Ming Dynasty: Zhu Biao's younger brother, the most rebellious son in history

Chapter 60 The first disaster of the Ming Dynasty! Zhu Biao and Zhu Kai have a complete heart-to-heart talk!

Having made up his mind, Zhu Kai said to Zhu Biao:

"Brother, don't worry about state affairs. Go out and take a look around to understand the real situation. This will be a great help to Ming Dynasty and your future governance."

Seeing that Zhu Biao was still hesitating, Zhu Kai clapped his hands and decided, "It's decided. Tomorrow, the two of us will change into simple clothes and go out for a walk. It's best to leave Yingtian Prefecture and go to the countryside. That place can better reflect the real life of the people than Second Uncle's vegetable garden."

"This... okay."

Zhu Biao was instilled with the idea that state affairs were the most important thing since he was a child, but it was okay to be lazy occasionally.

His father couldn't even attend the morning court, so why should he, as a crown prince, go through so much trouble?
Although he had made an appointment with Zhu Kai, Zhu Biao still went to Jinshen Hall first to meet the person he did not know who was summoning him. Zhu Biao wanted to wait aside and talk after the person left, but Zhu Yuanzhang had no intention of letting him go and waved for Zhu Biao to come over.

Zhu Biao walked up to Zhu Yuanzhang, who pulled him aside to introduce the two people in front of him, saying, "Boss, let me tell you something. These two are father and son. His name is Shen Rong, and his son's name is Shen Sen. They are descendants of the shameless businessman Shen Wansan. We sent someone to find them and are going to use them for our own purposes."

Shen Wansan?

Zhu Biao was not unfamiliar with this name.

He just knew that one of the reasons why Zhu Yuanzhang hated businessmen was Shen Wansan!

What Zhu Biao didn't expect was that... Zhu Yuanzhang would actually use the descendants of Shen Wansan. He thought of what Zhu Yuanzhang had said to him.

In this world, everyone is there to serve you, regardless of their character, only their ability matters.

Zhu Biao glanced at Shen Rong and Shen Sen, looking them up and down.

Shen Rong and Shen Sen knew that Zhu Biao was the crown prince, so they were naturally very respectful: "We, the humble servants, pay our respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"Ah."

Zhu Biao had no aversion or disdain towards the two, and said in a very calm tone:
"The emperor wants to employ you two. I hope you two can work hard for him. He will not treat those who work hard unfairly."

If you, father and son, don't do your best, it's not unfair treatment, but what you deserve.

"Okay, you two go back."

Zhu Yuanzhang then looked at Yuan Qi and said, "Yuan Qi, send them both to the place we have arranged. No one is allowed to get close to them."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Yuan Qi made a gesture of invitation and took Shen Rong and Shen Sen away.

After they left, Zhu Biao asked, "Dad, what did you call them for? Aren't you always very angry with Shen Wansan? Why do you want to use his descendants now?"

"Things are different now, and if we want to control businessmen, we naturally have to find professionals to do professional things."

Zhu Yuanzhang stated his purpose:
"Biao'er, you have to remember that you are the emperor. As long as this person is useful to you, you have to use him. As for his character and so on, as long as you know him, it is not a problem. I have caught these two people with a lot of problems. In order to save their lives, they can only help me wholeheartedly. Otherwise, I can take their lives at any time!"

Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang likes people who are capable but not very good in character. They have a lot of problems in their hands, and they can be abandoned after they are used up, and put aside as decoration if they are not used up. He never worries that they will do anything excessive.

Zhu Biao did not agree with Zhu Yuanzhang's method of employing people, but he also reserved his own opinion and only asked Zhu Yuanzhang:
"Dad, are you ready to develop business?"

"No, I'm going to use them to check the accounts!"

Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes, his eyes revealed a chill, and said: "A few days ago, I looked through the accounts sent from various places and found that some of the accounts were wrong. We can't use the people from the Ministry of Revenue, so we have to find people from outside. Shen Rong and Shen Sen have been doing business, and their Shen family also has a family business background, so they will be very familiar with the accounts. We have to check them one by one. Those officials who try to fool us with the account books, one by one, we will not let any of them go!"

