Why did the emperor rebel?

Chapter 250 The Resentful Shen Shangshu

In any case, the Ministry of Industry is currently in charge of Chen Xun, so no matter whether he has a deep enough understanding of this aspect, this matter cannot bypass him.

Or to put it another way, since he has taken the position of Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry, he must have the ability to match it.

However, fortunately, Chen Xun has not been idle these days, he knows where his weaknesses lie.

So even though other officials were already half-resting as the New Year approached, he still spent the whole day in the office of the Ministry of Industry, looking through official documents over the years.

Opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared. Although Chen Xun did not actually visit the general affairs in person, thanks to the blessing of being in the yamen these days, he has also read some information about water conservancy in various places.

After going through the argument between Zhang Min and Shen Yi just now, Chen Xunfang said.

"Your Majesty, what Shen Shangshu said is not unreasonable. Although I have not been in the Ministry of Industry for a long time, I have also learned about the hydrology and geography of Shawankou."

"The breach here has a lot of implications. If we want to cure it, we need to do a lot of construction. However, the imperial court is indeed empty of treasury."

Logically speaking, as Minister of the Ministry of Industry, Chen Xun should support the construction of the canal.

However, he has been in the cabinet for a long time, and he knows a little about the situation of the household department, so Chen Shangshu's tone is quite hesitant.

After a while, Chen Xun finally said.

"Your Majesty, in my opinion, this matter should not be rushed, but it should not be ignored. The people of several prefectures near Shawankou are also the people of the imperial court."

"Even if the channel is overhauled, at least dredging the canal and strengthening the embankment are essential."

"I have only been in office for a short time, and I have never visited the river mouth to check it out. I don't know much about the specific situation. Zhang Ge and Shen Shangshu must be the same. Talking about building dikes or canals like this is tantamount to talking on paper."

"In the opinion of the old minister, we can send competent officials to investigate the local hydrological conditions in detail, and then determine the river control strategy based on the actual situation."

After hearing Chen Xun's words, Zhu Qiyu nodded slightly.

Indeed, river governance is not something that can be done overnight. They are talking here and can only set a general direction.

Specifically how to cultivate and to what extent it should be cultivated depends on the specific situation.

Sure enough, the yamen of the six ministries can still train people. Chen Xun has not been transferred from the cabinet for a long time, but he has a little more prudence.

This is different from his thoughtful and prudent handling of government affairs in the cabinet before. This kind of prudence does not mean that everything is stable and error-free, but that it really falls into specific practical affairs and does things in a down-to-earth manner.

A hint of approval appeared on his face, Zhu Qiyu said.

"What Chen Qing said is reasonable. You really shouldn't be too anxious about this matter. After the New Year's Eve, Chen Qing, you have to sit in the capital and carry out the reform of artisan households."

"Since this is the case, after the new year, I will send Wang Wei, the servant of the Ministry of Industry, to Shawankou to conduct a detailed survey and report."

But having said that, Zhu Qiyu couldn't help sighing in his heart.

He actually knows the situation at Shawankou better than anyone else.

This is not just a problem of a breach. In the previous life, the mouth of Shawan was continuously strengthened and the embankment burst, causing floods almost every year.

It wasn't until the fourth year of Jingtai that an extremely large-scale flood occurred, stretching across several states, and the court also reacted.

The real work began to harness the river, but at that time, the manpower and material resources needed to harness the river had already multiplied several times.

What Shen Yi said was not unreasonable, but for some things, the longer they procrastinate, the more serious they will become. After all, it is not as good as making preparations in advance.

In a sense, the sooner Shawankou is governed, the more it can feed back the recovery of national power.

As for the issue of corvee that Shen Yi has been worrying about, in Zhu Qiyu's view, it is not a big problem.

In the past few years, wars have been fought year after year. Although it is said that a lot of corvees have been dispatched, in addition to collecting corvees for the construction of canals and rivers, it is not impossible to call on the garrison troops from all over the country and even the Beijing army.

Even though this will inevitably make the Beijing Army's drills temporarily idle for a period of time, it is not impossible to use them as an emergency if it is necessary.

This matter can be regarded as being finalized for the time being.

Of course, Shen Shangshu was not happy about it.

Because strictly speaking, no conclusion has been reached on this matter, it is only delayed until the results of the investigation are released before making a decision.

But no matter what, the Emperor Jinkou said that even if the Ministry of Industry does not build the canal next year, it will focus on river governance.

The most is that the money is not so much, it still needs to be spent...

On the other side, after Chen Xun took the order, he also hesitated. After a while, Fang said.

"Your Majesty, since the matter of repairing the river is mentioned, I know that there is someone who is good at this. If he can go to inspect the river together, it will surely make this matter come to fruition faster."

There was an inexplicable silence in the hall, Chen Xun didn't know why, but suddenly felt a chill on his back, and when he raised his head, he saw the emperor's deep eyes, staring at him closely.

After a while, the emperor's light voice came, saying.

"who?"

Although he already noticed that something was wrong, but the matter had come to this point, Chen Xun could only say.

"Return to Your Majesty, this person is Xu Xuan, a servant of the Imperial Academy."

Hearing this name, Zhu Qiyu's expression darkened, but his voice did not change, and he said lightly.

"I seem to have an impression of this name. When the army reported to Beijing, he was the one who suggested moving south in front of the Empress Dowager Shangsheng, right?"

A trace of cold sweat broke out on Chen Xun's head. He really didn't expect that after so many things had happened in the court, the emperor could still remember such a small person.

But the words had already been uttered, and it was hard to take back the water, so Chen Xun had no choice but to bow down to the ground and said.

"Your Majesty, although Xu Yu has passed away for a while, he is quite accomplished in hydrology and geography. The court is in the midst of employing people. If he can relieve the people's worries with his talent and learning, he can be regarded as serving the country. .”

"Therefore, I have the courage to recommend Xu Yu, and ask Your Majesty to allow him to participate in the river governance."

Zhu Qiyu looked at Chen Xun, and didn't speak for a long time, until Chen Xun's head started to break out in cold sweat, only then did he hear the voice of the Son of Heaven again, saying.

"This matter will be discussed later. As for the survey of hydrology, it is enough for the time being that Wang Wei, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, has gone through it. Others can be discussed after the survey."

"According to the order."

Only then did Chen Xun get up, secretly glanced at the emperor's face, feeling a little regretful in his heart.

He expected that the emperor might have a bad feeling for Xu Yu because of the southward move, but he didn't expect it to be so serious. It seems that his actions today were indeed a bit reckless.

After such an episode, it is obvious that it is not appropriate to talk about river governance.

Therefore, Chen Xun and Zhang Min looked at each other and got up to leave tacitly.

As a result, only Shen Yi, Minister of the Household Department, was left in the hall.

After a while, Zhu Qiyu had adjusted his mood and regained his smile, half jokingly, and said to Shen Shangshu.

"At this moment, Shen Qing is probably blaming me for being a prodigal again in her heart?"

(End of this chapter)