first minister

The next day, it coincided with the monthly bathing time. Xia Jingyun, who did not need to go to the Yamen, invited Mr. Su, Mr. Zhao, and Mr. Qin to his house.

After a family dinner, the four of them sat down in the waterside pavilion in the backyard. Xia Jingyun took a booklet from a box at hand and handed it to Mr. Su.

"This is the general outline of the new policy that I have tentatively drawn up. I would like to ask three people to help me check if there are any omissions or imperfections."

After saying that, he picked up the other two books and handed them to Mr. Zhao and Mr. Qin, "I asked Yanyan and Ali to help me copy them. The contents are the same."

When everyone heard this, their expressions immediately became solemn and they each took it.

Old Xianggong Su glanced at it and chuckled: "This dynasty's three hundred years of fighting chaos is quite worthy of what you are going to do."

Mr. Zhao and Mr. Qin had the same feeling in their hearts, but they were more curious about the contents. They didn't care to talk to each other and read attentively.

The cool breeze carrying water vapor gently swept across everyone's faces, relieving the summer heat.

In the waterside pavilion, there were no voices for a while, only rapid or slow breathing and occasional sounds of surprise, which made the cicadas chirp even more noisy.

After a long time, the three old men slowly put down the books in their hands and looked at each other.

There was no excitement in his eyes, only solemnity and deep worry.

Mr. Zhao said slowly: "Gao Yang, are your movements too big?"

The old head of the Qin family shook his head slightly, "The imperial court is seriously ill, so we should use warm medicine to relieve the symptoms. We will wait until the body recovers. Now you have directly given a strong dose of medicine! Taxes are converted into silver, people are spread into acres, and officials and gentry are integrated." The food supply is directly aimed at the fate of all the aristocratic families! I'm afraid it will cause great turmoil in the government and the opposition."

Old Xianggong Su also sighed, "Reforms will be of great benefit if they are carried out slowly, but great harm will be done if they are carried out hastily. I remember that you also said before that governing a big country is like cooking small vegetables. This statement Very good, why are you so anxious today?"

Faced with the almost clear opposition of these three old men who had been betting on him since very early and who had always been his staunchest supporters, Xia Jingyun did not panic, but smiled and said, "Why not?"

He looked at the three old men and said, "You think this is not possible because you are worried that the interests of all parties will be touched too deeply, and these vested interests will naturally not be able to accept it. However, the forces of all parties in the DPRK and China are complex, and the aristocratic families are deeply rooted. The opposition forces take the opportunity to cause trouble and deceive people. When the court is wrestling and people are against each other, even the imperial power has to consider the foundation of its rule, which may ultimately lead to the failure of well-intentioned reforms. Am I right?"

The other three nodded, but they were also a little confused. You know everything, why are you so stubborn?

Xia Jingyun smiled and stood up, "But if it were the time when the country was founded to set national policies and carry out major political affairs, would you worry about these things?"

"Of course it won't. Firstly, it will destroy everything, and the inherent distribution of interests will be broken; secondly, it will determine the world, relying on absolute force. Naturally no one will dare to be intimidated by this."

At this point, Mr. Su's tone paused slightly, and he instantly understood the implication of Xia Jingyun's words, but he immediately shook his head, "But even at the founding of the country, there are still rules that need to be followed, reward according to merit, maintain the place, and stabilize In the world, we need to rebuild civil society and win over the people. All these things are not enough, and we cannot do it absolutely willfully."

He looked at Xia Jingyun and said, "The current situation is such that the rebellion from all directions has ceased, the military has been victorious in successive battles, and the military power is extremely powerful. You can indeed regard it as the founding of the country, but rashly entering into an all-out feud with the local big families may make the newly settled people The situation immediately got out of control. The imperial court's rule over local areas has always relied on the gentry."

Mr. Zhao also understood at this time, and his attitude softened slightly, "But speaking of it, the current situation is indeed good. After several cleanings in the court, the noble forces have been basically crippled. The royal family members were also cleaned up, and they all lost the confidence to make trouble. At the same time, the opposition in the court, with the fall of Qin Weizhong and Wan Wenbi, were almost completely purged. As for the local big families, there is a precedent in Yuyan Prefecture. Compared with what happened to the Xifeng Lu family, Jiuhe Wang family, and Sixiang Yin family, there are not many of these wealthy families who dare to take risks. In this case, you may really have a chance to achieve something."

The old patriarch of the Qin family did not agree, but it was rare for him to be in the same camp as his old rival, Mr. Su. He retorted: "In the business world, there is a saying that destroying a person's wealth is like killing his parents. If these people are forced to Well, even if the Wudang Army suppresses the formation, we may not dare to give it a go. There are only 30,000 core sergeants of the Wudang Army, and Beiliang is eyeing it, so it is still too risky."

