Daming Yuanfu

Chapter 1310 "Collection and Use"

When the people of the world, especially the officials of the capital, were waiting for Gao Yushi's three-axes with various mentalities, Gao Yushi did not disappoint them.

Two days later, Gao Wushi had just completed the handover of various tasks of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and reviewed the branch records of the Ministry of Household Affairs over the years since the first year of Wanli. It was presented to the emperor in Yu Minshu.

Of course, the memorials are first sent to the cabinet through the Secretary of the General Administration, so the first ones to see the text are the elders of the cabinet.

The opening chapter of "Qiyongshu" is quite interesting, almost copying Gao Gong's statement about "the distinction between righteousness and benefit" in the past.

"Gao Wushi, Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, would like to play: Why does "University" talk about wealth? Said: This is the useful learning of sages and sages. Husband's "Hong Fan" eight politics, the first food and goods. "Yumo" three things, finally enriching life. Financial management is the most important task of the king's government.

The pedantic and famous people of later generations do not know righteousness and benefit, do not argue about public and private interests, and only think that not talking about profit is the highest, and even make people unable to be a country.Little do they know that gathering people is called wealth, managing money is called righteousness, and it is also called the sum of the benefits of righteousness, and righteousness is definitely disadvantageous.The distinction between righteousness and benefit lies in the judgment of public and private.If it comes out of righteousness, then benefit is righteous; if it comes out of benefit, then righteousness is also beneficial. "

Gao Yushi is Gao Gong's successor, and he begins this essay with Gao Gong's views in the past, and his political intentions are very obvious.But he's not just doing it for political reasons, and he's long shared that view.

Gao Gong's defense of private interests against public interests is indeed a brilliant idea.Among them, "gathering people is called wealth, and managing money is called righteousness" is to criticize Song Confucianism's view of "using fame and fortune".

On the contrary, Gao Gong gave a brand-new interpretation of "righteousness" and "benefit", which is mentioned above: the so-called "righteousness" means financial management, which is the wealth of the country; the so-called "benefit" , of course, is to gather wealth and gather talents to create wealth.

From this, "righteousness" and "benefit" are no longer abstract and empty concepts, but the sum of the interests created by the general public for the country.

If one is only seeking the benefit of the country and does not care about the gains and losses of personal interests, righteousness is profit; otherwise, righteousness is not profit.Therefore, "righteousness" and "benefit" are a dialectical relationship. The two are interdependent and can be transformed into each other under certain conditions. The condition for transformation is the "judgment between public and private."

Gao Gong has a strict distinction between public interest and private interest. In his book "Wenbianlu Mencius", he once wrote: "Mencius' learning is the strictest in the debate between righteousness and interest. It is beneficial but not beneficial. Not leaving relatives behind, not having an heir, is disadvantageous but not disadvantageous. This is what is meant by a state that does not take profit for profit, but righteousness for profit.”

Therefore, Gao Yushi has always been very clear that the "profit" that Gao Gong pursues is not self-interest but public interest, that is, "do not take profit as profit, but use righteousness as profit."

Gao Gong’s ideas are well known to the current courtiers. Gao Yushi’s opening of this article is a head start, which is to remind others that he is the heir of Gao Gong’s political ideas, and any reform must be based on Gao Gong’s original ideas.

At the same time, this is also a means to unite the forces of the Practical School. After all, from the "High Party" to the "Practical School", it is itself a transformation from a political group linked by social relations to a political group linked by governance ideas. and sublimation.

Next, Gao Yushi continued to write in the memorandum: "If you say that you have a country, you should not benefit yourself privately, but use profit as profit; you should only benefit others publicly, and use righteousness as profit. Gai regards profit as profit, If you lose people's hearts and minds, the country cannot be protected, and there is no benefit. If you take righteousness as profit, you will gain people's hearts and have land and wealth. S?"

This paragraph is like the emperor explaining why the "distinction between righteousness and benefit" is important.In fact, this paragraph not only emphasizes the importance of "the distinction between righteousness and benefit", but also lays the foundation for his reasoning below.

