A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 59 Strategy
The moon and snow shone together, and the night was fading.

On the banks of the Wei River, the flowing water was slightly stagnant. The chill seeped into the water and seemed to turn to ice, but as soon as it froze, it was swept away by the rushing eastward water.

"The matters concerning the national treasury, the Imperial Household Department, and the donations are progressing more smoothly than expected. Yan Yi, Zhao Yu, Dongguo Xianyang, and Kong Jin are all quite obedient," Huo Qubing said with satisfaction.

Liu Ju shook his head and said, "Besides Yan Yi, Zhao Yu, Dongguo Xianyang, and Kong Jin were not obedient, but rather their minds and wills were manipulated after they were given a 'handle' to use against them."

The officials in charge of grain administration, the Minister of the Imperial Household, and Dongguo Xianyang and Kong Jin presented a letter to the Northern Army.

Well, the contents were both unexpected and expected: the entire Han Dynasty treasury only had one million gold coins.

In fact, this million taels of gold was just plundered from the powerful and wealthy people of the land by the Emperor using white deer skin coins.

Since Empress Dowager Dou died in May of the sixth year of the Jianyuan era and His Majesty began to rule in his own right, the national treasury has been in a state of deficit for fourteen years. It is so empty that even a mouse would weep if it went in.

Yan Yi's reason for voluntarily handing over the national treasury's gold was simple: this million gold was a targeted fund for the military expenses of the four routes of 10,000 cavalry attacking the Xiongnu after the spring.

In other words, whether the national treasury has this million taels of gold or not makes little difference; even if it wanted to keep it, it wouldn't last two months.

The Imperial Household Department has 1.3 million taels of gold, of which 300,000 taels were donated by Dongguo Xianyang and Kong Jin to build the Jianzhang Palace, Gui Palace, Bei Palace, and Mingguang Palace. It is certain that the construction will not be completed. Anyway, His Majesty is not in Chang'an, so we can keep it a secret as much as possible.

One million gold coins was a small legacy left after the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing. It should be noted that during the later years of Emperor Jing's reign, the granaries of the Han Dynasty were full, and the treasury had a large number of copper coins that had not been used for many years, to the point that the strings holding the coins together had rotted, and there were so many loose coins that they were impossible to count.

According to incomplete statistics, the legacy of the prosperous era amounted to 100 million taels of gold, but after only twenty years of His Majesty's reign, less than one percent of it remains.

The terrifying cost of war left Liu Ju speechless, and he gained a deeper understanding of his father's aggressive military campaigns, which also made him dissatisfied with his father's various policies.

As for Dongguo Xianyang and Kong Jin, under Zhang Tang's coercion and intimidation, they had to hand over 300,000 taels of gold. It has to be said that these two central government officials were truly expensive.

Even a minor official like a high-ranking minister sold for 300,000 gold coins. If the prices of central government officials were all this high, Liu Ju would think that selling official positions and titles appropriately wouldn't be a bad thing.

In conclusion, the Crown Prince's palace will receive 2.6 million gold coins. The performance of Chancellor Gongsun Hong and Minister of Justice Zhang Tang, this pair of ministers and disciples, is truly remarkable.

"According to my brother, Zhang Tang shouldn't have any problems with money, right?" Huo Qubing asked with some doubt.

Given the notorious cruel official's ruthless and exploitative nature, could he have only managed to extract 300,000 taels of gold?

Wei Qing continued, "Based on my understanding of the Minister of Justice, he is not the kind of person who is greedy for money. He is an ambitious person who wants almost infinite interests of the court, such as a city, a territory, or a piece of sky. I have been to his private residence and study. In Zhang Tang's study, there is nothing but the classics of laws from past dynasties, bamboo slips, and official documents."

“I agree with what my uncle said. Zhang Tang values ​​his own interests in the court more than anything else. My elder brother may criticize his cruelty and despicableness, but no one can denigrate his integrity.”

Liu Ju nodded and smiled, "A person like that wouldn't allow himself to have any flaws in terms of law or morality. Besides, if he really had any flaws, he would have already fallen in the witchcraft case."

Zhang Tang's claim to fame was the witchcraft case against the deposed Empress Chen Ajiao. He strongly advocated for the Empress's removal, which implicated dozens of powerful families. Even Princess Guantao, also known as Princess Dou, the eldest princess of Emperor Xiaojing, who privately offered a death sentence of 100,000 gold coins to Zhang Tang, failed to achieve his goal.

