Chapter 97: Labor expenses and losses

When Zhou Yang was fighting with the Shu army on the front line, Wei Ji and Wang Xiang, the assistant minister of the Sanqi, presided over the formulation of the ceremony system, and attached great importance to the restoration and construction of the legal system in response to the current situation of the country.

Wei Ji believed that criminal law was the most important tool of the country, but it was often despised by officials and replaced by subjective assumptions.

The prison officials hold the power of life and death, and should be held by people who are clear and fair in law, and are often used by non-human because of the rulers' contempt for them.

This was an important reason for the failure of the king's government and the failure of the country. Therefore, he advocated the restoration of the "Nine Chapters of Laws" of the Western Han Dynasty, and appointed Doctor of Law to be appointed to teach the ministers so that officials and the people could understand the law and rule the world with the law.

However, Cao Rui turned a blind eye to these suggestions. It was not that he did not agree with Wei Ji's opinion, but that he vigorously used the vault of Handing Money House in order to reduce power from Zhou Yang.

Even though Wang Su, Chu Zhao, Zhang Xixian and others controlled the Handing Money House, they still could not compete with Cao Rui, the lord of the country.

The upright Wei Ji wrote many letters to speak out, warning Cao Rui to be good at listening to different opinions and pay attention to the voices of the people.

Especially in this period of continuous wars, we need to cherish the people's strength, care about the treasury, and live within our means.

"Losing Wei Ji is equivalent to leaving one of my arms." Zhou Yang still feels very sad and sighs, "I can't find anyone to take over him for a while."

"I wonder if my brother has noticed some changes after returning to Luoyang?" Sima Yi changed the subject.

"Of course there are changes, such as where Chen Tai was arranged to go, I have asked Ye Xuan to send someone to investigate." Zhou Yang said.

"I'm afraid I can't find it out no matter how hard I checked it," Sima Yi said, "but some more important things seem to have been ignored by my brother, such as what Mr. Wei Ji did during his lifetime."

"When Hou of Weixiang died, he collected the Hedong Salt Pond as an official, set up an envoy to sell it, and took out salt tax to buy farm tools and plow oxen, and provided it to the people, so that they could resume production as soon as possible and rebuild their homes." Zhou Yang looked at Sima Yi's still looking forward to his eyes, thought for a while and said, "They later in charge of the rebel colony that returned to their homes calmed the hearts of the people, promoted the recovery of the Guanzhong economy, and greatly increased the financial income of the Handing Money House."

"What later?" Sima Yi asked and answered himself, "In recent years, the emperor has made extensive construction projects and labor costs. He used this as an excuse to consume the vault of the Handing Money House, trying to replace Wang Su with his own people. The Marquis of Weixiang has repeatedly advised him."

"I know all this. What exactly Zhongda wants to say?" Zhou Yang said in confusion.

"The emperor used such a huge amount of funds and labor, which not only affected the country's economic development, but also made the people of the world miserable." Sima Yi continued, "Although the Marquis of Weixiang has passed away and his brother has returned to Luoyang, the emperor did not stop building the palace because of this. Not only will the Handing Money House be dragged down sooner or later, even the sufferings suffered by the people will also plant hidden dangers for the future of the country."

"I'm so confused." Zhou Yang said suddenly, "I have been thinking about how to protect myself and how to control the country's regime, but I have ignored all the most fundamental issues."

"Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it." Sima Yi said bitterly, "The people are the foundation of the country. If the people in the court seek personal gain, something big will happen sooner or later. Emperor Gaozu of Han was born in a peasant uprising. The huge Yellow Turban Uprising more than 30 years ago is also a case of heavy history."

"I thought of who will replace the position of Weixiang Hou." Zhou Yang suddenly said with joy. "The prefect of Chenliu Gao Tanglong was a straightforward person in order to maintain the prestige of Taishan Prefect, in order to maintain the prestige of the prefect of Mount Tai, Su Ti, and to shock the governor of the county. He was a straightforward person."

"This is really a trick to kill two birds with one stone." Sima Yi immediately clapped and said, "This person advised the emperor to terminate the hard labor. Not only did he win the hearts of the elder brother, but he could also use this to suppress the emperor's continued consumption of the vault."

"Zhongda knew the elegant meaning when he heard the qin." Zhou Yang smiled, "Then we will send someone to recall Gao Tanglong back to Luoyang immediately, and let's see if this person can be used by me."

A few days later, Gao Tanglong was ordered to come to the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Seeing that he was still wearing official uniforms and was coming in dust, Zhou Yang hurriedly welcomed him personally.

But Gao Tanglong refused and couldn't wait to say directly: "The officials learned that Prime Minister Zhou intended to terminate the hard labor of the people, so they rushed to Luoyang overnight."

Zhou Yang praised in his heart, but he still spoke first and tentatively said: "I wonder what advice Gao Taishou has for this?"

Gao Tang Longqi said: "The emperor advised the emperor, which is what his ministers should do. In the past, King Jing of Zhou was not polite and punished the literature and was virtuous. He had minted big coins and made a big bell. Duke Shan Mu decisively advised him but did not listen. Lingzhou Jiu was against him and did not follow him, so he was confused and did not rebel. Zhou virtue was declining, and the good historian recorded it forever."

