I, Zhu Youjian: the first prodigal son of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 4 I'm Too Difficult...

Zhu Youjian didn't know what Wei Zhongxian was thinking, otherwise, he would be happier.

His wishful thinking is very good, because, as far as he knows, the salaries of the officials of the Ming Dynasty are very small, and it is almost difficult to support their families.

Taking first-rank officials as an example, the monthly salary of rice is less than a hundred shi, and the annual salary is only about a thousand shi, which is about 230 taels of silver;

The monthly salary of the magistrate is sixteen stones, and the monthly salary of the county magistrate is seven stones and five buckets.

Therefore, starting from Emperor Taizu, officials took the risk of being beheaded and skinned to make money in different ways.

During the Wanli and Tianqi dynasties, the extra money that officials of the Ming Dynasty showed on the surface was nothing more than Beijing officials’ respecting silver with ice and charcoal, local officials’ fire consumption of silver, and kicking of dendrobium silver.

And whenever the imperial court builds projects and provides disaster relief, it is the best time for officials at all levels to make money.

In addition, corvees, conscripts, roads, checkpoints, ferries, etc., are all lucrative. In some prefectural and county yamen, they can be regarded as some rare vacancies.

Repairing bridges and repairing roads belongs to the management of the construction department, distributing money for fire consumption belongs to the management of the official department, and once the money goes in and out, it belongs to the management of the household department. .

These two major events 'related to the national economy and the people's livelihood' are not difficult to implement, and they are of no use to the country and society of the Ming Dynasty. They are a good opportunity to make money.

The first prodigal son of Ming Dynasty should have such a big deal!

Zhu Youjian plans to take out two or three million taels of silver and let Wei Zhongxian, Minister of Industry, Minister of Officials, Minister of Household and others go toss, and he can at least get tens of thousands of "prodigal value"?

With less than 17 years of life left, Zhu Youjian was flustered.

"Long Live Lord, I'm afraid there is something wrong with this matter," Wei Zhongxian took a half-step forward cautiously, and said in a low voice: "The use of cash from the treasury needs to be discussed and drafted by various ministries, and then submitted to the cabinet for review and approval..."

On the first day of the court, the new master had to spend 300 million taels of cash from the state treasury with one mouthful. This amount of money... made Wei Zhongxian, a treacherous minister, feel a little terrified.

Fortunately, there are only 300 million taels in the treasury...

"Eunuch Wei, this is your business." Zhu Youjian was determined to prodigal, and finally came up with a good way to 'kill two birds with one stone', so he wanted to do it quickly.

Wei Zhongxian stared at the emperor, complaining incessantly.

At the same time, he was secretly delighted.

Didn't this new master always abide by the ancestral precepts, diligently manage the family, and have a good reputation before he ascended the throne?Why did he change his temper overnight after becoming the emperor?

Sure enough, the butt determines the head, and where you sit determines how much people think about it.

This kind of ambitious and self-willed emperor looks very shrewd and capable on the surface, but in fact, it is best to control and use it.

However, could it be a test for Wei Zhongxian?

Well, this point has to be guarded against.

According to Jin Yiwei's information, this new master likes to read, is diligent and cautious, and has shown outstanding intelligence at a young age. It is best not to capsize in the gutter...

"Long live, minister, let's do it now." Finally, Wei Zhongxian chose to obey.

The new master is not very old, but he was not liked by others since he was a child, so he has developed a gloomy and suspicious personality. Who knows what he is planning at this moment.

Wei Zhongxian knew very well in his heart that as the late emperor's favored minister, he had made too many enemies in the court, once he fell out of favor with the new master, he would face annihilation!

The tree fell and the hozen scattered, the wall fell and everyone pushed.

He understands this truth best.

"Wei Aiqing is able to work tirelessly for the national economy and the people's livelihood. I am very relieved." Zhu Youjian nodded slightly to show his appreciation, "Besides, there is another matter that requires Wei Aiqing's help."

