As the end of the year approached and the winter grew colder, just when the imperial court was overwhelmed with the problem of snow, a memorial to the emperor's memorial was like a huge stone dropped into the water, causing quite a lot of ripples.
This memorial, titled "On Honest Administration and Frugality", was the first memorial submitted by Shen Hexuan two years after he entered the government. In it, he bluntly pointed out that the national treasury was in a tight spot because of excessive spending, excessive rewards, the large number of royal family members, redundant officials, and incompetent military. He also proposed solutions for each of the problems so that the people would not have to pay more and the national finances would be sufficient.
This memorial criticized current ills and gave frank advice. Except for the important praise of Emperor Zhaowu's achievements in governing the country at the beginning, the following words were extremely sharp and each word was true. It was really shocking that a young Hanlin could have such vision and insight.
Yan Sikong felt very complicated when he heard the news.
On the one hand, Shen Hexuan did listen to his advice and did not raise maritime tax at an inappropriate time. On the other hand, Shen Hexuan had the talent to see things from a high level, but he did not understand people's hearts. When he wrote with a passion for the country and the people, he probably did not expect, or did not care at all, what this memorial would bring him.
Nowadays, there are many officials who are doing nothing in the government and the country. How could they be ignorant of current affairs? It's just that no one is willing to poke a hole in the window paper, because whoever does so will pay the price.
The national treasury was already insufficient for disaster relief, and someone should have stood up and said this. It was Yan Zilian who asked Shen Hexuan to stand up rather than to say that Shen Hexuan chose to stand up. Because officials who were not attending the court had to go through the Hanlin Academy to submit memorials, Shen Hexuan's memorial was able to be delivered to the emperor because Yan Zilian acquiesced.
This memorial will make Shen Hexuan famous, and may even help the emperor implement one or two clean government policies. However, it will also offend a large number of people, and he might end up suffering the consequences.
Yan Zilian did not dissuade the hot-blooded young student. Was it because he appreciated his honesty, or did he want to use him to inspire new policies? Either way, Yan Sikong was a little disappointed.
This memorial, which mentioned the royal family's extravagant spending, naturally displeased the emperor. It was also criticized by some ministers, especially royal relatives. They believed that Shen Hexuan was talking about philosophy and military affairs on paper, and that his seemingly long and eloquent speeches were actually empty and might have misled the emperor. Some people even demanded on the spot that Shen Hexuan be severely punished.
Of course, Yan Zilian and his group also came out to defend Shen Hexuan, believing that he was sincere and that what he said had merits, so the debate continued that day.
Shen Hexuan was a minor figure and his words were not taken seriously, so this memorial was destined to be buried. However, it played a very important role - it put the issue of reducing royal family expenses before Emperor Zhaowu again.
Most later historical books believe that Shen Hexuan's memorial was a major turning point in the fate of the Da Sheng state, and laid the groundwork for the subsequent turbulent and sweeping struggles for governance, chaos, survival, and domination in the Central Plains.
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A dozen days later, Emperor Zhaowu issued an imperial decree to abolish all New Year gifts given to clan members and use the money for disaster relief. From then on, except for the princes' children, no clan members were given New Year gifts.
In fact, there have been precedents in history of postponing the New Year ceremonies due to treasury constraints, but it was the first time in more than 200 years that it was completely abolished. The government and the public were shocked, but no one dared to complain. After all, the people suffered from the snow disaster, and complaining at this time would be giving others an excuse and asking for trouble.
Emperor Zhaowu also issued an edict that this year's Spring Festival celebrations should be kept simple to show that it was not targeting members of the royal family. However, everyone knew that the New Year's gifts were the smallest part of the rewards for members of the royal family, and this edict was probably just the beginning.
Sure enough, a few days later, another imperial decree was issued to investigate a case in which a clan member in Jinan Prefecture had occupied farmland. The person was not taken to the capital, but was tried directly on the spot. He was then charged with murder and usurpation of the family line, and his property was confiscated and he was exiled.