Zhou Yang thought to himself that although this person was worried about the country and the people, he was very arrogant. It seemed that even if he was placed in front of the emperor, he could not listen to his advice. However, he could use him to achieve his goals and do something practical for the people of the world.

Gao Tanglong said again: "Now the villain likes to talk about Qin. The extravagant Han Dynasty is to destroy the holy heart, seeking tools that destroy the country, labor and labor costs and damage morals, can we build more temples and more palaces to promote the harmony of rituals and music and keep the gods from rest?"

Zhou Yang quickly signaled him to stop first, and then said, "I understand what you mean. Gao Taishou is busy and hard, so should I go to the room first to rest for a few days, and change to the Japanese Prime Minister and Gao Taishou to advise the emperor together. How about it?"

Gao Tanglong also felt that more righteous words should be spoken in front of the emperor to be more effective, so he took his leave first.

Zhou Yang breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the dead Wei Ji was too ignorant, and Gao Tanglong was so lucky. I believe that when he arrived in front of the emperor, he would definitely make his head feel louder.

Sima Yi, who had been listening for a long time, walked out and smiled and said, "It seems that the emperor has suffered this time, but with the emperor's personality, I guess he can still bear such a small matter. The problem is how we can truly end the hard labor. If this matter cannot be solved, it will be difficult for us to take time to take a trip to Shouyang Mountain."

Zhou Yang nodded and said, "But we should also go to the hard labor office where the temple is built and the palace is built."

Sima Yi said: "It is rare for my brother to be sympathetic to the people."

The next day, the two of them went to various hard labor places to inspect, and only then did they realize that what Gao Tanglong said was not an exaggeration.

No matter how old or strong they were, they were sent to build palaces and cities.

This time, Cao Rui not only summoned labor service in Henan, but also transferred tens of millions of people from Shandong and Hebei, a large part of which were even only twelve or twelve years old, including many farmers, which made the farmers who originally farmed were very nervous.

The hard labor in front of them is only a very small part. Seeing them dragging stone trucks with expressionless faces, their bodies no longer belong to them, but they are more like thin machines.

"I really find it hard to understand why the emperor did this for." Zhou Yang felt heartbroken and said stiffly, "If it is said that in order to replace him with Handing Money House, then a lot of money may be the worst way. But if so many people are invested in the construction of palaces and temples, I really don't understand that he can live in so many palaces? Can so many temples really be blessed?"

"It is indeed difficult for ordinary people to understand the emperor's mind." Sima Yi sighed, "Maybe just like you, brother, just for a sense of accomplishment."

"Sense of accomplishment?" Zhou Yang said in a slight sense of panic, "Can you bring him a sense of accomplishment after building so many buildings?"

"We might as well put ourselves in the shoes of the emperor," Sima Yi said. "As the king of a country, the responsibilities shouldered by the shoulders were two outstanding emperors, Emperor Wu, Cao and the late emperor. The contributions they made to the country and the courage they showed, especially the extraordinary achievements made by Mr. Cao back then, which are beyond the reach of the emperor today. If the emperor does not want to be said that one generation is worse than the other, then he must do something. Even if he cannot surpass the two emperors, at least he must do his own political achievements."

"But the centralized policy has been under my control in his generation." Zhou Yang said with some guilt, "So the rest can only start from the aspects of buildings. Even if Qin always built the Great Wall back then, right?"

"That's about it." Sima Yi said.

"So from my own standpoint, I will also be unable to fulfill my dream of helping Emperor Wu Cao to unify the world. I will take a step back and take the next step, take the government in my hands. I hope this dream can be fulfilled in my own hands, right?" Zhou Yang said to himself, "If a person cannot do one thing, he will use other to satisfy his needs instead, and the same is true for me."

"It's not the same." Sima Yi immediately woke up, "What my brother is doing now is not just to satisfy his sense of accomplishment, nor to protect himself."

"What am I doing? I've always been puzzled by this." Zhou Yang asked.

"Maybe, it's just that my brother and Cao Gong are both pursuing dreams and continuing another way." Sima Yi had some feelings, but he immediately turned around, "No matter what, it's meaningless to think about it now. What's in front of him is a group of suffering people, as well as the dreams of brother and Cao Gong, and his brother has already made a choice, right?"

"I didn't expect Prime Minister Zhou to be here too."

While Zhou Yang was thinking, Gao Tanglong came from the opposite side of a group of hard laborers.

Sima Yi was also stunned, but immediately understood the prefect in front of him, and he really wanted to do something practical for the people.

Gao Tanglong actually carried paper and pen and a lot of documents with him, his eyes were dark, and he obviously had not been asleep all night.

Zhou Yang felt even more guilty because he was originally from a grassroots class, but he was not as eager as this ancient official to relieve the suffering of the people.

So I made up my mind, no matter what my personal dream or what my current situation with Cao Rui, I would like to work with Gao Tanglong to help these people who are in dire straits...
Chapter completed!