prosperous age

"My Lord Prime Minister, My Lord Deputy Prime Minister, I don't have much objection to the Ministry of Revenue's report, but regarding the allocation of ship permits, is it too much to directly allocate 50 ship permits to the nobles?

It should be noted that nobles and relatives are not good at business, and giving them money will only result in waste. In order to make a profit, they will even use various means to force purchases of goods from the market at low prices for overseas trade, which can easily cause trouble.

It would be better to distribute these ship pilots directly to large domestic merchants. Even the imperial court can bid for them, which would also be a considerable source of income.

It may be possible to pay for the deficit of the Ministry of Revenue this year. "

The person who spoke was Zhang Siwei. He had previously received the results of secret discussions between his family and other big businessmen, hoping to get more ship licenses.

Salt merchants were the richest people in ancient China.

Relying on salt, they accumulated huge wealth, all of which was taken from the mouths of poor people.

However, they did not think that this was a kind of wealth brought by exploiting power and money, but believed that it was the result of their hard work. Little did they know that if there was no salt monopoly by the imperial court, private salt would kill them.

At the beginning, these people did not attach importance to the benefits of maritime trade, so when Yuegang was opened to the sea, they did not take it seriously and did not participate in it.

But now it is different. As a large number of merchants gathered in Yuegang, they gradually discovered the huge profits of maritime trade. Only then did they fully understand why the Japanese pirates in the Ming Dynasty could not be eradicated.

The profits are really too huge. Although the risk is higher than selling salt, the profit is also high.

Although salt makes huge profits, the profit from selling salt is limited in the eyes of salt merchants because it is sold according to different regions.

Although the amount is huge, we can see the end of it at a glance.

But maritime trade is different. I heard that the population overseas is dozens of times that of the Ming Dynasty, and the handicrafts of the Ming Dynasty are absolutely exquisite and have a huge market, otherwise foreign merchants would not have come all the way to the Ming Dynasty to trade.

So, the salt merchants got together and began to discuss the issue of opening the sea to the Songjiang Prefecture.

The opportunity for Yuegang has been lost, so we can only fight for Songjiang Prefecture with all our strength.

As the spokesperson for big businessmen in the court, Zhang Siwei naturally had to speak for them.

Zhang Siwei certainly wouldn't dare to try to take advantage of the boat guides distributed to various government offices in the capital, as that would offend almost all of his colleagues.

As for the ship permits distributed to various provinces, well, these things will eventually fall into the hands of these big merchants. Maybe some of them will be distributed, but the bulk of them have already been taken by them.

The rest, of course, are nobles and relatives.

The nobles and relatives are powerful, but when it comes to power and money, the big businessmen don’t really care.

If they can do something secretly to them, they will naturally not miss such a good opportunity.

"Although they can't accomplish anything, it's not difficult for them to do something bad."

Before Wei Guangde could speak, Shen Shixing had already refuted Zhang Siwei's words.

"The imperial court has its own laws. Do you think the nobles dare to disobey the imperial court's orders?"

Zhang Siwei replied immediately.

"Can the imperial court's orders really influence the inner court's attitude?

Lord Zhang, wake up. The nobles in the palace will definitely not make up their minds about this matter just because of our memorial. They will definitely ask for the opinions of the nobles and relatives.

As long as the nobles and relatives are against it, this will never be possible.

In the eyes of the nobles, the previous dynasty governed the country for them, and the nobles were the tools to protect the imperial power. "

Shen Shixing said it very bluntly. If there is a conflict between the nobles and relatives and the civil service group, the palace will definitely favor the nobles and relatives and will never support the civil service group.

In fact, by this time, the royal family was more wary of the civil service group than they were suspicious of the nobles.

After all, the real power was in the hands of the civil service group, so the houses of the Beijing Garrison and the Imperial Palace were all in the hands of the nobles and relatives. Even though the military affairs of the Beijing Garrison were in charge of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, it was more for the purpose of obtaining sufficient food and wages.

Most of the generals who commanded the troops in the Beijing camp were military heroes.

The two people argued fiercely about this, and this was also the purpose of Wei Guangde's intentional introduction of Shen Shixing.

Now that his goal had been achieved, he sat there very contentedly, listening calmly to what the two were saying.

Zhang Juzheng, who was on the left, heard the two people arguing. In fact, he could guess what Zhang Siwei was thinking to some extent. However, even if Zhang Siwei was on his side this time, he could not fulfill his wish.

It’s very simple, Zhang Juzheng is not a short-sighted person.

In his heart, he did not want to hand over the pilot to the corrupt officials like the nobles and relatives of the emperor, but in order for the imperial decree to be carried out smoothly, he had to rely on the nobles and relatives of the emperor.

If the nobles cannot gain any benefits from this matter, they may really be dismissed.

Moreover, the arrangement for surveying the farmland in northern Zhili involved many farms owned by nobles and royal family members near the capital.

This was a deal, in which the nobles promised to pay the land tax in full according to the law in the future, because although the rent from tenants was stable, it was not profitable enough, and it was still faster to make money by doing business.

