Wang Yuzhen and Tang Ning hit it off immediately, and Zhou Yuchang was also easy to get along with. Perhaps they were worried about Tang Ning getting together, but after a few laughs, the unfamiliarity disappeared.
After several people entered Jiuxiaoyuan, Hua Wu and Yue Jian brought in sweet soup and snacks.
Qian Qiyue hugged the pillow and rested her chin on it, and mentioned what she had said before: "Tang Ning, I always feel that there is something wrong with the rumors outside. It seems that someone is deliberately muddying the waters. You have to remind Xiao Yan to be careful and not to scream. People have plotted.”
"I know." Tang Ning took a spoon and stirred the sweet soup and said, "Actually, my brother and I already knew about these rumors when they first came out in Beijing. We even know how the rumors outside have changed."
"Since you know, how can you still..." Zhou Yuchang was stunned.
The Fan family and Prince Lu's Mansion may not be so kind.
Tang Ning smiled: "They are talking about coming to congratulate me and my brother. I can't turn people away, and I can't refuse the rewards from the palace."
"When we accepted those rewards, the most we could do was say a few words about greed and that His Majesty intended to make up for his repentance. But if he refused, believe it or not, within a few days there would be widespread rumors that my brother was disloyal and that he wanted to borrow money. In name only, Zhaoxue of the He family wants to plot rebellion. How many days will it take King Qin’s men to invade the capital?”
Zhou Yuchang opened her mouth, thinking that Emperor An would not do it, but she suddenly remembered that Emperor An had gone back on his word several times at the palace banquet that day, and later even wanted to kill Xiao Yan, and almost even her father, General Yin, and Gong Cao wanted to join them. Killed, he knelt down and "fainted" in the Ancestral Temple a few days ago.
Zhou Yuchang was silent for a moment.
Tang Ning saw the strange expressions on the three people's faces and smiled lightly: "Actually, these are just some people who want to praise brother and make him lose his support."
"Brother is busy with the affairs of the court, and I don't want to argue with them about these underhanded methods. What's more, why don't you want the things that are delivered to your door? Instead of pushing and pushing around, which makes people feel stingy, it is better to accept them generously, and then use the court to He was sent to the Shantang and Yugutang in the three places of Shezhou in the name of the He family."
Speaking of this, Tang Ning's eyes flashed with cunning:
"Did you know that His Majesty had previously issued a decree to build the Tomb of the Ten Thousand People and to provide compensation to the families of those people who died in Rongjiang twenty years ago?"
Qian Qiyue nodded: "I know this, my father has been busy with this during this time."
"Does Sister Qian know how much silver the reward His Majesty casually promised will cost?"
Qian Qiyue shook her head.
Tang Ning said: "Your Majesty's promise to the South is to reward soldiers who die in battle. According to the rules set by Taizu, if an ordinary soldier dies in battle, his family members will receive three pieces of silk, one stone of grain, and fifteen pieces of silver." If a hundred households die in battle, they will receive ten bolts of silk, twenty stones of grain, and sixty pieces of silver."
"The higher the official position in the army, the more pensions are required. In order to repay the mistakes made twenty years ago and to compensate those who died in vain, His Majesty even said that the reward would be doubled when he issued the decree."
"The people who died in Rongjiang that year were not only more than 9,000 people who had lived in the city for a long time, hundreds of officials and messengers, but also more than 600 soldiers from the school camp brought by Prince Li and the He family, and more than 20 imperial doctors of the fourth grade. position, and escort more than fifty imperial troops."
Zhou Yuchang and Wang Yuzhen were not very good at arithmetic and were not very sensitive after hearing about it, but Qian Qiyue sensed something was wrong and couldn't help but do the math in her mind.
Not counting officials and messengers, the six hundred elites, the imperial doctors and imperial guards who died in Rongjiang, if only half of the dead people could find their relatives, according to what Emperor An said, the court would have to compensate more than 100,000 yuan in cash. In addition to grain and silk cloth, these items amount to nearly 200,000 taels.
The personal guards who could follow Prince Ru south to provide disaster relief back then were all elite people, and many of them had official positions, and were even military generals who were valued by Taizu.
Normally, a general who dies in battle is worth the pension of thousands of soldiers, plus the officials who died in Rongjiang, the accompanying imperial army and the twenty-odd imperial doctors of high rank...
Qian Qiyue's lips trembled, and she suddenly understood why her father was so angry with everyone these days.
Tang Ning said: "These pensions are nothing more. Your Majesty also promised to build the Tomb of the Ten Thousand People. However, although the burning of Rongjiang was miserable, aren't the people in other disaster-stricken places who died in vain due to the government's negligence and collusion between officials and bandits not innocent? What about the Tomb of the Ten Thousand People?" How can we only build one?”
"Your Majesty wants to settle old grudges and show royal kindness. Shezhou, Langzhou, and Raozhou cannot be avoided. But have you ever thought about the consequences once your Majesty agrees to build tombs of all peoples in many places in order to win over the people?" ?”
Qian Qiyue and Zhou Yuchang's expressions changed.
Wang Yuzhen's voice trembled slightly: "People all have the desire to follow the crowd. Seeing that the imperial court is interested in repaying their deaths, the relatives of those who died in vain will definitely ask for rewards and compensation from the imperial court just like those in Rongjiang."
"If Your Majesty gives it, more than hundreds of thousands of people will die in vain in the three places. The imperial court cannot afford it, but if you don't give it..."
Don't worry about scarcity but inequality.
The people in Rongjiang took it, why can't others take it.
By then, Emperor An will not only be unable to win over people's hearts, but he may also become the target of public criticism, and may even cause big troubles.
Tang Ning glanced at Wang Yuzhen. She had known that this girl was smart, but she didn't expect her reaction to be so sharp. She smiled and said, "Your Majesty has given me rewards like running water. I don't dare to accept them, and the Dingguo Palace doesn't need them either." Those gold and silver things that are the icing on the cake.”
"Except for paintings and calligraphy, jade, ceramics, jewelry and curios, all the things previously recovered from the mansion have been exchanged for money and sent to the Southland one after another."
She smiled softly, but what she said made the three of them stunned.
"The imperial court has done justice to the He family, and your majesty relies on Duke Dingguo's palace. My brother is grateful to the royal family and is willing to use the money to let the prince help clean up the mess in the south for your majesty. I believe your majesty will be very pleased to know this."
Qian Qiyue & Zhou Yuchang & Wang Yuzhen: "..."
Almost all three of them twitched their mouths.
They didn't know whether An Di was pleased or not, but they would definitely be pissed to death.
He spent a lot of time and effort to restore some reputation for himself, but ended up making wedding dresses for the prince and Xiao Yan.
Qian Qiyue muttered: "I know your Xiao Yan is so smart, how can he suffer a loss, but you shouldn't tell us about this. What if others find out and ruin your plan?"
"I can trust you." Tang Ning said with a smile on his face.
Qian Qiyue and Zhou Yuchang were okay, but Wang Yuzhen on the side was stunned for a moment.
Meeting Tang Ning's gaze, she quickly sat up straight: "Sister Tang, don't worry, I will never tell anyone."
She will not betray this trust.
Tang Ning laughed when he saw her extremely cautious look: "Don't take it too seriously, I really trust you, and let me tell you, I also wanted to use your words to say something to Mr. Wang, so that he can speak to His Majesty if he has the opportunity. .”
