89 Taxes
◎I only really worry if he does something else◎
Her voice was delicate, lazily sung from just waking up, and her tone was both inquiring and coquettish. Hearing Rong Qianyu's concern for him like this, the grievances he'd felt the previous day vanished, and his heart trembled with joy.
She fixed his hair and brushed his cheek with her slender white fingers. Xue Ji held her hand with a satisfied look on his face, placed it on his chest, and looked at her quietly.
He pulled her in and hugged her tightly, burying his head in her fluffy, fragrant hair, feeling the warmth of her body. His palms caressed her back, as if he wanted to hold her in his body.
He breathed rapidly for a long time, trying his best to suppress the anger surging in his body.
He loved her very much, but his disabled body could not afford to spend it. He fell asleep with the beauty in his arms many times, always wanting to take it a step further.
But he was too lazy to even take a look at this body, so how could he dare to show it to her? His Adam's apple rolled twice, and then he lowered his eyelids to hide the heat in his eyes.
His face turned pale, and he pointed at his eyes and grinned foolishly, "I've been sewing things for you, and my eyes are red from staying up all night."
Rong Qianyu held his hand and asked, "Does it hurt?"
"It's better than seeing you being touched." He was reluctant and spoke in a coquettish tone.
The room was warm, sunlight dappled into it, and the air was filled with the sweet fragrance of soft jade. Xue Ji tried hard to restrain himself, being unusually considerate in front of her. Rong Qianyu also softened a lot more than she had last night. "I really can't do anything about this kind of thing. I'm still the queen. If he insists on letting me stay overnight, I can't do anything about it. You can't burn the house down every time."
Her relationship with Xue Ji was not to be made public. She was not afraid of a desperate outcome after such sneaky back and forth, but she was only worried that future generations would record that the two of them were in cahoots.
This queen acted like a widow, pretending to be a loving couple in front of outsiders. Common people thought they were a good example of a wife following her husband's lead, but in fact, she was still a virgin since she came to the Great Zhou.
She had never thought about favor, but days like this were endless. Fu Hua was becoming more and more unruly, and no one knew what tricks he would do tomorrow.
Xue Ji held her in his arms, feeling somewhat worried and uneasy. "I'm only really worried if he does something else." He placed another kiss on her forehead. "You go back first. I'll prepare these and have Qingyun deliver them to your palace."
"good."
The next morning, in the mist, in the magnificent imperial palace, all the officials were dressed in formal attire, waiting for the emperor to come for the morning court.
Officials would usually arrive at the court long in advance to make adequate preparations before the emperor's arrival, holding a scepter and kneeling on the steps.
Fu Hua walked forward step by step in his imperial robes. His Highness and his ministers immediately stood up, held the jade tablet with both hands, and saluted respectfully.
What I want to say today is important. The ministers who had not attended the court for several days have all come. The ministers reacted very strongly, and the civil officials argued for their rights, each of them speaking out for justice.
Minister of Revenue Wei Shuyi was the first to step forward, holding a shield, and kneeling in the middle of the hall, begging, "Your Majesty, this is absolutely unacceptable!"
The ministers exchanged glances and submitted reports one after another. This year was not going well. The Great Zhou had just experienced a plague for nearly half a year, palace coups and wars, and was about to make peace with the Xia Kingdom. It was time to recuperate and not come up with such a plan at this time.
The ministers that Fu Kang left for Fu Hua were all loyal ministers who had followed Fu Kang for twenty or thirty years, and all of them had the responsibility to take care of the orphan.
The ministers stood in formation in the court. Only a few purple-robed officials, ignoring Fu Hua's expression, spoke bluntly, "The late emperor was a great believer in the teachings of Huang-Lao. Your Majesty should follow the late emperor's methods. Besides, it's winter now, and the people are already having a hard time. Increasing taxes would probably cause riots!"
Wei Shuyi took off his official hat and knelt on the ground. Without Huang Yun, he would be a very senior minister. Seeing his firm attitude, the civil officials knelt down as if they had agreed to do so, and said in unison, "Your Majesty, please think twice!"
