"Your Majesty, this is a memorial submitted by Chancellor Tong's envoy. We do not know how to proceed and request Your Majesty's perusal!"
"My perusal? What use are you then!"
Seeing that the memorial was submitted by Li Bangyan, Zhao Ji began to rage.
He knew perfectly well what was written in the memorial. This was exactly what he had specifically instructed to be forwarded to the Department of State Affairs.
With hundreds of thousands of troops gathered in Hebei, how could the grain and fodder alone for the Hebei route be sufficient?
This was already the third memorial this month urging for grain and fodder, but the problem was that the Emperor had no money!
The southeast was in chaos, and the grain and fodder could not be transported out. Although there was no more fighting in the northwest, they still had to guard against Western Xia.
Without support from the southeast, the grain and fodder supply had already crushed the four prefectures of Shaanxi in the northwest.
The remaining regions not only had to maintain the normal operation of the court but also guard against various potential situations.
As for the Ministry of Revenue, even rats would cry if they entered the warehouses now.
He did indeed have a sum of money on hand, but this was a filial gift from Zhao Zhen, reserved for the Tianning Festival.
At this moment, Li Bangyan presenting a memorial to him was as clear as day that he was eyeing his money.
It would be truly strange if he, the Emperor, were not angry at such a time!
"Your Majesty, Grand Marshal Liang requests an audience!"
Just as Li Bangyan was at his most awkward, a eunuch's announcement came from outside the door.
"Let him in!"
Looking at the few timid chancellors before him, Zhao Ji truly missed Cai Jing and Liang Shicheng at this moment.
At least when Cai Jing was in power, he had never made the Emperor worry about money.
Unlike now, the people's scolding had not diminished at all, yet his treasury was extremely tight.
He had never even considered that the reason he was so well-off when Cai Jing was in power was because all the accumulated wealth of Emperors Shenzong and Zhezong over the years had been squandered by him.
Even the treasury meant for the recovery of Yan and Yun had long been spent to the last cent.
Now, the people's livelihood was depleted everywhere, with rebellions occurring. Let alone these chancellors being mediocre, even a renowned minister like Wang Anshi could not withstand the Emperor's incessant extravagance.
"The two chancellors are also here?"
As soon as Liang Shicheng entered, he saw Wang Fu and Li Bangyan.
"Shoudao, is there something you need at this hour?"
Regardless of anything else, Liang Shicheng was the only subordinate willing to use his own money to solve his worries, so Zhao Ji held a measure of respect for him.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, this old minister has come to bring good news! A magnificent auspicious sign has appeared in Ming Prefecture, a great auspicious sign unprecedented in ancient and modern times!"
As soon as Liang Shicheng finished speaking, Zhao Ji's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
At this moment, he didn't know how to respond. Even at this juncture, Liang Shicheng was still interested in playing this trick.
"Grand Marshal Liang, the six provinces of the southeast are in complete disarray at this moment. Where could there be any auspicious signs..."
After a moment of strange silence in the hall, Li Bangyan finally couldn't help but speak.
"Prime Minister Li, this statement is incorrect. This old minister earnestly requests His Majesty to observe!"
As Liang Shicheng spoke, he knelt on the ground.
"Since that is the case, then present it."
Although Zhao Ji was not in the mood now, since Liang Shicheng had already said so much, he could only play along out of respect for Liang Shicheng.
"Present it!"
Hearing the Emperor's words, the eunuch outside hurried in with a spinning wheel.
"This is the auspicious sign you mentioned?"
Looking at the ordinary wooden frame, even Zhao Ji didn't know what to say.
This was too perfunctory!
At the very least, the Qilin and other creatures they had brought before were pigs with golden armor nailed to them. Now, bringing in such a broken thing and calling it an auspicious sign truly made it difficult for the Emperor to maintain his dignity.
"Grand Marshal Liang, did you bring the wrong item?"
While everyone was in an awkward situation, Wang Fu coughed and stepped forward.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, this is the foremost auspicious sign of ancient and modern times. Please allow the person I brought to enter the hall!"
Facing Wang Fu's mocking expression, Liang Shicheng said indifferently.
"Announce him."
Seeing Liang Shicheng's firm demeanor, Zhao Ji became interested.
"This humble one greets Your Majesty!"
As soon as Xu Fengnian entered the hall and looked up at Zhao Ji, he let out a thud and immediately knelt on the ground.
"Rise. Grand Marshal Liang said this is the foremost auspicious sign of ancient and modern times. Please demonstrate and let Us see how this thing can be considered an auspicious sign!"
After a thorough inspection of Xu Fengnian, Zhao Ji sat back on the throne.
"Yes!"
Although his whole body was trembling, Xu Fengnian took several deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down. After all, his fate depended on this.
If he embarrassed himself in front of the Emperor, let alone Han Mo, even Liang Shicheng might not be able to protect him today.
Fortunately, he had practiced the art of spinning to perfection along the way.
He quickly stepped forward, grabbed a few handfuls of cotton from a nearby bag, and skillfully rolled them into slivers. Then, he hurried to the spinning wheel, hung the slivers on it, and began to turn the wheel.
Initially, Zhao Ji paid little attention. But as he watched, even he, who had never seen such a thing, felt its extraordinary nature.
"This, this is?"
"Reporting to Your Majesty, this is the cotton yarn for weaving Hundred Fold Cloth!"
As Liang Shicheng spoke, he quickly took out a small ball of yarn from his sleeve and handed it to the Emperor.
"Cotton yarn?"
After feeling the strength of the cotton yarn, Zhao Ji's expression immediately became strange.
Although he was an emperor known for his calligraphy and painting, and a notorious ruler throughout history, he was keenly aware of the importance of cotton yarn.
After all, intimate garments made of Hundred Fold Cloth possessed a comfort that silk could not replace, especially in winter.
Even the closest garments he wore as Emperor were made of Hundred Fold Cloth.
As for its value, it might have deterred other emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty, but for him, the "Pleasure Seeker Emperor" who frequently visited brothels, this was hardly a secret...
With the method to spin cotton yarn, was it difficult to weave it into cloth?
Just this method alone, outside merchants would willingly pay a fortune!
For Zhao Ji, who was almost driven mad by a lack of money, this was truly the foremost auspicious sign in the world!