paranoianovel Chapter 2153: Family Law
Chapter 2153: Family Law
Storytelling and singing are the best ways to persuade people, and the three roads lead to the middle. Good and evil will be rewarded in the end, and the right path in the world is vicissitudes.
Li Shen felt that he was an upright person, one who was free from vulgar tastes.
He thought he was very selfless and shared the spoils with his father, thus demonstrating his filial piety and gaining a good reputation.
However, Wang Xuance reminded at this time:
"Your Majesty, these seized materials belong to Xizhou Prefecture and must be handed over to the court. We have no right to distribute them."
When marching and fighting, part of the spoils would be distributed to the soldiers, another part would be left to the generals, but the bulk of the spoils would still belong to the court.
Because the imperial court sent out troops and provided a large amount of food and fodder, the investment naturally required a return.
Li Shen sat in the rocking chair and rocked back and forth. He didn't care about Wang Xuance's words at all and said softly:
"Don't you know that there is a law called filthiness in the court's laws?"
"Taking bribes? That's a capital crime, Your Majesty. Wasn't Xi Bian executed by you for taking bribes?
And if Your Majesty had not wanted to spare Dang Renhong's life, he would probably have ended up with his head and body separated.
Your Majesty, please think twice."
Hearing that Prince Ji was going to be accused of corruption, Wang Xuance quickly advised against it. It was a serious crime for the Tang Dynasty to be repeatedly accused of corruption.
Li Shen curled his lips when he heard this:
"Bullshit! That depends on who you are. Don't forget Changsun Shunde back then. He was not punished for embezzling money, and His Majesty even rewarded him with more.
If I embezzled these seized materials, what would His Majesty reward me with according to this rule?"
"A family discipline."
"Who said that stupid thing?"
Li Shen had just finished speaking when he heard a very discordant voice, and he immediately became furious.
"Your Highness Prince Ji, please calm down. I just want to remind you not to act this way, otherwise the Imperial Concubine will not be able to justify it.
If I am punished by Your Majesty for some money, I don't think it's worth it."
Shitou, who was standing by, quickly asked for the explanation.
"Get out of the way, what do you know? It's worth getting beaten up for the money. The worst thing is to get beaten up for nothing.
You're a fool."
Seeing that it was a stone, Li Shen immediately started cursing.
"Your Majesty, what Chief Steward Li said makes sense, and I also think that this is not worth the loss.
Your Majesty did this because of the relationship between Changsun Shunde and the Empress Dowager, and also because Changsun Shunde had served the Emperor well.
However, our Ji Palace has no foundation in the court and has made countless enemies.
I am afraid that someone will find fault with me and hold on to me. Even if His Majesty wants to protect the prince, he will punish him due to the pressure from the court."
Wang Xuance also stood up at this moment, bowed, and began to persuade.
It is impossible to conceal this matter, as there are many officials from aristocratic families in Xizhou.
Unless Li Shen killed all these people to cover up the truth, this is simply unrealistic.
"Huh, what? Do you think I'm not strong enough?" Li Shen was a little unconvinced.
Didn’t Changsun Shunde just have the merit of following the emperor and was also the queen? She wasn’t bad either.
Not to mention Changsun Shunde, there are several princes in the royal family who have also engaged in corruption and bribery. His two grandfathers were not good people either, and his own father was just as connivant.
He just wanted to feel what it was like to be with an adult, to have someone wipe his butt when he pooped.
"I dare not. I will not die. It's just...but if Your Majesty does this, I'm afraid it will ruin Your Majesty's reputation."
Seeing Li Shen's expression, Wang Xuance really didn't know how to persuade him.
Prince Ji was moody and often made decisions on a whim, but he would rarely change them.
"Don't say any more. I will find a way. There are hundreds of thousands of coins in here. If it weren't for my order, how could there be so many spoils of war?"
In the end, Li Shen waved his hand, and no one else dared to say anything more.
Li Shen put down the account book in his hand, took a sip of water, and then continued to ask:
"How many casualties did the soldiers who went out to suppress the rebels suffer?"
"Your Highness, the casualties were not great. The next batch of 5,000 men had already been rotated in the day before yesterday, and the first batch of troops are already resting in the camp."
The regular army and the rebels are not on the same level.
"What about the distribution of rewards? Have you distributed them in person? And have the wounded and fallen soldiers been provided with follow-up care and compensation?"
After hearing this, Wang Xuance quickly replied:
“My Lord, everything was distributed according to your request. I personally delivered the money to each batch of soldiers who returned, and did not let the generals touch it.
Only the pensions for those killed in action were transferred to their families by General Lee.
They are military personnel, and their families need to add an adult (male over 20 years old) to join the army. "
"Alas~~~ These soldiers have had a hard time. I will warn General Li later and ask him to do a good job of post-disaster relief and not to withhold compensation.
These are earned with their lives, and we should give them as much pension as possible, and they are not short of food, so it is not as useful as money."
Li Shen sighed. He felt a little sorry for the soldiers.
"Your Highness is right. It is indeed not easy to be a palace soldier. If there is a war, they have to provide their own weapons and armor, as well as their own food and fodder. If they die on the battlefield, these things will be gone."
Xue Rengui was somewhat emotional. He was most familiar with this. When he was poor and destitute, he had considered joining the army.
But he had no way to join the army.
"What General Xue said is true, but it is not without benefits. Although the soldiers provide their own food, fodder and weapons, the court has already given them a huge subsidy.
Military households do not need to pay any taxes, including grain tax and corvee labor.
They farm during the busy farming season, train during the slack farming season, serve as soldiers during wartime, and farm during slack farming seasons, and all their income belongs to the military households.
Moreover, not all soldiers need to provide their own food and fodder. If they go on an expedition, the imperial court will provide them with food and fodder. Only soldiers stationed locally will have to bear the cost themselves.
But they don't stay there for long, and they are rotated every once in a while.
Not all soldiers had to provide their own weapons. The imperial court would provide armor, heavy weapons, and military rations, etc., which reduced the burden on the soldiers.
If there is a disaster year, the court can also reduce or exempt taxes and provide relief as appropriate.
In fact, since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the treatment of the government soldiers has been very good, and many ordinary people want to join the army and become government soldiers. "
At this time Wang Xuance also spoke, but his words were different from what Xue Rengui said.
Nowadays, becoming a government soldier is a very honorable thing. Soldiers serve as soldiers in wartime and farm in their spare time. Not only do they not have to bear the country's taxes and labor, but they can also gain a certain social status and respect.
The key point is that there is no need to pay taxes, and even if you provide your own weapons and food, you can fully afford it.
"What Wang Changshi said is absolutely right, Your Majesty. There are indeed many people who want to become military households now." Zhou Daowu on the side also spoke up.
(It’s too hot. My house doesn’t have air conditioning, so it’s hard to work at night.
I have to get an air conditioner or I'll die.)