leonardwarren Chapter 523 My Money!
Chapter 523 My Money!
Chapter 523 My Money! (5,000 words)
Anguo, Tai'an City.
As dawn broke, Liu Jue arrived early outside the palace, underwent an inspection, and hurriedly entered the palace.
It was another small court assembly held every five days.
As a newly appointed official in the Ministry of Personnel, Liu Jue always arrived very early in order to make a good impression on the emperor, arriving just as the palace gates opened to wait for the court assembly.
Liu Jue looked reserved and headed straight for the council hall.
Along the way, they occasionally encountered some familiar patrolling guards and palace servants.
For some reason, Liu Jue felt that these people's expressions were different from usual, as if they were a little more serious.
As a result, Liu Jue inexplicably felt that the atmosphere in the palace was a bit off.
"It shouldn't be anything important, right?" Liu Jue muttered to himself.
In the past six months or so, due to Emperor An's implementation of reforms and his efforts to suppress dissent, there have been more frequent changes in officials at court than in previous years.
Liu Jue got his current position because his boss was demoted, and he has always felt uneasy about it, fearing that he might accidentally follow in his footsteps.
Serving as an official in the imperial court is like walking on thin ice.
Liu Jue felt a strange sense of melancholy and soon arrived outside the council hall.
At this time, the palace gates were already open.
Liu Jue sensed something and subtly shifted his gaze towards the hall.
Inside the magnificent palace, An Taixuan sat high on the throne, eyes closed in meditation, his expression dignified and imposing.
To An Taixuan's left and right were several eunuchs who stood there like stone statues.
Liu Jue was startled. He had been a government official in the capital for many years, and this was the first time he had ever seen Emperor An waiting in the hall during a court assembly.
Seeing this, Liu Jue quickly stepped into the main hall, bowed, and said, "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty!"
An Taixuan slowly opened his eyes upon hearing the voice, looked at Liu Jue below, his expression unchanged, and said calmly, "It's Physician Liu, no need for formalities."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Liu Jue quickly stood up straight and then gently moved to the spot where she usually stood.
Liu Jue stood there, feeling a little uncomfortable all over.
He arrived so early simply to show how much importance he attached to the court assembly, not because he wanted to have a private audience with Emperor An...
If he had known that Emperor An would be the first to arrive at the council hall today, he would never have competed for this opportunity.
An Taixuan sat upright, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest, his eyes deep and thoughtful.
An Taixuan looked at Liu Jue and said softly, "Doctor Liu, why do some people in this world think so greedy that they don't even care about their own lives?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Jue's heart skipped a beat, his mind racing. He then said, "This humble subject is not that kind of person, nor does he understand the true thoughts of those people. In my humble opinion, there are always some people who are blinded by self-interest, losing their rationality for a moment, and thus easily doing things so greedy as to be unafraid of death..."
An Taixuan said, "What you say makes sense. Doctor Liu, what do you think is the best way to prevent such things from happening again?"
Liu Jue thought for a moment and replied, "Educating people with virtue and then restraining them with laws can reduce their greed."
An Taixuan chuckled, a cold glint in his eyes. "That's how the rules are in this world, but I don't see a decrease in such people. It seems like there are more and more of them."
Liu Jue's heart pounded, and he was at a loss for how to answer.
An Taixuan didn't expect Liu Jue to give him any answer, so he closed his eyes again and sat there motionless.
Seeing Emperor An's reaction out of the corner of his eye, Liu Jue breathed a slight sigh of relief.
A wave of unease washed over him, and he was momentarily unsure who had offended the emperor.
After thinking it over, Liu Jue couldn't figure it out. He hadn't heard any bad news recently, and he had been behaving himself, so it shouldn't have anything to do with him.
Time passed slowly, and Liu Jue stood in the hall, feeling as if each day was an eternity.
Gradually, some footsteps came from outside the hall.
Other ministers gradually arrived as well. Upon seeing Emperor An already in the hall, they all entered the hall to pay their respects, and then stood in their respective places, not daring to whisper to each other.
Before long, all the civil and military officials entered the court and went to the palace.
Zhongliang, standing next to An Taixuan, whispered, "Your Majesty, everyone is here."
An Taixuan slightly opened his eyes and looked at the officials in the hall, his emotions a complex mix.
He said slowly, "Bring everyone over here."
Zhongliang quickly agreed and then gestured to a guard.
