"Your Majesty, please forgive me! Thanks to Your Majesty's favor, the salary of the employees of the Weaving Bureau is not low. However, these employees are not tired of it. They don't know how to appreciate the emperor's favor. Just because private weavers hired them with high salaries, they rebelled against the Weaving Bureau. This is really abominable! It is not conducive to upholding people's hearts and increasing national funds, so I believe that we should establish laws and regulations to control it!"
After Bi Ziyan asked Zhu Youxiao why he voted like this, he answered confidently.
As a civil servant who believed himself to be loyal to the court and the emperor, and sympathetic to the people of the world, he really didn't feel that the small political matter he was handling was worthy of being summoned and questioned by the emperor in person.
Zhu Youxiao said at this time: "But the employees are hired by the Weaving Bureau, not the officials of the Weaving Bureau, and they are not slaves! By prohibiting them from leaving the Weaving Bureau by law, you are treating them as belonging to the Weaving Bureau. Do you understand that it is handled by officials or even slaves? In addition, the hired workers signed a contract with the Weaving Bureau, not a contract of sale. Their leaving the Weaving Bureau is not considered a betrayal of the Weaving Bureau. At most, it is a violation of the contract. At most, it is in accordance with the provisions of the contract. To deal with this kind of matter, once the imperial court intervenes with a decree, it will only make me lose my prestige in the world, so I will change my decree immediately!"
"Your Majesty, if the people do not punish the behavior of despising the emperor's favor, the emperor's authority will be damaged!"
Bi Ziyan replied.
"Do you think that with such a decree, the people will be grateful for the emperor's favor?"
"Wrong! They will start to hate me and the court! People are born to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, and are easily ungrateful, but they will never forget hatred easily. Even though I have shown a lot of kindness to them before, as long as I do this this time, They will simply forget the kindness I thought I gave them, and call me stupid and not a good emperor, do you believe it?"
"Essentially speaking, we are not engaged in production, but rely on them to support us. We are bandits who take away what they produce. If you make them anxious, what will happen if they don't work? Then we will suffer even greater losses. !
Besides, if you don't let them leave the Weaving Bureau, even if they have to endure it, do you still expect the Weaving Bureau to recruit more people? Although the common people are easy to bully, it is never a good idea to bully the common people when there is a problem. It is just like beating a cow when you plant crops and the harvest is not good. If the harvest is not good, it is not because the cow is not working hard, or it is your own. The problem is either God's problem. If the cow is beaten to death, who will do the work? "
Zhu Youxiao asked as he spoke.
Bi Ziyan suddenly realized after listening: "I understand! Politicians should not be harsh on the people, and should not be as knowledgeable as the common people, but expect them to be educated, know etiquette, be grateful, and even be lenient to the people! But we cannot expect them to be educated, knowledgeable, and grateful. The people are grateful for their kindness, because we need the people, and the people need us. Your Majesty is as kind as heaven, and I cannot match it."
"It can't be said that we are not kind to them. From the beginning, it was just exchange. They used their labor in exchange for the gold and silver in our hands. Although before that, they were hungry and in mourning. Starving to death does not mean that we hired them to survive. In fact, they have other ways to survive, such as overthrowing my empire, or raiding your home, Master Bi!"
"Next time when something like this happens, don't blame the people harshly, but think carefully about the real solution to the problem. Otherwise, it will give some people with ulterior motives an opportunity to take advantage of it. You, Bi Ai, will still listen to the Weaving Bureau. In other words, let alone ordinary people, once they are deceived and cause greater turmoil, the cohesion of the country will be damaged."
Zhu Youxiao ordered as he spoke.
"Please keep this in mind, I will draft a new edict right now."
Bi Ziyan replied.
He had to admit that His Majesty the Emperor seemed to understand the common people better than he did, and what he said always made him enlightened.
Zhu Youxiao had to admit that it was still a headache for officials educated in a farming society to deal with matters in an industrial society.
The education system for training officials must be changed.
If I, the emperor, want to take too much leisure, I might cause troubles all over the world.
"Report! Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from the Privy Council. There was a riot in the Tongzhou Iron Factory. The employees of the iron factory rebelled. Tongzhou City has been captured and water transportation has been blocked! Governor Bi Zisu has been killed!"
Wang Chengen hurried over at this time and handed an urgent report to Zhu Youxiao.
"Sure enough, there's going to be trouble!"
After seeing this, Zhu Youxiao couldn't help but said depressedly: "How did this happen? Tongzhou Iron Works is a government-run workshop, and government-run employees always have high salaries. How could they rebel? Who are Yuan Keli, Xu Guangqi, and Bi Ziyan?" What happened! Go and send Wei Zhongxian!"
Not long after, Wei Zhongxian came to Zhu Youxiao.
Zhu Youxiao hurriedly asked Wei Zhongxian: "Does Dongchang know any secrets about the Tongzhou Rebellion?"
"Back to your Majesty, according to our informant in the East Factory, Gao Hongzong, the director of the iron factory, defaulted on his salary. Instigated by a few craftsmen, the entire iron factory went on strike and caused trouble. Gao Hongzong reported it to Tianjin on the grounds that these craftsmen were rebelling. Governor Bi Zisu, Bi Zisu sent troops to suppress it, but somehow the news was known to the craftsmen of the iron factory. The craftsmen first occupied Tongzhou City and killed Bi Zisu who was in the city, but Gao Hongzong escaped early."
Wei Zhongxian replied.
"Sure enough, it was caused by corruption and improper handling by my ministers."
Zhu Youxiao said: "Invite civil and military officials of fourth grade and above to come to the Qinzheng Hall to discuss this matter!"
"According to the order!"
Soon, the Qinzheng Hall was filled with civil and military officials wearing python robes and scarlet official robes given by the emperor.
Zhu Youxiao also began to ask them to discuss the Tongzhou Rebellion.
"Your Majesty! There are hundreds of thousands of elite troops stationed in the capital, and the riots of tens of thousands of people cannot be eliminated overnight. I would like to request an order to lead troops to quell the rebellion in Tongzhou!"
Military general You Shilu reported.
Fu Zonglong, the left minister of the Ministry of War who was transferred to Beijing, also said: "In my opinion, it is better to send troops to quell the rebellion sooner rather than later. After all, it is related to water transportation!"
"After these rebels are put down, they should be severely punished, otherwise it will not be enough to deter the millions of government-employed workers in Tongzhou, Tianjin."
Li Guopu, a bachelor, also held a tough attitude.
For a time, many ministers, both civil and military, demanded to suppress the rebellion.
But at this time, Hua Yuncheng, who was already the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, said: "Most of the hired workers in Tianjin and Tongzhou are refugees who used to be concentrated in the capital. At that time, your Majesty ordered Bi Gong and his ministers to resettle these refugees and make them hired workers. The minister is responsible for the specific arrangements. Now the rebellion against the imperial court is not due to lack of kindness. It is just caused by being oppressed by some corrupt officials and Bi Futai's improper handling. If troops are used rashly, it will only make the employees more disappointed. Even if the suppression is successful, it will also grow. The corrupt officials are so arrogant that I ask your Majesty to take charge and handle the matter properly, because I know them best and can make them return to the court."
After hearing this, Zhu Youxiao nodded and thought to himself: "After all, it is the officials with these practical experiences who know better how to handle this matter."
So, Zhu Youxiao said: "Draw up the decree, Bi Ziyan will be appointed deputy privy envoy and governor of Tianjin, and Lu Xiangsheng, the Guards, will handle the matter!"
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