"My lord, please pay homage to His Highness the Grand Sun. Your Highness is a thousand years old!"
After Zhu Yunxi changed into his robe, he just finished it on the throne of Jingren Palace. He was led by Liu Sanwu, the scholar of Zhongshushe, Linghan, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, Zhan Tong, the great scholar, Fang Xiaoru, the imperial lecturer, Huang Zicheng, the academician of the Imperial Academy, and Qi Tai, the inspector.
More than 30 people, including the censor of the academy and the bachelor of Zhan Shifu, entered the hall and kowtowed.
The six central departments of the Ming Dynasty and the core powerful figures of the civil servant group are all included in this list.
Among the civil servants, Zhu Yunxi saw Xie Jin, who was standing next to the bachelor of the Hanlin Academy. The latter looked at Zhu Yunxi calmly.
Zhu Yunxi immediately realized that these civil servants came early in the morning to discuss more than just ordinary affairs.
"Get back on your feet!" Zhu Yunxi said with a smile, "Give me a seat for all my dear friends!"
Liu Sanwu, a member of Zhongshushe, led a group of Hanlin scholars and paid homage again solemnly, "I would like to congratulate Your Highness on your mission to sweep away the unfaithful country, destroying other countries and shaking up the prestige of the Ming Dynasty. For thousands of years, the military front has never been as good as that of the Ming Dynasty.
Winner!"
"On that day when Your Highness was preparing for the Northern Expedition, the ministers and others were ignorant and short-sighted, saying that the war was dangerous, and the small country of Goryeo was unruly and capricious. Unexpectedly, Your Highness led a million soldiers, swept across the country, destroyed the foreign countries, and permanently eliminated the northern border troubles for the Ming Dynasty.
"
"Your Highness's illustrious martial arts will surely be remembered in history. His majesty in the Ming Dynasty will be praised by generations to come!"
Look, what the scholar says sounds good.
"Don't use nice words, say it all to me!" Zhu Yunxi said with a smile, "The great disaster in the northern part of Goryeo was eliminated in the First World War because of the emperor's strategic planning and the bravery of the soldiers on the front line. Furthermore, our Ming Dynasty has a strong national power, so we can restore it in one go.
The old land of Han Dynasty!"
"Your Highness is so kind, I can't wait to see if anything happens." The ministers bowed again.
After talking a lot of polite words, seeing that these people still didn't speak the truth, Zhu Yunxi said, "You all came here so early in the morning, didn't you just come here to sing praises?"
Among the civil servants, after their eyes collided, the great scholar Zhan Tong came out and spoke slowly, "Your Highness, I have my own notes!"
"Tell me!" Zhu Yunxi picked up the tea bowl and took a sip.
"When Your Highness was marching to the north, your Majesty ordered the Ming Dynasty to levy commercial taxes. I am not a pedantic person, let alone a person who is ignorant of current affairs. Commercial taxes are also a source of national finance and cannot be wasted. However, the Ming Dynasty was only thirty years old, and everything in the world was in ruins.
When it comes to prosperity, light taxation is a virtuous policy that helps the people recuperate and enrich them."
"The people in the south of the Yangtze River are already heavily taxed, so if they collect business taxes now, wouldn't all the previous efforts be wasted? In the south of the Yangtze River, many people in the prefectures are resentful, and scholars, officials and gentry have written letters one after another. The imperial court imposed strict laws and the tax collectors sent were all cruel officials.
It has made local people miserable, and the wealthy families have been ruined..."
Zhu Yunxi suddenly felt disgusted. These civil servants were so upset by the old man that they still refused to give up. When they saw that he was back, they immediately came to complain.
"In the past, King Wen asked Yu Lu Wang: "What are you doing for the world?"
"The answer is: The kingdom is rich with people, the hegemonic country is rich with rich people; the only remaining country is rich with rich officials; the country that is ruined is rich with warehouses; this means that the top is overflowing and the bottom is leaking..."
Bang, Zhu Yunxi slapped the imperial case and angrily shouted, "Shut up!"
What Zhan Tong said was an allusion to King Wen of Zhou asking Jiang Ziya.
How should the world be governed? Jiang Ziya said: A country that follows kingly principles will have rich people, a country that dominates the world will have rich people with military merit, a country that barely exists will have rich officials, and a country that is without moral principles will have a rich treasury.
The wealth of the kings and ruling groups above was so great that it overflowed, while the people below were as poor as water leaking out of a bamboo basket.
"It's a good thing that you are still a bachelor, and you are arguing with Gu Gu here! You are really bold. Why don't you say these words in front of the emperor?"
Under Zhu Yunxi's angry rebuke, the sound of needles dropping could be heard in the palace, and there was silence.
"At this time and that time, you use the story of King Wen of Zhou a thousand years ago to compare our world, and you are not being pedantic?"
"How many people were in the world during the reign of King Wen of Zhou? How many people are there in the Ming Dynasty now? How big was the territory of the Zhou Dynasty at that time, and how big was the territory of the Ming Dynasty?"
"Governing the world means enriching the country and strengthening the people. Commercial taxation is the way to enrich the country and a good source of wealth for the country. How come you are here and you only see the disadvantages and not the benefits?"
"Taxes are collected from the people and used for the people. They support the officials and the army and enrich the national treasury. They build water conservancy projects and provide relief to the victims. How can we do without money?"
