678 [Businessmen are like tigers, when lying in cages]
Wenyuan Pavilion.
Wang Yuan put down the secret message from India. Although his expression was calm, his eyes were full of doubts.
The Mughal emperor suffered a defeat and lost one-tenth of his territory in the first battle. Emperor Humayun was looking to purchase Daming firearms.
In Wang Yuan's impression, the Mughal Empire would unify India. Why was it that the country was only founded for more than ten years and was beaten to death by its own rebel generals?
Wang Yuan wrote several autographed letters, one to Wang Chong, the governor of Guangdong, asking him to strictly investigate the firearms smuggling chaos; one to the Ming Dynasty Navy, asking the Ming Navy to rule all maritime merchants and not sell firearms to Mo.
Wol; write a letter to Wang Fang, asking him to check all passing goods. Gujarat is a must-pass place for trade with the Mughals.
The Mughal Empire must not be allowed to become stronger. Wang Yuan will continue to rule India in the future, and sooner or later there will be a battle with the Mughals.
Sher Shah's rebellion occurred three years earlier than in history.
This man was born in Afghanistan. He defected to Babur and became a Mughal general. He fought in Bangladesh all the year round. As he fought, he began to support the bandits. Instead of continuing to annex the territory of Bangladesh, he expanded his power in the Mughal country.
, it developed into a border town within a few years.
The current Mughal emperor, Humayun, is completely mentally retarded. He sits back and watches his brothers separatist power and alien vassal towns continue to grow.
This stupid emperor is busy developing culture and art, but he himself is still semi-literate. His father's comment is: "You can barely read your letters."
Wang Fang occupied an important horse-breeding land in Gujrat, which was directly adjacent to the Mughals. If it were any other emperor, he would have been alert, but Humayun was happy to engage in trade. He mobilized treasury funds and purchased large quantities of Chinese luxury goods.
goods, and even promised to sell war horses every year in proportion to the trade.
In just over a year, the Mughal nobles, who had already been corrupted, were rushing to buy Chinese luxury goods. If they didn't have enough money, they would intensify their efforts to exploit the people. The lower castes and untouchables couldn't squeeze much money out, so these guys turned to the upper castes.
The operation directly led to the eastern high-caste families colluding with Sher Shah to carry out rebellion.
Last winter, Shersha launched a rebellion war and severely damaged Emperor Humayun's army. He then proclaimed himself king in Bihar and formally established the "Suhr Dynasty".
By the way, Sher Shah was Humayun’s teacher, and this war was fought between teachers and students.
The students obviously couldn't bear it anymore, so they had no choice but to ask the Ming Dynasty to buy firearms. The Mughal Empire had already owned firearms, which were blunderbuss and artillery imported from Persia, but they were in disrepair and could not be used for another year and a half at most.
, Sher Shah can destroy the Mughals.
After writing the three letters, Wang Yuan summoned Yu Dayou who returned to Beijing to report on his duties.
"See Tai Tu!" Yu Dayou knelt down on one knee.
Wang Yuan smiled and said: "Zhifu, don't be too polite. The Ministry of War and the Governor's Office have already reported it, right?"
Yu Dayou said: "I have already been there."
Wang Yuan said: "This transfer of you as the commander-in-chief of Liaodong is not only to thoroughly investigate the mutiny, but also to solve the problem of powerful families in Liaodong."
Yu Dayou said: "Please tell me, Taifu."
Wang Yuan said: "I will send Nie Bao as the governor of Liaodong. You will assist him in bringing the Liaodong capital commander to justice. From now on, the Liaodong capital commander will be replaced by retired military attachés. You, the commander-in-chief, the Liaodong governor, the Liaodong capital commander, the three
Let's work together to inspect the military fields in Liaodong. Those who are obedient will be punished lightly, and those who are disobedient will be dealt with severely. Don't be afraid of provoking a mutiny. If there is a mutiny, go and put it down. If you can't put it down, I will ask the Daning border army to help!"
"Yes!" Yu Dayou looked serious, knowing that this time he had a heavy responsibility.
Wang Yuan originally wanted to cut his flesh with a dull knife and replace the generals of Liaodong bit by bit, but in the end, many Jinshi Wu were sent there, and they were quickly attracted and corrupted by the hereditary generals of Liaodong.
Last winter, there was a heavy snowstorm in Liaodong. This spring, there was a drought, and famines of the level of "cannibalism" appeared one after another. Mutinies broke out in Liaoyang, Fushun, and Haizhou. To put it bluntly, the lower-level officers and ordinary military households couldn't survive, so they organized and killed
Senior military officers rebelled to seize food supplies.
As long as we carefully look at the major events of Liaodong in the middle and late Ming Dynasty, we will know that the problem in Liaodong is not the aliens, but the excessive exploitation by hereditary generals. As long as there is a major disaster, it will be famine, and then there will be mutiny to seize food.