This is not only a consensus among the nobles and relatives, but also the civil servants think so.

Although Zhang Juzheng thought that this money-oriented culture was not good, Wei Guangde's opinion was also correct. As long as the court formulated relevant policies, no matter whether they were nobles, royal family members, or gentry and wealthy families, they could all engage in business and make profits. What's wrong with that?

Although it is inevitable that some people will rely on their power to do evil, as long as the court adheres to the bottom line and resolutely cracks down on those who cross the line, the social atmosphere will not be corrupted.

This once again demonstrates the importance of the Censorate.

If the mad dog in the Censorate can continue as usual, there is no need to worry about the worst-case scenario.

"Okay, stop arguing.

We are all working for the affairs of state, and since we are discussing this, we naturally have to pool our wisdom.

Shandai, what do you think after listening to Ziwei and Rumo's opinions? "

Zhang Juzheng threw the question to Wei Guangde, but it was not convenient for him to directly deny Zhang Siwei's little idea.

"I was the one who originally proposed this proposal, and the Ministry of Revenue did not change it after discussion, so I naturally will not object."

Wei Guangde glanced at Zhang Juzheng and said with a smile.

“Well, Shandai is right. If it is inappropriate, someone will bring it up and discuss it when the Ministry of Revenue discusses the issue.

Since it has been written, it is obvious that the Ministry of Revenue does not think that such an arrangement is inappropriate.

Ziwei, apart from the issue of the allocation of boat guides, do you think there is anything else that is inappropriate?"

Zhang Juzheng did not express his opinion, but the fact that he directly skipped over this matter was actually enough to make his opinion clear.

Since Zhang Siwei did not get the support of Zhang Juzheng, he naturally could not continue to act recklessly.

After thinking for a while, he shook his head and said, "No, everything else is possible."

"Rumo, what about you? Is there anything wrong? If not, then we can just go to the Ministry of Revenue and submit a formal report to the palace for judgment."

Zhang Juzheng looked at Shen Shixing and asked.

"No, the Ministry of Revenue will do."

Shen Shixing did not object and agreed immediately.

"In that case, Ziwei, go and give the Ministry of Revenue a note and ask them to formally report the matter as soon as possible.

We will strive to officially implement the opening of Songjiang Prefecture to the sea at the beginning of this year."

Zhang Juzheng made the final decision.

At this time, Wei Guangde, Zhang Siwei and Shen Shixing all stood up and bowed to Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Juzheng waved his hand and pressed it down, motioning everyone to sit down, and then continued: "Also, Rumo, the survey of the farms in the capital area should be planned properly."

“It has been arranged and is ready to go.

However, it is only two months before the end of the year, and it may be difficult to complete the land survey before the New Year. It would be better to postpone it to after the New Year."

Shen Shixing was summoned into the cabinet mainly to cooperate with Zhang Juzheng in surveying the land.

Official documents for the land survey in each province had been issued, allowing local governments to formulate their own plans and report the start time. However, the two capitals were special. Zhang Juzheng was actually in charge of the land survey in northern Zhili, so that he could respond to the reactions of the nobles and relatives in a timely manner.

However, with the opportunity of Songjiang Prefecture opening up to the sea, in order to avoid causing trouble and affecting the distribution of ship tows, the nobles and relatives privately agreed to let the government send people to measure their farms and collect taxes.

Therefore, Zhang Juzheng assigned this matter to Shen Shixing, who was the governor-general in charge of the general affairs of the two capitals.

The land survey in Southern Zhili was supervised by Zhang Juzheng and the eunuchs stationed in Nanjing.

The farmland in Yingtian Prefecture was under the charge of the eunuchs stationed there, while the Cabinet was still in charge of several prefectures in the north of Southern Zhili, namely Fengyang and its surrounding areas.

"Can the Nanzhili side report this?"

After thinking about it, Zhang Juzheng nodded slightly, and then asked whether Fengyang, Huai'an and other prefectures in Nanzhili had reported it.

"No, we will ask questions and urge them to start the land reclamation in the two capitals and set an example for other provinces."

Shen Shixing said with a bow.

"That's good. At this time, Rumo should urge me more. If there are different opinions, please inform me in time."

Zhang Juzheng said.

Before the cabinet meeting ended, the news that the Ministry of Revenue's proposal to open the sea for Songjiang Prefecture had been approved spread throughout the city like a bird with wings.

Everyone knew what they should know, and even those who shouldn’t know had been heard. It became a household name in a short time.

In fact, businessmen with backgrounds had heard the news a long time ago, and some had even set off for Songjiang Prefecture.

Those who knew about it later were also calculating the pros and cons of this matter and how they could profit from it.

Then the merchants gathered in groups of three or five to discuss the matter, which caused a temporary commotion in the capital.

This news has little impact on ordinary people. They continue to live their lives as usual. There is no such thing as a free lunch.

Of course, they didn't believe it before, but now they seem to believe it a little.

There seems to be no difference between money falling from the sky and pie falling from the sky, they are the same, and money may even taste better.