Xia Jingyun hummed and snorted coldly: "If they want to rebel, then they will rebel, just in time to completely break this pattern. Back then, there was smoke from all sides, the troops of Beiliang were pressing down on the border, and the situation was extremely dangerous. We have all made it through, so why are we still afraid of this?"

"Why are you so stubborn!" Mr. Su couldn't help but get a little anxious, "You're only in your early twenties and you have plenty of time, so why not slow down!"

Xia Jingyun pursed his lips, "Just tell me, according to my method, what are the chances that it will succeed in the end?"

Mr. Su was silent for a moment, "It's as good as the sky, 50%!"

Xia Jingyun suddenly smiled, took out three more pamphlets from the box at hand, and handed them to the three of them, "Those were the things I used to clarify my thinking before. This is what I really want to hand over to the Queen Mother and Your Majesty to promulgate and implement. You guys Look, what is the chance of winning like this?"

The three of them were stunned, and each took it. As they watched, Xia Jingyun's explanation also sounded simultaneously, "The reason why I want to show you the one just now is because I want you to have a complete understanding of what I want to do." , and then we can give more guidance.”

This booklet is basically the same as the one just now. The name and the first half are basically the same. However, in terms of analysis and final specific suggestions, only one item is left, the remaining five or six measures.

The three of them breathed a sigh of relief, feeling like the young man they were familiar with who had no plans left.

"I have just analyzed it. If we can proceed in this step-by-step manner, we are likely to achieve great results. The rich have a lot of land, but there are few workers, and the poor have no standing cones, but there are many corvees. It is indeed time to change."

"Moreover, you have implemented the clearing of land and acres throughout the territory. With this as the foundation, it will be much smoother to abolish the capitation tax and merge it into land and land tax."

Qin and Zhao immediately expressed their support and were obviously very optimistic about this.

Old Xianggong Su said: "The most important thing is execution. Many officials are also from rich families. In the final analysis, this policy will damage the foundation of the rich families. I am afraid that they will collude secretly to damage the effectiveness of the New Deal. And if all officials from poor families are used, it will require Be wary of hatred for the rich that may lead to cruel exploitation, as one or two tragic incidents may lead to heated discussions.”

The owner of the village, Zhao, was also reminded by these words and said: "And the cooperation with Beiliang has not yet been finalized. If the two parties work together, I am afraid there will still be some twists and turns."

Patriarch Qin also echoed, "According to the past, these wealthy families basically used various means to hide their wealth and did not pay taxes. Although your step now is much gentler than the plan just now, it will still cause them to bleed a lot. Therefore, they should still have strong resistance as before, so you have to be prepared."

After the old family master Qin finished speaking, he frowned and added: "One more point, if the Ding tax is abolished and merged into the field tax, the people will have less worries about having children, which may lead to a large number of Ding taxes. If it increases, if there is no land to grow enough rice, I am afraid it will be a big trouble again."

As soon as this was said, the other two people nodded solemnly in agreement.

Xia Jingyun hummed and chuckled: "I have anticipated this and have several ideas."

As he spoke, he spoke in a low voice and explained the solution he had prepared.

After the three of them listened in silence, Mr. Su stood up and walked out.

Qin's old family leader said in surprise: "Where are you going?"

Old Xianggong Su said calmly: "This guy has thought so carefully. Why does it look like he's here to show off instead of asking for advice? Why do I still stay here?"

The old village owner Zhao also laughed, "Gao Yang, I think Brother Boyuan is right!"

Xia Jingyun laughed dryly and said, "I really want to ask you to help me find and fill in the gaps."

Patriarch Qin snorted, "Don't worry, I see some people are unhappy on their faces right now, but they are already happy in their hearts."

Mr. Su turned his head and glared at him, "Aren't you?"

In the water pavilion, the breeze blew slowly, and there were bursts of laughter.

But when this fold is handed over, some people are bound to stop laughing.

That night, Xia Jingyun handed over the memorial.

The next day, during the court meeting, when the Queen Mother asked Jin Zhong to recite Xia Jingyun's memorial in public, after a moment of dead silence in the court hall, as expected, bursts of uncontrollable discussion broke out.

Naturally, the majority of them are opponents.

Many people didn't even care about their official position or standing in line. They jumped out like a cat whose tail was stepped on and hurriedly spoke out to object.

"Queen Mother, the laws established by our ancestors cannot be abolished. Prime Minister Xia's policy is really too radical. I hope the Queen Mother will think twice!"

"Once the military conquests that have been used for thousands of years are abolished, the country will suffer defeat and the people will be in chaos. In the midst of fighting chaos, please think twice, the Queen Mother, and Xiang Xia, think twice!"

