In the Ming Dynasty, the main class recipients of taxes were the common people at the bottom.
Even if they were collected in the past five years, it would only be a handful and would have no impact on the overall situation.
Moreover, these poor people are really poor. Not to mention surplus food and wealth, many families do not even have a decent iron pot.
If he doesn't support them, understands them, and demands greedily from them, what's the difference between him and Zhu Youjian who only orders more taxes and grains?
They have been exploited for a long time and are left with only this miserable life, which may not even be able to exchange for a full meal, a miserable life that is as cheap as dirt.
In an extremely barren region like the Southwest, collecting a year's worth of taxes and grain from the people of a province would be worse than going to Jiangnan to raid a group of large households.
In this way, you can earn money quickly without harming the people. You can also gain a lot of fame and leave a reputation as a good emperor in the hearts of the people. You can achieve multiple things with one stone.
Moreover, the rules and regulations regarding taxation in the Ming Dynasty were also in a complete mess. Emperor Taizu clearly stipulated them back then.
All taxes paid by the people and official salaries were paid in kind.
This means that people use grain as currency to pay taxes to the court, and the court also only accepts grain, cloth, silk and other valuable items.
This tax method and system was still applicable in the early Ming Dynasty and before the Xuande Year. However, as time changed, its shortcomings and loopholes quickly became apparent.
What was especially fatal was that these loopholes were seized upon by civil servants, and like the military household system in the guard station, it gradually became deformed.
At that time, the Ming Dynasty was not yet a silver standard. Although silver could be used as currency, it had not become mainstream.
The imperial court issued Hongwu Tongbao and official banknotes in an attempt to impact the market and become a mainstream currency.
The most outrageous operation of the imperial court was here. It was unwilling to take back the official currency it issued, causing the gentry and officials to not dare to use Tongbao and banknotes.
In the end, it was the people at the bottom who didn’t understand the politics of the country and didn’t understand the principles of politics who suffered in the end.
They used the food they had worked hard to grow under the sun and rain, and exchanged their hard currency food from the market and the government for severely depreciated tongbao and banknotes that no one accepted.
As a result, the credibility of the newly established Ming Dynasty in the hearts of the people was greatly reduced, leaving a very bad impression.
The emperors of subsequent generations seemed to want to show their authority immediately as soon as they ascended the throne.
They can't wait to make the so-called Yongle Tongbao, Hongxi Tongbao and other currencies. The banknotes also need to be updated and replaced with exclusive ones belonging to a certain emperor.
That's all. The most puzzling thing is that every time they issue a new currency, the Tongbao and banknotes of the previous emperor are declared invalid and cannot be used.
Those who have hoarded this kind of currency at home are really frustrated every day, and the earth and the earth are not responding, and they have to bear all this with tears.
As for the so-called recycling, or asking the government to change it, don't even think about it. The value of the emperor has been devalued while he was still alive, let alone declared invalid after death.
It would be better if those mud-legged people who went to the government to ask for justice would not be beaten.
Starting from the great change in Tumubao in the 14th year of Orthodoxy, the entire Ming Dynasty underwent earth-shaking changes.
The rapid decline of imperial power led to an overall decline in authority and dominance at court and local levels.
Before they really took power and had a major position, they dared to beat the commander of the Jinyi Guards alive in the Fengtian Palace in front of Emperor Jingtai.
One can imagine how crazy they are and how ambitious they are.
The most important thing is that when the emperor Zhu Qiyu beat to death the commander of the Jinyiwei, a close minister of the emperor, in front of him, he didn't say a word and was so frightened that he froze on the dragon chair.
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This further fueled their arrogance. After beating the Jinyiwei commander to death, they beat two more people to death in the name of Wang Zhenyu's party. Without the emperor's consent, they privately killed Wang Zhen's entire clan.
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Poor Emperor Jingtai, who had just been put on the shelf, experienced such a bloody and crazy scene, how could he bear it, and was so frightened that he fled back to the harem.
And because of his silence in the court, his silent response, and his indifferent attitude afterwards, he lost the hearts of the factory guards, and no one wanted to become a die-hard loyalist to this cowardly emperor.
Zhu Qiyu, who was truly reduced to being alone, without the skills of an emperor or the support of his natural talents, was no match for the civil servants.
The influence and power of the civil servants had already overshadowed the imperial power at this time, and they were out of control from then on.
From then on, the civil servants were completely in power, and the emperor who had been pressing on them was finally no longer their opponent, and they could do whatever they wanted.
Therefore, it was before the Wanli period, to be precise before Zhang Juzheng became the chief minister of the cabinet.
The Ming Dynasty has been unable to improve and repair this loophole.
Because the civil servants did not agree, the wealthy gentry would occasionally cause trouble to express their opposition.
Even if the emperor had good intentions, he could not do anything about it. Emperor Xianzong, who was so clever in his methods and saw things so clearly, was helpless, let alone other emperors.
But Zhang Juzheng's reforms were too short-lived, and the Ming Dynasty soon returned to the era of haphazard tax collection and officials having the final say.
The life of the people became increasingly difficult and miserable. Coupled with the influence of the Little Ice Age, the Ming Dynasty, which had been in existence for more than two hundred years, finally declined.
It is urgent to reform the taxation and tax and grain systems. This is a major event that can change the world, and Zhu Youxiao cannot afford not to pay attention to it.
After he returns to Beijing this time, he will work with his close ministers to formulate a complete tax regulation.
Because Zhang Juzheng is in front of him, it will be much easier for Zhu Youxiao to do it again, but he cannot end it himself.
The emperor is responsible for the implementation, and his peers are responsible for the leadership. It is obviously more beneficial to him to bring out a person with sufficient weight.
Wang Xiangqian, the chief minister of the cabinet, is naturally the best candidate.
Although Zhu Youxiao wanted to push him out to attract firepower and absorb the hatred of the officials and gentry, and to serve as cannon fodder, he also thought carefully.
He is already very old and has only a few years to live. Help him live day by day.
Moreover, the reason why I promoted him to the position of Chief Assistant of the Cabinet was because there was really no one more suitable than him to serve as the head of the civil service.
At that time, most of the people in the court were members of the Donglin Party and officials from the Three Parties. He urgently needed a neutral veteran to check and balance, and Wang Xiangqian was the only candidate.
After several purges, the voices opposing him in the court were no longer enough. It was originally used as a transitional thing, but when the time comes, they still cling to it, which is not good for both parties.