Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 245 Nostalgia for the Days of Attending Court
October 4th, 1648 (the 17th year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign), in Beijing.

Early in the morning, Zhu Yunfeng got up from the emperor's bed in the Qianqing Palace, yawning and stretching. He took the wet towel that Gao Shiming handed him with both hands, wiped his face first, and then began to wash up.

During this period, he truly lived the life of an emperor, residing in the Forbidden City. The Hall of Supreme Harmony, later known as the Golden Throne Hall, became his office, while the Palace of Heavenly Purity became his sleeping quarters.

He had to sleep until he naturally woke up every morning, and no one was allowed to disturb him. Even the morning court meeting was changed from the time of Yin (3-5 AM) to the end of Chen (7-9 AM).

Changing the time from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. naturally had a serious impact on the efficiency of the imperial court.

Because there were no lamps in ancient times, and the sun set early in autumn and winter, the daily working hours were limited, so naturally, sleeping time had to be reduced.

But Zhu Yunfeng also had his reasons.

I, a tycoon with a net worth of tens of billions, came to your Ming Dynasty to save your country from disaster, and you still can't let people sleep well. Is this something a human being would do?
So no matter how much the court officials wanted him to work harder, to learn from Zhu Yuanzhang, or at least to learn from Emperor Chongzhen, he only slept for two hours a day.

Zhu Yunfeng, however, continued to do things his own way, and it seemed that he was beginning to develop in the direction of the Wanli Emperor.

However, in his own words, this is called effective governance.

Emperor Chongzhen was so busy every day that he only slept four or five hours a day. What were the results of his diligent governance of the country?

Isn't it still just the same nonsense?
Therefore, balancing work and rest is the right approach.

“The lord of Baijing is the lord. All he does all day is eat and drink. He lives in the Second Ring Road, while I live in the Imperial Palace. He drinks a bowl of douzhi and throws it away. He gives roast duck to Pipi. That’s how authentic it is.”

Zhu Yunfeng muttered something unintelligible. After washing up, he put his toothbrush and cup aside and said to Gao Shiming, "Let's ring the morning bell."

"Yes."

Gao Shiming responded, then added, "Your Highness, there was a communication from the communications room this morning, it was from the Taizu Emperor."

"Then you go and ring the bell first, and wait for me in the Fengtian Hall. I'll come over later."

Zhu Yunfeng dressed neatly and didn't blame Gao Shiming for not informing him of such an important matter.

Because that was his own rule.

No one is allowed to disturb his sleep, not even the Heavenly King or Zhu Yuanzhang.

He has a terrible temper when he wakes up.

Although he wasn't exactly ready to fight or kill, his gloomy face and tendency to be confrontational made Old Zhu shudder.

The telecommunications room was located in the Qianqing Palace. The layout of the Qianqing Palace is as follows: enter the main hall, go through the passage on the left, and you will find the West Warm Pavilion. Further inside is the study.

Entering through the passage on the right side of the main hall leads to the East Warm Pavilion, followed by the enclosed rooms where the concubines slept after their nights with the emperor, and finally, the emperor's bedroom.

Since Zhu Yunfeng is a single man who plays single-player games on his laptop every night, and has neither married a queen nor a princess, there is naturally no question of him serving the emperor in bed.

So the outer room leading to the East Warm Pavilion was converted into a telecommunications room, which could be accessed by passing through a passageway from his bedroom.

Inside, Mao Xiang and several communications officers were sitting, wearing headphones, maintaining constant communication with radio stations in Changsha, Sichuan, Nanjing, Hubei, and other places.

In some respects, the telegraph office was far more efficient in governing the country than local officials submitting memorials, and it was also much easier to handle such matters.

"Your Highness, are you awake?"

When Mao Xiang saw Zhu Yunfeng enter the telecommunications room, he hurriedly stepped forward to greet him.

"What happened to our ancestors?"

Zhu Yunfeng asked, yawning.

"They say His Majesty has razed Shenyang to the ground and the entire city has been massacred, but some Jurchens escaped."

"Oh? How many did you run?"

"According to the survivors in the city, Dorgon fled with tens of thousands of people from the two White Banners and also abducted hundreds of thousands of Han people."

Mao Xiang said, "His Majesty is currently considering whether or not to pursue them."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yunfeng scratched his head.

I didn't expect Dorgon to be so capable, managing to escape ahead of time.

However, upon closer reflection, he was, after all, the leading figure who led the Manchus into the Central Plains, so his abilities were undoubtedly beyond question.

If it weren't for the unique system of princely rule within the Qing Dynasty that prevented him from wielding absolute power, the young Emperor Shunzhi would likely never have been able to secure his position.

As for the question of whether or not to pursue
Zhu Yunfeng thought for a moment.

The reason why modern Northeast China was able to develop under such extreme conditions is that the modern industrial system has the ability to alter nature, thus ensuring human survival and safety.

