The most reckless man in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 283: Publishing a Newspaper to Enlighten the People
Apportionment!

This word is shocking.

Even Zhang Fuhua couldn't help trembling when he heard it.

Cong Lan was so frightened that her face turned pale and bloodless.

Local governments levy taxes!

This will only lead to an increasing burden on real self-employed farmers!

If this phenomenon is not curbed and the gentry and powerful people are allowed to continue to annex other countries, I am afraid that in the end the Ming Dynasty court will have no taxes to collect and no grain to collect!

Cong Lan was not without real talent and knowledge. In fact, he was a successful Jinshi, having emerged from among thousands of well-read scholars.

In history, this Mr. Conglan was hailed as an important military and national official of the Ming Dynasty. He devoted his life to state affairs, was a frontier governor, and held the highest official rank.

His greatest achievement was that he showed extraordinary courage and spirit in organizing the army and preparing for war, defending the country and guarding the border.

Soon after Cong Lan entered the court as an official, he demonstrated extraordinary ability in handling military affairs in cleaning up the Fangshan hay field and rectifying the defense of the capital, which attracted the attention of all court officials. Emperor Hongzhi therefore promoted him to the position of Right Censor of the Military Department. From then on, Cong Lan was able to participate in military affairs and assist in military affairs, thus beginning his military career of defending the country and guarding the border for more than 20 years.

However, at this moment, Cong Lan has not yet embarked on his normal life trajectory.

But what came to his mind at this moment was the taxation system of the Ming Dynasty.

In the national governance principles and framework established by Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, the social foundation of the resource mobilization system of the dynasty was the personal control relationship based on households established through the lijia system. The personal dependence of the registered citizens on the dynasty represented by the emperor was both the source of legitimacy for the levy of taxes and labor service and the practical basis for its operation.

At the same time, Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang adhered to the governance concept of "governing good people with good people" and formed an "imperial contracting system" that entrusted the main management responsibility of taxes and labor service to the grain chief and village head. Under such an agency system, the tax and labor service collection and management of the prefecture and county governments only needed to grasp the grain chief and village head who bore joint and several liability, and basically did not need to rely on the accounting system. The fundamental way to realize the mobilization of resources was to use the grain and village heads to labor and register the households.

Furthermore, the three main contents of taxes and labor service in prefectures and counties - land tax, material tribute, and corvee labor - were all to varying degrees incalculable and unplanned for the imperial court.

Although there is information on the physical quantity of land tax and tribute materials collected and allocated, the collection items are of many types and their values ​​vary greatly, so it is impossible to uniformly measure their values ​​by physical quantity. Under the civil transportation system, the people also need to consider transportation labor, which further increases the immeasurability of the actual burden.

As for corvée labor, as a living labor resource, it cannot be stored, and its income and expenditure are unified in the laborer's service process, which cannot be audited afterwards; and the actual burden of different corvée labor items or the same corvée labor item at different times varies greatly, so there is no possibility and necessity for accounting.

Speaking of taxes alone, there were two sets of data systems for land tax within the government of the imperial court. One set was based on the Yellow Book, which compiled the summer and autumn grain amounts of the lower levels from the household register to the village, county, prefecture, department, and ministry of household, and then reported them. The numbers in this system were homogeneous "tax amounts."

The other system was that the Ministry of Revenue would issue written documents (notes to the provincial governments and letters to the prefectures) to the provincial governments and direct-controlled cities according to national needs, asking them to allocate a certain amount of land tax to government offices or granaries in designated locations. This allocation of responsibility for paying tax grain was called "dispatch" or "sitting dispatch". The numbers in this system meant an uneven burden tied to the granaries and transportation labor.

The main accounting work of land tax collection and management by the provincial government and the prefecture government was to summarize and report the land tax amounts in the yellow book from the bottom up, and to split the land tax grain amounts in the warehouse from the top down and issue them to the lower-level government offices. The summer tax and autumn grain amounts recorded in the yellow book of each province were the upper limits of the grain amounts assigned by the Ministry of Revenue for shipment and the grain amounts retained for expenditure, and over time, the two formed a reciprocal relationship.

However, this excellent model designed by Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was full of hidden dangers at the moment. On the one hand, the burden of various taxes and levies continued to increase and fluctuate; on the other hand, due to subjective or objective reasons, the burden was unevenly distributed, which eventually led to a financial crisis in various parts of the dynasty in the form of escaped households and tax arrears.