"Go and rectify Liaodong." Wang Yuan waved his hand and said.
Yu Dayou accepted the order and left, vaguely feeling that this mission was not easy, and he was afraid that Wang Yuan would have follow-up operations.
What are the next steps?
Taking advantage of the rebellion, he dismissed the Liaodong Commander-in-Chief and appointed Yu Dayou as the Liaodong Commander-in-Chief. He then appointed Nie Bao as the Liaodong Governor. Together with Yu Dayou, he took down the Liaodong Governor and replaced him with a close confidant, Wu Jinshi. In this way, the Liaodong Governor
, the Chief of Staff, the General Soldier, conducted a three-pronged attack on the Liaodong military field, and killed those who disobeyed!
After clearing the fields in Liaodong, they immediately established the Chief Secretary of Liaodong and the Administrative Department of Liaodong, completely changing Liaodong from military control to civilian control, and at the same time changing the guard system in Liaodong to the camp system.
Once the Liaodong reform is completed, the Ming Dynasty will have two capitals and fifteen provinces, and the two extra provinces will be Liaodong Province and Jiaozhi Province.
Since we want to make a big move, we should do the same as in Jiaozhi Province, directly setting up farmers and farmers in Liaodong. Anyway, the reforms that have been carried out will not be afraid of resistance. In the past two years, more than 10,000 people have been killed in Jiaozhi farmers and farmers before and after the rebellion.
People, the gentry and landowners in Cochin are very obedient now.
"Master, according to the details of the Ministry of Household Affairs, last year's annual income was more than 31.7 million taels." Mao Ji smiled and handed over a document.
The annual autumn grain harvest is not settled until February of the following year. It is only a rough estimate at the end of the year. Only now can we calculate last year's annual income.
Wang Yuan said happily: "It's really over 30 million."
"Congratulations to the Grand Tutor!" Mao Ji, Wang Hong, Wang Tingxiang, and Zhang Cong held their fists in celebration.
Wang Yuan smiled and said: "This is to congratulate the Ming Dynasty and congratulate His Majesty. This is also the contribution of all my colleagues. I cannot do it alone."
Last autumn, the cabinet minister Wang Xian died of illness. In winter, Yan Yishou, the Minister of Punishment, returned home due to illness.
As a result, the central officials changed again.
Zhang Cong was awarded the bachelor's degree of Dongge University, and finally became a cabinet minister. The cabinet rankings were: Wang Yuan, Mao Ji, Wang Hong, Wang Tingxiang, and Zhang Cong.
Ling Xiang was transferred to the post of Minister of the Ministry of War, and once supervised Ma Zheng in Liaodong together with Wang Yuan.
Jin Lei was transferred to the position of Minister of the Ministry of Justice, and he was Wang Yuan's same year and good friend.
Zheng Shanfu was promoted to Cangchang Shangshu and became a disciple of Wang Yuan.
Gui E was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Industry. In the same year as Wang Yuan, he worked with Wang Yuan to open sea in Zhejiang.
Chang Lun was transferred to the left minister of the Ministry of punishment. He was Wang Yuan's same age and good friend, and they had worked together to open sea in Zhejiang.
Shi Dao was transferred to the position of Minister Zuo of the Ministry of Industry and was a disciple of Wang Yuan.
If you insist on saying that Wang Yuan promoted party members and eliminated dissidents, you are really right. Most of the important officials in the central government are Wang Yuan's own people.
The person in charge of the imperial office and writing edicts was Tian Qiu, a fellow countryman of Wang Yuan; He Tang, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, and his two sons all became Wang Yuan's disciples; Yan Song, the minister of the Ministry of household affairs, joined Wang Yuan early on;
Gave it to Wang Ce.
The left minister of each ministry, also known as Song Cang of the Ministry of Personnel, was a disciple of Yang Tinghe. Fang Xianfu of the Ministry of War was a disciple of Wang Yangming. Xu Zan of the Ministry of Rites was promoted purely based on his political performance and qualifications.
The cabinet is in harmony, and the six ministries are in harmony.
This kind of harmony is purely due to Wang Yuan's power, and he has been fighting for power secretly.
Factions are gradually dividing within the royal party. Although everyone supports the reform, disputes over mutual interests are inevitable.
Yan Song and Zheng Shanfu had a bad relationship. Previously, there was a minister of the Ministry of Revenue and a minister of the Ministry of Industry. Due to the establishment of the Railway Department and the large allocation of funds for the construction of water conservancy and border defense every year, the Ministry of Industry was jealous of the money they received, but every time it started construction
The Ministry of Revenue is also required to support banks. Moreover, the financial jurisdiction of some agencies overlaps, causing the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Industry to become bitter enemies.
After competing for financial rights many times, the battle between Yan Song and Zheng Shanfu has become public.
What's even more interesting now is that Wang Yuan transferred Zheng Shanfu to be the Secretary of Cangchang, and was directly responsible for managing the purse strings of the Household Department. Yan Song even complained about Wang Yuan privately.
