My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 28 Xu Jie’s resignation
When it comes to the money method, Su Ze immediately understood.

The Ming Dynasty faced serious currency problems from the very beginning.

This currency problem is different from the inflation that modern people often encounter. The Ming Dynasty has suffered from deflation since its founding.

There are many reasons for deflation. The reason for deflation in the Ming Dynasty was relatively simple. The amount of currency could not keep up with the scale of the commodity economy, resulting in a lack of circulating currency in the market and the problem of cheap grain and expensive money.

Of course, the reasons for this phenomenon are very complicated. For example, copper mines were almost exhausted by the Song Dynasty, and there was a shortage of copper for minting coins in the Ming Dynasty.

For example, the foreign trade of the Song and Yuan dynasties led to the outflow of a large amount of copper coins. For example, the copper coins used in Japan came from the Central Plains. The currencies of Vietnam, North Korea and other countries were also copper coins from the Central Plains.

There is also the rampant private minting of coins, which has led to bad coins driving out good ones and causing chaos in market transactions.

A big part of the reason why Zhu Yuanzhang issued Baochao was to alleviate the problem of silver and money shortage since the Song and Yuan dynasties.

Of course, Baochao collapsed in the end.

During the Longqing period, the problem of currency system had become very serious.

Manager Huang said:
"Since Your Majesty ascended the throne, the monetary system in the capital region has been disrupted. There is no silver or money trading in the capital, and many markets outside the city have begun to use barter."

"Officials from the Ministry of Revenue have repeatedly submitted petitions requesting that the money laws be improved, but they have been unable to come up with any effective solutions."

"The money system was so stagnant that ordinary people didn't dare to grow cotton. They could only grow grain to protect themselves and then exchange it for other things."

Su Ze was dumbfounded. The capital of the great Ming Dynasty had actually degenerated to the stage of barter.

That’s right, when there is no money available, food is the most stable general equivalent.

How could people dare to grow cotton at that time? If they couldn't sell it, their whole family would starve to death.

So although we have clearly developed into the commodity economy era, we have regressed to the small peasant economy era due to the lack of currency.

Also because cotton cultivation in the north was unstable, landlords in Suzhou and Songjiang began to grow cotton on their own land.

Of course, the lack of currency in the capital meant that wealth was more concentrated in the southeast region.

In essence, the failure of monetary law meant that the court had lost control of its finances.

The seeds of the Southeastern Gentry Group's difficulty in getting rid of its power had already been sown at this time.

Su Ze thought for a while, but couldn't think of a way to clear the money.

After taking out the money to buy the stationery, Manager Huang did not argue with Su Ze about it, but accepted it calmly.

This "professional" attitude gave Su Ze a better impression of him.

Once again, I feel that Manager Huang is indeed very good at dealing with people. He makes you feel respected, but he is not fawning or flattering. For the Jiangnan literati who pride themselves on being pure and honest, this is the best way to get closer to him.

Su Ze has just entered the officialdom and already has so many things to deal with. If he gets promoted in the future, these interpersonal relationships alone will require a lot of energy.

It would be great if I could have someone like Manager Huang to help me with daily affairs.

That’s right! Su Ze suddenly had an idea and asked:
"Manager Huang, can the guild hall help recruit assistants?"

A muyou, also known as a muke or a mentor, is an advisor who helps officials handle affairs.

For example, Xu Wei, who helped Hu Zongxian suppress the rebellion, assisted Hu Zongxian as a counselor and helped Hu Zongxian handle government affairs and make suggestions.

Manager Huang immediately said:
"I'll have someone ask among the fellow townspeople if there's anyone willing to work as a staff assistant at your house."

But Su Ze thought about his limited funds and said quickly:

"No rush, no rush. I'm just asking. We'll talk about it when we find a suitable candidate."

Huang Guanshi was very good at dealing with people, so he immediately said, "Of course. When selecting a counselor for Su Hanlin, we must carefully select someone who is both virtuous and academically outstanding."

