Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 249 The Most Special Clan in the World

The first Ming Dynasty royal family and vassal conference during the Taichang period was not ultimately held in the Xian'en Hall, as there was a temporary palace here.

Except for a few mountain passes, ten emperors of the Ming Dynasty are now buried in the entire Tianshou Mountain Imperial Mausoleum area.

The imperial palace is located to the east of the confluence of several small rivers flowing down from the mountain. To the northeast is the Yongling Mausoleum of Emperor Jiajing.

The distance was about a mile, and the atmosphere was much better as we didn't have to be in front of the late emperor's tablet.

After all, this is a positive meeting, so we need to be tense but also united.

On the day of entering the mausoleum, the meals at night were also simple and plain.

"These are all the grains and fruits grown by the mausoleum guards." Zhu Changluo introduced, "The Jiuling Guards in Beijing now use this place as their base. The original factory here was given to the Jiuling Guards. The surrounding military settlements were also handed over to them."

The princes sitting before him were:
Qin, Jin, Zhou, Chu, Lu, Shu, Dai, Su, Qing, Min, Han, Shen, Tang, these are the bloodlines of Taizu's descendants;
King Zhao, this is the other bloodline left by Zhu Di; Zheng, Qi, Xiang, Jing, and Huai, these are the other bloodlines left by Zhu Gaochi.

De, Chong, and Ji are the other sons of Zhu Qizhen; Yi, Heng, and Rong are the other sons of Zhu Jianshen.

Then came Prince Lu.

At this moment, the princes Zhu Changluo had to face were these twenty-six.

Of course, there are two special princes in the palace: Zhu Fengqian, the Prince of Huayang who separated from the Shu vassal state, and Zhu Kejia, the Prince of Wan'an who was left behind after the lineage of the King of Yi conferred by Taizu was stripped of his princely title.

These twenty-eight princes and two dukes are the core representatives of the Ming royal family.

After hearing what the emperor said, they were not sure what he wanted to say, so they only praised the delicious fruits grown by Jiulingwei. Thanks to their efforts, their ancestors were at peace.

The main show began after the simple vegetarian banquet.

Zhu Changluo sighed, "Nine saints have been buried here. Taizu is the last one. If we count Emperor Jianwen and Emperor Jingtai, the Ming Dynasty has reached its 13th dynasty, and it has been more than 230 years since its founding. In terms of national life span, the Ming Dynasty has also reached its twilight years. Whenever I think of this, I can't sleep or eat well."

The kings were terrified. Before the formal succession ceremony, Zhu Huazeng, the Prince of Wugang, who was the heir to the throne of Chu, said immediately: "The saints have made great contributions, and the previous emperor's several expeditions shocked the people both inside and outside. Your Majesty is wise and powerful, and the Ming Dynasty will surely last for ten thousand years. Your Majesty..."

No matter how much you praise him, he won't understand.

But everyone immediately spoke up, praising the contributions of their ancestors and also praising Zhu Changluo.

"Everyone in this imperial mausoleum is from my clan." Zhu Changluo shook his head. "I am not sad because my father has passed away. I have been on the throne for more than three years, and I have the ambition to make progress. But you are all in the local area, so you naturally see what is happening and think about it. Let's not talk about the distant past, let's talk about the Chu vassal state. How much trouble did it cause when a memorial was submitted? The court officials proposed to reform the clan salary, and the gentry took the opportunity to fan the flames."

Zhu Changluo looked at Zhu Huazeng, paused and sighed: "I sent Wang Zhizhen to visit each of your families. Isn't it because I am worried that things will get bigger and bigger? The Ming Dynasty may seem powerful, but it is actually plagued by many problems and is in danger."

Beside him, Hou Gongchen came back, and Wang Zhizhen also came back.

The two men looked at the faces of the princes and dukes, remained silent, and stood on their left and right like guards.

"There are more than 80,000 registered clan members, and the annual clan salary should be 10 million dan." Zhu Changluo knew with a heavy expression, "Of course, the actual salary is not that much. Some are lost, some are owed, and no vassal is easy. But it is also difficult for me to be the head of this family. This is just now, what about in one or two generations? When my father ascended the throne, there were only more than 30,000 registered clan members."

After laying the groundwork, Zhu Changluo looked at them and said, "We have to think of a way. Whether there is a Chu vassal or not, the court officials will raise this question sooner or later. Besides, each vassal state is already unsustainable, not just the Chu vassal state."

