The topics discussed in the Imperial Court were passed one after another. There were no major issues.
The only thing that needed to be resolved was that some of the people who had rented the land did not want to buy it. The officials had no good ideas. The people had already paid the taxes, and they did not want to sell the grain, so they could not punish them.
Moreover, this year's autumn harvest had been estimated in advance, and the output would be very high. Some of the people who did not want to sell the grain would leave it at home first. Would they sell it in the end if the grain price did not go up? If they did not sell, they would keep it. It could be considered a cost. If it did not flow, it would depreciate.
There was also a small problem. Who would be in charge of accepting the immigrants from the Six Zhao? It was not suitable for important people to leave the capital, but it seemed not important for unimportant people to go out.
In the end, it was decided that the Assistant Minister of Revenue, Pei Yaoqing, would go. He was a good person, and Li Longji believed that he could do the job well. He could not be too warm to the people of the Six Zhao and make the people of the Tang Empire feel inferior to outsiders, but he could not be indifferent to the people of the Six Zhao. They had left their homeland to come to the capital of the Tang Empire and were full of yearning for the life they had come for.
Calling them over and then not treating them well, would that not be cheating? If the people did not listen to you, you would bury the seeds of unrest wherever you put them.
Pei Yaoqing was capable and upright. His rank was not low, and he happened to belong to the Ministry of Revenue. Along the way, he could also see the situation of the local people.
Li Longji specially allocated two million strings of coins from the national treasury for him to act on his convenience if he encountered any problems along the way. If the road was not good or the bridge was damaged, he could withdraw the money from the local bank and hire someone to fix it.
After the matter was decided, Pei Yaoqing did not stay to watch the movie. He hurriedly left the Hanyuan Palace and went home to prepare for departure that night.
At this time, the morning court was over. Li Longji looked to the side and saw a clock with the hands pointing to the 10: 40 position.
Touching his stomach, Li Longji said, "Let's eat breakfast."
The buns were sent. They were not cold and had been kept warm, but some had collapsed after a long time. The officials were not in the mood to care about this and began to eat in the Hanyuan Palace. The entire morning court was filled with the smell of crab meat buns.
In addition to the buns, there was also cucumber and egg soup, as well as two small pickles. Those who liked to dip it in vinegar would dip it in vinegar, and those who liked it would dip it in soy sauce.
After this breakfast, there was probably no need to eat lunch. In the evening, they could get off work early and watch a movie with His Majesty. This was the first official movie in the Great Tang, and the officials were going to watch it. It was a political mission.
Li Longji ate two steamed buns and drank a mouthful of soup. When he saw Gao Lishi standing by the side serving him, he pointed at the steamed buns in front of him with his chopsticks. Gao Lishi shook his head. The palace maids and eunuchs hadn't eaten yet, so it was better for him to wait for a while and eat together.
"Has the Fat Clam from Jili State also come down? In a few days, the hairy crabs in Lake Tai can also be eaten. Are the lotus flowers in Hangzhou's West Lake blooming with green leaves or budding? "
Li Longji seemed to be asking Gao Lishi, but at the same time, he seemed to be muttering to himself. However, he did not turn off the microphone, so the ministers below could hear him clearly. They lowered their heads and continued eating, pretending that they did not hear him.
Gao Lishi helped Li Longji add another spoonful of soup and said, "Your Majesty, many of the animals that were sent to the zoo in the capital this year have adapted and are very lively. Two pandas have given birth. Why don't we go and have a look tomorrow?"
"It's said that you can always see mirages in Penglai near Dengzhou in Henan Province. It's a good place to fish." Li Longji ignored the zoo.
"Your Majesty is right. Many species of sea fish can be seen there. A few days ago, a group of sea fish were found in the artificial salt lake beside the capital to test. Unfortunately, they all died. It was too salty and the fish could not stand it. However, there are no reefs on the artificial beach there. The weather is just right now. Why don't we go and have a look tomorrow?"
Gao Lishi went along with Li Longji's words and talked about the artificial saltwater lake. It was a very big project. If the capital suddenly ran out of salt, they could take out the water and boil it. The capital would immediately stabilize and have enough food to eat.
Li Longji nodded. "Speaking of salt, it's more convenient to dry it. The output of salt at the estuary of the Yangtze River is relatively low. The river water is not so salty. The Yangtze River's swordfish have to be desalinated when they swim upstream from the sea. I still remember that Xiao Bei and the others encountered danger on their way to Xunyang.
Later on, Xiao Bao came up with an idea to specialize in processing all kinds of things. Moreover, there's a section of the railway there. I really want to see how prosperous it is. The fish in Penglai Lake is also delicious. You can even climb Mount Lu behind it. "
"Your Majesty, speaking of scenery, the hot springs in Gyeonggi Province are also very good. When the weather is hot, soak in the hot water and relax. It's good for the body."
Gao Lishi mentioned another fun place.
Li Longji sighed and said, "Okay, okay, I won't be going on a trip. If only Xiao Bao and Cuckoo were here. They could always find a good excuse for me to go on a trip to various places."