Even so, every winter in Northeast China, people who get completely drunk and pass out on the streets, despite wearing thick, bulky clothes with strong insulation, are still frozen solid the next morning.

This gives you an idea of ​​just how harsh the winter weather conditions are in Northeast China.

If this is true in later generations, it is even more true in ancient times.

It was precisely these harsh conditions that prevented the Northeast region from achieving sustained population growth despite its abundant natural resources and the lack of a robust industrial system like those of later generations to ensure heating.

In fact, the reason why the Manchu population has never been very large has never been food, but rather the poor natural conditions. In addition, the medical level in ancient times was not as good as that of later generations, and even a slight cold in winter could cause premature death.

Before entering the Central Plains, there were approximately 60,000 Manchu soldiers and a total Manchu population of about 300,000. The fact that the total Manchu population tripled in just a few decades after entering the Central Plains, by the 60th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, is clear evidence of this.

Moreover, we are currently in the Little Ice Age, and the Heilongjiang region to the north will only be colder than in later times, with winter temperatures often dropping to minus 30 or 40 degrees Celsius, and sometimes even minus 40 or 50 degrees Celsius.

Therefore, continuing the pursuit further north would be extremely difficult.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yunfeng said to Mao Xiang, "Later, write back to the ancestor and say that he does not recommend pursuing them. If you must pursue them, do not send a large force, just a small force. The real way to destroy the enemy is not to pursue them, but to become stronger and stronger, so strong that the enemy cannot even look up to us. First, take over Shenyang and the surrounding areas, relocate Han people there to develop the region slowly, and establish basic industrial capacity in the future. The entire Northeast will be incorporated into the territory of the Ming Dynasty, just like in the Hongwu era."

"it is good."

Mao Xiang nodded to indicate that he understood.

"Yes, let's go to court first."

Zhu Yunfeng, with his hands behind his back, swayed as he walked out of the Qianqing Palace.

Crown Prince Zhu Cilang was already waiting patiently outside the Qianqing Palace.

His motorcycle was parked in the square below the steps. He called out to Zhu Cilang, climbed onto the motorcycle, and Zhu Cilang sat behind him as they headed towards the Fengtian Hall in the front palace.

“Boom boom boom boom boom boom!”

The magnificent morning bell tolled above the Meridian Gate. The officials outside the Meridian Gate had been waiting for a long time. After the bell rang, the Meridian Gate opened, and the officials filed in and arrived at the square outside the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

This was the morning court session, which was the imperial court hearing initiated by Zhu Yuanzhang, except that Zhu Yunfeng changed the time a few hours later.

The officials arrived at the square, lined up neatly, and took their positions.

Zhu Yunfeng drove Zhu Cilang to the foot of Fengtian Hall Square, parked the motorcycle, and the two of them went up the steps one after the other. There were two chairs there, one in front of the other. There used to be only one, but Zhu Yunfeng saw that Zhu Cilang had to stand next to him and it was hard for him, so he installed two chairs.

After all, only one thing represents the emperor's authority; he doesn't need authority.

He was nominally the regent.

However, he often referred to himself as "朕" (Zhen, the imperial "I"), and his actions were countless. In the eyes of his ministers, his behavior was even considered frivolous. He never took the emperor's authority seriously, as long as he was comfortable and pleased with himself.

He even made it so that civil and military officials and palace servants did not have to kneel before him, and he never punished the palace maids and eunuchs for minor, non-principle-related mistakes. He was truly a model of a benevolent ruler.

"Your Highness the Regent, His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived!"

Gao Shiming grabbed the microphone and shouted.

The loudspeakers outside were blaring, much louder than before.

"Greetings to Your Highness the Regent, Your Highness the Crown Prince, may Your Highness live a thousand years!"

The assembled officials bowed and shouted in unison.

"Keep your posture in good condition."

Zhu Yunfeng took out his phone, turned his back to the assembled officials, and held it up to take a selfie.

The background shows officials bowing with their hands clasped in greeting, surrounded by guards and eunuchs, resembling a scene of an early morning court session.

There was a "click".

Another selfie taken on my way to the morning court session.

'It's a pity there's no internet.'

'Or I could post something on WeChat Moments, reminiscing about the days when I attended court.'

"The workplace was simple back then: if you did well, you got promoted; if you didn't, you just got your head chopped off."

"whee."

Zhu Yunfeng chuckled, put his phone away, and then sat down on his dragon throne, raising his hands in a gesture of respect, saying, "Rise."

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

"If you have something to report, report it early. If you don't, leave the court!"

Gao Shiming shouted.

Minister of Revenue Ni Yuanlu stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, after the summer tax revenue was collected this year, according to the Ministry of Revenue's statistics, the total tax revenue for land, salt, and commerce amounted to 12.7 million taels of silver, of which the land tax was 5.72 million taels and the salt tax was 3.6 million taels."

'That's all?'

