Chapter 261 The wise king who knows people and makes good use of them
The princes and kings are finally leaving.
This was probably the most enjoyable time they had spent in Chang'an. They played around with Liu Ying and visited both the inside and outside of Chang'an before they left separately.
Liu Chang has high hopes for these brothers. He has never thought about the issue of the princes becoming powerful. Anyway, no matter how powerful they are, they will not be bigger than him. As for what will happen in the future, Liu Chang is not in a hurry.
, Zhang Cang gave him... No, it was Liu Chang himself who came up with a good way to let the sons of the princes and kings inherit some of the territory left by their fathers, so that the princes and kingdoms could become smaller and smaller, and the more they granted, the more they could.
However, this is not what Liu Chang needs to consider at the moment. There are two main reasons why the princes were so wary before. The first reason is the Queen Mother, who does not trust these princes and kings at all. The second reason is Liu Chang.
Liu Chang's arrogant behavior aroused the fear of the officials.
But now that Liu Chang has begun to take power, the situation is different. These are the first generation of princes and kings. They are all close relatives. Broken bones are still connected, so why are you afraid of the princes causing rebellion? If you want to cause rebellion, you will have to wait two days.
After generation.
The first generation of princes and kings with the same surname who wanted to rebel when their brothers came to power was probably a certain King Li of Huainan who did not want to be named. He drank too much and took some people with him to rebel.
It is worth mentioning that all the descendants of King Li are rebels. Some of them like reading, hunting, and women. But no matter what they like, they will eventually choose to rebel. Probably rebellion is hereditary.
After all, the son of King Li was also a rebel in history. He was obviously able to write books and was very knowledgeable. He was followed by nearly a thousand learned disciples and discussed academic problems all day long. He was different from his overbearing father in all aspects.
Same, gentle and polite, but just want to rebel.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty frowned and thought for three days and three nights, and could not figure out why this gentle and gentle father-in-law turned against him.
It would not be an exaggeration to call a certain great king's family a family of rebels.
Liu Chang said goodbye to his brothers one by one. When he was leaving, he proudly said: "Since you are a prince, you must think about expanding your territory. You cannot be a conservative king. Every time you regain a place, you can give its princess to the widow."
, tell me the style of their palace, it may be useful when building Afang Palace in the future!"
Liu Hui shook his head and laughed, "You, you were beaten less or less..."
The brothers said goodbye to him, and Liu Chang gave a few more instructions, asking Liu Xiang to take good care of King Qi, and asking Liu Hui not to think about deposing his direct descendants, etc. The princes and kings left. Liu Ying was very reluctant to leave, wiping her tears.
, told them to take care of themselves, but Liu Chang just smiled. Unlike his second brother, he couldn't sit still in Chang'an. Sooner or later, he would have to go to other places to play with these brothers.
Liu Chang and Liu Ying were walking in Chang'an. Liu Ying looked at the people coming and going in Chang'an City and said happily: "Eldest brother... your tax reduction decree is really good. I have seen it several times before."
The proposal was rejected by all the officials, and my mother also felt that it was too hasty... The tax should not be calculated based on the output of grain, but should be calculated based on the amount of cultivated land. In some places, the cultivated land yield is extremely low, and the people cultivated it.
The grain is not enough for them to pay taxes..."
"It's fine now...Look at the people in Chang'an, hahaha, their faces are full of joy..."
When Liu Ying saw how happy the people were, her face also lit up with joy.
Perhaps the only advantage Liu Ying inherited from her mother was that he treated the people as human beings. Empress Lu was cruel and cold-blooded, but she was still very good to the people at the bottom. Many of the policies she implemented, Tai Shigong said so
It says: "The queen of high school is called the heroine, the government does not go out of the household, the world is peaceful, punishment is rarely used, the sinners are innocent, the civil affairs are cultivated, and the food and clothing are cultivated."
Who would have thought that it would be Empress Lu, who was famous for her cruelty, who started the Han Dynasty to ban torture and practice benevolent government?
Liu Chang said proudly: "What is this... I still have a lot of ideas, from all aspects, just wait and see!"
The two of them were not in a hurry to return to the palace. Instead, they came to the Tang Prince's Mansion, where they got some food and drinks. The two of them sat down and chatted while eating.
"Eldest brother...haven't you come back yet?"
"It's almost...Oh, this happened."
"You need to comfort me..."
"I know."
"Aren't you pregnant yet?"
"not yet..."
