The coachman was not stupid. As soon as he heard Little Bei's words, he immediately reacted. He looked at the person sitting on the shaft and thought about the nine children on the other side. He was extremely excited.
He no longer knew how to swing the whip in his hand. He hastily jumped off the carriage and opened his mouth. He did not know what to say.
The other two coachmen did not hear Little Bei's words. When they saw the person in front of them jumping off the carriage, they looked at him curiously, wondering why he had jumped off the carriage.
After a few breaths, the coachman with Li Longji on the shaft knew what he had to do. He kneeled on the ground and kowtowed to Li Longji. "Your Majesty, it's really you! Long live Your Majesty! I told you, who would have such a bearing? Apart from the children of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family, no one else would have such a bearing."
The coachman stopped and kowtowed. The horse pulling the carriage did not recognize the Emperor and continued to move forward. Zhang Xiaobao hastily stopped the carriage. He said to the coachman who was kneeling about ten meters behind him, "Get up and drive the carriage."
"Yes, drive the carriage. His Majesty is in my carriage, and the children of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family are in my carriage as well. In the future, this carriage can no longer carry other people. I'll keep it. I'll buy a new carriage. Yes, I'll buy a new carriage and use a new carriage to carry people. I told you, who would have such a bearing? I told you …"
The coachman hastily got up and drove the carriage again. However, he did not continue to sit on the carriage. He looked as though he did not dare to sit with the Emperor as he followed the carriage. He kept mumbling incoherently as he followed the carriage.
The other two coachmen finally understood what was going on. They jumped off the carriage and followed the carriage excitedly. Just like the previous coachman, they kept mumbling as though it was contagious.
Li Longji shook his head helplessly. He did not believe the coachman when he said he had such a bearing. If he really had such a bearing, why did he not recognize him earlier? If he was recognized, it meant that his disguise was too fake. He had not reached the level where he could infiltrate the common folk.
Then, he looked at the other two coachmen and their carriages. He knew that the three carriages would be retired from today onward. Even the horses pulling the carriages would have to follow suit.
He wanted to persuade them that it did not matter who sat in the carriage since it was not a waste of money. However, he remembered that this was Lu Zhou's territory. Lu Zhou's men were relatively wealthy. They did not mind spending a few horses and three carriages. Hence, he did not say anything.
She wanted to say a few words to the enchanted coachman, but found that the coachman had clearly entered some kind of immortal state. She guessed that no matter what she said, the coachman would not be able to adjust his mind. She could only helplessly shake her head and sit on the shaft of the carriage to join the group.
There were more than thirty thousand people in the army, and only the vanguard had arrived. The rest would probably have to wait for another day before they could leave the mountain. Once they arrived at a place with more spacious roads, their speed would naturally be faster.
The coachman escorted Li Longji all the way to the front of the group before stopping. He didn't dare to look directly at Li Longji. He glanced sideways at Li Longji from time to time before quickly lowering his head.
Li Longji knew that it wasn't that the other party didn't respect him, but that they were cowards. It seemed that those who hadn't interacted much with him were all like this when they saw him, and there was one who was even more serious.
The only ones who were particularly calm when they saw him were Xiao Bao and Cuckoo. They had never been nervous when they first saw him, and there was also Little Bei and the others.
Li Longji knew that people were different from each other. He leaped down from the shaft of the carriage and said to the coachman, "Thank you for escorting me all the way here. I won't be paying for the ride. Tomorrow, I'll treat Lu Zhou's people to a meal. All of you should come as well."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. You don't have to pay for it. Even if you do, I don't want it. I'm willing to pull the carriage for free. In the future, whenever you want to ride in my carriage, I'll pull the carriage for free. I …"
The coachman was still nervous. He kept repeating the same words.
"If I ride in your carriage in the future, won't I have to keep you at home and feed you? That's too high of a price. Men, reward me."
Li Longji said to the coachman with a smile on his face. He instructed someone to deliver the reward. There was no money. It was all cloth and food. He couldn't let the other party pull the carriage for free.
Then, he no longer bothered with the three coachmen. Naturally, someone would make the arrangements. Li Longji returned to the group. Under the service of the others, he changed into the emperor's clothes and began to rest. He waited for someone to send the news to the provincial capital so that the welcoming party could proceed.