"Agriculture is the foundation of our country, and business is the end. The ancestors have established the law, and every sentence is teaching. Farmers are the foundation of the world, and they are also the foundation of wealth. Therefore, the ancients believed that if agriculture is prosperous, the country will be prosperous. But if the whole world is farming, is it feasible? I don’t think so.

I think farming is the foundation, just like a tree has roots, and when the roots are deep, the roots are strong, so the tree will flourish.However, if a tree is a tree, its strength lies in its dryness, and its glory lies in its leaves.Although we must examine its roots, we must not underestimate its stems and leaves.

I have a saying: Without scholars, the country will be unclear; without agriculture, the country will be unstable; without workers, the country will not be strong; without business, the country will not be rich.Scholars, farmers, businessmen, although they have their own priorities, they must not be neglected. I hope your majesty will think about it.

It is like a human being, the scholar is the head, the farmer is the body, the craftsman is the hand, and the merchant is the foot.If there are only scholars and peasants left, they cannot act or do anything, so how is it different from others?
My Taizu, Emperor Gao, was benevolent and mighty, and he was the world, cherishing and caring for farmers, and issued a decree to teach.The land of the world, from the second ancestor to your majesty, has been in the past for nine years, and finally puts emphasis on agriculture and compassion, and sincerely recommends it to be the crown of all dynasties.

However, it is not strange that this dynasty, while emphasizing agriculture as its ancestral law, did not take the construction of water conservancy as a routine, is it not strange?When the minister investigated the source and asked about the various yamen, he must say: Taicang is not enough for use, and it cannot be prosperous.

Ask again: Why is Taicang not enough?It must be said: The power of the people cannot be abused, and the wealth of the people cannot be exhausted, so it cannot be sufficient.

Can't be enough evil?The minister thought it was absurd! "

The memorandum is written here, the things that should be paved for high pragmatism have been paved, and the next step is to start "dry goods".

"In Su Zhe's "Income and Branches" in the former Song Dynasty, there is the amount of income from the household department in the early years of Yuanyou. He said: "Today's one-year-old income is 840 in two, and the income is 180. The inexhaustible amount is 150; the amount of silver is 17 in taels, and the amount of money is 440; 74 of them were produced (and it was not broken and should be given by the general distribution); 790 were counted in pieces of silk, and 810 were produced; [-] were counted in stone Thousands of [-] million, and [-] of which are endless; [-] million of grass, and [-] million of which are produced.'

According to calculations by ministers and colleagues, one tael of gold was worth about ten guan at that time, 300 taels was worth 7000 guan; ; Each piece of silk and silk is worth about half a penny, and 150 million pieces is worth 220 guan. For the conversion standard, please refer to Cheng Minsheng's "Price Research in the Song Dynasty"), which totals about 440 million guan.In addition, the tax revenue levied by money is 240, and the total is about 680.

Seventy-five million guan can be called a huge amount, but is this the annual income of the Song Dynasty before the early Yuanyou period?No.

The minister found out that the finances of the former Song Dynasty were divided into two. One was under the command of Zuo Cao of the household department (before the Yuanfeng reform, it was the third division). , who is in charge of land tax, commercial tax, wine tax, regular tribute, and the benefits of levy;
One is under the command of Youcao of the Ministry of Household Affairs (Sinong Temple before Yuanfeng's restructuring), and the financial administration composed of the promotion of Changping Secretary, Zhou Tongju, and County Chancellor is in charge of each yamen, and it is in charge of Changping, Exemption, Fangchang, Kengye, Hedu, Shanze, geography, goods, and households will never receive money.

