I'm sure of the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong!

Chapter 189: Additional Distribution and Tax Package System
Back in early May.

Qianqing Palace.

Yong Zheng looked at the memorial in his hand, his face darkened, and he sighed after a long time.

This was a memorial sent by Nian Gengyao, the newly crowned prince and Taibao, governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, requesting the imperial court to allocate military pay and food to the 24 northwest frontier troops as soon as possible.

If this memorial were placed in normal circumstances, there would be no problem and nothing to criticize.But you must know that the allocation of military pay, money and food in the northwest has always been supported by Henan and Shandong.

But now, these two provinces have just experienced military disasters. How can they still provide a steady stream of food, grass and military supplies to the northwest as before?

But Yongzheng also knew that not only could he not give it, but on the contrary, he had to resolve the matter as soon as possible.

After all, in addition to Kangxi and his early arrangements, another reason why he was able to secure the throne was because of Nian Gengyao, who was now in charge of the northwest.

Precisely because there was Nian Gengyao in the northwest and Longkodo in the south, Yongzheng had the confidence to speak to both the government and the public.Similarly, the reason why Yinzhen did not dare to rebel in the original history was also because of Nian Gengyao's restraint.

Moreover, Nian Gengyao's memorial reveals that the northwest is full of arrogant soldiers, and only he can control them.

This is not only showing ability with Yongzheng, but also showing strength.

Although Yongzheng was angry about this, he had endured Longkoduo before, and it was not impossible for Gengyao to endure it again this year.

Historically, in the early years of Yongzheng's military campaign against the northwest, Nian Gengyao was never able to open up the situation. He also repeatedly killed many court officials because of insufficient delivery of food and grass, lack of vacancies, and other reasons.

At this point, Yongzheng couldn't bear it, but he comforted him and said: Just fight well, I will bear the pressure of the court for you.

After thinking for a moment, Yongzheng shouted: "It is said that Ma Qi, the great scholar of Wuyingdian Palace, Yunxiang, the prince of Heshuoyi, and Zhang Tingyu, the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, are coming to see me quickly."

"Whoo!"

Immediately someone went down to spread the word.

Within a moment, the three of them came to Qianqing Palace.

Among them, the ranking of the three people is quite particular. The thirteenth elder brother Yunxiang is in front, Ma Qi is half a step behind, and Zhang Tingyu is at the back.

"This servant (minor minister) bows to the emperor, long live my emperor."

When the three of them saw Yongzheng, they quickly kowtowed.

Only Ma Qi calls himself a slave, while Yunxiang and Zhang Tingyu both call themselves ministers.

The former is a prince and political king, while the latter, Zhang Tingyu, is the minister on duty in the South Study Room, but he is not a bannerman, so he does not need and does not deserve to call himself a slave.

It is worth mentioning that as the only Han minister in the history of the Qing Dynasty who was worthy of enjoying the Imperial Ancestral Temple, Zhang Tingyu was a "Han" minister from beginning to end and was never raised as a flag.

The reason lies in his special relationship with Yongzheng. Yongzheng needed him as a "Han" minister.

To put it simply, in the Kangxi Dynasty, the governors and governors of various provinces and other frontier officials were either Manchus or Han Eight Banners, or even worse, they were slaves.

But this phenomenon changed in the Yongzheng Dynasty. In the 13th year of the Yongzheng Dynasty, the governors and governors promoted across the country were basically Han people. Even if they were not good enough, they were Han Eight Banners, and the Manchus could hardly get real vacancies.

So much so that the Manchu and Qing Dynasty officials all commented on Yongzheng as "emphasis on Han and despise Manchu". This was also the effect Yongzheng wanted. He needed the support of Han scholars.

This confidant "Han" minister, who was entitled to enjoy the Imperial Ancestral Temple and ranked among the three great ministers, was the example set by Yongzheng.Therefore, even though Zhang Tingyu has outstanding achievements, he still cannot raise the flag.

After Yongzheng's death, he left a special edict (posthumous edict) to ask Qianlong no matter what, even if he beat Zhang Tingyu to the end, he would have to carry him to the Ancestral Temple after his death.

"No gifts. Let's take a look!"

Yongzheng didn't like nonsense, so he handed over Nian Gengyao's memorial asking for money and passed it around to the three of them.

After all three people had finished reading, Yongzheng asked again: "Do you have any ideas?"

No one answered.

What can be done about this?
It’s just a matter of giving or not. In the past, when food was scarce in the north, it was basically supported by grain from the south.

But it doesn't work now. Although the Bagua rebels in Henan and Shandong have been defeated, water transportation is still cut off.

Nanjing was defeated, Longkodo retreated to Anqing, and the entire south of the Yangtze River was controlled by the pseudo-Ming rebels.

This is nonsense water transportation!
Not only was the water transportation gone, but the taxes in the prosperous areas south of the Yangtze River were also gone.

The grain from Huguang also needs to be delivered from Hankou to the Yangtze River, and then delivered to the north through canal waterways.

