There has probably never been such an irritating prince in the entire Great Rebellion Dynasty, and the scapegoat father has never met such an irritating son. It is normal for him to faint from anger, like this In fact, it’s good for everyone.
This second-rate emperor is the "Great Auspiciousness" of the declining Ming Empire, and he lives up to his name. Among the entire empire, he is the only one who doesn't think so, and dreams of reviving the Ming Dynasty all day long...
Seeing that his father had already rested on the spot, a certain prince asked his chamberlain to spread a large piece of paper where the civil servants and generals below were, and then put a futon on it to prevent the futon from being stained by footprints, so that they could sit down and use it up. Eaten.
Each person has a large wooden lunch box, which contains the standard "Imperial Braised Pork Rice". The braised pork is generous, as well as cucumbers, persimmons, bean sprouts and other side dishes. The combination of meat and vegetables is very reasonable.
The beautiful mother and the two noble concubines also ate here to take care of their husbands. After the imperial doctor took a look at her, she said that there was nothing serious, it was just that her blood was rising because of her anger, and she would wake up soon, so they were generally relieved.
Empress Zhou originally wanted to send her husband back to Qianqing Palace to take care of her, but her son suggested that as long as his father wakes up, he will come to attend the court meeting, which will be more time-consuming and labor-intensive. It is better to take care of him here, so Empress Zhou reluctantly agreed. .
In order to prevent the officials from seeing the meal, the chamberlain placed a small screen in front of the three concubines, which was just enough to cover the face of his master. A certain prince did not have such scruples and could eat face to face with the officials.
After the meal, everyone has a half-hour rest. They can go outside for convenience and digest food, and then continue the court meeting. If there is no result tonight, neither the prince nor the blame-shifter will be willing to accept it.
"water……"
Before the time for airing was over, Emperor Chongzhen woke up. He looked slightly tired and saw the queen with a melancholy look on her face, and then he remembered that he was thirsty.
"Your Majesty, drink slowly, be careful not to choke!"
Empress Zhou quickly brought a glass of water, sat on the dragon chair, helped her husband up, slowly brought the water glass to her mouth, and gave a concerned warning.
"...Ahem!"
Chongzhen's expression calmed down slightly after his throat was moistened. He coughed twice and regained his composure. Then he remembered what happened before he fell into coma, and felt depressed in his heart.
"Your Majesty, would you like to finish your meal? You can also replenish your strength!"
Thinking that her husband had been angry since his last awakening and had not eaten yet because of his eldest son's indiscriminate remarks. If this continues, the dragon's body will inevitably be in bad shape, so Queen Zhou said something.
"Well... thank you... Zi Tong!"
Chongzhen also felt that he was very hungry, so with the support of the queen and his wife, he worked hard to get up from the dragon chair and prepare for the meal. He wanted to see what kind of food the braised pork rice mentioned by this traitor was.
"...Only this one box?"
When he saw Wang Chengen presented him with a food box, Chongzhen was a little surprised. As an emperor, even if he had a vegetarian meal, there must be at least several dishes. The scene in front of him was too shabby.
"Your Majesty, Brother Hong said that this is an extraordinary period, and he advocates diligence, frugality and simplicity. This should be done no matter whether it is the rear residence, the front dynasty, or even the homes of hundreds of officials! To avoid 'the front is tight and the rear is tight'!"
Empress Zhou was very supportive of her eldest son acting in this way, otherwise the Ming Dynasty would be eaten alive by a group of moths. When her husband was unconscious, she relied on her eldest son to support the collapsed building.
Besides, this new style of royal cuisine is also quite delicious. At least the female relatives and children of the imperial family like to eat it. Moreover, it costs very little, so it is very popular.
"The front is tight, the rear is tight? Humph~! He can tell! Whether it's right or wrong depends on his mouth!"
Chongzhen murmured it in a low voice, and it was described appropriately, but it was unpleasant to hear it coming from the mouth of this traitor.
Let’s blame it, I took a bite of the braised pork first. I felt that it was full of aroma in my mouth, the meat was tender and juicy, and it was very enjoyable to chew. It was quite good.
After eating several mouthfuls of braised pork, Chongzhen couldn't help but feel his taste buds widening. He drank sour plum soup without stopping and finished a box of braised pork rice. After rinsing his mouth, he finally calmed down.
Chongzhen was still a little scared. Fortunately, the queen did not send him to Qianqing Palace, otherwise he would have to become the Supreme Emperor after dawn...
When the second-rate emperor finished his meal, all the ministers returned to their original places from outside the palace. This time they could not sit down. Firstly, they had to abide by the rules of the court meeting, and secondly, they would easily suffer from gastroptosis.
