Ming Dynasty: Moral blackmail? I, Emperor Chongzhen, have no morals!

Chapter 94 The Strange Water Power of the Ming Dynasty

Zhu Jian glanced at Song Xuezhu, who was kneeling on the ground in a red official robe: "These people paid themselves their own salaries, didn't they?"

Song Xuezhu lowered his head and remained silent, indicating his acquiescence, but he did not accuse anyone from the governor's office, the provincial administration commissioner's office, or the provincial judicial commissioner's office.

Zhu Jian paused for a moment, then slowly said, "That's enough!"

"I have witnessed Song Zhongcheng's diligent and responsible service in Shandong. Send the remaining 800,000 taels of silver as payment! Use the confiscated houses in Laizhou and Dengzhou for disaster relief. All confiscated land will be transferred to the Agricultural Reclamation Bureau to establish reclamation areas!"

After saying this, he reminded Song Xuezhu again: "I don't want to hear about similar incidents happening in other prefectures and counties of Shandong!"

Zhu Jian did not demand excessive integrity from people. He understood the principle that "if the water is too clear, there will be no fish." Previously, he had mobilized the army to confiscate homes, with the aim of seizing military power and letting the border soldiers share in the spoils. After all, they were on the front line of the war of defense, and their lives were uncertain. Taking a little something was not a problem.

The authority of the imperial power comes from these people.

Now a similar situation has emerged in Shandong. The governor's office and other provincial officials are extremely obedient, partly because they are also deterred by the emperor's military might.

Furthermore, these people also wanted to punish the officials and gentry of the seven counties who had arbitrarily collected taxes, using the proceeds to subsidize the government's expenses. This was considered disobeying imperial orders and could incite popular uprisings, making it an unassailable case that no one in the court could plead for. Therefore, the provincial government set its sights on this wealth.

Today the emperor came to Laizhou, so the emperor took the lion's share, and they accepted it because they knew that as long as the emperor took the money, their faults would be absolved, the rioting people would also be absolved, and the rest would be the responsibility of the officials and gentry of the seven counties.

It could also be said that there is no way to verify the facts since the dead are dead.

"On behalf of the officials of Shandong, I kowtow to thank Your Majesty for your grace!" After saying this, Song Xuezhu bowed, slowly stood up, took two steps back, and left the Laizhou government office.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and back as he walked.

After an unknown amount of time, Song Xuezhu finally returned to a residence, which was the temporary office of the Shandong governor. As soon as he entered the hall, he slumped into a chair.

Seeing this, the advisor stepped forward to pour Song Xuezhu a cup of tea, then slowly walked behind him, patted his shoulders, and asked in a low voice, "Your Excellency, His Majesty..."

Song Xuezhu drank a cup of tea and let out a long sigh: "His Majesty said that's settled, and ordered the remaining 800,000 taels to be sent to Laizhou Prefecture!"

"Your Majesty is wise!" the advisor chimed in.

Song Xuezhu waved his hand: "Go quickly and deliver the gold and silver seized from the confiscated property to His Majesty!"

"Yes! I'll take care of it right away!"

As the advisor walked, he pondered: the emperor eats the meat while they drink the soup, and only then can the Ming Dynasty survive. It seems the emperor's methods are far more powerful than he thought.

A few days later, the staff gathered all the confiscated property together, piled it up in the courtyard of the governor's temporary office, and sent it to Laizhou Prefecture.

"Your Excellency, everything has been organized. Here are the account books!" With that, he stepped forward and respectfully placed a booklet next to Song Xuezhu.

Song Xuezhu nodded: "I will go now. You should go with me. If His Majesty asks any questions, you will have something to add."

"Yes!" The advisor's face remained calm, but he was overjoyed inside. Being able to meet the emperor was his greatest honor.

Before long, Song Xuezhu escorted the gold and silver to Laizhou Prefecture. After directing the unloading of the carts, he ran up to Inspector Zhu and said, "Your Majesty, the confiscated gold and silver, equivalent to more than 800,000 taels of silver, has all been transported to the prefecture!"

"How much loose gold and silver is there?" Zhu Jian asked.