The nine children took this opportunity to rest. They had been busy the entire night and did not sleep at all. They were very excited. When they sat in the carriage earlier, they only took a short nap. Now, they were even more sleepy.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan found a place to sleep as well. Naturally, someone would send the news to the provincial capital. They would make two trips in between to inform them of the Emperor's arrival.
Last night, the people who had just finished welcoming the madams of the Zhang and Wang families were busy again when they heard the news of the Emperor's arrival. Some of them were busy making banners, while others were busy thinking of what to shout. They did not care about the rules of the Emperor's arrival.
That day, Li Longji didn't continue on his way to the provincial capital. Instead, he waited. He waited for another night to give the person receiving him some time to prepare and rest. Only then did he sit in his carriage the next day and head for the provincial capital.
Naturally, he was warmly welcomed by the people. It was no different from when they welcomed the two madams of the Zhang Wong Clan. The only person who was different was Xu Mingyang.
Right now, he could not describe his feelings. He could not say whether it was anticipation, excitement, fear, or nervousness.
When he welcomed the Zhang Wong Clan the day before yesterday, the people did not care about him. It was a good Hungry Ghost Festival, but he was very depressed. Today, the people called him to come together and pushed him to the front.
The Emperor's arrival was an official matter. The officials naturally had to follow the official rules.
Xu Mingyang was a provincial governor. Naturally, he had seen the Emperor before. However, he had not seen him many times. To be precise, he had only seen him twice. The first time was during the imperial examinations. The second time was when he became a local official.
He could not remember what the Emperor looked like at all. The only thing he remembered was the Emperor's dragon robe.
After the welcoming ceremony, the people gathered like a tidal wave and escorted Li Longji to the center of the hall. Then, they dispersed and discussed the events of the past two days.
The Zhang Wong Clan and Madam Wang came out to meet the Emperor as well. Then, they went to another courtyard to talk with Empress Wang and Wu Huifei.
Inside the spacious hall, Li Longji looked down at Xu Mingyang who was bowing for the second time. He asked, "Xu Qing, what did you gain from staying in Lu Zhou?"
Xu Mingyang could not control his nervousness. Although he was seated, his legs were still trembling. When he heard the Emperor's question, he hastily rose to his feet and replied, "Good. Everything is good."
"What's good?" Li Longji frowned and asked again.
"Everywhere is good. The mountains are good, the water is good, and the people are good. Also, Lu Zhou has a lot of money. However, I don't have the means to check the accounts. I don't know how much money Lu Zhou has earned and if he has paid the taxes according to the regulations. I also don't know if the locals have enough time to work every year."
Xu Mingyang finally remembered that he was going to complain. He put himself in a very wronged position so that he could avoid the danger of being rude to the Zhang Wong Clan.
When he was talking to the Emperor, his eyes were looking at the ground, but he always glanced at Xiao Bei and the other nine people who had also changed into official robes. He was afraid that Xiao Bei and the other nine children would hear some rumors and not give him any chance to explain, so they would arrest him.
Little Bei and the others had long known about this. They were very angry, but they did not think it was meaningful to bully a foreign official. Therefore, they did not think of doing anything to Xu Mingyang. They treated him like a fart and let him go.
After all, he was going to leave after a year of service. At most, they would deduct a small part of the money that was supposed to be given to him before he left as a punishment.
They had planned to let Xu Mingyang go, but they did not expect that Xu Mingyang would dare to speak ill of them in front of them. What did he mean by not knowing the taxes and work?
Lu Zhou was not an ordinary province. It was flourishing now. Moreover, there were rules governing the various fees collected. There were taxes collected and refunded. The accounts were concise, but the contents were complicated. Ordinary people would not be able to understand them. Lu Zhou was the largest port for imports and exports. Lu Zhou was the largest port for imports and exports.
Not only did he have to manage the local taxes and agriculture, but he also had to manage the customs, the research of ordnance, and the cost of the military. There were also some things that could not be said to others. Did he have to tell a Provincial Governor who was going to stay for a year and leave?
Li Longji also understood what had happened two nights ago. He felt that Xu Mingyang wasn't a threat to the Zhang Clan and Wang Clan, so he didn't want to bother with him. Once Xu Mingyang was done with his time, he could just move on to another place and get promoted.