Zhu Yuanzhang will not let go of any rat who dares to steal money from the national treasury!
Zhu Biao nodded. He thought that there was nothing wrong with Zhu Yuanzhang doing this and that those corrupt officials deserved it!

But what was the reason that made Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly realize that the accounts sent by officials from all over the country were wrong? And... did his father have the energy to learn mathematics now?
Looking at Old Zhu, Zhu Biao thought, it seems that his second brother is right, Dad is indeed too idle.

Thinking of this, Zhu Biao said directly to Zhu Yuanzhang

"Dad, my second brother and I will go out of the palace tomorrow and take a walk outside."

"Leaving the palace?"

Zhu Yuanzhang seemed very surprised, but still said happily: "Go, don't just play around, you are the prince, you have to take a closer look at the situation in various places, don't be deceived by the officials like you did in the court."

"Kai'er is smart. When you go out, listen to Kai'er more."

"I know dad."

After Zhu Biao finished speaking, he left. He didn't understand why his father was more nagging than his mother.

The next day, Zhu Biao changed into a blue silk gown and prepared to follow Zhu Kai out of the palace. However, when he saw the coarse cloth clothes Zhu Kai was wearing, Zhu Biao's eyes widened immediately: "Second brother, you are wearing this?"

Zhu Kai was also surprised when he saw what Zhu Biao was wearing: "Brother, you are wearing this?"

"Uh... Is there anything wrong with me wearing this?"

"That's totally wrong. How can you dress like that? It's okay in Yingtian Prefecture, but who would wear this kind of clothes in the countryside? It's obvious that you're not the same person. Maybe before you take two steps, the village chief will come over and expose your identity."

"Keep a low profile, we need to keep a low profile!"

Enter the village quietly, this kind of low-key approach is not what people with guns want.

Zhu Biao returned to the Eastern Palace and changed into a set of coarse cloth clothes similar to Zhu Kai's, but it was also brand new and he didn't look like a working farmer at all.

"Forget it, that's it."

Zhu Kai was helpless. Zhu Biao probably wouldn't be able to find suitable clothes even if he looked for them again: "Come on, big brother, I'll take you out to play!"

Speaking of Yingtian Prefecture, no one in the entire palace is more familiar with it than him.

……

Zhu Kai is a real community expert and he is also very smart. Walking along the street, he knows the origin of every shop. Zhu Biao does not need to observe carefully himself, Zhu Kai can explain everything clearly.

When he met a shop owner he knew, Zhu Kai would chat with him and say a few dirty words, which would make Zhu Biao, who was following him, blush.

My second younger brother hasn’t even gotten married yet, so why does he know so much?
He teased the woman selling pancakes on the street, saying that she still had charm. Instead of getting angry, the woman retorted to Zhu Kai, saying that she would capture Zhu Kai and make him her husband when she had saved enough money.

They also said Zhu Kai was young and strong...

Are the customs of the people in the Ming Dynasty so open-minded?

In fact, the Ming Dynasty was a country with many rules. The reason for this was entirely due to the war.

Zhu Yuanzhang had just established the country for four years, but up to now, the rebellions in various places had not been quelled. While Zhu Yuanzhang was marching north to attack the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty, he also had to send soldiers to quell the rebellions in various places.

Although Yingtian Prefecture had been Zhu Yuanzhang's territory for a long time, it was still very desolate until he established his capital in Yingtian. It was also because Zhu Yuanzhang established his capital in Yingtian that many people who could not survive in their hometowns came to Yingtian Prefecture to seek a way to make a living under the feet of the emperor.

Zhu Kai told Zhu Biao that many of these small businessmen selling pancakes and tofu in Yingtian Prefecture came from other places, and many of them starved to death on the road. Those who were able to arrive in Yingtian Prefecture alive had basically seen dead people. How could such people not be heroic?
After hearing this, Zhu Biao nodded thoughtfully, but still said:

"This is indeed immoral, but our Ming Dynasty is becoming more and more stable, and this unhealthy trend will definitely be curbed."

