Two streets away from the Yang family's residence, there is another house, which is also brightly lit.
However, there was only a sedan parked outside this mansion, and the person who walked out of it was Zhang Yi, the cabinet scholar.
The owner of the mansion is Yang Dan, the young minister of Dali Temple, who has already gone out to greet him in person.
Zhang Yi clasped his fists: "I have a lot of work to do, and I just got out of it. I hope my dear brother won't blame me!"
Yang Dan led Zhang Yi to the inner house and said, "I heard that Brother Zhang returned to Beijing. Brother Yu made a special trip to Wenyuan Pavilion to see him, but he saw that Brother Zhang was extremely busy. Did something happen in Mobei?"
Zhang Yi's face was full of exhaustion and he said: "Two thousand Tatar cavalry suddenly rushed into our Ming Dynasty. The emperor did not have any guards with him. The situation is critical and we need to urgently mobilize troops to Mobei to meet the enemy."
When the two of them arrived at the inner house, a maid immediately came over to offer them tea.
Yang Dan waved his hand, and the maid understood, turned around and went out, closing the door behind her.
"So, the imperial court is going to war again?"
Zhang Yi picked up the tea cup and took a sip, then said: "That's it!"
Yang Dan was puzzled and asked: "Is this... considered?"
Zhang Yi smiled lightly and said: "It's just two thousand people, it's nothing to worry about."
"Which troops are the imperial court planning to send to Mobei?"
As he spoke, a cold light flashed in Yang Dan's eyes, but it was fleeting.
Zhang Yi did not notice anything strange and said truthfully: "Fifth Army Camp!"
It stands to reason that mobilizing troops for war is a secret of the imperial court. Only the cabinet, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Household Affairs are related to the government, and only a few senior officials are qualified to know the inside story. It is a bit abnormal for a young minister from Dali Temple to be concerned about the war.
Zhang Yi did not hide it at all, because although Yang Dan was the young minister of Dali Temple, they had another relationship.
Yang Dan's father was Yang Pu, the former chief minister of the cabinet.
When talking about the cabinet system of the Ming Dynasty, most people first think of San Yang, that is, the famous Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu.
After Emperor Taizong Zhu Di was in trouble, he abolished all the reform measures of Emperor Jianwen and restored the ancestral system of the Hongwu Dynasty.
Soon, he realized something was wrong.
Because Lao Zhu abolished the Zhongshu Province and put the six ministries under the direct control of the emperor, the emperor's daily workload seriously exceeded the standard. Even if he only slept for two or three hours a day and spent the rest of his time approving memorials, he would not be able to complete them.
However, he started his career in Jingnan, and now he has taken over the country under the slogan of "Qing Jun". He must not dare to touch a word about the ancestral system.
I couldn't do it, but I didn't dare to change it. After thinking about it, I finally found a compromise, the cabinet!
In the late Hongwu Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang established a cabinet, which was originally intended to be a group of secretaries who could only give opinions but had no decision-making power.
At this time, the cabinet members had neither taste nor power, and were just obedient babies.
Zhu Di simply came up with a trick and called Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin and others into the cabinet. At the same time, he gave the cabinet higher powers. In addition to making suggestions, he could also give instructions and memorials.
The general process is as follows:
The memorials sent to the court by officials first went to the cabinet. Several members of the cabinet read them for the first time. After reading them, they had to write a reply and then submit them to the emperor.
At this time, the emperor only needs to make a check or a cross, and it's over!
Those with a check mark will be executed directly, while those with a cross will be sent back for reconsideration.
Now, I was freed from the vast memorials and could free my hands to lead the troops to fight.
However, in order to prevent the cabinet from becoming bigger and stronger, Zhu Di still kept a careful eye on it.
He separated the cabinet from the six ministries, and the moral character of all cabinet ministers was very low. This could not only curb the officials, but also prevent his family from becoming bigger and stronger. It was always in a state of balance between the emperor and the officials.
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This state lasted until the end of Yongle period. During the Ren and Xuan dynasties, the situation suddenly changed.
The character of Emperor Renzong Zhu Gaochi was completely different from that of his father. He had no ambition to expand the territory, and he had never fought in a war since he was a child. Except for the battle in Beiping City, he had never been on the battlefield again.
Since there is no war, we should vigorously develop the economy and restore people's livelihood. This will make us more dependent on civil servants.
It was from this time on that the trend of emphasizing culture over military affairs emerged in the court.
In the Xuande Dynasty, Zhu Zhanji could not sit still and wanted to fight again. However, at this time, under the leadership of San Yang, the civil service group had become bigger and stronger, and even began to dispatch supervisory troops to various armies to participate in military affairs.
The result of the civilian leadership of the troops was that the combat effectiveness of the military camp began to decrease sharply, and then... Jiaozhi was lost, and Nuergandusi was lost.
