Time passed quickly, and half a month passed in the blink of an eye. The capital city became much calmer, and the most discussed topic was the rain this year.
Zhulan was worried. "The water has not stopped since the spring rains began. It will be time for spring ploughing in a few days. How can we plough with such heavy rains?"
Zhou Shuren put down the book in his hand and pressed his tired brows. "It's cold and rainy at night. Close the window quickly. Do you think you are in good health? Aren't you afraid of getting sick after all this trouble?"
Zhulan rolled down the window and looked down at her body, which was on the road to obesity and she would never look back. "I'm not afraid of having too much fat on my body."
"You can still make fun of yourself. It seems that you don't care that you are fat."
Zhulan wiped the rain off the window with a handkerchief and said, "Don't blame me. This is the first time I've encountered such heavy spring rains in all these years since I came to the ancient times."
Zhou Shuren was also worried. "If spring ploughing is delayed, this year's harvest will not be good. What if there is heavy rain throughout the year? The grain output will be even lower. We also have to prepare for many situations. The grain depots in various states have been sealed to prevent unexpected situations."
Zhulan was heartbroken. "We have quite a bit of land. We bought it ourselves, and each family bought it. The loss in one year is not small."
Zhou Shuren frowned and said, "Let's see if we can build some sheds. Forget it. The cost is too high."
Zhulan listened to the sound of raindrops outside the window. It used to be a lullaby, but now it annoyed her. "This year, the crown prince is acting as the government. If he doesn't handle it well, it will not be conducive to establishing his prestige."
Zhou Shuren hummed, "The Crown Prince is also worried today. The reports sent in from all over the country all say that it has been raining heavily, especially in the south. Fortunately, the dam is newly built, otherwise there would be great hidden dangers."
A flood can destroy fertile fields. Floods are merciless and it is the common people who suffer casualties. Floods cannot be prevented even in modern times, let alone in ancient times.
Zhulan saw Zhou Shuren pick up the book again and said, "You don't need your eyes anymore. Don't read anymore. You are already old. Do you want to wear reading glasses in two years?"
Zhou Shuren put down the book with a reluctant look on his face. "This is a new collection of oddities. The short stories are quite interesting, okay? Okay, don't glare at me. I don't want to read it anymore, I don't want to read it anymore."
Zhulan snorted, tidied the quilt and prepared to rest. In fact, it was not all troublesome. Changzhi went back to his hometown and lived well there. He talked about many things in the clan. Changlian was also making steady progress in the Maritime Branch. Dong and her children also adapted to life in Xuzhou. Everything was going well.
Zhulan thought of Changyi? "According to the date, Changyi should have reached his destination!"
Zhou Shuren, "I went to the Xu family to ask, and I calculated that the date should be here soon."
Abroad, Changyi and the envoys returned to their resting place. Bahu would take them around tomorrow and then leave.
The maids in the room also went down, leaving only the family members. They talked a lot. Those who arrived yesterday had tiring social engagements today, so they all went to rest after chatting for a while.
Changyi didn't rest, but sat down and drank some wine. The alcohol content of the wine here was not high and it tasted good.
Chang Yi heard footsteps, Wu Ming, "Why didn't you take a break?"
Wu Ming didn't like the cushion he was sitting on. "I couldn't sleep. You talked a lot about the situation in this country, but it seems that today it is much more serious than you said. The struggle for royal power has reached a fever pitch."
Chang Yi, "Old King is no longer able to fight, but it doesn't affect us. On the contrary, it is more beneficial to us, right? But we need to send people to guard the ship."
It is better to be safe if your own emperor can learn secretly.
Wu Ming, "It doesn't matter if we have the design drawings. Construction is very troublesome."
Chang Yi curled his lips and said, "They can sell the design drawings to other countries and exchange them for one or two ships."
Wu Ming still has the arrogance of a scholar. Fortunately, he was born in a peasant family and has seen all kinds of dark thoughts. Of course, he has many little thoughts of his own. He always thinks the worst of others by judging others by himself.
