First Prince of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 675
After a few arguments between the Minister of the Ministry of Households and the Minister of the Ministry of War, he turned around and said bluntly: "Actually, I have long expressed my intention to reduce the horse administration to the Holy Majesty and His Highness. Compared with ordinary people, the cost of raising war horses for the court is too high. , A horse plague is the disaster of ruining a family, it is better to let them farm with peace of mind than to waste money and people."

"Also, Taipu Temple's horse farms in Jiangnan, Shanxi, Hebei, Shaanxi and other places are still too large. I think they should be converted into cultivated land, and the horse farms can be transferred to the east, west and south of Liaoning."

The Minister of the Ministry of War immediately retorted: "There is nothing like a dragon in the sky, and nothing like a horse in the land. Horses are the foundation of armored soldiers and the great use of the country! The rebels in the Yuan Dynasty still exist, and where is there no danger in the southwestern Liaodong and the north? If my Ming Dynasty does not take advantage of the victory , Abolishing the horse administration at this time, wouldn't it be a waste of time? My servant, please learn from the palace!"

The Shaoqing of Taipusi tried to smooth things over and said, "Your Highness should mean to change the government's policy of hiring people to raise horses, not the two ministers. It's too extreme. Why is it so?"

However, his words were obviously not enough, and the officials of the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of War pretended not to hear them, and continued to argue about the matter to the extreme, obviously for their own interests.

The Ministry of War and the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion behind it, the Huaixi Martial Arts, obviously do not want any changes in the horse administration. The number of horses in the army has been surging, and this is their confidence.

What's more, there are not too many ways to make money in the army, and the private caravan trade in Mongolia is now strictly prohibited. If the annual supply of horses is reduced, it will really be poor.

The Ministry of Households has a very simple idea. The imperial court now needs money in all aspects. Where does the money and food come from?

No matter how many horses there are, they can only eat food but not produce food. A horse, especially a war horse, needs a lot of food every day. If it is not on natural grassland, the land needed to raise a war horse, if it is used to grow food, It can feed more than twenty people.

Zhu Biao patted the book table lightly and asked everyone to adjust their postures quickly. After they all calmed down, he said: "The Central Plains is not suitable for raising horses. It is the result of my Ming Dynasty who has devoted all its strength to the current prosperity. It is not a long-term goal." The long-lasting way."

"The imperial court handed over the horses raised by the people in the south of the Yangtze River. The Ministry of Household Affairs and Taipu Temple immediately bought them back at the market price, and drove them to the southwest and Liaodong for herding. They ordered the Taipu Temple of the Ministry of Industry to move the pastures to these two places, and left them after the relocation. The Ministry of Land and Household Affairs must promptly arrange for the people to open up wasteland and cultivate land."

Zhongyuan was not a place suitable for raising horses. The Song Dynasty had no choice but to raise horses here after losing all its land. Now that the Ming Dynasty has recovered even the sixteen prefectures of Yanyun and Liaodong, the horses are not so nervous. The land must be given up For the people to eat.

Seeing that the prince had made up his mind, the officials of the Ministry of War were unhappy, but they couldn't say anything. If they dared to make a fuss in the court hall, they would definitely not dare to make a fuss in this Jinshen hall.

The Minister of the Household Department frowned and said: "Your Highness, there are probably more than [-] horses in the south of the Yangtze River, and the Household Department cannot afford to buy them back. What's more, the horses were originally lent to them by the imperial court, and there is a policy of tax relief."

The Shaoqing of the Taipusi also hurriedly said: "Your Majesty knows that His Majesty is merciful, benevolent, loving, and caring for the people like a son. It is enough to reassure the people if they can take back the horses without causing any injuries."

Zhu Biao cast his eyes on the Minister of the Household Department. If others would have given in, after all, the money of the court is the money of the emperor, and the money of the emperor is the money of the prince after all. No one cares about him.

It’s just that Zhao Wenjing deserves to be called the black-faced darling. The money and food related to the Ministry of Accounts is really hard to let go. The meaning expressed is very simple. Prince, there is absolutely no way to ask the Ministry of Accounts to pay such unnecessary money, unless you directly I went to my Wusha, otherwise as long as I am still the Minister of the Ministry of Households, the money will not be moved, and I will not have it if I ask.