Of course, Zhu Zhanji was not reconciled to this result, so he established an internal study hall and planned to use eunuchs to control the cabinet. Unexpectedly, his good son Zhu Qizhen trained a Wang Zhen who could cover the sky with one hand.
"History of the Ming Dynasty" lists Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu as one biography, and says at the end:
Therefore, those who are called virtuous prime ministers in the Ming Dynasty must be the first of the three Yangs. They are all capable of original Confucianism, understand the situation, work together to support each other, and appease the communist bandits. In history, they are called Fang, Du... Also known as Yao, Jing is good at keeping the text, and upholds the justice of the world.
Sanyang Qishu is almost.
To put it simply, Sanyang was the wise prime minister of the court.
Since it is compared to a wise prime minister, it means that the cabinet developed and grew during the Sanyang period.
Yang Rong and Yang Shiqi died of illness in the fifth and seventh years of Zhengtong respectively. Before Zhu Qizhen's personal expedition, only Yang Pu was left of the glorious San Yang.
At that time, Wang Zhen was in power and the court was filled with chaos. Although Yang Pu took over as the chief minister of the cabinet, he could not defeat Wang Zhen at all.
In the following years, he quietly endured and trained Cao Nai, Miao Zhong, Chen Xun, Zhang Yi and others to check and balance Wang Zhen.
Zhang Yi was promoted by Yang Pu, so he and Yang Dan were often referred to as brothers.
Even if it is a major court matter, he will not deliberately hide it.
First of all, Yang Dan's identity is the young minister of Dali Temple, so he has the right to intervene.
Furthermore, as the biological son of his mentor Yang Pu, his character is naturally trustworthy.
He just returned to Beijing today when he received an invitation from Yang Dan. He didn't think much about it, turned down other entertainment, and hurried over after finishing his business.
Yang Dan looked calm and continued to ask: "Since the situation is urgent, why don't we dispatch the three thousand battalion?"
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! The Three Thousand Battalion is a cavalry and has strong mobility during combat.
Zhang Yi replied: "The Three Thousand Battalion went out for training and has not returned yet. The Shenji Battalion has too much baggage, so the Fifth Army Corps is more suitable."
Yang Dan nodded and suddenly changed the topic: "By the way, Brother Zhang, a friend came from my hometown and brought you some small gifts."
Zhang Yi was confused and asked: "What?"
Yang Dan stood up and took out a small wooden box and placed it on the table.
Zhang Yi saw that he was silent and acting mysteriously, so he asked, "What is it?"
Yang Dan smiled and said, "Brother Zhang will know it at a glance."
Zhang Yi didn't think too much, reached out and opened it, and found a stack of land deeds inside.
"This is?"
Yang Dan still said nothing, picked up the tea cup, blew on the tea foam floating on it, and drank slowly.
Zhang Yi became more and more confused. He picked up the land deed and took a look at it. His expression suddenly changed.
"Brother Yang Xian, why are these land deeds... in your hands?"
Yang Dan then put down the tea cup and said leisurely: "It's not my foolish brother, but another friend."
"who is it?"
"Brother Zhang also knows this person. He is the commander of the Jian'an Guard, Yang Tai."
"Yang Tai?"
Zhang Yi looked stern. This Yang Tai was not a relative of Yang Dan, but the grandson of Yang Rong, another cabinet minister among the three Yangs.
"What does he mean by taking these land deeds?"
Yang Dan said calmly: "These are Brother Zhang's ancestral properties. Wouldn't it be a pity to sell them to those cheap businessmen at a low price?"
In the New Deal three years ago, the imperial court changed the tax law and implemented the system of sharing the land from one person to one mu.
Before that, it was called a population tax, or poll tax.
How many people are in the family, how much tax do you have to pay?
This system began in the Han Dynasty and has been like this for more than a thousand years and nearly two thousand years.
However, the people at the bottom are too poor and cannot afford to pay, so they have no choice but to run away with their families or hide the news. In the most cruel cases, they may even drown their babies.
When Zhu Yuanzhang founded the country, he established a household registration system to prevent people from escaping.
After Zhu Qizhen conquered the north and south and put down the foreign chaos, he finally took action against the gentry class, opened the sea, and implemented the New Deal in one go, making it difficult for people to guard against.
From now on, paying taxes will not depend on the population, but on how much land and property your family has.
After the population tax is exempted, people can produce with peace of mind and no longer have to flee, and the restrictions on the household registration system are no longer necessary.
As a result, the big landowners who used to value their land more than their lives began to waver.
Because land tax is divided into grades, the more acres you have, the more tax you pay, and the tax increases exponentially, up to 50%.
Let’s do the math, the land at home is not enough to grow grains to pay taxes, so how about growing a ball?
From that time on, the situation of land annexation was broken in one fell swoop. The former landlords and gentry continued to sell off their land and invest the money gained from selling the land into other industries, such as trade, workshops, etc.