Su Ze returned home with satisfaction. He spread out the [Home Planting Mat], adjusted the land to sandy loam, and planted the cotton seeds he had bought. He wondered to what extent this prop could "greatly speed up the maturity of crops" as claimed.

Looking at the [Portable Ming Dynasty Court], Su Ze began to think about the memorial to be submitted next month.
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On June 11, Su Ze came to the History Museum again. As soon as he entered the door, he saw Shen Yikuan who had a lot to say.

Shen Yiguan hurriedly pulled Su Ze into the public housing, and he immediately said:

"Lord Xu has been implicated!"

"Isn't it normal for the elder to be impeached?"

The impeachment of the cabinet minister is a characteristic of the Ming Dynasty and must be experienced.

Su Ze looked at Shen Yikuan. In the history before he traveled through time, even though you became a cabinet minister in the future, you were also impeached every now and then.

Shen Yiguan said again:

"Lord Xu has already submitted a petition requesting retirement!"

"Isn't it normal for a cabinet minister to ask for resignation after being impeached?"

It was normal for cabinet ministers to submit petitions for resignation when they were impeached. Sometimes this was to show their attitude of admitting their mistakes and requesting punishment from the emperor. Other times, this was to put pressure on the emperor to suppress the officials by resigning.

As a cabinet minister, Xu Jie asked for retirement at least eight times a year.

Shen Yiguan said with sweat on his forehead:
"Lord Xu's petition for retirement has been retained by His Majesty!"

This time Su Ze became serious.

When a cabinet minister asked for resignation, the normal practice was for the emperor to issue an edict to comfort and retain him, and then reprimand and punish the censor who impeached the cabinet minister to show his support for the cabinet minister.

However, the emperor kept Xu Jie's memorial requesting retirement, which meant that the emperor was really considering letting Xu Jie retire.

Although the emperor simply refused to approve the request, according to the political conventions of the Ming Dynasty, Xu Jie had to submit another petition for retirement.

In other words, Xu Jie's removal from the position of prime minister was a foregone conclusion.

The system's prediction turned out to be correct! Xu Jie was dismissed from his position as prime minister in June.

Su Ze asked, "Who wrote the letter to impeach Lord Xu?"

Shen Yiguan showed a smug expression, as if to say that you, Su Zilin, would also ask me, but he did not keep it a secret and said directly:
"It's Zhang Yingzhi, the Nanjing Rites Department."

"Nanjing?" Su Ze murmured:
"Could it be something about Elder Xu's hometown in Songjiang?"

Shen Yikuan looked at Su Ze, secretly admiring him for being a person valued by the bigwigs in the court. He could even guess the content of the impeachment from the person who impeached.

"Exactly! Zhang Yingzhi impeached Lord Xu for allowing his children to bring disaster to the village. He also said that Lord Xu, despite being a minister of the Ming Dynasty, had led the Xu family of Songjiang to default on taxes, with the accumulated arrears reaching tens of thousands of taels! He even led the gentry of Songjiang in resisting the tax."

Su Ze took a breath. What a sharp memorial!

If it is the former, indulging children is not a big crime in the Ming Dynasty. At most, it can be regarded as Xu Ge Lao's failure to manage the family strictly, and a reprimand will be enough.

At worst, Xu Jie could just sacrifice his own family for the sake of justice, and the matter would be over.

However, the nature of taking the lead in resisting taxes is different. It is a tradition for gentry in Jiangnan to default on taxes to the court. However, Xu Jie, as the son of the prime minister of the cabinet, resisted taxes, which changed the nature of the matter.

Moreover, the national treasury is now empty. In the north, Anda is attacking the border, and the Japanese invasion in the southeast has just been quelled. The capital's currency system is not in place and there is not enough financial support.

You, Xu Jie, own a large amount of fertile land, but you also take the lead in resisting taxes. What does the emperor think?
This memorial was kept by Emperor Longqing and not sent out. Su Ze estimated that Xu Jie's position as Prime Minister was already in the countdown stage.

(End of this chapter)