Liu Ying shook her head, "It's a pity that Wuyang Hou couldn't see his grandson... I really want to see how strong your children will be with a strong man like Wuyang Hou and a son-in-law like you...
Maybe he is another warrior who can tear apart tigers and leopards."
"Oh, a person like me only appears once every few hundred years! Kang is the biological son of Marquis Wuyang, but he can't even defeat Xiahou Zao..."
"Um, eldest brother, Xiang Ji and you, as well as Marquis Wuyang, are not separated by hundreds of years, right?"
"How can they compare with me? I can beat them both easily. If you don't believe it, just let them crawl out and beat me!"
"Hahaha, you know how to bully the old, the weak and the dead...you bully them into not being able to stand up and refute you...Why didn't you say that when Marquis Wuyang was still alive?"
The two drank some wine. In fact, according to etiquette, Liu Chang should not drink when Wuyang Hou passed away, but Liu Chang didn't care much about this. If he didn't drink, how could Wuyang Hou still survive? Drinking
While drinking, Liu Ying let out a long sigh.
"Why are you sighing, second brother?"
"It's not because of Xiang..."
"This son is disobedient... always skipping school... causing trouble... he almost had a fight with his teacher before... I disciplined him several times, but he didn't learn well... He is not like his father, but like his father.
!”
"well..."
Liu Chang suddenly sighed.
"Why do you sigh?"
"It's not because of An."
"This boy is disobedient. He just studies all day long and does nothing. He doesn't have the slightest bit of heroic spirit... I took him to play several times, but he always ran away to go back to study... He's not like my father.
Uncle-like!"
Liu Ying laughed and scolded: "Are you trying to show off to me, you idiot? What's wrong with studying?"
"I'm afraid I'll end up like you, second brother...talking nonsense all the time..."
"You're such a jerk!" Liu Ying was furious and hurriedly took off her shoes.
"Joking! Joking!"
Liu Ying put away her shoes and suddenly said softly: "Actually, you're right... It's a good thing to not be like me... If I'm like you, I won't be bullied... That's fine... I won't be like you
I'm so useless..."
"What did the second brother say? It makes you feel like you are being bullied. Who were you bullied by? You were still bullying me just now!"
Liu Ying looked a little lonely, and he shook his head, "Eldest brother, I always thought... I want my father and mother to see my abilities... I have also worked hard and done a lot.
, but... I let them all down. I am not a good emperor... nor a good brother... After my father passed away, I failed to fulfill my responsibilities as an eldest brother... I have to do everything for you.
In the aftermath...don't blame me, this was not my intention."
"If I can do it well...I won't let you bear the slightest bit of infamy...My mother won't be so disappointed..."
Liu Ying took another sip of wine, "I have disappointed everyone who trusts me... Even the queen, I don't dare to get too close... My mother doesn't like to see me being too good to her... Thinking of just now
The lofty words and ambitions he made when he ascended the throne, haha, did not achieve anything."
Liu Chang took the wine bottle from him and drank it in one gulp.
"Second brother, you just think too much... There are two types of good emperors, one is like my father, and the other is like you, second brother... If second brother was born a hundred years later, he would definitely be
Unprecedented Darenjun, second brother, you are very good, but the ministers are the bad ones! These people are accustomed to following the bad emperor, and have acquired bad habits from my father. They are unruly and arrogant. It is normal for you to be unable to control them!"
"Look, I ask Chen Ping to do everything now. Why? It's because this person needs to be busy. If he doesn't, I'm afraid!"
"When Cao Shen was still young, he was chased and arrested in Chang'an. He was so unceremonious that I didn't dare to refute loudly... Only when he got old did I dare to bully him."
"Although my father is a fool, he is really powerful...more powerful than our two brothers. He can suppress so many vicious people..."
"It's not that we are too incompetent, it's that they are too strong."
"Don't talk about them, let's just talk about Amu... Is Amu powerful? Amu can scare these vicious people so much that they dare not say a word. Except for Wang Ling, no one dares to provoke... in front of her.
, everyone will appear incompetent... To give you a simple example, brother, look, do you look very short next to me? "
"Everyone around me looks short. It's not because they are really short, it's because I'm too tall, too handsome and brave..."
"That's the truth. The second brother just didn't have a good time."
"You are getting better and better at speaking...Thank you for your comfort."
"I'm not trying to comfort you... Second brother, believe it or not, these old guys around us and my mother will be the most powerful talents in the next thousands of years. Very few people can compare with them.
.”
