The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 132 The Ming Dynasty Financial Conference!

Winter of the seventh year of Yongle, on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month.

It snowed yesterday, freezing people's hands and feet, and the palace was a vast expanse of white.

Li Xianmu and the other cabinet ministers, each wearing a thick cloak, headed towards the Huagai Hall. Looking up, they saw countless black dots moving in the snow-white space. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that these were palace servants cleaning. The further they went into the palace, the more densely packed eunuchs and palace maids stood everywhere.

"Snowfall so close to the New Year is an auspicious sign."

"Yes, if it doesn't snow soon, Beizhili will probably suffer a severe drought next year."

"Let's hurry up and go, we can't fall behind the Nine Ministers."

The group, who were chatting and laughing, quickened their pace.

Upon entering the Huagai Hall, they immediately felt a warm breeze, which helped to thaw their frozen hands and faces.

Li Xianmu glanced around the hall. The emperor and the nine ministers had not yet arrived. There were several bronze censers in the hall, with dragons and auspicious clouds cast on the outside. They were obviously imperial artifacts. The censers burned smokeless silver wire charcoal, each inch long but worth a thousand gold pieces.

The burning house was warm as spring, dispelling the chill.

After a while, the group chatted about the day's events. "I wonder which department's matter was difficult to pass today, Mingda, what do you think?"

Yang Rong turned to look at Li Xianmu.

Today is the year-end expenditure summary for the seventh year of Yongle's reign, and all expenditures must come to an end.

"Naturally, it's the Ministry of Revenue. Starting from the first year of the Yongle reign, there has been a dispute over the Ministry of Revenue's registers every year."

"Besides the Ministry of Revenue?"

"It seems we'll see several dukes and marquises arguing at the Six Armies Commandery today."

Now everyone became curious. They all knew that Li Xianmu's father-in-law was the Duke of Yingguo. Could there be some inside story behind his words?
Before long, the six ministries, nine ministers, five governors, dukes and marquises all arrived.

Duke Zhang Fu of England nodded to Li Xianmu, and then went to sit down in the first chair on the left.

The dukes and marquises, all dressed in crimson and purple robes, looked at the group of civil officials. Though they did not show it on their faces, their eyes held a hint of arrogance.

During the Yongle era, nobles were far superior to civil officials; one was a shareholder who shared the fate of the nation, while the other was merely an employee.

The hall was soon packed with people, so low-ranking scholars like Li Xianmu had to move to the back to make room for these important figures.

Not long after, the emperor finally arrived with his three sons who had stayed in the capital. Snow and wind swept in through the wide-open palace doors, and he plopped down on the throne.

Perhaps the palace doors weren't closed properly, because the cold wind from outside, carrying snowflakes, drifted in through the cracks.

Yang Shiqi and the other people from Jiangnan all shivered, while Zhu Di, who had lived in Beijing for many years, clearly enjoyed the feeling of being in a greenhouse but with a cold wind blowing on his face.

A moment later, a clear and melodious metallic sound rang out.

The meeting began.

Zhu Di raised his chin slightly. "According to past practice, let's start with the Ministry of Revenue."

"As is customary, let me first talk about the taxes collected this year."

Xia Yuanji cleared his throat and began to recount the various taxes levied in the seventh year of the Yongle reign, as if reciting a familiar list: "30 million shi of grain... silk... gold... silver 300,000 taels..."

The equivalent in cash is approximately 25 million strings of cash.

Many people felt a headache coming on when they heard the last twenty-five million strings of cash, and only then did they slowly relax.

The "guan" here refers to real money, not the paper money that has become worthless.

Li Xianmu had heard his father say that the best way to collect taxes was to directly collect money with a stable value.

The precious paper was originally perfect.

But it was ruined by the emperor's greed.

The Ming Dynasty only issued paper money (baochao) but did not mint many copper coins, which led to both inflation caused by paper money and deflation caused by a lack of copper coins for transactions.

The imperial court used paper money to pay salaries and for various other purposes, but it did not collect paper money when collecting taxes, which was extremely shameless and comparable to the bald gold yuan.

Therefore, the Ming Dynasty could only collect taxes in kind, and then roughly convert them into a price, which is the origin of the 25 million strings of cash.

The voice of Xia Yuanji, the Minister of Revenue, still lingered in everyone's ears: "This year's various expenditures amounted to approximately 42 million strings of cash, resulting in a deficit of 17 million strings of cash. This year's grain supply was insufficient, and we even had to draw grain from the granaries surrounding the capital to survive this winter."

