Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Jia Cong glanced at everyone and said, "Officials all over the world are familiar with the books of sages, so they should understand the principle of 'a gentleman should be cautious when alone'.

If an official only wants to exploit the people and enrich himself at the expense of the public, not only will he not receive the money for maintaining integrity, but he may also lose his life. Let the world know what is more important and let them decide for themselves. "

"Yes." Duan Zhun bowed.

"Everyone, do you have anything to add?" Jia Cong asked.

"Your Highness, your insights are brilliant. We admire you and will follow your instructions immediately." Everyone had no objection, and no one dared to raise any objection.

Jia Cong waved his hand and said, "If you have any good ideas in the future, or find any loopholes, you can bring them up for discussion. I have no jealousy towards others."

Everyone laughed and said, "Your Highness is very modest, and we admire you. If we have any superficial opinions, we will never be so modest as to be selfish."

Jia Cong said, "That's good. Pass the order that after the summer tax this year is calculated according to the new standard, the excess will be returned to the people, and the under-collection will be made up by the officials and gentry. The refund that cannot be fully refunded at once will be refunded in installments, and it must be fully refunded within one year. The tax collection in the future will be handled in the same way."

"Yes."

Chen Ji finally couldn't help but said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say, but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

Jia Cong glanced at him and said, "Mr. Chen, please speak."

Everyone understood that the subtext of Jia Cong's title was to clearly distinguish between public and private affairs. There was no uncle of the emperor in the Grand Council, only a prime minister.

Chen Ji said: "Just now the prince said that the land tax will be raised from one cent per mu to five cents, which is really too heavy for those who have a lot of land.

For example, if a family owns 10,000 mu of land, they have to pay 5,000 taels of tax every year. If they own 100,000 mu, they have to pay 50,000 taels of tax.

If we deduct the income of the tenants, the gentry will hardly make any profit, and I am afraid they cannot even support their families. Please look into this, Your Majesty."

Everyone laughed in their hearts. Under this policy, the ones who would suffer the most would of course be the big landlords like Chen.

Jia Cong sneered, "Mr. Chen is worrying too much. I have asked the old farmers in the countryside. They can afford even one tael per mu, let alone five cents. How come the landlords and gentry cannot afford it?"
What's more, this law is not aimed at those who have more land. The new law is just a fair scale. Those who have more land pay more, and those who have less land pay less.

If the big landowners feel they can’t afford to pay, that’s easy. They can just sell some of their land and pay less, right?

Duan Zhun and the others all laughed and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

Chen Ji's face was filled with anger, and he said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, please allow me to report that small families are self-sufficient, their expenses are not much, and they do not have to pay tenants, so they can afford the same amount of taxes.

"The rich have many people, they study and socialize, they welcome guests, they take care of weddings and funerals, how can they be compared with the poor? If this law is implemented, I am afraid that the gentry in the world will be unstable. Please think twice, Your Majesty."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "My dear lords, may I ask how many common people and gentry families there are in the world?"

Feng Yuan smiled and said, "About 95% of them are ordinary people."

"Good. As the saying goes, whoever wins the hearts of the people wins the world. As long as the dynasty can win over these 95% of the people, the sky will not fall no matter who is unstable. If it really falls, I will be the one to hold it up." Jia Cong sneered.

"Your Majesty is wise." Everyone echoed, secretly laughing at Chen Ji's stupidity. When Jia Cong promoted the new law in Jiangnan, he killed so many people. Who dared not to be stable? Why don't you try to be stable?
Jia Cong looked at Chen Ji again and said calmly, "As for the expenses of the gentry and landlords mentioned by Chen Zhongtang, this is not within the scope of the court's consideration.

If 95% of the people can survive, but they cannot, can they blame the court's laws?
There is no need to discuss this matter any further. I have some experience in this regard. If any wealthy family or gentry becomes unstable, the court can make a fortune."

Feng Yuan smiled and said, "With the prince suppressing the country, the world will be peaceful."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "I hope so. Does Chen Zhongtang agree?"

