Bam ~!
"Xinfeng County is less than a hundred miles away from Chang 'an City. However, on the third day of the locust plague, grain merchants started to raise the price of grain. The imperial court has repeatedly issued orders, but some people have turned a deaf ear to it! Hmph! Do they really think that my butcher's knife won't cut off their heads? "
In the Sweet Dew Hall, after Li Er finished reading the report, he slapped the dragon table and coldly said with an ashen face.
The palace maids and eunuchs in the hall kept quiet out of fear when they saw Li Er's rage.
Li Tai's face was dark, but he didn't say anything.
"Zhao Song, immediately send a decree to Zhangsun Wuji and Liu Dewei. Order the Ministry of Personnel and the Supreme Court to send officials to Xinfeng County to investigate the matter of grain merchants raising the price of grain. If there is no collusion between officials and merchants, then forget it. If there is, then don't let a single one of them off! No matter who is involved in this, find them all and punish them severely! "
The hall was silent for a moment before Li Er said with a dark face.
"This old servant obeys!"
Zhao Song cupped his fists and prepared to leave.
"Wait!"
Li Er interrupted, "Pass on the Imperial Decree, Xuanling, let the Secretariat send another official document to the various counties in Guanzhong. Strictly order the counties to stabilize the price of grain. If the price of grain soars, grain merchants, local county officials, county officials, and provincial governors will all be severely punished and will not be tolerated!"
"Understood!"
Zhao Song bowed. Seeing that Li Er didn't have any other orders, he cupped his fists and left the hall.
Li Er turned his gaze to Li Tai. After some thought, he said, "Qingque, Yanhuang College's second and third trump card projects should be kept strictly confidential, right?"
Li Tai's heart skipped a beat. He had a bad feeling about this. He cupped his fists and said, "Father, the reason why Yamachō wants us to keep it a secret is to prevent the college's core technology from being stolen by those with ill intentions toward Tang Dynasty …"
"Hmph! I didn't say that it was wrong! But if you are guarding against outsiders, don't tell me you are also guarding against me ~? "
Li Er's eyes turned cold as he interrupted Li Tai's words. "If I hadn't interrogated you today, I wouldn't have known what your second and third trump card projects are for. Li Zexuan may be thinking for the benefit of the Tang Empire, but don't forget that I am the master of this country!"
As Monarchs, they didn't like the feeling of being deceived because it made them feel that the matter was beyond their control. Even though Li Er was a wise Monarch, he was no exception when it came to this!
Even though it was currently midsummer, Li Tai still felt a trace of coldness in the Sweet Nectar Hall. At this time, he recalled that his Imperial Father was never a soft-hearted and mediocre ruler. Instead, he was a decisive person who could conquer the world and kill his brother and imprison his father!
"Imperial Father! This son is terrified! This son has never thought of hiding this matter from you. It's just that the college has been busy recently and this son has no time to worry about this. This son didn't mean to deceive Imperial Father!
I believe that Yamachō is the same. Recently, there has been a locust plague in the Guanzhong area. Yamachō was busy with disaster relief and didn't report this to Imperial Father ~! Furthermore, this son has heard from Yamachō that Yamachō has improved the telegraph system. He has already mentioned it to you before, so this son didn't rush to report it to you! Imperial Father, please don't hold a grudge against Yamachō because of this! "
Little Fatty's mind spun quickly as he explained.
He knew that if he didn't explain this matter clearly to Li Zexuan today, not only would he be unlucky, but Li Zexuan might also be unlucky. Since ancient times, when there was a grudge between a ruler and his subjects, the unlucky ones were usually the ministers!
Hearing this, Li Er's expression softened. After a long silence, he finally said, "Li Zexuan has indeed mentioned the improvement of the telegraph system to me before. I let him do it freely. I will give him the manpower and resources he needs. This time, the locust plague happened in the Guanzhong area, so I can't blame you! Forget it! Forget it! I'm not a narrow-minded person, so I won't blame you for this matter! However, if something similar happens again next time, don't lie to Imperial Father! "
Li Tai heaved a huge sigh of relief. When Li Er was silent just now, he had already prepared himself to be punished. At this moment, his hanging heart finally settled down. "Many thanks, Imperial Father! Imperial Father is broad-minded and will definitely become a benevolent ruler like Qin Huang and Hanwu! "
Li Er looked at Li Tai with a smile that wasn't a smile and said, "Ah! Qingque, you also know how to flatter Imperial Father now? However, Imperial Father couldn't tell that you are actually so protective of Li Zexuan now? "
He was naturally talking about how Li Tai pleaded for Li Zexuan when he was angry just now!
