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Chapter 61 Cutting down the vassal 2
But the more this kind of people looked, the more they wanted to lose face, so they euphemistically asked their children to go to the front to fight and defend the country, and also gave them a nice name, Fanping Emperor's Family.The heroes and generals should enjoy the blessings after working hard for most of their lives. Go to the board of directors and prepare to get bonuses!
What he said was very good, but after he almost took back his military power, he started to find faults one by one.Today he said you were late and left early, and tomorrow he said you were playing on your mobile phone at work. He made various excuses and was kicked out of the company. In the end, he was given a second-line job as a pensioner.

There are many emperors who have done this in history, and the pros and cons are obvious, so why does Lao Zhu still do this?There are two possibilities. First, he doesn’t know history at all. His cultural level is low and he has read few books. He may not be able to understand it even after reading it;

Second, he knew it but couldn't help it.As for selfish desires, the more capable a person is, the greater his selfishness. He always feels that he is the smartest in the world, and all good things should be his, and they should be distributed by him naturally.

Note that at this time, the vassal king still had military power, and could train and lead troops, and participate in some local government affairs. It was a bit like the Jiedushi in the late Tang Dynasty, who had military and political power.

As a result, as soon as Lao Zhu died, his sons slapped his face with big, round hands.King Zhu Di of Yan raised an army to rebel against his nephew, and used the mutiny to seize the throne of the emperor. This was Emperor Yongle, Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty.

After Zhu Di took the throne, he couldn't eat well and couldn't sleep every day. He was always afraid that brothers and nephews would come to betray him, so he changed his father's still warm legacy.

From then on, the vassal king should still be granted a title, but he moved from the border to the interior, reduced the royal guard, deprived the military command authority, and encouraged local officials to report and expose the vassal king's wrongdoings.

But Zhu Di was still not very thorough, and many vassal kings still had guards remaining in their fiefdoms, especially his two sons, King Zhu Gaoxu of Han and King Zhu Gaosui of Zhao, who had three full guards.

As a result, during the reign of Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, the nephew, actually fought with his uncle Zhu Gaoxu again.This time, the nephew won. After taking the throne, he immediately began to adjust the vassal system and deprived all military power at once.

Moreover, the vassal princes were not allowed to participate in or discuss politics in the local area. They were not allowed to interact casually with court officials. They were not allowed to leave the palace without an imperial edict. Even visiting graves during the Qingming Festival had to ask for leave from local officials.Not to mention taking exams, doing business, farming, working... To put it bluntly, the state spends money to support them, so it's best not to do anything.

In fact, it is certainly affordable and not difficult to support dozens of vassal princes and their families. However, when Lao Zhu designed this system, he seemed to have forgotten one thing. People can give birth to more and more people.

Zhu Yuanzhang conferred 25 vassal kings in his life, and the total population of the clan including princesses, consorts, etc. was only 58 people.But by the 27th year of Wanli, there were more than 200 entries in the golden book of Lao Zhu's family in 157000 years.

According to Lao Zhu's regulations, the emperor's second son was granted the title of prince, and the prince's eldest son could inherit the title; the second son and below were granted the title of county prince, and the eldest son of the county prince succeeded in the title; the second son and below were granted the title of general of the country, and they were demoted from generation to generation.

All sons of General Zhenguo were granted the title of General Fuguo, all sons of General Fuguo were granted the title of General Fengguo, all sons of General Fengguo were granted the title of Lieutenant of Zhenguo, all sons of Lieutenant Zhenguo were granted the title of Lieutenant of Fuguo, and all sons of Lieutenant of Fuguo were granted the title of Lieutenant of Fuguo. Feng Fengguo Lieutenant.

It's done, there will be no more demotion at this point. No matter how many generations it is passed on, he will still be a lieutenant in Fengguo and will always receive a salary from the court.Of course, if you perform meritorious services and you can be crowned a king again, then you have to go through it all over again.

