Shen Li didn't say another word. No one knew if she was too ashamed to speak again.
Now that they had gotten rid of the irrelevant people, the main event was about to begin.
Looking at the civil and military officials kneeling on the ground, not daring to move, Xiao Ruxun nodded slightly and said, "Don't kneel. Get up. I am not the emperor yet."
The civil and military officials looked at each other and then slowly stood up. But they still lowered their heads and didn't dare to move.
"The world is full of vicissitudes. Just yesterday, I was thinking about conquering the Central Plains and restoring the Daming Empire. But today, I have to bear the infamy of betraying the emperor."
Xiao Ruxun shook his head helplessly and said, "But I don't regret it. Because all of this is for the people of the world. For the people of the world, they will no longer have to suffer from homelessness, hunger, bones will no longer be exposed in the wild, and there will be no roosters crowing for thousands of miles. I want the people to live and work in peace. Even if I have to bear the infamy of eternity, it doesn't matter."
Even Xiao Ruxun herself found it a little funny when she said the half-truth.
But thinking about it carefully, there was no such thing as a pure good thing in the world …
The world was never black and white.
So he said these words with full confidence.
Zhao Shiqing took the lead to express his loyalty to Xiao Ruxun and said, "Your Majesty, I agree with you. Today, the people of the world are suffering, homeless, and starving. Those who hear of it are sad and those who see it cry. I really can't bear it."
"Oh? Zhao Butang can't bear it? "
Xiao Ruxun said with a smile, "Then why do you have so much land and so many houses in your hometown? Your annual income in the imperial court is not enough to buy so much land and houses, right? Where did all the money come from? "
Zhao Shiqing was stunned and then his face turned pale.
"Since I defeated the Wei Nation in the 21st year of Wanli, I asked them to pay eight million taels of silver in compensation, which will be paid over five years. This is equivalent to three or four years of Daming's national treasury income. Previously, the national treasury had two or three million taels of silver, but it was not enough. Now that we have so much silver, why is it still not enough? Was it appropriate for the Emperor to use his own funds to fight a war?
Not to mention the compensation from Renchen, there's also the compensation from the Wei Nation's silver mountain. It's about one million taels of silver a year. I've taken them for fifty years. The imperial court's finances should be very rich. Why is it still not enough? How much does this Daming cost per year? How much could he earn? You're in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, so why didn't you tell me clearly? "
Xiao Ruxun stared at Zhao Shiqing. Zhao Shiqing swallowed his saliva and opened his mouth, but he didn't know what to say.
At this time, Xiao Ruxun shouted to the outside, "Bring them in!" A group of warriors brought in a dozen large boxes. Xiao Ruxun opened them one by one and found that they were all accounts books from the Ministry of Revenue.
Zhao Shiqing's face turned even paler.
Of course, it wasn't only Zhao Shiqing. All the officials in the court, from the senior officials to the junior officials, all had ugly expressions on their faces.
Xiao Ruxun picked up a random book and flipped through it.
"Let's talk about the loans first. If I didn't see it, I wouldn't have known. Now that I've seen it, I'm shocked. Why are there so many loans but not a single one is being collected? The recent ones were only in the past few months, and the distant ones were in the Zhengde era.
Who was the one who borrowed the money? Why did he still borrow money from the national treasury? And he wasn't even going to return it? These payments came one after another, but I didn't see much repayment. Zhao Budang, can you explain to me? Who are these people who borrowed money from us? How dare you borrow money from the national treasury and not return it? "
Xiao Ruxun walked to Zhao Shiqing's side and patted his shoulder.
Zhao Shiqing's body trembled slightly.
The other civil and military officials also felt their hearts beating faster.
"Your Majesty … Your Majesty is wise, we … we truly do not have enough income. If we are of high rank, it is fine, but if we are of low rank, our salaries are truly meager. In a place like the capital where prices are high, the money we have is only enough to eat. Our families also have other expenses, so we simply don't have the money to do anything.
An unknown sixth-grade official stood up and spoke.
Xiao Ruxun sized him up.
"So that's how it is. I know that the salaries are meager. Ever since the founding of the Daming Dynasty, the salaries have never been raised. I'm also aware of this. Many minor officials don't have much silver on hand and can only use goods to exchange for silver. Even so, their days aren't easy, and there have even been cases of officials being forced to their deaths.
I admit that the Imperial Court's conduct in the past truly wasn't good, but your actions aren't very good either! If you have nothing better to do, you would reach into the national treasury to take money and not return it. That's even worse. The money in the national treasury is not only for your salaries, but also for the army's pay, disaster relief, troops, roads, cities, and river embankments.
All of this requires silver, and you stretch out your hands and take the silver. One person takes it, two people take it, and in the end, you end up writing an IOU, treating the national treasury as your own. What is this? Is this considered embezzlement? Fine, if you say it's not, then I have nothing to say. Not being able to eat and not being able to do anything is truly not good. "
Xiao Ruxun threw the account book in his hands back.
"Don't worry, I won't pursue this matter any further. I'm not interested in who borrowed the money and who didn't return it. I don't intend to pursue it any further. What's done is done, and there's nothing I can ask for. Men, bring these account books out and burn them!"
The moment he said this, the civil and military officials heaved a sigh of relief. Especially the sixth-grade officials, they looked at Xiao Ruxun with surprise and joy. They watched as the account books were brought out and burned.
They were really burned, not a single thing was left.
Today, Xiao Ruxun had called all the important people over. Only these important people were allowed to face him in the Extreme Emperor Palace. The other minor officials lined up outside the Extreme Emperor Palace, waiting for news from within. Only a few of the more special fifth-grade and sixth-grade officials were allowed to enter Heavenly Worship Palace.
Since they had seen it, there would naturally be people who would spread the news outside. The vast number of small officials and small shrimps outside would know that their accounts had been wiped clean.
From nervousness and despair to unexpected joy.
This was indeed a good way to buy people's hearts.
Xiao Ruxun had originally planned to do this.
The sixth-grade, seventh-grade, eighth-grade and ninth-grade officials indeed didn't have much to gain from them. Most of them didn't have high authority, and a large number of them had to rely on their family's support to rent a house in the capital. They didn't dare to 'borrow' too much money from the national treasury, for fear that one day, they would become the sacrificial pawns of some big shots in the political battle.
They were really miserable. Their income was low, and their lives weren't good. They were also easily used as scapegoats. There was no meaning in making things difficult for them. Many of these people could be used.
The main ones were the officials with real power above the fifth rank. These were the ones who made up the majority. Perhaps they could pretend to be clean and honest in the central government, but in private, their families and clansmen relied on their name and power to wantonly amass wealth and encroach on land.
Yes, these people had clean reputations, and they didn't take bribes. But were they poor?
They might be clean and honest, but their families were extremely wealthy …
The three southeastern provinces had already been eaten by Xiao Ruxun to the point where he couldn't even wipe the grease off his mouth. There were still many of these people in other places. If they were dealt with properly, they could still continue to eat.
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