As Zhu Di listened to these words, he narrowed his eyes slightly and tapped the head of the dragon throne with his finger. The atmosphere in the hall became somewhat somber. No one had expected that there would be such a large deficit this year.

It cost almost two years' worth of taxes in just one year!
In an instant, everyone's attention turned to the emperor.

What do you suggest we do?
This is the disadvantage of not having a prime minister system. If there were a prime minister, these matters would be first discussed with him, instead of having no one to preside over even a royal meeting, and the emperor having to take the lead in everything.

The Jiajing Emperor understood this point and thus significantly elevated the status of the Grand Secretariat.

The Grand Secretary system was truly established during the Jiajing reign, which allowed him to rest easy.

"continue."

Zhu Di was very calm and composed.

Xia Yuanji continued, “This year’s main expenditures are the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of War. The Ministry of Rites also has a large expenditure. The Ministry of Works spends 15 million strings of cash a year, the Ministry of War spends 10 million strings of cash, and the Ministry of Rites spends 5 million strings of cash. In addition to the annual expenditures, each of them has at least 3 million strings of cash in additional expenditures.”

The Minister of Works couldn't sit still any longer and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, this year, in order to move the capital as soon as possible and quickly open the last section of the canal, we have exceeded our budget. This has all been reported."

In the middle of the year, it was said that maritime transport would be opened and would be put into use in March of the following year. The waterways leading to Tianjin and Dadu during the Yuan Dynasty were silted up, so they had to be dredged again with extra work.

Furthermore, many special grain transport ships need to be built.

Furthermore, the construction of cities in Qiongzhou and Jiaozhi to house troops would be extremely costly.

To be honest, this 15 million strings of cash is just a drop in the bucket. If we really want to build cities and garrisons in Jiaozhi and Qiongzhou, we will need to spend at least 3 million strings of cash every year for the next five years.

Although grain supplies were transported by sea, ships would capsize every year, requiring the rebuilding of vessels, which was a considerable expense.

Although the canal is no longer used for transporting grain, its annual maintenance still incurs a considerable expense.

The palace is not yet fully completed. According to my estimate, it will take at least another ten years to complete, and the annual expenditure will still be at least two million.

This 15 million strings of cash will definitely not be enough for next year.

The only sound in the hall was the complaint of Song Li, the Minister of Works, all of which sounded like legitimate expenditures.

But it's terrifying that a Ministry of Works consumes half of the government's budget in a year.

Whether it's shipping or stationing troops overseas, both are extremely expensive endeavors. Even the mighty Han and Tang dynasties couldn't withstand the pressure and eventually had to withdraw their troops from thousands of miles away.

Even the United States, the world's hegemon in later generations, could not withstand the drain of so many overseas bases and had to retreat strategically.

Many people believe that it is sufficient for the local country to bear the military expenses.

Li Qi's suggestion was still—"I suggest you play CK3 and max out the colony's resources and loyalty."

If the Ming Dynasty hadn't been able to travel by sea to Jiaozhi, saving at least several months of travel expenses, Li Xianmu would never have suggested stationing troops in Jiaozhi.

The emperor gently tapped the armrest of the dragon throne, pondered for a long time, and then turned his gaze to Li Xianmu and other cabinet ministers.

In these high-level imperial meetings, the presence of cabinet ministers was very prominent, because they were the emperor's secretaries and had no major ties with other ministries, so their opinions were of great importance.

Even if most of the money spent by the Ministry of Works was actually useful, given the usual bureaucratic practices, Li Xianmu didn't believe there wasn't something fishy going on.

"Li Xianmu, what do you think?"

Li Xianmu stepped out from behind the crowd and said loudly, "Just now, Minister Song complained to Your Majesty. After listening to him, I felt that the Ministry of Works was indeed in a difficult situation."

However, building palaces, canals, ships, and cities overseas are all major national undertakings that cannot be stopped.

I believe that everyone has their own area of ​​expertise.

Since Minister Song considers these to be burdens, I suggest that the affairs of the Grand Canal and shipbuilding be transferred to the Maritime Transport Office.

The construction of overseas cities was handed over to the Ministry of War, which happened to be responsible for logistics for the Five Military Commissions. It was just right to entrust it to the Ministry of War.

"Repairing palaces is a traditional duty of the Ministry of Works, so I will not interfere further."

Before Li Xianmu could finish speaking, Song Li, the Minister of Works, was already dumbfounded. How could the Ministry of Works' affairs have suddenly all fallen apart?

Although these things are indeed not easy to do, they are also very lucrative, and holding these positions is itself a form of power!
"absurd!"

Song Li retorted almost reflexively.

"What did Minister Song find absurd?"

