Zhu Yihai stood on the tower of Baiyun County on the shores of Qinghai Lake, watching the third son of King Han go to his fiefdom.
A group of royal guards wearing cotton armor and riding iron horses, carrying muskets on their backs, escorted the third prince southward, from Huangyuan to Guinan, a journey of five hundred miles.
The number of the King of Han's team was not large. They were a group of royal guards and a royal camp of imperial guards. They were escorted to the fiefdom and then back. Most of the guards recruited by the King of Han were from the Ming army stationed in the Hehuang area.
The children, and some of the noble children, were recruited by the King of Han.
Zhu Hongtai offered them good conditions. Not only did they have good salaries, but they were also given land and pasture. Each person had fifty acres of arable land and three hundred acres of pasture. Officers with more ability could get more and get more.
One to two hundred acres of land and three to five hundred acres of pasture.
This condition attracted many people, and the emperor even gave the King of Han a special decree, allowing him to recruit no more than one battalion of guards and mercenaries, that is, five hundred people. These people were given the title of royal guards and regiment training, and could be purchased from the court.
Corresponding team training camp weapons and equipment.
Zhu Yihai also awarded these royal guard officers the title of warrior and knight. They did not belong to the regular army of the Ming Dynasty, but were included in the reserve force. Their title was not an official position or a military rank, but the title of warrior was regarded as a lieutenant's status, and the knight was regarded as a school officer's status.
They are the feudal king's family generals and the court's reservists. The feudal king grants them land. They need to serve as guards for the feudal king, but they do not need to provide their own equipment. The feudal king provides money to purchase from the court, even their land.
Taxes did not need to be paid to the court, but were paid to the court on their behalf by the vassal king.
This is not just an employment relationship. As a knight warrior, you can also get other benefits, such as the school built by the lord in the territory. Their children can attend elementary school for free. Those who are talented and smart can also be recommended by the lord to enter the higher education system.
A higher education institution, or a recommendation to enter a military academy, etc.
"Your Majesty is so stingy, giving the Third Prince so little territory." Anu looked at the leaving team with a swollen belly. There were many people outside the city gate to see the prince off, and there were even many businessmen who followed him south to the new fiefdom.
There were craftsmen sent by the imperial court to build Guinan County and the Han Dynasty Palace.
Anu, who was born in Oirat, his father was the Khan of Khoshot, and his ancestors have always been the leader of Oirat. According to the tradition of Oirat and even Mongolia, not only the property will be distributed to his sons, but the entire tribe, territory, and pasture will also be distributed.
The sons are divided into more and less, but there is no number. It all depends on the father's love for his son.
The Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty controlled the whole world and ruled more than 20 million people. As a result, the third prince was only allocated one county, which was a newly established county. It was half forcibly taken from Qinghai Khan and Yin Ledu Qinoyan.
This was not the territory actually controlled by the Ming Dynasty before.
"Isn't it too difficult to take action?"
Zhu Yihai watched his still-young son leave. His newlywed wife, Princess Shen of Han Dynasty, was still in Beijing. She was summoned this time and was granted the title of Guinan, which was a bit sudden.
"Compared with the tradition on the grasslands, we in the Central Plains are different. This is not a division of families, but a division of princes. I love the King of Han very much, just like the prince and other sons, but I am not only the father of the King of Han, but also the father of the princes.
Emperor Ming."
After several years of repeated thinking, Zhu Yihai finally did not adopt Zhu Yuanzhang's large-scale feudal system, but he also did not continue the harsh treatment of the clan when he first became emperor.
The Great Enfeoffment of the Han and Jin Dynasties all caused civil strife among the vassals, weakened the imperial court, and threatened the empire. The Great Enfeoffment of the Ming Dynasty was changed to raising pigs after Zhu Di. Countless vassal children did not contribute or help the court, and they were just raising pigs.
It would harm both the clan and the court, so it was undesirable.
And like the Tang, Song and even later Manchu Qing dynasties, it was not feasible to confine the clan in the capital and not let them out.