Seeing this, Zhu Biao could only give in. He has no shortage of other officials under his command, but he lacks talents like Zhao Wenjing who can manage money, food and taxes.

In the past few years, the father and son have been hardened by Zhao Wenjing not once or twice, and even Lao Zhu's violent temper can be tolerated, so it can be seen that Zhao Wenjing is indeed dedicated to serving the country, not a corrupt person.

Zhu Biao rubbed his eyebrows and sighed: "The grain tax exemption policy will continue for another two years. The people spent a lot of money on raising horses for the imperial court. Now that the horses are suddenly taken back, their losses are not small. If there are wealthy households Those who are willing to keep the horse can also."

"There are a lot of issues involved in this. After you go back, you should discuss it carefully and come up with a charter to send, so that this palace can send it to the holy majesty to implement it as soon as possible."

Obviously, Zhao Wenjing still felt that the crown prince was too kind to the people. Of course, it was not a bad thing. It would be a good thing if the national treasury was full, but now there is not enough money and food for the household department to support the crown prince. Be kind to the world.

But after all, Zhao Wenjing was not as stubborn as the censors, knowing that His Highness had given him face enough, he endured it for the time being, and told the household department's difficulties in private when he returned.

"The ministers and others would like to obey His Highness's order, and the ministers and others will retire."

Liu Jin sent them out of the hall, and Zhu Biao relaxed his stiff body and leaned back on the chair. How could he not know the difficulties of the Ministry of Finance, but Jiangnan has had many disasters in the past two years, and the turmoil caused by the Jiangnan case last time has not been It's not completely settled down yet.

The last time it was targeted at the scholar gentry class, this time it was aimed at ordinary people. Neither of the two is scary, but the combination of the two is scary.

That's why he hopes to compensate and appease the people, so that they don't have any resentment. Ma Zheng is not so angry and resentful. It is good for the court and the people to stop it in time.

The imperial court has abolished the population tax, that is, giving birth to a child, regardless of gender, does not need to pay a sum of money and food. It can be foreseen that the next few decades or even hundreds of years will be an era of population surge. If the pastures and pastures in the Central Plains are not given up , the conflict between man and horse competing for land is bound to intensify.

The interests behind the horse farm and ranch are very involved, and there is an aboveboard reason for its existence. If this problem is not resolved at this time, the future emperor may not be able to solve it.

Zhu Biao stood up and walked to the Ming map hanging in the side hall to wait and see with his hands behind his back. The Saibei Grassland and Hetao Plain are the most suitable for raising horses, but the risk is also the greatest. Once Mongolia is suddenly unified, all the arrangements of Daming in Mongolia will be lost. Instead, she made wedding dresses for others.

In history, after the Ming Dynasty drove the Mongols back to Mobei, it paid great attention to the control of the Hetao area. The military strength dropped sharply, and the Hetao area was gradually occupied by the Mongols, and Ming once again lost this treasured land.

And there is another very important reason. Zhu marked that the Hetao area gradually entered a severe desertification during the Ming Dynasty, and it was basically extremely difficult for immigrants to settle and raise horses.

So now the best choices are Southwest and Liaodong, that is, Guizhou, Yunnan and Northeast regions. These places have harsh climates, are sparsely populated, and there are very few Han people, and not many people are willing to open up wasteland and cultivate.

In addition to the pastures of the Taipu Temple in the future, there will be a huge space. Instead of forcing people to move to farming, for example, induce the people to graze and raise horses, and then the imperial court will buy them again to form a trade market.

The government-run ranch guarantees the most basic supply of horses, while the common people's ranch can compete with each other to produce good horses, which also solves the problem of worsening war horses.

Liaodong is already in the pocket of the Ming Dynasty. The battle between Naha and Goryeo is quite fierce. At this level, even if he regrets it, it will be too late. If he makes a wrong step, I believe he will not be so stupid and insist on doing it. Death and fame.

As for Yunnan, Zhu Biao was not in a hurry at first. He planned to take the power of heaven and earth to fight after regaining Liaodong.

But now it seems that it is necessary to discuss with the Duan family. Anyway, it does not have to be in Yunnan to deter the Nanyang countries. At worst, it would be easier to find a reason to destroy a country in Nanyang.

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(End of this chapter)