The armored guard quickly left the main hall.
The officials, seeing this, were all puzzled and glanced at each other with expressions of doubt.
Although they didn't know what it was about, they knew from Emperor An's expression that it couldn't be anything good.
Soon, a troop of palace guards arrived with heavy steps.
Some of the imperial guards were also holding people, more than ten of them, dressed in plain prison clothes, looking miserable and wretched.
This group of imperial guards led the prisoner directly into the main hall.
The officials in the hall glanced at it, and their expressions immediately changed.
Many of the criminals in prison uniforms were familiar faces.
These people knelt there, trembling, their heads bowed, not daring to look directly at An Taixuan.
The imperial guards, clad in armor and carrying swords, stood in the hall, filling the entire hall with a solemn and murderous atmosphere.
At this moment, An Taixuan spoke up: "Last year, I gradually implemented new laws and decrees, exempting some taxes and increasing others. At that time, there were many voices opposing me."
"But I insisted on my own way, which filled the national treasury and brought in hundreds of millions of dollars in money and grain!"
"I did not keep a single copper coin of those funds and grain! All of you have seen the accounts. All those funds and grain were given back to the local areas to provide relief to the people, to build roads and bridges, and to develop water conservancy and agriculture, so that all the people of my An Kingdom can benefit and make my Great An Dynasty strong!"
An Taixuan looked at the people, his tone becoming more serious, "Have I done anything wrong in doing this?"
Noticing An Taixuan's gaze, one of the ministers quickly stepped forward and respectfully said, "Your Majesty has done nothing wrong; this is the conduct of a benevolent and wise ruler..."
The ministers immediately began praising Emperor An, saying that he had done nothing wrong and was a model of a benevolent ruler.
Other ministers also chimed in with their own opinions.
"Ah……"
An Taixuan suddenly let out a cold laugh.
Everyone fell silent immediately, and the hall instantly became quiet.
An Taixuan rose and slowly walked to the center of the hall. He stood before a prisoner, looked down at him, and a hint of disgust appeared in his eyes. "Yang Dian? Do you know why you're here?"
Yang Dian knelt there, trembling, and said, "Your Majesty, I am guilty..."
An Taixuan's eyes grew colder, and he sneered, "So you know you're guilty, huh! Zhongliang, tell everyone what his crimes are! Just remember all the good deeds he did on earth!"
The eunuch Zhongliang pulled a thick stack of books from his sleeve, opened them, turned to a page, and announced loudly: "Yang Dian, formerly a principal officer in the Ministry of Works, was transferred to Ningzhou on the tenth day of the first month of this year to temporarily act as the local supervisor of the Ministry of Works. During this period, he colluded with local officials to embezzle funds allocated from the national treasury, involving roads, water conservancy, and disaster relief... He also accepted bribes from the local authorities, totaling..."
Upon hearing Zhongliang's account, Yang Dian, who was kneeling on the ground, became completely limp and could no longer even kneel steadily.
Zhongliang read for a long time before finally stopping.
An Taixuan's expression was cold and stern as he looked intently at the Minister of Works not far away. "Minister Wang, so this is your subordinate!"
Upon hearing this, Minister Wang's expression changed slightly, and he quickly said, "I am guilty. I was negligent and did not know that Yang Dian was acting in this way in the local area!"
An Taixuan said calmly, "You are indeed guilty. This is someone selected by your Ministry of Works. Does your Ministry of Works not know this person's character?"
An Taixuan then looked at Yang Dian and said coldly, "Is the salary I give you not enough? Or do you think my money is so easy to take?"
"That's my money, and the people's money!"
"I gave you ten million, and you embezzled eight million. You even dared to steal the money and grain from the local disaster victims. Your audacity is truly beyond measure!"
"Do you think that even if the thousands of people who died in the disaster become wronged spirits, they won't come looking for you, but will come looking for me instead?"
Enraged, An Taixuan kicked Yang Dian to the ground.
He held back this time, not using any force at all.
Otherwise, with the power and prestige of an emperor, Yang Dian could have been reduced to ashes in an instant.
Even so, Yang Dian was sent flying several feet away, his bones shattered, and he spat out a pool of foul blood.
An Taixuan turned to look at the other ministers, his voice as cold as frost.
"Is my money really so easy to take?"
"My reforms to raise funds are intended to benefit the people, not to fill your pockets!"
"What, now that the taxes were increased and they were applied to you, you're trying to get them back?"
