Night, Xinuang Pavilion.
After Zhu Youtang's health improved greatly, he had begun to review memorials, but he could not handle too many official affairs at one time. More often, he needed the eunuchs of the Supervisor of Ceremonies to help him take care of and handle them.
The recent matter that he had to deal with personally was related to the merits, demerits, rewards and punishments of the two wars in the east and west.
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of War has proposed a reward strategy for meritorious generals. There are more than a dozen major items related to rewards such as money, grain, and land. In addition to military merit, it also involves the redistribution of the northwest army's farmland. The Ministry of War has proposed Hundreds of thousands of acres of land must be re-opened in Datong, and water conservancy projects must be built to increase farmland irrigation, and then there is this.”
Li Zhang was responsible for waiting and explaining beside Zhu Youtang that night. This thing was presented to Zhu Youtang.
"Some people have also proposed that Cai Guogong be further sealed and Yongping Mansion and other places be given to Cai Guogong. This is related to the sowing of new crops in the coming spring. Yongping Mansion is said to have been prepared. "
"Oh, really"
Zhu Youtang was a little happy when he heard the news.
The ministers in the DPRK finally started to take the initiative, and actually offered to confer a title and reward Zhang Zhou, which saved the emperor a lot of trouble.
But when he saw the memorial, his face didn't look good.
It seems that they are helping Zhang Zhou, but it is more because the civil servants are being petty. When a person has merit, the people below take the initiative to give him a title and reward, which is clearly trying to drive a wedge between the emperor and his ministers. Although Zhu Youtang is a boring gourd and has social phobia, he is not stupid at heart. On the contrary, he has a very clear way of dealing with interpersonal relationships in his heart.
To put it bluntly, when there is social fear, there is often a dark side.
The little thoughts of the officials below could not escape his eyes at all.
"This is not asking for credit for Bingkuan. It is basically a guillotine for me. This group of people has a terrible heart." Zhu Youtang commented on this group of people unceremoniously. Motives and intentions.
Li Zhang also cautiously said, "Although Cai Guogong did not personally fight in this battle, he was responsible for the planning behind it. In terms of merit, Cai Guogong should be the leader. From what I can see, if you want to reward me, you must be rewarded." Let Cai Guogong take the lead."
Zhu Youtang said, "Then follow what they said and give Bingkuan a rank, and at the same time officially grant Yongping Mansion to Bingkuan as a fief. All the cities and ports in Yongping Mansion were left to Bingkuan."
"This" Li Zhang seemed to be in a dilemma.
Zhu Youtang asked, "Do you also want to say for those people that there is no precedent for this? Since ancient times, ten thousand princes have been rewarded by the court for meritorious ministers. Even in the current dynasty, meritorious ministers were rewarded." Don't they have fiefdoms in Yunnan and Nanzhili? Even if they are not surnamed by the country, they still have their own fiefdoms, don't they? I just follow the ancestral system."
"Yes" Li Zhang responded quickly.
"In addition, all local taxes in Yongping Prefecture will be handed over to Bingkuan.Take care of it. If others think it is inappropriate, then these taxes and so on will be redistributed in the name of the inner government first, instead of going to the household department. If anyone in the court makes irresponsible remarks, let them come and tell me directly. "Zhu Youtang looked impatient.
To make decisions, there is no need to go through the court, he only needs to say it.
Li Zhang said, "Yongping Mansion is located in the suburbs of Beijing. In the past few years, it has been difficult to maintain what we have collected through taxes and other means, and we have to rely on allocating money and food from other places. It also concerns the expenses incurred in Jizhou Town, which are very huge.
Zhu Youtang frowned and said, "I gave the land of Yongping Mansion to Bingkuan. It doesn't mean that I also gave him the defense of Yongping Mansion. Do I still want to give Ji Ji." The expenses of the state and town are all attributed to Bingkuan alone, which is supported by the court, not by Bingkuan alone, but Bingkuan has paid too much for the court in the past few years. It makes me sigh that a minister can bring so much income to the court, and one person can support half of the court. Just like this, he still has to be picky about Bingkuan. What do those people think?"
Li Zhang didn’t know how to respond.
In the eyes of an emperor who blindly trusted Zhang Zhou, Zhang Zhou was a perfect saint. It would be better to echo him and make the emperor feel that you are one of his own. .
It is not Li Zhang’s responsibility to speak out.