Now that he heard that Xu Mingyang was looking for something to do, he decided that after Xu Mingyang finished his year of service and left, he would not give him an important position, let alone a position in the capital. He would arrange for him to be a Provincial Governor in another place without changing his rank.
With this thought in mind, Li Longji made a sound through his nose, indicating that he understood. He waved his hand and signaled Xu Mingyang to leave.
At the side, Gao Lishi reminded him, "Provincial Governor Xu, His Majesty has asked you to attend to the matters in the mansion. You can leave now."
Xu Mingyang was afraid. He did not know what he said wrong. He gritted his teeth and pretended that he did not understand the Emperor's intention to leave. He followed Gao Lishi's words and said, "Speaking of the matters in the provincial capital, I have something to say. I don't know if I should say it."
"Even if you don't know whether you should say it or not, what else do you want to say? Leave now. " Li Longji did not need to think too much to know what Xu Mingyang wanted to do. Xu Mingyang wanted to continue complaining about the things he said by the bonfire two nights ago to sow discord.
If Xu Mingyang really said it out loud, he would have to teach him a lesson. At that time, he would have to send someone else to be the Provincial Governor. He did not want to see too many changes in Lu Zhou's position. After all, he was only here for a vacation. He was not here to deal with people.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Xu Mingyang had no choice but to leave for now. He planned to look for an opportunity to speak to the Emperor. He could not just leave Lu Zhou be.
After Xu Mingyang left, Lil Bei leaped out and looked at the door as she said, "Hmph! He's really bold. How dare he complain in front of us?"
Lil 'Yuan said angrily, "We won't give him a single copper coin after he's done serving as the Provincial Governor for a year. Does he think he's so great?"
Li Longji laughed out loud as well. He said to Lil Bei, "He's a rank-three official, after all. I can understand. If you were an official in a place and the people don't listen to you and treat you like a decoration, you'd be unhappy as well. You'd still have to give them the money they deserve."
Xiao Bei rolled his eyes and said, "Me? If it were me, if the people didn't listen to me, I wouldn't be an official for them. I've been a local official before, a county magistrate. It's just that there are fewer people in the county.
I don't understand why they have to change Provincial Governors every year. Why do they have to go back and forth? Their ships take months to travel to and from one place to another. Are their families so poor that they don't even have enough to eat? Why do they have to come to Lu Zhou to get some money?
If I were in charge, Lu Zhou shouldn't have a Provincial Governor. When the time comes, my family can just pay the money to the court every year. It doesn't matter if there's an official or not, right, big brother? "
At this moment, Lil Bei was confused. He expressed his thoughts to his brother.
Zhang Xiaobao smiled and shook his head. He explained to his sister, "Lu Zhou needs a Provincial Governor. Without an official sent by the court, is Lu Zhou still Great Tang's Lu Zhou?
Not to mention Lu Zhou, who was directly under the rule of the Great Tang, even the regional commanders in other places were given their positions because the Imperial Court could not manage them. The people there were not as loyal to the Great Tang as the people of the Great Tang.
There are also other vassal states. Back then, didn't they need to be appointed by Great Tang's court as well? Even if the people who appointed them were chosen, they still had to be managed by Great Tang in name. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense for them to be completely under Great Tang's control in the future. Do you understand now? "
"Oh, so it's to occupy space. It's just a sign. Even if there's a change in management in the future, with the sign, it'll give them an excuse, right?"
Lil Bei was very smart. He had learned a lot and understood what Lu Zhou was trying to say. After he finished speaking, he laughed and said, "Why do I feel like the affairs of the country are a lie? It's clearly something that everyone knows, but they still have to pretend. Interesting.
Right now, the small countries in Tubo are no longer a threat. Some of them even took the initiative to submit. This is strength. If they don't have the status of a province or county, do you think they'll dare to break away in the future? "
"Yes, they really dare. When their strength is about the same, if they don't have the status, they'll use it as an excuse to regain independence. They're not afraid now, but who knows what will happen hundreds or thousands of years later?"
Zhang Xiaobao nodded and said. He knew very well the importance of strength and status. Otherwise, there would be endless arguments when the time came.
Lil Bei's eyes continued to move. Suddenly, he clapped his hands and suggested, "Uncle Emperor, I have a very good suggestion. I don't know if I should say it."
