The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

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 to re-open Datong. Hundreds of thousands of acres of land, water conservancy projects, etc. need to be built to increase farmland irrigation, and then there is this..."

Li Zhang was responsible for serving and explaining to Zhu Youtang that night. He presented something 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."

"Really?"

Zhu Youtang was a little happy when he heard the news.

The ministers of the DPRK finally started to take the initiative, and actually offered to confer a title and reward Zhang Zhou? This saved the emperor a lot of trouble.

But when he saw the memorial, his face didn't look good.

It seems that he is 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 offer him a title and reward. This is obviously to drive a wedge between the monarch and his ministers. Zhu You Although Zang 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. These people have terrible intentions!" Zhu Youtang commented on the motives and intentions of this group of people without any politeness.

Li Zhang also cautiously said: "In this battle, although Cai Guogong did not personally fight, he was responsible for the planning behind it. In terms of merit, Cai Guogong should be the leader. As the slaves can see, if there is a reward, Cai Guogong must be the first. "

Zhu Youtang said: "Then follow what they said, upgrade Bingkuan to a higher rank, and at the same time officially grant Yongping Mansion to Bingkuan as a fiefdom, especially some cities and ports in Yongping Mansion, etc., everything Leave it all to Bingkuan."

"This..." Li Zhang seemed a little embarrassed.

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 rewards given by the court to meritorious ministers. Even in the current dynasty, don't meritorious ministers be rewarded with fiefdoms? Yunnan and Nanzhili, even if they don’t have national surnames, still have their own fiefdoms, right? I just follow the ancestral system!”

"Yes." Li Zhang responded quickly.

"In addition, all local taxes in Yongping Prefecture are handed over to Bingkuan. If others think it is inappropriate, then these taxes will be redistributed in the name of the inner government first, and will not go to the Ministry of Household Affairs. If the court Some people are making irresponsible remarks, let them come and tell me directly." Zhu Youtang looked impatient.

Decisions no longer need to go through the court, only his words are needed.

Li Zhang said: "Yongping Mansion is located on the outskirts of Beijing. In the past few years, it has been difficult to maintain what it has collected through taxes and other taxes. It has to rely on other places to allocate money and food. It also has to do with the expenses to Jizhou Town. The cost is very huge.”

Zhu Youtang frowned and said, "I gave the land of Yongping Prefecture to Bingkuan, but I didn't give him the defense of Yongping Prefecture. Do I have to put all the expenses of Jizhou Town on Bingkuan alone? It is supported by the court, not Bingkuan alone... But in the past few years... Bingkuan has paid too much for the court. It makes me sigh. A minister can bring so much income to the court. One person can be half of the court. Even so, they still pick on Bingkuan. What do those people think?"

Li Zhang didn't know how to respond.

In the eyes of an emperor who blindly trusts Zhang Zhou, Zhang Zhou is a perfect saint. It would be better to echo his words and make the emperor feel that you are one of his own.

As for direct remonstrance... it is not Li Zhang's responsibility at all, and Li Zhang is not the kind of person who dares to speak out.

"Jizhou's budget will increase in the coming year. Since I have given 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 in Yongping Mansion, The newly reclaimed land in Pingfu can be exempted from taxes for three years...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 land. "

Zhu Youtang originally wanted to give tax exemption to the fields in Yongping Mansion.

But thinking about it again, that place was given to Zhang Zhou. He also said that the taxes of that place would be handed over to Zhang Zhou to take care of it. Then he turned around and said that it would be tax-free. What else could Zhang Zhou get out of it?
However, tax exemption is a big favor after all. If Zhang Zhou comes to apply for tax exemption to the local government, it will make the local people think about Zhang Zhou's good deeds, and at the same time, they will have more motivation to reclaim wasteland... The areas in the north close to the border are desolate. There is also a lot of land and wilderness, and tax exemptions are the best way to reclaim wasteland.

So much so that the emperor was unsure and asked Zhang Zhou to make his own decisions.

It probably means...

That place is yours, do whatever you want with it.

……

……

At night, Li Zhang walked briskly and hurried to find Zhang Zhou to tell Zhang Zhou the "good news".

He made a plan on the way, which made Zhang Zhou feel that he, Li Zhang, was behind the granting of the Yongping Mansion. It also made Zhang Zhou feel that he, Li Zhang, was "one of his own" and that Li Zhang was doing it for the sake of what was in front of him. He was also very careful about his status. After all, he was the most aware of the rumors that Yang Peng was going to succeed him, and he was also most afraid of losing the emperor's trust.

The key is not how the emperor employs people, but how Zhang Zhou treats him.

When he learned that Zhang Zhou was still in 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 wasn't in a hurry. He just regarded himself as a person asking for a meeting, sitting there and waiting, so that when Zhang Zhou came out, he was a little apologetic. . "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 joking. You work hard for the imperial court. What if our family waits for you for a while? After all, we are all serving His Majesty. Besides, His Majesty did not ask our family to come today. "Your Majesty will probably inform you of this letter in the next two days."

"What kind of big event is it that requires a visit from your father-in-law? If it is something that needs to be announced by His Majesty, it is 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 is not a big deal, but it is 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 you can even be exempted from taxes for five years." , even the corvee and other tasks are all assigned by you, also considering that Yongping Mansion has too many places to employ recently, so as not to be short of manpower. "

Li Zhang said this with a bit of flattery on his face.

