Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

Xiyuan, Yangxin Hall.

With the sudden collapse of Chengguo's palace, it was revealed that Xiangcheng Hou Li Jin and others had withheld winter clothes from the Datong frontier army, causing heavy losses to the martial arts community in the capital.

The warriors who originally wanted to take back the military power from the new emperor to make money finally realized that they were facing a strategic and courageous emperor. Now they could either take the world certificate and eat the Zhu family's meal, or get out completely. .

Faced with such options, any fool knows how to choose. After all, Qingshan will have the opportunity to burn firewood again in the future.

After Zhu Youtang saw that these martial arts men had become honest, he had no intention of killing them all. In fact, as long as these useless martial arts men had to eat with their world certificates, he was too lazy to destroy the jobs they deserved.

You can raise a bunch of losers, but if these losers want to lead troops, they will stay wherever it is cool.

It's just that being complacent is not his goal in governing. Now that the Wuxun Group has put its tail between its legs, he naturally has to let go and do what he should do.

The emperor is the master of living things and the sect of prosperity.

Zhu Youtang was a lazy emperor, because the morning court on every eighth day was occasionally canceled, and the administration of thousands of officials was increasingly ignored in the Hongzhi Dynasty, but he was actually a diligent emperor.

In addition to carefully handling memorials every day, he is now more like an emperor who integrates imperial power and prime ministerial power. He will always directly face the six ministries through palace rituals.

The power of the king is granted by God, and the power of ministers comes from the power of the king to a large extent.

Since Zhu Youtang now focuses on palace etiquette, the status of the six ministries has also increased. After all, they can directly participate in the formulation of national policies.

The ceremony of the palace was on the trend of expansion. The people participating in the meeting this time were no longer limited to the cabinet and the six ministers, but also officials at the minister level were all present.

In fact, Chen Kun, the left minister of household affairs, and other ministers of the six departments are no strangers to this place. Since His Majesty moved here to handle government affairs, he would occasionally summon them here or in the imperial study room.

Those who are thoughtful also realize that the hard work to rejuvenate the country that the Yangxin Hall hangs high is not a bluff. The Hanlin Academy, which used to be highly valued, now has no Hanlin bachelor's degree to join in.

The decline in the number of Ci ministers in the core decision-making circle may be a trend in the Hongzhi Dynasty.

In fact, it is no wonder that the final form of the evolution of Ci ministers is actually the power of the prime minister, and excessive power of the prime minister will become a potential resistance to the reform of the Ming Dynasty. For a monarch as talented and ambitious as Hongzhi, his position in his mind is probably just that of a secretary.

Zhu Youtang was processing the memorial here. Since most of the officials here were promoted by himself, he already felt confident.

Seeing that the people were already seated, he looked very casual and said: My new rules for the draft are sloppy. There are so many people today. Why is that?

After all, there has been a major change in history. The draft, which was blocked twice in history by officials from the Ministry of Rites, is now held as scheduled as usual.

Nowadays, all places have stopped dowry. Because the queen's position is vacant, localities are even more eager to do so. After all, the jackpot hasn’t been announced yet, which will make lottery players even crazier.

At this juncture, Zhu Youtang also introduced new rules for the draft, proposing a new standard of valuing talent and appearance over family background, which made the range and operability of show girls even stronger.

Because of this, this draft was more lively than in the past, and some wealthy families even sent women of their age to participate.

Huh?

Wan An and other officials who had just taken their seats were startled. They did not expect Zhu Youtang to suddenly raise this question.

Although Zhu Youtang acted dictatorially, he would also conduct self-examination and correct his mistakes, so he was also willing to listen to the opinions of these important ministers.

Guo Yong took the memorial from Zhu Youtang and read it seriously: The world knows that the post is vacant, and His Majesty is the Holy Lord and Mingjun, so local selections are in great demand. However, today's selection of officials is based on new regulations and is subject to the influence of wealthy families. To bribe money, girls from good families will be promoted if they are talented. Girls from good families with round faces, flat shoulders, and weak eyebrows will be eliminated. This is a disorder of government. I ask you to restore the old practice and use girls from good families with strong faces as good candidates. That’s right, don’t let the rich and aristocratic families have the opportunity to take advantage of...

Wan'an noticed that other officials were looking at him, so he waved his hands and said, This is not the first time this kind of memorial has happened! Your Majesty actually wants to hear your opinions. What do you think I am doing?

