On the second day after Zhou Shang, Lu Ensheng and a group of elected representatives held a banquet, in the imperial study room in the imperial city, Zhou Jun sat in front of the desk, holding a stack of neatly transcribed words and deeds in his hand, and was looking at them carefully.
There were two people standing in front of the desk, one was Kong You and the other was Wang Hong.
After Zhou Jun read all the paper copies, he said to Wang Hong: "That's it?"
Wang Hong: "Your Majesty, Minister Lu, Zhou Shaoyin and a group of elected representatives stopped talking at this point, and then the normal banquet began."
Zhou Jun rubbed his forehead: "The elected representatives are like a group of donkeys working hard. If you don't use whips to urge them, they will rest where they are and never think about moving forward."
Kong You: "It's natural for people to be afraid of officials. Although elected representatives are listening outside the court these days, some people have an irrelevant attitude and don't care at all what is said in the court; although some people have their own intentions
Express political opinions, but are afraid of the power in the hands of officials and worry that if they say the wrong thing, they will incur retaliation. Therefore, His Majesty took advantage of the Ministry of Household's request to increase commercial taxes, set up a trap, and forced these representatives to start a group to fight back, which can be regarded as angering them.
Don’t fight, just go with the flow.”
Zhou Jun: "The Ministry of Household Affairs wants to increase commercial taxes, which has affected the lives of the representatives. I don't believe that this group of people will tolerate it anymore... It's just that this group of people is still scattered now, even if they argue with the officials in the court
Even if we fight hard, it will be difficult to gain the upper hand."
Wang Hong said carefully from the side: "Your Majesty, according to the investigation of the Jin Yiwei, there are many ministers in the court who have formed alliances with local big families to forge land tax records to avoid taxes and tributes... As long as you give the order
, I immediately ordered the Jin Yiwei to arrest the person."
Zhou Jun shook his head and said: "After arresting this batch, there will be another batch. Just like what Lu Ensheng said at the banquet, the court officials are both judges and parties. In this case, how can there be no reason not to be greedy? The key is not
It’s not about arresting people, but it’s about changing this status quo.”
Wang Hong: "Your Majesty, your Majesty is true to his words. If you want to change the status quo, all you need is an imperial edict, so why go to all this trouble?"
Zhou Jun: "I can indeed issue an imperial edict to solve the current troubles, but the root of the trouble still exists. If we want to solve this root, we can't just rely on me alone. We must also involve tens of millions of people in the world."
"
Wang Hong was confused when he heard it, but after His Majesty said so, he could only nod in agreement.
After discussing political affairs, Zhou Jun drove to Hanyuan Hall.
Queen Yin Yu was in the palace directing her subordinates to arrange the arrangements. When she heard that the emperor was coming, she quickly dropped what she was doing and went to the middle gate to greet him.
When Zhou Jun saw Yin Yu, he first asked, "Have you spoken to Xiao'er?"
Yin Yu nodded and said: "In half an hour, Xiaoer will bring Ai Qing and come here to say hello... According to Erlang's instructions, dinner is also prepared."
Zhou Jun: "I haven't had dinner with them for a long time, so I just asked them to accompany me and talk."
Yin Yu smiled and said yes.
After half an hour, a message came from Hanyuan Hall, saying that the prince and his wife were asking for an audience.
Not long after, Zhou Xiao and Luo Aiqing walked into the inner hall and greeted Zhou Jun and Yin Yu.
Yin Yu glanced at the Crown Princess's slightly swollen belly, with a smile on her face. She slowly walked to the latter's side and told her maids to be careful.
Zhou Jun saw Yin Yu pulling Luo Aiqing to talk, so he looked at Zhou Xiao and asked: "Today in the court, the Ministry of Household Affairs proposed to increase the commercial tax to increase the tax revenue of the Tang Dynasty. What do you think?"
Zhou Xiao thought for a while and replied: "Father, I think what the Ministry of Revenue said is reasonable. At present, the trade in the Tang Dynasty is booming, and the merchant houses are making money every day. A moderate increase in taxes will also be conducive to the balance of expenditures in the Tang Dynasty."