In the past, occupying a few plots of land from the people was nothing. This move is nothing more than killing the chicken to scare the monkey.
The new year has not yet ended, but people in the government and the country are already in panic.
Yan Sikong saw all these things, and the closer it got to the end of the year, the more focused he watched, because at this time every year, he needed to go to hell and come back, and then see the world more thoroughly.
Because Yuan Mao’s death anniversary is coming.
Ali had already prepared the sacrificial items for him and placed them carefully in a basket. When it was completely dark, he stood at the door, quietly waiting for Yan Sikong.
Yan Sikong, dressed in black and with a hood covering his head, personally picked up the basket and said in a deep voice, "Let's go."
There were few pedestrians on the cold street. No one noticed them as they walked along. They turned into a winding and messy alley and finally stopped in front of a small house.
Ali took out the key, unlocked the door, and the two of them slipped in.
The house had been uninhabited for who knows how long and was in a very dilapidated state. The solitary light in Ali's hand seemed somewhat eerie in this deserted house covered in weeds.
Ali walked forward first, unlocked the main house with the key, and Yan Sikong walked in.
The inside of the house was quite different from the outside. Although the whole house was covered with dust, all the objects were neatly arranged and obviously valuable. In the center was a huge altar made of golden nanmu wood. In the center of the altar was a golden Buddhist shrine with a white jade Guanyin statue inlaid with luminous gems standing in it. Even the incense burner underneath was made of thick copper.
On the altar, there are three people's spirit tablets, they are Yuan Mao and Yan Sikong's biological parents.
That year, Yuan Shaoxu drove him out of his home, and he secretly went back. In addition to giving Yuan Weiling the silver he got from pawning the dagger given to him by Feng Ye, he also took away his parents' spirit tablets. After wandering for several years, they were the only ones who kept him company and comforted him. After settling down in Beijing, he secretly built a spirit platform for them here.
Ali lit a candle, cleaned up a bit, placed the things in the basket in front of the mat, then quietly went out and closed the door.
Yan Sikong knelt in front of the mat and kowtowed heavily two or three times. When he raised his head, tears were already pouring down his face.
"Dad, Mom, Kong'er is here to see you..."
During the days of displacement, no matter how much suffering he endured, no matter how much pain he endured, even though his life was on the line several times, he gritted his teeth and survived. He would not die without avenging his great hatred. He would send those beasts to hell one by one to comfort the spirits of his parents and adoptive father in heaven.
He lit incense, poured wine, and spoke in a calm tone about recent events, as if his relatives were still there, listening lovingly. Only here could he dare to open up his heart and let out some of the depression in his heart.
Before he knew it, he had drunk the entire bottle of wine.
He could drink a lot, but every year, when he knelt before his parents' spirit tablets, he would get drunk. It wasn't because the wine was particularly strong. If a person had a reason to drink, any wine would be the same.
After staying here for two hours, he had already fallen to the ground before being helped up by Ali. Ali looked at Yan Sikong's drunken face, with heartache in his eyes. He sighed silently, tidied Yan Sikong's clothes, and helped him out the door.
It was already late at night and there was no carriage available, so Ali carried Yan Sikong on his back and walked home step by step.
Fortunately, the Yan Mansion was not far from here, but when he was almost home, Ali was already out of breath and his legs were weak.
When he got closer to the door, Ali found a tall man standing there, wrapped in a cloak and shivering slightly in the cold wind.
Looking closely, it turned out to be Feng Ye.
Feng Ye also saw them. He was stunned at first, and then ran over in panic: "What happened to Sikong?"
Ali gestured with his hand, but Feng Ye didn't understand at all. He took Yan Sikong from Ali's back and sniffed the smell of alcohol. He felt relieved, but frowned deeply and said unhappily, "Where did you go? Why is he so drunk?"