Zhu Yuanzhang can see my dreams

Chapter 368 Population Growth
Although Zhu Yuanzhang felt that Wang Buli's words were a bit weird, they still sounded very pleasant to the ear.

After I become emperor, people all over the world will live a much better life than under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty.

This is clear progress.

No one can deny it.

After the carriage left the city, Zhu Yuanzhang sat beside the carriage, asked Mao Xiang to get off and drive, and Wang Buli drove the car beside him.

Zhu Yuanzhang was very happy to smell the fragrance from the fields. Many people had already been working in the fields at this time.

Seeing this scene, he was even happier.

"Yeah."

Zhu Yuanzhang kept saying this and even got off the carriage to chat with old farmers in the fields.

Wang Buli did not get off the carriage, but walked leisurely while leaning against it.

In the spring, top dressing was still going on, and the fermented smell was not very pleasant, but Zhu Yuanzhang didn't care.

He has always been satisfied that everyone in the world works instead of being lazy and idle, so he formulated some policies based on this.

Even though he issued a regulation in the eighth year of Hongwu that one adult man should be sent to Nanjing to serve for 30 days for every hectare of land, if the land was less than one hectare, the labor could be supplemented by other land. This was called equal labor, so as to achieve the unity of tax and labor.

But many wealthy families would still find ways to escape, and it would be difficult for the imperial court to investigate.

In addition, many scholars came from wealthy families, and the Ming government stipulated that officials and their families should be given tax-exempt privileges, so donations were extremely common.

Zhu Yuanzhang was probably tired from walking, so he sat back in the carriage and couldn't help laughing:
"It's great. The people are so hardworking. We will definitely have a good harvest this year."

"What my father-in-law said makes sense."

Wang Buli felt that planting seedlings for the people was not an easy job.

Many people were too busy to pay attention to Zhu Yuanzhang who was strolling around.

Those who don't go to the fields at this time must be from a wealthy family and don't have to worry about making a living.

Besides, the clothes Zhu Yuanzhang was wearing didn't even have a patch on it.

Who wears nice clothes when going to the fields?

In order to save clothes, many people working in the fields wear shorts.

What's more, Yingtian and Zhenjiang were Zhu Yuanzhang's entrepreneurial bases, and the supply was heavy.

But after he ascended the throne, taxes in these places became lower year by year, and a lot of taxes were exempted from time to time. These people can finally be said to have survived.

Coupled with repairing the Grand Canal and employing people along the coast, how could their lives be bad?

In particular, Zhu Yuanzhang also advocated cultivating the people and enforcing strict laws to regulate the administration of officials.

The strict laws have greatly curbed the tendency of local officials to levy heavy taxes and extort money from the people, thus reducing the burden on a large number of people.

In addition, Zhu Yuanzhang established his capital in Nanjing, and the rice from Jiangxi and Huguang flowed down the river. The grain from Zhejiang and various prefectures in Nanzhili had a short transportation distance, so the burden of the people in charge of grain transportation was much smaller than that of later emperors such as Zhu Di.

Of course, this is also due to the extremely heavy taxation policy in the southeast.

If there is less east wall, naturally more west wall will have to be demolished to make up for it.

"You are so spoiled that you don't even want to get out of the car or walk in the fields."

Zhu Yuanzhang really wanted to share his joy with Wang Buli just now, but Mao Xiang was not worthy of that, and the boy was just too lazy.

"I just don't want to disturb my father-in-law's thoughts when he is alone."

Listening to Wang Buli's words, Zhu Yuanzhang pointed at him and didn't say much.

However, Mao Xiang on the side sighed secretly.

This is truly where Wang Buli and I are very different.

I only dare to say what the emperor says, but Wang Buli doesn't do that. He would refute and even tell lies in public. But His Majesty is not angry, he is smiling.

Such a strange conversation really made Mao Xiang puzzled.

Mao Xiang thought he had seen many faces in front of His Majesty, but he had never seen anyone like Wang Buli.

He could only attribute the fact that His Majesty treated Wang Buli differently to the fact that he was a "virtuous minister responding to a dream."

