A rough calculation shows that it has been eighteen years since the barbarian invasion.
Liu Zhengjun is now fifty-five years old.
He is in a high position and has a straight figure, which has a great aura of a big figure.
I remember that Lao Liu was a chef at that time, and was approachable, happy to everyone, and enthusiastically taught Zhang Wu how to make money with food.
Now seeing each other, Lao Liu's hair is mostly white and she is in prison. If he doesn't untie the heavy shackles, he will be killed in three days.
Of course, Zhang Wu dared to call out his name directly because his name was already on the file.
Yong'an County, which Lao Liu governed, is also adjacent to Luling County. It is not surprising that the people have heard of the deeds of the county magistrate.
However, Zhang Wu called him his name directly, which was very disrespectful.
Lao Liu was not angry.
At least I dare not be angry on the surface.
After staying in Tianzhu for half his life, no one knows better the consequences of offending the prison guard than him.
He asked with a polite fist:
"I wonder if my brother's name is the best?"
"Little Man and Horse."
"It turns out it's Ma Ge'er, I feel respectful."
Liu Zhengjun bowed and said:
"I am already in prison and I am guilty of being in prison. If Brother Ma looks down on me, just shout "Old Liu."
"Boy is just a slut. I'm afraid that Lao Liu will be stabbed by the backbone."
The prison room was not high enough, Zhang Wu couldn't straighten his waist, so he simply squatted down and said:
"Sir, you have achieved remarkable achievements in Yong'an County, with clean and honest hands and a god of judgment. You are called Liu Qingtian. Somehow you were put into prison?"
Liu Zhengjun's face turned red by being praised.
Under Liu Qing's rule, people were living in poverty, and he had a great contribution.
But Mr. Ma An spoke very sincerely. He couldn't tell whether the other party was sarcasticating him and deliberately said something slanderous.
"It's all false names, not worth mentioning."
Old Liu waved his hand humbly and sighed:
"I, Lao Liu, was really wronged when I was impeached this time. The court officials who did not know how to offend me were impeached in every way, which forced His Majesty to punish me."
"I have read your case file. Your Majesty criticized you for your self-care. I don't know, Lord Liu..."
Before Zhang Wu finished speaking, Liu Zhengjun interrupted:
"I am even more unfair when talking about this. I am dedicated to serving the people and promoting water conservancy, which has angered Your Majesty. It is really unfair to me."
"Sir, repairing water conservancy is a good thing that benefits the country and the people. It's not considered a job in self-reliance, right?"
Zhang Wu asked in confusion:
"Is it because you recruited the civilians too ruthlessly, which made people angry and rebellious? Or were there some subordinates who were greedy and collapsed when the river bank crashed? Or maybe you did not repair it at all, which affected the harvest and did not hand over enough money and grain to His Majesty?"
“Nothing is happening.”
Lao Liu said with a serious expression:
"No matter how evil I am, Liu Zhengjun, I know that if I can't repair water conservancy well, I can't collect money and grain, and my position will be unstable. Therefore, I personally supervise the repair of water conservancy every year, and I have never made any major mistakes."
"That's strange."
Zhang Wu's face was full of suspicion.
Just think that Lao Liu is talking nonsense.
There are great benefits to repairing water conservancy. In terms of projects, Lao Liu's methods are comparable to those of making money in prison.
If it weren’t for being too greedy and having too much appetite, and not giving enough money to Liu Qing, how could he be put into prison?
After thinking about it, Zhang Wu asked:
"What reasons do courtiers impeach you?"
"Tortoise car."
"Tortoise car?"
Zhang Wu was stunned and puzzled.
Liu Zhengjun complained:
"Every year when Yong'an County builds water conservancy, it has to recruit more than 200,000 civilians. Their food, drink and accommodation are a big problem. If they are not done properly, they will cause chaos and cause me a headache."
"There are also places to repair, how to repair it, where to irrigate the water, and how to irrigate the fertile fields of which big family. It is very troublesome. I hope to complete the water conservancy repairs as soon as possible every year."
After a pause, Liu Zhengjun sighed:
"It just so happened that there was a skilled craftsman in the civil servants who invented the magical artifact of the turtle car. This car can be used as a sand digging boat, or it can be transported ashore, which can shorten the construction period by half. If it is promoted nationwide, it will kill fewer people and save the court.
How much manpower and material resources?”
"So I report this car to Your Majesty."
"In no mood……"
"I was so frustrated to be sent to prison before I could get promoted."
“…”
Zhang Wu's mouth twitched, and he didn't know what to say.
Your political wisdom is really not very good.
The chef has never studied any books and is not so conscientious. He can fight bravely and ruthlessly. If he is an expert, he will be promoted to the third grade. It is really Liu Qing who praised you.
If you want to climb up, loyalty and standing sidelines are important.
In addition, you can't touch most people's cakes, otherwise the emperor can only kill you to calm everyone's anger.
Zhang Wu reminded:
"Mr. Liu, I have been to a private school for several years. My husband has taught me that rulers of all dynasties do not like strange skills. You might as well think about why Your Majesty criticized you for your poor plan for the country."
"I'm not good at planning national affairs?"
Liu Zhengjun felt aggrieved and complained:
"I handed over the turtle cart to save the court a lot of money. Isn't this considered planning for national affairs?"
“…”
Rotten wood cannot be carved.
Zhang Wu said helplessly:
"Mr. Liu, I think you have tasted the sweetness of water conservancy repairs. From above to below you, layer after layer, I don't know how many people eat this steamed bun. This is just a county's water conservancy. If you look at the whole country,
How many people have you moved when your turtle cart comes out?"
Liu Zhengjun was as stupid as a wooden chicken.
Zhang Wu said:
"Blocking people's way of wealth is like killing parents. Your starting point is good, but the person who eats steamed buns will cut you into pieces."
"I understand that they want to move. Doesn't your Majesty know the importance of this turtle car?"
Liu Zhengjun was disheartened and sat on the low wooden bed, as if he had been drained from his whole body.
He was greedy, did too much evil, and suffered too much people. He wanted to redeem his sins with this cart, but the reality was a blow.
Zhang Wu shook his head and sighed:
"When you promote your turtle car, it will not only affect water conservancy, but also change the tax system and shake the foundation of the country."
"You only need to recruit more than 200,000 civilians in your county, and the whole country has to recruit millions every year. With a turtle cart, half of the civilians in your coupon are fewer. These people really don't have to suffer."
"But if their family has no money and cannot deduct taxes through labor, how can you let them survive?"
Liu Zhengjun woke up from a dream, sitting blankly, unable to speak for a long time.
The extremely prosperous dynasty dared not touch the tax reform.
The Yongchang Kingdom was just established. In the past ten years, it has caused chaos in various places and decayed people's livelihood.
If you move the tax system, Emperor Jing Hao doesn’t need to destroy you, the refugees who rebel everywhere will overthrow Yongchang.
Even if your Liu family has the support of a great master, it cannot stop the thousands of stars and fires.
"The stability of the dynasty is more important than anything else. I'm dead!"
Liu Zhengjun's face was ashes and collapsed on the wooden bed.