"Sir, this matter was proposed by the ministers below. His Majesty said that those people had bad intentions and wanted to stir up trouble, but His Majesty took advantage of this favorable situation and directly granted you the title. It seems that you are doing what they want, but in the end, they are still the ones who are angry. They lost more than they gained."

When Li Zhang said this, he felt the same indignation as Zhang Zhou, and seemed to want to confront the civil servants.

Zhang Zhou's face did not look 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: "In fact, your Majesty told me about the matter of Yongping Mansion earlier, and said that he would grant a title when the time was right. But I mentioned at that time that it is best to go through the court for such matters. , or simply don’t need it, I don’t need a fiefdom to do anything, after all, my roots are in the capital.”

"Yes, yes, sir, you are a great talent. Everyone else wants to enclose territories and become a vassal, but you just want to do things for the court. In fact, it doesn't matter whether you want to enclose borders or not, but you always need a place of your own to display your talents. Isn't it ambition?" Li Zhang seemed to understand Zhang Zhou's situation very well.

Zhang Zhou said: "What I'm afraid of is not the opposition of the ministers in this matter, but that someone will secretly cause trouble."

Li Zhang said: "No, in the Ming Dynasty, there were many meritorious ministers who had feudal lands. Who didn't have some fiefdoms?"

Zhang Zhou sighed: "After all, Yongping Mansion is in Beizhili, close to Shuntian Mansion, and it is the target of public criticism. And because there were some local disputes in Yongping Mansion before, my relationship with Yongping Mansion is not very good. Well, if it involves mining and port construction, it will cause more resentment among local people."

"This..." Li Zhang didn't know how to answer the question.

The emperor has rewarded you with such a large piece of land, and it is still at the emperor's feet. You are still "choosy"? Do you deserve His Majesty's trust in you?

Zhang Zhou said: "I mean, if Eunuch Li is interested, he can help tell it to Your Majesty. There is no need to formally confer a title. In my opinion, it can be used as His Majesty's palace. Your Majesty can go on tours, go there for summer vacation, etc." , you can go at any time if you want to patrol the border. My task is to take care of this place for Your Majesty... This place can exist as a special zone."

"Special Zone?"

Li Zhang said with a face full of questions, "We don't quite understand what you mean, sir. Can you... explain it in detail?"

Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "The general meaning is that the policies used in this area are different from other places. For example, land taxes will be reduced. After all, many places need to plant new crops and change the original crop farming. It 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. The mining tax is still allocated to the court to allocate expenditures. For port construction, more commercial taxes are used... When doing business in Yongping Prefecture, it will be more than Other places impose higher taxes, but allow merchants from all over the place to travel freely. In other words, in this place, there are no restrictions on household registration, and those who are willing to move their household registration to Yongping Prefecture in the first few years can be exempted from corvee for two years. …”

"As for the number of ships coming and going after the port is built, it will also take on the important task of going to the sea from the north. A new shipping department will be established, and the taxes paid by the ships will be higher. However, the goods coming from the South and West will be It will be transported from here to various places in the north, and merchants can transport and buy and sell by themselves..."

"At the same time, a railway will be built between the capital and the port of Yongping Prefecture, and trains will be used for transportation. These transportations are also open to merchants. The court charges them transportation fees, and they can transport them to the capital and even Xishan, and from these This system can be used for local transportation to various places in the north, as long as it is in the north of the Yangtze River, and there will be no need to pay taxes when passing through water customs and customs."

After Zhang Zhou said this, Li Zhang was completely dumbfounded.

But because what was said was relatively easy to understand, Li Zhang probably understood it.

The so-called special zone is different from other places in Ming Dynasty.

"Sir, we don't understand very well. You mean... you want to increase business taxes. If you still want to promote business here, will businessmen from other places still come? They are profit-seeking." Li Zhang said with him insights and opinions.

Zhang Zhou said with a smile: "Whether merchants come will not only depend on the policies, but also whether this place can bring them profits. If Yongping Mansion produces enough goods, they cannot buy them elsewhere, and what can be done here?" Opening up the obstacles to the transportation of goods from the north to the south has become the second water trunk road after the Grand Canal, and the court will use a large number of ships to help them move goods and only charge transportation fees, so why don't they come here to transport grain from the south to the north? What is the annual cost? If they go by sea, then their cost is very low.”

"This……"

Li Zhang didn't seem to understand.

Zhang Zhou said: "For such a large business, it should be no problem to make an income of one million taels a year. If you add in the silver and gold shipped back from overseas, it will be several million taels a year, which is equivalent to bringing a lot of money to the court." times the income.”

Li Zhang said with a slight surprise on his face: "Even His Majesty said that sir, you will give the court more money than any other minister."

Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "This is also my way to open 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 and government offices of each family in the court must also not stop. Waiting for the court to allocate money and food, all of which require money. Only when the court is rich can the final decision on the grassland be realized, and I am also thinking about the 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 is not doing anything for me, but I work for the imperial court. If I earn a few million taels a year, it will be enough no matter what the imperial court does."

Li Zhang smiled and said: "It's not that the imperial court has had enough, it's that Your Majesty has had enough!" (End of Chapter)