In this case, the sustainability of taxation and levy of labor service can only be ensured by matching the severity of the burden with the people's ability to bear it, that is, implementing the principle of equality.

But as soon as this thought appeared, it disappeared in my mind in an instant.

Because Cong Lan suddenly remembered what Zhang Fuhua had just said about apportionment. Tax payment is an important indicator for evaluating the performance of local officials!
Apportionment!

Who else can they assign it to?

Of course, they are the self-employed farmers who did not become tenants!

In an instant, Cong Lan's face turned pale.

Come up with clever excuses.

Heavy taxes and levies.

Self-cultivating farmers could either donate their land to the gentry or flee and become refugees!

Moreover, the main financial revenue of the imperial court comes from agricultural taxes and salt taxes. Other taxes such as mining taxes and commercial taxes are almost incomparable with agricultural taxes and salt taxes!
China has attached great importance to agriculture since ancient times!
Because the land tax collected from agriculture and sericulture has important functions. On the one hand, it is the amount of tax in kind to be levied and the amount of physical wealth allocated between different regions; on the other hand, it is often used as a basis for government departments at all levels to allocate various financial burdens, and finally evolves into the amount of apportionment.

Compared with the amount of land and the amount of population, the amount of land tax can better reflect the financial status of a household, a village, a county, a prefecture, or a province, and thus reflect its ability to bear various forms of financial burdens. More importantly, the amount of land tax is the most calculable data held by the government, which is lacking in the amount of land and the amount of population.

Therefore, if there is a big problem with agricultural taxes, the Ming Dynasty will probably be unstable.

"Your Majesty, it must be changed!" Cong Lan said with red eyes.

A picture has emerged in his mind: people wailing everywhere, rich and powerful people living in drunkenness, and refugees everywhere... When these people and refugees are hungry and naked and can no longer bear it, they will gather together to cause chaos, rebel and raise troops until the Ming Dynasty is completely overthrown!
As an upright, patriotic, loyal and virtuous person, Cong Lan can only place her hopes on His Majesty the Emperor.

Zhu Houzhao had been listening quietly at the side. Cong Lan's words made him extremely relieved.

At least it proves that this person can be used, and can be used in a big way, that he is loyal to the court, and that he stands on the side of the court and the people, rather than the side of the gentry.

However, Zhu Houzhao did not say anything, but looked quietly at Cong Lan and Zhang Fuhua.

Cong Lan pondered for a long time, and suddenly asked: "Old man, is there really no way?"

"No, land and agriculture are the foundation and lifeblood of the dynasty. A small move can affect the entire body!"

Zhang Fuhua looked a little sad. "It's not that I don't want to solve this hidden danger for the country, but most of the people who annexed the land, apart from the royal family and the princes of the royal clan, are scholars like you and me."

"In the past, almost all the powerful people were involved in the annexation of land. However, after Your Majesty ascended the throne, you have been vigorously suppressing this phenomenon. Eunuchs abolished the imperial farms, and military generals and nobles were restrained by the Marquis of Zhongshan. Liu Jin became the imperial envoy to inspect the Qing vassal lineage this time. I think Your Majesty also intends to take the opportunity to investigate the land occupied by these vassal kings... In the end, only scholars like you and me are left!"

The royal family and eunuchs were suppressed by the Emperor, and the princes and royal family were about to face disaster. Facing the bite of Liu Jin, the mad dog, the military generals and nobles were suppressed by the Marquis of Zhongshan... Then the only people who could annex land in the world were the gentry!

Cong Lan's face was bitter, as if she was crying and laughing at the same time, and she didn't know what to do.

Zhang Fuhua's vicissitudes of life voice still rang out.

"Scholars pass down their family traditions of farming and studying to bring peace to the country. This is something everyone knows, because Emperor Taizu Gao formulated a national policy of favoring scholars and nurturing and recruiting talents. Therefore, once a scholar gains fame, he will try every means to seize land. This is the consensus of all scholars!"

"From generation to generation, the inheritance continues, from grandfather to grandson, annexing land has become an instinct!"

"How many scholars are there in the world? How many gentry are there in the world? How many gentry are there in the world?"

After hearing this, Zhu Houzhao finally understood.

Zhang Fuhua, a veteran of five dynasties, knows all these things well!