"Stop it, why stop it? I just like these obscene words. There are no entertainment activities now. When it gets dark, the only activity for the people is to make babies. It's normal for them to say some obscene words. The more obscene, the happier the people are."

Zhu Kai seemed to enjoy it as well. Zhu Biao laughed and scolded after hearing this:

"You... I think you are enjoying it, right?"

"That's natural."

Zhu Kai not only did not hide his thoughts, but also proudly said that he liked it: "I like the atmosphere of the city, and I like places with a lot of people. Brother, don't think that the people are vulgar when they say these dirty words. In fact, the really vulgar people are those scholars and officials."

"The common people only talk dirty words, but the scholars and officials, who are full of morality, do things that are even more vulgar than the common people's dirty words. Do you know that when the scholars and officials sleep at night, they warm their feet with two maids holding their feet, and they have to be virgins, because they say that only virgins have body fragrance."

Zhu Biao was very surprised when he heard this: "There is such a thing?"

"Yeah, that's what Li Shanchang did."

After saying that, Zhu Kai added:
"That's what Li Qi said. Can a son plot against his own father?"

If the explanation at the end had not been added, Zhu Biao would have probably believed it. Zhu Kai was definitely the first person in Yingtian Prefecture who dared to make up stories about his own father. However, Zhu Biao also remembered what Zhu Kai said.

This extravagant trend must be stopped!
"Hey, big brother, speaking of making babies, how are you doing?"

Zhu Kai touched Zhu Biao with his shoulder and said suspiciously:
"You've been married for such a long time, why is there still no movement? It's not that our father gave you too much work, and you don't have time for sister-in-law..."

"What nonsense are you talking about, you bastard!"

Zhu Biao glared at Zhu Kai angrily, and then explained:
"Didn't you tell me that having children early is bad for a woman's health? I...I plan to have them a few years later."

"Uh...Brother, you are such a good man!"

Zhu Kai had nothing to say, "However, you can find two concubines first to solve your physiological problems."

"Boy, how could your elder brother be controlled by desire?"

The two of them talked and laughed all the way to the end of Suzaku Street.

Under the archway, Mao Xiang, Jiang Lin and twenty strong men were already waiting on the street.

Of course, this is only the guarding force that is exposed in the open, there are also some in the dark.

Zhu Kai and Zhu Biao are the most important family members in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart. He would never allow them to be put in any danger. Moreover, one is the crown prince and the other is the second prince. These two people are worth Zhu Yuanzhang's effort.

Last night, Mao Xiang and Jiang Lin both knew that Zhu Kai was going to take Zhu Biao out of the palace, and Guo Xing personally instructed them to do a good job of protecting them.

If Zhu Kai and Zhu Biao lose a single hair, they will lose their heads.

"Brother Kai."

Mao Xiang and Jiang Li stepped forward and called Zhu Kai by his nickname according to the rules Zhu Kai taught him.

But when they looked at Zhu Biao again, they both felt a little embarrassed.

How should we address Zhu Biao?
We have never dealt with each other before, so should I call him the prince?
Zhu Biao was very interested in Zhu Kai's nickname, and felt that the two words "Brother Kai" were very powerful and domineering.

Seeing Mao Xiang and Jiang Li struggling over what to call him, Zhu Biao said with a smile, "Call me Brother Biao!"

"Uh……"

Mao Xiang and Jiang Li both felt a little embarrassed. Why did this Brother Biao sound so stupid?
They knew that when Zhu Kai called someone stupid, he would call them "Biaohuhu idiot."

Biao and Biao have the same pronunciation, so how could Zhu Biao call himself "Brother Biao"?

Uh...no.

Biaohuhu... Doesn't the Second Prince think that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is a fool?
Mao Xiang and Jiang Li suddenly felt like they had solved the case.

