"Damn it, these scoundrels! The Ministry of Revenue's hard-earned surplus of nine million taels, gone in a flash, all distributed to them! A bunch of bastards!"
Back home, Qian Jieren drank wine furiously, cursing.
His wife, unaware of the full story, said with some worry, "Husband, are you alright looking like this? Your face has turned green!"
"It's nothing, just putting on a show. They didn't really do anything to me; in fact, they protected me during the chaos. Otherwise, with those scoundrels' temperaments, they wouldn't have let me off easily!"
Qian Jieren shook his head indignantly and continued, "Is it just because I've held back some silver here and there? Is it worth all this! It's not like I wanted to, but the imperial court has such limited tax revenue, alas! Even if I had three heads and six arms, I couldn't conjure up silver!"
"Enough, enough, husband, stop getting angry."
"Hoo~"
Qian Jieren took a deep breath, held his wife's hand, and said, "My lady is right. Your husband is not angry."
Meanwhile, Wei Zi did not return to his mansion. Instead, after the morning court, he rushed to the training grounds outside the city and excitedly summoned his subordinate generals.
He surveyed them and chuckled, "Gentlemen, you should have seen today's court session. It was utterly satisfying!"
"Marshal, what happened in court?" a general asked, confused.
The generals of the army did not attend every court session. Instead, about ten people were chosen as representatives, with three attending in rotation. As generals, they had to frequently guard the barracks and could not leave freely.
Even when stationed just outside Shuangyue City, one-third of the generals had to remain to guard the barracks and discipline the soldiers.
Wei Zi recounted the events of the court to his generals.
A moment later, the generals were dumbfounded. They had never expected such a spectacular event to occur at the court session.
"Marshal, you are truly a breath of fresh air! You actually personally assaulted civil officials, and you even pulled out some of Qian Jieren's beard! I imagine that old man will be furious when he gets back."
"Hahaha, of course! That old miser is so stingy, he's reluctant to give even a little silver."
Wei Zi said with a smug look.
As a Grand General of the State, first rank, his life was not particularly comfortable either. As the saying goes, he lacked funding.
"Marshal, did you get the funds in the end?"
"When this Marshal takes action, of course, we got them! And a full two million taels!"
"Heavens! That's too much! When did the court have so much money?"
The generals exclaimed in astonishment.
"Well, it's a long story, but in a nutshell, it's all thanks to the current Prime Minister, Chu Chen. He created a new institution called the 'Money House,' which, through Yun Chao, has increased the imperial court's revenue by twenty million taels this year. However, I estimate that next year might not be as much, perhaps increasing from the previous two million taels to three to five million."
Wei Zi offered a brief explanation but was unwilling to elaborate. He didn't understand it himself.
Changing the subject, he said sternly, "In short, this Marshal has secured two million taels for you brothers. You must use this money wisely! This Marshal will personally supervise! Anyone who dares to extend their dog-like claws to embezzle military funds will have their dog-like claws chopped off!"
"You must remember, the current Yunyue Kingdom is very different from before. The national strength is rapidly growing, and there will be plenty of good days ahead for us warriors. We don't need to resort to despicable means to earn silver! After the funds are distributed, you will all go back and drill those lads properly!"
"Also, the soldiers' meals will be changed from two meals a day to three meals a day, with at least two 'wo wo tou' (steamed buns) available at each meal! Anyone who dares to defy this will be sent to the execution platform by this Marshal!"
On the other side, in the Ministry of Works' office, Meng Yuan sat in the main seat, still excited despite the bruises on his face.
He also summoned his subordinate officials, first recounting the events at court, then warning them against embezzlement.
Finally, he said, "The Ministry of Works now has one million taels. The training of artisans must not stop. Build waterwheels and canals! If you lack manpower, hire more people! I estimate that after the spring of next year, there will be a large number of projects waiting for us from the royal merchant association's farms across the country! Work hard for me, and don't embarrass yourselves!"
"Yes, sir!"
With ample funding, the heads of various departments, who had previously been listless and complacent, were now invigorated, as if they had been injected with chicken blood, filled with ambition and a desire to accomplish something.
In the past, it was due to a lack of money that they couldn't do anything and had to save every penny. Now, with enough funding, tens of millions of taels for each department, what couldn't be accomplished?
Let's get to it! Let's compete! Let's work overtime!
A few days later, the upper-class society of Shuangyue City suddenly noticed that the efficiency of the city's officials had more than doubled. They were all enthusiastically serving the common people.
At the same time, to complement the excellent work attitude of the court officials, the Empress generously allocated one million taels, stating that as long as they did not embezzle and worked diligently, they would receive rewards at the end of the year!
As for those who remained lazy and continued to embezzle, there would be no leniency!
Although the Embroidered Uniform Guard did not benefit from this distribution, they received funding from the Royal Merchant Association, an allocation jointly agreed upon by the Empress, Princess Xin Yue, and Chu Chen.
With the money, the Embroidered Uniform Guard recruited more informants, focusing on corrupt officials and secretly supervising their work procedures.
The Yunyue Kingdom, in the midst of winter, unusually welcomed a period of fervent, high-speed development, leaving the aristocratic families and powerful clans across the country stunned.
It also left the surrounding countries, who had received the news, bewildered. How could the Yunyue Kingdom, which appeared to be on the verge of collapse and ruin, be so vibrant and resurrected in the winter?
This was truly a mystery of the century!
Seven million and two hundred thousand male laborers were extensively engaged in building roads between prefectures and between provinces. They worked together, connecting the national thoroughfares at an astonishing speed that no one could have foreseen, with road mileage constantly breaking records!
Winter was not typically suitable for large-scale construction projects, but the court was offering too much.
One tael of silver per month, with food, lodging, bedding, and coal for hand warmers provided, and three hearty meals a day – these were temptations that no one who joined the construction team could resist.
Especially in some families, where more than one male member participated, and their wives or mothers also joined the construction team to do their laundry and cooking, earning five hundred qian per month, with food and lodging also provided.
These families were visibly becoming wealthy and enviable.
The common people did not fear the cold; they feared a lack of benefits and poverty!