"Who can know what will happen in the future?"
"I can do it... Didn't I tell you about my dreams every day when I was a kid... In fact, I actually dreamed about a lot of things, and then they all came true... Now I can remember more and more things.
..Do you still remember that I once said that my father is the great ancestor? Look, doesn’t this come true?”
"My father is the Great Ancestor and Emperor Gao...not the Great Ancestor..."
"Well... maybe I remembered it wrong... Forget it, let's not talk about it. Second brother, we still need you... I understand that you want to play. Who doesn't like to play? But don't
You have ruined your body... If my second brother dares to leave me one day... I will have all the woodcutters in Chang'an buried with you!"
"You idiot! Why is there a woodcutter here?"
"You and I, brothers, have to govern the Han Dynasty together... It's the same old saying, I'm external and you are internal... I can't stay here in Chang'an... Staying here will make me rusty.
, when I go out to fight, you will stay and supervise the country... Anyway, the young master will handle everything, you can just watch..."
Liu Ying spit out the wine in her mouth and cursed: "Shuzi! Are you using me as a prince?!"
"From now on, we brothers will have our own business... No, don't take off your shoes first!!"
....
Fan Qing hasn't come back yet, Zhang Cang finally ended his simple inspection. He didn't know how much contribution Zhang had made to the old Zhang family during this inspection. Anyway, Liu Chang suspected that everyone Zhang Cang had treated
He may have his son everywhere. With this way of playing, he can still run and jump around at this age. This is simply an insult to Liu Ying. He is not as good as others in this aspect. Liu Ying has become so thin.
With Zhang Xiang's lively appearance, he seemed to be fine even on the battlefield.
"Your Majesty, during this trip to various places, I discovered many unreasonable policies."
"oh?"
Liu Chang looked at him with some surprise. What unreasonable policy? Like the marriage law restricting concubines?
The first person to set up marriage laws was probably Bao Qin. Bao Qin made many corresponding laws on marriage, stipulating how to get married, how to divorce, how to determine the crime of domestic violence, etc. In the Warring States countries, it was
In the Qin State, which was regarded as a barbarian, the status of women was the highest.
As for the marriage laws enacted by Bao Qin, did the Han Dynasty have them? Of course they did, don’t ask why, anyway, Emperor Gao could swear by his own personality that he definitely did not copy Bao Qin!
Common people have one husband and one wife.
Mr. Qing has one wife and two concubines.
If you succeed and receive a title, you will have eight concubines.
Zhang Xiang has obviously broken the law, which explains why he was imprisoned several times before. When Zhang Xiang was in the Tang Dynasty, he wanted to abolish this unreasonable policy more than once. However, Gai Gong and Wang Ling were
Those who firmly opposed it. Prime Minister Zhang respected Wang Ling, so naturally he did not dare to make a decision directly.
Zhang Cang said seriously: "Many taxes are collected according to uniform standards, which is very unreasonable. For example, for families with livestock, different taxes are charged for different livestock. However, some large families have sheep in their homes."
There are hundreds of thousands, and some poor families only have two sheep at home. Is it reasonable to charge the same tax to both?"
Liu Chang nodded, "It depends on what you want..."
"The tax calculations across the country must be classified in detail and strict standards must be formulated. If these are not improved, your Majesty, even if you say that the tax rate will be reduced by half, it will have no effect."
Zhang Cang said seriously.
Liu Chang stroked his chin, "Okay, just follow what Master said..."
"The biggest problem facing the Han Dynasty at present is the problem of manpower. The granaries of the Qin State can be piled up like mountains, but the Han Dynasty cannot. This is because the current household registration of the Han Dynasty is far less than that of the Qin State, and there is insufficient manpower... There are few people.
Food, cloth, soldiers, and talents will all trouble the great Han."
"Therefore, the most important problem that Dahan needs to solve now is the problem of manpower."
"Your Majesty, you can dispense with some corporal punishments and order less killings and punishments in various places..."
"Not only should we punish those who do not marry for fifteen years, but we should also encourage those who have more children."
"Your Majesty will summon all the doctors from all over the world to train more doctors, just like what was done in the Tang Dynasty, and spread it to the whole world..."
"The king can collect the barbarians around for his own use..."
"Your Majesty can also abolish the law of marriage...let the nobles everywhere have more children..."
Liu Chang was listening with great interest before, but later, he suddenly woke up and asked suspiciously: "Master said so much, is it just for the last sentence?"
"How is this possible? I think I abide by the marriage law."