Now that water transportation is cut off, grain from Huguang can only be transported by land if it wants to come to Beijing.

This is simply nonsense. Let’s not mention the transportation costs along the way. I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it in time.

If nothing else, the entire north may be experiencing a food shortage this year, so where can we transport military supplies to the northwest?

Yong Zheng frowned, remained silent for a moment and then began to call names: "Ma Qing, what can you do?"

Ma Qi's face turned bitter, and he stepped forward and said bravely: "The treasury is empty, maybe we can wait for the south..."

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Yong Zheng.

If this can wait, why bother asking?
Glancing at the three of them, Yong Zheng felt helpless.If he hadn't just ascended to the throne, he wouldn't have had many people available, and he wouldn't have called just three people over to discuss it.

"Your Majesty, I have a solution." At this time, Zhang Tingyu suddenly took a step forward.Yong Zheng's eyes suddenly lit up, and his tone was somewhat cordial: "Does Heng Chen have any good ideas?"

Zhang Tingyu only opened his mouth and spit out two words: "Additional faction."

"..."

Not only Yong Zheng was stunned, but the other two were also stunned.

Xuan even frowned.

None of the three monarchs or ministers spoke out against it, but instead seriously considered the pros and cons involved.

Ok!

In fact, the three of them had already thought of this. However, as the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, Yongzheng had just ascended the throne and the throne was not yet stable, so he could not say this first.

The other two people also didn't dare to say anything. If they did, they would have to take the blame. They would still take the big blame.

Since you don't dare to say it, let him, Zhang Hengchen, do the talking.

This is where Yongzheng was in a daze and frowned. Zhang Tingyu was what he wanted to focus on cultivating as a model "Han" minister.

Is it really worth spending time on this now?
Yongzheng frowned.

Seeing this, Zhang Tingyu knew what he was doing. He simply lost his scruples and said directly: "Your Majesty, now the northwest Cewang Arabtan is ready to move. The 20-strong army must not move without permission, let alone default on military pay. Otherwise, there will be chaos in the northwest, and in the south Money, grain, and taxes also need time to be allocated. For the current plan, the only way is to send more money first, and then talk about other things after the urgent needs are solved."

Ma Qi spoke at the right time and asked: "But there was a military disaster in the north a few months ago. If we force additional troops to be sent, will it..."

Will it be anything?Will the officials force the people to rebel?

This is what Yongzheng wanted to ask.

Zhang Tingyu said: "We can appoint a group of the most virtuous and prestigious nobles in each state to inform them of the additional appointments from the imperial court. At that time, we can collect taxes from them. If the tax amount is not enough, we will behead and confiscate their homes."

These words once again stirred up waves.

If we say so, I just mentioned the bonus.

Then this is delegating power.

To put it bluntly, it was the tax farming system of the Song Dynasty.

The court only set a certain amount in advance, and if it was not collected in full, it would be beheaded and the houses confiscated. If it was collected in full, the court would not care about the excess.This was tantamount to delegating the tax collection power that originally belonged to the central government to the local gentry.

In this way, letting the local squires collect taxes is less hated than the court itself. Moreover, the squires know the local area thoroughly, so they can not only get more money, but also minimize the probability of the government forcing the people to rebel.

It can be said to serve multiple purposes.

Yongzheng only thought briefly and understood Zhang Tingyu's plan.

It is nothing more than using power to appease the local gentry and at the same time extracting local wealth to support military supplies.

However, the sequelae are somewhat serious. Once the tax collection power is decentralized, the central government's control over local areas will further decline.If something goes wrong again, it's hard to say whether this power can be regained.

After all, no one wants to give up the power they already have.

Naturally, Zhang Tingyu and Yongzheng were not incompetent in coming up with this method of drinking poison to quench thirst.

It is really difficult for a clever woman to make a living without rice. Water transportation is cut off and grain cannot come from the south. The only way to survive is to destroy the false Ming Dynasty.

But to destroy the false Ming Dynasty, we need money, food, and water transportation...

"I think what Mr. Zhang said is feasible!" Ma Qi then said with his hands in hand.

Ma Qi is a non-stick pan, but someone has already made it so clear, and the emperor is obviously moved, so it is natural for him to express his stance.

On the side, Yunxiang also seconded the proposal.

The greatest significance of his being a political king is to unconditionally support his fourth brother Yongzheng.

Seeing that both of them agreed, Yong Zheng was silent for a long time, and finally sighed: "... Let's do it like this!"

Yong Zheng nodded, and the rest didn't matter.

The three of them stayed for a while, then retired and knelt down.

After the three people left, Yong Zheng couldn't help but laugh at himself.

Ha ha.

I never thought that the first edict I issued after becoming emperor would be on par with Emperor Chongzhen of the previous Ming Dynasty.

Not only did it decree apportionment, but it also released tax power...

After staring at the memorial in his hand for a long time, he picked up the pen again and calmly wrote an article to appease Nian Gengyao who came to him for payment.

(End of this chapter)