He was a cruel official, but also honest and upright.

Dongguo Xianyang and Kong Jin together pulled out 600,000 gold coins, which was basically the limit for both of them. It was not easy for Zhang Tang to be able to extort so much.

"Ju'er, what do you want to do with the money?" Wei Qing asked with concern.

With over two million taels of gold, he worried that his nephew might lose his way like His Majesty. "Initiate a new policy," Liu Ju said solemnly.

What is the strategy?

“Reward agriculture to enrich the country, encourage military achievements to strengthen the army, unify governance to rectify officials, and transform customs and habits to unite the people.”

Liu Ju set the tone for the new policies, and slowly said: "There are three old problems in the Han Dynasty. First, it takes Taoism as its foundation, mixed with fragmented Gongyang teachings, leaving the people at a loss."

In the early years of the Han Dynasty, the legal system and the kingly way of the Qin Dynasty were slightly modified to govern the people. During the reign of Emperor Hui and Empress Lü, the country was freed from the suffering of the Warring States period. Both the emperor and his ministers wanted to do nothing. Therefore, Emperor Hui ruled with a hand in hand, and Empress Lü ruled as the female ruler. She did not leave her bedroom, and the country was peaceful. Punishments were rarely used, and the people devoted themselves to farming, and their clothing and food were abundant.

After Emperors Xiaowen and Xiaojing succeeded to the throne, they continued to govern the country using the Huang-Lao philosophy, practicing non-interference, practicing frugality and restraint, and allowing the people to rest and recuperate, resulting in a peaceful and prosperous world.

However, this old system can only govern the people in times of minor strife, not strengthen the nation in times of great strife. Although the Gongyang School flourished, those who prioritized personal gain only ruled for a short time, not for eternity.

Dong Zhongshu's plan for a Confucian empire meant that Confucianism could not become the dominant school of thought for generations. Confucianism could be used as the moral standard of China, but it could not be used as the governing principle of China.

In this era of great contention, battles are fought on the battlefield, and so are the various schools of thought.

Wei Qing and Huo Qubing seemed to understand, yet also seemed not to; they found the matter of national unification difficult to comprehend.

Liu Ju smiled leisurely and continued, "The second problem is that the law has no clear guidelines, rewards and punishments are unclear, the powerful and noble are not punished for their crimes, the common people are not rewarded for their merits, farmers are still poor even if they have surplus to cultivate, and soldiers are still not ennobled even if they have merits in battle. How can the spirit of bravely fighting for the country be inspired in this way?"

"Great!" Huo Qubing clapped his hands and cheered, very excited.

The matter involves "redemption for the powerful," which means that those with noble titles could offset part of their death sentences with 500,000 coins. It also involves the unreasonable military merit system of the Han Dynasty and the fact that the court could not give meritorious individuals commensurate with their merits after the national treasury was depleted.

If these issues can be resolved, the Han Dynasty's national fortune, morale, and public support will rise to a level far beyond what is expected.

"The third drawback is that it lacks the power to unite the people and the authority to deter chaos."

Wei Qing and Huo Qubing were filled with emotion.

Liu Ju did not explain, but his uncle and nephew could understand that the crown prince was criticizing the enfeoffment system that Emperor Gaozu had restored at the beginning of the dynasty. Although it was a helpless move by Emperor Gaozu, it had also sown the seeds of a huge hidden danger for the Han Dynasty.

How can the Han Empire be cured if it is surrounded by a bunch of treacherous and incompetent feudal lords?
Liu Ju looked at Wei Qing and Huo Qubing and said in a calm tone, "Uncle, elder brother, we will be relying on you then."

"We will certainly live up to Your Majesty's expectations!"

Liu Ju helped them up and said with a smile, "There's no need for that. The three of us, uncle and nephew, share the same blood and are bound by fate. There's no need for such formalities. Tomorrow, my elder brother will personally lead the generals to transport the gold back. I will also be there to supervise the operation."

"Brother, with me here, what's there to worry about?"

"With such a large sum of money, I have no worries. If my elder brother and the generals are blinded by greed and the army runs away on its own, I'm afraid I'll cry myself to death on the banks of the Wei River."

"Hahaha!"

"Hahaha!"

(End of this chapter)