The prince is more stable

Chapter 152 A match made in heaven
Wang Anshi's reforms involved a wide range of issues, including streamlining administration, land tax, commerce, corvee labor, and other aspects, and he overhauled previous laws.

The new laws included the Qingmiao Law, the Baojia Law, the Exemption from Military Service Law, and so on.

The most famous of these is the Qingmiao Law, which was also the one most criticized by the old party court officials.

The essence of the Qingmiao Law was a form of official lending. For example, if a farmer had a poor harvest due to natural disasters or various other reasons, they were almost starving to death.

So farmers can apply for loans from local county governments. What they borrow is not money, but grain and seeds. The officials are very generous and will lend them to you.

But the prerequisite is that after the harvest next year, in addition to repaying the borrowed amount, an additional 20% interest must be paid to the government.

Wang Anshi's original intention was naturally not bad. He wanted to use the official name to help the farmers who had suffered from the disaster so that they could successfully survive this year's disaster and avoid starving to death.

But since ancient times, the good scriptures issued by the imperial court were often deliberately misinterpreted by local officials, gentry and landlords after reaching the local areas.

The biggest problem with the new law is that it fails to impose strict regulations to monitor and curb the evil in human nature. Perhaps Wang Anshi was an idealist with a naive vision of human nature.

Official loans, national brands, trustworthy, right?
Ordinary farmers may be able to afford the 20% interest rate if they grit their teeth or if the weather is good next year.

However, what if the next year's harvest is just average, or if they're really unlucky and encounter another natural disaster? It's like farmers are taking their meager savings and making a huge gamble with the government.

If you can't pay it back next year, sorry, your land and property will be confiscated. Even more ruthless, they will even demolish your house. So these farmers became refugees.

The bigger loophole in the Qingmiao Law is that even if farmers have no intention of borrowing money, the government will force them to borrow. Only by borrowing money can the government earn interest.

As for whether the interest collected belongs to the court or goes into the pockets of officials... haha, guess?

In addition, local gentry and landlords would try their best to exploit loopholes in the law, borrow money from the government, and then pass it on to the farmers, so that the farmers would inexplicably owe huge debts.

Therefore, the implementation of the Qingmiao Law during the reign of Emperor Shenzong was actually more criticized than praised by the people. For most farmers, it was this Qingmiao Law that caused their families to be broken up and turned them into landless and houseless refugees.

This is also the reason why Su Che, a member of the old party, specifically made a suggestion at the court meeting and requested the abolition of the Qingmiao Law.

Zhang Dun requested to start a new law, while Su Che requested to abolish the new law.

The two finally got into a face-to-face argument.

It's not just these two people who are at odds, but all the new and old parties in the court.

A debate about the new law and the old law slowly began with the submission of two memorials.

"Debate" is a gentleman's dispute and is within the scope of the rules.

In fact, there have been many debates between the new law and the old law, which have never stopped from the Yuanfeng period to the Yuanyou period. This is a more active and graceful way of fighting.

There were no conspiracies or intrigues; everything was based on facts and reasoning. Both sides invited great scholars to lecture and debate, extending the discussion from the words of the sages to whether legal reforms should be made at this time.

The debate process was naturally extremely exciting, and such scenes were also one of the few moments when the sun shone directly on the court, with both the new and old parties being open and honest.

Zhao Xiaoqian, who had been a lazy person in the palace for several days, naturally heard about it, but his attitude remained the same.

No bias, no interference.

From the perspective of a person in later generations, historians have already concluded that both the new and old laws have their pros and cons.

What the historians did not say is that in the new era, the people suffered; in the old era, the people also suffered.

If nothing unexpected happens, Zhang Dun will eventually win the debate because he represents Zhao Xu's will. Ultimately, the world will develop according to the emperor's will.

Zhao Xiaoqian was more concerned about whether the "Military Service Law" was feasible.

A few days ago, Zhao Xu had promised to discuss the military service law with the ministers in the government hall.

Zhao Xiaoqian cannot participate in topics that are too lofty. He cannot change the major events in the world, the laws that are followed, and the evil deeds that are done.

Zhao Xiaoqian only hoped that in addition to implementing the new law, he could also add a "Military Service Law" to provide some benefits to the soldiers of the Song Dynasty's imperial guards and wing troops, boost their morale, and prepare for future wars.

This is closely related to Zhao Xiaoqian's own fate, so he has to pay attention to it.

The debate between the new and the old lasted for three full days in the court, and there seemed to be no sign of it stopping. Instead, it became more and more intense.

It is said that Su Che started cursing during the court meeting. Zhang Dun was not one to suffer any loss, so he immediately clenched his fists and planned to hit Su Che. Fortunately, he was stopped by the court officials next to him.

After hearing the news in the palace, Zhao Xiaoqian could not help but stamp his feet and beat his chest in anger. If he had known this earlier, he would have had the audacity to attend the court meeting.

There is no other reason, I just want to see how intellectuals, especially one of the Eight Great Masters of Tang and Song, curse their mothers, and I plan to learn from it.