Zhu Yihai not only hoped that the vassals could contribute to the country and shield the vassal court, but also did not want them to endanger the central government. After much deliberation, he finally decided to implement a real enfeoffment system for high-level clans. For example, the prince would be canonized as a prince at the age of ten, and a title would be granted after he was sixteen.
A fiefdom, and then a vassal state.
However, in order to prevent vassal separatism or even rebellion, Zhu Yihai finally decided that the prince would only give one county as a direct fiefdom, and it would be outside the traditional thirteen provinces of Han Dynasty. The traditional two capitals and thirteen prefectures would not be fiefdomed.
To seal the border land, the land given to a county is a direct fief, and the supervisory power of the prefecture where the fief is located is also given.
The prince has a bodyguard of up to 500 people, and a militia of no more than 3,000 people in the fiefdom. Moreover, the county was only given land and other ownership rights, and its power to govern the people, civil administration, taxation and justice was not given to him.
He only has supervisory power and the power to command a strictly prescribed number of guards and militia.
However, the mobilization of guards and militia must be approved by the court, otherwise the guards and militia are prohibited from leaving the county.
After the prince became a vassal, he also had to go to Beijing regularly to attend court meetings and was subject to supervision by central and local officials. Even in all fiefdoms, he still had to pay land tax and industrial and commercial taxes.
This enfeoffment actually did not give much power. It could intervene in the affairs of local prefectures and counties, and it had supervisory power, but no direct governance power.
Compared with the previous pig raising, it was better, and it was considered a local backup for the Ming Dynasty.
The prince's son, the eldest son, will be granted the title of heir apparent, and will be demoted to the first rank to become heir-king. The rest of the legitimate sons will be demoted to the third rank, and will be made Duke of the country. They will be conferred a knighthood at the age of ten, and will be granted the title of guardian of a border township at the age of sixteen. The rest of the concubines,
Then he will be demoted to the fifth rank as a marquis, with a fiefdom of ten miles, and a count will fief a manor.
Although the prince's title is reduced to one rank in the world, it will no longer be reduced to a marquis, and he will be a marquis for generations to come.
Take the King of Han as an example. He is the first prince to be crowned King of Han. If he is the direct eldest son of the line, if he has no meritorious deeds, he will be demoted to the next level, until he is demoted to the Marquis, and then he will no longer be demoted. The direct eldest son of the line will be the next generation
It's the Marquis.
The rest of his legitimate sons and concubines continued to descend down the hierarchy. After reaching the rank of baron, they were reduced to common people and royal relatives, and there would be no hereditary title retention.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! The grandchildren of the King of Han will be more complicated. The eldest grandson of the eldest son will be demoted to the first level as a county prince, the other legitimate grandchildren will be demoted to the third level as a county prince, and the remaining concubines will be demoted to the county prince.
The fifth rank is an earl, the great-grandson is the eldest son and is the duke of the country, the remaining great-grandsons are the county dukes, and the remaining great-grandsons are viscounts.
When it comes to the great-great-grandchildren, the eldest great-great-grandson is a county prince, the other great-great-grandchildren are county marquis, and the concubine great-great-grandchildren are barons.
By the fifth generation, the descendants of concubines have been reduced to the bottom, and they are no longer knighted, but become red-belted royal descendants of the fifth generation.
The sixth generation grandson of the King of Han, Yisun, was also demoted to the rank of Marquis, and he will not be demoted again from now on.
This design is actually because ancient times paid attention to the five costumes. By the sixth generation, they actually had five costumes with the contemporary emperor, which was not considered a close relationship.
From the prince to the marquis, there are exactly six generations, and there are exactly five servers.
At this time, Zhu Yihai retained some titles of county princes. In fact, they were all those who came out of the fifth server with him. Some of them were inherited by the sons of Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, such as Tang Wang Zhu Yujian, and some were originally from counties such as Lu Fan.
king.
There are still a total of eighteen of these princes. Nanyang King Zhu Yujian is the emperor's uncle, and he is also the great Zongzheng. Zhu Yihai made an exception and promoted him to the Tang Dynasty. He is the only one who is not a prince and is crowned a prince.
