Chapter 63 Fundraising

Think about the skills of those ten secret guards, which he trained with great effort. Their martial arts skills are even stronger than those of the palace masters. How could they not be able to kill the exiles?

This really puzzled him.

He didn't have any extra people to send out, so he might as well just leave it as it is and deal with it later. The current priority was to get through this crisis.

The Qi family had no hope, so they set their sights on the Sihai Bank and the Wuhu Trading Company.

He immediately sent people out to investigate the owners of these two companies to see if he could find them and use them for his own purposes.

At the same time, he also found the ministers who followed him and asked them to take out their own money to help him through the difficulties.

The prince secretly contacted ten families and finally raised one million silver taels to overcome the crisis.

His crisis was over, but the emperor had not yet overcome his old crisis, and a new crisis had come. At this time, he was more tormented than the prince.

The national treasury was empty, the fortunes of most ministers had been emptied out, and the concubines in the harem had been looted, so it was impossible to collect the money even if one tried.

Unfortunately, there was a drought in the northwest, and officials kept submitting urgent requests to him, all asking for money and food.

The emperor was so angry that his head was about to explode. He felt so cowardly and miserable as an emperor.

He smashed everything that could be smashed in the imperial study.

At the grand court meeting in the morning, the emperor handed the memorial to the Minister of Revenue. The Minister of Revenue's face was wrinkled into a ball. He could still give out grain, but he really couldn't give out silver. The treasury was empty, and he couldn't pay out of his own pocket. Even if he emptied his pocket, it wouldn't be enough to fill the big hole.

Minister Ma held the tablet in his hand and said, "Your Majesty, we can still mobilize 500,000 dan of grain, and silver..."

If Minister Ma smiled, he would not be able to continue speaking. Everyone knew that the national treasury could not take out a penny of silver.

The emperor's face was gloomy. "I have the money, so why should I ask you to come up with a plan? Then you can find a way to collect the tax money from all over the country as soon as possible."

Minister Ma said with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, even if we collect all the taxes from the whole country, the amount of silver will be enough, but we won't be able to do it in time."

People in the northwest are waiting for help, and if it is delayed for even a day, no one knows how many people will starve to death.

Prime Minister Liu could no longer bear to watch this. He stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have a way to raise the money immediately."

The emperor's expression relaxed, and I looked at Prime Minister Liu and said, "Prime Minister Liu, please tell me what you have planned."

Prime Minister Liu said, "I suggest that we hold a fundraising event in the city to raise funds for the disaster in the northwest. We can also invite wealthy merchants from all over the country to donate. However, after those wealthy merchants donate, we can't just let them donate for free. We must at least reward them. I have a small fortune and can donate 50,000 taels of silver to the fundraising in the capital."

As for what the reward would be, he didn't say it clearly. Needless to say, the emperor understood what he meant. He just wanted to give it a nice name, which was considered free.

He is the head of all officials. Since he has mentioned fundraising, he must take the lead.

Only then did the officials in the hall open their purses and the emperor's worries were relieved, and their lives became better.

Otherwise, the emperor would cause trouble every day, so it would be better to give up his talent to avoid disaster.

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, officials came out.

Lord Liu: "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, will do my best to donate 40,000 taels."

Lord Wu: "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, will do my best to donate 40,000 taels."

Lord Qin: "Your Majesty, I, a humble servant, will do my best to donate 60,000 taels."

Lord Zhao: "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, will do my best to donate eighty thousand taels."

…

In a short period of time, the ministers in Guangtang donated more than two million taels.

The Crown Prince saw that all the ministers had donated, and it was unacceptable for him to be so stingy. He gritted his teeth and said, "Father, I will also do my part to help the victims of the disaster in the northwest. I will donate 100,000 taels."

Finally, only Murong Yi was left. After the Crown Prince finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to him. He smiled and said, "Father, I don't have much property. I am willing to donate two-thirds of it. I will donate 150,000 taels. After the court is dismissed, I will start to do it."

His meaning was obvious. This Prince Yi was indeed a fox. He wanted two-thirds of his family fortune, 150,000 taels. Haha, no one would believe it.

But what he said was beautiful, and he had a heart that cared about the people.

The emperor finally smiled and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Very good, you are all my good sons, my dear Liu Aiqing, I will let you take care of this matter."

Prime Minister Liu shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, I have a lot to do. This matter can be handed over to the Crown Prince or Prince Yi."

This was a matter of the royal family showing off, and he didn't dare to take credit for it, or he would be put in a sack.

When the Crown Prince heard this plan, he could no longer hold back. This was a great opportunity to make money. He quickly stepped forward and said, "Father, please leave this matter to me. I will definitely not let you down."

Murong Yi's eyes narrowed. How could he possibly give this opportunity to shine and make money to the Crown Prince for nothing? How could he not get involved? He stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have a clue about the theft case. All I need is confirmation. I'm not very busy right now, so I request to work with you, my brother, to help the victims of the disaster in Northwest China."

Murong Yi would never give the prince a chance to refute him, and told him all the clues he had about the theft case.

This will prevent the prince from making a fuss about this later.

There is indeed a clue, and the target is Su Yue. According to verification from many aspects, Su Yue is the most likely candidate.

But the people he sent had not yet contacted Su Yue. He originally planned to go there in person, but he heard that there was a drought in the northwest. The drought in the northwest this year had caused no harvest, and this was another major meritorious act. He could only put that matter aside and it would not be too late for him to set off again after the matter was resolved.

Su Yue can't fly anyway.

The Crown Prince glanced at him and said, "Fifth brother, your affairs have not yet come to a conclusion. Father is more anxious than anyone else. Can fifth brother handle both? Do you think fifth brother still doubts my ability?"

Murong Yi also glanced at him calmly: "The theft case is certainly important. I will naturally explain the extent of the case to your father. However, this fundraising matter is also not a small matter. It concerns the survival of the people in the northwest. I think it is better for us two brothers to work together."

The hidden meaning is that they were worried that the prince would take advantage of the situation and enrich himself, so the money would not reach the victims in time, or only a small amount would reach them.

He just wants to be an overseer.

The emperor watched the two brothers fighting over the matter, and finally he spoke: "Old Five is right. This matter is indeed urgent. Let you brothers handle it together. Don't let me down."

How could the emperor not know what the prince was thinking? With the fifth brother watching him, the prince was not so bold as to disobey.