Chen Ji was filled with indignation and dared not say anything more, so he retreated in embarrassment.

"Let's stop here today. You are all busy, so I will go back."

Jia Cong bowed and was about to leave. Gu Tao and Feng Yuan looked at each other and said hurriedly, "Your Highness, please stay. We have something else to report."

"What's the matter?" Jia Cong asked.

Feng Yuan said, "Your Highness, due to the recent abolition of the Five Military Commander's Office and the establishment of a new General's Office, the Grand Council has been ordered to clarify military and political affairs. We have drafted a proposal for your review." As he spoke, he presented a memorial.

Seeing that the memorial was quite thick, Jia Cong was too lazy to read it, so he asked casually, "What is it about?"

No one spoke, and they all looked at Chen Ji. "Your brother proposed the strategy, and now the main character is here, why don't you explain it clearly to his face?"

Although they agreed with Chen Ji's idea, they would not cover up for him. It would be good for everyone, but if Jia Cong was offended, whoever came up with the idea would be in trouble.

Seeing that everyone was very cunning, Chen Ji felt a little embarrassed, cursed inwardly, and said with a bow, "My Lord, there are mainly three things in the memorial.

One reason is that in the past the powers and responsibilities of the Five Military Commanderies and the Ministry of War were unclear, overlapping, and each acted independently, so it was necessary to re-establish the system for selecting and appointing generals.

According to the established laws of past dynasties, the promotion, transfer and appointment of generals below the fifth rank is managed by the Ministry of War, and generals above the fifth rank are managed by the General's Office. Generals of the first and second ranks are recommended by the General's Office and reported to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager for their decision.

Jia Cong frowned slightly. This was indeed the old rule, but Chen Ji obviously had bad intentions. If the General's Office could not control the officers below the fifth rank, its power would be greatly reduced, and there would even be a danger of being sidelined. After all, the vast majority of the army were middle and lower-level generals, and senior generals were a minority.

Chen Ji was right. Jia Cong didn't know how to refute him confidently. If he used force, it would easily lead to a sharp conflict, which would be detrimental to the major events that were to be done. So he said calmly, "Anything else?"

"Yes. Secondly, after detailed calculations and approval by the Grand Council and the Ministry of Revenue, it is advisable that the annual military expenditure of the country should be 15% of the national treasury revenue. This will ensure sufficient military expenditure and high morale, while also ensuring that there will not be major gaps in people's livelihood and government affairs." Chen Ji said.

"One and a half percent?" Jia Cong's face darkened, and he asked, "How much is the annual income of the country now?"

Feng Yuan hurriedly said: "The new law has achieved remarkable results. It is estimated that the annual revenue of the national treasury can reach 100 million taels."

Jia Cong said: "That is 150 million silver. The country has a large number of soldiers, including the capital army, border army, and garrison army, totaling more than 10 million people. It will cost taels of silver per person per year.

Haha, it's not even enough for food, not to mention the expenses of replacing military equipment, repairing military camps, purchasing military uniforms, and providing pensions for casualties. What should I do if a war breaks out? Can you teach me?"

Chen Ji said: "The Art of War says that quality is more important than quantity. We can reduce the number of soldiers by streamlining the military and removing the old, weak, sick and disabled, which should save a lot of money.

In addition, we should not start a war without authorization, but value peace and stop fighting. In this way, we can conserve the strength of the people, and the day of national rejuvenation will not be far away. "

Feng Yuan, Jiang Feng and other people who were familiar with Jia Cong shook their heads secretly, thinking that Uncle Chen was probably in trouble.

As expected, Jia Cong sneered and said, "Mr. Chen is indeed a man of both civil and military talents, and even knows the art of war by heart. I should let you be the general."

Chen Ji's expression froze, and he said in a deep voice, "What do you mean, Your Majesty?"

"The meaning is very simple. You are using tens of thousands of silver coins to send away beggars? Chen Zhongtang, do you know what the consequences will be if more than one million soldiers of the imperial court cannot even get enough food? You don't know! I am here to tell you that there is only one consequence, forcing the soldiers to become bandits and rise up in rebellion!"

