eldest son of Ming dynasty

Chapter 435
In the second year of Zhengde, the fourth day of March.

The weather was fine.

The emperor summoned his ministers in Fengtian Hall to hold a court meeting!
There are hundreds of courtiers in Fengtian Hall, standing in three rows.

On the far left are the military officers, headed by British Duke and Cheng Guogong.In the middle is the Beijing official, the six ministries and nine ministers are in the front, and the far right is dominated by the local governor.

There are three people in the first row in the middle, the cabinet Li Dongyang, Xie Qian, and Yang Yiqing.

The second row is a total of nine chief officials of the six ministries and nine ministers.

The third row is the ministers of various ministries, and they all stand behind their own ministers corresponding to each other.Behind them are Yuanwailang, Langzhong, and the principal.

The local governors were headed by Wang Jia, followed by the four governors of the northern and southern Zhili, and then the governors and chief envoys of other provinces.

It can be said that the core group of rulers of the Ming Dynasty was here.

"In the first year of Zhengde, the imperial court set seven issues, most of which could not be completed in one year, such as complex construction, river engineering, and military administration. Therefore, I do not plan to make too many changes to this year's issues. The intention is that the imperial court's administration should continue. Continuing and working for a long time, some things in the world are urgent, and some are not urgent. This year, the imperial court will make greater efforts in the complex and river construction to ensure the stability of summer and autumn tax collection throughout the year.

The Ming Dynasty is so big, some places are good, some places are not.I will find ways to solve the bad points with you dear friends, but the good points cannot become worse.The governors and envoys of Shandong, Henan, South Zhili, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, Shanxi, and North Zhili have also arrived today.

Remember what I said, the Guotai Min'an of the Ming Dynasty is actually the Guotai Min'an under your respective rule. The imperial court did not increase taxes, nor did it make the people go too far. I have repeatedly given instructions in your memorials. Officials who should be killed should be killed, and there is no need to be soft-hearted.If there is chaos in Yuzhi in these places, and the common people make trouble for Daming, I will make trouble for you. "

"Your servants must abide by the hadith!"

Zhu Houzhao did not mention some provinces, such as Huguang, which has refugee problems at this time, and Guangxi, which occasionally has ethnic minority rebellions. Shaanxi is located in the frontier, facing the Tatars directly, which is also quite special.So this is not too much to ask.

To put it bluntly, it is stable.

"With a stable situation, there is room for maneuvering. As for other things, I won't say more. The Great Court Meeting is for you, so you come and tell me. I'll listen. Mr. Li Ge,"

"The minister is here."

"Look, what should we discuss first?"

Li Dongyang shook his body and moved forward, "Returning to Your Majesty, I believe that governing the country should be based on one's ability. If you want to talk about this year's major policies, you must calculate this year's account book, and then spread the stall. At that time As His Majesty said, don't be in a hurry, do as many things as you can."

"What do you think?"

"The minister seconded the proposal." Xie Qian followed first.

Then Yang Yiqing and Wang Jia also replied, "The minister seconded the proposal."

With the four of them saying this, Zhu Houzhao had no other objections. He flicked his sleeves and said, "Okay, that's it, let's settle the accounts first. Minister of the Household Department?"

The Korean text sticks to the wat board, "Report to Your Majesty, this year the national treasury has recorded a total of 482 million shi of rice and wheat, 260 million shi of wheat moth, 4.4 pieces of silk cotton, 4 pieces of linen, tax silk, agricultural mulberry silk, and human population. More than 6 pieces of silk were donated. 2408 million shi of autumn grain was recorded..."

At this time, there was no whipping method, so many of the taxes collected were in kind.Listening to what Han Shangshu said, it was like reading a ten thousand character article, with a lot of noise.

In general, the grain in the first year of Zhengde was about 2890 million shi, an increase of 40 shi compared to last year, but it still failed to break through the 2900 million mark. In the Ming Dynasty, a better year was about this level. Zhengde The first year is still a peak.

The main reason is that Zhejiang has increased by 30 shi, Shandong has increased by 8 shi, and North Zhili has increased by 7 shi. .

"...In addition, this year's investigation of the Lianghuai salt tax case, 862.34 taels of stolen silver were confiscated. According to His Majesty's principle of 'from where to where', the deposit of silver is currently placed in the Shaofu, and it is planned to be spent on the private sector this year. There are 118 million taels of silver allowed to be deposited by the Shipbuilding Department, according to His Majesty's will, this silver tael is used for disaster relief, and it is currently being sealed."

This is what the emperor promised his courtiers at the beginning to implement the market access system in Fujian, and the money earned was used for disaster relief, and what he said was disaster relief was disaster relief. Zhu Houzhao never touched it, nor did he let anyone else touch it.

After Han Shangshu's words, many of the courtiers were delighted.

The treasury of the Ming Dynasty also began to have "surplus grain"!

However, there is nothing to do with the treasury. One-third of these taxes will be used as salaries, one-third will be given to the suzerains and vassals all over the world, and the rest will be canceled due to the opening of China and France. Part of it has to be allocated to the frontier for military pay.

These expenses are fixed, and unless the tax suddenly changes from 2800 million to 5600 million, it is unlikely that there will be too much surplus food.But this is very difficult. No matter how powerful Zhu Houzhao is, he can't produce such things as hybrid rice and chemical fertilizers. The productivity lies here.

But in addition to the treasury, there is one more.

It is also an item that many people care about.

It is the palace.

The emperor still has more than 400 million taels of silver in his internal funds, but the key point is how much silver was released by the imperial merchants, and the weaving bureaus in Hangzhou, Suzhou and other places to enter Beijing.

