"Why did you do this? I need an explanation.”After Yang You finished speaking, the sharpness in his eyes gradually disappeared.
Li Zhiyun's suggestion shocked Yang You.
He felt that Li Zhiyun was scheming against him. Without taxes and corvee, how could the imperial court operate?
Take Guanzhong for example. Many people relied on the salary of the imperial court to live.
This was especially true for the middle and lower ranking officials. These people's positions might seem insignificant, but they were the foundation of a country.
Low-level officials were like bricks and tiles used to build houses. Without food and salary, these petty officials were dissatisfied and shook the foundation of the entire Great Sui.
Therefore, when Li Zhiyun made this suggestion, Yang You's first reaction was that Li Zhiyun was vicious.
Li Zhiyun had already thought of Yang You's reaction on the way back.
Facing Yang You's sharp gaze, he appeared very calm. He said,""I won't talk about the reason for the first suggestion. I've already told Your Highness.”
"I will mainly talk about the second condition.”
Li Zhiyun paused for a moment to organize his words. Whether he could move Yang You or not, this second point was crucial.
"Your Highness, what do you think is the fundamental reason for the chaos in Great Sui today?”Li Zhiyun didn't take the initiative to say it, but asked Yang You instead.
Yang You frowned slightly. He couldn't say it like outsiders because his grandfather was a warmonger. He could only avoid the main point and say,"Aristocratic families are greedy, the people are destitute, and the people have complaints.”
Not only did the people have complaints, but the people had long been like dry firewood and raging flames!
Li Zhiyun muttered in his heart. During this period of time, he had led his troops out to fight and had been able to come into contact with many farmers.
The people knew more about this matter.
Yang You avoided the main issue and didn't know that it was exactly the answer that Li Zhiyun needed."Your Highness is right. The people are in dire straits. We need to appease the people and prevent them from being bewitched by the bandits. The people are already restless and have complaints about the imperial court. If someone were to spread rumors at this time to confuse the people and incite the already restless people, the entire Guanzhong and even the northwest region would be like adding oil to a fire.”
In fact, the Northwest was already in chaos.
Only Guanzhong was still relatively peaceful. The situation had improved because of Li Zhiyun.
Yang You looked at Li Zhiyun in front of him, and the wariness in his heart eased a little. He frowned and asked,"But have you ever thought about how the imperial court will support the huge number of low-level officials without taxes and corvee? Once they fall into chaos, the entire imperial court will be shaken.”
"Your Highness is worrying too much." Li Zhiyun felt slightly relieved. He could hear that Yang You had loosened up.
He continued to analyze for Yang You." From the Founding Emperor Era, the former Emperor Shengming began to build granaries across the country to store food in case of emergency. Although there has been a lot of consumption over the years, the granaries in Guanzhong still have enough reserves.”
"I think the national treasury should still have a lot of reserves, right?”
Li Zhiyun did not give Yang You a chance to speak. He glanced at Yang You from the corner of his eyes and said in a slightly serious tone,""Your Highness, if you are unwilling to use these provisions and the money from the national treasury, it may benefit others in the future. In that case, why not use this money to stabilize the current situation, at least to maintain the stability of my Guanzhong!”
Yang You's expression finally changed.
Especially Li Zhiyun's words,'You can't bear to part with it now, but it might benefit others in the future!'
The others here made Yang You involuntarily think of Li Yuan.
Yang You's expression changed.
After a long time, Yang You nodded. His face revealed a determined look, and even a trace of madness. He gritted his teeth and said,"You're right. If we don't use this national wealth to appease the people now, others might benefit in the future!”
"Your Highness is wise!" Li Zhiyun immediately praised.
He was relieved that he had achieved his goal.
Actually, there was another reason that Li Zhiyun did not say, and would never say.
The Yang Consortium's world was already irreparable, and doing so was just to prolong their lives.
Li Zhiyun wanted to prolong the Yang Consortium's life.
If the Yang Consortium did not fall, he would have enough opportunities to absorb the nutrients of the Yang Consortium to strengthen himself.
Of course, there was another purpose.
If the Yang Consortium fell, the pass would probably fall into Li Yuan's hands.
He had never thought that he would be able to gain a foothold in Guanzhong, where the Guanlong Gentry was concentrated.
This was definitely not his foundation.
Therefore, he spared no effort to encourage Yang You to be exempted from taxes and corvee for as long as five years.
So what if Li Yuan occupied Guanzhong?
Would he dare to collect taxes and corvee?
He definitely wouldn't dare. Even Bao Sui, whom he spoke of, had been exempted from corvee and taxes. If he were to impose heavy taxes, the hearts of the people would immediately be lost.
As such, Li Yuan could only rely on the Guanlong Gentry. If the Guanlong Gentry wanted to support Li Yuan, they would have to continuously give him blood.
This way, the Guanlong Gentry would be weakened.
Without taxes and corvee, Li Yuan's strength could not reach the peak of history.
The pace of unification would slow down.
In the world struggle, without an overwhelming advantage, everyone would fall into a long battle of attrition.
Only in this way would the weak have a chance to survive and grow!
Right now, Li Zhiyun was the weak one!
He was going to play a game of chess in Chang 'an!
Now, the initial success had been achieved.
He continued to advise," Your Highness, although the other places in the northwest have already escaped your control, you must find a way to pass on your administrative strategy to the various places.”
He was trying to disgust the various forces in the northwest, especially Li Yuan!
Yang You was also an intelligent person. He understood immediately and nodded,""Your suggestion is not bad. I'll pass it on to all the places.”
After a slight pause, Yang You looked at Li Zhiyun, reached out his hands, patted Li Zhiyun's shoulder, and said with emotion,""Some people in the court say that you are scheming and ambitious. In fact, I have never believed it. Your father, Li Yuan, is a cousin of my grandfather. You can be considered my elder. In this critical time, you can help me. I have seen it all and remembered it.”
"Thank you, Your Highness." Li Zhiyun immediately thanked him, but in his heart, he treated Yang You's emotional words as bullsh * t.
"However…" Sure enough, the real purpose came after sensationalizing. Yang You said,"The relationship between you and the Guanlong Gentry has been strained. Many people have come to me to complain about what happened in the Heyang Land.”
"I will leave the matter of letting the Guanlong Gentry into the palace to you. Take this opportunity to ease the relationship with the Guanlong families.”
Even though Li Zhiyun tried his best to control himself, the corners of his mouth were still twitching a few times.
" I didn't expect this little prince to be so two-faced! Humph! Alright, if you let me do it, I'll accept it. But don't regret it when the time comes!'
Li Zhiyun snorted coldly in his heart. Yang You's words sounded nice. What easing of relations? It was obvious that he did not want to offend the Guanlong Clan.
That was why he was asked to come forward.
In an instant, Li Zhiyun thought of a way to beat him at his own game and reap great benefits for himself!
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。