Panjiayao
Wu Mengming squatted by the pit in the west of the village and frowned. He was not pulling daddy, but he was still thinking about why the emperor buried so many treasures here and when.
He asked the little eunuch, but the answer he got was just a shrug with his hands. It was because he didn't know or didn't want to tell.
Chang Yu was not as troubled as he was. He held a book in his hand and counted the excavated boxes one by one. These were royal treasures. They had to be matched as many as they had taken out. If there was even one missing piece of paper, it might be lost to Chongzhen. The emperor suspected that he had embezzled it for himself.
At the same time, Tongzhou, dozens of miles east of the capital, was in full swing. Tens of thousands of refugees were drafted here to dig up the land and plant sweet potatoes and potatoes. They dug pits, sown seeds, sown water, and watered everything in an orderly manner. It’s not that no one wants to take advantage of the opportunity to make some money, but they really don’t dare.
A large number of guards in uniforms were patrolling back and forth to maintain order, and there were even some thugs with sticks keeping an eye on anyone. If they found someone hiding something, they would beat them up and tell them to get out, so no one was willing to take such a risk and lose it for a little bit of money. rice bowl.
Why are there thugs? Because Fang Ba is here.
But Fang Ba is obviously not the one talking here, because Zheng Chenggong is here.
But Zheng Chenggong is not in charge because Song Yingxing is here.
Although Song Yingxing does not hold any official title and is even unknown, the eunuch of Dongchang has actually designated the person responsible for this matter, so everyone working here, whether they are gangsters or officials, have to give him some face.
Of course, Song Yingxing didn't come here to show off his power, nor was he such a person. After all, he was a scientific researcher, and he just plunged into the fields to get busy.
All sowing must be completed within ten days. This is the goal agreed by Zheng Chenggong and Song Yingxing.
It was almost noon, and Chang Yu led his team back to the city. As soon as they entered the outer city, they felt that it was extremely empty. Except for some young beggars, there were almost no traces of refugees. So he couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth slightly. Wu Mengming also noticed it and couldn't help but He groaned: "It's so empty, maybe they all ran to Tongzhou, and they don't need so many people there."
"You'll know if you ask." Chang Yu chuckled. Wu Mengming was confused and rode up to an old beggar on the street: "Where have everyone gone?"
"I heard that the government is going to build a school in the west of the city with food and money, and all the people who can work will go there. I'm afraid that every one of them will run away faster..." The old beggar sighed with dull eyes: "I'm the kind of person who can do the work. Those who have no strength will just wait to starve to death... The official will reward you with a meal."
Wu Mengming had no intention of giving a reward: "The porridge shed will be open at noon. I won't starve you to death..." Then he returned to Chang Yu: "What kind of school should I study? Does the imperial court still have money?"
Chang Yu then revealed all the plans to build the Royal Academy, and Wu Mengming frowned after hearing this: "Promoting sweet potatoes, preparing to build schools, military hospitals, and ordnance factories can make full use of the current labor force and reduce the epidemic pressure in the capital. But where does all this money come from?”
"Then have you ever thought about how much money it would cost to carry out so many projects in the peaceful and prosperous times?" Chang Yu smiled bitterly and sighed: "Labour is cheap these days. Instead of raising them for nothing, why not take the opportunity to do all this work?" That’s it. As for money, although food is tight right now, money is still available.”
"The Governor must be prepared to spend all his private money." Wu Mengming agreed that labor was cheap at this time, but did not agree with where else to squeeze money. After all, there was not much left in the treasury but there were many people asking for money. It was impossible for the court to do so now. Allocating funds from the national treasury to build schools, not to mention military salaries in various places, and even the current disaster relief funds are insufficient.
Wu Mengming knows that Dongchang has gray income, and Dongchang's gray income is not equal to Chang Yu's gray income. However, he recently invested in the Octopus Chamber of Commerce, the Octopus Escort Bureau, and the Daming Bank. It was really too much principal to invest in one moment. It was impossible to rebate, and Dongchang still maintained a few soldiers and horses. To be honest, Dongchang was living with his belt tight now, so he guessed that the young eunuch used his personal money.
