Chapter 72 I, Liu Chang, never brag
Empress Lu looked at Liu Chang, who was crying and sobbing, with disdain.
"Mother, I really want to do something good for the country and the people...but I'm too young, and without anyone to help me, I can't do it..."
"When I saw Shangfang making farm tools, I realized that without good iron, it is impossible to make good tools..."
"So I've always been thinking about how to mine more ores and how to make better iron..."
Empress Lu did not interrupt him but listened carefully to Liu Chang's explanation. After Liu Chang gave a general explanation, she frowned and began to ponder.
"Do you really have a way to increase mineral production?"
"Of course! Mother! Others may not believe me, but you still don't believe me? Who am I, Liu Chang? When have I ever boasted?"
After hearing this, Empress Lu, who was originally tempted, began to hesitate again.
"Chief, mining iron ore is not a trivial matter. It requires the use of thousands of people and is very costly. If you can't do it, don't talk nonsense... Otherwise, it will bring disaster."
"Mother, I can really do it. Just send me and I will definitely do it. If I fail to fulfill my promise... Mother can punish me! I won't say a word!"
Seeing Liu Chang's confident and high-spirited look, Empress Lu really couldn't refuse. She thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I will believe you for now."
"Great! When are we going to Shangfang?!"
"Go find your elder brother, he will help you."
“So after all this excitement... you’re just going to push me over to Big Brother in the end?” Liu Chang muttered in a low voice.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing, thank you, mother. Ah, no, I thank the queen!"
After Liu Chang left, Empress Lu called a palace maid and gave her a few instructions.
"Great! Your idea is great!!"
Liu Ying slapped his thigh suddenly and shouted excitedly.
After Liu Chang found his second brother and told him his idea, Liu Ying agreed without hesitation. Liu Ying had been holding his breath for these days and wanted to show off in front of Liu Bang. This time when he went to Huainan, Liu Bang still had the idea of letting Liu Ying go to the battle in his place, but Empress Lu still disagreed.
Even though Liu Ying pleaded several times, Empress Lu just ignored him. In the end, Liu Bang had no choice but to go to the battle himself cursing. Although the war did not last long, Liu Ying suffered another blow, and the relationship between father and son, which had finally eased, returned to the starting point.
At this moment, hearing Liu Chang's idea, Liu Ying was overjoyed, thinking that this was a good opportunity that would not only allow him to prove himself, but also bring huge benefits to the Han Dynasty.
Liu Chang was a little confused. Did his second brother agree so soon? Did he not think about it again?
"Brother, aren't you afraid that I won't be able to do it well and waste my efforts?"
"Whatever my brother wants to do, how could he not be able to do it?"
Liu Ying replied with a smile.
Liu Chang suddenly felt warm in his heart . He grinned and said, "Don't worry, this matter can be handled well! I will not let my brother down!"
Liu Chang's job was completely different from Liu Ying's. Liu Ying and Liu Chang had just arrived at the gate of Shangfang Mansion when the officials inside hurried out to greet them. They bent over and listened to the prince's orders with smiles on their faces, "Select an iron mine, arrange the staff, and prepare various tools..."
"only!"
No matter what Liu Ying said, they hurriedly agreed without even a second thought. When Liu Bang was away, he was nominally the "Crown Prince Regent" and in charge of all domestic affairs. No one dared to disobey the Crown Prince's orders. Even the Prime Minister had to consult Empress Lü and the Crown Prince when encountering major issues.
Although most of the time it was Empress Lü who made the decisions, if Liu Ying really wanted to do something, the ministers could not disobey him.
As Empress Lü said: No one can tie your hands and feet. Well, except herself.
Liu Chang looked at these servile and servile people and gnashed his teeth. We are all princes, why are we treated differently? You all just wait. When I grow up, I will arrest all of you and build a palace for you!
Qin did not allow private iron mining or iron smelting. Salt and iron were operated by the government with strict standards. However, Xiao He believed that in order to restore people's livelihood as soon as possible, there must be enough ironware. He directly lifted the restrictions on iron and allowed private mining and smelting, hoping to have a large amount of ironware as soon as possible.
Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty also maintained the tradition left by Xiao He, which was a good thing for the early Han Dynasty, which was in need of reconstruction. It played a great role in rebuilding the country. It was not until the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty that the ministers began to focus on salt and iron in order to create wealth for the country and to survive the war.