"I'm glad that my father finally woke up, so we can take a family photo!"
No matter how bad the dumpster is, he is still a member of the family, and he is currently the head of the family. If you exclude him, then your family is considered a "single-parent family."
"Your Majesty, this is a technique that Brother Xun learned from the immortal world. It can freeze the appearance of a person on a copper plate. It can be described as lifelike and lifelike!"
After saying that, in order to help her husband understand more deeply, Queen Zhou also took out her ID and sent it to her husband for reference.
"This is……"
Chongzhen opened it and saw the queen's head suddenly appeared on a small copper plate. The level of detail was extraordinary and almost lifelike. It was a work of miraculous craftsmanship. He was so surprised that he was stunned for a moment.
Below is written name: Zhou Yufeng, position: Queen of the Ming Empire, date of birth: 39th year of Wanli.
"Isn't this something that captures the soul?"
Chongzhen did not believe that there was such a treasure in the world, especially one that could contain a human figure on a copper plate. In his opinion, this object must have been cast by an unknown spell, and it might even threaten his queen.
"Your Majesty, all the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty have had their photos taken! Brother Xang said that with this object, we can verify our identity and prevent criminals from infiltrating key institutions in our Ming Dynasty!"
Because it was novel and fun, and she still had some spare money in her pocket, Queen Zhou took a lot of photos with a group of sisters and children. Now there are at least dozens of photos in Kunning Palace.
"Oh~!"
Chongzhen was still deeply suspicious of this object and did not completely believe the explanation given by the queen. Could it be that this traitor used this object to manipulate his concubines and officials?
But then I thought again, there are still many civil and military people who are loyal to me. Could it be that they were under the instructions of the prince and deliberately perfunctory me at the court meeting?
"Queen, have you ever seen that flying... airship?"
Chongzhen still suspected that the information that Nizi had returned from his study tour in the fairy world was false, so he remembered the airship that could take off and asked the queen about it.
"Your Majesty, not only have I seen it, but also hundreds of civil and military officials and tens of millions of people in the capital have seen it. In my opinion, this thing is enough to inspire people and boost morale!"
Empress Zhou highly praised and supported the airship, a weapon from the fairy world. Both the female relatives and ordinary people believed that "flying in the sky" was much more powerful than "running on the ground".
"What is the size? Can it kill the enemy?"
Chongzhen was very concerned about whether this weapon could be quickly used in actual combat to enhance the combat effectiveness of the king's divisions, especially in resisting the invasion of Donglu.
"This... I don't know yet. Brother Xang just said that it is still in the research and development stage and needs to go through several rounds of debugging!"
When it comes to the specific performance and combat power, Queen Zhou doesn't know anything about it. Even among the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, there are probably only a few people who know the detailed data.
Chongzhen really wanted to know the relevant content, but he couldn't save his face, and he didn't want to take the initiative to ask the rebellious son next to him who had wolfish ambitions.
"Father, there is no need to be impatient. The airship will not be used in actual combat until the next year at the earliest. At present, it is necessary to steadily advance research and development work, focusing on filling loopholes, improving the structure, and improving performance. After that, it will be the small-scale production stage, before it is commissioned into the army, and then There is still a long way to go to form combat effectiveness. What's more, airships cost a lot of money, including training, maintenance, supply, etc. The Ministry of War purchased 20 airships at a cost of 300,000 taels of silver. The average purchase cost of each airship reached 1 Fifteen thousand taels of silver, without strong financial backing, the imperial court will not be able to purchase in large quantities for the time being!"
This will undoubtedly throw a basin of cold water on the face of the blame-dumping father, and put a damper on his immediate plan to revive the Ming Dynasty.
If you are rich, you can buy a hundred airships for the Ministry of War first. The total price is not high, only 1.5 million taels. There are discounts for buying more. Since it is the "95 Supreme" who pays for it, Taking advantage of the 5% discount is no problem.
Fifteen thousand taels of silver a boat!
Could this airship be made of silver?
Hearing this astonishing unit price, Chongzhen was so frightened that he was speechless for a long time!
Twenty airships cost up to 300,000 taels of silver, which is more than double the amount of money in the bank account.
Is it possible that valuable weapons can be launched into the sky?
Chongzhen still couldn't figure out the mystery for a while.
"Today...well...tomorrow! We have to see its majesty before we can make a final decision!"
Hearing is false, seeing is believing. Both the Queen and the Nizi highly praised the airship between the lines, which made Chongzhen hesitant. He did not dare to categorically deny this weapon that he had never seen before, so he planned to wait until he saw it before commenting.
