947 Negotiations

Jiang Ming went to sleep when he returned to the palace.

He had to go to court tomorrow, so he had to conserve his energy.

In the court, Jiang Ming sat on the throne and looked down.

The officials lowered their heads.

When they saw Jiang Ming, they knelt down and bowed to him.

“Your Majesty, welcome.”

The etiquette here was different from that of other kingdoms.

Jiang Ming was a little surprised, but then he waved his hand.

The officials immediately stood up.

Huang Dasheng took the initiative to step forward and remonstrate with Jiang Ming.

“Your Majesty, the problem of the southern canal is particularly serious now. There is an even greater flood spreading out. If we don’t solve it soon, the residents nearby will rise in revolt. By then, the whole Kingdom will be in chaos. We hope that you can solve this problem and not let the Xiaguo Kingdom fall into danger.”

As Huang Dasheng spoke out, the rest of the officials also spoke out one after another. They all explained that they wanted to solve this problem.

Jiang Ming pretended to be bored and yawned, ignoring everyone.

“What do you mean by this?” Huang Dasheng’s face darkened. “Don’t you want to resolve this matter? As the king of the Xiaguo Kingdom, you should solve the problems for the people.”

“What about you guys? Aren’t you also officials of the Xiaguo Kingdom? Why don’t you think of solving the problem yourself and helping the civilians? I’ve already solved one thing. The rest should be solved by you guys!” Jiang Ming retorted directly.

In his opinion, these officials were useless and only knew how to talk big.

Huang Dasheng coughed and said awkwardly, “We still have our own things to manage. As for you, as the king of the Xiaguo Kingdom, it’s a big problem for you to ignore it. I think this flood will cause a lot of poor people to riot.”

“Your food and clothing expenses will be halved to help the poor. As for the matter of the canal, I will take care of it,” Jiang Ming said lazily.

Hearing this, Huang Dasheng’s expression changed.

He had always focused on having good food and clothing. If his budget was halved now, wouldn’t he be unable to maintain his lifestyle?

He shook his head anxiously. “Your Majesty, I’ve always been thrifty. If I continue to be thrifty, I won’t be able to live well. The officials under me will also be the same. If they can’t afford food, clothing, housing, and transportation, how can they govern the affairs of the public?”

“As officials, can’t you even make a small sacrifice for the kingdom? Those commoners are going to starve to death, but you guys aren’t. Just see it as going on a diet. You guys really need to lose weight.”

Jiang Ming completely ignored them.

The group of officials immediately began to complain.

“If there’s nothing else, you can leave the court.” Jiang Ming waved his hand.

The prime minister could not take it anymore. He quickly stood up and said, “Your Majesty, when the previous king was alive, he never deducted our allowance. He even opened the national treasury to help the commoners. But what did you do? You want to halve our allowance. Isn’t this making things difficult for us?”

“You’ve said it yourself. As a ruler, I have the responsibility to deal with some problems. Then why can’t you, as officials who usually enjoy life, make a temporary sacrifice?” Jiang Ming retorted rudely. Then, he stood up and said, “I’ll withdraw from court now. If there’s any more arguments, it’s not too late to talk about it.”.

Jiang Ming did not wait for the others to speak and left the courtroom. Seeing him leave, the prime minister’s face turned red.

He shook his hand angrily. Huang Dasheng quickly placated him. “Prime Minister, the king doesn’t respect you at all. I don’t think you need to give him any respect either. When the time comes, you have to make him suffer.”

After thinking for a moment, the prime minister burst into laughter.

“He’s just a kid. How can he fight me? Let’s just wait and see!”

After returning to his bedroom, Zhu Asi learned about the situation in the royal court and asked Jiang Ming about it.

Jiang Ming smiled. “I think they will make their next move soon. Let’s wait and see.”

Princess Qingmiao continued, “Do we still have to postpone the banquet at King Liang’s place?” He organized it just for you. It’s not good to postpone it, right?”

“It’s better to postpone it until the matter of these officials is resolved.”

Jiang Ming’s expression was indifferent.

At this moment, a servant suddenly rushed out and knelt in front of Jiang Ming.

“Your Majesty, the commander is here to visit you. He said he has something to tell you.”

Jiang Ming smiled secretly.

Huang Dasheng was finally here. He had been waiting for a long time.

He chased those people out and met Huang Dasheng alone.

Seeing Jiang Ming’s strange behavior, Zhu Asi and the others did not quite understand. Their eyes were filled with curiosity.

This was the first time they saw Jiang Ming wanting to talk to someone alone. What could Jiang Ming have to do with the commander?

Besides, wasn’t this the first time he would meet the commander? Why did it feel like something big had happened?

“Greetings, Your Majesty.” Huang Dasheng walked into the side hall and knelt down to greet Jiang Ming.

“Get up. What do you want?”

Jiang Ming gestured for Huang Dasheng to sit down.

“You’ve just ascended the throne,” Huang Dasheng said with a smile. “Many matters are unstable. You also need some help, right?”

“Not at all.”

Jiang Ming showed no mercy and did not give Huang Dasheng a chance to explain at all.

Huang Dasheng’s expression changed. Then, he smiled awkwardly. “Your Majesty, do you really not need help?” There’s only the two of us now. You don’t have to hide it from me. I sincerely want to help you.”

“I don’t think I need anyone to help me consolidate my current position. Besides, as an ordinary commander, how can you help me?”

Jiang Ming pretended to be suspicious as he sized up Huang Dasheng.

“Of course, I can’t help you if I’m just an ordinary commander.” Huang Dasheng smiled. “But what if I’m not ordinary?”

“In that case, are you colluding in private? Do you know that collusion is a capital offense?”

Jiang Ming sipped his tea slowly, not letting Huang Dasheng off the hook.

“Your Majesty,” Huang Dasheng said awkwardly. “I’m just hanging out with my friend. You’re overthinking.”

He felt a little angry.

What was going on with the king? Why wasn’t he moved at all? Was his bribe not enticing enough?

“You can leave now. Don’t let me catch you. Otherwise, you won’t be able to leave now. Rest in peace.”

Jiang Ming started to chase them away.

Huang Dasheng was still useful now.

“Your Majesty, why are you so stubborn?” Huang Dasheng sighed. “It’s impossible for you to sit still on your own.”

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