Li Tai was stunned. Not long ago, he and Li Zexuan were sworn enemies. Moreover, he had always been looking for trouble with Li Zexuan. But now, not only had he become Li Zexuan's student, he was even willing to take the risk of being punished by his Imperial Father to plead for Li Zexuan. How did things become like this?
Scenes of the past flashed through Li Tai's mind. After a long time, Li Tai cupped his hands towards Li Er and said with a serious face.
"Imperial Father! Not only is Yamachō knowledgeable, he is also a person worthy of respect! This son feels that the Tang Empire needs someone like Yamachō! "
Seeing his beloved son praising another person in front of him, Li Er felt a little jealous. However, for the sake of his face, he was embarrassed to show it. Moreover, Li Tai's words were generally correct. Thus, he waved his hand dispiritedly and said,
"Qingque, you have grown up! Go and pay respects to your Imperial Mother, then go and do what you want to do ~! "
"Yes! Imperial Father! "
Li Tai cupped his hands and was about to leave when he suddenly turned around and said, "Imperial Father, this son will not be by your side. Please take care of your dragon body ~!"
Li Er's heart warmed as he chuckled and said, "Imperial Father knows! Go! Go! "
Li Tai nodded and turned to leave.
.....
The next day.
On the front page of the Datang Daily, there was an eye-catching piece of news — "Whose fault is it for the soaring grain prices? One hundred and eight official letters issued by the Secretariat, strictly ordering the affected counties to stabilize the grain prices! "
This piece of news described how Zhang Xiongfei of Xinfeng County had hoarded grain and inflated the grain prices. Furthermore, just yesterday evening, Zhang Xiongfei had already been detained by the Xinfeng County yamen. Li Er had personally ordered that he would be executed three days later!
One must know that ever since the Five Barbarians Rebellion, the population of the Central Plains had sharply decreased. After experiencing the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the Tang Empire had always pursued a policy of recuperation. Under such circumstances, the local yamen rarely sentenced criminals to death. Even if they did, they had to report it to the higher levels and obtain the emperor's personal approval before the death penalty could be carried out!
In the Zhenguan Dynasty, even if Li Er wanted to sentence someone to death, he had to obtain the approval of the court officials.
It was recorded in the history books that when Taizong ascended the throne, he discussed with the court officials how to 'enforce justice'. According to Wang Gui's suggestion, a 'righteous, kind, and impartial judge' person would be appointed as a 'judge'. After Zhang Yungu was killed, Taizong immediately remembered that this young judge was a loyal follower of his' cautious punishment 'policy and was dedicated to reversing the previous generation's practice of excessive punishment. He played chess with prisoners and exempted mentally ill people from punishment. These were all implementing the 'cautious punishment' policy. When he was killed, he did not have the chance to defend himself. This was truly regrettable.
Thus, Taizong ordered that in the future, even if the emperor ordered the death penalty to be immediately executed, there had to be three overturned memorials. Only after the overturned memorials could the death penalty be carried out. Not long after, he ordered that the three overturned memorials were changed to five overturned memorials in the capital, three overturned memorials outside the capital, and one overturned memorial for an evil traitor or a servant who killed his master. Of these, five overturned memorials were to be overturned once two days before the execution, once a day before the execution, and three overturned memorials on the day of the execution. On the day of the execution, there was to be no alcohol or meat, and all entertainment activities were to be stopped. 'According to the law, death can be pardoned' cases were to be brought up in a timely manner.
Such a complicated system of overturning the death penalty greatly reduced the number of people sentenced to death in the Zhenguan Dynasty. According to historical records, in the third year of the Zhenguan Dynasty, there were only 29 people sentenced to death in the country. Of course, this was because Li Er had no choice but to do so to preserve the limited labor force in the country.
However, the social order of the Zhenguan Dynasty did not become chaotic because of this. On the contrary, the social order of the Zhenguan Dynasty was so good that it was unbelievable. "East to the sea, South to the five ridges of the Five Ridges of the South, the door is not closed.
This time, Li Er directly sentenced Zhang Xiongfei to death to make an example out of him. He wanted to be a warning to the other provinces and counties in the Guanzhong region. He wanted the grain merchants to think of Zhang Xiongfei's fate before they raised the price of grain.
