Chapter 39: Knowing People in the Court
“Ah~ Hey~”
[Your Majesty, Shu'er is here. I miss you so much that I can't sleep. ]
As soon as Chu Qinshu was put into Emperor Yongping's arms by Lin Fu, she started to act coquettishly in excitement.
Emperor Yongping was still in the court, so he did not interact with her in front of the civil and military officials as he usually did in her study.
He just held her in his arms and patted the swaddling clothes to comfort her.
"Lord Li, have you arranged for the winter food for the disaster victims in Jingzhou?"
Emperor Yongping coaxed Chu Qinshu and then continued with his affairs in the court.
Chu Chengyi has been back in Beijing for several days.
Although the corrupt officials found out were on their way back to Beijing, the ultimate goal of disaster relief was to improve the current lives of the victims.
As the weather gets colder, life for the disaster victims is bound to become more difficult.
Winter clothes, food, charcoal fire, and a temporary place to live...
If the imperial court did not intervene in these matters, and they only relied on the mutual assistance of the local counties in Jingzhou, they would probably be powerless even if they had the will.
"Ah? Oh, old minister...I have already made all the arrangements. One hundred thousand dan of autumn harvest grain was measured and loaded onto trucks yesterday and can be shipped to Jingzhou today."
Li Shengzhou was the Minister of Revenue and was considered a close and trusted minister of Emperor Yongping.
Counting from the day he was able to attend court, he has been standing in this Qinzheng Hall for nearly thirty years.
He had just seen with his own eyes Lin Fu handing a baby in a swaddling cloth into the arms of Emperor Yongping, and he thought he was seeing things.
Before he could open his eyes wide to see clearly, he was questioned by Emperor Yongping, and he almost couldn't react.
“Ahhh~ Ah~”
[The father of the Minister of Revenue was the best. He gave Uncle Sanhuang's mother many shops as dowry. It was because of these shops that Uncle Sanhuang had the gold to give Shu'er a golden rabbit and a golden squirrel.]
When Chu Qinshu heard Emperor Yongping call Li Aiqing and heard him talking about food, she guessed that it was the Minister of Revenue Li Shengzhou.
Because Li Shengzhou is Prince Shou’s uncle.
That's why Chu Qinshu praised his father in front of Emperor Yongping.
Emperor Yongping: "......"
It’s okay for you to praise Li Shengzhou, but why are you praising his father?
His father must have been reincarnated by now, right?
"Very good. Then who do you plan to send to supervise this time?"
Emperor Yongping asked this question, but he felt unhappy in his heart.
This old guy Li Shengzhou is probably too old to follow his father.
How come I have to wait for him to ask a question before I answer it?
"In reply to the emperor, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Lin Changfeng, took the initiative to request to be transferred, so I plan to let him go on this trip."
Li Shengzhou was busy replying, and sweat was forming on his back.
It was too hasty. He is an old official and shouldn't be so surprised.
Besides, there is no rule that says you can’t sit on the dragon chair with a baby in your arms.
“Ahhh~ Yeah~”
[Your Majesty, this Lin Changfeng is a bad man. He replaced the food for the previous two disaster relief efforts. The rice is infested with worms and mold, and there is a lot of sand and mud in it.]
When Chu Qinshu heard Luo Changfeng's name, she remembered that he was the Queen's younger brother.
It was the Empress who facilitated his entry into the Ministry of Revenue.
Moreover, he was aiming for the position of Minister of Revenue.
"Is Lin Changfeng here?"
Emperor Yongping's expression remained unchanged, but his heart skipped a beat.
His brain has really become quite stupid in the past ten years.
How come the Lin family was never given important positions by the previous emperor, so they all got important posts under his rule?
Alas, I should have listened to the late emperor.
The harem misled him!
"I am here."
Lin Changfeng hurried out of the line, standing straight and dignified, like a capable and wise minister.
But in fact, he is a hypocritical gentleman.
The food he exchanged was used to feed his private soldiers.
Raising private soldiers was an important part of the Queen's plan.
"Well, Minister Lin, I don't need to explain the importance of this mission. I'm sure you know it, right?"