"Of course, Lil Bei's suggestion is definitely a good idea. Tell Uncle Emperor about it." This time, Li Longji didn't stop Lil Bei from speaking like he did to Xu Mingyang just now.
"My idea is that we should send more ships out. We don't have to do business with the natives every time we send out. There are many places where the people are not civilized yet. We'll go and plant flags there. Then, we'll put a lot of things with Great Tang's words written on them.
For example, our porcelain and stone tablets with Great Tang's words engraved on them. Wherever the ships can reach, we'll put a lot of them there. Even if we can't send more people to live there, we still have to do it, okay? "
After Lil Bei explained his idea, he blinked his eyes and looked at Li Longji, waiting for his praise.
Li Longji also stared at Lil Bei and asked, "Why do you want to do this?"
"Why? Because that place is Great Tang's territory. We can't go over and occupy it now. We can only trade with the natives there. However, trade and ownership are two different things.
If it's like what big brother said in the future, and the people in other places become smarter and have martial arts similar to us, they'll say that that place is theirs. We'll trade with them. Oh, it's called trade. It's a commercial activity.
A commercial activity doesn't represent a ruling position, so it doesn't belong to Great Tang. We'll put the things there now. Some will be exposed, some will be buried in the ground. After many years, if they don't want to acknowledge us, we'll dig them up.
We'll let others see what's written on the stone tablets. We'll let them see what's written in that place in the Kaiyuan era. Then, they won't be able to say anything. Even if they still want to establish themselves as a country, we'll have an excuse to beat them up. We'll be on the side of justice, okay? "
Lil Bei waved his fist and explained excitedly.
Xiao Yuan also echoed, "Yes, yes, yes. Not only do we have to write the words, we also have to draw a map on the utensils and stone tablets. We'll draw a map of Great Tang and label their place as a province of Great Tang.
We'll have to make a lot of things that won't rot easily. This is to prevent them from destroying them after digging them up and not acknowledging our position. Good idea. "
When Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan heard their younger brother and sister's words, they were stunned for a moment. Then, they looked at each other and saw smiles in each other's eyes.
Good idea, it was indeed a good idea. Of course, if the other party really had the strength, it wouldn't matter even if they had the things to prove it. But the good thing was that they could have more cultural relics in the future.
They could exchange them for a lot of money. How many empires did the other party have back then? Those were true rulers, but in the end, they were still divided into small countries.
But when one's strength was lacking, the Great Tang had the right to occupy it. This was morally justifiable, and even if the locals wanted to resist, they would feel a tinge of melancholy. It was easier to integrate than to have no name at all.
Li Longji was also stunned. He didn't expect the children to come up with such a shameless idea. So, he nodded and said, "That's right.
In the future, we'll do this. Not only will we be going over to steal their resources, we'll also be establishing their status. We won't just be doing trade, we'll be ruling. That's right. We've decided. We'll give a decree to the merchants going out to sea. If the local people don't agree …? "
As Li Longji spoke, he glanced at Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, hoping that the two of them would complete the plan.
Any other official would have been dumbfounded by this sudden idea, but Li Longji felt that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo wouldn't have thought of anything. No matter how sudden it was, the two of them would immediately react.
Sure enough, just as he thought, Zhang Xiaobao spoke just as he raised his voice and looked over.
"Your Majesty, this subject feels that there are many natives who don't even have their own language. Thus, we can just say that we'll rule them. They won't resist, nor will they have the will to resist.
As for those places that have a longer history than China, we can use trade to buy those places from them. In any case, they don't need that much land. We can use things to trade, and once we get our hands on those places, we can build buildings that suit Great Tang's style and characteristics.
In fact, we don't even need to send our own soldiers to protect those places. As long as the merchants hire the local people to be in charge of law and order, we can give them things and have them protect us.
Tell them that if they don't protect us well and steal our things, we won't go over there in the future. We won't trade with them anymore. Great Tang's products are quite good, especially silk, spices, and ceramics. "
Zhang Xiaobao recalled some of the historical records that Wang Juan had told him.
At that time, China's products were advanced and valuable in the eyes of outsiders. They could even lead the trends of other places. The people of other places were proud of having something from China and showed their status.
To an unimaginable extent, they didn't use China's spices as spices. Instead, they made something like a pouch and hung it on their bodies to give off a fragrance.
