Chapter 608, the financial problems of the Ming Dynasty
At the Household Department in the capital, Liu Jin, dressed in a crimson robe, came to the Household Department to report with great reluctance.
"Duke~"
The first person I want to see is naturally Zhong Zhong.
"Master Liu, I don't dare take this seriously."
Seeing Liu Jin, Zhong Zhong didn't have a good look on his face. He, the leader, was so depressed that he even vomited blood.
Emperor Hongzhi's dissatisfaction with him was known to the entire government and the public, and at the same time, everyone also knew Emperor Hongzhi's intention to arrange Liu Jin into the Ministry of Household Affairs.
This made it clear that he wanted to replace himself with Liu Jin. If it weren't for Liu Jin being too young, he would probably have gone to Nanjing to retire in his old age by now.
Comparing people to each other is so annoying.
The Liu Jin in front of me, the popular man next to Emperor Hongzhi, was promoted like a rocket. At such a young age, he was already at the level of Minister of Household Affairs.
And if I work for a few more years, I estimate that I will soon be able to reach the position of Minister of Household Affairs.
Think about yourself, I was a Jinshi at the age of twenty-seven, I worked hard all my life as a censor in the Supervisory Academy, and I became the Minister of Household Affairs at the age of sixty-one.
There is simply no comparison, the gap is really huge.
Now Emperor Hongzhi has done something like this, which has made him, the Minister of Household Affairs, lose his face, and asked Liu Jin to report anything directly to Emperor Hongzhi.
How can I, the number one, take care of Liu Jin, my number two?
What's more, this tax collection is the work of the Ministry of Revenue, and it is up to him, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, to decide how to arrange it. It would be better for Emperor Hongzhi to arrange it directly for Liu Jin.
During the morning court meeting, as soon as the news came out, the faces of the entire government and the public changed. Even at this moment, these officials from the Ministry of Revenue looked at themselves as if they were watching the sunset, and wanted to stick to Liu Jin in front of them.
Gone to the edge.
"Mr. Ji, you are an important minister of the country. You are in charge of the household department for the imperial court. You have worked hard and made great achievements. I am a newbie here, and there are still many things I don't understand. I am afraid I will have to ask you for advice more in the future."
Liu Jin looked at Zhong Zhong and said with a smile.
Old comrades, it's normal to be a little emotional. As a newcomer, I still deserve the respect I deserve.
Liu Jin knew very well that he should not be too arrogant, low-key, modest, and cautious. The more he became an official, the more Liu Jin told himself this.
"Master Liu, I am not talking about giving advice. I am also aware of your Majesty's instructions. If there is anything you need to cooperate with, just ask."
Ji Zhong saw that Liu Jin's attitude was not bad, he also respected himself, and his tone became much better.
He himself knew very well that he and Liu Jin were not at the same level when it came to Emperor Hongzhi. If Emperor Hongzhi was dissatisfied with him, he would have to leave sooner or later.
What's more, I am already sixty-one years old, and I have already started the position of Minister of Household Affairs. Even if I didn't have this position, I probably wouldn't be able to work for a few more years.
Liu Jin was different. He was a popular figure around Emperor Hongzhi and had a very good relationship with the prince. He was already the Minister of Household Affairs. In the future, he could become a minister or join the cabinet.
Therefore, you cannot offend such people. Even if you are unhappy, you must recognize the situation clearly.
The temper he just showed was just a superficial attitude. The Minister of the Ministry of Revenue is still his father.
Now Liu Jin understands the situation and respects himself very much. He is not arrogant or arrogant because of favors. He is willing to let himself go. There is no need for him to have trouble with Liu Jin.
"Mr. Ji, I don't dare to call you "sir" in front of you. You can call me Xiao Liu or Liu Jin."
"I came to the Ministry of Revenue to learn from you and listen to your orders."
Liu Jin smiled and said, of course, the face that should be given must be given in full. I believe that this Zhongzhong is also a smart man. Don't rely on his old age to hinder his work by relying on his status as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.
People are like this, give enough face to the other party, if the other party still doesn't understand, then let's talk about it separately.
"Haha~"
"Master Liu is joking."
Zhong Zhong smiled and replied.
Liu Jin and Zhong Zhong chatted with each other to deepen their understanding of each other, and at the same time, they also became a little familiar with the personnel in the Ministry of Revenue.
As one of the six ministries, the Ministry of Household Affairs is in charge of the country's land, taxation, household registration, population, salary, food and wages, and financial revenue and expenditure. It is almost equivalent to the Ministry of Finance in later generations. Of course, it has more power and responsibility than the latter.
The household department has one minister, the third rank, and two assistant ministers, usually the fourth rank or the third rank. In addition, according to the land, population, money and grain management, and the difference in tribute, there are four divisions, household divisions, and branch divisions.
Jinsi, Cangsi.
At the same time, there are also doctors, Yuanwailang, inspectors, chiefs, book orders, palm guards, etc. below. The entire household department is an extremely large system. There are hundreds of officials, large and small, and there are also officials below.
There are more officials.
After a few days, Liu Jin became familiar with the entire system of the Ministry of Household Affairs and got to know the officials of all sizes in the Ministry of Household Affairs.
Zhong Zhong didn't have much good feelings towards Liu Jin, but the following officials were different. Even Shi Jie, the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, was very enthusiastic towards Liu Jin.