However, he never spoke to the Emperor, let alone mentioned these things.

It’s simply because Zhang Fuhua was also a civil official.

Even though his position has always been with the court and the people, it does not mean that he dares to reveal the secret and promote reforms in the court.

After all, most reformers throughout history have not had a good ending.

Reformers in history are often the pioneers of a great leap forward in the times and the people at the top of the storm. They can easily be pushed to the forefront of history, and ultimately end up in ashes under the struggle between various rights and forces.

For example, Wu Zixu of Wu, Shang Yang of Qin, Zhufu Yan and Sang Hongyang of the Western Han Dynasty, Yang Yan of Li Tang, and Wang Anshi of the early Song Dynasty...

Either they will be disgraced or their entire family will be executed. There is no good ending!

After all, once it involves reform, it will naturally touch upon the interests of the existing powerful and will offend them to death!

Cutting off someone's financial resources is like killing their parents. These people will naturally fight back desperately and kill all the reformers when they find an opportunity!
Reform means bringing forth something new, and it means taking away the interests of the vested interests, which means that reform is destined to be a road full of blood and death. In the final analysis, Zhang Fuhua is old, and he doesn't have many years to live. He has long been exhausted of his energy and passion by the petty intrigues of the Ming officialdom.

He created a clean and efficient Censorate for Zhu Houzhao, which was the last thing Zhang Fuhua did for the Ming Dynasty.

To put it bluntly, if Zhang Fuhua took this job, not only would he die in office, but he would also become infamous after his death and be discredited by the gentry until his name would be infamous for eternity. Even his descendants would be implicated. Not to mention entering an official career, he, Zhang Fuhua, would bring disaster to his descendants!

It is precisely because of this that Zhang Fuhua has remained silent on this matter.

It was not until today that His Majesty the Emperor took the initiative to ask Zhang Fuhua whether he was loyal to the emperor and patriotic, so he could not help but tell the truth.

But that was all he said, he didn't come up with any solution!

Perhaps this veteran of five dynasties who had worked hard for the Ming Dynasty all his life was indeed completely disappointed with the gentry of the Ming Dynasty, so he really didn't know any solution.

Cong Lan was so angry that his hair stood on end. It was hard for him to imagine why the Ming Dynasty had become what it was today, and why the crux of the problem lay with the gentry!

Zhu Houzhao saw that the fire was almost ready, coughed twice and said with a smile: "Don't be so pessimistic, I am still here!"

"It's not that the issue of land annexation cannot be solved, but we have to do it slowly and not rush it."

Zhu Houzhao sighed deeply and missed Tang Hao very much.

As expected, this savage had expected that there were many ministers with vision and insight in the court. However, like Zhang Fuhua, they were unwilling and afraid to speak out. In the end, only Tang Hao among all the civil and military officials in the court dared to speak out directly!

Among all the civil and military officials in the court, among those who are loyal to the emperor and patriotic, only Tang Hao, Marquis of Zhongshan, is the most loyal!

Looking at the Emperor's changeable expression, Zhang Fuhua felt a little uneasy.

The fields and agriculture are all controlled by the gentry, and a single move can affect the entire body.

If His Majesty the Emperor rashly carries out land reforms before he has sufficient power, the world will probably be in chaos in an instant.

Because agriculture is the foundation of the dynasty. Although His Majesty the Emperor and Marquis Zhongshan made changes to various aspects of the court, they had never touched the most important land of the dynasty. Therefore, these actions of the monarch and his ministers did not affect the fundamental interests of the gentry.

As long as their land interests are not affected, the gentry and the gentry can tolerate it.

Of course, the last incident of rebellion in Bazhou was an exception. After all, they were disguised as rebels, not a fair and open way to purge the gentry.

Zhang Fuhua was still in deep thought, but Cong Lan was very excited when she heard this. She immediately clasped her hands and said, "I am willing to do my best for this. Please give me your instructions, Your Majesty!"

Zhu Houzhao then took out a small notebook, which was left to him by the savages. It told him how to break the information barrier!
"Simple. The first step is that you, the Tongzhengsi, must distinguish clearly from now on: internal publications are called Dibao, and external publications are called Xinbao."

