Chapter 25 – The Emperor Doesn’t Like Hua Chun (2)
“I…” Hua Chun slowly stood up from the ground. As she looked up, she raised her arms, held out her fists, and said calmly, “I made a big mistake earlier, so whenever I see Your Majesty, I should kowtow to Your Majesty to show my repentance!”
“What?” Yu Wenjie looked at her thoughtfully. “Prime Minister Hua has set an example for courtiers! ”
Smiling faintly, Hua Chun stood straight and turned her back to the courtiers.
The meeting was convened to discuss an important matter. The topic today, of course, was disaster relief. The drought was raging, and if it continued like this, the harvest would be much lower than last year’s.
It was agreed by the Emperor, Grand Master Tang, Grand Secretary Li, and other courtiers, that the amount of the relief fund would be discussed upon. Hua Chun had no opinion and only nodded her head along twice!
Yu Wenjie felt a little surprised and took a look at her. Normally, she would find faults with nearly everything they discussed, but why was she so quiet today?
At one glance, Yu Wenjie discovered that Hua Chun’s side profile was so delicate, and she didn’t look like a man. The outline of her nose was also elegant.
‘What a sissy!’ He thought.
Half of the reason for Yu Wenjie’s dislike toward Hua Chun was simply because he thought that Hua Chun was less of a man, too delicate and pretty. Hua Chun’s physique was too thin and feeble as though she would collapse against a blowing breeze.
The older she grew, the more beautiful she became. This fact made the Emperor like her less, and he instantly had the thought of embarrassing her.
“Prime Minister Hua, do you have any good ideas regarding disaster relief?”
While Hua Chun was weighing in the discussion, the Emperor asked her unexpectedly, and her back instantly straightened itself.
Some courtiers such as Grand Master Tang sighed softly and bowed their heads silently. Disaster relief had its own fixed process. As long as the superiors had a result of the amount of disaster relief fund and the scope of disaster relief, the juniors would arrange. At this time, the emperor asked the prime minister, which could only make things difficult for the prime minister again.
While each one of them pondered whether to interfere in an attempt to liberate the prime minister from trouble, they heard Hua Chun speak. “I have some ideas. However, a slight move in one part may aggravate the whole situation. I do not dare to argue. My words may sound harsh, but I hope Your Majesty doesn’t take it too seriously.”
‘Hua Chun has an idea, really?’ Yu Wenjie gazed at her and nodded, “It doesn’t matter.”
Hua Chun took a deep breath and continued, “Throughout history, 90% of the fund was embezzled by courtiers, ordinary people only received the remaining 10%, which was scarcely a drop in the bucket. About this disaster relief, the focus is not how much the fund is, but how much people will receive the fund.”
Her voice resonated throughout the hall. Hua Chun had to continue to explain without receiving any response.
“The king is the ruler of all the people, which causes him to shoulder great responsibility. If people’s lives are filled with untold suffering, the king has failed in shouldering the responsibility. The courtiers should serve the king with devotion to their duty and impart suggestions freely. The courtiers should do their duties faithfully, and the king will be responsible for the nation. However, some courtiers use flattery to win favors for themselves, and keep the king unaware of the misfortunes of the people by cutting off all the news, which puts the nation in grave danger.”
The audience remained silent still.
“Your Majesty is very generous! It is impossible for the king to know the demands of every person, and since courtiers are corrupt, the king’s favour fails to reach the people. I think that in order to make people aware of Your Majesty’s favor, Your Majesty should decree to make clear the amount of the disaster relief fund. The courtiers should monitor each other. If someone reports corruption, Your Majesty should promote him and reward him with money. If the courtiers shield each other, Your Majesty should order the imperial envoy to know the heartfelt wishes of people and then revert to Your Majesty to make sure that the disaster relief fund reaches all the people.”
At last, Hua Chun had articulated her string of thoughts and took a deep breath.