In front of His Majesty, don't talk about official positions and qualifications. Who can relieve His Majesty's worries is the real talent! Our cabinet will not participate this time. Let's see who among you can relieve Your Majesty's worries! Liu Ji is a kind-faced man. The little old man waved his hands quickly when he saw the eyes of other officials focused on him.

Your Majesty, since the new regulations have not been changed before, the cabinet's voting opinions must remain the same as before, and I also agree with the voting opinions of the two cabinet ministers! Li Yu, the Minister of Civil Affairs, took the lead in expressing his position, showing a sly smile.

Zhu Youtang glanced at Li Yu and said jokingly: You, the official minister, are so cunning! Du Qing, please don't be cunning. Tell me your opinion!

Since Li Yu, the Minister of Personnel, and Du Ming, the Minister of Punishment, were the first to surrender, Zhu Youtang himself was not aware of it, and he was obviously more casual and close to these two people.

Your Majesty, the imperial court used to conduct drafts, and there were also censors who impeached wealthy families for bribing money. These people actually just want to gain a reputation for integrity! I always thought that you asked the Ministry of Civil Affairs to inspect Ke Dao Jing last time. Gao Ming, this time the censor is still complaining about bribery from a wealthy family, so it is not appropriate to change his tune because of this nonsense memorial! Du Ming, the Minister of Punishment, had already seen through the true face of the censor, and he took a picture without leaving any trace. Flattery.

high!

Xu Qiong, the Minister of Etiquette, saw Du Ming flattering him in a nutritious way, and couldn't help but secretly praise him.

Zhu Youtang felt comfortable after hearing this, and asked Li Si on the other side noncommittally: Li Qing, what do you think?

I am in charge of your majesty's financial power, and I am looking at the Ming Dynasty's money bag! Today's draft is more than half over, and the money has been spent. There is no trouble in the place, how can there be any reason to tear down and start over? Li Si knew that this was just a small talk. That’s it, he said with a sly smile.

Chen Kun, the left minister of the household department, and Liu Zhong, the right minister of the household ministry, couldn't help but smile knowingly. This answer was in line with their positioning as officials of the household department. In fact, if everyone in the Six Departments can manage their own one-third of an acre of land, it will be better than any flower work.

Zhu Youtang took a deep look at Li Yu, but praised him a little: Haha... I can rest easy now that Li Qing is in charge of financial power for me!

Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty! It's just that the money that should be spent still needs to be spent. Today's draft is more than half over, and the pearl fishing in Lianzhou must be implemented as soon as possible! Li Yu felt secretly happy in his heart, and mentioned another matter.

Everything in the world is not the king's land, and the shores of the land are not the king's ministers.

As a rare asset, the pearl pool was naturally owned by the imperial court. In Tokyo Bay, which is rich in pearls, the Ming Dynasty not only set up a special management office, but also set up a Haido Military and Defense Office to take care of it.

The reason why the Ming Dynasty paid so much attention to Hepu Pearl was not only due to the value of Hepu Pearl itself, but also related to the needs of the Ming royal family.

According to the royal service system, the queen's phoenix crown must be studded with more than 5,000 pearls, large and small, and then the concubines, crown princes, princes, princesses, princesses and other royal family members and wives of the court must in turn decorate the pearls according to their status. The quantity is decreasing, and the quantity required is terrifying.

Now Zhu Youtang will hold a wedding after the draft, and will then be canonized as queen, concubines, etc., so it is necessary to fish for pearls now to meet the royal family's subsequent demand for pearls.

Just pearl fishing requires hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians. Naturally, the Ministry of Household Affairs must allocate funds to support this pearl fishing activity, but the pearls obtained have nothing to do with the Ministry of Household Affairs.

Your Majesty, the officials and craftsmen dispatched by the Ministry of Industry have arrived in Hepu County. They only need to build the diving bell, and pearl fishing will begin soon! Jia Jun, the Minister of Industry, noticed that Li Si glanced at him and immediately reported it. .

Xu Qiong, the Minister of Rites, couldn't help but ask: What is a diving bell?

This is your majesty's marvelous work. A diving bell is placed in the sea to ventilate divers. The Ministry of Industry tried it and the effect was very good. The holding time can be more than doubled. Over the years, pearl divers have been limited by the holding time in the sea. Either you can't collect big pearls from the deep sea, or you can easily suffocate and die. Nowadays, there are diving bells for ventilation. Pearl fishing is not only easy to achieve results, but also can reduce casualties, which is benevolent policy! Jia Jun saluted Zhu Youtang solemnly, and it seemed that Very respectful.