Emperor Yongping asked seriously.
"Yes, this is a matter of great importance to whether the disaster victims in Jingzhou can survive the winter. I will certainly do my best to complete this mission."
Lin Changfeng spoke with a sense of righteousness, without any guilt at all for having exchanged disaster relief supplies twice.
"Okay, then Minister Lin, please do your job well. I believe you can do it well."
Emperor Yongping instructed to handle the matter impartially.
But I already had a plan in mind.
This time, 100,000 shi of winter grain were prepared, plus the 300,000 shi sent to Jingzhou in the previous two times, it was enough to feed the border troops for several months.
How could it be so easy for these thieves to swallow it?
After Lin Changfeng returned to the line, the Minister of Rites came out again.
"Your Majesty, the winter festival is coming soon. I would like to ask Your Majesty to give me your instructions on what I am going to ask for."
The Minister of Rites was Prince Ning's father-in-law. What he was requesting was to use living sacrifices during the winter festival.
"Lord Ma, why do you suggest using living sacrifices instead?"
Although Emperor Yongping was not conservative, he still could not accept changing the rules of his ancestors.
“Ah~~”
[This old man is very bad. He is not a monk, but he runs a temple and has made a lot of money. Also, aren't the offerings during the sacrifice for the gods and ancestors to eat? Do you use living sacrifices to make them bleed when they eat? Aren't you afraid that they will get angry and send down punishment from heaven?]
Chu Qinshu frowned when she heard the Minister of Rites.
In the original book, his proposal to use living sacrifice was eventually accepted by Emperor Yongping.
Because the royal family took the lead in using four living animals for sacrifice, the people followed suit, and later it even evolved to the point of using living people for sacrifice.
This was also the fuse for the Chu royal family to be quickly replaced by the queen in the next ten years.
"Your Majesty, the ancestors of heaven and earth are all gods, and they must have good intentions towards all living things between heaven and earth. This spring, the north was dry and rainless, and this summer, the south was flooded. It can be seen that the usual sacrifices in previous years have displeased the gods. Therefore, I bravely propose to use living sacrifices during the winter sacrifice, which may keep disasters away from the people of Sheng'an."
The Minister of Rites spoke eloquently and logically.
At first glance, everyone would think this makes sense.
The belief that natural disasters are caused by the anger of the gods has existed since ancient times, and many officials and people in Sheng'an believed this.
"You should discuss this matter with the Imperial Master first, and then make a decision."
If Chu Qinshu had not reminded him, Emperor Yongping would probably have agreed with the Minister of Rites.
But now there is still more than a month before the Winter Festival, so he thinks it is more urgent to send someone to Yuzhou.
"I obey your order."
The Minister of Rites stepped down, and no one else came out.
Emperor Yongping had to sit in the court for several hours every day. After more than 20 years, he was already tired of it.
Seeing that no one came out, he quickly gave Lin Fu a look.
"Retire~~"
As soon as Lin Fugang spoke, he stood up and left.
When the court officials collectively bowed and looked up, they could no longer see his back.
When he returned to Yu's study, he saw Prince Shou standing outside the hall in a cloak, looking up and waiting.
"I have met the Emperor."
When Prince Shou saw Emperor Yongping coming, he hurriedly saluted.
"Why are you here again? Aren't you afraid of getting sick from the cold?"
Emperor Yongping was somewhat angry when he saw Prince Shou.
If you don't know how to take care of your own body, who can take care of it for the rest of your life?
"I am not afraid. I am not afraid of freezing today."
Prince Shou was somewhat excited, and also had some evil taste in deliberately acting coquettishly in front of Emperor Yongping.
"Humph, hurry up and go in."
Emperor Yongping glared at him and entered the hall first.
“Aa ...
[Uncle Sanhuang, drink some water. Shu'er brought two water bags for him. You won't be afraid of freezing after drinking.]
As soon as he entered the hall, Emperor Yongping revealed Chu Qinshu's little head, which was covered in swaddling clothes.
Seeing that Prince Shou had also taken off his sable coat, he hurriedly invited him to drink water.
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