The Hanlin officials were all downcast.
Now that things have happened, the leader is no longer here, so why make a fuss?
There was silence for a long time, and scattered voices came from the crowd.
"My lord, I am ashamed, please punish me..."
Gradually, more and more people spoke, and they became one.
Fang Zheng looked at this scene with a smile.
If I had known this, why did I do it in the first place? I, Founder, stand on a moral point, holding on to the thigh of supreme power, you want to mess with me?
I don’t even want to see if I have the capital!
Emperor Jing also had the urge to laugh, but his instinct made him try his best to suppress it, and said calmly: "This matter is just a moment of confusion for you, I can let it go. If you do it again, I will never forgive you lightly!"
"Everyone, go back and go to court as usual tomorrow."
Guo Tianyang also breathed a sigh of relief.
His Majesty's temperament has indeed changed... Except for Yan Guoan and others, no one saw any blood this time.
Good thing... great thing! Our family is blessed in their old age!
The crowd gradually dispersed until only Emperor Jing and Fang Zheng, a few close people, were left in the courtyard.
Emperor Jing said: "Fang Qing, you have done a good job. I should give you a reward, but... your foundation is not stable when you first enter the court. Let's talk about it later."
Fang Zhengyi didn't care very much. He wanted the prince to have an official position by his side.
I don’t even deserve to be an official!
The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility to shirk!
"Thank you so much, Your Majesty, for your kindness. I am so ashamed of myself!"
Li Yuanzhao on the side was unhappy and shouted: "Father! I have a share too!"
Emperor Jing chuckled: "Yes, the prince behaved very well, but do you want me to give you an official title?"
"I don't want an official position, just give me money!"
Emperor Jing's smile froze, he paused, and said calmly: "I'm tired... let's go back to the palace."
After saying that, he turned around and left.
Fang Zhengyi and Li Yuanzhao stared at Emperor Jing's back in stunned silence... digging! So stingy!
.....................
When I went to court the next day, the usual order in the court had been restored.
Except Yang Yingcai, who is on crutches, looks very disharmonious.
My legs were fine at first, but rheumatism suddenly broke out halfway through.
He screamed in pain, and the gangsters thought he had a broken leg, so they took him to the hospital and told the doctor.
The doctor was also a confused person, so he wrapped it up directly.
Originally Yang Yingcai wanted to untie it after returning home, but he lost his face at the thought.
It's better to just pretend to be sick...it won't be so embarrassing.
Who can be too harsh on a patient?
So he limped to court the next day, but from time to time he would stab Fang Zhengyi with his eyes.
At this moment, Emperor Jing in the court held the memorial and looked at it carefully.
The memorial was written by Zhang Shi, and the topic was still about the food shortage in the south.
After Emperor Jing read it, he ordered Guo Tianyang to start reading.
There is nothing new in the content. They were all discussed with Fang Zhengyi a few days ago. They are nothing more than opening warehouses to release grain, specific distribution rules for stabilizing prices, etc.
After Guo Tianyang finished reciting, Emperor Jing said: "If you have any opinions, you can come and discuss them."
"This matter is of great importance. The local government has sent me three memorials to urge me to open the warehouse and release grain."
"If we delay it any longer, I'm afraid it will cause civil unrest. Today is different from the past. The floods in Jianjiang have a great impact. Please feel free to offer your suggestions."
Fang Zheng jumped out impatiently and wanted to try harder.
"Your Majesty! I believe that suppressing food prices is not feasible! Letting things go their own way is the best strategy."
"If grain prices are stabilized, grain merchants will not be able to make a profit, and it will be extremely difficult for grain from wealthy areas to flow to disaster areas."
"The local government has no law to requisition grain. Even if there is one, it is probably not implemented well and it may not be effective... The only response is to open up high prices to make grain flow."
"Not only that, but we must also try our best to spread the news everywhere... When grain merchants take notice, they will be able to support the victims until the autumn harvest."
We can't count on sweet potatoes, now we can only count on the market.
"I object!"
Before Zhang Shi could speak first, a large group of Hanlin stood up first.
"According to what Mr. Fang said, encouraging high prices will definitely make people panic. What will happen if the people are excited and sigh when they cannot afford to buy food?"
"If grain merchants gather in one place and supply exceeds demand, a drop in grain prices is inevitable. If there is no food in the world, grain merchants will not go to the disaster area. At worst, they will maintain the status quo. How long can the stocks of local granaries last?"
Someone else retorted: "This will inevitably lead to hoarding! What if someone takes advantage of this to enrich the country? Is Mr. Fang willing to let the victims starve to death just because they have food?"
Fang Zheng shook his head and said: "Hoarding will definitely happen, but grain merchants come from thousands of miles away, and the cost of warehousing and transportation may not be manageable."
"If most people starve to death, there will be no profit."
"What's more, if there is someone who can dominate a family and is not interested in making profits but just watching the victims starve to death, shouldn't the government do nothing?"
"Local governments must closely monitor the movements of grain merchants, and proactively crack down on hoarding. This is always much easier than expropriating grain from local wealthy households!"
"It's nonsense. We have run out of time now! There is no time to wait for grain merchants to go to the disaster area, collect grain on the spot, and stabilize grain prices."
"............"
Emperor Jing felt a little headache for a moment when he saw the commotion below.
There is some truth in what Fang Zhengyi said, but since ancient times, disaster relief strategies have been as Zhang Shi said. The effect may not be very good, but it is enough to withstand the test of time.
But sometimes, instinctive ideas may not be correct.
While there was a lively commotion below, Li Yuanzhao, who was silently standing aside, spoke up.
"Father, I have something to say."
The court fell silent for an instant. Why did the prince, who never spoke much in court, suddenly speak today?
Emperor Jing smiled: "Oh? What do you think the prince has to say? Let me hear it."
"I believe that even if food prices are stabilized, they may not be able to stabilize them."
"So this method...can't be used at the same time."
Zhang Shi asked anxiously: "What did the prince say? Could it be that if the government's words don't work, the people in the world will rebel?"
"No! Suppose the price of grain in the disaster-stricken area is now 20 cents per catty, and the government forces the grain merchants to sell it at 20 cents per catty, then only one thing will happen, that is, the people will have no food to buy."
"So who can buy food at this time? Only people with connections can buy food. The food shortage is getting worse. People with connections will definitely take this opportunity to increase grain storage. But how many people among the common people have connections? ?”
"Furthermore, if I were a grain merchant, I would stop selling grain and simply sell bowls. If you buy a bowl, you will get a pound of grain for free. You can't control the free grain, right? How will the government control it then?"
"There are endless ways to deal with it among the people... I have seen it all these days, so... stabilizing food prices may not be possible!"
.............
pS: The unit is directly expressed in kilograms. This is more convenient for everyone to see and see.