"Abide? How many concubines do you have?"
"I have eight concubines, and the rest are all singing and dancing girls in the family...I never take concubines in the local area!" Zhang Cang said proudly, as long as he doesn't take concubines after playing, it is not illegal! Liu Chang
I was stunned. No wonder he always ran away after playing. It turned out that he was exploiting loopholes in the law!
Liu Chang shook his head, "This law cannot be outlawed... If it is outlawed, officials and ministers in various places will only focus on taking concubines for fun and no longer deal with government affairs, while ordinary people are afraid that they will never be able to marry..."
"To increase manpower, we still have to focus on medical care, taxation, and people's livelihood... If the people live a better life, they will naturally be able to afford more children..."
Regarding the manpower issue mentioned by Zhang Cang, Liu Chang very much agreed. All the systems of Bao Qin were very strict, and the household registration system was even more rigorous. Therefore, their population size was very detailed. According to Gai Gong's previous
What I told Liu Chang and others during class was that the population of Tyrannical Qin at its peak was close to 30 million, which was a crushing situation for the surrounding people.
And when it came to my father's time? After Xiao Xiang took charge of the statistics, the final number was that it was more than ten million, which was just over ten million.
In such a vast land, there are only tens of millions of people, which also results in places such as Yan, Zhao, and Wu being inhabited for thousands of miles and sparsely populated. The pain of future dynasties will be too little land and too many people, and the pain of the Western Han Dynasty is
Too much land, too few people!
Therefore, Zhang Xiang said that the biggest difficulty at present is the lack of manpower, and Liu Chang believed it.
"Master, you are usually the best at things like increasing household registration... Next, I will entrust you with the household registration matter... Please do it with your authority, preferably within twenty years
Within 30 days, if the population of the Han Dynasty can catch up with that of the Qin Dynasty, 30 million will be enough!"
Zhang Cang bowed down and bowed, and seriously accepted this order which didn't sound very serious.
Shortly after Zhang Cang arrived, Fan Qing finally arrived.
The person who escorted her was not Ji Bu, but Zhang Buyi.
Liu Chang hurriedly came out to greet Fan Qing. Zhang Buyi saw the king all the way away and wanted to say something with a smile, but he quickly put on a serious expression. Obviously, now is not the time for the monarch and his ministers to exchange greetings. Fan
Qing threw herself into Liu Chang's arms and began to cry bitterly. Liu Chang held her tightly and patted her back, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Fan Qing had obviously been crying all the way, and she looked so haggard that it was heartbreaking. Liu Chang hurriedly took her to Wuyang Hou's residence.
Fan Kang, the new Marquis of Wuyang, came out to greet him. No one expected that among the sages, Fan Kang was the first to obtain the title. However, no one envied him, and no one wanted to become the Chehou of the Han Dynasty in this way.
Fan Qing naturally cried again when he saw his brother.
Liu Chang stayed with her, met his aunt again, and decided to let Fan Qing spend more time with his mother here.
When Liu Chang walked out, he felt a little heavy.
"His Majesty!!!"
Zhang Buyu shouted loudly.
Liu Chang was shocked by him.
"Why are you here? Isn't it Ji Bu's turn to come?"
"He came to see the Queen Mother, so why not come with me... Your Majesty is in Chang'an and there is no one to serve you, so I persuaded Ji Bu to come and serve you!!"
"What should Captain Ting do?!"
"For the time being, the king is in charge. I am your majesty's retainer and the position of court lieutenant is not what I am pursuing. As long as I can follow your majesty, I will lead the horse for your majesty, and I will be satisfied!"
"Okay, okay, get up!"
Liu Chang pulled Zhang Buyi up, and the heavy weight in his heart also faded a lot. After not seeing each other for a long time, he really missed this rebellious person. Zhang Buyi followed Liu Chang, chattering incessantly, his words full of annoyance, "Good morning.
Knowing that Your Majesty came to Chang'an for important matters, I should have followed you... I regret that I did not follow Your Majesty in the first place!"
The two of them arrived at the familiar Tang Palace, and Zhang Buyi talked about the situation in Tang Dynasty.
After talking for a long time, Zhang Buyi asked suspiciously: "Prime Minister Zhang came to Chang'an very early, but there was no edict regarding his appointment or dismissal as prime minister. Why is this?"
"Oh, I was a little busy earlier and before I had time, I asked him to take charge of manpower matters and asked him to increase the household registration of the big man to 30 million..."