Li Xianmu countered with a question, and everyone leisurely watched the play. "The Ministry of Works has a large number of skilled craftsmen and officials, as do the other ministries..."

Li Xianmu interrupted him directly, saying sternly, "Then these skilled craftsmen and officials will be assigned directly to the various ministries!"
"We are all subjects of the Ming Dynasty. What difference does it make whether we are in the Ministry of Works or any other ministry?"

Song Li was speechless for a moment, and could only say indignantly, "The important military and national affairs of the Six Ministries are none of a child's business."

Li Xianmu's eyes were cold. Song Li was the only northerner among the six ministers. He should have been an ally, but this man had too many problems. He had no sense of national responsibility, which led Li Xianmu to attack him several times. After today's division of the Ministry of Works' powers, the two had completely broken off relations.

But the final decision still rests with the emperor, and after watching the play, everyone turned their attention to him.

Zhu Di said, "Li Xianmu is right. The Ministry of Works has too many affairs this year. The affairs of each department should be sorted out."

Now that a new Maritime Transport Office has been established, all matters related to grain transport and maritime transport should be transferred to it, so that maritime affairs can be properly managed in the future.

The construction of garrison cities overseas was primarily a matter of communication between the Ministry of War and the Naval Commandery; involving the Ministry of Works in this was indeed inappropriate.

Li Xianmu and the others immediately praised in unison, "Your Majesty's wisdom and wisdom are unparalleled!"

The emperor made the final decision, and Song Li's face turned ashen.

Li Xianmu glanced at him, a cold glint in his eyes. He simply couldn't believe that the Ministry of Works could resist corruption when faced with 15 million strings of cash!

Zhu Di also turned his head slightly to look at Song Li. Over the past two years, he and Li Xianmu had developed a tacit understanding.

When Li Xianmu suddenly wanted to divide up the powers of the Ministry of Works, he quickly realized that Li Xianmu believed that there were people in the Ministry of Works who were embezzling, so he divided up these lucrative matters so that they would be easier to investigate in the future.

“I do not hate corruption as much as the late emperor, but I am short of money for war and building palaces, and you still dare to embezzle my money. You are really audacious and ignorant of death. It seems that Ji Gang’s knife is not sharp enough.”

Zhu Di did not immediately retaliate, but instead turned his gaze to the Ministry of War.

Minister of War Liu Jun remained calm. "There has been unusual activity in the southwest this year. The Duke of Qian submitted a memorial, and His Majesty allocated 500,000 strings of cash for military expenses."

Most importantly, this year's northern expedition against the Mongols cost three million strings of cash, and the compensation for the wounded and injured soldiers cost one million strings of cash. His Majesty, out of compassion for the soldiers' hard work, added another 30% to the rewards, which is another two million strings of cash.

Based on previous years' data, half of these will not be needed.

Liu Jun's voice was full of resentment.

The Ming Dynasty implemented the garrison system. Although the military strength was terrible, it not only did not cost money to support a million-strong army, but it could also collect grain taxes.

"The Tatar invasion of the border is inevitable."

Zhu Di waved his hand and skipped the matter, saying that there was nothing to discuss about the northern expedition, and that some money should be spent.

The emperor's words were clear to all the ministers: he intended to launch another northern expedition in the future.

But I couldn't persuade them otherwise, so I could only sigh inwardly.

Li Xianmu seemed to be deep in thought.

After two years of getting to know each other, Zhu Di knew that Li Xianmu had the talent of a prime minister and was no less capable than his father in many ways. Seeing that Li Xianmu's expression changed, he immediately asked, "Li Xianmu, do you have something to say again?"

Li Xianmu stepped forward again under the gaze of everyone with some helplessness. "Your Majesty, I just remembered what my father once said: 'A good start prevents a hundred bad ones.' Your Majesty's northern expedition is a matter of great importance and should not be stopped because of some money and provisions."

However, both the Tatars and the Oirats have already shown signs of submission.

Perhaps we don't need to send large armies every time; the military expenditure is simply too staggering. The trade policy should be implemented as soon as possible.

Trade between countries.

The civil officials in the hall were all quite moved upon hearing this.

There was a long period of peace in Chinese history, but it may sound humiliating to the Han people: the century-long peace between the Song and Liao dynasties. The two great powers coexisted in the world, but after the Treaty of Chanyuan, there were almost no major conflicts for a century.

This is undoubtedly a miracle in ancient history.

The essence of this century of peace was actually the continuous trade between the two dynasties, which integrated the economy of the Liao Dynasty and the Song Dynasty. Fighting would not have brought any benefits; on the contrary, it would have made things more difficult for both sides. Later generations referred to this as the "Song-Liao couple theory".