"The way to govern a country should be gradual. Prime Minister Xia has always made decisions before taking action, but now his strategy is really unsound!"

"What's more, if this policy is implemented, landless people may become refugees without the control of the Ding tax, which will affect the stability of the government and the public!" "Yes, the Ding tax has its own benefits. If the Ding tax no longer exists, If taxes are raised, those people will have wanton childbirth. How can they get so much land to feed so many mouths! Queen Mother, this policy is absolutely unfeasible!"

"Your Majesty rules all the people, and all the people support the emperor. This is the ancient truth. How can there be no reason to abolish the capitation tax!"

From all angles, everyone expressed their desperate opposition to this policy that cost them their lives.

But just like many times in the past, the Queen Mother and Her Majesty still expressed their absolute trust in Marquis Jianning, and Marquis Jianning also showed his unwavering toughness as always.

When the Queen Mother shouted her final verdict, several "loyal people" knelt down in the court room, "Queen Mother! Your Majesty! Think twice!"

"Queen Mother! This is absolutely impossible!"

"We, the emperor, have taken advantage of the emperor's salary, acted loyally to the emperor, and remonstrated with justice to the death. This is the moment!"

A petty official shouted and was about to hit the pillars of the court hall, but this situation had been anticipated by Old Xianggong Su and others, and the guards in the palace who had received orders in advance immediately restrained him.

After the court was over, Xia Jingyun turned around, walked through the complicated eyes of the officials, and walked to the front towards the central courtyard.

As soon as he sat down in the workshop, the door was pushed open, and an angry and urgent voice sounded, "Xia Xiang!"

Xia Jingyun raised his head and looked at the angry Bai Yunbian, frowning slightly, showing displeasure, "What's the matter?"

In the workshop, a group of central secretaries and the like had their heads lowered, not daring to take a breath.

Outside the workshop, the expressions of the remaining central ministers changed drastically and they looked at each other in confusion.

Shen Shengwen subconsciously planned to rush in to break up the fight, but was stopped by Wei Yuanzhi and Zhang Caiming almost at the same time.

He looked down at the two hands holding his sleeves and arms, feeling a little dazed for a moment.

No one stopped, and the quarrel in the workshop really started. Bai Yunbian said in a deep voice: "You want to implement a new policy. Everyone understands and supports it, but this proposal is obviously too hasty. There are a lot of discussions between the government and the opposition. Today, some people even died to remonstrate. , why do you still insist on having your own way?"

Xia Jingyun glanced at him lightly, "How can there be no resistance to reform? If it stops because others make trouble, then what else will be done?"

"Can it be the same? What you are doing today is not just a mere objection, it is almost a protest! What's more, your policy has really hit the lifeblood of the big families in Tianlianqianmo. Now the rebellion in all directions is beginning. Sure, if the border troubles are temporarily gone, can't you also calm down for a while and let the whole government and opposition parties stabilize before slowly taking action? If you adopt such a radical strategy, aren't you afraid that they will really start to make trouble and cause chaos in the world again? !”

Bai Yunbian became more and more excited as he talked, and finally he even slammed the table, making an angry muffled sound.

Xia Jingyun's voice also became cold, "The world is in chaos? If they have the courage, I'm really not afraid! If we can defeat the first time, we can defeat the second time. Now that Beiliang is shrinking, Wudang Army will be fine." However, if they want to test the power of the imperial army, just come!"

"At the beginning, the old army gods passed away, and there were rebellions in all quarters. Dongfang Ming also killed its king and usurped the throne. This Great Xia felt like it had died once. Now it suppresses the rebellion internally and resists powerful enemies externally. It is resurrected from the dead, just like the rising sun on the founding of the country. At this time, the most fearless thing is the threat of force!"

"At the beginning, the old military god was a pure soldier. If he was interested in government affairs, who would dare to jump out? This reform has already started, why wait until now? What kind of bullshit rich family, if they really don't have long-sightedness, the truth is in Yuyan Prefecture If you can kill like a river of blood, it will be the same in other places!"

Bai Yunbian was stunned when he heard this. He pointed at him and was speechless for a long time, "You, you, you, are you still the Xia Gaoyang I know? You... you, aren't you afraid of leaving eternal infamy?"

Xia Jingyun snorted coldly and said directly: "Gou, why! Since I, Xia Jingyun, have taken on this responsibility, I only have national affairs in my heart!"

Seeing Xia Jingyun's righteous face, with no regard for life or death, Bai Yunbian flicked his sleeves, "You will regret it!"

After saying that, he turned around and walked out angrily!

And this controversy, together with today's news, spread throughout Zhongjing at an unimaginable speed, and then spread to the entire world.

