prosperous age

"Master, the person who copied it was afraid that he might have made a mistake, so he asked two people to check it and it was accurate."

Lu Bu understood why Wei Guangde was dizzy, and he was also dizzy. Fortunately, Zhongshu had his own guess, so he whispered: "It may be related to the 240 steps to one acre."

"Oh?"

Wei Guangde was slightly stunned, and then he thought of something.

At this time, Lu Bu had already told the speculations he had heard from Zhongshu.

"I heard that the measurement of land area in some places was different before. This time, the measurement method set by the Ministry of Household Affairs clearly stated that 240 steps were used for one mu. This completely changed the very unreasonable phenomenon in the north where large and small mu had different values.

In the southern region, the tax and grain tax system for government and private fields is integrated.

It turns out that the calculation of land area was very confusing before the Ming Dynasty. For convenience, some places often converted land area according to a unified standard.

For example, if the best quality farmland is chosen as the standard, then two or even several acres of medium and lower quality farmland will often be reduced to one acre.

This will not nominally lead to a reduction in tax revenue when collecting land tax, but errors will occur when calculating miscellaneous taxes and corvée labor.

In the Jiangnan region, due to historical reasons, the government controls a lot of official land, and the measurement of these official lands is different from that of private land. Fujian is a representative example.

However, it should be noted that the change in farmland area in Fujian after the land survey was actually very small.

After all, Fujian's natural conditions are there, and there is not much land suitable for cultivation.

This is not like places like Nanzhili and Jiangxi, where the amount of farmland available for cultivation is so large that it is difficult to count.

“So, the Secretary of State analyzed those figures and thought that the 400 million mu of farmland might be a converted figure, which was somewhat underestimated, and the 800 million mu was also a bit high, which might be the result of converting the top-quality farmland into medium or even low-quality farmland.

Of course, as time goes by, we can find clues by looking through the Ministry of Household Archives to understand why such a huge deviation occurred in the first place.

But now that the imperial court is going to re-measure the land in the country, the previous data may not be important, and everything can be based on the newly measured land. "

After Lu Bu finished speaking in a low voice, he lowered his head and said no more.

Indeed, the land survey initiated by Zhang Juzheng this time was the second large-scale nationwide survey since the Hongwu Dynasty. Although the Fish Scale Book has been constantly revised in the past two hundred years, everyone knows how it came about.

"Ah."

Wei Guangde nodded slightly and said, "I understand. You go down first."

Wei Guangde asked Lu Lubu to leave while he sorted out his thoughts.

However, Lu Bu did not leave immediately. Instead, he raised his head and whispered to Wei Guangde, "Master, not long after you came back today, the Prime Minister kept summoning officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel to take up their duties. I don't know what they said."

"Oh, who did he summon?"

Wei Guangde asked curiously.

"There are Zhang Xueyan, the Minister of Revenue, Wang Guoguang, the Minister of Personnel, and Shen Shixing, the Vice Minister."

Lu Bu quickly rattled off a bunch of officials' names, most of whom were related to Zhang Juzheng, but there were also people arranged by Wei Guangde.

Wei Guangde knew that Zhang Juzheng was asking the officials of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel about their attitudes towards the data from Fujian.

After all, pushing this matter aside is not a matter of just one word from the cabinet; it requires the cooperation of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel.

To put it bluntly, the Ministry of Revenue is responsible for urging local governments to do things, while the Ministry of Personnel is the knife that directly takes down disobedient officials and replaces them with obedient ones.

Gently waving his hand, signaling Lu Bu to go out, Wei Guangde fell into deep thought alone.

In the Prime Minister's duty room not far from him, Zhang Juzheng was very excited at this time.

The officials from various ministries summoned today were somewhat surprised by the data after the land survey in Fujian.

If so many hidden fields can be found in Fujian, what about other parts of the country?

The imperial court was short of money at that time, and since there were so many fields, it meant that a large amount of land taxes had not been collected before.

If they could be found and taxes collected, the court's finances would undoubtedly become more affluent.

The Ministry of Revenue was the most active. After all, in principle, those interests had nothing to do with them. They all went to local gentry and officials.

However, they were often asked to pay back debts by their colleagues due to the financial difficulties of the court.

However, what made Zhang Juzheng happiest was that he met Shen Shixing, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel today. He was pleased with his attitude towards surveying the land.

Yes, although Shen Shixing was supported by Wei Guangde and was selected from the Hanlin Academy to the Ministry of Rites and then to the Ministry of Personnel, he seemed to be more responsible than Wei Guangde and expressed his willingness to supervise the local land survey.

Wei Guangde was thinking about the mystery of land in the Ming Dynasty, while Zhang Juzheng was thinking about whether to take this opportunity to drag Wei Guangde into the water.

Wei Guangde supports the land survey, but he is unwilling to express his position publicly.