The eyes of the new Minister of War, Zhang Ying, were slightly bright, and he also took the initiative to participate and said: There have been many casualties in pearl fishing over the years, and there have been turmoils in the households. Now that there is such a sharp weapon, the place must be safe, which is a blessing for the Ming Dynasty!

Your Majesty is a man of great talent and has the ambition to swallow up mountains and rivers. He is also able to make weapons to benefit all people. I am willing to serve your Majesty for tens of thousands of years! Xu Qiong immediately stood up and expressed his stance when he saw this new person snatching the title of his toady.

The left minister of the Ministry of Rites, Liu Jian, and the other six ministers were originally listening with interest, but after seeing these two people stand up, they found that the style of painting changed suddenly, and it turned into a large-scale social death scene for trying to steal flattery.

The diving bell is the result of my dream. Whether it can have miraculous effects depends on the results of this pearl fishing! Zhu Youtang was not complacent about this idea that he stole from future generations, and seemed very modest.

In fact, he knew that the invention of the diving bell would only treat the symptoms but not the root cause of the problem for Dan households. To truly solve their plight, they had to develop the cultured pearl industry.

Zhu Youtang realized that he had taken the topic too far, so he ended the topic and said: That's it for this discussion! I called you here today because I want to discuss the salt matter and Tamluo Island. Especially Lianghuai Wang Yue has cleared the salt fields, and the number of hidden fields is shocking. I am in court with you, but local affairs are easily deceived by unscrupulous officials to prevent the salt fields from being hidden again in the future. I want to formulate a regulation to prevent the slightest change. I don’t know. Dear friends, do you have any good prescriptions?

When Wan An heard that they were going to talk about salt, he couldn't help but watch Zhu Youtang secretly, for fear that the slap would hit him.

Your Majesty, being diligent in rectifying the administration of officials is a good way to avoid illegal things! Li Yu, the Minister of Personnel, was the first to offer advice.

But as soon as he finished speaking, Jia Jun, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, said disdainfully: Since I became an official, the Ming Dynasty has been promoting officials almost every year. As a result, Li Zhiqing has been entrenched in Yangzhou for more than ten years. After all, he knows the person but not the heart! Besides, , if you officials can control Li Zhiqing and his like, can you still check the salt field ambassador, chief inspector and kitchen director?

Li Yu, the official secretary, frowned slightly and was speechless.

Although the idea he had accepted since childhood was government administration, when he actually sat in this position, he realized that this kind of job of persuading people to do good was difficult. People can obviously spend a lot of time, drink, eat and drink, but you actually want them to become a monk with you.

Your Majesty, official defense is not as good as civil defense! Elementary Geometry has been compiled into a book. I think it can be published and printed at the expense of the imperial court, and then distributed to the homes of kitchen households to teach them how to measure and let them prevent rope shrinkage! Liu Zhong, the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, had already had an idea in his mind and immediately proposed his own solution.

Zhu Youtang was quite curious about the thin-faced right minister of Hube, but he was not in a hurry to express his position: What do you think?

Liu Shilang, the method of measurement is profound and profound. Isn't it something that ordinary kitchen households can learn? Isn't it too fanciful? Zhang Ying, Minister of the Ministry of War, was an arrogant man and immediately pointed out the flaw in it.

Li Si, the Minister of Household Affairs, did not expect Zhang Ying to say such superficial words, but he just wanted to be relieved as this old guy had just returned from Nanjing.

Liu Zhong, however, did not expect to find this fault, and immediately said seriously: The Elementary Geometry produced by your Majesty is simple and easy to understand. It is not difficult for ordinary people to learn this skill! The branch office added a geometry instructor to teach Zao If the householder is taught the method of geometry, it will prevent the salt official from shrinking the rope and cheating when measuring in the future!

To set up another Chongqing official is to eliminate officials. Do you know how much it will cost? Zhang Ying, the Minister of War, frowned slightly and continued to find faults.

Zhang Shangshu, in Taizhou alone, more than a quarter of the cultivated land is hidden, and the annual salt tax imposed on the imperial court is nearly 100,000 taels! Now there is an additional nine-rank official, with a salary of sixty-six dan per year, which is equivalent to We only have forty taels of silver, but we don't know how important it is and how light it is? Chen Kun, the left servant of the Ministry of Revenue, immediately made a calculation.

Li Yu, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, couldn't help but smile knowingly. The new Minister of the Ministry of War was still used to playing the same tricks as before.

They have no ability at all to do things, but they are first-class masters who hold back. Even the best strategy can be reduced to worthless if they fall in front of them.

