"I am very pleased that the New Deal has achieved such results at the beginning of its implementation. All the ministers present will remember this achievement for the time being and will reward you when the dust settles."
Now that the most concerning question was answered, Lin Ze first affirmed the achievements of Chen Ping and his team.
Chen Ping and the other five men all bowed and replied: "It is the duty of all ministers to share your Majesty's worries and serve the Western Qin Dynasty."
Lin Ze smiled and said: "Okay, merit is merit, fault is fault, I have always been clear about rewards and punishments, naturally I know it well, you don't have to be humble."
"The implementation of the New Deal seems to be going smoothly so far. Next, it will be implemented throughout the world. Not only will it be faster than it is now, but it will also be better than it is now. You, sir, need to be more attentive."
"By the way, have you encountered any other difficulties regarding the implementation of the New Deal? Even if you encounter any difficulties in the future, you can speak freely. I will solve them as soon as I can while I have free time today."
As soon as Lin Ze said this, the five people looked at each other and exchanged glances.
Then Chen Ping came out and said: "Your Majesty, in order to solve the problem of insufficient manpower to implement the New Deal, I have discussed with Lord Sikong, the Minister of Civil Affairs, for several days, drafted a regulation for selecting officials, and mobilized a group of officials from within."
"Here are the selection regulations and the list of officials. Please take a look at it. If there is anything inappropriate, please point it out so that I can revise it."
As Chen Ping spoke, he took out two documents from his arms and handed them to Lin Ze with both hands.
Lin Ze took the document, threw the list of officials aside, and said calmly: "The Prime Minister and the Minister of Personnel Affairs know better than me about the abilities and character of the officials below. Whether they are qualified or not, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Personnel Affairs can consider them all.
I don’t need to read it.”
"The capable will be promoted, the mediocre will be demoted, the fittest will survive, and some will be replaced if they are not good enough. Everything should focus on the implementation of the New Deal."
As Lin Ze spoke, he opened the official selection regulations, while his mind was running rapidly, analyzing and optimizing.
After ten breaths, Lin Ze closed the official selection regulations and commented: "The overall situation is pretty good, but it is a little harsh in some places, which is not conducive to the widespread discovery of talents."
"Right now, we need to ensure the speed of implementation of the New Deal, and the selection of officials can be appropriately relaxed so that we can have enough manpower to do the work."
"I obey," Chen Ping and Sikong Ma bowed in response and stepped aside.
Qianyuan seized the opportunity and stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Lin Ze answered simply: "Say."
Qianyuan bowed and said: "Your Majesty, the imperial court's expenses are increasing day by day. I am afraid that the national treasury will be empty before long."
Lin Ze frowned slightly when he heard this and said, "Be specific, what is the situation?"
Qianyuan quickly replied: "Previously, when your Majesty visited the Western Regions, he emptied the treasury once. Later, Your Majesty ordered the comprehensive construction of the Western Regions, the northern expedition to the northern grasslands, the western expedition to the Byzantine Empire, and the eastward invasion of Yanzhao, all of which came from
this."
"Afterwards, His Majesty took charge of Chang'an. He first restored the prosperity of Chang'an, then sent troops to attack Han Dynasty and South Vietnam, and now he rebuilt the palace. Every expenditure was not small."
"Although I am good at making careful calculations, with the implementation of the New Deal, taxes will not be able to enter the treasury for a while, and I will be unable to make ends meet for a long time. I really can't persist."
Lin Ze looked at Qian Yuan with a bitter look on his face, waved his hand and said, "Okay, there's no need to talk about this. Let me ask you, at the current rate of spending, how long can the national treasury continue to support it?"
Qianyuan gritted his teeth and replied: "Three months, at most three months, except for some rare medicinal materials, not even half a copper will be left in the treasury."
Lin Ze thought for a while and said calmly: "I have a few methods, you can refer to them and implement them."
"First, in the name of the imperial court, borrow money from those noble and wealthy businessmen, and then return it to them truthfully after the imperial court collects the taxes."
"Tell them in advance that there will be no interest on the borrowed money, and only the principal will be repaid. Those who do not borrow will bear the consequences."
"Secondly, he sent a message to Han Xin, Zhang Han, and Li Xin to Yu Ziqi, and transported more than half of the loot back to Chang'an and put it into the national treasury to be used for court expenses."
"Third, urge all provinces, prefectures and counties to escort taxes to Chang'an. Those who are late or fail to pay will be handed over to the Ministry of Punishment and the Ministry of Personnel for joint disposal."
Qianyuan immediately paid his respects and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your advice. I am deeply grateful."
As soon as Qian Yuan retreated, Wu Fan stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, due to the implementation of the New Deal, the number of people making irresponsible remarks about the government has doubled. The Ministry of Punishment and the Jin Yiwei have arrested many people for this."
"Nowadays, many people are spreading rumors and slandering the imperial court and His Majesty. Because there are too many people involved, I dare not act rashly, and I still ask for your Majesty's instructions."
Lin Ze replied without thinking: "No matter who it is, as long as we can find evidence to prove that they have slandered the imperial court and me, we will arrest them all and serve as hard labor."
"I was originally worried that with the implementation of the New Deal, there would not be enough hard labor to build roads and bridges. But now it seems that my worries were in vain."
"Since some people are full and have nothing to do, I will find something for them to do."
Wu Fan smiled bitterly and said: "If this is the case, I am worried that the public resentment will boil and it will be detrimental to the court."
Lin Ze said indifferently: "The more people we arrest, the rest will naturally become honest."
In Lin Ze's view, instead of letting these unscrupulous people spread rumors everywhere, ruin his reputation, and prevent him from harvesting his luck, it would be better to kill them all with a stick, and at least he could be clean.
Seeing that Lin Ze didn't seem to be joking, Wu Fan had no choice but to bow and respond: "I obey."
Seeing that Wu Fan retreated to where he was standing before and no one else came forward, Lin Ze added and asked, "Do you have anything else you want to say?"
The five people either shook their heads or bowed and replied: "Wei Chen has nothing else to say."
Lin Ze waved his hand and said: "Since you have nothing else to say, I won't waste your time. I'll leave more time for you to implement the New Deal with all your heart. Please step aside."
Chen Ping and the other five men all bowed and said, "I'll take my leave."
As soon as the five people retreated, a figure squeezed into the hall, but it was Zhuang Zhou who had just finished dealing with Xuantang.
Lin Ze took the initiative and asked: "Senior Brother, you are here, but you have something to see Junior Brother?"
Zhuang Zhou locked the door with his hand, walked to Lin Ze, and said in a low voice: "The treasure of Buddhism's teachings is infinitely mysterious. It can not only condense luck, but also create gods. Junior brother is really not tempted at all.
?”
Lin Ze glanced at Zhuang Zhou in surprise, then left for a while. Was Zhuang Zhou deceived by Xuantang? Or did Xuantang put forward some other conditions to convince Zhuang Zhou?
Lin Ze, who was suspicious, did not directly answer Zhuang Zhou's question, but asked instead: "How does senior brother view this matter?"
Zhuang Zhou thought for a while and said, "Although the plan proposed by Xuantang is not that easy to complete, the conditions he proposed are so exciting that people can't help but feel excited."