Fu Shanhe

Chapter 92 Salt Administration Reform
"Don't worry, Commander. We will definitely avenge our previous humiliation!"

The four great masters responded in unison.

The previous failure can be said to be an accident.

However, failure in the army is failure, and no matter how sufficient the reasons are, it cannot change the mistakes they made in the command process.

Relationships and background are nothing more than a few more opportunities for trial and error. Once they are proven to be hopeless, they will still be abandoned by the forces behind them.

Now the main force of the rebels has been destroyed. If they can't even deal with a group of remnants, there is no point for them to stay in the army.

It can be seen that Marquis Wuyang is still very good at controlling people's hearts. Although the method of provoking is old-fashioned, it works.

As a typical example, Li Mu wished he could become invisible on the spot.

Other people's children can be very hateful.

Even if everyone had a good relationship in the past, when something like this happens, it is inevitable that they will have some thoughts in their minds.

In order to eliminate this gap, either everyone has to develop well or the gap between the two sides is large enough.

The drawing ceremony ended quickly, and the four people who got the tasks said goodbye and left.

If you hold a lot of anger in your heart and don't vent it, it's easy to get into trouble.

……

"Captain Li, how long do you think it will take them to capture Taizhou?"

Marquis Wuyang asked with concern.

It can be seen that the accident of letting the rebels escape last time directly affected his confidence in the generals under his command.

"My Lord, the rebels have just suffered a defeat and their morale is low.

Those soldiers who were forcibly conscripted would not work for them.

The Huang brothers went on a killing spree in Taizhou, severely offending the gentry group.

Deep-rooted local residents are not so easy to uproot.

The rebels are showing signs of decadence, and the remaining forces of these gentry families hiding in the dark will also wait for an opportunity to take revenge.

The small rebel groups they had annexed before also posed a considerable hidden danger when the rebels got into trouble.

The enemy's current situation can be said to be full of internal and external troubles. Just a slight push and this broken house will collapse.

It is not difficult to capture Taizhou, it is just a matter of how much loss we will suffer. I guess the rebels can probably hold out for three to five days.

In fact, even if they did not launch an attack and instead directly laid siege, the rebels would have difficulty surviving for more than two months.

According to the intelligence sent by Jinyiwei, the enemy missed this year's autumn harvest, and there is not much grain left in Taizhou City."

Li Mu analyzed objectively.

The quickly assembled mob was a mixed bag of good and bad people.

When the battle is going well, we can still unite.

Once the situation is unfavorable, the hidden internal conflicts will erupt.

Compared with the rebels' previous hasty siege, the Wucheng Bingmasi was much more fully prepared.

Not only was a batch of heavy artillery transferred from Nanjing, but a large number of craftsmen were also mobilized to build siege equipment, and the Jiangnan Navy also cooperated.

If you can't capture the city, you can at least wait for the enemy to collapse on its own.

"I understand what you mean. Adopting a siege and blockade until the rebels collapse on their own is indeed the most prudent option.

However, the battle of Taizhou concerns the reputation of our Five Cities Army, so we must fight this battle!"

Marquis Wuyang said seriously.

When you are in the court, there are some things you must insist on.

If the Wucheng Bingmasi has not achieved any results so far, then choosing the most stable method of besieging the enemy is definitely the best option.

Now the situation is just the opposite. Except for one mistake, the Wucheng Bingmasi performed well on the battlefield.

People can accept never having something, but cannot accept having it and then losing it.

The easiest way to wash away the stain is to win it back quickly.

The rebels in Gaoyou Prefecture split up and evacuated, and although many members of the Wen family escaped, it also accelerated the speed of the rebels' defeat.

The time left for the Five Cities Army was short; they had to capture Taizhou City before the Beijing Camp wiped out the rebels in Nantong Prefecture.

"Rumble..."

The intensive sound of artillery fire marked the beginning of the siege.

On the city wall, the Huang brothers no longer have the heroic spirit they once had.

Unlike previous failures, this time the expedition encountered the imperial cavalry and suffered heavy losses.