Now that Shen Shixing supports this matter, can he change the current situation dominated by him to one that is operated by Shen Shixing, and he will continue to promote this matter after Shen Shixing?

Many officials in the capital knew that Shen Shixing had the support of Wei Guangde. When the time came, as long as Shen Shixing was nominally the one leading the matter, everyone would naturally think of Wei Guangde.

However, the difficulty now is that Shen Shixing is definitely not capable of doing this job in his capacity as the Minister of Personnel.

Unless, he is allowed to join the cabinet and participate in this matter as a cabinet minister.

However, if Shen Shixing is allowed to join the cabinet, it means that the balance of the cabinet will change again. Under the current circumstances, he is absolutely sure to suppress Wei Guangde on key issues.

But if Shen Shixing entered the cabinet, his voice in the cabinet would be greatly restricted.

Wei Guangde didn't know that his neighbors were already considering letting Shen Shixing join the cabinet earlier than him.

It’s not that Wei Guangde didn’t consider this matter, he just felt that the time was not right.

Ma Ziqiang was very popular in the court and the public at that time, especially when Zhang Juzheng returned home to bury his father, it was the best time for him to join the cabinet.

Zhang Juzheng had to express his support for Ma Ziqiang to join the cabinet, but in the end the matter was rejected by the palace.

Although the memorial was not sent back to the cabinet directly, the mere fact that it was kept in the palace made the ministers know the palace's intention.

Afterwards, Ma Ziqiang quickly submitted a letter of retirement.

Since he couldn't make any further progress and it was meaningless to continue clinging to the position of Minister of Rites, Pan Sheng took the position.

However, Zhang Juzheng has been in power for a long time and has become more decisive in his actions.

Since he was sure that Shen Shixing could accomplish things and could also use Wei Guangde's influence to make local officials give in and firmly implement the court's orders, Zhang Juzheng naturally would not miss this opportunity.

In fact, the officials below had different opinions. The biggest reason was that Wei Guangde, the second assistant of the cabinet, had never publicly expressed his support for Zhang Juzheng's land survey.

Many people still oppose the comprehensive land survey on the grounds that it would be a waste of time and money.

It is true that it is a waste of money and labor, but a short pain is worse than a long one. This is the main reason why Zhang Juzheng insisted on pushing forward the land survey.

"What time is it?"

Zhang Juzheng asked outside.

Soon, he realized that there was still more than half an hour before the court was adjourned, so he asked the clerk to invite Wei Guangde and Zhang Siwei to come over for a talk.

This was a routine. At this time, the memorials of the various departments had been processed and they were just waiting to go home after get off work. Not long after, Wei Guangde and Zhang Siwei came over. After a brief greeting, Zhang Juzheng first asked Wei Guangde to inform Zhang Siwei about the memorial of Altan Khan. After all, he and Wei Guangde had discussed this matter and had not told Zhang Siwei in advance.

As for the rest, they naturally ended up being reported by Fujian.

Wei Guangde showed the memorial directly to Zhang Siwei. He was puzzled, as it seemed that Zhang Juzheng had already made a decision.

Sure enough, he later heard that the Ministry of Revenue had been asked to revise the "Land Surveying Regulations" according to the report from Fujian, and after completion, the land surveying would be implemented in all provinces across the country.

"We have to deal with various chores every day, so I intend to let the Minister of Personnel Shen Shixing join the cabinet to take charge of the affairs of the land survey."

Suddenly, Zhang Juzheng looked at Wei Guangde and spoke slowly.

Zhang Juzheng's move was actually quite clever. If Wei Guangde did not agree, it would mean that all the roads he had paved for Shen Shixing had been paved for Zhang Juzheng, and he would inevitably become alienated from Shen Shixing because of this.

Even if it's not that serious, a deep gap will still arise.

And if Wei Guangde agreed, and the news reached Shen Shixing's ears, he would have other thoughts when he knew that he was recommended to the cabinet by Zhang Juzheng.

However, Zhang Juzheng was staring at Wei Guangde at this time, and naturally he also wanted to see his expression.

Whether Wei Guangde would be suspicious of Shen Shixing was also what he wanted to achieve.

In any case, although Shen Shixing entered the cabinet, his position would not necessarily be completely consistent with Wei Guangde's, and at least he would have some reservations.

Sure enough, after hearing Zhang Juzheng's words, Wei Guangde's facial expression was very interesting.

Although Wei Guangde only glanced at Zhang Juzheng, Zhang Juzheng still felt something in Wei Guangde's eyes. He even felt that there was a hint of fear towards him in Wei Guangde's eyes.

Wei Guangde really didn't expect Zhang Juzheng to do this. He took the lead in recommending Shen Shixing to join the cabinet and took charge of the important task of surveying the land throughout the country.

"Shan Dai, you may disagree with this, but you can say it."

Zhang Juzheng looked at Wei Guangde with a smile on his face. His harmless appearance made Wei Guangde want to punch him.

"Abandon your illusions and be prepared to seize power."

