Jingdong Road and Jingxi Road are closer to the capital, making many things more convenient and less prone to problems. Hedong and Hebei have experienced war, with large areas of fertile land destroyed. The area is being rebuilt, making it a good time to implement new policies.
Moreover, the Hedong and Hebei regions have been the front lines of war since the founding of the Song Dynasty, suffering greatly from the ravages of war and the immense pressure on the people. Now, the emperor is promoting the abolition of corvée labor under the pretext of allowing the people to recuperate and rebuild their lives, which is what the people want and it is believed that not many people will strongly oppose it.
The next day, another official document in the Song Dynasty's official gazette shocked the entire capital city of Tokyo. The voice of the new policy was finally confirmed in the imperial court. Due to the impact of the war with the Jin invaders, the people of Jingdong Road and Jingxi Road were exhausted. Moreover, with the Yellow River flooding imminent, the court would exempt them from corvée labor for two years. The soldiers and civilians of the two roads should work together to rebuild their homes.
Furthermore, due to the frequent occurrence of bandits in Jiangnan in recent years, and the rebellion of Fang La, which has exacerbated the suffering of the people, the imperial court ordered a reduction in corvée labor and taxes, and dispatched a general to the south to sweep away the bandits and restore a bright and clear world for the people.
Furthermore, considering that the Hedong and Hebei regions had suffered greatly from the war, they were exempted from corvée labor for three years.
Finally, the Yan-Yun region, being the epicenter of the war, was exempted from corvée labor for ten years.
This new policy was issued by the official gazette of the Song Dynasty and is absolutely true.
This article spread throughout the country and sparked discussions in various regions.
The undercurrents in the court eased a bit, and the ministers whose ancestral home was in the south breathed a sigh of relief. However, the ministers from the north were still somewhat unwilling. The Jingxi Road and Jingdong Road were to be exempted from corvée labor for two years, but they couldn't find a reason to object.
The Yellow River region is currently suffering from war and the people are impoverished. The court's promulgation of such a policy is a good one. Even if these scholars are unhappy in their hearts, they cannot find a single word of opposition in the classics.
While people were hotly discussing the new policies, few paid attention to the buildings under construction along the Bian River in the southeast of the city, and even fewer were aware that the Art Creation Bureau would soon open in the capital.
On this day, the Imperial Guards brought a man out of the prison and into the palace.
At this moment, the person standing in front of Zhao Huan was none other than Shi Ziming, who had been kneeling before the palace gates, writing the "Commentary on the Great History of the Hundred Schools of Thought" for him.
"The students kowtow to the Emperor!"
Shi Ziming bowed deeply to Zhao Huan, who then stood up and carefully examined the young man before him.
Shi Ziming is twenty-seven years old this year, three years older than Zhao Huan. Shi Ziming's gaze is sharper than a knife's edge, and even in front of the emperor, his arrogant demeanor is not much restrained.
"I have read your 'Comprehensive Commentary on the World'!"
"This is my humble opinion. If there is anything inappropriate, I humbly request Your Majesty's guidance."
Although he spoke modestly, his tone didn't sound very humble at all.
Zhao Huan didn't care. For someone like Zhao Huan, as long as he could achieve his goal, it didn't matter who others were.
Clearly, Shi Ziming can help Zhao Huan achieve his goal.
If we want to vigorously develop construction projects in the Song Dynasty, we must ignite the flames of the Renaissance, burn away the pedantic scholars, and at the same time divert some of their attention from the new policies.
This is when Shi Ziming should make his appearance.
"Your 'Commentary on the Great History of the Hundred Schools' is very well written. It is a blessing for the Song Dynasty to have a talent like you."
Zhao Huan himself was almost disgusted by the phrase he often used to deceive people, but no matter how disgusted he was, he still had to say it: to get things done, you have to win people's hearts; this is the most basic quality of an emperor.
