"Okay, it's up to you."
The two started to eat, talking and laughing, as warmly as ever.
Even after experiencing so many things, their relationship has not changed, but has become deeper.
Liu Xie sent people to investigate the source of the Yellow River and the results were quickly obtained.
Everything was as he expected, the river upstream of the Yellow River was indeed drying up this year, and the water level dropped a lot.
After learning the news, Liu Xie immediately issued an order and all government offices along the Yellow River began to prepare for drought.
In this way, two months passed in a flash.
Yellow River The severe drought along the coast has arrived as expected. Not to mention the extremely hot temperature, and there has been no rainfall for two months in a row. Some small rivers have directly stopped flowing, leaving thousands of miles of desolation.
Most of the crops planted by the people died in the fields due to lack of water, and even the water level of the Yellow River dropped to an all-time low!
This drought is a severe drought that has been rare in decades!
If such a drought is not prepared in advance, it will definitely cause great turmoil to the country and trigger a great famine. Only then will the nightmare begin.
The Great Famine cannot be dealt with by local governments and counties. Once the victims begin to flee, it will have an impact on all cities and counties. Just resettling the victims will make Imperial Court extremely busy.
At this time, if grain is transferred from other places for disaster relief, then Merchants and Great Aristocratic Clans will definitely give them a heavy blow, and they will maliciously raise grain prices, thereby Profiteering.
During the famine, the victims changed their lives to eat, gnawed trees and ate soil, and what was written down was just a few words in a pen or book.
But there is blood behind the words!
This disaster relief preparation also proves how wise Liu Xie's decision was, because he predicted the drought in advance and asked Fa Zheng to invest millions of money in drought preparation, so all places were prepared in advance to deal with the drought.
Zhuge Liang The grain adjustment was completed as early as January, and now the grain reserves in local prefectures and counties are more than 40% more than before.
Not only that, Tax Bureau also sent people in advance to purchase a large amount of grain in the Yi Province and Jing Province areas for storage. Once there is a shortage of food, it will be immediately transferred to the disaster area to replenish it.
With so many preparations, you won't be afraid even if there is a big famine!
Weiyang Palace, Xuan Room.
Now Great Han is experiencing drought in various parts of the country, and everything is just as Liu Xie expected, a severe drought has fallen.
But despite the urgent drought situation, the faces of the officials in the palace were not nervous, but looked very relaxed.
"What Your Majesty said is indeed true. Yellow River The clear water is a sign of severe drought."
Fa Zheng couldn't help but sigh.
"Now Guanzhong is a land of thousands of miles of desolation. All the crops have died on the ground, and even several major rivers have stopped flowing. Such a severe drought has never been seen before.
Zhuge Liang also nodded and sighed, "If Your Majesty had not had the foresight to prepare for the drought in advance, I am afraid that the people in the Guanzhong area would be in dire straits now. Your Majesty is a wise man!"
The other ministers in the palace also praised him.
This compliment is indeed from the heart, and there is no element of flattery, because if Son of Heaven had not insisted on adjusting food to prepare for drought, the consequences would have been unimaginable!
Hearing the compliments from Court Officials in the palace, Liu Xie did not feel complacent. He understood that although he had made adequate preparations, the people's lives were still difficult.
"How is the disaster relief going now? Have notices been posted everywhere?"
Liu Xie looked at Fa Zheng and said at the same time, "We must not make the people panic, and we must show Imperial Court's confidence."
Fazheng smiled confidently and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured that all counties and counties have sufficient food and grass. As long as you open the official warehouses and show them to the people, they will feel relieved. I have made full preparations this time, and there will be no famine!"
Fa Zheng knows how well prepared he has been, so he has the confidence to make this guarantee.
"Very good, you should take the lead in overcoming the drought!"
Liu Xie then showed a smile, Fa Zheng really wasted a lot of effort in preparing for the drought, and the credit is not small.
"Thank you Your Majesty!"
Fa Zheng breathed a sigh of relief and bowed to thank him. For him, Son of Heaven's recognition was more meaningful than his credit.
Liu Xie then said to Jia Xu and Yuan Xi: "Send more people to keep an eye on them. If grain merchants from all over the country dare to take the opportunity to raise grain prices, there is no need to report them, they will be dealt with directly!"
"In the face of disaster, we will never tolerate petty mischief, and we will not tolerate it even more so when it is difficult for the country to make money!"
Liu Xie's tone is quite tough.
Why do so many people die every time there is a natural disaster? This is inseparable from the fact that grain merchants everywhere are driving up grain prices. They don't care how many people die, they only care about whether they can make a lot of money.
Liu Xie will not tolerate this kind of thing. Whoever dares to jeopardize the country's wealth at this juncture will be killed. It just so happens that there is a lack of food right now, so he might as well kill one or two.
Yuan Xi, Jia Xu respectfully said, "I obey your decree!"
After discussing the drought and making follow-up arrangements, Liu Xie finally felt relieved and asked the maid to serve Plum Soup on ice to reward Court Officials.
Fa Zheng and others thanked him one after another without being polite, because the weather has been too hot recently, and this kind of blessing can only be found in the palace.
Only Guo Jia was holding the bowl and looking at Liu Xie, looking hesitant to speak, as if hesitating whether to speak or not.
Liu Xie saw this and asked with a smile, "What's wrong Fengxiao, this Plum Soup doesn't suit your taste?"