So that night, Wei Guangde's mansion was once again filled with guests, and a long line of carriages and sedan chairs lined up outside the gate of Wei's mansion.

However, most of these people could not enter the house. Wei Guangde entertained the three dukes and the prince of the capital in his mansion. In addition, Li Wei, the Earl of Wuqing, and Jiang Zhi, the Minister of Works, also came. They mainly came to inquire about the cabinet's plan and see whether to start construction in Songjiang Prefecture now to prepare for the port terminal.

The site selection has been completed, and the calculated engineering workload is not large. March is enough to complete the initial work and meet the needs of loading and unloading cargo.

Not far from the port, a government office was planned to be responsible for collecting commercial taxes on incoming and outgoing goods.

Although it is called building a city, it is actually not that complicated. It is just a port and supporting office space and warehouses.

This project was not a big deal for the Ming Dynasty at that time.

In fact, it is more troublesome to transform the original old inland ports, because those places are mostly surrounded by private land, and it is quite troublesome for the government to collect taxes.

Now the Ministry of Industry is eyeing wastelands along the coast, which are considered government land and can be built directly, which will save a lot of trouble.

“Don’t worry, everyone. We have already agreed on this, and we will not go back on our word.

There should be an imperial edict before the New Year, Lord Jiang, can the port be completed in April or May?"

Wei Guangde first appeased several nobles and relatives, and then immediately asked Jiang Zhidao.

"April is a bit rushed, but May will definitely be no problem."

Jiang Zhi knew what was going on, so he spoke directly.

“Look, the court has already made careful arrangements. But everyone, have you found partners and arranged ships?

As far as I know, if a new ship goes out to sea, it will take two years to build it, and you can only trade by sailing a sampan, haha."

Wei Guangde said with a smile.

"Good loan, this is why I came this time."

Duke Dingguo Xu Wenbi said with a serious expression, "I heard that the South China Sea Navy has some extra Fuzhou ships, and some of them were handed over to the Denglai East China Sea Navy, but there are still some left. I wonder if they can be given up?"

In ancient times, shipbuilding took two years from material preparation to completion.

But time is running out and we need to get a seagoing ship as soon as possible, so naturally it would be best to get one from the navy.

The nobles and relatives were in charge of many garrisons, so naturally they were not without ships, but the ships needed for maritime trade had to sail to the open sea.

In the early years, the sea vessels allocated by local garrisons had long been under maintenance and were in a dilapidated state. How could they dare to use them?

To put it bluntly, the navy can patrol the sea with these lousy old ships, but they will never use them to load their goods and go out for trade.

So their attention naturally fell on the navy ships.

They can have an impact on the East China Sea Navy, but the navy is still on patrol and there are not enough ships, so they can't allocate any extra ships.

It was through Xu Qiaoan from the East China Sea that they learned that there were extra large-sized Fu ships in the South China Sea Navy port.

Especially now that a large amount of timber from the imperial court is used to build new gunboats, these Fujian ships have become useless.

So they found Wei Guangde here, naturally to get the large ships of the South China Sea Navy.

After all, this navy was established by Wei Guangde himself, and it would be difficult for them to steal the ships there without authorization.

"A navy ship?"

Wei Guangde frowned slightly, "How much do you need?"

"Thirty."

Xu Wenbi spoke up.

They had already contacted the Chamber of Commerce, in which they had already invested, but encountered difficulties in finding sea vessels. They only managed to gather more than 20 ships, and the quality of them was mixed.

The ships of the South China Sea Navy are well maintained, so we just ask for more to replace the old and worn-out ships.

"Those ships are on the list of the Ministry of War, so they are difficult to deal with."

Wei Guangde first threw out a difficult problem to see how they would solve it, whether they were willing to pay money or wanted to get it for free.

After all, for nobles and relatives to get land in the garrisons, they were almost getting something for nothing.

Wei Guangde was worried that they also wanted to copy the same thing and get ships directly from the navy.

Once something happens, it will not be a trivial matter, especially the reactions of the southeastern coastal provinces will probably be very intense.

Xu Wenbi stared at Wei Guangde for a while, then suddenly smiled and said, "I heard that those ships and naval forces are no longer needed, and now Admiral Yu has customized new gunboats.

In this case, it would be a waste to keep these ships in the naval port. How about selling them directly and buying them with silver?"

“Oh, if it works that way, it would work.

As far as I know, the navy customized the Dafu ships before, which are no different from civilian ships, and are even stronger, and much better than the sea ships you have collected.

In this way, you can send someone to take a look first, and then you can negotiate the price with the navy and the Ministry of War.

As long as the price is reasonable, the deal should be possible.

My lords, it is not that I am unwilling to do my best in this matter, but this matter is of great importance.

Even though you knew the news a long time ago, you still lacked ships. Why don't you think about other places?

If you get the good ship, they will be jealous and complain, which may cause the same problems as before."

After hearing Wei Guangde's explanation, the others nodded in agreement. (End of this chapter)