When the nobles gathered, if they didn't have something from China on them, they would feel that their status was lower than others. If they couldn't take out China's ceramics when they were eating, they would feel embarrassed to treat them.
In the end, the country's strength declined because the emperor system that looked good now was too influenced by human factors. If an emperor was useless, the entire country was finished.
Therefore, the people of other places didn't need to use much force. They just needed to sell their advanced products to China, and China would take the initiative to protect them.
Since people were the same, Great Tang could do the same now.
Wang Juan also thought of this point and said excitedly, "As for the local natives, if there are too many of them, we can kidnap them and turn them into slaves. Some people with dark skin are good at work and have strength. Although they are a little lazy and not as hardworking as the people of Great Tang and the surrounding places, their physique is much better.
But their physiques are much stronger than those of our Great Tang, and their adaptability isn't weak either, especially when it comes to sports. The only shortcoming is that they develop slowly. Let alone now, even many years later, they still … probably won't develop very well. "
Wang Juan almost let the cat out of the bag. She thought of the matter of capturing and selling slaves. Although this kind of thing would be criticized in other places, so what?
The African people in America didn't live in North America originally. Even the Caucasians migrated over later. Who could say that they would bring the African and Caucasians back to their ancestral land?
"Capture slaves to work? Ah ~ ~! The idea is not bad, but are they going to send them to Great Tang or keep them in their local area? If they are kept in their local area, why don't we give them benefits and let them work on their own? If they are sent to Great Tang, how are they going to interact with the people of Great Tang? "
Li Longji had an 'as expected' expression on his face. Xiao Bao and Cuckoo were indeed amazing. The two of them immediately perfected the idea as soon as he came up with it.
But at the same time, he felt that the two of them didn't want to capture a few slaves. They didn't want to capture more than a million people to build the railway. They wanted to capture more, to an unimaginable extent, and it wouldn't be easy to deal with them.
As for capturing slaves, he supported it. Slaves were normal, and it wasn't a big deal.
In his mind, there was no concept of equality for everyone. Otherwise, there wouldn't be servants and eunuchs in Great Tang.
Zhang Xiaobao lowered his head and thought for a moment before saying, "We should send people over to that side now and bring the locals over. Then, we can place them in Great Tang. At the same time, we can trade with the locals. One of our ceramic plates can be exchanged for many local goods. They are poor and their technology isn't advanced.
It's just that I asked the merchants to not squeeze into a cabin with so many people. If we capture a thousand slaves, there will only be a hundred left when we reach Great Tang. That won't do. That would be truly vicious, even more vicious than using the slaves to build the railway to kill people.
At the very least, we have to show their worth. Actually, we aren't capturing them, but buying them. The people over there don't have any human rights, so we have to spend money to buy them over.
Other than the fact that many people will die from building the railway, the other jobs might be more tiring, but they won't cause a large number of deaths. Their relationship with the people of Great Tang is also very good. They will first be slaves and then work.
When Great Tang develops further, we will provide them with the same benefits. Great Tang has an advantage that no other place can compare to, and that is the high integration rate. No matter where the people are, as long as they come to Great Tang and live there for a few generations, they will be able to become a citizen of Great Tang. "
Wang Juan nodded at the side, expressing her agreement. Since there were already many ethnic groups, a few more wouldn't make a difference. When she and Zhang Xiaobao were still alive, racial discrimination still existed in the United States, but China didn't. It wasn't just because of policy, but also because human nature played a very important role.
Xiaobei and the nine children were confused. They hadn't seen too many things and weren't clear about the problems between ethnic groups. They only knew that in the future, there might be more people who looked different from them in Great Tang.
Hearing that they were going to capture people, and that it would hurt them, Xiaobei put on a sad expression and said, "Don't capture them. We'll give them good food to eat and let them come over, okay? If they have the strength, let them do manual labor, but don't always work without food, okay? "
"Alright, since Xiao Bei has said so, how can it not be good? This Emperor will immediately issue a decree, to give the merchants an additional order, for them to try their best to travel as far as possible. Furthermore, when they reach a place, according to what Xiao Bao and Juan Juan said, if they can occupy it, then occupy it, if they can't, then buy it.
Let them treat the slaves better, so that they won't feel resentful when they come to work, and they won't find an opportunity to revolt. That won't be good. "
Li Longji directly decided. As for where they would be sent to work and how much the slaves would be worth, it wasn't something he needed to worry about. Someone else would take care of it.
