Chapter 120 The Prince Has a Better Plan
The emperor looked solemn.
"Royal brother, this matter is of no small importance. Are you truly sure?"
The eyes of all the ministers were also focused on Xiao Changheng.
Suddenly someone stepped out and said:
"Your Majesty, the Regent has always been a master of strategy and never fights a battle without confidence. This is obvious to all. I think that if the Regent is willing to guarantee the princess, this matter can be tried!"
The person who spoke was the Minister of War, who had remained silent the whole time.
After he made this statement, several others came forward to second his words and support the Regent.
After all, there is really no better way to think of at the moment. The Regent has now taken on the responsibility of military rations, so why should they stop him?
Even the Minister of Revenue, who had always been on the same side as the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Su, stood up to express his support despite the Crown Prince's displeased gaze.
Xiao Zirui understood what he was thinking. The Ministry of Revenue was supposed to provide the money for raising food and silver for the war, and he was now eager for someone to take on this hot potato.
Although some people stood up to support the Regent, Xiao Zirui, Prime Minister Su and others still opposed it. For a time, the Imperial Study was divided into two camps, and they were at a stalemate.
The emperor felt a headache and slammed the table, shouting:
"Okay, stop arguing!"
Only then did everyone quiet down.
The emperor coughed a few times and waved his hand tiredly, having made up his mind.
He looked at Xiao Changheng:
"The Regent is the War God of Daliang, and the Northwest Army is his direct line. I believe he will never treat the Northwest Army's food and fodder as a joke!"
"Since my brother is confident that we can transport food and fodder from Jing State, I will..."
He was just halfway through his words when he was suddenly interrupted by a voice from the messenger:
"The Queen has arrived—"
Xiao Zirui secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was really worried that he would not be able to make it in time.
As soon as the Regent proposed to transport grain from the small southern country, he secretly ordered his confidant to invite the Queen over, and finally she arrived in time.
The emperor looked at the queen who entered gracefully and frowned in confusion:
"I was in the middle of a meeting, why is the Queen here?"
The Queen bowed respectfully and said solemnly:
"I have heard that the Northwest Army is in urgent need of food, and I have come to help Your Majesty."
Although the ministers were a little surprised by her sudden appearance, they obviously had no objection.
Although it is a rule that the harem does not interfere in politics, it is well known that this Queen of Daliang is not subject to this restriction.
This is because the emperor and the empress are a young couple and are very affectionate.
He was just an unknown and obscure prince back then. He had been weak and sickly since childhood, and no faction had any hope for him.
It was only with the support of the queen and her family that he stood out from the complicated court situation and eventually ascended the throne.
In recent years, the emperor has been bedridden most of the time and sometimes unable to handle state affairs. The queen feels sorry for his hard work and initially just hides behind the scenes to offer advice and help.
But since ten years ago, when the Emperor was seriously ill with a cold, Prince Rong took advantage of the situation to plot a rebellion, and the Queen discovered the clues. She acted decisively and took every step carefully. While stabilizing Prince Rong, she contacted his family, arranged the imperial guards, and laid a tight net.
Finally, when Prince Rong led his men into the palace to force the emperor to abdicate, all the rebels were captured in one fell swoop. Since then, the queen was enthroned, and the emperor also said that Queen Chen was a meritorious official who protected the country, and she was qualified to participate in government affairs, which was not an overstep.
At this moment, the queen suddenly appeared, and it seemed that there was a way to solve the food problem. The court officials immediately became alert and waited for her next words.
The emperor also said excitedly:
"Does the Queen have any clever ideas?"
The Queen smiled slightly:
"It's not a brilliant plan, but I have a way to buy enough food."
"Really?" the emperor asked in surprise. "Eighty percent of our dynasty's grain comes from the Liangjiang area. This year's floods have left a complete crop in Liangjiang. All the grain the country can mobilize has already been diverted there to provide relief to the victims. Do you really think you can still buy grain?"
Historically, the national treasury was filled with grain in good years, and was used for relief in years of disaster. The amount of surplus grain left in the treasury depended on the severity of the natural disaster.
This year, all the grain in the national treasury was used up for disaster relief. Not only that, the grain in the people's pockets was also almost collected, which is why the emperor and the Ministry of Revenue are so worried.
The Queen nodded and said:
"What I said is absolutely true. The reason is simple. Although grain from merchants across the country was requisitioned for disaster relief, the price it was sold to the national treasury was only on par with the market price in normal times. However, if we hoarded the grain, we could resell it privately at a higher price."
"Therefore, many merchants were reluctant to sell grain to the imperial court, often only giving a small amount as a token of appreciation, while the bulk of the proceeds remained in their own granaries."
The emperor thought about her words and frowned again:
"These private businesses have always had their own policies and countermeasures. Since they've already purchased grain on a large scale, I'm afraid everyone will now claim their warehouses are empty. Verifying this is unrealistic."
"That's exactly what I was going to say." The Queen smiled slightly. "My maternal grandfather was kind to a wealthy family in Quzhou in his early years, and they've been in contact for many years. That wealthy family is now quite wealthy and has a lot of respect in the Liangjiang area."
"If he is the middleman, it would make those merchants willing to sell the grain in the warehouse to the national treasury."
When everyone heard this, they started talking about it and all thought it was feasible.
The emperor also nodded frequently.
Quzhou is located in the area of the Two Rivers. If we can buy enough food from here, the journey time from a small country in the central government to the Northwest can be shortened by two-thirds.
"It's just that..." The Queen suddenly paused and changed the subject, "This year's harvest is poor, and the price of rice in the market is already ten times higher than usual. If we still buy grain from merchants at the previous purchase price, I'm afraid even if there is a suitable person to mediate, it won't be possible."
After she said this, everyone fell silent again.
The emperor hesitated and said:
"Then what price does the Queen think we should pay to buy grain from the merchants?"
The Queen pondered for a moment and said:
"It's wrong to take advantage of natural disasters to drive up food prices. We certainly can't really raise the price tenfold."
"But since we're purchasing grain under the name of the imperial court, using heavy-handed tactics might lose the people's support. So, I think we should just purchase the grain at three times the normal market price."
"This matter is urgent. If Your Majesty agrees, I will immediately contact that old friend and will be able to gather six months' worth of food and fodder for the Northwest Army within half a month."
When she said this, the emperor nodded at first, but his face did not look relaxed at all.
"The Queen is right. If the merchants really still have surplus grain, it would be reasonable to spend three times the price to buy grain during this extraordinary period."
"But... the treasury is empty. Where can we raise so much money to collect grain?"
The Queen exchanged a look with the Crown Prince and smiled slightly:
"Your Majesty, I am willing to donate one thousand taels and reduce my food and clothing expenses to half to pay for the grain collection."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Zirui also said:
"As the Crown Prince, I must devote all my energy to the country. I am willing to donate 10,000 taels to collect grain!"
The Emperor was very pleased:
"The Queen and the Crown Prince are deeply concerned about the country and should be role models for Daliang!"
After saying this, he turned his sharp eyes to the ministers.
The ministers lowered their heads and sweated slightly.
How did this suddenly turn into a donation to buy military rations? And if it was just a token of appreciation, it would be fine, but the prince donated ten thousand taels at once. Even if the ministers did not donate that much, it would not be too far behind.
Wouldn't this cause them to bleed heavily?
When the emperor saw that no one said anything, his expression became gloomy again.
At this moment, Xiao Zirui suddenly spoke:
"As the Regent, the Imperial Uncle should set an example for the court officials. Moreover, this is to raise rations for the Northwest Army under the Imperial Uncle's command. I believe the Imperial Uncle will not disappoint Father, right?"
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