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Wan Dajun of Jiu Gong charged forward with fervor!
The first wave of hundreds of thousands of refugees was about to reach the capital! Two significant issues had already left the ministers feeling exasperated before the battle even began. The Ministry of Revenue had to immediately produce Three Hundred Thousand Taels of Patterned Silver to purchase food for the disaster-stricken populace!
The elite forces of Jiu Gong would be met with a deployment of ten thousand Royal Guards to confront them! As Su Qianxue issued the orders, a wave of shock swept through the court.
Minister of Revenue Zhao stood up and declared, "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue has no funds!" While the capital's grain merchants had supplies, we lacked the money to buy them! Furthermore, regarding the expenses for your Royal Guards, we have no surplus funds either!
"You audacious fool!" Su Qianxue fumed, glaring at Minister of Revenue Zhao. "How dare you openly defy my command? Do you wish to lose your position? Or do you seek death?"
"Your Majesty, this is our account for the year," Minister of Revenue Zhao retorted as he produced a ledger, detailing the Ministry's expenditures. In summary, we have no money; not a single tael can be spared from the Ministry of Revenue! There is no way to meet your demands! You might as well stop dreaming.
"Minister of Revenue Zhao, you!" Su Qianxue exclaimed incredulously. "In such a vast Great Zhou Dynasty, there is no money?" She scrutinized everyone around her, no longer the weak figure she once was; she resembled a lioness fiercely surveying her territory.
Many ministers lowered their heads, avoiding eye contact with Su Qianxue. Minister of Revenue Zhao was aligned with Langya Prince. In reality, the Ministry of Revenue had several hundred thousand taels that could be used to aid the victims. However, as Minister of Revenue Zhao, I have altered the accounts. After all, if an official claims there are no funds, what can be done?
As the behind-the-scenes envoy, Langya Prince continued to sit back with his arms crossed and eyes half-closed, pretending not to hear Su Qianxue's words. After all, the prince had issued his orders! If you want to aid the disaster victims, forget it! Do you intend to send troops?
Ah, you took money from the royal treasury.
Since you dared to take out three hundred thousand taels, the king will order the generals to pocket two hundred thousand taels and then distribute one hundred thousand taels.
Then, turning around, those cash-strapped generals will come to you for military salaries. If you give them more, ha, the king will continue to siphon off your money.
In a critical moment, can you really dismiss all the officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War? Most of the Civil and Military Officials remain silent, while a few, led by Luo Yuhua, want to speak up but find themselves short on funds.
Su Qianxue surveyed the officials around him and couldn't help but sneer: this is what my Great Zhou Dynasty's Civil and Military Officials look like!
Back at the banquet, Jiang Han said that such a group of officials should be exterminated! Even replacing them with a batch of inexperienced candidates from the imperial examination would be better than these old bureaucrats.
Unfortunately, in this dire situation, there’s no time for such measures.
Your Majesty!
Regarding the current situation, I have a solution! Minister of War Wang stood up again and said: Currently, we are facing two situations!
First, the ten thousand Royal Guards preparing for battle need provisions and weapons! If Your Majesty has no money, we can borrow from civilian merchants to acquire some provisions and funds for weaponry!
He began mentioning several well-known businesses in the capital, all of which were under the Langya Prince's command.
We need to incur debt; however, the interest won't be too high! But at least it can solve our immediate problem!
Upon hearing this, Su Qianxue couldn't help but sneer: Ah!
Am I as an emperor supposed to borrow money from civilian merchants? The Chief Stewards of those businesses might just be your retainers from Langya Wangfu!
If I borrow money from you, you know the military routes completely; if you betray the army to Jiu Gong and our forces are defeated at the front lines, then you could easily collect those provisions as well. When it comes time for another expedition, you could trick me once more?
Langya Prince, oh Langya Prince, what cunning methods you have! There’s no need to borrow money!
As for provisions and weapons, I will handle it myself! Now, let’s discuss relief for the disaster victims!
Su Qianxue declared boldly: Since the Ministry of Revenue has no funds, then the royal treasury will allocate two hundred thousand taels of silver to purchase food!
May I ask Your Majesty, from whom shall we purchase food? Minister Wang asked again.
From Shopkeeper Jiang in the capital; he has been supplying provisions to Lin Qingyue quite reliably! I will procure his food to address the needs of the disaster victims! Su Qianxue said slowly.
I have Shopkeeper Jiang to rely on.
"If it were not for this, you courtiers would surely take advantage of the situation," the Emperor warned.
"Your Majesty, this Jiang Han is neither a member of the Royal Merchant Association nor a long-established grain merchant! Furthermore, Jiang Han has not engaged in any public cooperation with our court!" Minister Wang declared with righteous indignation. "This man has very few followers in the capital! We do not even know where his grain is sourced from. If we were to give him twenty One Hundred Thousand Taels of Silver, and he ran off with the money, it would pose a significant threat to the court!"
"Jiang Han would run off with the money?" someone scoffed. "That’s simply absurd. Years ago, when Jiang Han provided so much grain to Lin Qingyue without issue, how could he possibly run away now?"
Su Qianxue was about to retort but was met with the cautious words of the other officials. "Your Majesty, we are not clear about Shopkeeper Jiang's situation! We do not know where his grain comes from either! How can we procure from someone whose background is completely unknown?"
"Although Shopkeeper Jiang supplied provisions to General Lin, we are still unaware of Jiang Han's circumstances. This is unsafe; what if we pay him and he fails to deliver the grain? What will happen to the tens of thousands of disaster victims?" Numerous officials stood up, speaking earnestly.
In summary, they all echoed one sentiment: Jiang Han was unreliable.
Just as Su Qianxue's expression darkened, Minister Wang spoke again. "Your Majesty, if you wish to choose Jiang Han as a grain supplier, that is possible! However, Jiang Han must clarify where his grain is sourced from and who sells it to him!"
"If Jiang Han can provide clear answers," he continued, "then procuring from him would pose no problem at all!"
As these words fell in the imperial study, silence enveloped the room.
Su Qianxue's eyes glinted with malice. "Minister Wang, your true intentions have been revealed. Everyone knows about Jiang Han’s goods but no one knows where they come from; thus, everyone suspects that there are mysterious forces behind him."
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