Wu Ming said seriously, "I will explain more."
Chang Yi nodded and continued drinking. On the surface, Lord Li was the one who made the decision for this envoy's mission, but secretly it was Wu Ming. Wu Ming did not explain it to him clearly, but he saw it clearly. It seemed that there was someone behind Wu Ming. After thinking it over, he decided that it was the prince. If it wasn't the prince, his father would not let him listen to Wu Ming any more.
After the morning court session the next day, Zhou Shuren was kept behind. Xiao Qing was also there this time, but he was still left alone and left with the prince.
Grand Secretary Ding had jealous eyes, "Master Xiao, you are still the Minister of Revenue. People who don't know would think that Master Zhou is the Minister of Revenue!"
Xiao Qing rolled his eyes in his heart. He actually hoped that Zhou Shuren would be the one, but unfortunately, before the transfer of imperial power, Zhou Shuren could only be an assistant minister. This um, it was up to the crown prince to do it.
Lord Ding saw Lord Xiao's expressionless face and thought he had touched Lord Xiao's sore spot, "Sir, you are still the Shangshu. If you don't suppress it, you will be sidelined by Zhou Shuren."
Li Zhao looked down on Mr. Ding. "If you have the time to gossip, you might as well do more work. If Mr. Ding was capable, the emperor and the prince would be willing to keep you. It's a pity that some people are full of nonsense."
Lord Ding's face was burning. It was the first time he was rudely humiliated. "Minister Li."
Unfortunately, Li Zhao had already rolled up his sleeves and left first.
Xiao Qing smiled and said, "I think Minister Li is right. Lord Ding should use his brain to think about the real things instead of spending this time on it."
Lord Ding was furious, but also felt humiliated. "Good intentions are not rewarded."
In the government hall, the crown prince handed a memorial to Zhou Shuren, "This is a memorial from the Xuzhou Maritime Affairs Branch. Your Excellency's third son proposed to subdivide the taxation of maritime commodities. Your Excellency Zhou, please take a look at it as well."
Zhou Shuren understood everything in his mind. He had arranged it. He carefully looked at the memorials submitted. No one took credit for Chang Lian's achievements. He was completely relieved. "I think the proposal is feasible. Subdividing taxes can not only increase tax revenue, but also better control the market economy."
The prince looked at Zhou Shuren. This memorial had already been sent to the capital. The reason why he showed it to Zhou Shuren today was because he and his father wanted to find out whether it was Zhou Shuren's idea. The result confirmed his guess.
The prince thought of his father's words, and it was good to do so. He restrained his emotions and thought about more benefits. He had achievements in government affairs, which was good for him, especially since the beginning of this year was not good. "Mr. Zhou is right. The prices of imported goods in the market have been a bit chaotic in the past two years. This way, we can better control prices and stabilize the economy."
Zhou Shuren, "The prince is wise in his decision."
There was only the prince in the palace. Zhou Shuren did not see the emperor and did not know where the emperor had gone. Now it seems that the emperor really trusts the prince.
The prince was thinking about what reward to give Zhou Changlian. Promotion was out of the question, so he could only reward him with money.
Half an hour later, Zhou Shuren left the government hall. When he came out and saw the emperor holding flowers in his hands, he hurriedly said, "Your Majesty."
The emperor handed the flowers in his hand to the eunuch, "Shu Ren is leaving the palace?"
"yes."
The emperor put his hands behind his back and said, "I haven't left the palace for a while. Shuren, wait for me for a while. I will change my clothes and leave the palace together."
Zhou Shuren, "..."
The emperor is so leisurely now, why is he so envious!
The emperor came out quickly and said, "Let's go."
Zhou Shuren didn't dare ask the emperor where he was going and walked with his head down.
The emperor stepped on the rain on the ground and said, "I want to go to the city to see if there is water everywhere."
Zhou Shuren replied, "West City and South City are better, the planned urban areas are also good, but there is a lot of water accumulation in some unplanned areas."