"According to what you said, we don't collect commercial taxes, but only collect agricultural taxes. Doesn't that mean that all the world's taxes are imposed on the farmers? If you want to settle this account for me, you all need it from the farmers. Just rely on the world's food.
Taxes, if things go on like this, can the country get rich? Can the people get rich? I'm afraid that both the country and the people will become poorer and poorer! They have eaten one meal but not the next!"
Zhu Yunxi became more and more angry as he spoke, and said loudly, "In your mind, Master Zhan, the Ming Dynasty collected commercial taxes just to enrich the national treasury, and to make the country rich and poor, a country without morality?"
"I don't dare!" Zhan Tong bowed down in fear, "I just said that when the world is stable, it is not appropriate to do such a thunderous thing. As a king, you should be gentle!"
"Huairou? If Huairou doesn't collect taxes, it's harming the national interests? I want to ask you, even if we don't collect taxes from these businessmen, can the people be rich?"
Zhu Yunxi looked around and continued, "Without taxation, the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer. The rich are lawless and the poor are shouldering the burden of the world. This is an amoral country!"
"Gu knows, Gu has long predicted that you will come back to Gu to make trouble over the business tax issue. He thinks that the tax collection is too much, there are too many names, and the collection is harsh!"
"Can't you take a closer look, think about it, and talk to me again?"
"Commercial tax covers city, river, and customs taxes. How come it harms ordinary people? Furthermore, you just said that the people in Jiangnan are heavily taxed. Don't you know why it is so heavy? Collecting commercial tax,
Just to reduce the taxes of ordinary people in Jiangnan?"
"If you insist on messing around with me over these things, are you sure that I will accommodate you?"
Jiangnan has been the center of world wealth since the Song Dynasty.
When the Ming Dynasty was founded, there was a fierce battle with Zhang Shicheng in the south of the Yangtze River. The gentry in the south of the Yangtze River had always looked down upon the Huaixi founders of the Ming Dynasty. They not only missed Zhang Shicheng, but also missed the Yuan Dynasty who gave them a high degree of autonomy and high officials and generous salaries. Therefore, after the founding of the country,
, Jiangnan field tax is twice that of other places in the world.
All the ministers in the palace bowed their heads and said nothing.
Those who disagreed with the collection of commercial taxes were ashen-faced, while those civil servants who agreed, such as Ling Han and others, were gloating over the misfortune.
"The emperor's grandson has changed!"
Most of the courtiers who do not agree with the collection of taxes, or rather do not agree with such collections, are the civil servants and scholars of Zhu Yunxi's East Palace in the past. They always thought that the emperor's grandson was close to the civil servants and was kind and virtuous, so they would obey their advice in the past. But they did not expect that
Today, I came up with a slap in the face.
Looking at Zhu Yunxi on the throne, many people sighed like this.
Among the civil servants, Fang Xiaoru and others looked at Zhu Yunxi and were also secretly fascinated.
If Zhu Yunxi in the past was a sword with hidden clumsiness, now he is a sword with sharp edges. In his early years, he was a powerless grandson who studied in the university hall. Now he is the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty. He is not only deeply loved by the courtiers, but also praised by the emperor.
Allegiance to the Huaixi Xungui Group of the Ming Dynasty.
In the past, the emperor's grandson needed to be praised by others so that the world would know his virtuous name. But now, the emperor's grandson, who has military achievements and is respected by many, and is regarded as the top one by the emperor, has begun to exercise control over his subordinates.
The affairs of the king of Jiuding.
Although Emperor Hongwu was a great leader, his rule was too harsh and not tolerant enough. I thought that when the emperor's grandson ascended the throne in the future, he would be like the two emperors Wen and Jing in the Han Dynasty.
But now it seems that the stubbornness and arrogance in the heart of the emperor's grandson are exactly the same as those of the old emperor, and he is more energetic and aggressive. However, he will not kill people frequently like the old emperor.
"I know that these days, for business tax matters, the emperor has killed many officials and gentry in the south of the Yangtze River and punished many people, which makes you feel unsure." Zhu Yunxi slowed down and said slowly, "So
, you just came here to tell me this, you want me to persuade the old man!"
"How can a national decree be changed overnight? How can an emperor's decree be allowed to be refuted by his ministers?"
"In the past, the Qin Dynasty's reforms were the only way to unify the six countries. Today, the Ming Dynasty's reforms are the only way to enrich the country and strengthen the people!"
"If you object, I don't want to hear it anymore. My ministers, please be patient and see how the Ming Dynasty's treasury will fare in ten years."
"Only when the country is rich can the people be strong. If the country is not rich and the army is not strong, no matter how rich the people are, they are just fattened lambs! Don't you see, have you learned from the past?"
In the main hall, Zhu Yunxi's words were like thunder, rolling and circling.
Outside the hall, the old man with a gloomy face stood quietly at the corner, and couldn't help but smile a little, "Grandson, that's a good idea!"
Then he looked at the ministers in the palace and cursed in his heart, "Damn it, our eldest grandson is here to complain! This is what he wants to do about collecting taxes. It's weird that he can speak for you!"
At this time, a group of birds landed on the treetops and chirped happily.
The old man turned his eyes over there, looking at the jumping and chirping birds, and continued in his mind, "A group of thieving birds, making noise all day long. They don't know what's going on in the world, but they jump everywhere!"