"Father, before the airship takes off, it takes a long time to prepare. It takes about three hours. Father, it is better to recuperate for two or three days first. After that, it is not too late to gather enough strength to go out of the city to watch!"
In the recent sultry weather, considering the body of the dumpster, don’t let the sun scorch you. It would be too exciting if the emperor fell unconscious from heat stroke before the airship took off.
"Brother Xun's words are true. Your Majesty still needs to focus on the dragon body. I and a group of sisters watched the airship take off. However, after waiting for most of the day, I felt weak all over when I came back. I was very overdrawn. It took me a day of training to recover. Woolen cloth."
Empress Zhou also disapproved of her husband, who had just recovered from a serious illness, immediately going out of the city to watch the airship take off. This kind of thing was lively enough, but it was not suitable for her husband's current physical condition. If he became ill again, it would alarm hundreds of thousands of people in the capital. .
"...Okay! Then let's rest for two days. After three days at the latest, I must see the glory of the airship!"
Chongzhen also knew that he was in poor health and that holding on was not the solution. If he fell into coma again, he might just hand over the throne to the traitor, so he did not argue on this matter, which was regarded as a certain compromise and concession.
"My father is wise! My admiration for my father is like a torrential river, and it is out of control! I wonder what my father is thinking about it? My promise of ten million taels of silver is still valid!"
A certain prince first boasted, and then spoke with a tail hook, like a huge barb, which choked the second-rate emperor.
"you……"
Chongzhen knew that this rebellious son had no good intentions when he said this. As expected, he was still thinking about that treacherous and unethical thing. It seemed that he would not give up until he made a decision today.
"My son is cleaning up the mess in the north. My father is still the Ming Dynasty emperor in the southern capital. He still has ten million taels of silver to enjoy. By the way, he can deal with those businessmen who evaded taxes. He has an annual income of tens of millions of taels at least every year. How can he enjoy it? Why not?"
"...Hmph~! That's easy to say! Punishing merchants and increasing taxes is easier said than done?"
After calming down, Chongzhen also reconsidered this hypothetical situation. If he were not troubled by various trivial matters in the North, he would indeed save himself a lot of trouble just by managing Jiangnan.
Everyone in the world knows that Jiangnan is prosperous. With a large amount of increased taxes and fees, it is indeed a good idea for the court to recuperate. However, just because this traitor proposed it makes me very angry.
"How my father collected three taxes from farmers before, then he can follow the script and transfer it to merchants without change. It is not a bad idea to collect fifty years of evaded taxes at once. This is what my son did in the capital. , received strong support from businessmen!”
A certain prince also heard it. This was the blame-dumping father changing his direction and asking him for advice on how to collect money. This meant that he was considering moving, but he still couldn't save his face. It doesn't matter, the method is very easy and is very convenient for factory guards to work on.
"...Isn't this act of excessive taxation? Are you competing with Min for profit?"
Chongzhen finally caught the traitor's hand. This was brought to his door on his own initiative. He couldn't blame himself for using it as an excuse, and he couldn't help but feel a little proud.
"Father, as long as merchants can issue tax payment certificates, they can pay taxes as usual. Otherwise, they will have to make up for the taxes they have evaded for fifty years. As far as I know, nine out of ten merchants in Jifu are Big tax evaders and those who pay taxes in full will never save one out of ten. There has always been a lack of supervision in the Jiangnan area, and this is even more so. Otherwise, Zhejiang would not be able to pay less than a hundred taels of silver for tea lessons in a year."
How can merchants these days have clean goods? All of them are proven to be accurate after a thorough investigation. They are all due to collusion between government and businessmen.
Most of the time, instead of checking them specifically, the bugs found out will actively surrender to the bad businessmen under their command.
Once these merchants are betrayed, there will be no escape. Unless I run away immediately to the border, I will do business there for the rest of my life.
"..."
Chongzhen was speechless after hearing this, and just thought with a sullen face. He also knew that the tax evasion situation in Jiangnan was very serious, but the example cited by this traitor did exist. But after all, when it comes to actual investigation and punishment, it will be even more difficult.
"Father, there are only three ways for merchants to resist taxes. The first is to ask courtiers to speak for themselves and find various reasons, especially the excuse of 'competing with Min for profit.' The second is to collude with local governments. Officials lied that they had paid taxes in full. Thirdly, if the first two paths fail, then they will strike and resist, that's all."
This is exactly the same as the shrew's tricks of "crying first", "making trouble" secondly, and "hanging himself three times", but it's just more extreme than the shrew did.
As long as you are ruthless enough, you can settle anything. Didn't you see that merchants from the capital came to protest against a certain prince at first, but the result was that the prison was overcrowded, and in the end they cried and knelt down to beg for back taxes...