Although it's embarrassing to talk about, it proves that economic integration can prevent war.

To put it bluntly, the Ming Dynasty had a population of 50 million, while the nomadic tribes only numbered a million. Even if they were supported for nothing, they wouldn't be able to bring down the Ming Dynasty.

The essence of the Qing Dynasty's ability to control Mongolia was that it spent this money to make arrangements for Mongolia from top to bottom.

The cost of supporting these people may be less than the military expenditure, and besides, nomadic herding can still produce some output.

Zhu Di said in a deep voice, "I will consider it."

As for the Minister of Rites, Zhu Di stopped him before he could speak, because Zhu Di himself could guess that it was nothing more than moving the capital, offering sacrifices, rewarding princes and dukes, and holding celebrations. This year, a lot of money was indeed spent on these matters.

Since that's the case, the six ministries have now finished their reports, each with detailed items, and it remains to be seen what the emperor will say.

The candles in the hall crackled and popped, and the hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Zhu Di pondered and said, "This year, the Ming Dynasty completed the major task of relocating the capital, and also won a great victory in the northern expedition against the Mongols, which relieved the Ming Dynasty of the threat from the north. The Grand Canal connected the north and south, and we also gained a way to control Jiaozhi. This is a glorious year."

After saying that, he paused.

After a short while, all the ministers in the hall chorused, "Your Majesty is wise and exceptionally gifted!"

Zhu Di's eyebrows lifted slightly in delight. "However, the court is indeed somewhat exhausted, and such a large deficit cannot be ignored."

I will state my position first: this year, palace expenses will be cut by one-third.

Then, until the tenth year of the Yongle reign, for the next three years, I did not launch any more northern expeditions, and the construction of the palace was also suspended; the current facilities are sufficient.”

The emperor's concession was considerable, which eased the tension among the officials.

Only the King of Han shouted, "Father!"
If the Tatars are defeated, the Oirats will become too powerful. Only by personally leading an expedition against the Oirats can we maintain peace on the border forever!
These pedantic scholars know nothing but greed for money and grain. You…”

Zhu Di glared at Zhu Gaoxu and roared, "Shut up!"

Zhu Gaoxu lowered his head dejectedly.

Zhu Gaochi's chubby face still wore a smile, as if nothing had happened.

"Next year, we will all work together to overcome difficulties."

Zhu Di, like a master of changing faces, said in a warm tone, "It doesn't matter if the taxes are a little lower, we can issue more paper money."

Moreover, next year, transporting grain by sea will significantly reduce expenses, while more grain will be transported from Jiangnan, at which point the imperial court should be somewhat wealthy.

Issuing more paper money is a way to collect more taxes. Using paper money to plunder the wealth of the people is an old trick.

Li Xianmu closed his eyes slightly, pretending not to have heard those words.

He didn't know what to do either.

The emperor has already suspended all private matters; what remains are official matters, which cannot be ignored.

The establishment of garrisons in Jiaozhi was a major event concerning the fate of the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years to come, and it had to be done even if it meant tightening our belts.

But for such a large empire to have depleted its national strength to this extent by doing just a few things is truly outrageous.

Li Xianmu muttered to himself, "The fiscal and tax system still has major problems; the in-kind tax has too many shortcomings."

Was the Ming Dynasty's tax revenue really 25 million strings of cash?
Thirty million shi of grain, with a price fluctuation of 10%, would cost over a million guan (a unit of currency). How much of that was spent on the journey?

What about during use?
This kind of in-kind tax is too prone to problems, and has even led to cases like the blank printing scandal.

If everything were converted into silver coins, this problem would not exist.

But where did they get so much money?

The Ming Dynasty needed to inject at least several million copper coins into the market every year, but only 10 strings of Yongle Tongbao coins were produced annually, with most of them flowing overseas.

Li Xianmu thought of that jade slip.

It's already the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, and the day after tomorrow is the first day of the first lunar month. Will Father have a solution?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Starting from the first year of the Yongle reign, under the leadership of Li Qi, the Ming Dynasty implemented a fiscal budget system, holding an imperial conference on the 28th or 29th day of the twelfth lunar month each year to review the political, economic, and military situation of the entire year.

This system became increasingly important in the years that followed, and it could even determine the policy direction of the Ming Dynasty for years to come.

For example, at the imperial conference at the end of the seventh year of the Yongle reign, it was decided that there would be no war for three years!
And this is not an isolated case.

To study the history and politics of the Ming Dynasty, one must thoroughly review the content of its annual meetings! — "The Annual Financial Meetings of the Ming Dynasty"

(End of this chapter)