The matter concerning the tribes in western Moxi was never settled.
Emperor Wen and Xiao Wanchou definitely both want to fight.
However, they not only had to consider the strength of the various tribes in western Mo, but also had to consider whether this battle could be resolved quickly.
If it weren't for the severe floods in the south and the possibility of an epidemic, they wouldn't have to think so much.
But at this critical juncture, they have to consider these things.
After leaving Emperor Wen's bedroom, Xu Shifu went to find Yun Li.
Yun Li is a very busy man now. He not only has to take the lead in weakening the powerful families and clans, but is also responsible for dealing with the floods in the south.
Reports on floods from all over the south have been sent to the Prince's Palace.
All the reports had almost the same content.
The disaster in the south was severe, the victims were displaced, and the states and counties were short of supplies, and needed support from the court.
...
...
This is the case for the states and counties that were severely affected by the disaster, and the same is true for the states and counties that were not severely affected by the disaster.
Looking at these messy reports, Yun Li wanted to drag the chief officials of each state and county to be beheaded.
A bunch of trash!
Apart from asking for money from the court, you don’t have anything else to say?
The imperial court appointed them as chief officials of various states and counties so that they could solve problems, not cause trouble for the imperial court!
"Your Highness, Lord Xu requests to see you."
At this time, the guards from the Prince's Mansion came to deliver the message.
"Quick, bring Master Xu in!"
Yun Li gave orders quickly.
Xu Shifu arrived just in time.
It would be a good opportunity to let Xu Shifu, the Minister of Revenue, take a look at these reports.
Soon, Xu Shifu was brought in.
Before Xu Shifu could salute, Yun Li hurriedly called Xu Shifu over and asked him to look at the reports.
Xu Shifu just casually flipped through a few reports and completely lost interest.
He has seen too many reports like this.
Whenever there were natural disasters or man-made disasters, all states and counties had to turn to the imperial court for help.
This happened every time, and even the content of the report hardly changed.
"How about supporting the states and counties with some money and food?"
Yun Li asked Xu Shifu for his opinion.
"Need not!"
Xu Shifu said without hesitation: "The south is rich, and there was a bumper harvest last year. The government warehouses in the southern prefectures and counties are basically full! If there is no money and food so soon, the chief officials of the prefectures and counties should be beheaded!"
How long has it been since the floods in the south occurred?
There's no way we're running out of food so quickly!
Even in those counties where some of the official granaries were destroyed by the flood, it was impossible for them to run out of food so quickly.
If they really are short of food, there are still government warehouses in the prefectures that can transfer grain to them.
If any province or county is really short of food, it must be the people in that province or county who are smuggling food from the government warehouse!
As for medicinal materials, the imperial court has already sent a lot of them to the counties most affected by the disaster. So far, there has been no report of an outbreak of plague in the south, so there is definitely no shortage of medicinal materials.
The states and counties are now asking the imperial court for money, but it is more like the crying child getting the milk.
They were all afraid that the prefectures and counties they governed would not have enough food and medicine in the later period, so they asked the court for some supplies in advance and stockpiled them. If they performed better in disaster relief, that would be their political achievement!
At worst, if you perform poorly during disaster relief, there is still an excuse to shirk responsibility.
They are all old foxes in the officialdom, each one more shrewd than the other.
Yun Li thought silently for a while, and said seriously: "I think we should allocate some supplies to the counties that have been hit hardest by the disaster, and we can allocate them from the surrounding states and counties. What do you think?"
Xu Shifu didn't say anything, but just glanced at the palace maids serving beside him.
Yun Li understood and immediately waved to the palace maids.
It was not until the maids left that Xu Shifu frowned and asked, "Your Highness, do you want to behave well in front of His Majesty?"
“It’s not a performance either.”
Yun Li shook his head in denial, "My father has entrusted me with the disaster relief work. This is the time for me to demonstrate my benevolence..."
As the crown prince, he also needs the support of the people.