After discussing this matter, Li Longji and the others went to rest first. After they had rested and adapted to the local environment, Li Longji still had to travel to the ends of the earth and enter the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
The next morning, Xu Mingyang came in the name of paying a visit. He hadn't eaten yet, so he waited for Li Longji and the others to finish eating before meeting him.
After greeting Lu Zhou, he produced a thick memorial and had Gao Lishi present it. It seemed like Gao Lishi hadn't rested since he returned yesterday.
Li Longji did not look at the memorial. Instead, he looked at Xu Mingyang and asked him to speak.
"Your Majesty, I've seen and heard many things in Lu Zhou for many days. Hence, I have a few ideas. I thought I'd tell you when I returned to the capital to report on my work, but since Your Majesty has personally come to Lu Zhou, I'll tell you now."
Xu Mingyang stood there as he spoke to Li Longji.
Li Longji and Weiwei nodded. "Speak."
"Yes. Firstly, I've noticed that the various matters related to Lu Zhou's ports are not managed by the imperial court. Instead, it's managed by the Merchants Alliance. The imperial court has no way of knowing how much the goods are taxed and how much they are sold for. Although there are special accounts, when the accounts are made, no one from the imperial court is keeping an eye on them.
If that's the case, or if there's a case of tax evasion that isn't beneficial to the imperial court's finances, we can let the imperial court handle the matters of import and export. The merchant association is only a place for merchants to communicate with each other. "
Xu Mingyang raised the first question. His expression was one of loyalty to the country. He was solemn and stern.
Little Bei, who had come to join in the fun, pursed her lips. She did not believe Xu Mingyang was truly devoted to the country. He was clearly looking for trouble.
Li Longji could not directly say that the current situation was the best. However, he could only say that compared to the officials sent by the imperial court, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's family members were the most reliable. It was impossible for them to leak the taxes.
He could not say these words now. Hence, he looked at Xu Mingyang and waited for him to speak.
Xu Mingyang seemed to have been encouraged. He said, "Secondly, Lu Zhou's ordnance processing should be moved to the capital with the Ministry of Works. It can't continue to be in Lu Zhou's hands. In the capital's Ministry of Works, at the very least, there should be officials from the imperial court watching and supervising.
If it continues to be in Lu Zhou's hands, the imperial court won't know the exact number of ordnance produced. If someone sells them privately and supplies them to places outside of Great Tang, the imperial court won't know if that's the case. When there's a war, the imperial court won't have enough information, and there will be more casualties. It's quite a serious matter. "
Xu Mingyang wanted to remove Lu Zhou's ordnance processing from Lu Zhou.
Li Longji still didn't say anything, but his gaze towards Xu Mingyang had a different meaning. If Xu Mingyang was closer, he would be able to feel it. The emperor was beginning to dislike him.
Xu Mingyang was at least 20 steps away from the Emperor. He could not see the Emperor's eyes clearly. After saying the second point, he paused for a moment before he said, "Thirdly, the people in Lu Zhou should move to another place to live. The people from other places should be moved to Lu Zhou.
The people in Lu Zhou are already very wealthy. Moreover, they seem to be less loyal to you, Your Majesty. Your Majesty, you only arrived yesterday so you're not aware of what happened. The way the people welcome you is the same as how they welcome the madams of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family. In order to protect the reputation of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family, I think it's best for them to migrate. "
After saying the third point, Xu Mingyang heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed like there was no fourth point. However, he did not dare to look at Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. He did not even dare to look at Xiao Bei and the others from the corner of his eyes.
Li Longji sighed and said to Xu Mingyang, "Xu Qing, I already know about the scale of the welcome you mentioned. That day, I was at the back of the crowd with Xiao Bao and the others. When they were kneeling, I was sitting on the ground. I saw it and heard what they said from the front.
As for what you said about the lack of loyalty of the locals to me, I tested it out when I was roasting food around the bonfire with the locals that night. You don't know enough yet. Go back and think about it carefully. Understand more about it. You may leave. "
Li Longji's tone was very calm as if he was chatting with Xu Mingyang. However, when his words reached Xu Mingyang's ears, it was tantamount to a sudden clap of thunder in his head. He was stunned. His face turned pale, and cold sweat broke out all over his body.
