Chapter 548 Punishment
Li Qing looked at Wen Zhong and Shen Gongbao expressionlessly and said, "Why not? Hmm?"
Wen Zhong spoke first, "Your Majesty! Our Shang army upholds the righteousness of Heaven and has come to suppress the rebellion. The traitor Ji Chang and his ilk have been constantly claiming Your Majesty's cruelty, imposing countless harsh taxes. The people outside of Xiqi are suffering terribly, their lives in dire straits. Now that our army has entered the city, without offering any favors, they're already collecting heavy taxes. Doesn't this just prove the traitor Ji Chang's propaganda?"
Shen Gongbao also nodded and said, "That's right, Your Majesty. Ten times the tax is unimaginable! For ordinary people, paying only one tenth of the tax is still considered too much. Now that it is ten times the tax, how can the people survive..."
Seeing Shen Gongbao looking at him, Li Qing naturally knew what he meant.
If the people cannot make a living, they will rebel. If the people rebel, they must be killed. In the end, it will be no different from a massacre in the city.
"I want them to have a hard time living, to struggle to survive, and to teach them what hard times are like."
Li Qing's expression remained unchanged. He simply said, "Ten times the tax revenue will be collected for twenty years. After twenty years, things will return to normal. As for those who want to rebel, they will be killed. If we kill half of them, the remaining half will not dare to rebel."
"His Majesty!"
Wen Zhong's eyelids twitched as he heard this, and he stood up abruptly, saying, "How can this be? Even though the Xiqi Ji clan deserves death, what guilt have the people here inflicted? Your Majesty, how could you issue such a tyrannical order?"
Shen Gongbao wasn't as bold as Wen Zhong, but even kneeling on the ground, he quickly said, "Your Majesty, our Shang army has entered Xiqi. We cannot ignore the people's concerns. Otherwise, when the army withdraws, Xiqi will rebel everywhere, and the land will be filled with smoke and flames."
"Oh, Grand Master, do you think I did this simply to vent my anger?"
Li Qing had long been accustomed to Wen Zhong's behavior, so he didn't get angry at the moment. He just smiled faintly and asked.
Wen Zhong frowned and said, "If it weren't for anger, how could Your Majesty issue such an order? This will make the people here suffer from the consequences, and even die of hunger and cold! Twenty years! How many people will die?"
Li Qing waved his hand and said, "No, no, I issued this order to truly win back the hearts of the people in Xiqi!"
Everyone was confused after hearing this, and Wen Zhong and Shen Gongbao looked at Li Qing in confusion.
Li Qing said calmly, "The Ji family has been operating for thousands of years. The people of Xiqi are all aware of their benevolence, so they will only be loyal to the Ji family. This is inevitable, and no matter how much I show my favor, it cannot be changed. Oh, or maybe if I continue to show my favor for a hundred years, it may change a little. But will I spend a hundred years and consume a large amount of national resources to support these people who don't know the emperor, but only the Western Marquis?"
Shaking his head, Li Qing said indifferently, "Of course not! Therefore, I can only use severe punishments! To suppress them for twenty years! I don't want this generation of Xiqi's people anymore! I want the generation twenty years from now! Twenty years from now, the heavy taxes will be abolished, and at the same time, I will show favor to the people, whether it's tax exemption or free rice. Only then, the new generation of people who have suffered from heavy taxes and harsh punishments for twenty years and have been unable to eat enough will begin to truly be grateful to me!"
Inside the hall, all the generals, immortals, including Shen Gongbao and Wen Zhong, had solemn expressions on their faces.
What Li Qing said was not without reason, but it was simple to say. However, if it was carried out, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of people would die...
Twenty years later, will there still be one million people inside Qishan Pass?
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
Shen Gongbao finally spoke, prostrating himself, "Your Majesty, I agree with this proposal, but raising taxes tenfold is tantamount to denying us a living... I implore Your Majesty to lower the taxes a bit... Twenty years from now, we should be able to win back the hearts of the people at Qishan Pass..."
Wen Zhong also understood what Li Qing was thinking at this moment. Although he did not agree with it,
But after all, this method works quickly. Otherwise, it would take a hundred years to win back the hearts of the people of Xiqi, and the Ji family would easily revive.
But when he thought of the millions of people who would starve to death due to heavy taxes and harsh punishments, Wen Zhong's heart trembled. So he knelt again and said to Li Qing in a deep voice: "Ten times the tax is too cruel. I, Your Majesty, also implore you to lower the tax!"
Seeing this, Li Qing smiled faintly and said, "Since you two beloved ministers have pleaded so hard for the people of Qishan Pass, I will do you a favor and increase the tax by nine times for thirty years!"
Upon hearing this, Shen Gongbao and Wen Zhong looked at each other and then bowed simultaneously, saying, "Your Majesty is benevolent!"
"Ren De?"
Li Qing laughed heartily and shook his head, saying, "From today onwards, the people of Xiqi will call me a true, unadulterated tyrant, the kind who will be punished by heaven, hehe..."
As he spoke, Li Qing stood up and sneered, "But since you're on the wrong side, you have to be punished."
All the generals and immortals pursed their lips and thought to themselves that they were lucky that they did not stand on the wrong side.
Rumble.
It seemed that Li Qing's brutal behavior angered the heaven and earth, and suddenly thunder-like sounds came from the distant sky.
The sound was extremely loud and carried a strong sense of pressure.
Li Qing frowned for a moment and muttered to himself, "Is this really a punishment from heaven?"
But then, Li Qing's eyes showed joy and he walked out of the hall.
But in the eastern sky, a figure with an astonishing aura came roaring, and his voice also arrived.
"Godfather!? I'm coming!!"
Golden light shot out across the sky in an instant. As soon as the voice was heard, the figure was already in front of Li Qing.
That’s right, Sun Wukong.
The monkey was wearing golden armor and had golden hair, which was really eye-catching. He looked at Li Qing with a face full of joy and shouted, "Godfather!"
Li Qing naturally had a smile on his face.
The moment he felt the breath, he knew who was coming.
At this moment, he looked at the monkey in front of him, raised his hand and touched his head, then said with regret: "Wukong, in just a few months, you have grown up so much? And you have reached such a level of cultivation? It seems that Zhunti has really put his heart into teaching you."
The monkey quacked, "Foster father, I haven't been practicing for just a few months. I've been practicing for over six hundred years, but only in Master's Tianyuan World. In fact, I'm already over six hundred years old."
"I see."
When Li Qing heard this, he nodded. No wonder the little monkey grew into the Monkey King in just a few months.
It turned out to be a saint's method of reversing time and space. In the small world he created, the monkey had been practicing for a long time.
After Monkey finished speaking, his face turned serious again. He looked at Li Qing and said in a deep voice: "Foster father! I heard that you were bullied! So I came to help you! Who dared to bully you!?"
Li Qing laughed loudly upon hearing this and nodded, "Okay, okay, I'm very happy that you have this intention. However, I was never bullied by others, but now, I am the one bullying others!"
When the monkey heard this, his anger turned into laughter, and he chuckled, "Bullying others? Great! Then I'll bully others together with you, my godfather!"
Li Qing just smiled and patted the monkey's head again, then said: "Let's go, today we have captured the city, and I will have a feast for the three armies. You have come just in time!"
At that moment, Li Qing, the monkey and a group of immortal generals went to the military camp.
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