat them to death.
But no, these people are still needed for the operation of this court!
"Haha...hahahaha...ok...you are not wrong, but I am wrong? Okay, okay, on the road of reform and reform, I am afraid I will always be a single man!"
"Weng Tonghe! I will keep your crime with you first! You go home and think about the past behind closed doors! I will settle the accounts with you after I resolve this crisis!"
"Get lost! Take all the filial sons and grandsons like you from Yushitai and go home and think about the past behind closed doors! I am too lazy to talk to you ministers who only know how to question but can't come up with any solutions!"
Da Sixi rushed forward with the eunuch, "My lords...get up. Long Live the Lord has mercy on me and has not punished me. You lords, hurry up and go home and shut yourself up to think about the past!"
"Slave, I'll tell you the dirty talk first. If anyone goes out secretly, don't blame the Za family for being rude!"
Weng Tonghe, who had collided with the emperor in front of the emperor, finally saved his life. Surrounded by several imperial officials, he walked out of the Forbidden City. His face was pale along the way and he did not say hello to any acquaintances opposite him.
Emperor Tongzhi just said that they were thinking about their mistakes behind closed doors and were not going to prison, so the eunuchs sent them out of Donghua Gate and returned, waiting for them to leave the palace.
Several censors gathered around and said, "Teacher... you scared us to death just now. Where did you get into this trouble? Why did you risk your life and go head-to-head with the emperor?"
Weng Tonghe took out his handkerchief and wiped the cold sweat. At this time, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked around. No one suddenly laughed, "Hahaha... you don't understand, you don't understand the rules here at all!"
"Silly boys, learn from it...my move looks dangerous, but it's actually the safest!"
"Your Majesty is furious. The officials in your county collectively concealed the information, causing the disaster to get out of control. Such a crime, with the character of Long Live Lord, would lead to a killing spree! We will also suffer the same fate!"
"But many officials in local prefectures and counties are from the imperial examination and are disciples of saints. How can we kill them all? I am protecting them!"
"This strategy is called fighting fire with fire! Remember, when you are 100% expecting that the emperor will be angry and want to kill someone!"
"At this time, it is useless for you to kowtow and beg for mercy. The weaker you are and kowtow, the more he will kill you! Because you are weak and you beg for mercy, this proves to the world that the responsibility is yours and you will take the blame!"
"Long live the Lord, someone needs to take the blame. You kowtow and beg for mercy, which is exactly what you want. If you don't die, who will die?"
"At this time, you have to fight hard, take a gamble, and fight fire with fire! Make things more noisy, exchange small crimes for big crimes, and exchange living crimes for death crimes!"
"Haha... You have to understand that the more a king likes great achievements, the more likely he is to be famous!"
"If you argue with him desperately, you will have the reputation of a straight minister. Killing a straight minister will not sound good to the emperor after all. How will the history books write in the future?"
"I just bet that Your Majesty is hesitant, I just bet that His Majesty is concerned about his own reputation! And I have clearly explained the side effects of the emperor's industrialization, just to tell the world that he should not put the blame on us civil servants!"
"In this way...when he wants to kill those county officials, he will hesitate and think of what I said!"
"If I make the matter bigger and make it public, he won't dare to kill people without restraint anymore!"
"I have saved dozens of lives! Do you know this? Officials from dozens of prefectures and counties in four provinces must accept my life-saving grace, otherwise they will all die!"
ah! Several people exclaimed, "Teacher, great trick! Teacher really knows the emperor's mind!"
