When providing disaster relief, shouldn't the court distribute rice and grain directly to the people?
Why is it marked that only the old, weak, orphans and widows can receive free food, while the young and strong need to participate in the court's projects in exchange for money and food?
Moreover, why do we need to point out that the imperial court is recruiting people for this project and the wages are particularly generous?
This shouldn't be the case. Once this edict is promulgated, it will be bad if it triggers a popular uprising.
After returning to the governor's office, Zhang Tao was about to write a document to ask the Ministry of Revenue if he really wanted to do what the edict said. Who knew, a document from the Ministry of Revenue was delivered.
Yongzhou is closest to Chang'an, so the grain stored in Changpingcang in Chang'an is sent to Yongzhou first.
To his surprise, in the original disaster relief, it was considered good if the people could barely eat enough food to avoid starving to death. Who knew that this time, the single person's share of the disaster relief drawn up by the Ministry of Household Affairs was exceptionally generous.
It can be said that in this disaster relief, the people who received help from the court did not have to worry about hunger at least until the autumn harvest.
only....
Zhang Tao became worried when he thought that only the old, weak, orphans and widows could receive relief.
It was hard for him to imagine what kind of response the imperial edict would elicit after it was announced.
You will be outside, and your orders will not be accepted. However, civil servants do not have this qualification.
Tomorrow at the latest, officials assigned by the Ministry of Revenue will transport the grain to Yongzhou. But his documents could not be sent to Chang'an through normal channels.
Food has arrived, but if disaster relief is not started, there will be even more heads than can be chopped off.
Is it really necessary to carry out disaster relief in accordance with the contents of the edict?
That night, Zhang Tao couldn't sleep all night...
Early the next morning, at dawn, Zhang Tao got up and started dressing and eating.
After not sleeping all night, and with a lot of thoughts in my mind, I naturally couldn't escape the dark circles under my eyes.
The governor with two panda eyes looked less majestic than usual.
However, he did not intend to show much dignity today.
After all, the imperial decree, this time, is not outrageous.
The edict was posted yesterday, and scribes were dispatched to explain it to the people. Among the thousands of people in the Tang Dynasty, not even half could be found to be literate. If there were no scribes to explain it, it would be useless to post it.
One night, during this time of great disaster, was enough to spread the news around Yongzhou Mansion. As for other places, we will know soon.
Zhang Tao felt helpless when he thought of the people's disappointed expressions after knowing the news.
This drought is no longer a problem that the state capital can solve on its own. As the governor, he could only accept the orders of the imperial court and follow the imperial court's regulations.
Walking out of the lobby, Fang Han also came over. Like Zhou Tao, he also didn't sleep all night.
As an official who is ready to replace Zhou Tao as the governor at any time, he is fully capable of taking charge of his own affairs. How can he not see what Zhou Tao can see.
After meeting each other and bowing, Fang Han sighed: "The governor of Zhou, really..."
Zhou Tao sighed and ordered the government officials to open the door of the Governor's Mansion. He could already foresee that there were either stones or lumps of wood waiting for him outside.
If the people rioted, they would not be as placid as usual, and even if they were the governor, they would be beaten.
After taking a look at Fang Han, Zhou Tao couldn't help but adjust his body slightly to cover him.
It was enough for him to vent his anger by being knocked down by the people. Fang Han still needed to do the disaster relief work.
However, as the gate of the Governor's Mansion opened, something unexpected by Zhou Tao and Fang Han appeared.
It's not that there are no people outside the Governor's Mansion, on the contrary, it's a sea of people outside. The outside of Yongzhou Mansion is a densely populated area, so it's not surprising that so many people have gathered outside.
Surprisingly, the people outside were very calm, and you could vaguely see that they were all lining up. The leader of the large team is the local county magistrate. From now on, the leader of each small team must be the local magistrate.
Order...frighteningly normal.
Seeing the governor come out, the two county magistrates hurried over. Before the salute was over, they asked: "Prefect Zhou, is what the court documents say true? Can the old, weak, orphans, and widows really get so much food?" "
Zhou Tao nodded and said: "The imperial court will definitely not falsify in the edict. Since it is what it said, there will be no mistake."
To Zhou Tao's surprise, after hearing his words, the two county magistrates jumped up with joy.