“Jizhou’s budget will increase in the coming year. , since I gave Yongping Mansion to Bingkuan, I cannot allow the Tatars to have the opportunity to cause trouble. I must at least ensure the local stability of Yongping Mansion, and then tell Bingkuan that the newly reclaimed land in Yongping Mansion, I think we can be tax-free for three to five years. As for how to exempt it, or whether it should be exempted, let Bingkuan decide for himself, after all, it is his own territory. ”
Zhu Youtang originally wanted to give tax exemption to the land in Yongping Mansion.
But after thinking about it again, that land was given to Zhang Zhou, and he also said that the taxes and other taxes in that place were all Leave it to Zhang Zhou to take care of it, and then turn around and say tax exemption, what else can Zhang Zhou gain?
But tax exemption is a big favor after all. If Zhang Zhou comes to apply for tax exemption from the local government, This is to make the local people think about Zhang Zhou's good deeds, and at the same time, they will have more motivation to reclaim the wasteland in the north near the border. There are also many barren lands and wilderness, and tax exemption is also the best way to reclaim the wasteland.
So much so that the emperor was not sure and asked Zhang Zhou to make his own decision.
The general meaning is that
The place is yours. It’s up to you to do whatever you want.
At night, Li Zhang walked briskly and hurried to find Zhang Zhou to inform Zhang Zhou of the "good news".
He made a plan on the way to tell Zhang Zhou. Zhou felt that he, Li Zhang, was behind the granting of the title to Yongping Mansion. It also made Zhang Zhou feel that he, Li Zhang, was "one of his own" and that Li Zhang had worked very hard for his immediate status. After all, he was the most powerful person. He was aware of the rumors that Yang Peng was going to succeed him, and he was most afraid of losing the emperor's trust.
The key was not how the emperor hired people, but Zhang Zhou's attitude towards him.How is the degree.
When he learned that Zhang Zhou was still at the theater, he went directly to look for him regardless of the time.
Although he was invited upstairs, Zhang Zhou didn't come out for a while, and he was not in a hurry. He just thought of himself as a person asking for a meeting, sitting there and waiting, so that when Zhang Zhou came out , also with a bit of apology.
"Keep Eunuch Li waiting. I have something to do here, so I was delayed." Zhang Zhou said.
Li Zhang said with a smile, "Sir, you are smiling. You work hard for the imperial court. So what if we wait for you for a while? After all, we are all serving your majesty. Besides, today is not your majesty's. This letter was sent to our family. It is estimated that His Majesty will inform you, Mr. Yu, in the next two days."
"What a big deal it is. I need your father-in-law to come and wait for His Majesty to inform you. It’s better to wait a few more days.” Zhang Zhou seemed to understand the “rules”.
You, Li Zhang, are here to take credit, but what you said is probably beyond the scope of your responsibilities.
Li Zhang said, "Actually, it's not a big deal, but it's reasonable. Your Majesty will officially give Yongping Mansion to you, sir. He also said that the taxes of Yongping Mansion will be allocated to you and may even be exempted." Five years of taxation, and even corvee service, etc., are all assigned to you, also considering that Yongping Mansion needs to employ too many people recently, so as not to be short of manpower."
Li Zhang said. Here, there is already a hint of flattery on his face.
"Sir, it is up to the ministers below to bring this matter to you. Your Majesty has said that those people have bad intentions or want to stir up trouble, but His Majesty uses this kind of wind to directly bring it to you. The granting of the title seemed to be in compliance with their wishes, but in the end it was them who were angry because they had to steal the chicken but lose the rice."
When Li Zhang said this, he felt the same hatred as Zhang Zhou. The indignation seemed to be aimed at confronting the civil servants.
Zhang Zhou's face did not look as happy or worried as Li Zhang imagined, but looked very calm.
Zhang Zhou asked Li Zhang to sit down, and Li Zhang quickly asked, "Sir, do you think there is something wrong?"
Zhang Zhou shook his head slightly and said, "The matter of Yongping Mansion. In fact, His Majesty told me earlier that he would grant the title when the time was right, but I mentioned at that time that it would be better to go through the court for this kind of thing, or not at all, and I don’t need one. Why do you want to enfeoff land? My roots are in the capital after all."
"Yes, yes, sir, you are a great talent. Others want to enclose territories and become vassals, but you just want to do it for yourself. When the imperial court is doing things, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s a frontier or not, but you always need a place of your own to display your ambitions.” Li Zhang seemed to understand Zhang Zhou’s situation very well.
Zhang Zhou said, "What I'm afraid of is not that the ministers in the DPRK will object to this matter, but that someone will secretly cause trouble."
Li Zhang said, "No, in the Ming Dynasty, there were also There are many meritorious ministers from all over the world, who doesn’t have a fiefdom?"
