I Don’t Want To Be the Emperor

Chapter 511 Understand the sentiments of the people

Zixia asked him where he wanted to go, and he said without hesitation: north.

He once rode a donkey all the way from Ankang City to Sanhe and back to Ankang City on a donkey. He also had a general idea of ​​the situation south of Ankang City.

And whether it is Yong'an, Wuzhou, Nanzhou, Yuezhou, or Jingzhou, it has been under his rule for a long time, and it is relatively peaceful now, so there is nothing to worry about.

 The most important thing is that spring will be over soon and it will be summer.

Not to mention the heat, he couldn't help but shiver just thinking about the south where mosquitoes were flying all over the sky.

 It's just a matter of going out to eat and sleep in the open. There are three urgent needs for people. In the wilderness, the buttocks can't stand it.

For the sake of his weather-beaten butt, he resolutely headed north.

 “Your Majesty,”

Pan Duoce immediately stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, it's been a tiring journey. There is a big market town ahead. Let's go in and rest for a night before we continue our journey."

Before he came out, whether it was He Jixiang, Chen Desheng and other elders, as well as Manager Hong, Zixia and others, they all told him again and again that he and the prince were delicate and should not take the fast route. They could walk several miles a day to satisfy themselves and the prince's exploration. Desire is enough.

 Don't take what Prince He said about "private visits in private" seriously.

Whoever is more serious loses!

This trip out is just to coax and play with the prince!

 So, when he came out this time, he tried his best to follow the newly cultivated official path.

If he and the prince got tired from riding the donkey, he would immediately arrange for someone to bring the four-wheel drive and shock-absorbing carriage behind him, so that he and the prince could lie down comfortably in it.

 There are all kinds of snacks and drinks inside.

However, all this is hidden from Prince He. Fortunately, Prince He has not yet reached the point where it is needed.

Lin Yi looked at the still-glow sun and said with a smile, "It's still dark early, so let's continue on our way."

 “What the prince said is,”

Song Cheng on the side also laughed and said, "More than ten miles ahead is the Deen Mountain Resort. I remember that the prince has always talked about this place. Why don't we take this opportunity to take a look."

Lin Yi asked in surprise, "Why did you go to De'en?"

In order to consolidate the management of Saibei, the founding emperor Lin Baozhi established Deen Paddock several hundred miles away from Ankang City.

Every autumn, the emperor brought tens of thousands of filial sons and grandsons, princes and nobles to hunt here. In order to solve the food, clothing, housing and transportation problems for so many people, dozens of palaces were built here.

The most famous one is the Deen Mountain Resort, which is used for summer vacation and government affairs.

 Emperor Delong was diligent and rarely came here to escape the summer heat. Instead, he benefited the eldest princess, prince, Dai Wang, Xin Wang, Jin Wang and others.

 Every summer, these people basically come here.

When Lin Yi couldn't bear the heat anymore, he also wanted to follow him, but at that time, others kept silent and there was no chance.

The only thing I can do is talk to Hong Ying, Song Cheng and others.

After he led his troops into Ankang City, the first thing Hong Ying did for him was to let Jizhou guerrilla general Yue Shan occupy the summer resort.

 It’s just that he never came once.

Thinking of this, I can't help but feel a little emotional. Things that were once out of reach have suddenly become within reach.

He suddenly looked at the sullen Arhat on his right, and said angrily, "No wonder I said Song Cheng was going to bring you this **** here."

This time out, Zixia recommended Pando, and he had no objection at the time.

Panduo is the deputy commander of the imperial guards. He is highly skilled in martial arts and well-informed. He is away from home. It is best for such a person to serve as the internal and external liaison officer and coordinate in the middle.

As for Songcheng, he also suddenly thought of it.

Mingyue and Zixia are her accountants and auditors, and Hong Ying is his money bag. As for his inner treasury properties, basically all of them are managed by Song Cheng, such as his salt farm in Fangniao Island, Yong'an's tea farm, and Sanhe Bank. , big ship on the sea.

Song Cheng is not an official, but as an industrial agent in his name, he is more prestigious than an official.

 Due to the needs of business, he often traveled to the states of Liang Kingdom and knew the customs and customs of many places very well.

Lin Yi brought him with him, which was equivalent to bringing an encyclopedia with him.

And this guy Arhat was brought here by Song Cheng.

　　For a time, he disliked Arhat very much and arranged to go to the Jinling Prefecture to go on duty.

This guy couldn't stand it any longer, so he shamelessly returned to Ankang City.

He was originally a native of Ankang City, so Lin Yi had no reason not to let him come back.

I don’t know what kind of benefits he gave Xiao Xizi, but he suddenly became the commander of Deen Mountain Resort and was responsible for the security of the mountain resort.

 He found out about it later and didn’t object.

 In this position, ability is not important, it still depends on loyalty.

