Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 324 Complete Tang Dynasty

“When the imperial court is facing internal and external troubles, the country is in danger, the country is in danger, and the people are in dire straits.

"The noble families are living freely and comfortably in the local areas, and have grown quite fat!
"The equal-field system is the national policy of our dynasty. However, local powerful families took advantage of the fact that the government was dealing with foreign enemies and was busy with its own affairs to wantonly annex the farmers' land!
"The equal-field system is the foundation of our dynasty's military.

“And those greedy and reckless clans even stretched their hands to the land of the military government, causing the soldiers to flee!

"He simply regards the country, the laws of the Tang Dynasty, the suffering of the people, and even his own head as nothing!"

Li Chengqian's angry rebukes echoed in the spacious Taiji Hall.

And the Emperor's last words were full of threats.

The ministers realized that His Majesty the Emperor - no, the entire Tang Dynasty ruling core including His Majesty the Emeritus and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince - was serious this time.

During the Zhenguan period, His Majesty Li Shimin had already begun to deal with the issue of aristocratic families that had been left over from the Eastern Han Dynasty.

He ordered Wei Ting and Gao Shilian to compile the "Clan Records", and deliberately ranked the recognized large clans after the third class for this purpose.

In addition to degrading his status politically, Li Shimin also took many administrative measures to curb annexation, consolidate local governance, and strengthen imperial power.

It was just because it was the early days of the dynasty, the problem of annexation was not serious, and under Li Shimin's management, the powerful were generally honest.

Therefore, the countermeasures are not tough, and the main focus is on political settlement.

However, to this day.

When the struggle between the Tang Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty had reached a fever pitch and the Tang Dynasty was beginning to feel powerless.

Not only did these ignorant nobles not share the country's worries, they even suffered from tight supply at the front and rear, and frantically undermined the feudal system of the Tang Dynasty, causing the country's strength to weaken and the people to become angry!
This is intolerable! This is no longer an ordinary aristocratic family. We must take strong measures!

"My dears, what do you have...

"Cough cough cough!..."

Li Chengqian was so excited that he was interrupted by a violent cough.

"His Majesty!"

"My son!"

"Call the doctor!"

Everyone in the court was immediately panicked.

Li Chengqian coughed and waved his hands:

"Ahem, no need... I'm fine...

"My dear ministers, if you have any suggestions, please feel free to speak up... cough cough cough."

The frail and sickly appearance of His Majesty made the ministers think of four words that might not be very appropriate:

I feel pity for you.

People are so angry, what else can the ministers say?
"Your Majesty is wise. You should immediately punish those landlords who have annexed farmland, lent money and collected rent."

Zhang Liang was the first to express his opinion.

Ashina She'er followed up with the muffled voice:
"Those profit-seeking people should be skinned and stuffed with straw!"

As he spoke, he clenched his fists, as if he was practicing the techniques of skinning and stuffing.

Li Chengqian's cough eased a little, and he nodded slightly:
"Every word that Duke Xun and Duke Bi said is like a pearl, and it deeply touches my heart. I will reward them with 100 strings of cash and 100 pieces of silk."

What a wonderful “word!”

Those two running dogs of imperial power merely expressed their stance without saying any specific policies or opinions, yet they received such deep praise.

The old foxes present saw through it at a glance. Zhang Liang and Ashina She'er were the "stooges" arranged by His Majesty in the court.

One was born in the poor Wagangzhai, and the other was a Turkic with no roots. Neither of them had any connection with the "aristocratic families" and they were simply the best candidates to be stooges.

But even if the ministers saw through the imperial power's little tricks, what could they do?

Your Majesty is almost mad at the corrupt current situation.

Do you think that before His Majesty gets so angry that he dies, he will send a few people to accompany him on the journey?
Liu Li, the minister with the highest rank and power besides the loyal dogs of the royal family, hesitated for a moment and also said:

"Your Majesty is wise, and the two Dukes are right.

"Those who till the land own the land. This is the ancestral precept of the holy dynasty. Land annexation should be curbed."

Although his tone was lower than the previous two and did not involve physical criticism of the feudal landlords.

But as a neutral person, he showed his loyalty in a timely manner.

This is also related to his background. Lao Liu used to work under the southern warlord Xiao Xing, and his background was not very high either. At best, he was just a member of a poor "middle-class" family.

However, his statement still served as a model.

Then, Gao Shilian, a real noble, the uncle of the emperor's uncle, who came from the Bohai Gao family, also immediately echoed:
"Minister Liu is absolutely right."