"What are you two thinking about?"

Zhu Kai kicked Mao Xiang and Jiang Li, then said, "Brother, you'd better not call me Brother Biao. This name sounds too stupid. Besides, we have to use other people's names to prevent others from noticing us and to make it easier for us to leave the city in the future."

When Zhu Biao heard what Zhu Kai said, he really couldn't understand how the two words "Brother Biao" were stupid, but what Zhu Kai said made sense.

"I've decided. Big brother, your name is Li Qi and mine is Li You."

Zhu Kai put his hands behind his back and got on the carriage: "Brother, get in the carriage quickly. We are going out of the city for fun."

Li Qi and Li You.

When Zhu Biao heard the two names given by Zhu Kai, he couldn't help but shook his head.

He always felt that Zhu Kai had ulterior motives in giving these two names, but he seemed to have other ideas.

But what does it matter?

With me here to persuade his younger brother, I'm sure nothing bad will happen, right?
……

"Come on, come on, big brother, I'll drive for you!"

Mao Xiang and Jiang Li drove too steadily, and Zhu Kai didn't like it at all, so he wanted to do it himself.

After the founding of the country, Zhu Biao rarely left the palace, so he was very curious about everything outside. When he heard Zhu Kai said he wanted to drive, he hesitated but still agreed and said, "Okay, but second brother, you have to go slower, so as not to spoil the crops nearby."

"Brother, what are you talking about? I am the number one car god in Yingtian Prefecture. Have you heard of drifting? This is what I invented. Hu Tian likes drifting the most."

Zhu Kai did not take Zhu Biao's reminder to heart, but pointed at Mao Xiang and Jiang Lin and said, "Ask them both, they both like to sit in the carriage I drive. In the future, we should have rules in Yingtian Prefecture. All drivers should be like me. Only when they have my driving ability can they drive for others. Otherwise, they are driving without a license."

"..."

It seems that letting Zhu Kai drive was a mistake.

……

After a while, Zhu Biao climbed out of the carriage on the country road, dizzy and dazed.

Just now, Zhu Kai was driving very fast and was having so much fun that he suddenly wanted to perform a carriage drift for Zhu Biao!
This time, it floated directly into the fields!

If Mao Xiang and Jiang Lin had not reacted quickly and acted as Zhu Biao's cushion, Zhu Biao would have had to rest for a while in the overturned carriage.

"You bastard... Is this the strength of Yingtian Prefecture's number one chariot god?"

Zhu Biao was very angry, and he felt annoyed when he saw the heartless Zhu Kai.

I have really lost my mind. Why should I believe Zhu Kai's words for no reason?

"Second brother, you'd better not drive anymore. If all the drivers in Yingtian Prefecture were as reckless as you, I guess Yingtian Prefecture's prefect Meng Duan would have trouble sleeping because of all the carriage crashes he has to deal with every day."

Thinking about the moment when I was sitting in the carriage, the feeling of speeding really made my heart beat faster, but I was still really scared.

Zhu Kai was thrown off the carriage and fell headfirst into the field, but he was not injured, so he did not care much at this time. Instead, he said confidently: "I just suddenly thought that big brother finally followed me out once, how could he sit in the carriage all the time? It would be better for him to walk a few more steps under my urging, just as exercise, so I stopped the carriage."

Zhu Biao laughed out loud when he heard Zhu Kai's nonsense explanation. He pointed at Zhu Kai and scolded him, "You bastard, you have so many excuses. If you want me to get off the steps, why don't you just say no? Why did you overturn the carriage into the field?"

"Brother, don't worry about these details."

Zhu Kai put his arm around Zhu Biao's shoulders and said:

"Come on, big brother, I'll take you to see the real customs and practices of Yingtian Prefecture."

Zhu Biao probably spent too much time with Zhu Yuanzhang and picked up some bad habits.

Now he doesn’t call me “second brother” anymore, he just calls me “boy”.

