Zhao Yun called Gao Shi and said to him: "It is my decree that from today on, frugality will be practiced in the palace. The expenses of Cining Palace will be halved, and the attendants will also be halved."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Gao Shi agreed, then exited the study and went to handle it.
Cining Hall.
Empress Dowager Yang was very angry when she heard that Zhao Yun had reduced the expenses of Cining Palace by half, and the attendants had also been reduced by half.
She said angrily: "As expected by the Ai family, the official family is so heartless and unjust. They have just come to power, and they have come to arrange the Ai family. Today they are reducing the Ai family's expenses. Tomorrow, will the Ai family's rice be divided among them?"
Two meals to eat!”
Jia Chong advised on the side: "Mother, the officials pardoned the death penalty of Shi Miyuan's family members a few days ago. The officials are benevolent. When it comes to reducing expenditures, I'm afraid the officials have other ideas."
Empress Dowager Yang's expression became serious, and a look of panic appeared on her face.
"You mean,,,the officials found out about military pay?"
The issue of the missing two million military pay is now making a big fuss. In order to collect the military pay, Zhao Yun raided the homes of corrupt officials overnight. This is everyone's knowledge. Even if Empress Dowager Yang was in the palace, she could not help but
Know.
Empress Dowager Yang was frightened for a while. When she did this, she had great power, so naturally she had no scruples and had nothing to fear.
But now that Zhao Yun is in power, although it is impossible for Zhao Yun to publicly execute her for this matter, if he secretly executes her secretly and then announces to the world that she died of a sudden illness, no one will say anything.
After all, there are a lot of things like this in the palace. Otherwise, how could there be so many princesses and princesses who died peacefully? Isn’t this how they are all handled?
Of course, Jia Chong could not know that Zhao Yun was involved in rescuing Shi Miyuan because of Empress Dowager Yang. He only thought that Zhao Yun had found military pay.
Jia Chong said worriedly: "My Majesty, this matter is big or small. If you can make up the money and say a few more good words, the officials will consider the dignity of the royal family and I guess they won't pursue it too much."
"Fill?"
Queen Mother Yang was dumbfounded, "Others don't know, don't you know? Now that the money is almost spent, how do you ask the Ai family to make up for it?"
After hearing this, Jia Chong didn't know what to say.
At this moment, a small yellow doorman ran in and reported that Zheng Qingzhi was outside the hall asking for an audience.
Whatever the case, the arrival of Zheng Qingzhi made Empress Dowager Yang even more aware that Zhao Yun had discovered the matter of military pay and that he was here to recover it.
"pass."
Unable to do so, Empress Dowager Yang had to sit upright and receive Zheng Qingzhi in the main hall.
Zheng Qingzhi raised his hand to salute, then looked at the small yellow gate and the palace maids in the palace, and said: "I would also like to ask the queen to step aside."
Empress Dowager Yang had a sudden thought. It turned out to be a matter of military pay. What should she do?
After ordering the people to retreat, only Jia Chong stood sideways.
Zheng Qingzhi said: "Your Majesty, I am here this time to discuss the disappearance of the Sichuan-Sichuan army's pay. Please be honest with me and explain the reasons so that we can properly resolve the matter and avoid making a big mistake."
Queen Mother Yang twisted her hands together unconsciously, feeling very nervous.
Empress Dowager Yang hesitated and said: "This, this, this,,, what Xianggong Zheng said, the Ai family doesn't understand."
Zheng Qingzhi knew that Empress Dowager Yang still wanted to deny it, so she said directly: "Shi Miyuan has already confessed. This military salary was obtained by you in three installments. Madam, as long as the Queen Mother handles this matter as soon as possible, there is still room for maneuver. If the trouble gets to the point where officials are required to come forward,
, I’m afraid the scene will be ugly.”
Queen Mother Yang lowered her head, looking worried.
After thinking about it for a long time, Queen Mother Yang knew that she could not deny it, so she looked at Jia Chong beside her and motioned for Jia Chong to speak.
Jia Chong understood and said to Zheng Qingzhi: "Mr. Zheng, you don't know something. The queen has used the money to reward her family, and there is not much left."
"What, your mother-in-law actually used military salary to reward your mother-in-law's family?"
Zheng Qingzhi's face was full of disbelief. He looked at Queen Mother Yang as if she were a fool. How stupid a woman must be to do such a thing.
Shocked, Zheng Qingzhi asked urgently: "Even if it is a reward to my mother-in-law, it will only last less than a year, so it will not be used up too much. And even if the reward is given out and it is recovered, do they still dare not to pay it back?"
?”
Empress Dowager Yang was extremely headache and ashamed. She sat there without speaking. Jia Chong could only explain the whole story to Zheng Qingzhi.
It turns out that Queen Mother Yang was extremely vain, wanted face, and liked to take care of her natal family, so after she became the queen of Ning Zong and Zhao Kuo, she took great care of her natal family and became more and more generous to her natal family.
In the end, with just a wave of his hand, he was rewarded with thousands of guan.
Especially when Empress Dowager Yang's parents passed away, she spent money like water, and used countless priceless treasures to bury her parents with them.
But none of this is what she can afford. Even if her salary is increased ten times or a hundred times, it is still not enough. These are all borrowed from outside through Jia Chong, and they all bear interest and must be repaid.
Over the years, I have borrowed more than one million yuan one after another. In the end, the creditors outside had no money to survive the winter and were pressing for repayment.
Empress Dowager Yang was worried that this matter would be exposed, and she would lose face, so she came up with the idea of military pay. She said that the court had plenty of money anyway, and when it was needed, she would issue an order to embezzle it from other places. In a few years, it would be
No one cares about it anymore, let it go.
This was really thunderous. The empress dowager of a powerful country actually went to borrow money. Zheng Qingzhi was immediately dumbfounded.
Funing Hall.
Zhao Yun read at night by the lantern, holding a book introducing Wang Anshi's reform in his hand, and read carefully.
At this time, Zhao Yun was seeing the introduction to the section about Wang Anshi's implementation of the Young Crops Law, and Zhao Yun couldn't help but feel angry.
The original intention of the Green Crops Law was to provide low-interest loans to the people when farmers were in short supply in February and May, so that farmers could have money to buy food and cope with the food crisis, so that they would not be forced to sell their children or daughters.
The interest rate on this loan is also low, only two cents per year for half a year, which is completely affordable for farmers. It is a great thing that benefits the country and the people.
However, the Green Crops Law changed when it came to local areas. Local officials required farmers to borrow money regardless of whether they needed it or not. They also added various excuses to make the interest rate soar ten to twenty times. In the highest places, it was even as high as
Thirty-five times as much, which caused farmers who could still survive to go bankrupt and finally to the end.
In the book that Zhao Yun read, when introducing this situation, the book did not ask why the local officials ignored the original intention of the Qingmiao Law and forcibly assigned farmers loans, raised interest rates, and turned good governance into bad governance.
Instead, they blindly accused Wang Anshi, saying that he was arbitrary, relied on his power to reform, took over everything, could not listen to the opinions of officials, ignored the laws of his ancestors, and did his own thing, causing countless farmers to go bankrupt, die or rebel.