His attitude also inspired Gao Ji Fu, a member of the same clan, to express that they should suppress the powerful and start with themselves.

In this way, from the shills to the passers-by, from the poor to the nobles, from the royal family to the general ministers, the court gradually formed a unified opinion -

Suppress mergers.

It is true that many of these ministers were of high rank, and many of their relatives or even their own people were engaged in annexation there.

However, in the early years of the Tang Dynasty, the social atmosphere was still positive.

The founding emperor was still around, still able to keep things under control, and the officials still had their ideals, not selfish people who only cared about their own families and ignored everyone else.

They are still willing to turn the knife inward and make changes.

What's more, there is a powerful neighbor in the north, the Ming Dynasty, staring there.

Not only did this powerful and aggressive neighbor exert tremendous external pressure on them, it also forced them to change.

At the same time, it also objectively set an example for them.

If you want to make your country strong, just follow this.

Otherwise, just wait for the country to be destroyed and the family to be ruined!
Land annexation must be suppressed at all times. It must be suppressed.

Just think about it, you led your soldiers out of the city and are fighting a fierce battle with the barbarians who are coming down from the northeast.

Suddenly! The common people in the rear rebelled, and even dug up your old nest, hung you on the old crooked tree, and let the Northeastern people smoothly enter the country and annex the world.

This kind of script is not funny at all!

Therefore, everyone is still willing to give up some of their own interests in order to protect the stability and survival of the country.

Unlike some dynasties, even when the world was already crumbling, the people below were still frantically making money until they were caught by the new rulers.

You are right, Dai Ming.

…………

Soon, the policy to curb land annexation was announced in the court.

The contents include re-counting the national population and cultivated land, shifting the tenants' head tax to the landlords, levying land tax on each household that exceeds the quota of the equal-field system, redeeming land and distributing it to farmers, and reclaiming wasteland.

It can be considered as a compromise solution that uses economic means to indirectly increase the cost of land acquisition for landlords.

Compared with our neighbors to the north who are uprooting trees, that's far from extreme.

This is also the limit of what Lao Li and his family of three can do.

After all, the Tang Dynasty was still a classical dynasty, and many of the aristocratic families were the original shareholders in the establishment of the Tang Dynasty.

They made concessions reluctantly for the sake of Li Er's face. If they cut too much, it would cause them to retaliate and cause trouble, and no one would be happy.

"So it is, it is settled."

Li Chengqian let out a long sigh, and his face finally became a little rosy.

"Please handle it accordingly. Minister Liu." Liu Li stood up:

"The minister is here."

Li Chengqian ordered:

"After Yang Shidao defected, the position of Zhongshuling was left vacant. You will take over the post temporarily and preside over this matter. Zuo Pushe Ashina She'er will assist you.

"This plan to reduce land taxes is related to the continuation of the country. Can I trust you to leave it to you?"

Being in charge of the Secretariat and the Chancellery, wouldn't that mean he is second only to three people and above ten thousand people... Liu Li's heart was pounding.

Although reducing taxes will affect a large number of people, it will undoubtedly offend many people.

But, for the most glorious moment of my life...

If you offend someone, you offend them!

He took a deep breath, calmed his excited and anxious mood, and bowed again:

"Your Majesty, take the order."

…………

Bad news came from the Tang Dynasty.

"What? They're also doing land reform?"

Not long after the grand court meeting where the Three Saints presided over the throne, Li Ming got the news almost immediately.

This matter was too big, so Lai Junchen released almost all the flying messengers in his inventory and carried out a saturation intelligence transmission, ensuring that Pingzhou received the news as soon as possible.

A few days later, Li Ming's desk was filled with secret reports and piles of bird droppings.

"Transferring the poll tax, collecting land tax, redeeming... Tsk, it looks pretty good."

Li Ming read the terms carefully from beginning to end and approved of the proposal put forward by Brother Cheng Qian.

From Li Shimin’s clan records, to Li Ming’s equal distribution of land, and then to Li Chengqian.

It seems that suppressing the gentry is the Li family's consistent strategy.

Although Li Chengqian's revolution was not thorough enough, his countermeasures were effective and stable.

As far as moderate reformists are concerned, it is already very good that the Tang Dynasty can achieve this.

After all, not everyone can start over again like Li Ming and start a revolution by digging deep underground.

“They even used the typical macro-control tool of “taxation” to stuff the land into the hands of farmers with Keynes’ big hand…

"The officials of the Tang Dynasty have a strong learning ability."