"Hey, you've been the one saying all the good and bad things."

Zhu Yuanzhang put his hands in his sleeves like an old farmer.

When he arrived at the fields, he really couldn't tell at all that this man was the current emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

"No, no, no, since ancient times, enlightenment cannot be disturbed by others. You have to rely on yourself." Wang Buli held a long whip in his hand:
"My father-in-law is a little confused right now, so he gave up his tiring work and wanted to go out for a walk. It's totally normal."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and did as he said, without refutation.

There are some things that will not move you no matter what others say. Only when you see through them yourself can you be said to have achieved enlightenment and truly moved on.

"In fact, we received a report yesterday that the number of people in the Ming Dynasty has finally increased."

Zhu Yuanzhang was very pleased and told Wang Buli: "The population of Henan and Hebei provinces has reached 1.8 million."

Wang Buli hummed, but actually didn't know what to say.

Henan is probably short of 2 million people and 100 million now.

Even in the late Ming Dynasty, after experiencing various disasters and wars, Henan still had a population of less than three million.

Under the Yuan Dynasty, the number of Han people in the north decreased dramatically, and coupled with so many years of war, there was no recovery.

The population of the four provinces in Shanhe was not very large at that time.

This was achieved by his conscious encouragement of people from the south to migrate to the north, and by migrating people from Shanxi to Hebei and other places as supplementary measures.

Perhaps in another ten years the population will exceed two million. How could Zhu Yuanzhang not be happy?
"I am very relieved!"

Zhu Yuanzhang stroked his beard with an expression of joy on his face:
"As long as the north is stable and the population increases, it will definitely greatly increase the strength of Ming Dynasty."

"The Mongols were losing ground, and the new emperor had lost all his authority. He was just a puppet, and his subordinates were acting on their own. They could no longer stir up any trouble."

"As long as we have people in the north of the Ming Dynasty, there will be a steady supply of taxes, and we won't have to worry about money and food again and again, and we won't be able to use foreign troops, and we won't let the crops go to waste when we conscript civilians."

Zhu Yuanzhang would rather not fight a war than let the land become barren.

For this reason alone, Wang Buli admires him.

"You know that we didn't learn the emphasis on agriculture and suppression of commerce from the Song Dynasty. Where did we learn it from?"

"Probably the Han Dynasty, right?" Wang Buli looked at the people planting rice:
"Our Chinese people have always valued agriculture. After making money, most of the businessmen would come to the countryside to buy a piece of land. As long as their descendants don't sell the land to ruin their family, it will be considered a guarantee."

"Yes, Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty 'forbade merchants to wear silk and ride in carriages, and imposed heavy taxes to humiliate them', advocating a policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce." Zhu Yuanzhang nodded leisurely:
"After so many years, I actually think it is very suitable for the current Ming Dynasty."

“That’s right, but father-in-law, business development is the inevitable consequence of economic development and cannot be stopped by a government decree.

Therefore, neither the policies of Emperor Gaozu of Han nor similar decrees and laws later on could be maintained for a long time. "

Wang Buli didn't have much idea about this crazy land buying, but he could still draw an analogy with houses.

At some point, everyone went crazy, no matter how much they borrowed, it seemed like they would lose money if they didn't get on the train.

"We know what you are talking about, but it is enough to adapt to the current Ming Dynasty. We will talk about it later."

"Besides, since the Southern Song Dynasty, anyone who wants to sell land must first ask the clan and neighbors. They have the right to purchase first. Only when they don't want it can it be sold to others."

Zhu Yuanzhang stroked his beard and smiled, "The same is true for our Ming Dynasty, so we can avoid being bought by others."

Wang Buli wondered whether Zhu Yuanzhang saw the future of the Ming Dynasty and whether he saw that the landlord class represented by Xu Jie and other cabinet ministers had seized so much land that most of the county belonged to them.

"The Ming Dynasty has not yet ended the war, and the war will lead to a sharp decline in the labor force for agricultural production." Wang Buli said nonchalantly: "When there is no sufficient manpower, many wealthy people will not be very interested in annexing land.