Hearing this, Wei Zhongxian bent his old waist just now, and said with a sneer: "Long live Lord, you have something to say, tell your ministers to do it."

The treacherous minister began to murmur in his heart: "This new master, why are there so many things?" '

"Wei Aiqing, I feel tired and lack of energy recently. If you look at the cabinet discussions, memorials and imperial criticisms from now on, I will ask Wei Aiqing to do it for you."

Zhu Youjian's thinking is very simple, he just wants to be lazy, hide in the harem, drink and have fun, and wait for the "prodigal value" to arrive in the account, so that he can add some attribute points to himself.

But as soon as this remark came out, Wei Zhongxian, a big eunuch, was frightened.

According to the relationship between court emperors and eunuchs in previous dynasties, no matter how confused the emperor is, it is impossible to delegate all the power to the eunuchs as soon as he ascends the throne.

Especially for someone like him who belonged to the late emperor's favorite, wouldn't the new master's most taboo thing be him stretching out his hand to seize power?

Probe, this little thief must be probing again!
Wei Zhongxian knelt down with a 'plop', his back was sweating profusely, his face was pale, and he begged in a harsh voice: "Long Live Lord, this must never happen."

Zhu Youjian was taken aback for a moment, and thought to himself: "This old eunuch, who sent four stunning women last night, doesn't he have sharp eyesight?" '

The eunuch, the chief inspector of ceremonies, does not seize power, and does not approve the redemption on behalf of the emperor. How can he control the court and monopolize the power?

And how to help me complete the 'prodigal career' as soon as possible!
"This matter is settled like this." Zhu Youjian said involuntarily, stood up and was about to retreat.

"Long Live Lord!" Wei Zhongxian was in a hurry. Seeing that the emperor was about to leave, he had an idea and said, "Long Live Lord, the banquet you have bestowed on the ministers has not yet arrived. Why don't the ministers go to supervise it first?"

Zhu Youjian's face froze, and he sat down silently.

After making a fuss for a long time, I forgot about giving the banquet.

Well, by the way, let's take a look at how much 'prodigal value' can be gained by ruining dozens of banquets at a time.

To be honest, the previous operations had lost six prodigal points in vain, which made Zhu Youjian tremble with distress.

Although he doesn't know what good things can be exchanged for this prodigal value, but the products produced by the system must be high-quality products, so it shouldn't be too bad, right?
'It's better to increase strength and agility...'

If you want to be a good prodigal, you can't do without a good body.

You know, wine, sex and wealth are almost all physical labor...

……

So, after more than half an hour, Zhu Youjian retreated with a gloomy face.

As soon as he returned to the Qianqing Palace, he lost his temper and threw several pieces of porcelain from the Xuande period, barely making up fifteen points of "prodigal value", and finally gradually relieved his anger.

Nearly 1000 people dined on more than [-] tables of banquets produced by Shang Shan Jian, yet he only gained two points of 'Prodigal Value'!
It seems that this kind of prodigal plan is useless at all.

Maybe it was just like what he himself said, the Ming Dynasty had a vast territory and abundant products, how could it be possible that just a few banquets could lead to poverty, loss, and defeat?
It was still the poverty of the previous life, which severely limited my imagination!
Zhu Youjian was sulking while sitting on the dragon couch, and the guards in royal clothes and personal eunuchs kept silent, and their unlucky looks with lowered brows made him even more angry.

Aren't these people all spend money and prodigal?Why did he become a wimp at a critical moment!
It seems that we have to change our thinking.

The bored Zhu Youjian lay reclined on the dragon couch, frowning, and sighed: "Zhen, it's too difficult..."

A young eunuch tiptoed in and carefully cleaned up the broken porcelain pieces on the ground, for fear of making a noise and drawing the emperor's wrath, which would be a death penalty.

With light hands and feet, he straightened the red sandalwood furniture kicked over by the emperor when he lost his temper, and carefully cleaned the dust on it with a pheasant feather duster.

"Have it!"

Zhu Youjian's eyes lit up, and he suddenly had a new idea.

(End of this chapter)