Because it is at the level of one million taels, there are too many boxes, and it is impossible to hide it, so all the officials know that they have money, but they are not sure how much.

Generally speaking, internal money means that the emperor wants to separate his own money from the national treasury.

But when he met Emperor Zhengde, he was upright and upright, and even the internal money was not used for himself, so this account was not hidden.

It's just that there is a good reason for the emperor to spend money, otherwise the emperor will be taken for a fool.

But in any case, this money, like the national treasury, is still used for the national economy and the people's livelihood.

"The state treasury's account is roughly like this. But I think all of you loves know that the first year of Zhengde is the first year of opening the sea, and the sea trade of the imperial merchants is very profitable, Liu Jin,"

"Yes." The eunuch stepped forward and announced generously, "According to reports from the Imperial Merchant and the weaving bureaus of various places, in the first year of Zhengde, because of His Majesty's plan to open the sea, the ship divisions of the three cities all opened up sea trade. 502.58 taels of silver were handed over!"

When the numbers came out, everyone was shocked.

Liu Jin rolled up directly, "Fortunately, His Majesty resisted all opinions, insisted on opening the sea, and today I have a great source of wealth rolling in! Your Majesty is truly the wise king of all ages!"

He has said so, and others are not good at it.Inside the Fengtian Hall, it was full of words of praise for the saints.

Zhu Hou looked at their surprised expressions, and felt that it was a good thing he didn't listen to you people.

As for the number, it is also quite interesting, 500 is a nod, it is thoughtful, he will never come up with a number like 498, if it is really like this, he will post some money to make it up.Otherwise, there is one step missing.

In total, Zhu Houzhao now has more than 1700 million taels of silver at his disposal.

The number is huge, but only in the past two years, more than 700 million taels of silver have been harvested from overseas. Adding in the previous years, more than 1000 million taels of silver have flowed into Daming directly from overseas.

Daming is still short of silver at this time. Although this is only counting the royal family, and the inflow of silver from the private sector is not counted, there is still no problem in the short term.

No matter how poor Daming is, at least the scale is large enough to eat.

This account is basically settled.
Zhu Houzhao said: "Don't be too ruthless. Leave me a small treasury for emergencies. Even the families of ordinary people know how to prepare food in case of accidents. As for the others, I am not stingy, but no matter how much I save Silver should not be spent excessively, let alone extravagant and wasted. This is the first point. In addition, Daming is so big, if you really want silver, ten million taels is not enough. If you want to get silver, don’t feel resentful. I can’t wait to have 500 million taels, and then each of your governors will get [-] million taels back.”

Some courtiers couldn't help laughing, and the emperor's words were actually a bit playful.

"The last point is to use the money from the court to spend it. I will especially look at it and investigate it. The reason is also mentioned earlier. Daming is not rich, and the money that was squeezed out is given to you to make you spend it effectively. If I find out, who has embezzled the money... Today the cabinet, the six ministries and the nine ministers, the nobles of the court, and the local dignitaries are all here, and the ugly words come first.

On that day, when I want to chop off someone's head, no one is allowed to intercede.Even if you ask, I won't give you any face.So, if you really want to get this money, it's not sure whether it's joy or sorrow. "

Many of the emperor's lines, like the upright courtiers, made them a little speechless, and some of their roles were confused... After all, who is persuading whom, isn't it usually the courtiers who persuade the emperor to be frugal and love the people?

"Your Majesty." Li Dongyang came out to speak again, "Since the accounts are clear, I thought it was time to discuss this year's affairs. I have already thought about it. Among the many issues, the only one that is called the national policy is also related to millions of people living in the frontier. Life is so simple, so it may be possible to discuss the reinstatement early. Last year at this time, the imperial court decided on a three-year reinstatement strategy, that is, the first year of suppression, the second year of blockade, and the third year of reinstatement. In this way, this year should be a blockade."

This is very nice to say, but Wang Bing, Minister of the Ministry of War, has already started to mutter. The old man's idea is probably to allocate another 100 million taels this year for the re-set.

After all, this was the same amount of money that was spent in the war last year, so how much more can it be this year?
But what about the remaining ten thousand taels of silver?how to do?
When it came to this Zhu Houzhao, he suddenly looked up and looked around, and asked: "The people from the Yongxiebu tribe are not assassinated, are they there?"

Forehead……?
There was a sudden commotion in the group of courtiers, and everyone whispered to each other, looking for this person.

Liu Jin above was also a little flustered, "Your Majesty, the Great Court Council did not ask for a different..."

Zhu Houzhao stared at him.

Liu Jin's forehead was sweating, "...I didn't invite nor assassinate the leader."

"It's okay, if you haven't invited someone, please invite someone. The Yongxiebu tribe has already surrendered to Daming, so how can its leader not participate in the reconciliation discussion?"

"Your Majesty." British Duke Zhang Mao was a bit concerned, "It's not that he is a Tatar. The Great Court will involve the most important affairs of our Ming Dynasty. Is it best to ask him to avoid it?"

Zhu Houzhao shook his head. In a powerful era, there must be a tolerant attitude. He said firmly: "Go and invite. Now that we have met on the battlefield to advance and retreat together, what are you doing? What else should we do? Besides, we must have Yong Xiebu to participate. Why can't you announce it?"

On the grassland, strength is respected.He just wanted to let the Tatar leader see that Daming was no longer the Ming of the past.To be strong is to control millions of strings, and it is also a wise king and a wise minister.Power is the answer to everything.

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(End of this chapter)