"King of Shu, Uncle Prince of Lu, I have been thinking of a solution since I came to power. How has Changming done in the past three years? How much silver have you taken and how much silver have you distributed? Tell us all about it."

Both of them knew that they would go in this direction, and now they could only talk about their own situations separately.

Initially joining the partnership, increasing capital the following year, and last year's profit sharing. When they finished, Zhu Changluo said, "The profit sharing for the third year of Taichang has not been paid yet because of the Chu vassal issue. However, last year's accounts have been sorted out. Wang Zhizhen, call Wang Xun here."

"Yes." For Zhu Changluo, Changming is still the best entry point.

There is already a model here, and with the data and the "witnesses" who have benefited, it can more or less dispel the doubts of many people: the emperor is not going to chop off their interests with a knife.

The royal family and vassal states cannot be treated harshly, after all, this is an era that values ​​clan ties and kinship.

There is no need to treat the royal family and vassal states harshly. Their accumulated assets and the manpower within the royal family can all be used.

After Wang Xun came in, he met the emperor and paid his respects to the kings, and then began his work in this link.

I'm already familiar with it, the only difference is that this time I'm facing a group of kings.

"…Now, the two areas that have performed best are the grain business and the border trade to the north. The Zhayang business has been in operation for two years, but Korea is still recuperating, so the results are not great. The salt business has laid a good foundation and has become a major merchant, with a large share of salt permits, but Your Majesty has not made any changes to the salt administration. Since last year, the maritime trade has been trying to find ways to rebuild shared sea vessels and find maritime trade clans to go out to sea together…"

Despite this, the "turnover" and "scale of materials" flowing under the framework of Changming have already made many feudal lords dumbfounded.

Hearing that Changminghao's net profit last year was close to one million taels, this number is of course astonishing.

They didn't know whether it was true or not, but looking at the expressions of the King of Shu and the King of Lu and the light in Zhu Huazeng's eyes, they knew that these three guys had an idea in their minds.

After all, they had already received their share of the profits in the first and second years of Taichang.

After Wang Xun left, Zhu Changluo said, "We are still far from the result I want, but it has proved that this approach is feasible. The strategy presented by the court is to set a fixed amount for all vassal salaries. After calculation, it is a total of more than one million taels. But I know that if I set it at this, I will be a little relaxed, and it will only become more and more difficult for you, so I have not set it yet and just left it there."

There was a sudden burst of shouts in the hall for the emperor's wisdom, and the few feudal lords who had already implemented permanent quotas took the opportunity to complain.

Zhu Changluo listened to their complaints patiently, and finally said in a patriarchal manner: "The emperors are still watching, and I naturally want to find a better way out for the Zhu family. Today, I have summoned you to the capital again on the occasion of my father's great ceremony, and I would like to discuss it here first, which is to express my true feelings. Would you like to listen to what I think first?"

"Your Highness, I am listening!"

Profits come first, and hidden worries are obvious, but at least the attitude at the moment is positive.

Zhu Changluo nodded: "Nine words: change identity, gather together, and go out."

Hearing the words "change of identity", many princes couldn't help but feel nervous.

How to change the status of the suzerain and vassal? Will they all be stripped of their titles?
The night wind is blowing in the imperial mausoleum, and it is still cool in the spring night.

Zhu Changluo looked at their eyes and said slowly, "I don't see you as a threat that needs to be guarded against, and you should also give up the idea of ​​being royal relatives who must be supported by the emperor. This change of status does not mean that you should be demoted to a lowered title. It means that I and my clan members think of each other in our hearts. We should change from clan relatives to monarchs and subjects."

Some people were a little confused: Hasn’t it always been like this?

Some people were hesitant and worried: Is it more stringent than Zong Lu’s permanent quota?

Zhu Changluo asked a question: "Zonglu is also a salary. Officials receive salaries for their work and achievements; clan members receive Zonglu, what have they done for the country?"

Hou Gongchen looked at the princes with different expressions with some worry.

The emperor continued to ask: "Is it just to ask for a non-rebellion? Or should we just support our relatives?"

This is the most special clan in the world, but now in front of the tombs of their ancestors, the current clan leader has to ask such a sharp question.

No one in the hall was speechless for a moment.

(End of this chapter)