roccoschili Chapter 5432 Tiered Rewards
Chapter 5432 Tiered Rewards
Chapter 5432 Tiered Rewards
The significance of an imperial successor is unparalleled: it reduces internal strife, ensures the continuation of power, and maintains political stability. It not only makes the rule of the royal family more secure, but it is also the expectation of civil officials, military generals, and even the common people.
In particular, the fact that the king's first child was born to the queen, and that the queen had a powerful family behind her, meant that the country was about to usher in a long period of stable development. This was a blessing for the royal family and also for the country.
Therefore, when the news of the Queen giving birth to the Crown Prince spread, countless ministers and common people gathered in the square outside the palace, shouting slogans like a tidal wave, their morale soaring and their spirits high.
……
The main hall of the royal palace.
Li Yun accepted the congratulations from his ministers, looking radiant and beaming.
Xue Yuanchao offered another round of congratulatory words, then said with a smile, "Your Majesty is overjoyed to have a son, ensuring the orderly succession of the Crown Prince. The whole country is jubilant and the people are excited, which shows the respect that the people have for Your Majesty and Queen. Why not establish the Crown Prince as soon as possible to reassure the people?"
The courtiers seconded the motion, and none objected.
According to his status, the prince is the legitimate son of Empress Yuan and of noble birth, so he should naturally be established as the heir apparent. According to his lineage, the prince carries the blood of the Li family of Longxi and the Fang family of Qinghe. He can be included in the genealogy of the Li royal family and has the support of the Fang minister and the Grand Commandant. The benefits for Jiang State are countless.
Li Yun had no objection: "Then please ask the Chancellor to draft an edict to announce the establishment of the Crown Prince to the world."
After Xue Yuanchao agreed, he continued, "Such a joyous occasion should be shared with the people and celebrated by all under heaven. I wonder if any of you ministers have any suggestions?"
When the royal family holds weddings or funerals, they should try to involve the people as much as possible. This is the best opportunity to reconcile the relationship between the royal family and the people. Even the most unruly monarch is willing to share the joy with the people and be of one mind with them. No one really wants to be a lonely figure.
After a discussion, Cui Xianyi said, "The prosperity of any nation depends first and foremost on its population."
Li Yun nodded.
What defines a strong country or a great power?
Naturally, it must be a vast territory with a large population.
With a land area of no more than three li and a population of less than ten thousand, even if it were to prosper temporarily, its foundation would be shallow and its state unstable, and it would be in danger of being destroyed at any moment.
Conversely, even if a vast and populous country falls into decline and weakness for a time, it can recover completely after decades of recuperation, provided that the policies are correct.
Farmland needs people to cultivate it, ports need people to handle cargo, workshops need people to work, and the army needs a sufficient number of soldiers... Population is the cornerstone of a country's development and growth.
Cui Xianyi continued, "In order to attract people from the Tang Dynasty to Jiang Kingdom, we have already formulated various incentive programs, such as land allocation, housing allocation, and tax reduction... Why not significantly increase the incentives for these policies on this basis?"
The chief clerk, Lou Shide, expressed his concerns: "With the crown prince on the throne, the whole country is celebrating. Using incentive measures to stimulate the enthusiasm of the people and harmonize the relationship between the monarch and the people is a brilliant strategy, and it can also reflect the king's love for the people as if they were his own children... But can the national treasury support the increased expenses on top of the original incentive policy?"
In the early days of the nation, all industries were waiting to be developed. Neither land tax nor commercial tax had reached a stable income level, yet expenditures continued to increase.
If welfare measures were to be increased on top of existing ones, the country might go bankrupt...
Of course, everyone else understood that Lou Shide did not mean that, and they all looked at Li Yun.
Li Yun pondered for a moment, nodded in the face of the ministers' gazes, and said in a deep voice: "You ministers need not worry about this. Even if the national treasury is insufficient, I will use the imperial treasury to implement various welfare policies."
The ministers echoed in unison, praising Li Yun's magnanimity and boldness, knowing full well what was going on.
Since they were in charge of Chiang Kai-shek's domestic affairs and military, how could they not know that there was a mysterious "military base" hundreds of miles north of Beijing? It was heavily guarded, and the soldiers and officers were all elite naval forces. No one was allowed to approach or spy on it without authorization. Even Xue Yuanchao could not enter to take a look.
Although there are various speculations about this "mysterious base," Li Yun has never been able to confirm it.
Now everyone understands.
After all, the fact that Li Yun remained so confident despite the significantly improved welfare policies made the nature of that "mysterious base" self-evident.
However, as everyone knows, since the "mysterious base" is controlled by the navy, Fang Jun must have already taken control of that place before the establishment of the Jiang Kingdom. The reason why he personally advised His Majesty to grant the Jiang Kingdom a fiefdom here was because he had made arrangements in advance.
Of course, this "mysterious base" was not a gift to Chiang Kai-shek, but rather part of the Queen's dowry...
Everyone says that Fang Jun dotes on his younger sister so much that he would do anything to get her the stars from the sky. Now we finally have a direct understanding of this.
What kind of wealth could support a country?
He gave it to his younger sister without even blinking...
……
Xue Yuanchao said, "Then let's discuss how to improve welfare policies?"
Cui Xianyi said, "The first priority should be to encourage childbirth. The original reward can be increased to five strings of cash for each child born."