In addition, the emperor's daughters also had to be canonized.The daughter of the emperor is granted the title of princess, the daughter of the prince is granted the title of princess, and the daughter of the prince is granted the title of county lord.The granddaughter of the county prince is granted the title of county prince, the great-granddaughter is granted the title of county prince, and the great-great-granddaughter is granted the title of township prince.

From the prince to the lieutenant of Fengguo, from the princess to the country king, there are Lumi, Lumai, Lu salt and seeds (land rent) every year.The annual salary of the prince is 10000 shi, that of the county prince is 2000 shi, that of the general of Zhenguo is 1000 shi, that of general of auxiliary state is 800 shi, that of general of Fengguo is 600 shi, that of lieutenant of Zhenguo is 400 shi, that of lieutenant of auxiliary state is 300 shi, and that of lieutenant of Fengguo is 200 shi.The annual salary for the princess is 2000 shi, for the princess 800 shi, for the county lord 600 shi, for the county lord 400 shi, for the county lord 300 shi, and for the township lord 200 shi.We can see a loophole in this enfeoffment system. The feudal kings can't do anything. The easiest way to get rich is not to rely on brains and abilities, but on the stomach.Each additional son or daughter can receive at least 2000 to 200 dan in annual salary.

So the vassal kings played hard to survive. The more children they had, the richer they were, and the more opportunities they had, the more opportunities they had. If any of their children became famous, the whole family would benefit from it.

Then here comes the problem. The productivity level of the Ming Dynasty is far from keeping up with the reproductive speed of the clan. The financial expenditures are increasing every year. By the time Hong Tao ascends the throne, almost half of the annual income will be eaten by the clan, and the holes are getting bigger and bigger. Big.

This is only the annual salary. Many vassal clans also have a large amount of land that does not pay taxes, which intensifies the speed of land annexation and reduces national tax revenue. The two together add up to far more than the annual salary.

Hong Tao had already thought of the problem and had a plan to deal with it. He wanted to wait until his butt was a little more stable before taking action. Who would have thought that the plan could not keep up with the changes. The court actually had to wait for the internal funds to allocate disaster relief funds, forcing himself to have no choice but to wait for the disaster relief funds to be allocated from internal funds. Take action in advance.

Cut off the vassal!This word has been a big trouble in all dynasties. If you are not careful, it will lead to catastrophe, ranging from endless scolding to Xiao Qiang's life.

However, Hong Tao is not too afraid. At this time, the vassal kings are no longer the same as they were in the early Ming Dynasty. They have no military and administrative power at all. As long as they are handled properly and don't be too eager for success, the danger can still be controlled.

"I don't want to treat the clan harshly, but the country and the country are more serious. The two evils are the lesser of the two, so I have to obey the authority urgently. I plan to reduce the clan's expenses... Don't be too busy to object yet, listen to what I have to say.

This time we not only want to reduce the clan expenses, but we also need to start from me.The cost of the palace will be reduced by one-third, and all three halls will be stopped. All three meals a day will be halved, and the harem will also be halved except for the two empress dowagers and the empress dowager.

The annual salary of clans in various places has also been halved, and the hereditary method has to be changed.From the prince to the princess level, only the eldest son and eldest daughter can be hereditary, and each generation will be reduced by one level.The remaining children can rent land in the imperial village and work as craftsmen to support themselves.You will draft a memorial at once, and then stand down! "

The method Hong Tao adopted was not to eliminate but to weaken. He first halved the benefits and then cut off the inheritance rights. This could not only reduce financial expenditures in the short term, but also reduce the motivation of clan clans in various places to risk their lives to have children and become rich in the long run.

It’s not that people will be forced to death when the government drops it to the bottom. The land that was previously rewarded can still be retained, but the welfare benefits will be less, and a frog will be boiled in warm water to minimize the resistance and backlash caused by it.

At the same time, a way out was found for clan relatives born in the future. They were still not allowed to engage in politics or business, but they were allowed to farm.But don't think about using your power to annex land and harm the people. Let everyone work for the emperor.Isn’t it just a family? Well, let’s say a family helps a family.

(End of this chapter)