Zhang Zhou sighed, "After all, Yongping Mansion is in Beizhili, next to Shuntian Mansion, and it was the target of public criticism before.There are some local disputes in Yongping Prefecture. The relationship between me and the local authorities in Yongping Prefecture is not very good. It is related to the mining and port construction. If more laborers and other matters are involved, it will even attract more trouble. Local grievances. "
"This" Li Zhang didn't know how to answer the question.
The emperor has rewarded you with such a large piece of land, which is still under the emperor's feet, but you are still "choosy" 4" Do you deserve His Majesty's trust in you?
Zhang Zhou said, "I mean, if Eunuch Li is interested, he can also help inform His Majesty. There is no need to formally confer a title. In my opinion, it can be used as His Majesty's palace. His Majesty can go on patrols or go there for summer vacation. If you want to patrol the frontier, you can go there at any time. My task is to take care of this place for Your Majesty so that it can exist as a special zone. "
"Special Zone"
Li Zhang said with question marks on his face, "We don't quite understand what you mean, sir. Can you elaborate on it?"
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "The general idea is that this area has different policies from other places. For example, the land tax will be lighter. After all, many places need to plant new crops. In terms of physical things, changing the original crop farming will inevitably bring some losses, and the people may not accept it and give them certain benefits. "
"Besides the land, the mining tax remains the same as before, and the mining tax is still allocated to the court to allocate expenses. In terms of port construction, commercial taxes are more used. Doing business in Yongping Prefecture will charge higher taxes than other places, but merchants from all over are allowed to travel freely. In other words, in this place, there are no restrictions on household registration. Those who are willing to move their household registration to Yongping Prefecture in the first few years can be exempted from two years of corvee."
"As for the ships that come and go after the port is built, It will increase, and there will also be responsible for the important task of going to sea in the north. A new city shipping department will be established. The taxes paid by ships will also be higher. However, the goods from the South and West will be transported from here to various parts of the north. Merchants You can transport and buy and sell by yourself"
"At the same time, a railway will be built between the capital and Yongping Port, and transported by train. These transportations are also open to merchants, and the imperial court collects the goods they transport. The fees can be transported to the capital and even Xishan, and then transferred from these places to various places in the north. This system can be used in any place in the north of the Yangtze River. When passing through water customs and tax customs everywhere, you will no longer have to pay taxes. ”
After Zhang Zhou said this, Li Zhang was completely dumbfounded.
But because what he said was relatively easy to understand, Li Zhang probably understood it.< /p>
The so-called special zone is different from other places in Ming Dynasty.
“Sir, we don’t quite understand that you want to increase business taxes and you also want to promote business here. To make a living, will businessmen from other places still come? They are seeking profit. "Li Zhang put forward his opinions based on his knowledge.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "Whether merchants come will not only depend on the policy, but also whether it can bring them profits. If Yongping Prefecture produces enough goods,, which they cannot buy anywhere else, and it can break through the obstacles of north-south cargo transportation and become the second water trunk road after the Grand Canal. Moreover, the court will use a large number of ships to help them move goods, and only charges transportation fees. Then why don't they come here? How much does it cost per year to transport grain from the south to the north? If they take the sea route, then their cost is very low. "
"This"
Li Zhang didn't seem to understand.
Zhang Zhou said, "Such a large business, with an income of one million taels a year, should be Needless to say, if you add in the silver and gold shipped back from overseas, it amounts to several million taels a year, which is equivalent to doubling the income for the court. "
Li Zhang said with a slight surprise on his face, "Even His Majesty said that sir, you will give the court more money than other ministers can match. ”
Zhang Zhou said with a smile, “This is also my way of opening up money. We need to fight in the north and stabilize the people. It is best not to affect all aspects of the court’s expenses. River construction and disaster relief in various places cannot be stopped. The royal palaces, government offices, etc. are also waiting for the court to allocate money and food, which all require money. Only when the imperial court becomes rich can the final decision on the grassland be realized. I am also thinking about the imperial court. "
"Yes, yes. "Li Zhang had a bit of envy on his face.
Zhang Zhou said, "Your Majesty initially plans to ask Yang Peng and Eunuch Yang to go to the port to take care of these properties as the general manager of the internal government. I will also tell Your Majesty that I am just a think tank, and Eunuch Yang does not work for me, but for the imperial court. A few million taels of income a year would be enough no matter what the court did. ”
Li Zhang smiled and said, “It’s not that the court has enough, it’s that His Majesty has enough.” Please remember to bookmark this chapter when it’s over, the latest and fastest website for free reading without anti-theft