Jia Cong waved his hand and asked, "What is the third thing?"

Seeing that he was angry, everyone dared not say anything, and Chen Ji had to grit his teeth and step aside.

After a moment of silence, Jiang Feng slowly spoke: "Your Highness, the third reason is that the military has been plagued by corruption for many years. It is not uncommon to resell military equipment, eat empty salaries, and suck the blood of soldiers. Perhaps we can order the Censorate to conduct an open and secret investigation to clarify the administration. Your Highness, please make the decision on these three matters."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "The General's Mansion has just been established and many things have not been taken care of yet. I'll trouble you all to take care of it. I'll weigh this carefully before I make a decision." "Yes, Your Highness, please make your decision." Everyone bowed hurriedly.

They had the courage to make suggestions, but no one dared to force him to accept the "unequal treaty". Jia Cong was already giving them face by not throwing the memorial in their faces.

Chen Ji remained silent, feeling secretly pleased with himself. These three measures at least forced Jia Cong to the opposite side of the civil officials.

Even Feng Yuan, Jiang Feng, Guan Pu and others did not dare to openly betray the civil service group and protect Jia Cong on issues concerning the core interests of these civil servants. If Jia Cong refuted, the civil servants would become more united.

Jia Cong left the palace, thinking to himself that this proposal was made by Chen Ji, and it was in line with the interests of the civil service group. It was not convenient for everyone to oppose it openly. Even the New Party members were happy to go with the flow and use the descendants to check and balance themselves.

Obviously, this was an attempt by the Empress Dowager to test his bottom line. Chen Ji did not have the courage to challenge the interests of the military.

"Come here, send this memorial to Mr. Pang for review. I will come back to ask him for advice." Jia Cong raised his hand and said.

"Yes." The soldier took it.

"Let's go to the General's Mansion." Jia Cong jumped onto the carriage.

Ever since the last assassination attempt by Prince Beijing, at the strong request of the women, he was not allowed to ride a horse anymore, but had to ride in a special steel-plate cart pulled by four horses. Unless you use cannons to attack, any bows and crossbows will be useless.

"Order."

When they arrived at the General's Mansion, Jia Cong issued an order: "Summon all the noble families in the capital to see the Emperor."

"Yes." Wang Ziteng hurried down to pass on the order.

"Wait a minute, the three families of Qi, Zhiguo and Shanguo don't need to come." Jia Cong said.

Wang Ziteng's heart trembled, but he was also delighted. He bowed and agreed. Does Prince Jing mean to distance himself from these three families, or... If he wants to eliminate them, wouldn't he be able to have three more titles of duke?

The last time Jia Cong was promoted to Duke, he was under the title of Ningguo. Later, when he was made a king, he was under the title of Nangan Palace. Li Meng was promoted to Duke by borrowing the quota of Nangan Palace. In short, the number cannot exceed the fixed number of four kings and eight dukes.

Now that Prince Beijing is gone, if the number of the three dukes' mansions is reduced, it will definitely be a great benefit to the nobles below. Thinking of this, my heart warmed up. As long as they follow Prince Jing closely, why would they be afraid of not having a hat to wear?

"See you, Your Majesty."

"See you, Your Majesty."

Soon, nobles arrived one after another. Two or three hundred people filled the huge White Tiger Hall. There was no place to put even stools. Except for a few big guys, everyone had to stand.

Jia Cong looked around and said, "I would like to invite you all to discuss something today."

Everyone said in unison: "Please give your orders, Your Majesty."

Jia Cong waved his hand and said, "I didn't give any orders, because this concerns the welfare of everyone, and I can't make decisions on my own."

Li Meng bowed and said, "I don't know what this is about. Please give me some advice, Your Majesty."

"I just came out of the palace, and several prime ministers from the Grand Council proposed a strategy. I dare not act on my own and would like to hear everyone's opinions." Jia Cong said slowly.

"I don't know what strategy has made His Majesty so embarrassed." Wang Ziteng said.