 Arhat has proven many times that loyalty to him is enough.

 He just turned a blind eye.

 I just saw it here suddenly, and the summer resort happened to be in front of it.

 Have already planned it!

　　I didn’t take him for a private visit incognito, but I prepared to use sugar-coated bullets to corrode him!

 “Your Majesty,”

Arhat was a little at a loss for a while, and said with a smile, "I have never had the opportunity to show my respect to you. Since I heard that you are coming to Jizhou, I shamelessly asked Brother Song to take me with you."

Lin Yi rolled his eyes at him and said, "I don't have the ability to be serious, but I do have some tricks up my sleeve."

Song Cheng said with a smile, "My lord, please forgive me."

Lin Yi sighed, "We agreed to do a private visit incognito, but now you have made it known to everyone!"

 Even a low-class character like Arhat knows this, so what else do others need to say?

Pan Duo cupped his hands and said, "It's all my subordinates' fault. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

"snort,"

Lin Yi said angrily, "You have let everyone know my king's whereabouts. What if someone assassinates me?

You are the only great master here, whether it is from Jizhao'an, Tuigu Temple, or Xihuang, if anyone comes, I will die! "

“Don’t worry, Your Majesty, there are large armies stationed all over Jizhou and countless artillery pieces. No matter who comes, they will never come back!”

Pan An didn't dare to say that Ye Qiu, who was originally going to Sichuanzhou, was lying in the carriage behind.

As for how many bodyguards, court guards, and military masters He Jixiang, Qi Peng, and Hong Ying mobilized to surround them, he, the deputy commander of the court guards, didn’t even know!

What’s more, there is the elusive Manager Hong Yinghong secretly!

Unless the people in Jizhao'an are crazy and dare to cause trouble for Prince He!

 “Jizhou has also deployed cannons?”

 Hearing that there were cannons, Lin Yi suddenly felt relieved.

 Science comes first.

 What he worships is the power of knowledge.

In front of the cannon, all illusions have no place to hide!

Arhat hurriedly said, "Every market town with a population of over 100,000 has heavy artillery!"

Lin Yi nodded and said with satisfaction, "That's good."

Pan Duo said, "Well, Your Majesty, are we going to the summer resort right away?"

 “I’m not going, I’m here to observe the people’s sentiments, not for a vacation,”

Now that everyone knew about his outing, he was too embarrassed to talk about private visits in private. "Looking at the upper limit of a place's development is of little use. It's nothing more than the rich people's wine and meat, the rich people living in drunkenness and dreams, and their wives and concubines. We If you want to see it, go to the most basic rural areas and see the lower limit of a place to know the real situation. "

 “Then what does the prince mean?”

 What "upper limit" and "lower limit" are, Wang Ye often talks about it, and Pan Duo can probably understand what it means, but the specific understanding is still far behind.

Lin Yi pointed to a narrow dirt road at the entrance of the road, "Where are we going? Judging from the traces on the road, people should often walk there. There must be a big village nearby. Let's go and take a look."

"yes."

 The three of them said in unison.

The group of people pretending to be merchants continued walking along the path.

After a while, you can see pedestrians in twos and threes, all of them are in ragged clothes and look haggard.

The houses along the road are also low and muddy, with long-rotted thatch or wheat straw weighed down on them.

 In the plains, there is little wood, thatch and wheat straw, which are used to make fires for cooking, and they need to be hesitant to renovate the roof.

Now he finally understands that Bai Juyi, a young man from Xipiao, complained that "living in Chang'an is very difficult" and was unwilling to return to his homeland.

Even though he was demoted, he still expressed the emotion of a local literary youth: "I resigned from the imperial capital last year and was relegated to Xunyang City where I was sick. Xunyang is a remote place with no music, and I have not heard silk and bamboo all year round."

No one wants to stay in such a run-down rural area!

Lin Yi stopped in front of a house. When a child playing in the mud in front of the house saw it, he was so frightened that he hid in the house.

There is a water tank in front of the door. The water in it is turbid and even smells bad.

Lin Yi frowned and asked, "Is this place so short of water?"

Luo Han said, "This place has been suffering from drought for many years, and selling children and daughters has long been a common thing."

 There was something he didn't dare to say.

The additional gifts from the prince and the prince made matters worse.

 “No wonder the fields are barren!”

It was the spring plowing season, and Lin Yi didn’t see anyone busy with the farming!

This makes him feel a little creepy!

“There have been two spring rains, so it is said that the seeds can be planted.”

Rohan hesitated and said, "It's just..."

 “Just what?”

Lin Yi sighed and said, "You yourself are from a farmer's family. Don't eat for two days and your **** will be crooked. If you have any conscience, just speak up for them."

"yes!"