In fact, Zhu Biao didn't want to do that, but Zhu Kai was too irritating.

Zhu Biao claimed to be the best driver in Yingtian Prefecture, but he drove his car directly into a ditch in a field. How could he not be angry?

If Zhu Kai was driving in a busy city, who knows how many people would have suffered as a result.

The number one scourge in Yingtian Prefecture, the reputation is well-deserved.

Just talk and scold.

Mao Xiang and Jiang Li pulled the overturned carriage out of the field, then paid some money and continued to move forward.

Zhu Kai was not satisfied with this, they are now Li Qi and Li You.

Even if the people go to sue the officials, it is the responsibility of Li Qi and Li You. What does it have to do with me, Zhu Kai?
But Zhu Biao refused to listen and insisted on paying compensation before leaving, and Zhu Kai had no choice.

"Brother, how can you be the one to pay for something like this? You don't have much money to begin with."

Zhu Kai shook his head regretfully, and then said, "Why don't you go back and give Li Qi and Li You an order, saying that they destroyed the farmland and ask them to pay for it? Li Qi and Li You have a lot of money, and if you ask them to pay, will they dare not obey?"

When Zhu Biao heard that what Zhu Kai said made sense, he immediately scolded:
"You bastard, why didn't you say so earlier? Don't you know that your brother is short of money? You bastard! You bastard!"

"It's not too late to say it now."

Zhu Kai said with a smile, "Brother, how about you take back what you gave away? And then leave Li Qi's name?"

"..."

Forget it, Zhu Biao would not do such a shameless thing.

Looking at his second brother, Zhu Biao said helplessly:

"Second brother, I've discovered that anyone who becomes your enemy will suffer misfortune for the rest of his life. Who can stand what you've done?" Zhu Kai laughed, "Haha, thank you for the compliment, big brother!"

……

Soon, Zhu Kai and Zhu Biao arrived at the edge of a field.

Now is the time when the crops are growing vigorously. The people dare not be negligent and are so busy that they can't even straighten their backs.

This year the weather has been good and they are all looking forward to having a good harvest.

While the people were working, they were also thinking in their minds.

After harvesting the two crops of rice this year, how much will be left for their family after paying taxes and food rations? The Chinese New Year is just a few months away, and they also want to have a good year with meat to eat.

Zhu Biao didn't say much, just watched from the side.

He didn't need to say anything, everything he could see in the field was real.

After watching for a long time, Zhu Biao was filled with emotion and said to Zhu Kai:
"Second brother, Dad is right. Our Ming Dynasty does not rely on those scholars and officials, but on the common people. If the common people and the Ming Dynasty are of one mind, the Ming Dynasty will shine forever."

Zhu Kai responded: "That's why Dad asked you to stay away from those scholars. They are not good people."

"It's easy to say, but we still have to rely on them to govern the Ming Dynasty. Otherwise, how can we govern the Ming Dynasty well?"

After Zhu Biao finished speaking, he felt that there was a big paradox in Zhu Yuanzhang's philosophy.

Zhu Yuanzhang wanted the emperor and the people to rule the world together, but the literati were an indispensable link. Zhu Yuanzhang wanted the literati to be of one mind with him and work together to make the people live a better life, but the literati and the people were originally on opposite sides.

How can we be of one mind?

Faintly, it seemed as if a switch was touched in Zhu Biao's mind, but he couldn't figure out the way.

Zhu Kai also said: "Becoming an official is a path that the common people aspire to, but after becoming the top scholar, they become members of the literati and enjoy special treatment, so there are many unreasonable things in the process, and my father's generation cannot change it at all."

"Yeah... Dad is too anxious."

Zhu Biao knew that Zhu Yuanzhang was in such a hurry because he wanted to leave a stable country to Zhu Biao. Thinking that everything Zhu Yuanzhang did was for him, Zhu Biao couldn't help feeling disappointed: "It's also my fault. If I could satisfy my father, he wouldn't be so anxious to do things."

"Brother, this is not your fault."