In a house in Zhongjing City, several richly dressed old people were sitting together.

Among them were nobles, officials, and powerful people from local families.

Their identities are different, but they all have one thing in common, that is, their families all have strong family assets and vast fields. At the same time, they hardly owed any taxes or labor in the past, and they were extremely rich.

"I'm just saying that Xia Gaoyang didn't hold back his good intentions when he wanted to marry his father-in-law, but now he's really showing off his fox's tail! He's really linking up one link after another, not giving us a way to survive!"

"It's so cruel to divide the land into acres, which means that we not only have to pay the land tax according to the actual land, but also help pay the land tax that the untouchables should have paid. Isn't this bullying the honest people!"

"People bully you, what can you do? Do you really dare to rebel?"

"I didn't hear Xianggong Bai arguing with him. The worst is to suppress the rebellion again. I'm not afraid at all! The 150,000 elite members of the Beiliang people were beaten to the ground by Jiang Yuhu. Even if someone rebels, they can reach that level. And rebels of that size? Who dares to have such thoughts? When the time comes, the family will be confiscated and the clan will be destroyed, but it is a certainty!"

"Then what should we do? Is it possible to kill him at the first glance?"

Everyone was talking to each other, and what stood out was the suffocating atmosphere of "I can't stand him, but I can't do anything about him".

An old man said slowly: "It is impossible to rebel. The current situation in the DPRK is indeed as Xia Jingyun said. He is not afraid of any rebellion, as long as it is peaceful. With Jiang Yuhu's absolute support, the rebels will not get a response. , it’s impossible to do it. But..."

He paused, "But the inheritance of our ancestors has been passed down to us from generation to generation. It is absolutely impossible for us to sit back and watch such losses. We cannot do it hard, but we can do it softly."

When some impatient people ask: "What about?"

The old man said: "Encourage everyone we can, including court officials, Beijing and middle school students, and local squires, to create a situation of mass sentiment and anger. At the same time, try to concoct one or two tragedies in the local area, such as the New Deal forcing someone to If a large family is destroyed, wives and children are separated, etc., then the censors and court officials can be mobilized to participate. Finally, you can also try to pass on some local wrong news, fabricate some rumors, and cooperate with the previous tragedies to create a boiling public resentment. .Also, since he has abolished the Ding tax, the landless refugees will no longer be restrained. He can find ways to guide these people to gather towards the capital or some important towns and cause trouble. In short, he will use all means to stop this strategy. Execution.”

The people on the side shook their heads slightly, "Although some of these strategies are useful, they can easily lead to fire. The Hong family in Swift State still has lessons learned from the past, so it is better to be cautious."

The old man thought for a while and then said again: "Then submit letters, persist in petitions, hold rallies, and sit-in protests. Anyway, it is something allowed by the court. Just do it boldly and express your opposition clearly. He has already put a knife on our necks. , we don’t need to please him! Let’s just say that Xia Jingyun is cruel and unkind. He has massacred aristocratic families one after another, and now he wants to rob the gentry and destroy the foundation of the country. "

Everyone frowned slightly, "Will this be useful? Mr. Bai, who is of such a high status, has been directly scolded by him. If we make such a painless fuss, they may not take it seriously!"

The old man smiled slightly, "Don't forget, there was news yesterday."

He looked at the confused people and said, "There is a delegation coming from Beiliang. I heard that the standards are very high. They want to discuss with us the Western Regions and Northeastern trade routes."

Everyone's expressions suddenly changed, "Collude with Beiliang? If this is found out, it will be a serious matter that will kill your head!"

The old man waved his hand, "I am absolutely loyal to the court, how could I do such a thing!"

He smiled mysteriously and confidently, "The people from Beiliang are also smart people. As long as we sing the opera well, they will seize the opportunity. What do you think?"

Everyone suddenly said, "Yes, yes! That's it!"
-

At the same time, a large and luxurious team was slowly passing through Lieyang Pass and heading towards Zhongjing City.

Jiang Yuhu stood on top of Guancheng, overlooking the back of the team from a high position.

Jin Jiancheng stood aside with worry in his eyes, "Sir, Beiliang seems to be planning to do something big in Zhongjing! They have sent so many powerful people."

Jiang Yuhu stood with his hands behind his back, saying nothing, just watching silently.

Jin Jiancheng asked again: "Is the young master also worried about Marquis Jianning?"

"Worried? These are just dishes delivered to your door."

Jiang Yuhu snorted softly from his nostrils and said lightly: "I just want to clearly remember how arrogant and hopeful they are now. When they come back, it will look good in comparison."

"Okay, let's get ready. It's time to set off again." (End of Chapter)