Xu Churen, Tang Ke, and Zhou Chao, the three ministers who assisted the state, came running over eagerly.

Before rushing over, Wang Kuian had already secretly sent them a message.

So the three of them unanimously cursed Liu Yanzong in their hearts.

But I still had to bite the bullet and go see the emperor.

Converting farmland into mulberry fields is a national policy. The imperial court has been short of money for a long time, and large-scale commerce is a strategy that the emperor is determined to implement.

But the lives of the common people are also something the emperor is determined to pay attention to.

So, this matter...

All three of them were thinking at the same time: they needed to find a scapegoat.

Finding a scapegoat is easy; there are plenty of them. Tang Ke's concern is that if the policy of converting farmland to mulberry fields is truly delayed, the supply of raw materials for silk production will be insufficient, and he will be unable to complete his task.

If Tang Ke couldn't complete his mission, then Xu Churen naturally couldn't complete his mission either.

If the Council of State Affairs fails to complete its tasks, the Zhou Dynasty's financial accounts for the year will look bad, and if they look bad, the emperor will naturally investigate.

So, these three people have now reached a consensus: things must be changed!

When the three arrived, the emperor was dressed in a white robe and wearing a hat, sitting by the lake fishing.

"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."

"Xu Churen, tell me about the matter of converting farmland into mulberry fields in Mingzhou."

Zhao Huan's voice was calm as still water, but Xu Churen felt as if he were walking on thin ice.

The emperor was only twenty-five years old, but his imperial aura was becoming increasingly restrained, and he was almost able to control his emotions at will.

"Your Majesty, Mingzhou is a place where mountains meet plains, with a humid climate and 200,000 mu of farmland. It is not far from the Hangzhou ferry crossing, making it the most suitable place for mulberry cultivation."

Xu Churen chose this location based on two factors: transportation costs and time costs.

In fact, Tang Ke also designated a Xiufang (a type of traditional Chinese opera troupe) in Mingzhou, intending to establish a sizable Xiufang there to rival the one in Hangzhou, thus creating a dynamic environment.

Everything seems fine and perfectly reasonable.

At least from their perspective, there's nothing wrong with these things.

If we tell the emperor, we have enough reason to please him.

However, once this policy was implemented, those below rushed to get things done as quickly as possible in order to gain merit.

How fast? So fast, as if they couldn't wait, as if if the fields weren't completely transformed today, their official positions would be in jeopardy tomorrow.

This phenomenon is also a good thing, which is enough to show that the new team led by Zhao Huan is proactive and fast in doing things.

But nothing can be done well simply by being proactive or fast.

And the people below did these things and their attitude was fine, so the people above couldn't criticize them casually, otherwise they would lose heart and who would do the work in the future.

Therefore, someone needs to step in and strike a balance.

In ancient times, there were also project management methods. For example, during the Northern Expedition, Zhao Huan appointed Zhong Shidao as the Pacification Commissioner of Hebei and Hedong, which was equivalent to temporarily forming a project team. Zhong Shidao was the team leader and had the nominal supreme command and supervision authority.

However, this management method is not common, at least not for some routine matters.

Zhao Huan said, "Hmm, what you said makes sense!"

Xu Churen breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Zhao Huan continued, "The people of Mingzhou have filed a complaint in Dongjing City. Since ancient times, people have been good at resolving disputes. If they can talk peacefully, they will not easily cause trouble. As long as they have food to eat, they are content. Now it is clear that they are not allowed to live."

No sooner had the emperor finished speaking than Xie Dahai rushed over: "Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from the south."

Zhao Huan held a fishing rod in one hand and took the letter from Xie Dahai with the other. After reading it, he handed it to Tang Ke.

Tang Ke's expression changed drastically upon seeing this.

This is a letter from Hu Yu, the prefect of Hangzhou, which states that Sun Liangquan, the prefect of Mingzhou, has conscripted local militia to force the people of Mingzhou to sell their fertile land!

Sun Liangquan was Tang Ke's man, while Hu Yu was Xu Churen's man.

At the beginning of the novel, Hu Yu highly praised the emperor's policy of converting farmland into mulberry fields, but then he fiercely criticized Sun Liangquan for acting recklessly because he had someone backing him up!

The person who was backing him up was none other than Tang Ke, the Vice Minister of State Affairs and Minister of Commerce at the time.

On the way here, Tang Ke and Xu Churen were on the same side, intending to support each other.

But now Xu Churen's men have shown no mercy and stabbed him in the back.

They're not even on the same line anymore!

Moreover, Zhao Huan had previously asked Tang Ke privately about the progress of the project to convert farmland into mulberry fields in the south.

Tang Ke said everything was going smoothly, so this memorial was clearly a slap in the face to Tang Ke.

Tang Ke's expression changed slightly, but he forced himself to remain calm and said, "Your Majesty, the Maritime Trade Office under Prince Kang has just finalized trade agreements with Japan, Korea, Srivijaya, Jiaozhi, Champa, Zhenla (Cambodia), Bagan (Myanmar), Brunei (northern Kalimantan), Java, the Abbasid Caliphate, and even Champa (meaning the Black Kingdom, located on the east coast of Central Africa). Within three years, they will need 600,000 bolts of silk. The total value of the transactions is as high as 120 million strings of cash."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanzong, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but gasp.

With such a large sum of money, it's no wonder that Tang Ke's people were willing to recklessly convert farmland into mulberry fields.

Before Zhao Huan ascended the throne, silk was considered a hard currency in the Song Dynasty. However, Zhao Huan is now reforming the Song Dynasty's financial system, and in the future, silk will be sold as one of the most common commodities. Furthermore, as silk production continues to increase, its price will decrease.

However, the silk sold overseas fetched astronomical prices.

Just like the iPhone in later generations, the price in the United States is completely different from the price in mainland China.

In overseas countries, silk was a symbol of nobility.

One hundred and twenty million strings of cash!

Zhao Huan knew about this matter, so he did not immediately punish Tang Ke.

If we simply punish them, who will be willing to take on the task of converting farmland into mulberry fields in the future?

"I know, I summoned you here not to hear your explanations, but to hear how to resolve this."

Liu Yanzong, standing to one side, said, “Your Majesty, the people who came to file a complaint said that the local government colluded with wealthy merchants to deliberately lower the price, and the merchants were only willing to pay six strings of cash to buy one mu of land.”

"Six strings of cash?" Zhao Huan's face darkened. "Zhou Chao, tell me, what is the price of rice in Mingzhou now?"

"Your Majesty, the current price of rice in Mingzhou is two strings of cash and one tael."

Zhao Huan put down his fishing rod, stood up, walked to the pavilion, and poured himself a cup of tea: "On average, how many acres of land does each person in Mingzhou own?"

"Your Majesty, thanks to Your Majesty's cleanup efforts in the south, each citizen now owns an average of one and a half acres of land."

"So, if the people sell all their land, they can get four and a half days' worth of grain, and then they'll have no land left. Tang Ke, how many people can your embroidery workshop feed?"

This question silenced the ministers, indicating the seriousness of the problem. No wonder the people of Mingzhou came to the capital to file a complaint.

Xu Churen said, "Your Majesty, I believe that Hu Yu and Sun Liangquan should be summoned to the capital and questioned in person."

"allow!"