Zhu Kai advised, "The emperor and the scholars and officials jointly govern the country. This system has existed for thousands of years. How can it be easily changed? But if we work towards this goal, we will always be able to do it well."

"Yes."

Zhu Biao clenched his fist and said, "Second brother, your potatoes and sweet potatoes have given me a new idea. I plan to use the seeds of sweet potatoes and potatoes as bait to attract people to Huguang. If the potatoes and sweet potatoes are planted well, Huguang can become the granary of the world again in less than three years."

"Brother, simply immigrating is useless. You have to find a way to increase the population of Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Kai said, "To encourage people to have children, you have to ensure that they have enough food to feed others, and that if their children get sick, their families can afford to pay for their treatment. Immigration can only solve temporary problems, but not lifelong problems."

"It is true that potatoes and sweet potatoes have high yields per mu and can be used as staple food in a short period of time, but rice and wheat are still the staple food. Corn, soybeans, and sorghum are just coarse grains. If people want to feed their children, wheat and rice are indispensable."

Zhu Biao nodded and said in agreement: "Yes, what you said is right, I remember it... The only way to get enough manpower to farm in a short period of time is to fight against foreign enemies. Those captives can become our laborers and help us farm."

After finishing speaking, Zhu Biao suddenly opened his mind: "Yes, that's right. When I go back, I will tell my father to try to capture prisoners alive during the northern expedition and not to kill them. Also... now in the Central Plains, the provinces with high grain production are sparsely populated. We should send those prisoners to the interior instead of keeping them in the bitter and cold border areas to educate them and make them become the same people as us."

Well, that's one way.

Zhu Kai was not surprised that Zhu Biao could come up with this idea.

My elder brother also came from troubled times.

The heroes who followed Zhu Yuanzhang to conquer the world were all Zhu Biao's teachers, and they were not pedantic scholars.

Non-my family, its heart must be different.

Zhu Biao always had this sentence on his lips. He also wanted to turn those ethnic minorities into his own ethnic group. Now it seems that he has found the trick to increase the population of the Ming Dynasty.

"Brother, others say you are kind and generous, but I don't think they understand you."

Zhu Kai said to Zhu Biao, "With what you just said, you will inevitably be called an executioner by those sour scholars."

"Hahaha... I'm the prince, and they're the ministers. We think differently."

Zhu Biao shook his head and said, "Besides, now they all have their own selfish motives. When they teach me things, they always want me to agree with them and listen to their way of governing the country. Haha... They are ministers, and I am the prince. In addition, my father stands on the opposite side of the literati, so they and I are not the same kind of people after all."

Zhu Biao has understood everything.

But he disagreed with Zhu Yuanzhang's being too hasty in solving the problem. Some things... cannot be rushed.

"Hey, we're here to have fun today, why am I telling you this?"

Zhu Kai understood Zhu Biao's thoughts and did not continue to talk about the court: "Brother, we are here to have fun today. We will not talk about the things in the court. If you talk about it once... you will be fined 100 taels of silver."

Originally he wanted to ask for gold, but then he thought that Zhu Biao was not well off either, and if he ran out of money he would have to ask him for it. So Zhu Kai simply changed it to silver, so that he could get more money a few times.

"Haha, you bastard, do you think I'm a leek too?"

Zhu Biao smiled and caught up with Zhu Kai who was walking forward: "There are some farmers ahead, let's go over and talk to them."

"can."

Zhu Kai did not refuse. "But big brother, you can't be so polite. You are Li Qi now. That guy was so arrogant in Yingtian. You have to act more like a decent person."

Zhu Biao was puzzled: "How to pretend?"

"Look at me."

Zhu Kai walked up quickly and saw the farmers who had finished their farm work. He shouted, "Hey, listen to me, I am Li You, Duke of Korea. These lands belong to you, right? Do you want to sell them?"

"..."

The farmers looked at Zhu Kai as if he were a fool.

But they also know the title of Duke of Korea.