At the same time, Yan Song also understood that Wang Yuan was deliberately beating him because he crossed the line in his fight for power last time.
Zheng Shanfu and Fang Xianfu also had conflicts, which were purely academic disputes.
Among the disciples of the Physics School, Zheng Shanfuguan did the most; among Yangming's disciples of mind, Fang Xianfuguan did the most. The two developed their own disciples, which led to constant disputes over academic concepts in the central court between Wang Yuan and Wang Yangming's disciples
, gradually affected Zheng Shanfu and Fang Xianfu.
In addition, Ling Xiang, Minister of the Ministry of War, and Gui E, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, already had a personal feud between them, which was caused by their respective bad tempers.
Except for Wang Yuan, the other four ministers in the cabinet were all rubber stamps.
But the hatred between Mao Ji and Wang Hong, the two rubber stamps, grew deeper and deeper. Mao Ji had more senior cabinet qualifications, but he was always inferior to Wang Hong in terms of promotion and dispersal. It was not until the past two or three years that Wang Hong finally overtook him.
Although he was super capable, he liked to flatter and seek power for personal gain. He was often despised and ridiculed by Mao Ji, who regarded himself as a clean figure. Over time, the two of them started to get into conflict, and it has developed to the point where they exposed each other's shortcomings.
As for the Minister of Punishment, Jin Lei, he had countless enemies and was a political enemy throughout the dynasty. He liked to be more serious about things and punished the children of powerful people many times. Even the emperor's favorite concubine, Shu Fei, and her father were imprisoned by Jin Lei.
He Tang, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was an even more powerful MT. He was unkempt and informal, like a sloppy old man. When appointing and dismissing officials, he relied on performance, blocking many people's promotion channels and making many important ministers dissatisfied.
He receives the most impeachment memorials every year!
Only Luo Qinshun, the Minister of Rites, could be said to be a stable official. He was praised both inside and outside the court, but no one could be found to say anything bad about him.
There are no factions in the party, and there are all kinds of strange things. In fact, this is normal.
What Wang Yuan is really wary of is not that the reforms are being counterattacked, but that there are signs of the birth of the "Donglin Party".
The "Donglin Party" is not in Nanjing, but in the central court.
A large number of gentry and merchants became rich by opening up the sea for trade. They tried to gain political power by training their children to take imperial examinations and serve as high-ranking officials. Through political donations, they wanted to influence the policies of the court, even Mao Ji and Wang Hong.
The two bitter rivals actually proposed in unison to reduce export tariffs.
These guys who have suddenly become rich and have enough resources to train their heirs will inevitably join the court in large numbers as officials in a few decades. By then, the court will be full of people who speak for businessmen. Isn’t it just like the "Donglin Party"?
Of course, these people are now supporting Wang Yuan's reforms. They took the initiative to fight against the "opposition faction" in Nanjing, vigorously advocated Wang Yuan's reforms among the people, and touted the emperor and his chief ministers as wise emperors and wise ministers rarely seen in the ages.
Zhu Zaiyi's son succeeding to the throne may be a big headache, and he may easily be kidnapped by the merchant class.
Not long ago, Zhu Zaiyi hosted a banquet to invite Wang Yuan, and the monarch and his ministers chatted in Xiyuan.
Zhu Zaiyi asked: "Sir, now that the national treasury is abundant, the world is at peace, and all nations are coming to court, what else do we need to work hard for?"
Wang Yuan said: "We should prevent merchants from becoming big and prevent merchants from interfering in government affairs."
Zhu Zaiyi smiled and said: "Sir, you have opened up the sea and set up your own factory. Everyone calls you the biggest businessman in the world. Why should you be wary of merchants?"
Wang Yuan replied: "Businessmen pursue profit. Even if they have tens of thousands of gold, they will compete with the common people for a small profit. Now that merchants have prospered, a large number of merchants' children will become officials in the future. They will only help the gentry and merchants to speak. The country's
Profits, the benefits of the people, can be taken from them, and can be sold by them all!"
Zhu Zaiyi's expression became serious and he asked: "Sir, do you want to suppress business?"
Wang Yuan shook his head and said: "You can't suppress it, you can only control it and control it. Businessmen are like tigers, they must be kept in a cage. Once they are released, they will choose people to eat. Your Majesty only needs to remember the words of Mencius, the people are the most precious, and the country is the most important.
Secondly, the ruler should be taken lightly. These 'people' are not gentry, dignitaries, or merchants, but hundreds of millions of people in the world. If the people are safe, the country will be stable, and the emperor will rule the world. If the people are in danger, the country will be in danger, then the country will be in danger.
When the emperor is in trouble, the gentry, the powerful, and the merchants will stir up trouble. To benefit the small people and weaken the gentry, the powerful and powerful merchants can do it; but to harm the small people and benefit the gentry, the powerful, and the merchants can't do it!"