Wei Guangde couldn't help but think of these words in his heart.

Although the cooperation with Zhang Juzheng had been very smooth in recent years, there were still some minor grudges between the two sides, especially they often took advantage of each other's requests to bargain and exchange interests.

Wei Guangde did not expect that Zhang Juzheng would suddenly take action against him on the matter of land survey.

It seems that Zhang Juzheng also saw Wei Guangde's mentality. He supported him but was unwilling to express his position publicly.

But now he wants to promote this matter nationwide, and if he wants to enforce it, he must get Wei Guangde's public support.

If you can't do it, then trick him and let Shen Shixing do it.

"The land survey is the most important matter in the court today. If Ru Mo takes on the responsibility, will there be any problems?

In my opinion, it is right to let him join the cabinet to do the work, which can reduce our burden. However, the matter of land surveying is of great importance, so it is better for the Prime Minister to do it himself.

It is better to follow the previous assignment, with Ziwei and Rumo responsible for handling the daily affairs of the cabinet, and I will still focus on the affairs of the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of War. The Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel are just the most appropriate for the Prime Minister to handle them. "

Wei Guangde replied.

At this time, Zhang Siwei didn't say anything, just watched Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng had not communicated with him in advance about what happened today.

Therefore, Zhang Siwei has no intention of intervening and it is best to protect himself.

"Haha, Shandai misunderstood. I talked to Rumo today and he was very supportive of the land reclamation, so I thought of letting him take charge of it.

The court affairs are complicated now, and the cabinet also needs to supplement young people like Rumo to do things. "

Zhang Juzheng smiled and said, "As for why I recommended him to take charge of this matter, firstly, he is willing, and secondly, we have already divided the cabinet affairs, and everyone cooperates well with each other, so there is really no need to redistribute the tasks.

It just so happens that the next matter of land surveying also requires the cabinet ministers to do it personally.

Since Rumo supports it, it would be best for him to be in charge of this matter.

Besides, you and I are still here to handle the important matters of the court. Even if Rumo's mission goes wrong, we can help deal with it in time."

Zhang Juzheng fell.

"But it's really inappropriate for him to be in charge of such an important matter right after he arrived."

Wei Guangde still shook his head.

Since he couldn't refuse, he could only argue with Zhang Juzheng over the matters that Shen Shixing was in charge of.

I think Shen Shixing would probably not be willing to take on this task, after all, it would be too offensive.

Shen Shixing's character is not a peculiar person.

It is probably true that he supported the land reclamation, but he was not necessarily willing to be the knife in Zhang Juzheng's hand.

After some arguing between the two, Zhang Juzheng wanted Shen Shixing to be responsible for the land survey, while Wei Guangde firmly opposed Shen Shixing being responsible for this matter on the grounds that Shen Shixing lacked experience.

"Then let Rumo join the cabinet and be mainly responsible for the affairs that I need to handle here. After all, other matters have been properly assigned, and there is no need to change them rashly."

Zhang Juzheng took a step back, but still proposed that Shen Shixing serve as his deputy to assist him in handling the land survey affairs.

Wei Guangde thought for a moment and then nodded slightly.

"Well, let the secretary draft a memorial, and we will review it tomorrow and submit it to Your Majesty for your decision."

Although Zhang Juzheng did not fully achieve his goal, at least he had someone to share the burden with.

He was the one who made the final decision on the memorial, but during the implementation process, Shen Shixing could be sent to be responsible for the specific arrangements.

Next, we can also take a look at the interaction between Wei Guangde and Shen Shixing, which may also be very interesting.

When Wei Guangde came out of the cabinet and sat in the sedan chair, he instructed his long-time attendant: "Go to the Ministry of Personnel and inform Shen Shilang, and invite him to come to the mansion to have a chat in the evening."

Wei Guangde wanted to see Shen Shixing and tell him what happened today.

Wei Guangde had no intention of hiding anything. Shen Shixing was the top scholar, so he was certainly not a fool.

When communicating with him, be direct and frank, otherwise he may have ulterior motives and try to force himself.

After all, he and Shen Shixing were actually in a cooperative relationship, and Shen Shixing did not become his disciple.

However, considering Wei Guangde's cultivation, Shen Shixing was willing to fully support Wei Guangde without breaking his bottom line.

Zhang Juzheng didn't know this.

However, Wei Guangde had actually made up his mind that he would strive to preside over the imperial examination in the eighth year of Wanli, and when arranging the rankings, he would have to move some people's positions forward.

If one wants to have a chance to dominate the six ministries or even enter the cabinet, only the top 100 in the imperial examination have a chance. Those who rank lower are all sent to exile, so it is not easy to seek a higher official position.

Now Wei Guangde has changed his previous attitude and has begun to consciously train the next echelon personnel, developing them from generation to generation. Otherwise, it would be really troublesome if there is no one in the pocket when needed. (End of this chapter)