Everyone is a discerning person, and Liu Jin will have the final say sooner or later in this household department.
"No wonder the Ming Dynasty will perish~"
"There are fewer and fewer fields, and the number of fields that can be used for taxation is getting less and less every year."
"And the population. From the Hongwu Dynasty to the current Hongzhi Dynasty, the population of the Ming Dynasty not only did not increase, but actually decreased."
"The money collected for taxation is getting less and less year by year. It would be strange if the Ming Dynasty did not perish."
Liu Jin took his own statistical table and couldn't help but complain.
He knew that there was a huge financial problem in the Ming Dynasty. He thought that the Hongzhi Dynasty would not be too serious. However, after carefully checking the past money and grain taxation records, Liu Jin knew that the Ming Dynasty had financial problems.
How serious.
In the 26th year of Hongwu, the imperial court conducted a census of the country's population. The number counted at that time was 60.54 million. Now, in the 13th year of Hongwu, the population on the books of the Ming Dynasty's Ministry of Household Affairs is only over 50 million.
Instead of increasing, it decreases.
You must know that the early Ming Dynasty went through the period of great turmoil at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, and the population decreased very sharply. In the 26th year of Hongwu, there were more than 60 million people.
In the thirteenth year of Hongzhi, the Ming Dynasty went through more than a hundred years of recuperation, and the population actually decreased. Isn't it strange?
There is also land that can be used for taxation. During the Hongwu Dynasty, this number was about eight million hectares, but now, this number is only four million hectares, only half of the number in the Hongwu Dynasty.
Where did the four million Qingtian go?
From these two figures alone, we can know how serious the financial problem of the Ming Dynasty was. Whether it was money or grain, it collected less and less.
"It is truly a miracle that the Hongzhi Dynasty was able to persist for more than a hundred years."
Liu Jin couldn't help but shook his head and kept sighing.
"Fortunately, Emperor Hongzhi finally realized the seriousness of this problem."
"If we are still deceived by these civil servants into taking small gifts as before, I guess my underwear will be deceived and pawned."
"How can the imperial court have the strength to do big things if it doesn't have money or food?"
"The fact that the Ming Dynasty was able to last for more than a hundred years is probably inseparable from the great man Zhang Juzheng. Without his whipping method to reform finances, the emperor would have starved to death."
After thinking carefully in my mind, I finally understood how serious the financial problems of the Ming Dynasty were at this moment.
If Emperor Hongzhi had not helped him raise money himself, it is estimated that Emperor Hongzhi would not have been able to accomplish anything. He would have been able to govern honestly and be fooled by the so-called Hongzhi ZTE by the civil servants.
"Tax evasion and tax evasion are very serious~"
"Land annexation was extremely serious. Not only the gentry, but also the princes surnamed Zhu who enfeoffed various places. They were like blood-sucking insects attached to the Ming Dynasty. Each one became bigger and bigger, while the Ming Dynasty became weaker and weaker."
"In the future, we must find a way to get all these princes surnamed Zhu out. We cannot let them continue to suck the blood of the Ming Dynasty. We must transfer this weighing burden to other places."
Liu Jin soon realized another problem.
The princes of the Ming Dynasty, Comrade Lao Zhu, initially instituted a system of enfeoffment and enfeoffed their sons to various parts of the Ming Dynasty. After more than a hundred years, this system was established.
Princes surnamed Zhu were all over the Ming Dynasty, and there were hundreds of princes of various sizes.
These princes had no power in their hands and could not leave their own fiefdoms. They were born with no worries about food and clothing, so the rest was to create people every day and spread the branches and leaves of Lao Zhu's family.
The population of Lao Zhu's family is getting larger and larger, and accordingly these princes are annexing more and more fields. In many cases, they are not satisfied with annexing the land, but also ask for local taxes from the emperor.
The princes who provided for the old Zhu family also became a heavy burden on the Ming Dynasty's finances, and it became more and more heavy until the late Ming Dynasty.
The money and food needed by these princes named Zhu alone accounted for one-third of the Ming Dynasty's treasury expenditure.
But this did not satisfy them. The land they annexed was very terrible. In Henan alone, half of the land fell into the hands of several princes in Henan, such as King Zhou, King Fu, King Tang, King Zhao, King Zheng, etc.
.
"What a mess~"
Liu Jin let out a long sigh.
When the Ming Dynasty reached the Hongzhi Dynasty, there were too many various problems, and if each problem was not solved, according to the original historical development trajectory, it would be enough to cause the demise of the Ming Dynasty.
Among them, land annexation is a particularly serious matter.
The gentry, the royal family, the garrison and the fields, etc., are like huge blood-sucking insects that are constantly sucking up the increasingly thin Ming Dynasty. They are getting fatter and stronger, but they do not realize that the big tree of Ming Dynasty will soon be destroyed.
Unable to hold on, he was about to collapse.
"Let's take things one step at a time, one meal at a time."
"The land tax and population tax cannot be touched for the time being, and there is no way to do so."
"Now we still need to find ways to collect commercial taxes and customs duties."
Liu Jin knocked on the table and thought carefully. Emperor Hongzhi did not ask him to come to the Ministry of Revenue to drink tea. Even though he would offend people, he still had to do what needed to be done.