After all, Zhao Xiaoqian is now the world-famous "Zhao Banque". If he wants to curse someone in the future, he can't just say "I XX your XX".

That's too rude. Perhaps learning from Su Che could help him make some new achievements in the field of cursing. The court was about to fight for brains, but Zhao Xiaoqian was focused on personal matters.

After the Zhao and Di families got engaged, the old clan leader Zhao Zongsheng personally went to Yuqing Palace and chatted with Qingyang Zhenren for a long time before returning home in high spirits.

I don’t know what the two old men talked about, but in any case, Qingyang Zhenren analyzed the birth dates and horoscopes of Zhao Xiaoqian and Di Ying and came to an expected conclusion, “a match made in heaven.”

Zhao Xiaoqian questioned this conclusion. How could it be such a coincidence that a man and a woman could just randomly get together in the world and become a "match made in heaven"?

For some reason, Zhao Xiaoqian read other meanings from these four words, such as the debtor's guilty conscience.

Did Qingyang Lao Niubi think that the Crown Prince had already forgotten about emptying the Chu Palace's treasury? Or did he think that a few good words from the fortune teller would make the matter go away?

You are already old and almost a fairy, you can't be so naive, right?
Qingyang had better pray that he can ascend to heaven as soon as possible, otherwise he will soon find out that the money in the Prince Chu's Mansion is hot to the touch.

After approving the birthday, Qingyang also chose an auspicious day for both Zhao and Di families.

The eighth day of next month, which is the eighth day of the tenth month of the first year of Shaosheng, is a good day for marriage.

After the date was set, the Zhao and Di families began to get busy. These were things that the elders should prepare, so Zhao Xiaoqian didn't need to do anything.

Since he was destined to be husband and wife with Di Ying, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly wanted to find Di Ying to meet. He said that he and Di Ying seemed to have not seen each other since they got engaged. He didn't know whether it was because Di Ying was shy about getting married or because the elders of the Di family had told them not to meet before the wedding.

It was the fourth day of the debate between the old and the new. There was no court meeting today, but early in the morning a palace maid came to announce the emperor's decree, summoning Zhao Xiaoqian to the government hall to discuss matters.

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned for a long time after hearing this. He had been to the palace many times and was very familiar with it, but he had never been to the Council of Government Hall.

This time, the place where Zhao Xu summoned him was actually the Government Affairs Hall, which shows that it was a very formal occasion.

So Zhao Xiaoqian immediately put on his official uniform, put on a long double-winged official hat, and hurried to the government hall.

The office of the Council of State was located in the Forbidden Palace, which made it convenient for the emperor and the prime ministers to discuss matters.

Half an hour later, Zhao Xiaoqian entered the government hall. As soon as he stepped into the hall, he felt many eyes cast on him.

Looking up, he saw that in addition to Zhao Xu sitting in the middle, there were also important officials in the court such as Zhang Dun, Zeng Bu, Cai Bian, and Xu Jiang.

Zhao Xiaoqian lowered his head, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated. This scene of a three-court trial made him a little nervous.

The atmosphere in the government hall was somewhat depressing. Everyone staring at him had a blank expression on their face, and even Zhao Xu was serious.

Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help but secretly reflect on what bad things he had done recently.

Then he remembered that apart from beating Zhao Ji and stealing his purse a few days ago, he had been a law-abiding and flawless person.

After reflection, Zhao Xiaoqian raised his head with confidence and met everyone's gaze fearlessly.

I am still the same boy I once was, without a single flaw...

What are you afraid of!

After a long time, Zhao Xu, who was sitting in the main seat, finally spoke.

"Zi'an, the day before yesterday you mentioned the 'Military Service Law', please discuss it with the others. Explain it thoroughly and don't be vague. Today, what I am discussing with you is the feasibility of the Military Service Law. You should know its importance."

Zhao Xu spoke impartially, but this sentence actually contained a serious reminder. It was obvious that Zhao Xu was still secretly biased towards Zhao Xiaoqian in his heart.

Zhao Xiaoqian gathered his thoughts and was about to speak when someone in the hall suddenly said, "Wait a minute."

Everyone looked at him.

This man was about forty years old, with a righteous face, flowing green beard under his chin, and a very good appearance.

Seeing everyone's gazes turned towards him, the man stroked his beard and said slowly, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have always believed that if one's reputation is not right, then his words will not flow. The Prince of Chu is a relative of the royal family and should not participate in politics."

"The Crown Prince has shown mercy and broken the ancestral law. His Highness is only in charge of the Imperial City Administration. I believe that His Highness should not presume to discuss state affairs here."

The implication of the words was very clear. Zhao Xiaoqian didn't even need to open his mouth. He was not worthy of standing here to discuss politics.

The hostile attitude is already obvious.

Zhao Xiaoqian had never been treated like this before, and immediately frowned and looked at him: "Who are you?"

"I am Xing Shu, the Minister of Justice."

"Investigating cases and apprehending criminals is the job of the Ministry of Justice. Why are you standing here?"

(End of this chapter)