Lou Shide then said, "Since there is enough money and silk, could we increase the amount even more? The people of Hebei are afraid of poverty in their hometowns, and they may not dare to raise so much money when they first arrive."
Cui Xianyi objected: "There are too many places to spend money. In addition to encouraging childbirth, it is also very important to build water conservancy projects. There are many rivers and lakes throughout the country. If we cannot dredge the waterways and build dikes, all our current achievements will be destroyed if floods occur during the rainy season next year and inundate the fields."
After a brief discussion, unable to reach a consensus, they all looked to Li Yun for his decision.
Li Yun took a sip of tea and said, "The Queen has some advice on this matter."
Everyone's eyes lit up, and Cui Xianyi hurriedly asked, "What advice does the Queen have?"
Recently, everyone has been amazed by the Queen's performance in political affairs. Her strategies and methods are considered perfect, and people are naturally full of expectations.
Li Yun laughed and said, "The Queen's suggestion is to implement a 'tiered' reward system for childbirth. For the first child, commoners will be rewarded with five strings of cash; for the second child, ten strings; for the third child, fifteen strings... and so on. The more children a family has, the more rewards they will receive."
Xue Yuanchao was somewhat worried: "With such generous rewards, what if people risk their lives to have children?"
Li Yun laughed loudly: "If every family had ten children, I would gladly give up everything!"
The ministers unanimously praised, "His Majesty cares deeply for his subjects and people; he has the qualities of a benevolent ruler!"
"He humbly accepts advice and loves the people like his own children; he has the style of Emperor Taizong!"
Upon hearing this, Li Yun became even more smug. Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong had been a wise and virtuous ruler praised and worshipped by the people both inside and outside the country. Back then, Emperor Taizong praised Li Ke with the words "This boy is like me," which greatly enhanced Li Ke's prestige and made him a potential successor. The current emperor was also facing a crisis of succession due to Emperor Taizong's repeated questioning.
Emperor Taizong was seen by the people as a symbol of monarchy and a benchmark for emperors.
As the son of Emperor Taizong, how could Li Yun not be overjoyed and elated to be praised for "having the style of Emperor Taizong"?
"I am unworthy of such praise, my dear minister. However, although I lack the wisdom and intelligence of Emperor Taizong, I have the loyal and diligent support of you all. I am confident that I will be able to create a bright future and a prosperous era!"
After a brief exchange of flattery between the emperor and his ministers, the conversation returned to its proper course.
Xue Yuanchao tentatively asked, "Your Majesty must know that once such birth incentives are implemented, the amount of money required will be enormous... But I wonder if Your Majesty's private treasury can support it?"
Cui Xianyi and the others also looked at Li Yun, trying to find out exactly how much Li Yun's "mysterious base" produced.
Li Yun understood the ministers' probing intentions, but he didn't take it to heart. Although he wanted to conceal the gold mine as much as possible to avoid coveting it from various parties and causing unexpected trouble, he also wanted to spend the money wisely and give the ministers full confidence.
With a wave of his hand, he declared with boundless ambition: "Spend as much as you want, you won't be able to spend it all! You simply won't be able to spend it all! Not only should we encourage childbirth, but we should also support education. In the future, we should have our own National Armory, Foundry, and Shipyard! We, the monarch and our ministers, will join hands and work together to achieve great things!"
……
"My brother repeatedly instructed us to keep the gold mine a secret. How could you let it slip in front of the ministers?"
After giving birth, Fang Xiaomei quickly lost weight and regained her former slender beauty. Her fair skin was as smooth as jade, and her slender waist was petite and beautiful under her palace dress.
At this moment, she was frowning and complaining about Li Yun, blaming him for being arrogant and complacent and unable to keep secrets.
Fang Jun, who was drinking tea nearby, waved his hand and said, "Little sister, there is no need to blame the king. If the king had continued to cover up the situation, it would have chilled the hearts of the ministers. The king handled the situation well. After all, no amount of gold mines can compare to the cooperation of the monarch and his ministers and the unity of the people."
Li Yun breathed a sigh of relief, gave Fang Jun a grateful look, and then smiled apologetically at Fang Xiaomei, saying, "That gold mine is surrounded by the troops sent by my brother and is heavily guarded. How could it not attract the attention of the ministers? I naturally know the importance of secrecy, but if I don't even trust a few of them, wouldn't I truly become a lone wolf? Those who follow the right path receive much help, while those who stray from it receive little. Only when everyone is of one mind and works together can we create a great cause."
The secret of the gold mine cannot be kept hidden forever. The reason for the current cover-up is simply that we are not yet able to protect ourselves. Once the country's strength increases and its military becomes powerful, it will not matter if the secret is leaked.
Sharing the secret of the gold mine with several ministers at this moment will further enhance their loyalty. With the ruler and his ministers of one mind and the ruler and his ministers of one body, what is there to fear even if someone covets the gold mine?
Fang Xiaomei pursed her lips and looked at Fang Jun with concern.
Fang Jun chuckled: "How could I possibly interfere in the affairs of the Jiang Kingdom? My previous reminder to the King was merely a precautionary measure. Since Your Majesty has made up your mind, you may proceed with your plan."
Fang Xiaomei breathed a sigh of relief and smiled shyly.
Her second brother had always given his all to support Chiang Kai-shek for her sake. If he were to become angry because Li Yun had not listened to him and stood up for her, she would feel ashamed of her brother.
Seeing that his elder brother also respected Li Yun's actions, he felt even warmer inside.