Why did the emperor rebel?

chapter 170

Since Shen Yi's answer was given after careful consideration, he naturally expected that the Son of Heaven would dig deeper into this question.

After straightening his clothes, Shen Yi changed his relaxed attitude just now, bowed long and solemnly.

"Although I am not good at military affairs, thanks to this period of time, I have cooperated with Shangshu to be responsible for the logistics of the army. I also have some experience in the border situation."

"In this battle, there will be heavy losses first. Although Tuotuobuhua still has strength, the two will inevitably fight. Therefore, in a short period of time, I am afraid that it will be difficult for a large army to disturb the side."

"Although Daomaguan is important, it is the third inner pass after all. It is located within the border defense line. There will be no danger for a while. Therefore, rebuilding Daomaguan is not urgent!"

Zhu Qiyu nodded incredulously, but there was no expression on his face, but asked rhetorically.

"According to this, there must be a battle with Tuotuobuhua first. Then under the civil strife in the grassland, there will be no more troops to disturb the border. Then why did the gentleman say that the most important thing is to strengthen the defenses of the pass and city?"

Shen Yi lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then cupped his hands and said.

"Of course, there must be a war in the civil strife in the grassland, but this does not mean that the border of our Ming Dynasty will be safe."

"The tribes of the grassland often live scattered. Unlike the attack on our Ming Dynasty, they also fight Tuotuobuhua first. Even if the war is fought, it will be a war between Oala and Tatar. It will never call all the troops of the Mongolian tribes. These tribes may not send troops. .”

"A while ago, our frontier army first sent a large army to harass and plundered the grassland tribes in turn. It was because they were young and strong, and now they returned to the grassland first. These tribes will inevitably come back to plunder, both for revenge and to be able to Have a good winter."

"Therefore, strengthening the city defenses everywhere, especially the border passes, is not only important, but also fast."

Seeing that the emperor's expression became more and more warm, Shen Yi gradually let go of his courage, took a sip of tea, and continued.

"In addition, although our army won this battle, it suffered heavy losses. In order to make the frontier army more confident to continue to defend the border, the army's compensation and rewards should not be delayed. Not only should we be generous, but we must also ensure the fastest sent to the hands of the frontier soldiers."

"As for the reform of the artisan households, this is not something that can be achieved overnight. It needs to be worked out slowly before it can be accomplished. This minister's humble opinion, please think about it."

Zhu Qiyu nodded.

On the grassland, each tribe was doing its own thing. Now that the war is over, they will inevitably return to their original nature, cross the border, and come to plunder in small groups.

And with the fact that the Ming army looted the tribe, this situation will inevitably get worse.

So at this time, the defense of the border and the morale of the border army are also very important.

As the Minister of the Household Department, Shen Yi was able to realize this, which surprised Zhu Qiyu.

As for the final reform of craftsmen, Zhu Qiyu certainly didn't expect it to be done immediately. The size of the Ministry of Industry is one of the six departments. This matter will actually weaken the power of the Ministry of Industry, and it is not so easy to handle.

But fortunately, this matter is not in a hurry, it only depends on Zhang Min's ability, whether it can be done.

After thinking about Shen Yi's words repeatedly, Zhu Qiyu's eyes flashed suddenly, and he spoke.

"Mr. Shen, our officers and soldiers went to plunder the tribes a while ago, and the morale boosting effect of the officers and soldiers at each pass was good, so can this matter continue?"

This……

Shen Yi immediately got stuck.

It's not easy to express your opinion on this question, and if you are not careful, you will offend a large number of people in the court.

After thinking about it, Shen Yi replied.

"Your Majesty, the purpose of plundering the tribes in the grassland was to prevent them from regaining their vitality by suppressing the army first. However, the officials in the court also complained. Now that the battle is over, if we want to continue, we may need to discuss it with the court. The matter should be presided over by Shangshu."

When it arrived, Shen Yi didn't give a clear answer, but dumped the blame on Yu Qian.

But Zhu Qiyu didn't care, he just asked casually, and didn't expect to be able to settle on it.

Just like what Shen Yi said, this matter involves the general strategic direction of the grassland tribes, and this kind of military affairs should be discussed by the court.

So, Zhu Qiyu said.