Li Ming murmured.

He clearly saw a familiar shadow in the opponent's combination of punches.

"This is a good thing for the common people. Liu Li is a capable man, and Ashina She'er is very loyal. The two of them working together should be able to shoulder this important task."

Fang Xuanling stroked his goatee.

Chang Sun Wuji couldn't help but retort:

"The stronger the enemy, the more disadvantageous it is for us. I don't know why Minister Fang is making such sarcastic remarks."

Fang Xuanling took a sip of tea and hummed:
"mean."

What the hell did you say... Changsun Wuji's mouth twitched, and he didn't bother with this old guy.

Li Ming came out to smooth things over:

"The uncle's concerns are justified. Our strategy is to put extreme pressure on the Tang Dynasty and cause it to collapse internally.

"Unfortunately, after this round of self-reform, the Tang Dynasty may be able to hold on for a while longer. However—"

He changed the subject:
“What Prime Minister Fang said makes sense. The aristocratic families are a problem that is difficult to get rid of.

"My brother can take the initiative to burst this bubble, which will be of great benefit to my governance after I unify the country in the future."

Pat both sides on the head and it will sound comfortable.

Putting two people who don't get along with each other together as prime ministers would force them to collude and have them seek the emperor's mediation when conflicts arise. This in itself was an arrangement for Li Ming to strengthen his imperial power.

After this period of adjustment, Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji were surprised to find that Emperor Li Ming was becoming more and more skilled in maintaining peace.

However, Li Ming's words were not entirely meant to be sarcastic.

Chang'an's reform plan can solve the problem without causing a major backlash. In the short term, it will definitely help the Tang Dynasty consolidate its regime and will not be conducive to the Ming Dynasty's southward expansion.

But in the long run, if Li Chengqian's move could weaken the power of the aristocratic families, then after unifying the country, the resistance Li Ming would encounter in implementing a more radical land policy would be significantly reduced.

After all, it is only the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, not the end. The population is still recovering and there is idle land everywhere.

It will take a few hundred more years before the aristocratic families kill themselves.

In other words, the people of the world have not reached a consensus on the need for a thorough purge, and many people think that Li Ming's policies are too extreme.

With Li Chengqian's preparations, after Li Ming took over the world, his actions would be much smoother.

Well, the premise is that he can conquer the world.

"Hiss... But is this matter to be discussed in the grand court meeting..."

As Changsun Wuji, who had long been the head of the civil servants, felt that the way the Tang Dynasty implemented policies was strange.

After his reminder, Fang Xuanling also realized that something was wrong.

"Yes. But according to the information provided by Lai Junchen, Liu Li, the person in charge of this matter, seemed to be very surprised that he was taking on this responsibility.

“That’s very unusual.”

Li Ming raised his eyebrows, crossed his arms and started to fight with his belly.

People who often serve as emperors know that small meetings are held for big matters and big meetings are held for small matters.

Occasions like grand court meetings, with a large number of participants, can only be used to issue government decrees and are generally not occasions for discussing political affairs.

Because there are so many people and so many different opinions, there is no point in the discussion and it is just a waste of time.

As for what kind of orders to issue, the emperor usually discussed it with his trusted ministers before the court session.

However, judging from the reactions of Liu Li and other ministers, the monarch and his ministers did not seem to have discussed the matter privately beforehand, and they issued a series of complex decrees on the spot that could even shake the foundation of the country.

This is quite unusual as far as decision-making processes go.

"Perhaps, they are on the same page, but Liu Li's level is not high enough to participate in the discussion. He just needs to obey orders obediently."

Li Ming said quietly.

Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling looked at each other.

"What do you mean? Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

Li Ming held up three fingers.

"Emperor Li Chengqian, Emperor Emeritus Li Shimin, Crown Prince Li Zhi.

"If these three people make a unanimous decision, do they still need to listen to the opinions of other ministers?"

The two shook their heads at the same time:
"No."

Because of Li Chengqian's special physical condition, the other two saints had the opportunity to interfere... no, "assist" in the government.

And because of Li Chengqian's personality, the relationship between the three people is quite harmonious, and they can really play to their strengths -

Daily government affairs were handled by Li Chengqian, who was relatively mediocre in ability. When there were any undecided foreign affairs, Li Shimin was asked; when there were any undecided internal affairs, Li Zhi was asked; in order to subdue the subordinates, Li Shimin was asked; when there were any conspiracies, Li Zhi was asked.

Wow, it’s the perfect embodiment of the Tang Dynasty!
(End of this chapter)