Jia Cong said: "First, the appointment, promotion, demotion and transfer of military officials below the fifth rank are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War."

Everyone was shocked and protested, "How can this be possible? The Ministry of War has such a big appetite. In the past, the Five Military Commands and the Ministry of War were jointly in charge. Now they are trying to set up the general."

"That's right! All the people below the fifth rank belong to them. Doesn't that mean that the sons of nobles have to rely on them when they join the army?"

"That's right! A brave general must be selected from the ranks. If the backbones of the army below the fifth rank are taken into the pockets of the Ministry of War, where is the majesty of the General's Mansion?"

Everyone agreed. When the sons of noble families joined the army, for example, Jia Cong was a military candidate, but he was only awarded a seventh-rank military position. The military governor could make the decision on his promotion. If he was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War, he would never be promoted so quickly.

Jia Cong nodded and said, "You are right. That is why I did not agree. Do you have any good ideas?"

Everyone suddenly fell silent. It was natural for them to protest, but since the decision-making suggestions involved the interests of all the nobles, those who were not important enough should keep quiet.

Li Meng pondered and said, "Your Highness, I suggest that this proposal be rejected. The Ministry of War should be responsible for conscription, garrison, ceremonial guards, imperial guards, post stations, stables, seal inspections, military registration, martial arts, and baggage.

Your Majesty is a natural commander, and you are in charge of the General's Office. You should be in charge of the power of rewarding and punishing generals, training and conquering soldiers, and supervising the use of military expenses and food. Only by making it clear can we avoid confusion of military power and interference in military affairs. "

"Duke Anguo is right." Everyone understood what Li Meng meant. The military must master core powers such as personnel transfers, training for war, and allocation of military funds. Other miscellaneous matters can be handed over to the Ministry of War.

"Well, that's a very good point." Jia Cong said, "Since everyone agrees, this one will be decided. The second is that the Censorate wants to send personnel to monitor the generals in the army..."

Everyone hurriedly said, "What do those nerdy guys with turbans know about military affairs? Military affairs should be supervised by the General's Office." No one wanted to have another group of nosy grandfathers above their heads.

Jia Cong said: "You all said that there are many problems in the army, such as those who buy and sell official positions, those who resell military equipment, and those who eat empty salaries and suck the blood of soldiers. If the army does its work behind closed doors, I am afraid it will not take long for the root to rot.

Moreover, the Censorate holds the power of supervision over the whole country. They make decisions on major matters and make decisions on minor matters. As long as they are officials of the imperial court, they must be supervised by them. Are the generals in the army not officials? How should I answer this question from the ministers? "

"This..." Everyone was speechless. They thought that Prince Jing's strong power could drive away the censor and allow them to live comfortably for a few days, but it seems that it doesn't work.

Wang Ziteng thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness is right. The Censorate monitors and impeaches the whole country, and the army is not a forbidden area. However, it can be slightly modified. The Censor-in-Chief only has the power to monitor and impeach. As for the power to decide, deal with, and judge military commanders, it belongs to the General's Office."

"General Wang is right."

"That's absolutely true." Everyone agreed quickly. Military affairs should be dealt with by the military. It was better than letting civilian officials deal with them.

Jia Cong smiled slightly. Isn't this a military court? This can increase the authority of the General's Mansion and make sense in front of the civil officials.

Yin nodded and said, "Good. Let's do it this way. The civil officials will be in charge of supervision, and the general's office will be in charge of judgment. This is reasonable."

"Your Highness is wise." Everyone bowed.

"One more thing. The Military Affairs Council has approved that the annual military expenditure should be 15% of the national treasury income. What do you think?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall suddenly became boiling with anger.

"General, you must not do that! This is a trick of the civil servants!"

"They want to cut off the martial arts of our dynasty!"

"The treacherous officials in power want to put our country's million-strong army to death!"

"Damn it! Are you sending away beggars?"

"Damn it! Are they allowed to be greedy and not allow the soldiers to have a full meal?" (End of this chapter)