My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 63 If I don’t do something earth-shattering, wouldn’t my journey through time be in vain?
When he saw this scene, Sun Chuanting knew that the following conversation must be very important, and he immediately became extremely alert.

Zhu Cilang looked at Sun Chuanting and said slowly:

"Lord Sun, I know you are a loyal minister and general who is willing to sacrifice his life for the country, so I have something to say to you."

When Sun Chuanting heard this, he was excited and quickly replied:
"Thank you, Your Highness, for your kindness. This is my duty."

Zhu Cilang nodded, then gestured for Sun Chuanting to sit on a chair before speaking:

"Since the Qin and Han dynasties, almost all Chinese dynasties have been unable to escape the fate of lasting 300 years. For example, the Qin dynasty lasted 14 years, the Eastern Han and Western Han dynasties lasted 200 years each, the Sui dynasty lasted 4 years, the Tang dynasty lasted more than 200 years, and the Song and Yuan dynasties lasted even longer."

"Master Sun, do you know why this is happening?"

Sun Chuanting was slightly stunned when he heard this, as if he had not expected Zhu Cilang to discuss such a profound topic with him.

But then he still said:

"I have a rough idea of what I know. It's because of the corruption of court officials in the last years of the dynasty, coupled with natural and man-made disasters, tax collection was difficult, which led to numerous conflicts and ultimately triggered various peasant uprisings."

"There are also foreign invasions that lead to the country"

"wrong."

Before he could finish, Zhu Cilang interrupted him.

Upon hearing this, Sun Chuanting shut up immediately and looked at Zhu Cilang with some confusion.

He thinks what he said is right?
Zhu Cilang said seriously:

"What you said is indeed correct, but it is not the main reason. The main reason is actually land annexation!"

"Many dynasties in history did not last more than three hundred years. Ultimately, this is because the limit of land annexation is three hundred years."

"From the beginning to the end of the dynasty, over a period of three hundred years, the annexation of land throughout the world reached an unprecedented peak."

"Bureaucrats and landlords seized large amounts of farmers' land through purchase, mortgage, and seizure, causing farmers to lose their land and become either tenants or refugees."

"In addition, those scholars would also occupy a large amount of land because they also don't need to pay taxes."

"In addition, ordinary people who couldn't pay taxes would register their land in the names of these literati, which led to a large concentration of land in the hands of the bureaucracy."

"In this way, the people lost their land and eventually became refugees."

"And these enclosed lands were exempt from taxation, which led to the court's tax revenue decreasing until it could no longer be collected."

"Over time, the dynasty will fall."

"For example, in the current Ming Dynasty, the problem of land annexation has become very serious."

"Most of the peasant armies led by Li Zicheng had lost their land and were unable to afford food, so they had no choice but to follow Li Zicheng in rebellion."

"Because if they don't rebel, they will starve to death!"

"In that case, why not give it a try?"

"If nothing unexpected happens, the Ming Dynasty may not be able to overcome this three hundred year hurdle."

At this moment, Sun Chuanting was completely shocked by the prince in front of him.

Because he was surprised to find that what Zhu Cilang said was absolutely right.

Ultimately, the main reason for the dynasty's fall was actually land annexation. If there had been no land annexation, and everyone had land to farm and food to eat, why would they risk genocide by rebelling?
Even if foreign races invade, these common people will carry hoes and drive them out!

At the same time, Sun Chuanting finally understood what Zhu Cilang was going to do next.

The next second, he asked:
"Your Highness, do you wish to investigate the land holdings of the land?"

Zhu Cilang shook his head.

"Not only do I want to investigate the land use rights of the land, I also want to reform the tax system."

"Under the new tax system, everyone must pay taxes, regardless of whether you are a royal relative, an official, a landlord or a farmer."

"Simply put, it means abolishing the tax-free privilege of everyone in the world."

When Sun Chuanting heard this, he felt like he was struck by lightning.

You know, the rule that gentry do not pay taxes has been passed down in China for more than two thousand years, and Zhu Cilang's actions are tantamount to creating the world!
To put it bluntly, if their conversation today were to get out, Sun Chuanting would be killed the next day.

Because the people and interests involved are so huge!
Zhu Cilang naturally knew what Sun Chuanting was afraid of at the moment, but in order to solve the problem of land annexation in the late Ming Dynasty, this was the next thing that had to be done.

Otherwise, even if Zhu Cilang really defeated Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng and eliminated the Jiannu, it would only allow the Ming Dynasty to last for a few more decades.

A few decades later, the land annexation problem will still break out, and new Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng will appear, and the Ming Dynasty will usher in a new cycle of hell.

If that’s the case, why not just address the problem at its root?

Of course, this is extremely difficult, as difficult as climbing to the sky!
But if he traveled through time and space and didn't do anything earth-shattering, then wouldn't his travel have been in vain?
Seeing that Sun Chuanting was still in shock, Zhu Cilang directly pulled out a piece of paper from the imperial desk, then walked down and handed it to Sun Chuanting.

Sun Chuanting took it and looked at it, only to see a few lines of words written on it:
"We serve as one, pay taxes as one, and distribute taxes according to the land."

There is a detailed introduction below.

There is no doubt that this was the national policy implemented by the Qing Emperor Yongzheng at that time, and it has passed the test of history, proving that this plan is completely feasible!
Zhu Cilang hated the Jiannu and their emperor, but he could not hate Yongzheng at all.

After reading the above content, Sun Chuanting's pupils suddenly dilated, and he instantly felt that the rice paper in his hand was as heavy as ten thousand pounds.

He certainly knew that if he could truly achieve the above, the entire world would be completely stable and would last for at least three hundred years.

However, it is almost impossible to implement the above contents, because it will offend all the royal relatives, officials, and literati in the world.

Thinking of this, Sun Chuanting looked at Zhu Cilang with a complicated expression.

Zhu Cilang patted his shoulder and comforted him:

"I know what you are going to say, and I also know this is difficult, but for the sake of Ming, we must continue no matter how difficult it is."

"You don't want to see figures like Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong appear again in the Ming Dynasty decades later when you are old and frail, do you?"

"Something has to be done to solve these problems once and for all."

"For the sake of the Ming Dynasty and its people, this matter must be done."

Sun Chuanting was silent.

At the same time, he also knew that the prince in front of him regarded him as his absolute confidant.

Because apart from the absolute confidants, it is impossible to let other people know about this kind of thing.

(End of this chapter)