Isn't it a great opportunity to win the hearts and minds of the people and gain a good reputation by caring for the people in times of disaster?
Benevolence?
Bullshit benevolence!
Xu Shifu cursed in his heart, but said patiently: "It is better to do something that helps people in need than to do something that adds icing on the cake! We should wait until the worst-hit counties are about to collapse before allocating supplies. At that time, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will go to the south in person and deal with a few officials who are not doing a good job in disaster relief. This will help the Crown Prince gain a good reputation..."
Now, those who are allocated materials and gain fame are the officials in charge of a region.
It has nothing to do with Yun Li at all!
Officials in the court knew that it was Crown Prince Yun Li who was in charge of this matter, but did ordinary people know?
After listening to Xu Shifu's words, Yun Li understood instantly and immediately praised: "Great, really great!"
Xu Shifu chuckled, "I want to see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for another matter."
“Yes, yes!”
Yun Li reacted, "If uncle hadn't told me, I would have almost forgotten it! I wonder why uncle came to see me?"
"It's something in the northwest."
Xu Shifu whispered, "The emperor sent Zhao Ji to lead the army to help the northwest. He must be the commander! Soon, Zhao Ji will have 200,000 troops under his command. We have to win Zhao Ji over..."
Although Yun Li is the crown prince, he does not have much military power!
The generals they had won over before were completely not on the same level as Zhao Ji.
Even though Emperor Wen trusts Crown Prince Yun Li very much now, if he wants to depose Yun Li, he can do so at any time!
Several veteran generals led by Xiao Wanchou and Xue Che obviously did not want to go to war with Yun Zheng of Shuobei.
If Yun Zheng goes crazy one day and threatens Emperor Wen to depose Yun Li from the crown prince position by sending troops south, Yun Li might not be able to keep his position as crown prince.
But if Zhao Ji, who had 200,000 soldiers under his command, supported Yun Li, Emperor Wen would not dare to easily move Yun Li's position as crown prince.
"To win over Zhao Ji?"
Yun Li frowned, "I did want to win over this man. When I went to Beilu to detain Wei Wenzhong, I took the initiative to show my goodwill to Zhao Ji, but Zhao Ji was unmoved."
It's not easy to win over Zhao Ji.
The difficulty is no less than winning over Xiao Wanchou and Xue Che.
If he fails to win over the emperor, Zhao Ji will turn around and report the matter to his father, and then he will be in trouble.
"I have a solution now!"
Xu Shifu chuckled and a confident smile appeared on his face.
"What is the solution?"
Yun Li's eyes suddenly lit up and he looked at Xu Shifu with anticipation.
Xu Shifu smiled sinisterly and said, "When Zhao Ji led his army to garrison Fuzhou, his eldest son Zhao Teng was in charge of the military supplies of the entire army. I deliberately allocated more food and grass to them! I sent people to instigate Zhao Teng to steal and sell military supplies on a large scale. Now, I have obtained definite evidence, and Zhao Ji cannot deny it! With this evidence in hand, there is no fear that Zhao Ji will not serve His Royal Highness the Crown Prince..."
Stealing and selling military rations?
Yun Li's whole body trembled and he suddenly became excited.
This is a capital crime!
Even Zhao Ji might be affected!
After all, the person who stole and sold military rations was Zhao Ji’s son!
Who knows whether it was Zhao Ji who instructed Zhao Teng to steal and sell military rations?
As long as Zhao Ji cannot prove that he has nothing to do with this matter, it can almost be said that Zhao Ji will be implicated!
Even if my father is magnanimous and forgives Zhao Ji this time, he will never trust Zhao Ji as much as before!
In this case, Zhao Ji’s best choice is to turn to himself, the crown prince!
The more Yun Li thought about it, the more excited he became. He quickly stood up and saluted Xu Shifu: "Thank you, uncle!"
"This is what I should do."
Xu Shifu smiled, obviously very satisfied with Yun Li's attitude.
After the ceremony, Yun Li sat down again, "By the way, uncle, I have something else I want to discuss with you."
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