"I understand the priorities of what you said, sir. Mr. Cai also said just now that recuperating and filling the national treasury are both urgent and important. I think so. What do you think sir?"

Well, this is another big problem.

The first one is not easy to answer, but this one cannot be answered directly.

Sufficient treasury, to put it bluntly, is how to make money.

If old man Shen had a way, would he be so miserable and crying poor?

But since the emperor asked a question, he naturally had to answer it.

Shen Yi started as a Lang Guan in the household department and rose all the way to Shangshu. It was not without experience, so after thinking about it, he opened his mouth and said.

"Your Majesty, if you want to enrich the national treasury, there are only two ways to increase revenue and reduce expenditure. If there is no war, my imperial court's annual income will actually be more than what it spends. Therefore, as long as there is enough time, within five years, the imperial court will be able to recover."

"I don't have any ideas for the method of increasing income, but if I want to cut down on expenditure, I have to rush, although I don't think carefully, but I do have some ideas."

Seeing Shen Yi's somewhat unnatural expression, Zhu Qiyu became interested. Today's performance was right, so far, he is actually satisfied enough.

Shen Yi's performance exceeded his expectations, the treasury was empty, and it was not an easy task to enrich it.

However, what he didn't expect was that Shen Yi really had a plan.

"In this case, Mr. Shen might as well talk about it."

Shen Yi hesitated for a moment, then resolutely opened his mouth with the spirit of a dead fellow Taoist who never dies a poor daoist.

"Your Majesty, the biggest expenditure of my imperial court is the salaries of officials at all levels. Although the treasury does not have enough silver and rice grains, there is pepper sumac. Therefore, if the salaries of the civil and military officials in the two capitals can be discounted, and the money will be given in the first half of the year, In the second half of the year, the pressure on the national treasury can be greatly reduced by giving sumu pepper."

After hearing Shen Yi's idea, Zhu Qiyu couldn't help but a wry smile appeared on his face.

This Minister of the Household Department is really pushed.

Otherwise, I can't make such a bad move...

It is nothing new to pay for pepper sumac.

Pepper is a precious condiment, and sumac is a kind of Chinese medicinal material. These two things are rarely produced in Daming.

There are many in the national treasury, one is because Zheng He brought back a large number of them from his voyages to the West, and the other is because these small countries in the southeast have paid tribute every year. One of the tributes is pepper sumac. Inside the treasury.

Because Daming does not produce these two things, they are actually very popular among the people.

Earlier, during Hongwu Yongle period, pepper sumac was often used as a reward. In the Xuande period, under the suggestion of Huang Fu, then Minister of the Ministry of Households, the pepper sumac was used for a short period of time.

It should be said that the effect was not bad at the time.

Because of the scarcity of production, the prices of these two things in the folk are still very high. At that time, they were used to discount salaries, which was actually a disguised salary increase.

As for why Zhang Juzheng was scolded for using this method later.

That's entirely because Huang Fu only used this method for one year, while Zhang Juzheng used it for several years, and even almost wanted to become a system.

Rare things are precious, no matter how precious things are, as long as there are many of them, they will naturally be worthless.

Although pepper sumac is precious, it is not a necessity. Only high-ranking officials, or the families of wealthy businessmen, would be willing to buy some.

The inflow of large quantities into the market will inevitably lead to a large backlog just like in the treasury.

The officials could not eat, drink or sell these things, so they had to fight Zhang Juzheng desperately.

However, it is a good way to use it now.

Nodding slightly, Zhu Qiyu said.

"Pepper sumac can be used for a short period of time, but it can't last long, and it can't solve the root cause. Is there any better way for Mr. Shen?"

　Thanks to the book friend Kuangba for being cool and hanging in the sky, the book friend dreams only when he wakes up, and the book friend's trapezoidal heart rewards 100 starting coins~~~
　　Thank you book friend Yijuan Youmeng for rewarding 200 starting coins~~~
　　Thanks to book friend Zhu Yingxuan for the reward of 3000 starting coins~~~
　　Thanks to the book friend who knows the shadow of the corner, who knows the reward of 1500 starting coins~~~
　　Thanks to Shuyouer and other salted fish for the 9000 starting point reward~~~
　　It’s been three days since I’ve had a burst of updates, and you big guys asked me to rest for a day, and I’ll continue to make up for the rest of you tomorrow~~~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)