In the former Song Dynasty, Zuo Cao was attached to the Minister of the Household Department, and Right Cao was not attached to the Minister of the Household Department, so the wealth of the world was divided into two.However, Su Zhe also said in "Yuanyou Accounting Records": "If the husband's inner possession of Youcao's accumulation, and the fact that the world seals the pile, if it is not under the control of the three divisions in the past, then it will not be included in the accountant. If you write other books, use it Prepare to watch. '

It can be seen from this that the 500 million yuan converted by the ministers and others can only be accounted for by the Ministry of Households, but the income in charge of the right cao of the Ministry of Households is not even included.From this point of view, the territory of the former Song Dynasty is not as good as our dynasty, but the annual income is ten times that!With your majesty's sage, don't you think it's different? "

If you talk about dry goods, you can talk about dry goods. Here, Gao Yushi compared the fiscal revenues of the Song and Ming dynasties—although he only mentioned the Song Dynasty, the emperor certainly knew the revenue of this dynasty, so there is no need to say more.

As for the result, it was of course shocking, so that Gao Wu described it as "not less than ten times".The next thing is not over, Gao Yushi continued to exemplify the huge gap in fiscal revenue between the Song and Ming dynasties, and then from various production indicators such as ironware, grain (approximately estimated output), cloth, silk, etc. Productivity" actually surpassed that of the former Song Dynasty.

But all of this is to lead to another element. He said in a sparse way: "Thus, the annual income of the former Song Dynasty was about 3000 million yuan, but its land tax was only about 2445 million guan (of which [-] million shi of rice grain was collected in kind, and the part of the money collected is unknown. But the amount will not be very large), the proportion is only [-]%; non-agricultural taxes are as high as [-]%. Therefore, the minister said: The wealth of the two Song Dynasties is not in agriculture but in business.

However, it may be said: Our dynasty is lenient and loving to the people, so we practice this kind of benevolent government that has never been seen in the past dynasties. This is advocated by the righteous saints. Why do you compare the tyrannical governments of the two Song Dynasties?
The ministers are also educated by the saints, and they also advocate benevolent government, but the tax reduction and exemption are not only for those who think benevolent government!

It is a tax, neither owned by the court nor owned by His Majesty, this money is taken from the people and used for the people.

The king is the herdsman of heaven, and the ministers and others assist the king.Taxes are applied to the ruler only to enable the ruler to serve the herdsmen without being constrained by expenses; taxes are used to the ministers and so on, only to enable the ministers and others to serve the ruler effectively and not be forced by food and clothing.Grains of rice and half millet, every needle and thread, are all used by the herdsmen to support the people, so what is the harsh government?
Or say: In ancient times, there was Tang Chang, and there was also Jie and Zhou.My majesty is devoted to the gods and sages, how can I know that the descendants of the future generations are all virtuous?If one or two are unworthy, there is still a limit to the thin tax. Isn't heavy taxation abusing the people?
It is also said: Although the appointment and dismissal of officials has been controlled, since ancient times, those who are honest and traitorous and who are inconsistent in appearance have not been fully detected. If the imperial court imposes heavy taxes, what will happen to those who commit crimes and are greedy and self-seeking ten times as much as today? ?

The minister believes that this is the urgency of establishing regulations early.Where taxes are levied, the accounts must be clear, one tael and one money, and the coming and going are clear.This non-exclusive taxation law should be changed, and the old system of government accounting such as the Ministry of Households should also be changed.Into and out of accounts cannot be done by one person; in and out of the warehouse cannot be handled by one person.Check for leaks layer by layer, and track down gaps level by level.

If the accounts are not correct, they must be compared step by step; what happens must be investigated, and it will not be exhausted for ten generations!I ask you to follow the old system of four servants in the Ministry of War, and set up another two servants in the Ministry of Households to take charge of the two new Caos.The two new Caos are called the Audit Office and the Customs Administration.

The former is specialized in auditing and has six divisions under its jurisdiction.It is called the Agricultural Audit Department, the Industrial and Mining Audit Department, the Commercial Audit Department, the Tariff Audit Department, and the Duzhi Audit Department.

The latter specializes in border trade and sea trade, with five divisions under its jurisdiction.It is called the Border City Division, the Harbor Division, the Land Control Division, the Sea Control Division, and the Political Research Security Division.

The details of the first two departments and eleven divisions have been played by the minister..."

