The Vice Minister of Works and the Vice Minister of Revenue looked at each other in the air and exchanged opinions silently.
Then, the Minister of Works took a deep breath, stepped forward resolutely, a hint of difficulty flashed between his brows, and he slowly spoke.
"Your Highness, although the iron ore problem has been solved, a large number of craftsmen are still needed to manufacture armor.
Currently, the court does not have enough craftsmen, and skilled craftsmen are even rarer."
"Then recruit from the people!" Li Haoze said decisively, "Your Highness believes that there must be many skilled craftsmen among the people.
They possess superb skills and rich experience, and will surely be able to produce high-quality armor for the court."
"Recruit from the people?" The Minister of Revenue frowned, looking a little hesitant, "Your Highness, I'm afraid this is not appropriate.
After all, although craftsmen did not have a high status in the government, they were all officials of a certain rank.
If we recruit from the public, wouldn't that disrupt the government and confuse the distinction between officials and civilians?"
Other court officials also echoed this, expressing their concerns about recruiting craftsmen from the public.
They worry that the move will break up the existing official system.
This would cause conflicts between folk craftsmen and government craftsmen, and might even affect the stability of the imperial court.
After hearing this, Li Haoze smiled slightly. He had already expected such opposition.
He said slowly, "Your Highness understands your concerns.
But nowadays, there is a shortage of craftsmen in the imperial court, and those with superb skills are even rarer.
We can't let some outdated rules delay the important affairs of the court, right?"
As he spoke, he glanced at the ministers in the court and asked, "Or, do you have other good ways to solve the current predicament?"
"If there are any, please bring them up! If not, then don't just sit there and do nothing!"
As soon as Li Haoze finished speaking, the court fell into silence.
The ministers looked at each other in confusion; they really had no better solution.
Li Haoze's question was direct and sharp, making it impossible for them to avoid the issue.
At this time, Gao Shilian slowly stood up. He was a veteran in the court, who had experienced two dynasties and was highly respected.
He cleared his throat and said, "Your Highness Jinyang is right.
The imperial court is currently facing a shortage of craftsmen, and recruiting skilled artisans from the public may be able to alleviate the urgent need."
He paused, looked around, and continued, “Of course, we must also admit that recruiting craftsmen from the public does involve risks.
But in an emergency, we can strictly control the recruitment process to ensure that the recruited craftsmen have superb skills and good character.
At the same time, we can also give them certain ranks and treatments to encourage them to serve the court."
The old minister's words were nodded in agreement by many ministers.
But in fact, their idea was to strictly control this process and send their family craftsmen to serve as officials in the court.
In this way, not only can the shortage of craftsmen in the court be solved.
It can also allow the craftsmen in their families to receive better treatment and promotion opportunities, which is a two-pronged approach.
Li Haoze saw through the ministers' intentions and couldn't help but sneer in his heart.
He would never allow these ministers to succeed in their selfish desires, let alone allow them to turn the court's craftsmen into personal tools.
So, he smiled slightly and said calmly: "Mr. Shen's suggestion makes sense. Strict control is indeed a good idea."
“In order to ensure that we recruit only highly skilled and virtuous craftsmen, I propose setting up a special assessment agency under the Development and Reform Commission.
This institution will conduct strict assessments and screening of all registered craftsmen, and only those who pass the assessment will be eligible to serve in the imperial court."
As soon as these words were spoken, heated discussions broke out in the court.
The ministers whispered to each other, discussing the feasibility of this proposal.
Li Haoze took advantage of the situation and further elaborated: "At the same time, we should also establish a complete reward and punishment system.
For those craftsmen who have performed outstandingly in their work and made outstanding contributions to the court.
We will give rewards such as promotion of rank and improvement of treatment.
As for those craftsmen who have a lazy work attitude and questionable conduct.
We will take appropriate punitive measures, and in serious cases we may even revoke their qualifications to work."
After an in-depth discussion, the ministers finally reached a consensus and agreed to the proposal.
This is because they believe that only their own craftsmen can pass the so-called strict assessment.
Seeing that the ministers had no objections, Li Shimin finally spoke: "Since you all agree, then this matter is settled.
However, I have one more request, which is that this assessment must be open and transparent.
No one is allowed to abuse their power for personal gain or commit fraud. Otherwise, once discovered, they will be executed without mercy!"
At the end of his speech, Li Shimin's tone became stern, and it was obvious that he took this matter very seriously.
Upon seeing this, the ministers all bowed in agreement and expressed that they would strictly abide by this regulation.
After the matter was over, the crowd gradually dispersed.
Li Shimin, in a rare gesture, said to the "little princess," "Thank you, little beast!"
"I will definitely remember your kindness today."
Obviously, he had already realized that the one who had just debated with the group of scholars was not his precious daughter, but the little divine beast.
"No need!" Li Haoze waved his hand nonchalantly, "I'm just bored and looking for some fun."
After saying that, Li Haoze, who was too disdainful to talk to Li Shimin any more, returned directly to the modern era, put on headphones and started playing games.
"Crackle! Crackle! 123..."
After typing on the keyboard for five or six hours, Li Haoze finally completed the copy and felt refreshed.
Lying on the computer chair made of human bionics, I started refreshing the video.
The first thing that caught my eye was the new discovery of a landslide near Chang'an City.
Shocking! Landslide near Chang'an City reveals the remains of a thousand-year-old steam iron ore mine!
Li Haoze looked at the news headlines on the mobile phone screen, raised his brows slightly, and felt an inexplicable interest in his heart.
He was just thinking about it and would go online to collect some information later to study how to build an integrated equipment for steam mining and iron ore smelting.
After all, the boasting has already been made in the Tang Dynasty. If it cannot be realized, it will be a huge embarrassment.
Unexpectedly, the news push was so considerate that it directly delivered the information he needed to him, saving him the trouble of searching.
Isn't this just asking him to copy it?
Li Haoze opened the news with great interest and read it carefully.
News reports mentioned that this was due to the continuous heavy rains in recent days.
A landslide occurred on a mountain near Chang'an City, accidentally revealing a huge cave hidden deep inside the mountain.
Archaeologists and geologists acted quickly and went to the site to conduct exploration.
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