In particular, the loss of the old camp had the greatest impact on the Taizhou rebel army.

In order to stabilize the morale of the army, they had to go to the city wall themselves and command the soldiers to defend the city.

“Brother, the enemy is well prepared and will soon cross the moat.

It is only a matter of time before Taizhou falls. Find an opportunity to break out!"

Huang Renliang persuaded anxiously.

He was only in his twenties and had plenty of time to enjoy life, but he was reluctant to die in Taizhou City.

However, among the rebels, Huang Renlong was the one with the highest prestige.

Even if you want to run away, you need the boss's consent.

“Second brother, there is a shortage of food in the city, so we must evacuate.

But you have seen the power of the enemy cavalry.

If we encounter those killers on the plains, we will be no match for them.

Even if we want to break out, we must make sure they leave before we can take action.

It's a pity that I can't get in touch with my connections in the navy, otherwise leaving by water would be the best option!"

Just as Huang Renlong finished his sigh, a cannonball flew over.

After a loud bang, the three guards around him were blown to pieces.

The Huang brothers, who luckily escaped the disaster, lost half of their souls and spirits, and their bodies instinctively ran down the city gate tower.

The commander took the lead in running away, and the nearby soldiers guarding the city blindly chose to follow.

In the blink of an eye, a military vacuum appeared on the city gate tower.

After coming to his senses, Huang Renlong immediately shouted angrily:
"How did you get down here? Get back here right now!"

Fortunately, there was a moat to block the attack, otherwise the enemy would have captured the city wall due to the chaos among the soldiers defending the city.

The soldiers were driven back, but the adverse effects they caused could not be shaken off.

From the soldiers' resentful eyes, it can be seen that their awe of their commander-in-chief has changed at this moment.

The Huang brothers had no time to appease the troops, and all they could think about was how to escape.

After escaping the gates of hell again, the two men became increasingly less confident in their rebellion.

Reason told them that if they didn't run quickly, they would be left here forever. ...

Huaian City.

"Prime Minister Zuo, this is the distribution map of the salt fields in the Lianghuai area.

We checked the accounts of several salt fields in Huai'an Prefecture, and the contents were very shocking.

According to the salt tax law of the imperial court, the tax revenue contributed by these salt fields alone should be no less than 1.4 million taels each year.

Based on this calculation, the salt tax revenue in the Lianghuai region should be between 2.5 and 3 million.

The Lianghuai salt industry accounts for about one-third of the country's salt industry. Taking a compromise figure, theoretically the country's salt tax revenue should be around 8 million taels."

After Gu Yuansong finished speaking, the atmosphere in the room suddenly became solemn.

The court's salt tax revenue last year was 1.3 million taels, which is completely different from 8 million taels.

When this number was brought before the emperor, it was hard to tell how angry Emperor Tianyuan was.

More than 80% of the tax revenue was divided up between the bureaucracy and the salt merchant groups, which was clearly an attempt to take advantage of the emperor's lack of vision.

“People outside say we are corrupt and abuse our power, but compared to these guys, we are nothing.

The salt industry is already extremely profitable, yet these people are still not satisfied.

When the imperial court formulated tax laws, it fully considered the interests of salt merchants.

The registered population of the Dayu Dynasty was 80 million, and the actual figure was doubled, which is not an exaggeration in the opinion of miscellaneous scholars.

Everyone needs to eat salt, and the annual salt consumption exceeds 2 billion kilograms.

Even if he only made one cent per pound of salt, that would still be a profit of two million taels of silver.

What's more, in addition to humans, salt is also indispensable for feeding livestock and various workshops.

The actual annual consumption must be around 40 to 50 billion jin.

The total output of salt fields in various places can also match the data.

I have lived for most of my life and have never heard of salt being unsaleable. I guess it has all been sold.

At the very least, the court should collect 10 million taels of salt tax from the salt administration every year. That shouldn't be excessive, right?"

When Zuo Guangen said this, everyone present was stunned.

Calculated from the data, a salt tax of 10 million taels is certainly not excessive, but it is different in actual operation.