"Was the money and grain you handed over before truly yours?"
"In my opinion, the greatest enemy of my An Kingdom is not the Wu Kingdom in the east, the Wei Kingdom in the north, nor the Chu Kingdom in the west, nor the Liang Kingdom in the south..." "My greatest enemy is right in front of me!"
The officials in the court were silent as cicadas in winter, and no one dared to utter a sound.
They all knew that An Taixuan was implying something, and that his words were not only directed at those who had become prisoners.
An Taixuan swept his gaze across the hall, taking in the reactions of all the officials present.
He then walked toward a prisoner.
Seeing that the other party kept his head down, An Taixuan said coldly, "Raise your head and look at me."
The man trembled, slowly raised his head, and looked at An Taixuan with a look of panic, his lips trembling as he said, "Your Majesty..."
An Taixuan looked at the young man who bore a resemblance to him and sighed softly, "Xuyang, why do you choose to collude with them?"
An Xuyang, a member of the royal family, is the son of An Taixuan's elder brother.
Previously selected to serve as a local inspector, An Xuyang succumbed to temptation and also fell into greed and depravity.
After the matter came to the attention of Tai'an City, An Jing immediately ordered people to gather evidence and bring the person back.
An Xuyang knelt there, weeping bitterly, and said, "Your Majesty, I was confused for a moment and was misled by them..."
An Taixuan said calmly, "You're such a grown man...you really disappoint me."
"I don't understand, what do you need so much money for? Are you planning to cultivate yourself into a Martial Saint or True Immortal?"
"If you had that ability, let alone mountains of gold and silver, I could provide you with spiritual veins and mines. But you don't have that ability!"
"Human nature is greedy..."
An Taixuan turned his back to the crowd, waved his hand, and said, "Take them all to the East Market and behead them as a warning to the public!"
A squad of imperial guards obeyed the order and carried the person out.
These weren't the only people to be dragged away for execution; those who made it to the main hall were all exemplary figures selected by An Taixuan.
Several hundred local officials were also arrested and brought back to Tai'an City, and they will be dealt with together.
In addition, many others who did not deserve the death penalty have already been convicted locally, their property confiscated, and their people forced into corvée labor.
People serve in the places where they embezzle money.
Some ministers in the hall couldn't help but change their expressions slightly when they saw that An Taixuan wanted to make an example of someone.
Someone quickly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, please calm down. An Xuyang is a member of the royal family and holds a title. If he is beheaded and his head displayed to the public for this reason, it will damage the dignity of the royal family. Please, Your Majesty, rescind your order!"
Some ministers also offered their advice and pleaded on An Xuyang's behalf.
Their actions weren't because they actually had any connection with An Xuyang, or because they genuinely believed that the royal family's reputation was so noble.
I just wanted to minimize the impact of this matter.
If An Xuyang can be saved, other officials who are under investigation may also have their sentences reduced.
Most of those officials came from aristocratic families and had some connection with these ministers.
At this point, it wouldn't be good to just sit idly by.
Hearing some ministers plead for mercy, An Taixuan sneered inwardly; he knew exactly what some people were thinking.
Royal dignity and prestige? If some people truly cared about such things, they wouldn't openly or covertly oppose him.
An Taixuan didn't turn his head, and said quietly, "No one is perfect, who can be without fault?"
Upon hearing this, some ministers thought that An Taixuan was really going to take back what he had just said.
However, An Taixuan added, "But when you read the books of sages and worthies, you should understand the principles of things. If you make a mistake, you should take the corresponding responsibility."
"Even if An Xuyang were my own son, let alone my nephew, he would still deserve to die for doing such a thing! If I were to protect him, it would be a disgrace to the royal family!"
The An family has plenty of members; An Taixuan doesn't care at all about the deaths of a few parasites.
He was simply furious at An Xuyang's actions and those who had seduced him.
At this critical juncture, someone is actually trying to drag the royal family's offspring into this mess.
Do you really think An Taixuan would protect his own clansmen and allow others to obstruct his reforms?
He had long wanted to reform and reform the system, and to properly reorganize the court and local authorities.
An Taixuan said coldly, "I am implementing new policies to create a new golden age for the dynasty. Anyone who dares to stop me is an enemy of me and the entire An Kingdom!"
An Taixuan's voice was firm, as if a dragon's roar echoed in the hall.