Although Shi Ziming was very confident in what he had written, he did not expect to receive such high recognition from the emperor so quickly. He was very excited and talked to the emperor at length again.
Starting with how Confucianism undermined the thinking of the Chinese people, the plan was to search for various schools of thought among the common people, reward those who made significant contributions to the development of these schools of thought, preferably grant them noble titles and official positions in the court, conduct a comprehensive investigation of the Confucius Mansion in Qufu, abolish the title of Duke Yansheng, and promote Legalism and Mohism in the Song Dynasty.
Zhao Huan paused, agreeing with Shi Ziming's point of view. The two no longer needed to communicate. Shi Ziming's thoughts were exactly the same as Zhao Huan's. Zhao Huan just needed someone to help him carry them out.
The young and impetuous Shi Ziming was perfect for the job; he wanted to throw a lion at those pedantic scholars and see how they would handle it.
The Hanlin Academy was completely dumbfounded today. The emperor had actually sent a 27-year-old Hanlin scholar to the academy. Not only that, on his very first day, he got into a heated argument with Yang Shi, the bigwig of the Hanlin Academy, and almost gave Yang Shi a stroke.
The matter reached the emperor, who sent someone to reprimand Shi Ziming, and that was the end of it.
Moreover, the next day, the Hanlin Academy received news that the Jinzouyuan would henceforth be under the jurisdiction of the Hanlin Academy and directly under the control of Shi Ziming.
Zhao Huan entrusted Shi Ziming with the Song Dynasty's primary window for public opinion; what happens next is up to Shi Ziming.
The emperor, who fears nothing more than a peaceful world, is now sitting in the palace, happily eating fruit, making love with Empress Zhu, and enjoying flowers and the moon with Han Chenchen.
But the outside world has been stirred up by a recent article in the official gazette entitled "A Comprehensive Commentary on the World History".
The incident of a scholar kneeling before the palace gates, pleading with the emperor to restore the free flow of diverse schools of thought, was like a raging fire that still stung the Confucian scholars. But as the pain subsided slightly, the fire suddenly flared up again, and an article was published in the Song Dynasty's official gazette.
Immediately, memorials poured into the Hall of State Affairs like snowflakes. The prime ministers, who were just beginning to digest the emperor's new policies, had to divert manpower to deal with the anger of the officials below.
Almost all officials vehemently denounced this issue of the official gazette, saying that such treacherous and harmful remarks were published by the Imperial Secretariat. They accused it of defaming the sage and the nation, and condemned the official's heart as deserving of death!
The prime ministers are innocent too. The Jinzouyuan is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Palace, but under the Emperor. I heard that recently the Emperor merged the Jinzouyuan under the Hanlin Academy, and it is now managed by a young man named Shi Ziming.
Xu Churen hurriedly took the memorial to the emperor and prepared to enter the palace to meet him, but Tang Ke stopped him.
"Master Xu, what are you trying to do?"
"Of course, we should inform the Emperor and stop the disastrous and harmful remarks in the official gazette."
"How could Master Xu be so foolish!"
Xu Churen was slightly taken aback, not understanding what Tang Ke was saying.
"Now that the current emperor has taken the Jinzouyuan back from the Eastern Palace, how can he not read the official gazette? We both know why such remarks are being made."
"Are you saying it was authorized by the Emperor?"
"Of course."
"There must be someone instigating this."
Tang Ke then asked, "Lord Xu, no offense to you, but what is the most important task for the Eastern Prefecture right now?"
"make money."
"If we don't make any money, we'll all be left destitute on the streets. What can Master Xu do then, no matter how dissatisfied he is with the official gazette?"
Xu Churen nodded in agreement. Tang Ke's words seemed to make a lot of sense. Right now, the Council of State Affairs was overwhelmed by the emperor's tasks, so how could he, as the Grand Chancellor, have time to pay attention to academic debates? He should leave it to his subordinates to argue.
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