"What?"
In the imperial study, Emperor Xiao Ming slammed the table in anger.
"How dare King You disobey my order?"
The official who was sent to Tanzhou on a mission had not yet returned to the capital, but his secret letter had been sent back from Tanzhou at full speed.
It was presented on the desk of Emperor Xiaoming.
The official said in the secret letter that because they arrived a step late, when they arrived in Tanzhou, King You had already set out from Tanzhou, bringing men and money and food to Ji and Ding states, which were the worst hit by the disaster.
In the imperial study, besides Emperor Xiaoming, there were several cabinet ministers.
Seeing Emperor Xiaoming's increasingly gloomy expression, they looked at each other, and no one dared to speak first.
Emperor Xiaoming didn't need them to say anything. He picked up the secret letter, threw it down, and said with a gloomy face: "Take a look."
Several ministers in the imperial study passed the secret letter around and read it.
Everyone was shocked.
"King You actually went to the two states most severely affected by the disaster to provide disaster relief."
You know, this natural disaster came suddenly, and the worst-hit areas were almost completely destroyed by the dragon's tail.
The court is still debating the issue of disaster relief. There is really no manpower or money to spare for rescue.
According to the results of the court discussions in recent days, the most likely outcome is to abandon the two states that were most severely affected by the disaster and first provide relief to those states that were less affected by the disaster and were able to restore agricultural output as soon as possible.
At this critical juncture, King You rushed to the worst-hit areas with money, food and manpower to provide disaster relief.
Whatever the purpose, it is admirable.
Of course, no one is stupid to be an official in this position.
What Emperor Xiao Ming wanted to hear from them at this moment was definitely not the word "admiration".
Sun Ruhai, the Minister of Personnel who was nearly involved in a bribery case a while ago, frowned and said carefully: "No matter what the purpose of King You's leaving his fiefdom is, it is wrong to leave his fiefdom without being summoned or asking for permission from Your Majesty."
"And King You brought 3,000 soldiers with him on this trip... He violated a great taboo by arbitrarily deploying troops without the permission of the court, and he should be severely punished."
These words truly touched Emperor Xiaoming's heart.
Everyone looked at Sun Ruhai with a little more approval.
Lord Luo, a veteran of two dynasties, frowned slightly. Although his face showed no abnormality, he sighed in his heart.
Your Majesty is becoming more and more foolish now.
Instead of thinking about how to provide disaster relief, he only focused on being on guard against His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
It's so confusing!
What His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did was clearly for the country and the people, but in his eyes, all he could see was fear.
In order to eliminate this fear, they are even willing to sacrifice the interests of the people and suppress His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
How can such a person be qualified to be the monarch of a country?
While sighing in his heart, Lord Luo couldn't help but feel fortunate.
Fortunately, the prince left the capital early and went to his fiefdom to build his own power.
Now far away from the capital, nearly a year has passed, and the prince has grown stronger and has gradually gained the ability to compete with Emperor Xiaoming.
Sooner or later, this world will be handed over to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince as the late emperor wished.
By then, his old bones will finally be able to close their eyes in peace and give an explanation to the late emperor in the underworld!
…
Of course, Emperor Xiao Ming could not just allow Prince You Qixu, his most disliked son, to escape from his control.
But after all, they went there under the name of "disaster relief."
It was also not easy for him to openly and forcefully bring the person back to the capital.
After all, now is a time when people are in turmoil, and even though he is an emperor, he has to be cautious and restrained.
Emperor Xiao Ming was caught in a dilemma for a while. Finally, it was Lord Luo who suggested to him that he could follow the example of King You and send people to King You's destination, Ji and Ding states, under the banner of "disaster relief".
In this way, the people's hearts can be appeased.
Second, he could send people to keep an eye on King You, and when the disaster situation in Ji and Ding states improved slightly, the people he sent would be able to "invite" King You back to the capital.
"Lord Luo's method is still the best!" Emperor Xiao Ming's eyes lit up.
It is said that experience always brings wisdom. Lord Luo’s idea is simply the best!
Not only can he avoid being gossiped by others, but he can also keep a close eye on Qi Xu and not let him escape from his control.
that is……
Of course you can't go to provide disaster relief empty-handed.
Even Qi Xu brought tens of thousands of shi of grain from Tanzhou.
I don’t know how that kid managed to get so much food from the three cold and harsh states of Tan, Qian and Yi.
"Your Majesty, the imperial court's disaster relief cannot be less than the grain provided by King You himself."
Emperor Xiaoming frowned.
How could he not know this truth?
It really hurts to ask him to pay for disaster relief grain, which he could have avoided!
Seeing that Emperor Xiaoming was slow to speak, Lord Luo sneered in his heart but pretended to be sharing the emperor's worries.
"Your Majesty, food is in short supply now, and the stored food must be used in the western and northern borders first. How can there be any surplus food to be distributed to Ji and Ding states?"
"My dear minister, you are right!" These words once again touched Emperor Xiao Ming's heart.
Emperor Xiao Ming looked at Lord Luo with shining eyes, waiting to see if this old minister could come up with any more useful suggestions.
"I have a solution..."
As soon as Lord Luo opened his mouth, Emperor Xiaoming could not wait to say, "My dear minister, please speak quickly!"
"I was also inspired by King You's story. King You was able to provide 10,000 dan of grain. Even if some nobles and ministers in the capital who have accumulated a lot of wealth cannot provide 10,000 dan of grain, it should not be difficult for them to provide 100 or 1,000 dan of grain."
"Food is in short supply everywhere now, and many disaster-stricken states are waiting for relief grain from the capital. Your Majesty might as well take this opportunity to call on everyone to donate grain. Even if you can't donate a hundred or a thousand dan of grain, and each family can only donate a few dan of grain, there are so many ministers in the court, and if each family donates a little, it will be a considerable amount."
"It must be much more than King You's ten thousand dan of grain!"
After Lord Luo finished speaking, Emperor Xiao Ming stroked his chin and fell into deep thought.
That’s a really good idea.
With just a little talk, we can get a large amount of food.
He had some idea of how wealthy the homes of the nobles and ministers in the capital were.
Even if you can't donate food, you can donate silver.
Just like Lord Luo said, if every family donates a little, wouldn't that be enough money and food to be sent to Ji and Ding states for disaster relief?
He just needs to send more people to escort this batch of disaster relief food.
Once the food was delivered and the people remembered the emperor's benevolence, he could then capture King You, who was in Ji and Ding states, and escort him back to the capital.
Kill two birds with one stone!
"Master Luo, this is a brilliant idea!"
For now, there is only one last question left.
How can we make these nobles and ministers donate money and grain obediently?
"That's easy."
Lord Luo answered confidently, "Your Majesty, you only need to find a few people to take the lead, and then reward them with some benefits."
"When everyone has a reference, they will spontaneously participate in donations."
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