After Li Longji said that he would eat, his subordinates also breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that he didn't go out, otherwise he would delay things. Moreover, the most important thing was who would accompany him. If Xiao Bao and Cuckoo were here, they could really take His Majesty to other places to play. After all, they didn't have a proper place to be officials.
*****
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, who were missed by Li Longji who wanted to go on a trip, had already contacted the locals.
With the help of the translators, everyone could communicate. There were not many locals living in the periphery, only about 130 people. They were dark and thin, and all of them looked at the approaching Tang people with vigilant eyes.
They already knew that the Tang people had weapons that didn't look as powerful as spears, which could kill people from a long distance. At the same time, they also knew that the Tang people had good things.
"Someone in charge, come here." Zhang Xiaobao saw that the other party didn't have a weapon and shouted.
The translators also shouted.
A person walked out from the crowd. His hair and beard were very long, and they were stuck together in strands. No one knew how long it had been since he last washed. It had just rained, so it was convenient to stand in the rain and wash. How lazy.
Zhang Xiaobao commented. Then he said to the other party, "My name is Zhang Xiaobao. I'm a good person. What's wrong with your eyes? I haven't translated yet."
"I can understand you. My name is Duoduo Lakeduo …"
"Alright, Duoduo is enough. How can you speak our language?" Zhang Xiaobao knew why the other party had such an expression when he said that he was a good person. Was he really that bad? Even people thousands of li away had heard of him? His reputation was spread far and wide!
Wang Juan didn't say anything. She pursed her lips and smiled. Xiao Bei and the others also smiled like little foxes who had secretly eaten chicken. They were smiling like thieves.
Duoduo had been sizing up the group of people in front of him. When he found that none of them looked fierce, and there was no ridicule in their eyes, he relaxed a little and replied, "In the past, I saved your people. No, I was saved by your people. In a mountain very far away, I was bitten by a snake and fell ill. I met a Tang merchant passing by and was saved. I followed the group for a period of time and learned your language. When I left, they gave me two beautiful jars. One of them accidentally broke. "
In order to prove what he said, Duoduo asked someone to bring the jars over.
While waiting, Zhang Xiaobao sized up the living environment of the other party. They were really poor. Shacks made of wood and branches, houses without bricks, basins and bowls made of wood, and children were naked. Whether it was men or women, they only had a simple woven 'cloth' and animal skin around their waists.
There were even knives made of stone and sharp pieces of stone used to tie the front end of wooden spears. Only Duoduo in front of him was tied with a rope and carried a metal knife in front of him. Its shape was very strange. It was longer than a kitchen knife, narrower than a kitchen knife, straighter than a watermelon knife, and sharper than a watermelon knife. It probably had many functions. It could cut, cut, and stab. However, judging from the color, the quality of the knife was not very good.
It was unlike the current Tang Dynasty, where a random family had several knives and metal pots. It was not like in the past where two or three families used one knife. This showed that the living standards of the Tang Dynasty people had improved.
Zhang Xiaobao thought and felt proud. He felt that he had contributed a lot.
After sizing up the other party and being sized up by the other party, the people who went to get the things came back with two jars each.
When Zhang Xiaobao saw the jars, he felt that the Tang people who had saved Duoduo were evil and did not have good intentions. One jar could weigh thirty catties. The pottery ones weighed about twenty to sixty catties. It was not easy to carry. He really did not know how Duoduo had brought two jars back.
The two jars were filled with things. One was meat jerky, and the other was … whip? A dried animal penis?
Indeed, one of the jars was missing a corner. It did not look very harmonious, and there was a whip in it.
Zhang Xiaobao walked forward and touched the gap. He said, "Actually, you can add jars, jars, and bowls. Unfortunately, you don't know how to do this."
"Your Tang Dynasty jars are all good when they are broken?" Duoduo asked with yearning.
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head. "Who has the time? If they are broken, just throw them away. In the past, they were easy to produce. No one will spend money to add them. It is not worth it, unless they have been used for hundreds of years and are reluctant to throw them away.
Duoduo listened and looked forward to it. He even turned his head and translated to his people. So, his people's eyes lit up. They looked expectantly at the people who suddenly appeared.
Xiaobao was embarrassed by the stare and quickly said to Duoduo, "I can lend you a batch of ceramic utensils. To be honest, I don't have a lot. They're all made of metal, just like your knife, but better."
"Lend? What if they are broken? "Duoduo wanted to lend, but he had his own worries.
"If they are broken, just throw them away. Even if there is a hole as big as a grain of wheat on the bowl, you don't have to give them to me. It is easy for children to cut their mouths when eating."
Zhang Xiaobao measured the size of a grain of wheat.
Duoduo was surprised and followed suit. Then, he lowered his head and sighed. Obviously, he understood that his people were not as good as the Tang people. For him, if he had a beautiful bowl, he would still use it even if it was broken. It was very precious, but the Tang people threw it away.
He translated it to his clansmen, and they all cheered as they looked at Zhang Xiaobao, their faces filled with enthusiasm.
"They are a group of honest people. They are welcome to give benefits." Zhang Xiaobao thought and waved his hand. Someone immediately brought the things over.
Zhang Xiaobao took a bowl with golden flowers. After hesitating, he handed it to Duoduo and said, "I will lend you this, but I need your help."
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