The profits from the salt industry are so huge that all parties are tempted to get their hands on it.

If the situation were reported to the emperor truthfully, who knows whether Emperor Tianyuan would tolerate this mode of dividing the spoils.

Even if the current emperor can accept it, what if the next emperor feels unsatisfied and wants more?
“Zuo Xiang, comprehensive reform of the salt administration is too risky.

The Lianghuai salt industry alone caused such a big stir. If it were to be implemented nationwide, I'm afraid there would be a lot of resistance from below.

Why don't we compromise and let the court collect the salt tax as usual?

With the example of the Lianghuai salt merchants, I think the local salt administration offices will be able to complete the verification of collection data.

As for the shortfall, we can simply ask salt merchants from all over the country to volunteer to serve the imperial court."

Pang Chengjie, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, hurriedly spoke to persuade him.

The purpose of reforming the salt administration is to solve financial problems, not to overturn the table.

The changes in the Lianghuai region have seriously damaged the interests of the bureaucratic group.

If this happens all over the country, our lives will be miserable.

It is essentially a question of distribution of benefits. If some people get more, naturally some people will get less.

There are countless interest groups of all sizes hidden under the huge salt administration.

The reason why the imperial court was able to operate smoothly in the Lianghuai region was because of the rebellion of the seven major families in Lianghuai.

Although they were forced to rebel, rebellion is rebellion, and all the bureaucrats in the court had to abandon them.

Similar operations can only be performed once.

Be prepared in advance, and it won’t be so easy to play like this next time.

“Minister Pang’s proposal is not impossible to consider.

However, in this kind of situation, it is not enough for the individual to be willing, but everyone else must also be willing to cooperate.

If the salt officials in various places continue to neglect their duties and the salt merchants below still do not know what to do, then there is nothing I can do!"

As he spoke, Zuo Guangen deliberately spread out his hands.

With the precedent of annihilating the seven major families in Lianghuai, his awe of the aristocratic families has disappeared without a trace.

The salt merchant interest group, which was famous for its military power, was so vulnerable under the attack of the imperial court.

Not to mention other purely literary families.

Once they leave the court, these people are nothing more than weak scholars except for their reputation among the literati.

Anyway, as the chief eunuch, he doesn't need to worry about his reputation.

This change in mentality directly affected Zuo Guangen's decision-making.

“Zuo Xiang, there are still more intelligent people in this world.

Some idiots cannot understand your kindness, so just send them down!"

Gu Yuansong said with a smile.

The power of the eunuch party grew greatly, and the prestige of the Jinyiwei also increased.

Realizing the weakness of the civil service group, he, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, also became tough in his actions.

It seems that there are many factors for going south this time, but the essential goal is only one - to make money!
Whoever can do this job well will be Emperor Tianyuan's most trusted minister.

Anyone who hinders the court from making money will be a thorn in the emperor's side.

Even Lord Xu, who represented the Qingliu, did not demonstrate the level of political struggle that a cabinet minister should have after entering the Lianghuai region.

It’s not that he doesn’t have the ability, but that others have already seen through the essence of the problem.

As a big boss in the court, one must not only consider the interests of his own faction, but also the interests of the empire.

When the interests of the two conflict, political wisdom is put to the test.

The actions of the two clean leaders in the cabinet at the critical moment are successful examples.

Lord Pang chose to pretend to be sick to avoid trouble, while Lord Xu's way of dealing with it was to pretend to be confused.

They kept clamoring to overthrow the eunuch party, but in practice they deliberately avoided the eunuch party.

The Qingliu Party also had their own political ambitions, but they were forced to betray their own class because of the situation they were in.

His identity and position determined that he could not raise money for the court like the eunuch party did, but that did not mean that Xu Wenyue did not want to solve the court's financial problems.

During the changes in the Huai River and Huai River regions, the Qingliu Party did not stir up a political storm, largely because they were led astray by the two big bosses above.

When faced with a shrewd ruler like Emperor Tianyuan, officials who only care about factional interests cannot enter the cabinet at all.

……

(End of this chapter)