After the memorial received by the cabinet, there was indeed a thick letter attached, detailing the roles and functions of the "audit office", "customs office" and the "new cao" he proposed, as well as the areas under their jurisdiction. scope, goals to be achieved.

In addition, the eleven divisions of the two departments are explained in detail, including the significance, functions, goals, etc. of the establishment of each division, all of which are explained in detail.

Even Shen Shixing couldn't help admiring the high-practice memorandum and the statement of "playing with the memo".

In particular, the enclosed letter Chen wrote tens of thousands of words eloquently. The details of the specific matters he was concerned about and the comprehensive arrangements he made were completely beyond Shen Shixing's imagination.

After Shen Shixing admired it in his heart, he felt deeply alert: Gao Yushi had only been appointed Minister of the Household Department for only three days, and it was hard to say whether all the officials of the Household Department could recognize them all. How could it be possible to come up with such a detailed plan for the establishment of the two new departments? Come?It is absolutely impossible for him to be as pragmatic as he is talented.

Therefore, only one thing can be explained: this plan must have already existed!

God knows when Gao Wushi started thinking about these things!

But Shen Shixing thought about it, and felt that Gao Yushi should have never expected that he would be transferred to the Minister of the Household Department.After all, with his status as the number one scholar in the six poems, even if he was once released as an official, he probably would not consider joining the cabinet from the Ministry of Households after returning to Beijing. A precedent for the Ming Dynasty, the Minister of the Ministry of Officials entered the cabinet!

Anyway, Gao Pragmatism definitely wanted to join the cabinet, which Shen Shixing could think of with his toes.

That being the case, since when did Gao Yushi think about these things about the Ministry of Household Affairs?What is his reason for pondering these things?

Shen Shixing judged others by himself, so of course he would not think that Gao Yushi did this only to save the Ming Dynasty.Involuntarily, his thoughts started to go astray: Could it be that Gao Yushi thinks that his status as "the world's brave man" and "the world's number one literary man" is not enough to be favored, and he wants to build himself into another Cai Jing?
(Note: One of the main reasons why Cai Jing was favored in the Song Dynasty was that his financial management ability was basically irreplaceable in Huizong's view, but civil servants in the Ming Dynasty generally believed that his financial means were nothing more than tyrannical administration. , also from this consideration.)
Thinking of Cai Jing, Shen Shixing, who claimed to be a gentleman, couldn't help sweating in shock. When Yan Song was in power in the past, many people compared him to Cai Jing, which shows Cai Jing's power and influence on the emperor in his prime.

Now Gao Pragmatism’s influence on the emperor is probably not weaker than that of Cai Jing and Yan Song. He is now in charge of the Ministry of Households, and even wants to make the Ministry of Households into a "four-servant system" like the Ministry of War. Shen Shixing just thought it was his plan. At least it looks quite thorough, now that I think about it...

Oops, he is cultivating power!

Why do you think so?Not to mention that after the household department has two more ministers, the authority of the household department secretary must be stronger, just say that his "auditing office" has a lot of tricks in it!

The last of the six divisions of the Audit Office placed by Gao Yushi is called the "Duzhi Audit Division". Although this division is not high-level, it is just a "division". The chief officer is just a fifth-rank doctor, but it has great authority!

How big is it?All the financial expenses of the yamen of the central government must be audited by it!When you enter the account at the beginning of the year, you have to review it, and at the end of the year, you have to check the account to see if your yamen’s expenditure this year is right, whether there is any concealment, and whether there is any abuse!
Shen Shixing gasped, sweat dripped from his forehead: "Well, you are so pragmatic, you are going to strangle the necks of the entire central government department!" ——
Thanks to book friends "Cao Mianzi" and "Ride the Moon and Follow the Wind" for their support, thank you!
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PS: There are too many places written in ancient Chinese in this chapter today. I wrote from [-]:[-] p.m. to [-]:[-] p.m.Judging from the subscription status of this book, my "cost-effectiveness ratio" is really too bad. If I change to Gao Pragmatic, I guess he will go on strike.

(End of this chapter)