The advisor kneeling beside Song Xuezhu, seeing Song Xuezhu speechless, quickly replied, "Your Majesty, we have 470,000 taels of silver, 8,500 taels of gold, and 210,000 taels of silver in grain and silk!"

After hearing this, Zhu Jian's gaze fell on the person kneeling next to Song Xuezhu, and he sized him up for a moment: "Are you from the Governor's Office?"

"I am Li Wentong, and I am the accountant at the Governor's Office!"

"Your accounting skills are quite good!"

"Song Xuezhu, when you see a statistics bureau in the governor's office, appoint Li Wentong as its director, a seventh-rank official."

"As you command," replied Song Xuezhu, the governor of Shandong.

Upon hearing that he held the rank of seventh grade, Li Wentong was overjoyed. He had never imagined that after a lifetime of calculating, he would actually attain an official position. He quickly replied, "This humble servant kowtows in gratitude to Your Majesty for your divine grace!"

He was originally an accountant in the governor's office. When the governor of Shandong, Song Xuezhu, saw that this man was capable in accounting and handling affairs, he took him under his wing. Now he has been promoted to a formal official, which made him overjoyed.

Currently, the Military and Political Bureau has a Statistics Department, and Inspector Zhu also plans to establish Statistics Bureaus under the provincial governors' offices for future large-scale statistical work. Currently, each government office has its own accounting office, and statistical standards vary widely, so it is necessary to establish unified statistical standards. The accounting offices of each government office will be considered their internal accounts, while the Statistics Department will be their external accounts…

"Song Xuezhu, go and finish the rest of the work."

"Your subject takes his leave."

After Song Xuezhu and Li Wentong left, Zhu Jian ordered the soldiers beside him, "Have the Military and Political Bureau re-select the seven county officials and the three administrators of the reclamation area from among the successful candidates in the imperial examinations. Also, send the deeds to the capital for the tens of thousands of acres of confiscated land! Have them plan the reclamation area accordingly!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Upon hearing this, the soldier clasped his hands in salute.

The reclamation area was a county-level administrative unit newly established by Zhu Jian. The land was confiscated from various provinces. The land deeds of this land were entirely in the hands of the imperial court and belonged to state-owned assets. The personnel were all refugees from various provinces. The purpose was to settle the local people and reduce the number of refugees.

Moreover, these reclamation areas could directly report to the Agricultural Reclamation Department of the Military and Political Bureau. No matter what the matter was, they could bypass the local governor's office and the prefect's office, making them extremely special places. This was also a means for Zhu Jian to strengthen control over the local areas.

It's unrealistic to nationalize all land; the only option is to gradually seize the land from the powerful and wealthy, and then implement a semi-nationalization reform...

Zhu Jian's gaze swept over the large quantity of broken silver, gold, silk, and antiques. After a moment's thought, he said, "Sun Yingyuan, you personally lead two thousand cavalrymen to deliver this gold and silver to the Beijing Mint, so they can be minted into silver and gold coins!"

"As you command!"

"Zhou Yuji, take the grain, silk, and antiques with you. We'll head to the Dengzhou-Laizhou naval base tomorrow."

"As you command!"

Sun Yingyuan and Zhou Yuji then gathered their respective funds and provisions, preparing for the army to set off.

Originally, 200,000 taels of silver had been allocated to Zheng Chenggong for the construction of warships. Now, Zhu Jian is preparing to add another 200,000 taels of silver to continue building warships.

Zhu Jian inspected the naval forces during the Yongle era in the capital. The naval forces of that time far surpassed those of today. For some reason, two hundred years later, naval forces not only stagnated but actually regressed; even blueprints and theoretical frameworks haven't developed...

Nowadays, the naval forces of the Netherlands and Portugal have moved from the Western Hemisphere to the Eastern Hemisphere. The Ming Dynasty's naval forces now rely entirely on Zheng Zhilong, who has submitted to the Ming. Without Zheng Zhilong, the Japanese pirates and foreign devils along the southeastern coast would be even more unscrupulous.

Therefore, Zhu Jian had no choice but to quickly build and strengthen the naval forces in preparation for future naval battles and for opening up a second front in Liaodong.