Seeing that the joy of the two people did not seem to be fake, Zhou Tao couldn't help but wonder: "In the past, disaster relief was based on households and was not targeted at the elderly, weak, orphans and widows. Why are you so happy? You know, the rations for the young and strong are still You need to earn it yourself!”
The county magistrate Luo Zijing, who was most familiar with Zhou Tao, raised his hands and said: "The governor didn't know something. In the past, even if disaster relief grains were distributed on a household basis, the people still had to dig wild vegetables and chew tree bark, because the grains distributed were simply not enough. But this time, instead of allocating food and then dispersing it, they fixed how much food each person could get. If what the court said was true, at least the old, weak, orphans and widows could still have enough to eat even if they didn't dig vegetables. ”
Another county magistrate also said: "As for the young and strong, since the court is going to start work, how can they have enough to eat while working on the construction site? Now under the drought, they have nowhere to go. They can just work on the construction site to fill their stomachs. The old and weak at home We can also rely on relief to fill our stomachs, and the disaster can be overcome, right?"
Zhou Tao was not an idiot. After doing this calculation, he immediately discovered something was different.
It's ridiculous that I am so conceited and smart that I didn't realize this.
If this is really the case, it is not surprising that the people can accept it!
When talking about the start of construction, Luo Zijing held up his hands and said: "The governor, the young people in the territory under the jurisdiction of the official have packed their bags. As long as they help the official transport the relief grain back, they will go to Chang'an. Look, the governor Did the government send an official to lead the team?"
Only then did Zhou Tao react, and glanced at the driver. Before he could speak, he saw Fang Han, the driver, bowing his hands in a salute.
"Leave it to your subordinates to lead the young men to work in Chang'an."
Zhou Tao smiled and nodded, and said: "This time when I lead the team from Chang'an, it's time for you to take my place. With this meritorious service, you, as the governor, will be more able to convince the public."
Fang Han raised his head, the smile on his face was so strong that he couldn't put it away.
The people around Yongzhou did not wait long. The grain transportation team from the Ministry of Revenue drove the donkey cart and transported the cartloads of grain to the gate of the governor's mansion.
There was no fight. The two county magistrates and their respective Li Zheng reported the number of old, weak, orphans and widows in their respective jurisdictions. After signing and stamping, the grains were taken away by their respective youths in donkey carts or simply carried or carried.
After the people in the two counties received food, the tension caused by the drought that continued until now dissipated quickly like frost in summer.
As for the young and strong people, each brought a little ration and gathered at the Governor's Mansion, preparing to go to Chang'an after all the young and strong people in Yongzhou were gathered...
Some people laugh, some people cry, some people are happy, and some people are sad.
After receiving the food provided by the court for disaster relief, the people laughed happily, while the shopkeepers of the grain stores around Chang'an cried bitterly. It was rare to wait for a drought and prepare to make a lot of money. Who knew that the relief food from the imperial court would be distributed so quickly. As for their food, not even a fraction of it has been distributed. They have only stolen some wealthy businessmen or wealthy households.
The worst thing is the guy who spends all his wealth and buys it all as food, hoping to make a fortune. They used high purchase prices to purchase grain from the aristocratic family's channels, and added high profits, preparing to make a fortune. However, with the actions of the imperial court, their food supply disappeared almost overnight.
If no one buys the food, it is waste. If your own family eats it, it will be enough for a hundred years. As for wine making... In disaster years, the court will definitely issue a prohibition on alcohol, so wine cannot be brewed, and these grains can only rot in the warehouse.
And if they sell it at a fair price, they won't get a single copper plate profit, but their family property will directly shrink by more than half.
More than one ordinary grain merchant, after getting drunk, cried and asked the people around him: "Where did my family property go?"
Where did their family property go? Naturally, it went into the pockets of the aristocratic family.
However, the family that made a small fortune for no reason could not be happy.
Because all of them, except the Zheng family, had received a letter from the East Palace, requesting a large amount of food to be supplied to the East Palace. The East Palace was preparing to build the world's first official road between Chang'an and Luoyang. Of course, it is called the official road, but it is the private property of the prince. Therefore, businessmen who take the official road have to pay tolls.
The prince's reasons seemed impeccable, but when linked to the national policy, it was not the same thing.