Guo Jia hesitated for a moment, put the bowl down, then cupped his hands and said, "That's not the case...Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Guo Jia opened his mouth and immediately attracted everyone's attention.
Liu Xie raised his eyebrows slightly, feeling confused, but he still nodded and said, "Fengxiao, what do you want to say?"
Zhuge Liang stood up and left the table, and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, there have been rumors circulating in various places recently, claiming that this severe drought is a disaster sent from heaven. It is all caused by Your Majesty establishing Imperial Academy and violating Ancestors's established laws and Sage's teachings."
As soon as these words came out, the entire Great Hall became quiet.
The maid who was about to bring Plum Soup to Liu Xie was so shocked that her hands shook, and the thin porcelain bowl worth a thousand dollars in her hand fell directly to the ground and shattered into pieces.
"My slave deserves to die! My slave deserves to die!"
The palace maid was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she knelt down with a plop, kowtowing and trembling all over.
Before the Throne Disobeying the rules, this is a serious crime punishable by death with a cane!
"A blind thing!"
Eunuch on the side was furious and was about to step forward to beat and scold him.
But Liu Xie raised his hand to stop her and said calmly, "It's okay. You all should step aside first. Don't blame her."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Eunuch naturally did not dare to violate what Son of Heaven said, so she bowed and bowed, and the maid also left with her.
Among the Great Hall, only Liu Xie and Grand Secretariat Academician are left.
Chapter 505 The plans of the furious Jia Xu, Liu Xie
"When did these rumors start?"
Liu Xie put the bowl on the table and asked calmly, not angry because of the news.
Guo Jia lowered his head slightly and replied, "In the past few days, it has been widely circulated in Chang'an City, and the impact is not small."
"But we don't know where this rumor first spread."
After Guo Jia finished speaking, the other ministers frowned. Those who spread rumors were really audacious and dared to slander Son of Heaven
Moreover, this rumor contains deep malice and is directly targeted at the Imperial Academy. This shows that someone must be deliberately promoting it behind the scenes.
The common people are all superstitious. Whenever there is a major disaster, Son of Heaven will issue an edict to blame themselves. It is even more common to dismiss officials or Three Excellencies.
This time we encounter a severe drought that has not happened in a century. Even if Imperial Court is prepared to deal with it, the people will inevitably be affected.
At this time, someone suddenly came out and said that this was a disaster from heaven, and put the responsibility on Son of Heaven and Imperial Academy, which could easily lead public opinion.
Ever since Dong Zhongshu proposed the theory of Correspondence Between Heaven and Humanity, celestial phenomena have been closely related to the emperor. It would be very troublesome if the people all believed that the drought was caused by Son of Heaven's contempt for Confucianism's heavy use of New Learning.
Although Liu Xie has a very high reputation and prestige, and its status in the hearts of the people will not be affected by these rumors, it will definitely be even more difficult for the Imperial Academy to continue its business.
It is extremely unfavorable for the Imperial Academy that something like this happens at the moment when Debate Conference is about to open.
"The people spreading these rumors really have ulterior motives!"
Lu Su, who has always been steady, rarely got angry. His face was very ugly and his words were filled with anger.
Son of Heaven did not hesitate to spend countless money and food to ensure peace for the people, so that this severe drought, which was rare in decades, did not happen, with the tragedy of exchanging children for food and leaving corpses everywhere. This alone can be called a sage king!
However, this move not only failed to win praise.
Instead, what you get in return is slander!
"Please rest assured Your Majesty, I will send people to investigate thoroughly. No matter what means are used, this matter will be investigated clearly!"
Jia Xu said with a gloomy expression and a solemn tone.
To be able to make him, who has always been indifferent to emotions and anger, show such an expression shows how annoyed he is.
All the ministers in the palace were furious, but Liu Xie, who was the one being slandered, looked indifferent and didn't care.
"Your Majesty, should we order a strict ban on the spread of such rumors and arrest and punish all those who discussed it? As long as we follow the clues, we will surely find the source of the spread."
At this time Fa Zheng suggested to Liu Xie.
However, Liu Xie shook his head and refused. "It doesn't make much sense to use such methods. Besides, those who are clean will clean themselves up. I have done nothing wrong, so why should I care about these rumors?"
"Most of the people are ignorant and like to follow blindly. Using force to stop the spread of rumors will only be counterproductive."
"Furthermore, I'm afraid these messages were deliberately spread by some people. If I pay too much attention to these rumors, it will play into my own hands."
"Let's just wait and see what happens."
Seeing that Son of Heaven is so plain, Court Officials has no choice but to be.
After Court Officials finished handling the government affairs, they left Imperial Palace and went home respectively, while Jia Xu went to Southern Office alone.
The North Yamen and the South Yamen were originally the residences of the palace guards, but now the South Yamen has been changed into the work place of the Embroidered Clothes Envoy. It is also a place where the ministers in the court are so angry that they will always walk around when they retreat and leave the palace.
Southern Office looks inconspicuous, just like an ordinary courtyard. The vermilion door is closed all year round and few people come in or out.
When Jia Xu came to the door of Southern Office, he did not knock on the door. Red Gate opened the tightly closed door and closed it again after he walked in.
He walked towards the Main Hall with a gloomy face. On both sides of the road, there was a man named Embroidered-Clothes Envoys kneeling in a row. At this time, everyone lowered their heads, as if facing a formidable enemy.