Zhou Jun said nothing and just glanced at Zhou Xiao.
The latter rubbed his hands and looked uneasy.
Zhou Jun asked again: "You also met Zhou Shaoyin yesterday, and you also heard about the flood in Puzhou. What would you do if you were the governor of Puzhou?"
Zhou Xiao hesitated for a moment and replied: "My son will naturally follow Zhou Shaoyin's example, treat the people in the state well and win the trust of the people."
The prince's answer was too perfunctory. Zhou Jun was not satisfied and asked: "What if you have just taken office and are not familiar with the people in the state and cannot gain their trust?"
Zhou Xiao was stunned.
Zhou Jun: "Those who are officials should be flexible."
When Zhou Xiao heard this, he felt nervous and blurted out: "We can issue legal orders in the state capital to order merchants and squires to take care of the people and assist the government in disaster relief."
Zhou Jun looked at Zhou Xiao, shook his head slightly, and said four words: "Whimsical."
Zhou Xiao's face turned red and he lowered his head.
Seeing that the emperor's face was not kind, Yin Yu pulled Luo Aiqing over.
Zhou Jun saw the pregnant princess, his face calmed down a little, and asked the latter: "When will your father return to Chang'an?"
Luo Aiqing first said a blessing, and then replied: "Your Majesty, my father is training Beiya in Luoyang, and he said that he can return to the court next month."
Zhou Jun: "I heard that the Luo family set up a literary journal in Liangcheng and hired a printing master at a high price. They said they wanted to record folk poems and poems for the use of the imperial examination scholars?"
Luo Aiqing said cautiously: "I don't know the details. It seems that it was organized by my second uncle at home."
Zhou Jun: "Second uncle...is Luo Yingcai from the Ministry of Revenue, right?"
Luo Aiqing: "Yes."
Zhou Jun was silent for a moment and said to Luo Aiqing: "This time I sent your father to Luoyang for business, which lasted for more than a month. When you return to Beijing, you tell him that everything in the Luo family is complicated. As the head of the family,
, it should be taken good care of."
Luo Aiqing lowered her head and whispered: "Yes."
Yin Yu said with a smile: "Don't say anything else. The food has been prepared for a long time. It will get cold if you don't eat it. Let's eat first."
Zhou Jun and Yin Yu, Zhou Xiao and Luo Aiqing, two generations had a family dinner together.
During the banquet, only Yin Yu spoke from time to time and asked about the life of the prince and his wife, while the rest were mostly silent.
After the prince and his wife finished their meal and left the Hanyuan Hall, Yin Yu saw Zhou Jun sitting silently at the desk and tried to ask: "Erlang, what's the matter?"
Zhou Jun: "After the corruption case, I ordered the prince to stay in the East Palace and think about his mistakes. Do you know who was the first person to find me and intercede for the prince?"
Suddenly hearing the emperor mention this matter, Yin Yu was a little surprised for a moment, but she was nervous and couldn't help asking: "Who is it?"
Zhou Jun: "Du Fu, Minister of Rites."
Yin Yu was a little surprised when she heard the name Du Fu.
Du Fu was an old minister and an admonisher loyal to Zhou Jun. He had never interacted with the prince, but he was the first to stand up and plead for mercy, which was indeed beyond Yin Yu's expectation.
Zhou Jun: "Du Fu told me that the prince is still young and will always take some detours. As long as he can understand the situation clearly and return to the high road, it will be a good thing."
Yin Yu nodded unconsciously.
Zhou Jun: "Du Fu also said that in the hundreds of years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the royal families had been fighting against each other, which had become more and more serious. It was like an evil curse that could not be ended. He only hoped that such tragic events would not happen in the future."
Yin Yu looked up at Zhou Jun.
Zhou Jun: "I am not the Supreme Emperor, and I cannot do anything to harm my heirs, but I will not tolerate the crown prince harming the country and poisoning the people. After experiencing the corruption case, I only hope that Xiaoer will sincerely repent and study with concentration.
if not……"
Zhou Jun didn't finish his sentence, but when Yin Yu saw the former's expression, she felt panicked for no reason.