Does Chang Yu have any private money? The answer is absolutely yes. From the beginning of holding boxing matches in the palace to later supervising the war in Taiyuan and sending Wu Mengming to get ahead of the rebel army to rescue the two princes, and then to the upheaval after returning to Beijing, it is really What you earn is a bulging pocket.
It's just that at that time, his private money and Dongchang's money were indeed unclear. It was only after more and more people relied on him for food and formed the Fourth Battalion of Dongchang that he began to distinguish between public and private, and what was his own was his own. Yes, Dongchang had to increase investment and make money to support those soldiers and horses. Emperor Chongzhen set up a Dongchang guard for him, but he would never pay a penny.
"The landlord's family doesn't have much leftover food." Chang Yu sighed: "To build so many stalls, the government's money has been used up. Our own family is almost at the bottom. The down payment for building a school is just It costs a hundred thousand dollars, and our family can’t even get it out even if it’s a piece of cake.”
"Then... the one hundred thousand you promised the emperor..." Wu Mengming blinked, Chang Yu chuckled, looked up at the sky, and saw a few white clouds floating by: "The Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon, and our family is also moving to a new home. Good day”
"Yes, it's getting cooler day by day after mid-autumn. The Governor might as well warm up the house before it gets cold...eh..." Wu Mengming suddenly realized something and looked at Chang Yu and saw him smiling. He looked at himself with a non-smiling look: "Duke, didn't you say you can't afford to be so embarrassed?"
"How much money is your face worth?" Chang Yu laughed loudly, but he couldn't hide his helplessness in his smile. He hummed: "I won't accept gifts during the holidays this year. I will only accept gifts in cash."
The two of them rode horses side by side to the vicinity of Zhengyang Gate. They suddenly saw many people running noisily towards the inner city. Their expressions were full of joy. Could it be that there was a good person giving alms?
It was impossible. Most of the refugees asked for alms in the outer city. In addition, a large number of refugees had gone to work outside the city in the past two days. Who would take advantage of this time to give alms? I was confused and asked my men to inquire, but I learned that it was the queen and princess. Out of the palace.
Regardless of whether it is in ancient times or today, this kind of thing is something that the common people like to hear and see. Wherever they go, it will be crowded. Even if it is noon and you have not eaten, you still have to watch the excitement. Even just a glance is enough to show off for half a year. Well, if you are lucky enough to have such a conversation with the queen and princess, it will be like smoke rising from the ancestral grave.
As for why the queen and princess left the palace, it was most likely to encourage people to get through the difficult times.
Of course Chang Yu knew the real intention of Queen Zhou and Princess Kunxing to leave the palace to raise funds for the establishment of the Royal Academy. Emperor Chongzhen had done this kind of thing years ago, but it was to raise military pay. The main audience was officials and nobles. However, there was little response at that time and only a thousand taels of silver were raised. The scene was very embarrassing.
Will it be embarrassing this time too?
This move was a decision made by Chang Yu after careful consideration and would never be embarrassing.
First of all, this is to prepare a school, not to fight, but to leave a good reputation. Secondly, the target audience is mainly ordinary people, but Chang Yu believes that there will also be officials and nobles who take the initiative to donate.
The reason is simple: times are different.
In the situation a year ago, if you donated money to fight the war, it would be wasted. The war could not be fought at all. Let alone without money, even if you had money, you would lose every battle, so no one was willing to donate.
But now, the national crisis has been resolved, at least it is no longer imminent, and there is a war god who has won many battles, and no one will be afraid of him. At this time, the royal family is preparing to prepare a school for fame and reputation, and no one is embarrassed.
The queen and princess left the palace to a crowd of people, but Chang Yu had no interest in joining in the fun. When he was about to go back to the palace directly, he suddenly changed his mind because he thought of a person, Zhou Kui, the father of the country.