Therefore, the destruction caused by war can slow down the trend of land concentration and even lead to the redistribution of land.”

The cow next to him let out a cry, attracting Zhu Yuanzhang's attention.

He felt that what Wang Buli said was right, but not entirely right.

Even if a war breaks out, the landlords in the south of the Yangtze River will take the opportunity to take away more land and continue to enslave the people.

People's desire for land will never stop. Everyone feels that their own land is not enough.

If there are a few prodigal sons among the descendants, all those good fields will not be enough to cultivate them.

"We remember that the wars that broke out at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty first forced the small, scattered farmers to rely on the big, wealthy families for protection.

That is to say, a civilian self-defense organization was formed with wealthy families as the core.

These dependent people became the private armed forces of the wealthy families, often numbering thousands of people.

The military unit system became popular in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, so war actually made it easier for wealthy families to obtain large numbers of laborers.

These private soldiers are fighters in times of war, and once the war stops, their masters will use them to engage in farming and other production work.

Because they had control over this special source of labor, the wealthy and powerful could continue to expand their landholdings.

Starting from the Western Jin Dynasty, the status of soldiers and servants became closer and closer. In times of peace, they were all engaged in farming and other production work under the guidance of their masters.

Wang Buli looked at Zhu Yuanzhang in astonishment.

This old guy not only reviewed memorials every day after becoming emperor, but also found time to read?

Could it be that he has always wanted to find out the reasons for the extinction of dynasties from history?

To sum up everything, can we prevent the Ming Dynasty from following their old path?

"Why are you looking at me like this?"

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted and laughed: "Do you think that I have no time to read books because I am always dealing with state affairs?"

"Do you still think that I am just a peasant and shouldn't understand so many principles?"

"Tsk, I underestimated your majesty's perseverance."

Wang Buli bowed in admiration. Many people in high positions cannot overcome their desire to enjoy themselves.

After all, I have fought hard for so many years, so what’s the harm in enjoying myself for two days?
Who will say anything!
"Hahaha."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed several times, feeling very happy: "Then you underestimated me."

Mao Xiang followed beside the carriage and dared not say anything.

There was no time requirement now, and Wang Buli suspected that Zhu Yuanzhang came here mainly to relax.

Mao Xiang was forced to walk in front by Zhu Yuanzhang as there were some things he didn't want him to hear.

"We know about the land annexation. Maybe after a few emperors in the Ming Dynasty, the administration of officials will not be as strict as it is now, and a large number of merchants will come to buy land."

Wang Buli held the whip in his hand and looked at Mao Xiang who was walking a dozen steps ahead of him:
"Your Majesty is still worried about a large number of officials forcibly purchasing land, or others giving them land to avoid paying taxes on their land to the court."

Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes slightly. He had also seen this kind of thing in the fairyland. In order to avoid paying taxes to the court, many unruly people surrendered to the scholars and officials.

"We haven't thought of a good solution for this matter yet. After all, we still rely on them to govern the country. If the emperor of the Ming Dynasty doesn't punish corrupt people like us, this kind of thing will naturally happen."

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at him in disbelief again: "Are you saying that we are too lenient towards them?"

Because Zhu Yuanzhang felt that he respected these scholars at the beginning, but after seeing their true colors, he adjusted his attitude and had no intention of getting too close to them.

As a result, Wang Buli actually said this.

For a time, Zhu Yuanzhang even suspected that his methods were too gentle, which made Wang Buli, the "cruel official", look down on him.

"So how do you think we should treat them?"

“The first thing is to cancel the excessive preferential treatment given to them in policies, especially the tax exemption of land, which can only benefit themselves and be divided according to their grades, and cannot benefit their families.

This will prevent too many people from donating land to them and ensure that most taxes can be nationalized. "

Wang Buli put down the whip in his hand and said: "It is forbidden for monks and Taoists to sell land in the name of individuals or temples, and it is not allowed for anyone to donate incense fields to temples.

As for clan charity land, temples, Taoist temples, academies, and charity halls, all collective land is taxed. "

The four big words "all must pay taxes" exploded in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind.

Good guy.

