"No wonder …" Meton was suddenly enlightened. No wonder Li Chengqian was nowhere to be seen.
"It's rare for us to come out. Minister remembers that there's a newly opened shop in front. It's filled with top-notch treasures. Why don't Your Highness take a look and choose a few treasures for His Majesty and Her Majesty to show your filial piety?" Meton suggested.
Meton knew that Princess Changle was a rich woman. The ice cream shops in Chang 'an and Luoyang made a lot of money every day. During the Xi City Festival, Meton had seen Princess Changle's generosity with his own eyes.
"Forget it!"
However, to Meton's surprise, Princess Changle shook her head. This was not Princess Changle's style.
"Changle's sister's money has been used to provide relief to the victims of the disaster," Zi Yi suddenly interjected.
"Relief to the victims of the disaster?" Meton was surprised.
Princess Changle explained, "Although the flood of the Yellow River this time was relatively light, the amount of money needed was not small. Apart from the relief funds, Father also took out a lot of money from the internal treasury. Furthermore, the various palaces in the palace also reduced their expenses to provide relief to the victims of the disaster. The money in my hands was not of much use, so I gave it all to Father to provide relief to the victims of the disaster."
Meton suddenly understood. Regardless of whether Li Shimin was buying people's hearts or caring for the world, Li Shimin had indeed set an example. Although it was simple, it was very practical. Princess Changle had also seen Li Shimin's actions and imitated him.
"Minister is ashamed of Princess's benevolence." The person in question was right in front of him, so Meton naturally did not stop praising her.
"Changle only has a little bit of power. It can't compare to Marquis Merton's great contribution in saving the Yellow River," Changle said.
The more they talked, the more official they became. Zi Yi said impatiently, "Stop flattering each other. Sister Changle, what do you like? He was willing to pay for the Young Master. He wouldn't even care if it was ten or twenty gold ingots.
Zi Yi said to Meton without any trace of politeness. All along, the Mo Family had let Meton do whatever he wanted, and Meton did not disappoint them. However, during the Grand Competition of the Western Regions, Meton's extravagant spending had really frightened the people of the Mo Family.
Although it was later proven that what Meton did was indeed worth the money, it was not copper coins but gold ingots! The Mo's Village, which had been poor for many years, could never experience such extravagance. All of them were almost shocked. The older generation of the Mo's Village kept telling Meton about the hard struggle of the ancestors of the Mo's Village almost every day, which made Meton very annoyed.
Meton immediately smiled awkwardly and hurriedly changed the topic, "Princess, if there's anything you like, please let me know. It's the Minister's intention to help the Emperor and Empress."
"I don't want it! Father and mother are saving money for the disaster relief. If they see us buying extravagant things, they will not be happy. "Princess Changle shook her head and said.
Zi Yi suddenly had an idea and said, "How about we give the money to the victims? Although I don't have much money, I still have a few hundred strings of coins, which can certainly help many victims through the difficulties. If it's really not enough, I can go back to the Mo's Village. The uncles of the Mo's Village will definitely be willing to pay for it. "
Thinking of this, Zi Yi couldn't help dancing with joy. As Mo Jiazi's younger brother, the idea of universal love had been in her mind since she was a child.
Princess Changle couldn't help but be greatly moved. She couldn't help looking at Meton. She knew that Meton always paid attention to many things.
However, Meton shook his head slowly with a wry smile.
"Why can't we? We have money and are willing to help the victims. Why can't we? There are so many people suffering, yet the Mo's do nothing. Isn't that against the Mo's philosophy?" Zi Yi said unconvinced.
Moton explained, "Disaster relief has always been an act of the government since ancient times. It has been the same for every dynasty. Personal disaster relief is just the local squire cooking some porridge to help the victims. Even this is something that only the local rich families can do. It is not something that the Mo family thousands of miles away can do."
"Why is that?" Zi Yi didn't understand.
"Since ancient times, it has been very easy for disasters to cause chaos. If someone were to use the name of disaster relief to buy the hearts of the people, I'm afraid …" Moton did not continue speaking, but Zi Yi and Princess Changle both understood Moton's meaning. If the disaster relief workers were to use this opportunity to cause trouble, it would likely lead to a massive rebellion. The Mo's position was awkward. If they rashly sent disaster relief, it would cause criticism.
In ancient times, especially after Confucianism was revered, every dynasty claimed to be benevolent. Thus, the work of buying people's hearts like disaster relief fell on the government's head.
The famous Tang Dynasty prime minister, Song Chang, even said, "The private benefits of officials cannot be allowed. The country is small and benevolent, so it is good to govern." Even if ordinary people were kind, it was an act of buying people's hearts. It was not allowed. Even if the government did not do it well, it was still good governance.
The Mo's position was special. If they rashly sent disaster relief, they would be labeled as buying people's hearts. When the time came, if the mud fell into their pants, it would be done.
"Then, are we just going to watch those victims suffer and do nothing about it? The victims' homes were destroyed, and they are now sleeping in the wilderness. They lack food and clothing. They must be very pitiful. " Zi Yi was so anxious that she was about to cry. She had good intentions and wanted to do something good, but she found it so difficult.
Princess Changle also fell silent. In the end, the reason for this was still the royal family. She had been educated by the royal family since she was young, so she naturally knew the reason for the imperial court's actions.
Meton nodded regretfully and said, "When one side is in trouble, help comes from all sides. In fact, there are many people who are willing to help these disaster victims. How could these people, who can cheer for the victory of the Yellow River, be stingy with helping the disaster victims? Even if each person donated a copper coin, it would be hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even if each household donated a piece of old clothing, the disaster victims would not be cold. "
The more Meton spoke, the more excited he became. Although these forces were small, when all of them were gathered together, it would be an extremely large force. In order to protect their rule, the dynasties would rather waste these people's charity and even kill them.
"Wouldn't it be great if there was someone who wasn't feared by the rulers, and could make use of the charity of the people?" Morton clenched his fists angrily. He was hot-blooded, but he was restrained in every way.
Suddenly, Meton's eyes fixed on Princess Changle. He could not help but be stunned.
Why didn't he think of it? Princess Changle, the eldest princess of the Tang dynasty, would definitely not be feared by the imperial court. Moreover, she had great appeal. Wouldn't she be the best spokesperson for the people's charity?
"Young master!" Zi Yi looked at Meton with dissatisfaction. It was extremely rude of him to stare at Princess Changle like this.
However, Meton did not notice it at all. He quickly walked to Princess Changle and said excitedly, "Do you really want to help these disaster victims?"
Princess Changle's heart moved. She immediately knew that Meton had an idea. She nodded solemnly.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