Then other civil officials stepped forward and submitted memorials.
The civil officials were united on this point. No matter what the reason, as long as a high-ranking official stood up, a group of fence-sitters would follow.
When Fu Hua was the crown prince, he enjoyed visiting brothels, playing polo, and all sorts of eccentric things, but he showed no interest in schoolwork and government. Consequently, the ministers didn't think much of him, and it was only because of the late emperor that they repeatedly advised him against it.
"Our dynasty has been established for nearly a hundred years, and it's long past time for recuperation. The treasury is now empty. To maintain our rule, we must increase our cavalry and reorganize our army. My dear ministers, tell me, without increasing taxes, where will the money for recruiting soldiers come from?"
Wei Shuyi was determined not to relent, and he didn't care about Fu Hua's face at all. "Qianbei has just been pacified, and the training is not focused on one thing. Why can't we wait until next spring to make a long-term plan?"
The more he spoke, the more excited he became. He was old, and Fu Hua couldn't directly refute anything he said. This was why the ministers didn't take the emperor seriously.
"Your Majesty, since ancient times, scholars have died remonstrating, and warriors have died fighting. Your Majesty insists on doing this, causing great harm to the foundation of the country. This old minister can only die to prove his resolve. I hope Your Majesty will revoke your order!"
Many ministers are fence-sitters who have no opinions of their own and are not considered loyal ministers with ideas. It is simply that the law does not hold everyone responsible. Only at this time will the team not be accused of being cowardly and without opinions behind their backs.
Fu Hua also completely ignored his seniority, as he was more than thirty years older than him. Seeing that he was threatening to commit suicide, he did not want to let him go.
He stood up, pointed at his nose and cursed: "Old man, do you dare to die!?"
Wei Shuyi was furious. Several of his friendly ministers tried to persuade him, but he was so stubborn after being scolded that no one could persuade him.
He actually bumped into the nanmu pillar in the hall, and blood immediately flowed from his head.
"My lord, my lord!"
Fu Hua looked annoyed and hurriedly sent someone to carry him away, "Hurry up and take the master away and find the imperial physician!"
His temper had remained the same for twenty or thirty years. Even when being dragged away by several guards, he did not forget to advise, "Your Majesty, you cannot increase taxes at this time! It will undermine the foundation of the country. No way!"
He really does care about the country.
"Wei Shuyi has been disrespectful in front of the palace. He does not need to attend court until he recovers. Anyone who talks about tax reductions again will be dismissed and sent home! Court is dismissed!"
The court ended in a bad mood today. Wei Shuyi was carried back to the mansion through a side door in a sedan chair. The whole street knew that he was reprimanded and sent home for being disrespectful in front of the palace.
This matter caused a huge uproar. The former court and the harem were closely connected, and Rong Qianyu had also heard a little about it.
She didn't want to ask too much about the affairs of the previous dynasty, but she also felt that she shouldn't be so anxious. Increasing taxes at this time was definitely not a good time.
But this matter was not her business. She drank tea out of boredom. As winter approached, she felt increasingly tired.
The Fire Dragon doesn't have much heat yet, but always feels cold in the afternoon, and stays indoors, too lazy to see people.
Rong Pan came into the room and announced, with a chill in his voice, "Madam, Madam Wei is here."
The sun was slanting, and the sunlight shining into the house barely offset the cold.
Putting down the teacup, he asked, "Madam Wei, I have never met her before. Why did she come to see me?"
Rong Pandha said he came because of the serious injury sustained by his Excellency after he collided with a pillar a few days ago. "Your Majesty wants to increase taxes, but most of the court officials disagree."
Rong Qianyu couldn't dodge it, and said helplessly, "How can we raise taxes at this time? He can do whatever he wants, but I can't make the decision."
She put down the teacup, took out the hot water bottle, and lazily ordered, "Send the lady in."
Wei Shuyi's wife was a kind-looking old woman who looked to be in her fifties. Although she looked old, she was in good spirits.