In short, what do you do to make money?
Zhang Yi's hometown has 150,000 acres of fertile land, and he is a real big landowner.
This does not mean that he is a corrupt official or a greedy person.
In the Ming Dynasty, as long as they were officials, they either had a lot of land in their hands or their relatives had a lot of land. In short, no one was poor.
Even if it is bought by legitimate means, it cannot be less.
Not to mention that many land transactions are unfair and even involve plundering.
Another situation is affiliation.
For example, the gentry class, all of whom are well-established, can be exempted from part of the land tax.
Zhang Yi was exempted from the tax of 500 shi. In other words, if he needed to pay 2,000 shi in grain tax, he would be exempted from the 500 shi and would only have to pay 1,500 shi.
This does not include the fact that some people deliberately conceal the number of acres of land through some means, and in the end only pay a very small amount of tax, or even don't bother to pretend, and just don't pay.
But the common people can't. They pay as much as they should, without any preferential policies.
So a situation emerged where people took out their land and gave it to the landlords.
Then he continued farming as a tenant.
Pay a portion of the grain grown to the landowner, and keep the rest for yourself.
That's because landowners have the right and ability to conceal the number of acres they own.
Such fields became hidden fields and were not recorded in the official fish scale register.
However, after the New Deal, the imperial court cleared acres of land on a large scale, and it was no longer possible to hide the land.
Everyone can see that the land is no longer profitable, so sell it without hesitation!
Under such a wave, Zhang Yi was no exception and sold a large amount of his family's land. Anyway, he was not short of money, let alone food.
But I didn't expect that someone would buy these lands today. This is very strange.
Because the land in his home is close to the city of Nanjing, and most of the land he bought was used to open workshops and engage in industrial production, which would inevitably lead to the construction of a lot of infrastructure. How could he sell it after just two years?
Woolen cloth?
What’s even more bizarre is that the person who repurchased these lands turned out to be Yang Rong’s grandson.
The current cabinet members, except for the newly promoted Yu Qian and Peng Qing, were all trained by the original San Yang.
Although Miao Zhong and Chen Xun had become scholars, their disciples and former officials were still serving in the court.
It is no exaggeration to say that San Yang is the ancestor of all civil servants today.
This is why Yang Dan's status as the Shaoqing of Dali Temple has high prestige in the court.
Now another grandson of Yang Rong appears, and things start to get a little strange.
"My dear brother, please stop being so secretive. What do these land deeds mean?"
Yang Dan stopped hiding it and said, "Yang Tai sent the land deed back just to tell Brother Zhang that these lands are the property of Brother Zhang's ancestors. How can they be sold easily?"
Zhang Yi frowned and said, "Brother Xian, do you know how much tax you have to pay to hold these lands in your hands?"
Yang Dan still had a calm smile on his face and said: "According to the new policy, those with more than 10,000 acres will be the highest grade, 50%."
Zhang Yi was speechless for a moment, do you know if you can get it back for me?
Am I selling my land because I am short of money?
I am the deputy minister of the cabinet, do I need this little money?
"Brother Zhang, don't be anxious. In fact, the reason why Brother Yu invited me here tonight is to talk about land issues."
Zhang Yi finally heard some clues, narrowed his eyes slightly, and said: "Brother, if you have anything to say, just say it directly. With our relationship, there is no need to go around. Otherwise, I won't come back tonight."
"Brother Zhang is so happy, that stupid brother won't beat around the bush anymore!"
Yang Dan's expression suddenly became solemn and he said: "Today, the emperor is using the New Deal to collect money and compete with the people for profit, creating a smoky atmosphere in the court. The officials are even more wanton, engaging in corruption and bribery, and exploiting the people. Brother Zhang
It can be seen that people all over the world are already complaining!"
Zhang Yi's face suddenly turned dark and he said: "Xian brother, be careful what you say!"
"Brother Zhang is an assistant minister in the cabinet. Doesn't he know anything about these situations?"
Zhang Yi stood up and said angrily: "Yang Dan, out of the kindness of my mentor, I have treated you with all my kindness and kindness. I will pretend that I didn't hear your rebellious remarks tonight. If you mention them again in the future, don't blame me."
Brother, you are turning your back on me!"
Slandering the New Deal and discrediting the emperor are equivalent to open rebellion!
Yang Dan raised his head and laughed.
Immediately afterwards, his expression changed and he said coldly: "Zhang Yi, you have to think clearly about who put you in the position of cabinet minister!"
Zhang Yi said angrily: "What on earth are you going to do?"
Yang Dan said: "The so-called New Deal is all an excuse for the imperial court to collect money. The people of the world have already been miserable. At this time, do you still pretend to be blind and deaf?"
Zhang Yi finally understood that it was not tantamount to treason, this guy was actually treason!