"Xinfeng County's grain price actually rose to five wen per dan a few days ago? These grain merchants are really heartless! "
"Exactly! This Zhang Xiongfei was well executed! "
"That's right! We should make an example out of him! Let those profiteers take advantage of the locust plague to raise the price of grain? "
After the citizens of Chang 'an City saw the headlines of the Datang Daily, they all cheered and applauded Zhang Xiongfei's tragic end. They were lucky to live under the Emperor's rule. During this time, the price of food in Chang 'an City did not fluctuate. All the major grain stores were still selling the food at the original price. The people could buy as much as they wanted. It was no different from before!
"Chang 'an City is still better, the price of grain did not skyrocket!"
"If you ask me, this should be the work of the Marquis of Yong 'an!"
"Oh? Why do you say so? "
"The Marquis of Yong 'an led the Sky Pheasant Brigade to quickly eliminate the locusts in Lantian County. This greatly stabilized the people's hearts. Besides, the Yan Huang Chamber of Commerce also has some grain stores in Chang 'an City. They have plenty of grain. With them around, how would the other grain merchants dare to raise the price? "
"Mm! That makes sense! "
"Hey, look! Marquis's Sky Pheasant Brigade actually eliminated the locusts in Xinfeng and Weinan Counties in one day! "
"What? Isn't that too fast? "
"It's true! It's true! And Marquis even announced that he wants to borrow the chickens raised by the citizens of the affected counties. After the locusts are eliminated, they will be returned in full. If any are lost, they will be compensated twice the amount! Now the Sky Pheasant Brigade already has 350,000 chickens! "
"Marquis wants to borrow the chickens raised by the citizens? That's great! I still have 30 chickens at home. I wonder where Marquis is now? Is it too late to send them over? "
"That I don't know! I think Marquis's announcement should be for the counties waiting for the disaster relief to see, right? When the Sky Pheasant Brigade arrives, they will directly send their chickens over! "
"Eh? That's possible! Right! My brother-in-law is providing relief to Xianyang County. Marquis will definitely pass by Xianyang County in the next few days. I have to get someone to send a letter over. I must send all the chickens at home to Marquis! This is a meritorious deed! Even if they lose a few chickens, they won't have to ask Marquis for compensation! "
"That's right! That's right! Marquis is running around with the children of Lantian County for the people affected by the disaster in Guanzhong. We have no reason to stand by and do nothing! If we can do something, we will feel at ease! "
"That's right! I also have relatives in Xianyang County. I have to get them to prepare the chickens and wait for Marquis to come and lend them to Marquis! "
When the citizens saw Li Zexuan's "Chicken Recruitment Notice" published in Datang Daily, they were all enthusiastic and wanted to send all the chickens at home to the Sky Pheasant Brigade. However, the citizens of Chang 'an City didn't know where Li Zexuan's Sky Pheasant Brigade was now. It was obviously unrealistic to send chickens over. Therefore, the quick-witted citizens thought of getting their relatives in other affected counties to prepare their chickens for the Sky Pheasant Brigade!
In fact, these warm-hearted citizens of the capital didn't have to do this at all. Datang Daily's speed of dissemination was much faster than their speed of sending letters!
Since Li Zexuan founded Datang Daily at the beginning of last year, it had been more than a year. The editorial department of Datang Daily not only set up offices in various counties, but also established a complete "communication network". Every morning before dawn, there would be a dozen fast horses running out of Lantian County with the latest issue of Datang Daily. At this time, more than 20 counties around Chang 'an City basically saw the latest issue of the newspaper just like the citizens of Chang' an City!
As for the counties further away, it would only take a few days for them to receive today's newspaper!
Therefore, in the counties around Chang 'an City, there were already citizens outside the county government, asking when the Sky Pheasant Brigade would come to their counties. They had already prepared chickens!
But how would the county magistrates know when Li Zexuan would go to their counties?
But they couldn't ignore the surging public opinion, especially in the context of the imperial court ordering all the counties to seize the time to actively provide disaster relief. It was even more impossible for them to ignore the public opinion. Xinfeng County was a living example. The county magistrate was demoted, and the deputy was directly dismissed!
Therefore, in the face of the surging public opinion, the county magistrates of each county hurriedly sent yamen runners to the county where Li Zexuan was located to ask about Li Zexuan's "marching route". There were also some county magistrates who were far-sighted. While they sent people to inquire about the route, they also helped the citizens register how many chickens they were willing to lend. They also instructed the citizens to mark the legs of their chickens in advance, and then drove them to the county government to be kept by the yamen runners. When the Sky Pheasant Brigade arrived, they would directly send them to Li Zexuan!
As a result, the backyards of many county offices became bustling chicken farms, and the county magistrate, deputy county magistrate, and yamen runners were all turned into breeders!
.....
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