Anyone with a discerning eye can see what the prince is planning, but they can't do anything about it, because, at least on the surface, the prince is fully complying with the requirements of the contract.
The day of celebration did not last for many days. Just when the people around Chang'an were happy, they were extremely sad.
It is impossible to break the contract. The face of the family has been maintained by the clan members for countless generations. Compared with the face of the family, let alone this drought, it is impossible to make too much money. Even if the family goes bankrupt, the family's face cannot be lost.
Countless elites from the aristocratic families copied the contract between the East Palace and the family and scrutinized it word for word day and night, trying to find loopholes, but no one found it.
Li Xian modeled the contract on various contracts in later generations. If they could find loopholes, he would rather believe that he could sue Nanshan Biyue Shengke.
After repeated research to no avail, Li Bao, the head of the Li family in Longxi, Wang Qiong, the head of the Wang family in Taiyuan, Lu Ziqian, the head of the Lu family in Fanyang, Cui Zongbo, the head of the Cui family in Qinghe, Cui Yi, the head of the Cui family in Boling, and Li, the head of the Li family in Zhaojun. The six Kaili people could only go to the East Palace together, hoping to make a last effort to at least prevent the East Palace from going too far.
Because, if the contract is followed, as long as Dong Gong can afford the money, he can even buy all the food from all their families to Chang'an at a price lower than the market price.
The aristocratic families in Shandong and Jiangnan knew that they were not qualified to compete with the royal family, so they could only place their hopes on these families.
The Mingde Hall in the East Palace has not been opened again since Wang Qiong was entertained until now.
But this morning, Li Xian woke up very early and full of expectations.
He was really curious about the reactions of the heads of these six families.
Is it a plea or a threat? You can see it today.
After washing up as usual and instructing the kitchen to prepare the banquet, Li Xian did not go to Mingde Palace. Instead, he took Qi Lan to the martial arts field to practice martial arts.
The greeting card had been sent to the East Palace yesterday, and the visit time stated on it was in the morning.
As the heads of aristocratic families, they would not allow any flaws in their etiquette. If you agree to come in the morning, you won't arrive until noon. Of course, you won't be able to visit early in the morning.
Use knives, fight, and shoot arrows. After these three items of continuous training during this period of time, Li Xian felt that he had become a master. At least, Li Xun, Xu Ze, and Xue Na almost guaranteed that His Highness the Crown Prince had accomplished something.
However, despite the success, Li Xian still wants to move in the direction of Dacheng.
Although Li Yun's bodyguards were watertight, and the eunuchs trained by Zhou Quan could also come in handy, no matter how powerful the bodyguards were, they were not as powerful and useful as their own strength.
It goes without saying how important martial arts is in this era.
Before Chen time, Li Xian finished his morning exercises, took a shower and changed clothes, then walked to Mingde Hall to wait.
And within less than a cup of tea after he arrived at Mingde Hall and sat down, the guards came in and reported that the heads of the six families had arrived in front of the East Palace Gate.
He didn't go to greet them. Although these six old guys were the heads of aristocratic families and their Shilin status was at the level of a dean, Li Xian still didn't go to greet them.
After all, he is a prince, and besides, these guys are obviously talking about the contract today. Since he is already invincible, there is no need to act like a polite corporal.
The prince did not come out to greet him, so the heads of the six families probably understood what was going on. Naturally, they were not qualified to show their status in front of the prince, so they had no choice but to follow the guards and enter the East Palace.
In the Mingde Hall, it was not until the six old family heads came in and saluted that Li Xian stood up, returned the salute slightly and said: "It's really surprising that several old gentlemen came hand in hand. I wonder if they are here to visit today. What advice can you give me?" "
After saying that, Li Xian sat down.
Seeing that the prince was pretending to be confused, the heads of the six families were helpless and had no choice but to sit down.
Wang Qiong was the first to reach a deal with Donggong. Since the issue of the contract arose, he was also the most directly questioned by the other parties.
Seeing the prince like this, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and said: "His Royal Highness, the steward of the East Palace, suddenly asked me and others to buy a huge amount of grain. However, in these disaster years, the court has banned wine making. I didn't know that Your Highness would need so much. What is the food used for? Is it to be distributed to migrant workers building roads as wages?"