Zhu Yujian's direct descendants can also be passed down to the marquis, and they will not be descended hereditary.
There are currently another 18 county princes, including Chongzhen's two sons. Their direct descendants can pass on to the Earl, and they will not surrender hereditary.
As for other clan titles, they must be reduced to the next level until they become royal relatives without titles.
Of course, if there are nobles in these clans who have performed meritorious services, they can still be promoted to a noble title, or they or their sons can be rewarded without being demoted. It all depends on their ability.
Correspondingly, the imperial court cannot worship the prime minister, command the army, or take part in the imperial examination for those who hold the title of prince and duke of the clan. Those with the title of marquis and count can take part in the imperial examination, and they can also reach the third rank of civil and military officials. Those with the title of earl and below are not limited to taking part in the imperial examination.
There is no limit to being a soldier, or even to industry and commerce. Those with meritorious deeds can also serve as commanders.
This restriction is mainly to prevent the princes and grandsons from fighting for power. The princes and grandsons have a higher status and greater influence, so they must be restricted. As for the princes and princes, if they are further apart, there will be less of a threat, so it should be relaxed appropriately.
Let them serve as officials in the court and even command the troops.
Although a title can be passed down from generation to generation, and all legitimate concubines can be ennobled, the other legitimate sons and concubines must be demoted to the third and fifth ranks, and only the direct descendants can be reduced to the sixth generation. The rest are not hereditary.
It has to be lowered until it's gone.
For heroes with different surnames who are not members of the royal family, they can only inherit the seventh-level title by their eldest son, and the other sons cannot be divided among them. After the Duke is reduced to Viscount, he will retain the hereditary Viscount, and after the county prince is reduced to Baron, he will retain the hereditary Baron. The remaining titles will be reduced to Baron, and then
If you drop one level, you will become a commoner and no longer have a title.
This is the virtue of a gentleman, and he will be killed in five lifetimes.
Only the prince can be crowned prince.
People with different surnames cannot be crowned kings.
Under this title system, there will be no proliferation of high-level titles, let alone a fission-type increase.
The highest title of a foreign vassal is the county king. The kings and kings of the foreign vassals can all inherit the title of county prince. The deputy khan of Jinnong, the deputy governor of Nuoyan, and the governor of Huitai Ji can all inherit the title of prince, county prince, and county duke. The other foreign vassals
Disciples are also demoted to the rank of nobility.
For the children of princes in foreign vassals, except for the direct eldest son, the rest are even awarded the lowest five-level auspiciousness at first, and then they are gradually promoted based on their merits. Even the second son of the Khan King will not be awarded directly.
The title of County Duke, Huitaiji, starts with the fifth-level Taiji, Baron. Some concubines may only be awarded the fifth-level Taiji in their lifetime, and the baron may not necessarily be given.
Civil servants with non-military merit are generally not awarded titles. If they can become local governors, governors, ministers and nine ministers of the imperial court, or even join the cabinet, three divisions and three dukes, etc., they will be awarded lifelong titles, starting from baron, and they will be promoted to official positions or have increased seniority.
Afterwards, the lifetime title will be accordingly promoted.
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It's just that this lifelong title is not hereditary, and has no actual privileges. At most, it adds some allowances and a nicer title. And those awarded for military merit are world titles, which include real and virtual titles, mainly affecting the land granted.
The amount and the amount of money for food and salary. The world title is a hereditary title. If you are demoted to a title, you will be rewarded with corresponding Yongye fields, honor fields, jue fields, etc. According to the title, you can be granted the title of wife and son, posthumous gifts to ancestors, and selected children.
Entering the Imperial Academy, being escorted to the martial arts hall, joining the Imperial Guard as an errand, etc., it can be regarded as giving children and grandchildren another direct way to enter officialdom.
Compared with a clan prince who can entrust a county, a county prince who can entrust a town, a duke who can entrust a township, and an earl who can entrust a manor, heroes with different surnames do not have the treatment of actual fiefdom.