"The internal publication is still the same as before, circulated within the government and provided to officials for review, while the external publication is sold to the people of the world. The content is the recent major policies of the court. For example, the latest big news is naturally that Japan is disrespectful to our Celestial Empire, and the Marquis of Zhongshan led his army to expedition to Japan. You must hype this matter up to rally the people and enhance our country's prestige. It would be best if you can portray the Marquis of Zhongshan as a great hero!"

Well, this is mixed with private goods.

Although Cong Lan had some opinions, they were not many.

After all, everyone knows that Marquis Zhongshan is the emperor's most favored minister.

Besides, Marquis Zhongshan was famous for his bravery and fighting skills. As a great hero of the Ming Dynasty, there didn't seem to be anything wrong with him.

"Your Majesty, isn't this a bit too much..."

However, Zhang Fuhua expressed a different opinion, or rather, he did not quite agree with the Emperor's approach.

Isn't this just enlightening the people and deliberately provoking conflicts between the common people and the gentry?
In this way, the gentry cannot educate the people by virtue of their status as scholars, and this will cause chaos!

"Mr. Zhang, there is no need to say more. I know what is going on."

"The reason why my Zhu family was able to obtain this throne was not because of divine right, nor because of Confucianism to fool the people, but because my Zhu family's Taizu Gaohuangdi drove out the Tartars and restored China, making an unprecedented contribution to China. Therefore, my Zhu family is qualified to sit on this throne!"

Zhu Houzhao was extremely domineering, and for the first time he demonstrated his imperial bearing and courage.

"Lord Cong, please remember these words and send them out!"

"The court can favor the gentry or not. The children of the famous schools have had a good life for too long, so long that they have almost forgotten who the real masters of the Ming Dynasty are!"

After hearing this, Cong Lan and Zhang Fuhua were so scared that they immediately fell to their knees.

After all, they are both children of famous schools, and the emperor's words are of great significance.

"Lord Cong, the internal publication is the same as the previous official newspaper, and there is no change."

"But this external publication is different. It is the real weapon for the court to break down information barriers, so you must take it to heart and vigorously promote it! In the future, your Tongzhengsi will need to set up branches in the local areas and appoint propaganda officials to roam the countryside and the market, specifically to read the contents of this external publication to the people!"

"Since the people are illiterate, I will hire some street scoundrels to read to the people in colloquial language, so that they can know who I am, what I did today, and why I, the Marquis of Zhongshan, am on a long expedition to Japan..."

"You should stop thinking about being mysterious and out of touch with the masses. Instead, you should take the initiative to eliminate this so-called sense of mystery and let the people know what you have done for them. Let the people know that you are not just officials who only know how to eat, drink and have fun. Only in this way can the people trust you and the court!"

Cong Lan hurriedly took the paper and pen from Chen Kuan and began to take notes seriously.

"Of course, this is the main section of the new newspaper. You can also open up some small sections like the corners to publish some things related to the people's livelihood, mainly the glorious deeds of a loyal and virtuous person, such as soldiers fighting for the country on the battlefield, etc. You can even have some slang stories... The most important thing is to attract the people!"

Hearing this, Cong Lan suddenly frowned, realizing that things were not simple.

It seems that this foreign publication specially for ordinary people is not very serious!
But after all, it is for the general public to watch, so it doesn't need to be serious, which Cong Lan can understand.

"Your Majesty, the cost of the new newspaper will be too high, right?"

They have to set up branches, increase the number of government officials, and print foreign publications and new newspapers...all of which have to be the responsibility of the Tongzhengsi, and they have to ask the Ministry of Revenue of the imperial court for money!
The Tongzhengsi is just a low-paying government office that sorts memorials to the emperor. Where does so much public funds come from?
Will this add to the burden on the Ministry of Revenue of the imperial court?
"Money is not a problem. I will increase the special funds of the Ministry of Public Administration."

"Also, the Tongzhengsi can also attract investment by leaving a corner in the new newspaper for merchants to buy for promotion and advertising..."

Cong Lan: "???"

Zhang Fuhua: “???”

What?
Advertise?
What is advertising?

And he’s a businessman?

Cong Lan and Zhang Fuhua looked at each other.

"Advertisement, advertising, spread the word!"

"If we don't seek advertising from merchants, will you two pay for this?"

Hearing this, Cong Lan immediately trembled and expressed her opinion.

"Your Majesty is wise. I will definitely let the merchants advertise!"

(End of this chapter)