The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 593

"What Xiu said is correct. Under the whole sky, all land belongs to the king, and all people within the borders are subjects of the king. They are all common people of our Great Ming Dynasty. Why does Grand Secretary Xia show favoritism? Do you intend to damage His Majesty's reputation as the sovereign?"

Yang Yiqing also stood up and retorted.

Xia Yan was not angry at the fact that both of them were refuting him. On the contrary, he was happy. The more people who refuted him, the more secure his position would be.

However, on the surface, Xia Yan still had to pretend to be indignant.

"Your words are an attack on me. When did I ever mean that?"

Xia Yan glared and puffed out his beard.

"Alright, do as Hengqi said. Have the Jinyiwei in various places set up temporary inspection teams to monitor the construction progress and status of railways in various places. If they find anyone who is mistreating the people, they should immediately cancel their construction qualification and confiscate their property."

After watching the drama unfold for a long time while seated on his dragon throne, Emperor Jiajing finally gave his conclusion.

After that, no one said anything more.

After all, Zhou Chu had already silenced the officials who wanted to refute him, and Xia Yan's rebuttal was just sophistry, which everyone could see.

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

The officials all spoke up.

All the details regarding the railway construction had been finalized, and construction on the three railways began simultaneously.

The princes' mansions and the merchants who undertook the construction began to recruit workers continuously. As a result, the number of workers needed was too large, and the small number of refugees could no longer meet such a huge demand.

Many farmers took advantage of the fact that it wasn't the busy farming season to join the railway construction. The contractors originally planned to pay the workers monthly, but they couldn't find enough people that way. So, in order to attract more farmers to build the railway, they started paying them daily.

As a result, countless farmers joined the railway construction team during their off-season.

The money in the national treasury flowed through the Ministry of Revenue to the Ministry of Works, and then from the Ministry of Works to the contractors. A portion of the money then went from the contractors to the people who built the railway.

In this way, the people responsible for building the railway all made money. With extra money in their hands, the lower classes thought about buying property, furniture, or improving the meals for their children.

As a result, the economies around these three railways were boosted, and the spirits of the people along the routes to Datong, Taiyuan, and even the Jiangnan region were transformed.

As the saying goes, "Money in hand makes one feel at ease." The reason why Zhou Chu was in a hurry to build railways was to distribute money to the people. In this way, the people would have more money in their hands, which would lead to inflation. Naturally, the money in the hands of the gentry and landlords would not be as valuable as it originally was.

Of course, Zhou Chu was also aware of how strong the corrective power of history was, and that if no one intervened, this money would eventually flow into the hands of the gentry and landlords through various means.

However, Zhou Chu is still young and has plenty of time.

The segmented construction method ensured the speed of railway construction, and the responsibility for each segment of the railway was assigned to the contractor, which also ensured the quality of the railway. As a result, the three railways were completed in just about a year with high quality and quantity.

Two months prior, Hai Rui, Yang Shengzhai, and others had already built the first train.

When the railway was completed, a series of memorials were sent to the cabinet.

In the imperial court, countless officials sang praises to Emperor Jiajing.

"Your Majesty is truly a wise and benevolent ruler. These three railways were built in a year, and in that year, the people living near these three lines have become prosperous."

Han Jie spoke first.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Today, the Ming Dynasty is at peace and prosperous. Even the refugees have work to do and every family is doing well. The territory of the Ming Dynasty can now rival that of the Tang Dynasty. Your Majesty is truly a great ruler."