That is the title bestowed by His Majesty on Li Shanchang, the first meritorious minister of the founding of the country.

and……

The farmer was a little embarrassed and said to Zhu Kai: "Master Li, these lands... originally belonged to your family."

"what?"

Zhu Kai was stunned after listening to this. He never expected that these lands actually belonged to Li Shanchang's family.

"How can it be!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao stepped forward and asked the farmer:
"I heard that the farmland in Yingtian Prefecture is the food grain field for the people. Anyone over eight years old has five acres of farmland. How did this land become Han..."

Just as he was about to say Duke of Korea, Zhu Biao suddenly remembered that his current identity was Li Qi, so he quickly changed his words: "How did this land become mine?"

"Ah, this..."

The farmer was a little embarrassed and looked at Zhu Kai.

Zhu Kai had just introduced himself, and the farmers had never seen Li You, so they naturally believed his identity.

But the young man who had just spoken had the aura of an upper-class person. Although his words were gentle, they were not polite at all. The farmer was not sure what he meant and could only look at Zhu Kai.

"This is my eldest brother, Li Qi, the eldest son of our Duke Hanguo." Zhu Kai introduced the identity of 'Li Qi' that Zhu Biao had impersonated, paused, and then said: "If you have anything to say, just say it directly. My Li family is very wealthy and my eldest brother can't even remember how much land we have in the family."

"Oh oh oh, meet Master Li."

After the farmer greeted him, he hurriedly explained: "There are six people in our family, and we do have thirty acres of land. These lands were originally wasteland. When the government measured the land, they were not recorded in the land register. So someone from Young Master Li's family came to reclaim these wastelands and gave them to us to cultivate."

wasteland?

Zhu Biao's face darkened. "This is ridiculous! These lands should have belonged to the Ming Dynasty."

"..."

The old farmer looked at Zhu Biao and thought that this kid was really brave.

It is clearly our own land, why do we have to say it belongs to the Ming Dynasty?
At this moment, the old farmer didn't care whether the 'Li Qi' in front of him was the child of the first meritorious official of the founding of the Ming Dynasty. He just knew that it was obviously his own land, but he insisted on saying it belonged to someone else. This was stupid and crazy.

The eldest son of Li Shanchang is undoubtedly a prodigal son!

Zhu Biao finally understood that the government land only recorded the land owned by the people. The other lands were unrecorded wastelands. After being changed hands, these wastelands became personal property.

How can this work!

Zhu Biao was very angry. No wonder his father said he wanted to check the accounts in all places.

There are loopholes even under the emperor's feet, what about other places?
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Zhu Biao said angrily:
"No, I will report this to the emperor. These lands originally belonged to the emperor. How can they be private property?"

Hearing Zhu Biao's words, the old farmer suddenly became anxious, and the other people who were resting together also became anxious. They knelt on the ground and begged Zhu Biao: "Master Li, you must not hand over these lands to the government. No, Master Li! If these lands are handed over to the government, then we will really have no way to survive."

No way to survive?

Zhu Kai thought that these old farmers were worried that they would reveal the truth and be blamed by Li Shanchang after knowing it, so he said proudly: "What's wrong with that? This is my eldest brother's family's land. You can do whatever you want with it. What's your business?"

One of the farmers who kowtowed raised his head and looked at Zhu Kai with pleading eyes, saying, "Master Li, how do you want to deal with your family's land? We have no right to interfere. But this land cannot be given to the government, Master. Otherwise, how can our family survive?"

"Bullshit!"

Zhu Biao got angry first and shouted:

"The land is handed over to the government, so how can you miss out on your share?"

The farmer kowtowed and begged, "Master, the emperor cares about us common people and has arranged food money for us, but... we really can't afford the taxes from the government. Please show mercy to us common people and leave a way out for us."

"..."

What kind of life is this?

When Zhu Kai saw this scene, he seemed to have thought of something, turned around and said to the angry Zhu Biao:

"Brother, please be patient. There must be something else going on. Let's hear what they have to say."