It was a direct grant of land. The Duke was granted 5,000 acres of land, and the Baron was granted 500 acres. The same was granted to the frontier, but there were no guards or group training.
"You are too stingy. Your Majesty, aren't you afraid that the King of Han will be unhappy? He is young and ignorant now. When he gets older, he will be dissatisfied."
If Zhu Yihai hadn't known Anu's character well, these words would have made him suspect that she was slandering the King of Han. Knowing that she didn't mean it, he didn't take it seriously.
"The enfeoffment of Mongolia is a way to cause chaos and is absolutely unfeasible."
"But the prince only gets a few hundred silver dollars and a few hundred stones of food and salary a year, and if he only gets such a wasteland in the frontier wilderness, there are no people. Isn't this the same as being exiled? Your Majesty is rich all over the world, so you can't be so harsh on the princes?"
Anu is also pregnant with a child, and she does not want her child to be treated like this in the future.
They can't all be born to the emperor. As a result, all the kingdoms, wealth and population in the world belong to the prince, and the others will have nothing.
"The land of a county is not small anymore. Is the Han Dynasty's fiefdom too small? Ten thousand hectares of arable land and one hundred thousand hectares of pasture. Do you know how much potential there is here? There are not many people now, but we have to operate it slowly. Which prince, noble, famous family or powerful family will have great potential?
Can you distribute such a large property to your son? Only the emperor has this ability, and the princes should be content."
He smiled and stroked Anu's swollen belly, "It's actually very good for a prince to have a county fiefdom. If you give him a mansion and a province, do you think this is good for him? That would be harmful to him, I
It can be given to one government and one province, but will his prince brother be happy when he becomes emperor? In the future, if his nephew becomes emperor, he will be even more dissatisfied. Sooner or later there will be trouble, and the bigger the territory, the more ambitious he will be.
Big, they are all harmful things."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! These words may seem a bit crooked, but they are also rough and unreasonable. Just like some people say about businessmen, when you are worth over 100 million, you may be very cool.
But if you have a net worth of tens of billions or hundreds of billions, then this money may not be yours.
Once the pigs are fattened, it's time to slaughter them for meat. It's impossible to keep them forever.
When you gain weight, it’s time to go under the knife.
Resources must be matched with power to be safe.
Whether it was the Seven Kingdoms Rebellion in the Han Dynasty, the Eight Kings Rebellion in the Jin Dynasty, or even the Jingnan War in the Ming Dynasty, the essence was the same. The vassal kings were too powerful and threatened the central government, so the central government must weaken them.
The result will inevitably be rebellion.
Zhu Yuanzhang was right to want to entrust his own sons with the feudal vassal court to guard the frontier.
But when his grandson Jianwen became the emperor, it was difficult to feel at ease when he saw those uncles holding heavy troops and guarding one side. King Ning held Duoyan's three guards, claiming to have 80,000 Mongolian cavalry. The king of Yan, Zhu Di, guarded Beiping, too.
Rich experience in commanding troops.
There are also those other uncles of the King of Sai, all of whom have troops and horses in their hands. Who can survive? It is inevitable to cut down the vassal, and civil strife is also inevitable.
If Zhu Yihai was thinking from the perspective of the emperor and his father, he should allocate more fiefdoms to the princes, or even preferably to a richer place. But if he wanted to think from the long-term perspective of the imperial court and the world, he could never do that.
.
Setting up a county in the border areas and letting the sons guard it, away from the capital and away from politics, actually protected them and maintained the stability of the court.
If Zhu Yihai enfeoffs his sons to places like Chang'an, Luoyang, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Jiujiang, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Liaodong, Taiyuan, and Hanzhong, it is estimated that after his death, his bones will not be cold, and the new emperor will not be able to sit firmly on the throne. The princes from all over the world will
There is going to be a rebellion.
So let’s be pragmatic.
The fiefdom is a bit small and a little out of the way, but at least it's safer. Let's develop it slowly.