She was dressed in plain clothes, with only a few plain hairpins. She knelt down and saluted as she entered the room. "I pay my respects to the Empress. May the Empress live a thousand years!"
"Yuanqing, pour tea for the lady."
Rong Qianyu sat on a chair and greeted her with a smile. "I have been living in □□ for a long time and have been feeling unwell recently. I wonder why Madam has come here?"
This matter is known to everyone. Her husband has been suspended from work and has behaved improperly in the palace. This is the tricky thing to deal with.
She looked restrained, not at all like the wife of a high-ranking official. "A few days ago... at court, my old man offended His Majesty and has been bedridden ever since."
Rong Qianyu couldn't intervene in this matter, nor did she want to. She glossed over whatever the other party said, "I really don't know what's going on in the court. How about I send some supplements to you, sir?"
Seeing that she didn't answer, Mrs. Wei became a little anxious.
"Madam, have some tea!" Yuan Qing brought tea, interrupting her thoughts.
Rong Qianyu avoided the topic and tried to appease the old minister without expressing any attitude. "Your Majesty is young and impulsive, and it is inevitable that he will not be able to consider things carefully. Please do not bear a grudge against me, my Lord and Madam."
Knowing she wouldn't accept the offer, Old Lady Wei burst into tears again, complaining to her, "My master has been at the court for thirty years. His sincerity is evident to all, and he has absolutely no selfish motives, Your Majesty! Given the current situation in the Great Zhou, how can we increase exorbitant taxes? Rest and recuperation are the right thing to do. How can the common people survive like this?"
What she said was partly true and partly false, but her loyalty was real. Her temper was the same as her master's, and she would get excited when she talked about something touching.
He stood up and fell to his knees with a thud, scaring Rong Qianyu so much that she almost fell off the chair.
"Madam, please get up!" Rong Qianyu ordered Rong Panyuanqing to help her, but she was stubborn and refused to get up no matter what she said.
It was difficult to get off the tiger now that she was trapped, and Rong Qianyu couldn't refuse.
She complained with tears and snot, "Your Majesty, you are His Majesty's bedside companion. Please persuade His Majesty! You can't let these old ministers feel disheartened! At the beginning of this year, there was an epidemic in the capital, followed by a palace coup, and the autumn harvest was not good. You can't act like this at this time, Your Majesty!"
Seeing her like this, Rong Qianyu was really having a headache. She was hiding from people and yet she was still involved in it.
She stood up and helped her to get up, "I know, I will talk to His Majesty. Madam, please get up quickly!"
Madam Wei took advantage and acted cute, "Your Majesty, it's not that I'm old and take advantage of my age, but this famine has been so bad that my old man is deeply distressed. Your Majesty must speak to His Majesty for the sake of the people of the world!"
"Don't worry, Madam. I will do my best!"
Madam Wei restrained her sharpness and bowed politely, "Then I will go back. Thank you, Your Majesty!" She did not forget to turn around and express her gratitude before leaving.
After dealing with this person, there will be no more problems.
"Where is His Majesty now?"
"In the Huangji Palace," Rong Pan said, "Does Your Majesty want to talk to Concubine Jing?"
She thought for a moment and shook her head. "Shu'er hasn't been feeling well recently, so it's better not to tell her. Why does His Majesty suddenly want to increase taxes?"
Rong Pan explained that he wanted to ally with the Xia Kingdom to check and balance Qianbei. In addition, the treasury was empty and there was no military pay to recruit soldiers, so he could only increase taxes.
This matter was indeed a thorny one. Rong Qianyu had no choice but to intervene even though she didn't want to. "Hasn't he asked for the opinions of Master Huang and the Queen Mother?"
But in the current situation, how could Huang Yun care? As for the Queen Mother, she was taking care of Fu Tao and had no time to care about him.
No one was paying attention and no one spoke. Since the old woman was not afraid of life and death and was determined to speak out for justice, why didn't she go to see the emperor but instead deal with her?
It's winter now, how can ordinary people come up with money at this time? It doesn't matter if Fu Hua commits suicide, but her safety cannot be affected.
"Change clothes and go to the Imperial Palace!"
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