For three consecutive days, Baili Tang did not attend court after returning to the palace, and the empress dowager continued to rule the country from behind the curtain.
On the surface, the Queen Mother handled everything in an orderly manner, but in fact, she left many big traps for Baili Tang, waiting for him to jump into!
For example, the most serious treasury problem!!
How can a country function without money?
The year before last, the treasury revenue of Jing State was 30.8 million guan (two taels); last year it was 26.2 million guan (two taels); this year, as of today - half a month after the Mid-Autumn Festival, it has just reached 10 million guan (two taels).
In Yu Tang's previous life, during the Song Dynasty, the national treasury revenue ranged from 70 million to 160 million strings of cash! During the Song Dynasty, not only did they prioritize culture over military power, they also rarely prioritized agriculture over commerce! Consequently, the economy flourished!
So, where is Jingguo’s fiscal revenue mainly used?
Arrange from most to least:
Military expenditure, official salary expenditure, farmland and water conservancy expenditure, royal expenditure, annual tribute expenditure, disaster relief expenditure, and other expenditure!
Oh, and there are countless "rice borers"! For example, people like Jia Shidao, in whose secret room Baili Tang found countless gold and silver treasures; and the county magistrate of Dongyun County, who colluded with salt merchants, sold illegal salt, enriched himself, and became even richer than Jia Shidao...
Expenses such as royal expenses, annual tribute, official salaries, and military expenses are necessary. However, expenses for farmland irrigation, disaster relief, and other expenses should be reduced as much as possible...
However, this will inevitably lead to public outcry and resentment...
Even though Baili Tang didn't attend court, it didn't mean he didn't understand these things. As a modern man, he was speechless.
Jingguo is really rotten from head to toe.
Internal and external troubles!!
Since Baili Tang still did not attend court, some of the civil and military officials lost their patience and began to worry - Your Majesty, will you deal with us?
When leaving court, many people stopped Zhang Dongzheng, Lord Wang and others to find out what had happened.
Who is Zhang Dongzheng? He is the kind of person who can talk to you for an hour without getting to the point.
Soon, everyone turned their attention to Lord Wang, hoping to get some useful information from him.
Lord Wang's words became even more exaggerated: "This matter must be told from Xiyun County! On that day, dark clouds covered the sun, thunder rumbled from the sky... Your Majesty was staying in the temporary palace when he was suddenly struck by lightning..."
Lord Wang couldn't finish his story for three days and three nights...
It's the ninth month of the lunar calendar, and since there was no significant greenhouse effect in ancient times, the temperature in Jingyang City fluctuates greatly from morning to evening, rising from just over ten degrees Celsius in the morning to over twenty degrees Celsius at noon. After spending a few days there, Baili Tang went for a walk in the Imperial Garden.
He has not been attending court these days, but has been trying to understand the situation in the court, the various forces, and to arrange some things.
At this time of year, the begonias were in full bloom, and the garden was filled with vibrant colors, a breathtaking sight. Baili Tang also showed a long-lost smile on his face.
Since returning to the palace, Eunuch Yang noticed that His Majesty rarely smiled. This was especially true the day before yesterday, when Concubine Liang went to pay her respects to the various palaces and was wronged… Concubine Liang was also assigned to another palace by the Empress Dowager…
Why didn't Baili Tang stop it?
It's useless. I can stop him once, but I can't stop him the second time. Let's put up with it for a while, my beloved concubine, and wait for him to "clean up" the harem first...
Soon Baili Tang's good mood was ruined by the naughty kid!
"Stop him, don't let him come up!"
"You bastard! Instead of staying in your cold palace, you actually dared to run out!"
"Hurry, hurry! He's trying to climb up, kick him down!"
There was only the voice of a child. If Baili Tang guessed correctly, it was the second prince speaking!
The sound came from the other side of the wall, and Baili Tang quietly walked over. It was indeed the Second Prince, who was ordering several young eunuchs to surround a lotus pond. Inside the pond was a child much younger than him.
Fortunately, this child can swim at such a young age, otherwise he would have drowned in the pond.
Even so, the child was almost exhausted.
"Go and call Concubine Liang and tell her that her son fell into the pond!" Baili Tang said sternly to Eunuch Yang.
He is angry!
Eunuch Yang went to do it personally! He knew that His Majesty was angry this time!
Yes, Baili Tang was angry!
Some people are demons at a young age!
You deserve a beating!
But Baili Tang did not go out to stop it immediately. Instead, he asked everyone to be silent and wait for Concubine Liang to arrive so that she could see with her own eyes how evil her son was! At the same time, he wanted to see how she would react.
Sure enough, upon hearing that her son was in trouble, the extremely gorgeous Concubine Liang came faster than anyone else, with her hair all messed up!
Then she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her son was fine! As for the poor child in the pool, she didn't even look at him!
"Eunuch Yang, why did you lie to me?" Concubine Liang questioned Eunuch Yang.
"It is your Majesty's order, and I am only following it."
Baili Tang then came out slowly and praised the Second Prince with a smile: "Well done, Second Prince!"
"Thank you, Father, for the compliment!" Even if a seven-year-old child was extremely bad, how could he be so cunning? "This bastard actually dared to sneak into the cold palace without permission. I will freeze him to death..."
"You dislike him?" Baili Tang continued to ask with a smile, "Is it just because he ran away from the cold palace without permission? Did I ever forbid him to leave the cold palace?"
"Everyone in the palace dislikes him..."
The Second Prince was about to speak when he was interrupted by Concubine Liang: "Your Majesty, the prince is still young and doesn't understand! You, hurry up and rescue him..."
Still young and ignorant? Then wouldn't the child in the pond be even younger?
Baili Tang hates hearing such words the most!
Especially when he saw the child's face clearly, a fire ignited in his heart!
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