Zhu Yuanzhang thought he was ruthless enough, but he never expected that his son-in-law was even more radical than himself.

I don’t wish he would dare to kill someone in the street!

"Fortunately, we are the only ones talking here, and no one else knows about it." Zhu Yuanzhang felt a sense of care for him.
"If you say these words in the court, you will be criticized by most people, and it will be difficult for me to do anything.

I can't kill them all for you!

You are not cutting meat with a blunt knife, but a sharp knife. Anyone who dares to disobey will be chopped off the head.

The policies formulated are too radical and not peaceful at all, and they are likely to cause civil unrest!"

"Your Majesty, now the population of our Ming Dynasty is sparse and the land is rich, but after two or three generations, the population will grow and the available land will become less. What can we do then?"

Wang Buli spread his hands and said, "Besides, there are many civil uprisings in the Ming Dynasty now, so we don't need one or two rebellions. It's just right for the soldiers who haven't started a war for a long time to practice their skills so that they won't get rusty.

If a dynasty has no wars for decades, then the many capable and skilled soldiers it has raised will probably grow old, and the newly-raised soldiers will become the backbone of the dynasty. However, it is difficult for them to grow up without experiencing bloody battles. "

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but smile as he listened to Wang Buli quickly talking about one topic to another:

"You are really an alarmist."

But he knew in his heart that what Wang Buli said was right.

He saw the future of the Ming Dynasty's army in the fairyland, and it was really rotten.

"Your Majesty is so wise and powerful, how could he not have thought about it? He is just embarrassed to say it out loud."

Wang Buli's flattering words made Zhu Yuanzhang laugh again.

Zhu Yuanzhang was tired of being flattered by others, but Wang Buli's flattery was mixed with a hint of sarcasm, which was a completely new feeling.

There is no need for him to use classical Chinese to talk about this and that.

"You are a sensible boy." Zhu Yuanzhang then became serious again: "In fact, this is exactly what I am worried about."

"The next emperor of the Ming Dynasty was not good enough, and I don't know if the fourth one can do it, but with your assistance, he might do well. But the emperors who came after him were not good enough either."

Zhu Yuanzhang showed some sadness in his eyes: "Those grandsons really disappoint me too much."

Wang Buli was not sure whether Zhu Yuanzhang had read the deeds of the overseas students?

Anyway, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty did so many disappointing things, if Bao Zong were to rank second, probably no one would dare to rank ahead of him, right?

So Wang Buli didn't want to bring up the matter at this time, he just nodded in agreement: "It seems that the emperors of the Ming Dynasty after this are not up to the task, and the fourth son is also incapable of educating his son."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly, then stared at Wang Buli: "What do you mean you are also someone who can't educate his son?"

"Your Majesty, please don't put yourself in your shoes." Wang Buli said with a smile while sitting in the carriage:

"Your Majesty just said that your grandsons are not up to standard. The fourth year old was already old when he ascended the throne. It seems that he did not train his sons according to the requirements of the crown prince. So it is normal that he does not know how to educate them."

"normal?"

Zhu Yuanzhang had not really thought of this point, mainly because Biao'er is in good health and can still work for many years.

The fourth brother's ascension to the throne is not necessarily reliable.

In his heart, Zhu Yuanzhang still wanted his eldest son to inherit the throne. The fourth son was such a good fighter that he was more than capable of guarding the north.

However, the fourth brother knew that he would become the emperor in the future, so he would inevitably have more thoughts in his mind. If there was any Xuanwu Gate Incident in the future, it would be very ugly.

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at Wang Buli and asked: "Has the fourth brother never thought about becoming the emperor?"

"Then you have to ask him!" Wang Buli said leisurely:

"Why don't we go directly to Peking and ask him about it? I guarantee he'll be so scared that he won't dare return to Nanjing for a long time."

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head. This time he was going to go south, mainly to see with his own eyes how those rich families hid their people.

As long as they are caught, they must be sent to the north to fill the population.

"Among my sons, you are the only one who understands him." Zhu Yuanzhang still held up his sleeves: "There are some things we are not sure about, so I have to ask you."

(End of this chapter)