He gasped for breath and said in a trembling voice, "I, I understand. I didn't, didn't understand everything. I, I know I'm wrong."
As he spoke, he retreated. He did not turn around and leave. Just when he was about to retreat to the door, Xiao Bei said angrily, "Xu Mingyang, I'll remember you. Just you wait. Today, in front of Uncle Emperor, I'll endure it for a while. When Uncle Emperor isn't here, you'll see how I'll deal with you. Hmph, illness comes from the mouth, and disaster comes from the mouth. I'll let you know what it means."
Xu Mingyang was worried. When he heard Xiao Bei's words, he tripped over the doorsill and fell with a thud. His face was unsightly. It seemed like he had fallen hard.
"I, I serve the country wholeheartedly, wholeheartedly for the country …" Xu Mingyang gritted his teeth and got up. He muttered in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft. He trembled as he left with the fastest speed. He didn't dare to look at Xiao Bei. If he didn't do well, he might get sick when he returned.
"Xiao Bei, look at how you've scared Xu Qing. Lishi, arrange for the Imperial Physician to take a look at Xu Qing. Don't hurt her body, hehe." Li Longji instructed Xiao Bei as he made arrangements for Gao Lishi.
He had to put on an act to let Xu Mingyang know that the Emperor had no intention of dealing with him. Otherwise, he might really be scared to death. He didn't commit a crime of beheading. No matter what, the matter that Xu Mingyang mentioned did exist. It wouldn't kill him.
Xiao Bei chuckled. "He's scared because he has a guilty conscience. He has a guilty conscience. He can't see the situation. Initially, I didn't plan to do anything to him. I just wanted to accumulate some good karma for my unborn younger brother and sister. However, he insisted on walking into the muzzle of the gun. He's too hateful. He even wants to play the role of a tragic character.
Uncle Emperor, do you see what kind of idea he came up with? He's trying to sow discord between us. Yesterday, the people around the bonfire said so well. We should let him roast by the bonfire. He'll be beaten to death by others. Yesterday, those people really wanted to beat him up. They want to sow discord. They're too bad, right, Uncle Emperor? "
"Yes, the people who are trying to sow discord don't have good intentions. What about the first two points? Tell me, "Li Longji asked Xiao Bei with a smile.
"The first two points? What was the first two points? Oh, I remember. It's the place where the weapons are made. We have to move them to the Ministry of Works. How can we put them in one place? If something happens, they'll all be blown up. Also, there's only the Yellow River next to the capital.
Lu Zhou, on the other hand, has the sea. If we want to test new weapons on the sea, we can test them in the sea. How can we test them on the Yellow River? Where should we fire? What should we do if we hit someone? He didn't think it through when he spoke. He even wrote such a thick piece of paper. Stupid, really stupid.
The first point is the import and export tariffs and prices. Leave it to my family. I'm rich, and my subordinates are loyal. They won't dare to take advantage of me. Otherwise, they'll supervise each other. If one of them reports him, he'll be finished.
However, who will the Imperial Court send? Who can resist the temptation of a businessman's bribe? Putting everything else aside, how many people can resist the temptation of transporting a fleet of ores from the new island and bribing the officials sent by the Imperial Court with the earnings from the ores?
It won't be a problem if we leave it to my family. What's a ship of ores worth? Our candy store chain earns much more than them. They can't afford to bribe us. It's only natural that we have to follow the rules.
Xu Mingyang disgusts me to death. If you ask me, we should get a few more officials with the same position and let them play with each other. Right, brother? "
Xiao Bei directly rejected the first two points that Xu Mingyang had mentioned. He even found fault with them. Then, he raised his head and waited for the praise.
Zhang Xiaobao immediately said, "See? My younger brother and sister are smart, much smarter than Xu Mingyang. He's only clever in petty matters, but he's still stupid.
However, Xiao Bei, we can't send too many officials here. Yesterday, we said that the Imperial Court would send officials to Lu Zhou. Apart from giving Lu Zhou the seal of Great Tang, it's more important for the other forces in the capital. "
"What forces? What do Lu Zhou's officials have to do with them?" Xiao Bei did not understand this time.
"They're the important ministers in the Imperial Court, the princes, and the other aristocratic families." Wang Juan said to Xiao Bei, "We're different from them. We don't need to fight for any power. We have everything we need, and we just need to do our best for Great Tang.