In the early Han Dynasty, there were many iron mines, but most of them were small private mines with only a few hundred people, and the daily mining volume was also very low. As for the mines run by the government, unlike the Qin Dynasty, there were not many criminals in the Han Dynasty, and the Han Dynasty would not mobilize a large number of people to dig mountains and mine, so the mining rate of the government-run mines was also very low.
The Western Han Dynasty reduced many criminal laws on the basis of the Qin Dynasty system, learned lessons from the great uprising, and stopped frequently imposing corvée and mobilizing people's labor. This is certainly a good thing, but in terms of mining and the use of iron tools, the early Han Dynasty was far inferior to the Qin Dynasty. It can only be said that there is no perfect policy, and there are pros and cons.
The Shangfang had no control over the iron mine, but they could help the prince make contacts. After conveying the prince's order, the Shaofu gave the largest iron mine in Shangjun to Liu Ying for management. There were more than 13,000 criminals in this iron mine, which could be considered a very large mine.
Liu Ying decided to arrange matters in Chang'an first, and then set off for the mine.
Liu Chang took this opportunity to quickly find his friends .
"At that time, as soon as I walked to the gate of Shangfang, everyone in Shangfang rushed out and stood by respectfully waiting for my order. I told them at that time that the Han Dynasty needed iron and I could help them mine iron ore. After I told them about my ambition, they were so amazed that they quickly gave me an iron mine in Shangjun that employed hundreds of thousands of people!"
"Later, the prince found me and said he knew my idea and hoped to get my help. For the sake of our brotherhood, I agreed to his request."
The friends were stunned as they listened, their eyes full of admiration.
"But, brother..."
"Call me King!"
"Your Majesty... didn't you say you would take us with you to accomplish great things... Now you are preparing to go to Shangjun with the prince, and we can't go with you. What use are we then?" Zhou Shengzhi said helplessly.
"Who said you are useless? Don't you have any available manpower in your respective mansions?"
"Don't you have any money or food?"
"Once the iron is smelted, you can also help sell it!"
Liu Chang stretched out his hand, asked everyone to come closer to him, and whispered: "After you go back, you can discuss this matter with your family... You don't have to say it was my idea, just say that the prince wanted to do this..."
Everyone listened attentively and nodded from time to time.
In the Prime Minister's Mansion, Xiao He looked helplessly at his son sitting in front of him.
Xiao He had two sons. The eldest son, Xiao Lu, had already started a family. Xiao Lu was calm and composed, and he no longer needed Xiao He to worry about him. But Xiao He didn't know what was wrong with his second son. He was always a step slower than others, stupid and silly, and it took a long time for him to respond when he was spoken to.
Xiao He was also very anxious at first and thought of various solutions. Until one day, a guest saw the stupid Xiao Yan and came forward to congratulate Xiao He. Xiao He asked in return, and the guest told him: You are already the prime minister, there is no more prominent official than you, your descendants can inherit your title even if they do nothing, and will not suffer. Instead of being cunning and tarnishing your wisdom in the future, what's wrong with just spending the rest of your life honestly?
Xiao He agreed with this and no longer forced the child to study. Instead, he let the child do whatever he liked.
Xiao Yan was a simple and honest person, without any scheming, kind-hearted and weak by nature. Fortunately, Zhou Shengzhi and his people never bullied him and always took him out to play. He played happily every day. Xiao He thought that this was also good.
"Father... the prince wants to refine iron and needs my help."
Xiao He didn't know how to respond for a moment. There were so many flaws in this sentence that the prime minister of the Han Dynasty was speechless. He was silent for a long time and asked, "Who told you to say this?"
"Uh... it's the king."
"Young Master?"
Xiao He shook his head and couldn't help laughing. This naughty kid really knows how to cause trouble. He had already heard about the iron mine, but Liu Chang insisted on dragging these brothers into it... Xiao He suddenly realized something, frowned, and his face became serious. After thinking for a moment, he shook his head again, and his face became calm.
"In that case, you can support the prince in your personal capacity... I will prepare it for you tomorrow, and you can send it to the prince and his men when they set off... Remember, it's in your name, remember?"
"Um……"
"Repeat that to me, in whose name?"
"Um... in my name..."