Seeing this, the ministers knew they couldn't persuade An Taixuan, so they said no more.
If we continue to persuade them, they might become the target of their anger, so it's really unnecessary.
A squad of imperial guards quickly dragged the man away, their footsteps soon fading into the distance.
An Taixuan's eyes flashed with a hint of weariness, and he spoke again: "I have ordered people to collect information on the construction of various prefectures and counties. Zhongliang, show the situation to all the officials."
"I am tired, so we will not hold a meeting today."
Having said that, An Taixuan took a step and disappeared in an instant.
With a smile on his face, Zhongliang took out thick booklets from his sleeve and handed them to the officials in the court to read.
Letting these ministers see the current state of Anguo's development is also a way to shut up certain people.
Nowadays, there are actually very few princes and ministers who genuinely support and endorse the new policies and reforms.
Even though some of the officials in the court had changed, most of them only superficially agreed with the reforms.
If An Taixuan were to publicly announce the cancellation of the new policies, those ministers would likely all come out to applaud and praise An Taixuan as a benevolent ruler—it's just that ironic.
Inside the main hall, many ministers were curiously flipping through the booklets.
"Hmm, it's not even harvest time yet, and some places have already paid off this year's taxes and grain?"
"This is an increase in production, the winter wheat harvest... To be honest, ordinary farmers were exempt from taxes, but taxes were levied on landlords and gentry, and this is still more than in previous years..."
"The newly built roads have shortened travel time to various prefectures and counties?"
……
The ministers curiously examined the data, which clearly recorded the changes before and after the local development, making it easy to understand.
Inside the imperial study, An Jing was helping An Taixuan review some memorials.
Suddenly, An Jing looked up slightly and saw that An Taixuan had already arrived in front of him.
"Is the Emperor's court session over?" An Jing couldn't help but ask.
An Taixuan nodded slightly, "Those people have all been dragged to the East Market. Today, none of the civil and military officials have voiced any strong opposition."
An Taixuan poured himself a cup of tea to moisten his throat and said, "However, some people still can't hide their thoughts and are thinking about how to oppose me!"
"I even dared to kill my own nephew, what can they say?"
“Some people suck the blood of the common people and take the money that belongs to the entire An Kingdom. I wish I could take their lives, but they feel wronged…”
An Taixuan asked, "Has it been found out who is instigating Xuyang and the others?"
An Xuyang wasn't the only member of the royal family who was assigned to supervise local areas; it's just that the others didn't act foolishly.
An Jing shook his head slightly, "There aren't many clues, but the mastermind behind it, besides powerful families connected to court officials, can only be a foreign power. But it's clearly the former..."
Upon hearing this, An Taixuan sighed, "There are still some people we can't touch right now..."
An Taixuan paused for a moment, then asked, "How many talented people can the academy you built produce?"
An Jing thought for a moment and said, "Most of them are talented and extraordinary people, but not many can serve as officials in the court. It will be difficult to let them gain a foothold in the short term."
"Oh, by the way, the academy has recently taken in a few extraordinary individuals from outside the country. They all heard of Lu Zheng's deeds and came to Anguo hoping to find a place to serve. They were selected by my subordinates who are recruiting talent..."
"One of them was from the State of Chu, skilled in mechanical arts, and had some connection with Lu Zheng. He went directly to the academy with Lu Zheng's token..."
Upon hearing this, An Taixuan chuckled and said, "Is that so? It's a good thing that someone has come to serve my An Kingdom because of your reputation!"
"Hey, I never expected that he could recruit some talent for Anguo while he was out there!"
"However, I still hope that Lu Zheng will come back to deal with these old foxes. He can come up with so many methods, so dealing with those princes and ministers should be easy for him."
An Taixuan recently received a reply from Lu Zheng, and knowing that Lu Zheng had no intention of returning, he felt somewhat regretful.
"I get annoyed just looking at certain ministers!"
An Taixuan frowned slightly, his tone filled with dissatisfaction.
Hearing An Taixuan's complaints, An Jing smiled slightly and said, "Father, please calm down. Don't let those people upset you and harm your health. It's not worth it."
"A ruler should have a broad mind, be tolerant of what others cannot tolerate, and endure what others cannot endure, in order to become a benevolent ruler."
"Let's be lenient with some people for now. Once Anguo is well-developed, we won't need them to maintain it anymore. Anguo can have fewer aristocratic families, but it cannot be without its people..."
(End of this chapter)