Zhu Yunfeng thought to himself, but said aloud, "Yes, this year is the first year after the war has just ended. The whole country is reducing taxes on a large scale to allow the people to rest. It's already good enough. There's no need to fight anymore, nor is there any need to pay the royal family and vassal states. So the remaining national treasury expenditure will mainly be used for the salaries of officials, Fan Jingwen."

"The minister is here."

Cabinet Academician Fan Jingwen stepped forward and bowed.

"You have served as Vice Minister of War and Minister of War, so you must be very familiar with the Ministry of War. You will take the lead in investigating the military pay owed by the court to various regions over the years. You will also conduct a thorough investigation of the military personnel in various regions, and investigate the practice of embezzling pay or failing to pay pay. Those generals who embezzle pay should be arrested, imprisoned, and interrogated. Unless there are special circumstances, they should all be executed. After that, once the personnel are identified, the pay owed by the court over the years should be paid in full."

Zhu Yunfeng sighed, “The court has had a hard time these past few years, and Emperor Chongzhen was a muddle-headed fool. He made the soldiers fight not only on empty stomachs, but they couldn’t even take care of their families. This is the court’s fault. Now that the court has recovered, we can’t let the heroes shed blood and tears again. Soldiers like Lu Xiangshan who died on the battlefield must be given pensions and posthumous honors, and their families must be properly settled. This is the main purpose of the taxes collected in recent years. Do you understand?”

"Yes."

Everyone agreed.

Although the Ming Dynasty has now regained stability, its finances are still in considerable difficulty.

Later online sources say that the annual fiscal revenue during the Chongzhen reign was only a little over three million taels of silver, which was seventeen million taels less than during the Wanli reign.

This is actually a rumor.

According to the works of historians and professors such as Huang Renyu, Wan Ming, and Li Bozhong, it can be deduced that the annual fiscal revenue at that time should have been between 1500 million and 2000 million taels of silver.

In his book "A Study on the Monetization of Silver in the Ming Dynasty", Wan Ming, a history professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, estimated that the actual silver revenue at the end of the Chongzhen reign was about 1800 million taels.

Therefore, the annual fiscal revenue during the Chongzhen reign, including summer and autumn taxes as well as the additional three taxes, was not low.

However, this comes at the cost of significant expenses.

Including expenditures for the royal family, vassal states, the military, and officials' salaries, the annual expenditure was close to 4000 million taels of silver, resulting in a serious deficit.

In addition, tax evasion is a very serious problem.

Landlords and gentry shifted the tax burden onto self-cultivating farmers. All commercial taxes, including those for salt merchants, tea merchants, mining merchants, silk merchants, and porcelain merchants, were extremely low, causing the non-agricultural tax rate, which had peaked at 84.7% during the Southern Song Dynasty, to plummet to 5%.

In the Jiangnan region, Zhu Yuanzhang beheaded a large number of landlords, local gentry, and tax-evading merchants. He also distributed land to support self-cultivating farmers and honest tax-paying merchants, gradually restoring agriculture and commerce.

This process is now being implemented across the country.

Tang He's influence extended to Sichuan and Yunnan; Xu Da's influence extended to Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Guizhou; Li Wenzhong's influence extended to Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, and Jiangxi; Feng Sheng's influence extended to Hubei and Henan; and Fu Youde's influence extended to Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Gansu.

Zhu Yunfeng himself was in charge of Hebei and Shandong.

This nationwide land and commercial reform was completed in earnest this year.

According to statistics, over a million corrupt officials, landlords, local bullies, and tax evaders have been executed across the country.

Large tracts of land were allocated to the government for unified management of grain and salt production, and high-yield crops were widely promoted to ensure price stability.

However, this is only the first year of the governance, and agriculture and commerce have not yet fully recovered.

In addition, Zhu Yunfeng abolished the three taxes and a large number of exorbitant levies, and also reduced taxes nationwide, lightened corvée labor, and allowed the people to rest.

As a result, although agricultural and commercial taxes can now be collected nationwide and tax evasion has decreased significantly, the amount of tax collected is still very small, just like before.

This year's summer tax revenue was only 12 million taels, while the autumn tax revenue will be much less. During the Little Ice Age, many places were unable to grow grain in the autumn and winter, which exacerbated the situation.

Therefore, it is estimated that the tax revenue collected this year will be around 1800 million taels, which is similar to previous years.

But that's pretty good.

In previous years, with the addition of three additional taxes, the total amount could barely reach 1800 million taels.

This year, even with the abolition of the three taxes and the reduction of so many other taxes, the total amount is still on par with previous years. In addition, the assets of so many corrupt officials, landlords, local bullies, bandits, and tax-evading merchants that were seized are close to 100 million taels of silver.

Without the need to support the imperial family as before, as long as the Ming Dynasty doesn't emulate Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Yang of Sui by undertaking some extremely extravagant national-level projects, and avoids excessive spending and waste, its savings can last for a long time.

Then came other official business, which Zhu Yunfeng was already very familiar with and handled one by one. He didn't leave the court until noon to continue his work.

(End of this chapter)