Liu Shilang's method is feasible! It's just to prevent illegal people from tampering with meters. From now on, meters supervised by the Ministry of Industry will be implemented in yamen all over the world, and ruler stones will be placed for reference by all people! Jia Jun, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, was not Zhang Zhang. Ying continued to find fault and then stood up to express his support.

Zhu Youtang was very pleased to see that everyone had used their brains to do things.

There is another difference between salt fields and private fields. Private fields are usually very small, so tampering is easy to be discovered. It’s just that the salt fields are so large that many Zao people are unable to realize that they have been cheated by surveying officials.

Although the current promotion of Elementary Geometry seems idealistic, it is indeed the most powerful weapon to solve this stubborn problem from the root.

After all, you don’t even know if your salt field has been exaggerated. Even if you have doubts, you don’t dare to stir up trouble. Only by knowing the truth can you have the confidence to cause trouble.

As for the meter mentioned by Jia Jun, Minister of Industry, it can also be regarded as a stroke of genius.

Liu Ji saw everyone's performance in his eyes and found that these juniors should not be underestimated. This method was indeed more pragmatic than Cheng Huachao.

Liu Zhong's heart moved slightly, and he suddenly asked Jia Jun seriously: Jia Shangshu, you said that you are practicing in yamen all over the world, does this include county yamen all over the world?

Wan An's old habit suddenly broke out and he kept coughing.

Liu Ji no longer dared to say a word, vaguely feeling that the Hongzhi Dynasty was going to have tough ministers.

Li Yu and other officials were all good people, and they immediately realized that a big storm was about to break out.

Liu Jian, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and the other six ministers had the honor to come here to participate in the discussion for the first time, and they seemed confused.

For a moment, the important ministers present here had different expressions. Even Zhu Youtang had already picked up the tea and was drinking it silently.

Since it is a government office in the world, it naturally includes local government offices, state offices and county offices! Jia Jun said matter-of-factly when faced with this question.

Liu Zhong put his hand into his wide cuffs, and then took out a memorandum and submitted it: Your Majesty, I have recently checked the accounts of the Ministry of Household Affairs over the years. In fact, the tax revenue of the Ming Dynasty has been declining year by year. During the Xuande period, it was still at 3,100. On top of the stone, it fell below 3,000 stone in the Chenghua year, and last year it was 26.32 million stone. It is amazing! Hiding fields is not limited to salt fields. There are also people who hide their fields without judges and gentry. Therefore, I drafted the Qing Zhang Xin Example, please make your decision, Your Majesty!

Hidden Field is actually a battle of wits between the officials and the court.

The gentry class has so much power in the local area that even local magistrates have to curry favor with them. They only need to deal with the Zhangtian officials, and even the Zhangtian officials are their own people, so they can't help but use their power or connections to achieve the purpose of hiding the land and receiving food.

In this era, there is no such thing as the honor of paying taxes. In fact, it is honorable to not pay taxes. Have you ever seen which Jinshi official paid taxes?

Ever since Wang Yue unveiled the phenomenon of shrinking and hiding the salt fields in Taizhou, it is equivalent to lifting the mystery of the year-by-year decline in grain taxes. Everyone knows that shrinking and hiding the fields in farmland is common.

Now, this layer of window paper has been pierced by a little right minister of household affairs.

Liu Jin secretly admired the courage of the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, so he handed the memorial to His Majesty.

Zhu Youtang did not accept the memorial, but looked at Liu Zhong, the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and said calmly: Today we will only discuss the salt matter and the matter of Tamluo Island. We will put it on hold before clearing the land!

Liu Zhong couldn't help feeling disappointed when he heard Zhu Youtang's attitude.

The problem of shrinking the rope and hiding the land has obviously been exposed. Your Majesty is a courageous and skillful emperor, so why don't you promote the Qing Dynasty that benefits the country and the people?

Wan An and other officials secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Their emperor was finally awake, but he knew that things could not be rushed.

The phenomenon of shrinking ropes and hiding fields in the Lianghuai salt fields is because there are unruly people in the kitchen households trying to make money! If the imperial court creates a list of unruly people, and once it is discovered that those who have hidden their fields have reached 10%, they will be included in the list of unruly people, and their children will be deprived of the right to take the imperial examination for three generations. What do you guys think? Zhu Youtang still focused on the salt matter and immediately put forward his own ideas.

Liu Zhong suddenly felt an explosion in his mind, and turned his head to look at the emperor in disbelief.

Compared with his reckless intentions, such a shocking strategy, this is the person who can truly lead the Ming Dynasty to a prosperous age.