They, on the other hand, need to compete for power with each other. At the same time, they also need to see how your Uncle Emperor favors them. Lu Zhou is different from other places. It's a province that is far away from the capital and has developed very well.
Moreover, the officials who come here can get a sum of money when they leave the office. Therefore, Xu Mingyang is not an independent existence. His appointment is not controlled by us. It's the result of competition and compromise between the officials of the Imperial Court.
It's very important to the various forces in the Imperial Court to change the officials once a year. They don't care whether Xu Mingyang gives them the money or how much he gives them. What they care about is your Uncle Emperor's impression of them in a year.
They used the position of Provincial Governor of Lu Zhou to test your Uncle Emperor's thoughts. Therefore, there can only be one Provincial Governor of Lu Zhou, and they can't send many officials of the same rank. "
"Oh, so that's how it is. I thought it was a random person who was sent here. How can the officials in the capital have so much free time? What's there to compete for? They should just do their own thing. How can Uncle Emperor's intelligence system not know?
If they insist on competing, why don't they compete with us? Since there's something they can't win, what's the point of competing for that little bit of power? It's meaningless. I won't compete. "
Xiao Bei understood again.
"Why don't you compete? Why are you competing with us, especially when you're telling stories? Don't you want to answer all the questions in the stories correctly and improve your character's level? If you don't compete, are you still willing to study hard? "
Xiao Yuan retorted.
"You know that my level is high, but you still dare to oppose me. Be careful that I'll teach you a lesson in the stories. Hmph!" Xiao Bei said to Xiao Yuan with a hand on his waist.
"Competition is the driving force of social development. If everyone stops competing, their lives will only get worse. Allow others to compete. Only with competition can there be development."
Zhang Xiaobao concluded.
Li Longji chimed in, "That's right. Only by competing can one become smarter. Everyone wants to live a better life. The officials need power. Even the order of entry is different. The common people need to live a better life than others. Naturally, they have to work hard. If the Tang Empire wants to suppress others, it has to raise its national strength to a higher level. This is human nature, and it will never change."
"Your Majesty, you've rested well yesterday. Should we go to the seaside today?" Zhang Xiaobao began to arrange for Li Longji to go sightseeing. Today, they would go to the seaside, visit the children's park, and explore the maze.
Then, they would stay there at night and visit the lighthouse closest to Lu Zhou to visit the lighthouse keeper. They would also go fishing on the island. As for the trip to the Hundred Thousand Mountains, it would be postponed. After all, it was very far away.
When Li Longji heard that he could go sightseeing today, he waved his hand happily and said, "Let's go! Everyone, advance!"
Xiao Bei and the other children were happy as well. They were not happy because they could go out to play. They had been playing because they could play with other children. Usually, they did not have many opportunities like this. They always played in groups of 11. They yearned to be able to interact with more children.
This time, there was no need to bring more than 30,000 people with them. A few hundred guards were enough. Outsiders were not allowed to come close. Those who were slightly closer were the locals.
After bringing their things, they called for Jang Wong Clan and took a carriage to the seaside pier.
After they left, Xu Mingyang, who was in the yamen, fell ill. He was seriously ill. His fall was not too serious, and there were no problems with his bones. It was just that he stretched his tendons, pulled his muscles, and bruises.
It was a small matter. He just had to rub it with medicinal wine, and he would be fine in no time.
Xu Mingyang's worry came from Xiao Bei's threat. Xiao Bei had threatened him, but that was not important. What was important was that the Emperor, Zhang Xiaobao, and Wang Juan did not stop Xiao Bei, let alone say anything to comfort Xu Mingyang.
Xu Mingyang knew very well what this meant. It meant that the matter was serious. The Emperor did not intend to protect him. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were also dissatisfied with him.
What should he do? Although the imperial doctor had come, he did not bring the Emperor's greetings. Moreover, under normal circumstances, the Emperor would give a banquet to the local officials when he went on patrol. He did not receive this treatment.
Xu Mingyang felt weak all over. He was sick. Half of it was because he was not feeling well, and the other half was a show for Xiao Bei and the others. He meant, 'Look, I'm sick. Show some mercy.'
"Aiya, my head hurts. Did the Emperor and the others do anything?" Xu Mingyang snorted and turned to ask the servants in his house.
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