Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

The next day, the Imperial Court.

The morning bell rang, and the officials lined up in their positions.

The Emperor sat high on the Dragon Throne, while Li Yuanzhao was obediently placed to the side.

Since listening to the Crown Prince's insights yesterday, Emperor Jing had the idea of bringing the Crown Prince to the court more often for trials and learning.

He is also of age now...

After the officials finished their greetings, Emperor Jing said, "Rise," and then took a sip of tea as usual.

Afterward, the Imperial Court fell into dead silence.

Emperor Jing also realized that today was unusual, and quietly waited for his ministers to speak.

Li Yansong lowered his head and glanced around the hall, sighed, and then slowly stepped forward, saying: "Today's court meeting, this old minister..."

"Your Majesty, I have a memorial!" Before Li Yansong could finish speaking, Minister of War Feng Jie stepped out first.

"What matter do you have to report?"

Feng Jie said solemnly: "Your Majesty! This minister received an urgent report from Jianjiang Prefecture last night! Because the Jianjiang flood has not been resolved for days and is getting worse, a rebellious force has emerged among the people."

"It is called the Water God Sect! The Jianjiang Governor has sent people to investigate, and the people in this sect are remnants of the Qian Kingdom gathered together!"

"It is said that under the guidance of their Holy Maiden, the Water God Sect has gathered thousands of disaster victims and is taking action in various counties and cities of Jianjiang, spreading rumors, creating troubles, and causing chaos among the people. The military forces of Jianjiang Prefecture are already short-handed in order to maintain order, and they are requesting the imperial court to send an additional 10,000 troops to rectify the Water God Sect!"

As soon as these words came out, the ministers began to discuss.

"It has already reached this point. Has the remnants of the Qian Kingdom not been wiped out after two years?"

"Your Majesty, the urgent task is to quickly send silver and money to Jianjiang Prefecture to quell the people's grievances. If this continues, I am afraid that the Water God Sect's power will grow!"

"Speed is of the essence in war! We should take advantage of the Water God Sect's weakness and nip it in the bud!"

"In that case..."

"Silence! Silence!" Emperor Jing, with an angry expression, slammed the Dragon Throne, and the ministers immediately quieted down.

"The mere remnants of the Qian Kingdom have now been reduced to an evil cult. Your esteemed ministers' reactions are a bit too extreme!"

"However, the Jianjiang flood must be resolved, but the national treasury has no silver. I am willing to allocate another ten thousand taels from my private treasury."

"As for the rest... esteemed ministers are all pillars of the country. Now that the country is in trouble, I hope you all can actively donate..."

As soon as these words came out, many people's eyes began to flicker.

Like students in class afraid of being called on.

After a few breaths, still no one took the initiative to speak. Li Yansong glanced around the room and sighed.

As the Grand Secretary of the Inner Cabinet, it seems that he must take the lead.

What His Majesty said is true. The national treasury is now empty. What else can be done? But taking silver from other ministers is like cutting flesh from their bodies.

They all say they are for the sake of the people, but the premise is that they cannot harm their personal interests!

Li Yansong took a step forward and said loudly: "This old minister is willing to donate five thousand taels of silver!"

With Li Yansong taking the lead, the other Grand Secretaries of the Inner Cabinet began to step forward one after another.

Zhang Dongxiang said: "This minister is willing to donate four thousand taels of silver..."

Zheng Qiao said: "This minister will also donate four thousand taels."

Seeing the Grand Secretaries taking the lead, the other ministers couldn't help but click their tongues.

The Grand Secretaries have been in the Inner Cabinet for a long time, and they hold multiple positions. Moreover, as the Emperor's brain trust, they are also highly trusted.

In their respective hometowns, they are all famous local landlords.

But the other low-ranking officials below the fourth rank are different! Taking out a few thousand taels at once is not impossible.

But it really hurts... Donate to the disaster victims? Wouldn't it be better to buy two more catties of premium Celestial Tea?

Emperor Jing nodded with satisfaction.

In the end, it is still these old ministers of the Inner Cabinet who understand the big picture and take the overall situation into account...

Afterward, the remaining officials began to report their donation amounts one by one according to their official ranks.

From thousands of taels, it dropped all the way down to hundreds of taels, and in the end, there were even only dozens of taels.

In total, only 34,000 taels were collected.

Seeing the numbers compiled by the little eunuch, Emperor Jing's expression gradually became unsightly.

Including the ten thousand taels he contributed, the dozens of ministers below only donated a total of twenty-four thousand taels, while he could raise more than ten thousand taels in two or three days just by selling tea.

Emperor Jing really wanted to tell the story of the tea to shame this group of ministers, but thinking that it might affect the subsequent income of the private treasury, he decisively extinguished this idea, and then said sarcastically:

"I didn't expect the officials of my Great Jing Dynasty to be so incorruptible... So many people can only barely scrape together less than forty thousand taels of silver!"

There was silence below, and everyone began to look at each other.

His Majesty's appetite is a bit too big. How much is considered a lot?

Minister of Revenue Zhang Shi said: "Your Majesty, the urgent task is to quickly support Jianjiang. Send as much as you have!"

"Yes! Please, Your Majesty, send troops to Jianjiang as soon as possible!"

Emperor Jing slowly said: "Feng Jie! Immediately send 15,000 soldiers to Jianjiang to quickly exterminate the Water God Sect!"

"In addition, bring another 20,000 taels of silver to assist Jianjiang Prefecture in disaster relief!"

The ministers were in an uproar: "Your Majesty! Only 20,000 taels is too little. Now that there are 130,000 taels, why only send 20,000 taels?"

"Only one-tenth of the 200,000 taels is being sent now, it is really too little!"

Many people showed anxiety, most of whom were officials from the Southern faction, fearing that the flood would continue to spread and wreak havoc on their homes.

Emperor Jing said indifferently: "How long will the flood last? Which of you ministers can give me an answer?"

"If the flood does not recede in a month, does it mean that I should continue to send another 200,000 taels of silver?"

"This is a bottomless pit that can never be filled. There are many people in the world who need to be saved, but the national treasury only has so much money. This matter... let's take it one step at a time and wait a bit..."

"Feng Jie, after sending troops to Jianjiang, order people to report back to the capital every day. There must be no delay in information!"

"Yes!"

Seeing the Emperor's firm attitude, the people below could no longer insist, but they were all calculating their own little plans in their hearts.

Zhang Dongxiang approached Li Yansong and whispered: "Lord Li, what's wrong with His Majesty... I think it's a bit unusual."

Li Yansong said in a deep voice: "I don't know. His Majesty has his own decisions... Let's take it one step at a time...."

......