Arhat finally gritted his teeth and bravely said, "Your Majesty is kind and now prohibits land annexation. Each person has five acres of land, but all they are allocated are sandy land and saline-alkali land. As for the fertile land, they have already been allocated to the rich."

No one can afford to plant in these saline-alkali lands. We don’t even have seeds or farm tools, so there is no hope of spring plowing. "

Lin Yi frowned and said, "Can't I rent it from the government?"

Arhat shook his head and said, "That is a way for the government to take advantage of the opportunity to make money. There is no way to make it easier for the people. With an interest rate of more than ten cents a year, farmers will not dare to rent it at all."

 “So expensive?”

Lin Yi was speechless!

 According to modern calculations, the interest rate is more than 10% per year!

 This is usury!

ˆ “.”

Arhat sneered, "Your Majesty is wise."

Looking at the angry look on the prince's face, he did not dare to say any more.

Lin Yi gritted his teeth and said, "Who is the prefect of De'en?"

　　"I would like to inform you that the prefect of De'en is Jiang Pei."

 It was Pando who answered.

Lin Yidao, "Jiang Pei, is this name so familiar?"

“Jiang Peinai is the younger brother of Lord Jiang Kan, who was promoted by the navy,”

Pan Duo thought for a moment and then continued, "After he obtained his primary school diploma in Nanzhou, Master He Jixiang promoted him as the prefect of De'en. This man loves the people like a son and is very diligent."

Lin Yi said, "Then why is this place in such a bad state?"

 “Your Majesty,”

Pan Duo smiled bitterly and said, "Jiang Pei is from Nanzhou. The officials here are intertwined and have complicated relationships. In order to avoid causing civil unrest, they have always been cautious."

Lin Yi said bitterly, "You just said before that there are garrisons and cannons, but are they all vegetarians?"

Pan Duo said cautiously, "Officials from all over the country have been actively responding to the prince's stability maintenance policy. If they act too hastily, it will destroy the local business system and logistics system. Business travel will be blocked, and construction will be even more difficult."

 What he said were the same as what the prince had said before!

"fart!"

Lin Yi said angrily, "No matter how bad it is, it can be even worse than it is now!"

He did say these words when he first arrived in Ankang City, and now they have been widely circulated and become a guide for officials everywhere!

 But, this time and that time!

When he first arrived in Sanhe, the people of Sanhe were poor, but at least they had water!

 Go to the old forest, go to the river, at least you can survive!

 Not enough to eat, but not starving to death!

 So, he was open to wealthy landlords such as Wang Cheng, Liang Gen, Yan Kuisheng and Hu Banquan!

 The most important thing is that Sanhe’s economic and material trade are all controlled by these people!

 Kill them to death, and Sanhe will really become a dead place!

 But Jizhou is different.

 So close to Ankang City, he gave an order, the policy tilted, and there were more people with two legs!

I dare not say that business travel will continue, at least there will be no interruption in material trade like Sanhe.

Song Chengdao said, "The prince said so."

 He has rarely seen the prince lose such a big temper!

“The philosophy I taught you is all in vain.”

Lin Yi said helplessly, "If we analyze specific problems in detail, no one can apply them flexibly."

He was too lazy to say anything more and continued walking north. He couldn't bear to see the miserable sight of children being sold and married women along the way.

 We walked halfway and turned back to Deen Mountain Resort.

He had no intention of drinking the cold lotus seed porridge in front of him, but said with a sad face, "I only thought about the difficulties in Yuezhou and Hongzhou, but I didn't expect that it would be more difficult in Jizhou."

 He really couldn’t understand why he was so shameless in increasing the tax on Jizhou!

 “Your Majesty, calm down!”

He Jixiang, who received the news of Prince He's wrath, came directly to Ben De'en, knelt down in the hall, and said sadly, "This is a must-do!"

Lin Yi closed his eyes and said, "What do you mean you can't do it?"

 “Your Majesty,”

He Jixiang said word by word, "The war in the north of Saibei is urgent. Yuezhou and Hongzhou are in ruins, and there is no tax to collect. In the land south of Yong'an and Wuzhou, water far away cannot quench the thirst of the people nearby. Only Jizhou is right in front of us!"

"Hey"

Lin Yi finally understood the meaning of these words.

Jizhou is unlucky because it is too close to Ankang City!

 Is this also wrong?

“Jizhou will be exempted from taxes for three years!”

Lin Yi said in a deep voice, "Put out another one million taels of silver from this year's sea trade to provide disaster relief!"

 The most hateful thing is myself. Because of my ignorance, I agreed to He Jixiang’s request for a tax increase!

He Jixiang said loudly, "Your Majesty is wise!"

"There are corrupt officials here, and the three departments will judge them together. Even if the king of heaven comes, I can't save them!"

Lin Yi stood up, threw the teapot in his hand to the ground with a clatter, and said coldly, "I said so!"

 (End of this chapter)