174: Liu Sichun's Struggle"Second brother, times have changed. With only this much money, we naturally need to be careful and calculate our expenses." Liu Sichun frowned slightly and patiently explai...Chapter 518: Open Source and Cost Reduction

Sān Bǎo pondered for a moment and replied, "I'm afraid... it will take several days."

Li Chen raised an eyebrow and said, "It's been half a month since he agreed to take office. Looking at Zheng Baorong, he also came from Weihaiwei. He arrived in the capital the day after."

Even if Dantai Jingzhi's legs are slow and his luggage is heavy, he should have arrived in the capital from Weihaiwei in half a month. How many more days will it take

"Sān Bǎo chuckled wryly and said, 'Mr. Mirror, you brought twenty whole carts of books from home! Just sorting them out took six or seven days' worth of effort.'"

It is said that his other several hermitages have many more books than this one, and they are all to be ordered to be specially sorted and brought to the capital.

"Moreover, news of his official appointment is now an open secret, and countless scholars and literati have gone to congratulate him."

"Master Jing went his way, students lining the road to see him off. He could only travel thirty miles a day."

Li Chen rubbed his temples and said, "This old man is really troublesome. This kind of thing isn't something I can order him to go to Beijing immediately, but the current situation can't be delayed."

As he spoke, Li Chen seemed to have thought of a solution. He got up and walked to the bookshelf in the back row, climbed onto the ladder and pulled out a book from the top shelf, handing it to Sanbao.

“You will send this Danxin Zhaiyao to Dantang Jingzhi.”

"This book set has three volumes, and the only complete set in the world is housed in the Eastern Palace."

Someone who loves books as much as Dantai Jing would surely be eager to get the other two after seeing this first one.

"If you have someone else deliver a message to him, this set of books will be waiting for him for three days. If he doesn't come within three days, I'll give them to someone else."

The Three Treasures understood, taking the book and respectfully saying, "Your Highness's calculations are admirable."

"This flattery isn't very good, that's enough, now go do your work."

Li Chen dismissed Sibaobao, and looking at the memorial from the Ministry of Household Affairs that was crying poor again, Li Chen couldn't help but feel a headache.

Although it's true that the cabinet is focused on power struggles and vying for influence, which has impacted royal authority, we have to admit that these old politicians actually run government affairs flawlessly. Even in the worst conditions, they've spared no effort to keep the country running smoothly.

Lichen had been reading nothing but petitions lately, all complaining about shortages: silver, manpower, and materials. They implored the court for funding, personnel, and supplies.

This was still a period of natural disaster relief, and it had somewhat subsided. At the beginning when the disaster first struck, I hadn't yet assumed regency or been granted the authority to review memorials. The situation was undoubtedly much worse then, and it was the cabinet who managed to keep things afloat during that difficult time.

In this regard, Zhao Xuanji's ability to handle government affairs is truly the best among the current officials.

After some thought, Li Chen decided to call Xu Changqing over.

This time, I only called for him to come alone.

"The empty treasury has always been a problem. This palace has thought of many ways, but even copying more houses is just drinking poison to quench thirst. You, the left servant of the Ministry of Household Affairs, don't have any good ideas" Li Chen asked.

Faced with Li Chen's question, Xu Changqing wore a bitter expression. Throughout history, the Ministry of Revenue has always existed, but so many Ministers of Revenue and emperors have been unable to solve the problems. Where could he possibly find a solution

After much deliberation, Xu Changqing felt he had no good solutions. However, faced with the prince's questioning, he couldn't remain silent. He gritted his teeth and said: "Your Highness, I believe that many of the measures we have taken so far are merely temporary stopgaps. But the imperial court's daily expenses continue to mount, so we must focus on increasing revenue and reducing expenditure."n that it was the White Lotus Sect who attempted to assassinate him. Everything is proceeding as planned."Yes, everything today was a setup.A scheme carefully devised by Li Chen, targeting Li Yinhu.Gi...