After saying that, Zhu Kai looked at the farmer and said, "Old man, tell me what's going on."

"Yes, I'll tell you right away, right away."

The farmer would never hide anything and told everything he needed to say honestly.

After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the taxes levied on the people were not very high. For example, the tax on farming was one-tenth, which means that if they harvested ten shi of grain in a year, they only had to pay one shi of tax.

Zhu Yuanzhang was born a tenant farmer, so he knew very well that there were many details involved in grain tax.

Take the grain tax for example. For every stone of grain the state collected in tax, local government offices would collect four stones of grain from the people.

Why so many?
The reason is very simple. The tax for transporting one dan of grain must be transported to the capital, right? It costs money to feed the people and horses along the way? You pay the tax, and we find a warehouse to store the grain. Doesn't it cost to rent the warehouse?

You need to pass through to transport food, right?
There are checkpoints in every place. Do we have to pay a fee to pass through the checkpoints?
Therefore, adding up all the taxes, the total amount would be at least four stone of grain.

In order to prevent the people from being oppressed by these miscellaneous fees, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered that the people could pay grain in exchange for banknotes. The people did not have to pay grain, but could use copper coins of equivalent value instead.

In other words, one stone of grain costs two strings of coins, and you just have to pay the two strings of coins to the government.

In this way, there will be fewer reasons for exploiting the people in various places, but even so, those who want to exploit the people have their own ways.

You can choose not to pay the grain, but you have to pay for the transportation of these copper coins, right?
As a result, the miscellaneous taxes and fees such as customs rations, cart rations, and food rations were turned into water rations, cart rations, and warehouse rations.

The old farmer told Zhu Kai and Zhu Biao that they were relatively lucky in Yingtian Prefecture, as it was the foot of the imperial city, under the feet of the emperor. They didn't need to pay much, but they were charged an additional fee for gods and Buddhas...

It is said that Zhu Yuanzhang was born a monk and was the Buddha in heaven. He came down to earth to save and benefit the people, and he had to be supported by money. Otherwise, if there was no support, he would return to heaven and continue to be the Buddha, and no longer care about the people's affairs.

People in other places also collect taxes from gods and Buddhas, saying that the goods have to be transported by land or water, and if they encounter natural disasters or man-made disasters, they will have to collect taxes again. They collect taxes from gods and Buddhas in order to offer sacrifices to the gods and Buddhas in the sky, so as to bless them to ensure safety during the transportation of taxes.

On the other hand, this is not the case with Li Shanchang's "wasteland".

Because of their meritorious services, these people enjoyed certain privileges in the Ming Dynasty. Although they also needed to pay grain taxes, they did not need to pay various taxes under various pretexts.

The people rented their land and cultivated it. For every ten shi of grain produced, they only had to pay one and a half shi, and the rest were theirs... Since it was the lesser of two evils, why would the people rent other land for cultivation?

This is why the farmer did not want Li Qi to tell the court about the wasteland. Now it seems that these scholars are thinking about the people, but in fact, what they are best at is calculation. They do not care about temporary gains and losses and like to take a long-term view.

Because they knew very well that no matter how the dynasties changed, no one would touch the interests of them, the literati.

For example, they took these wastelands in their hands and let the people cultivate them at low prices. After deducting the taxes from the grain, the rest was theirs. The people were the vested interests, and they would remember that the taxes on the land of the literati were less, while the government was more like extorting money and collecting taxes under various pretexts.

Over time, they became dissatisfied with the government and believed that the scholar-official class were good people. Since the scholar-officials had fewer people and more land, food was naturally stored. But when there was a famine or someone's family was hit by a disease or disaster and the people did not harvest enough and needed money... wouldn't these people have to ask them for help?

You can borrow money.

But there has to be something that can be mortgaged, right?
nothing?

Then mortgage your land to us.

Pay back the principal and interest, and the land will still be yours.

If you can't pay back the money, you have to mortgage the land to us. If the money from the land is not enough, you will still be mine, but I will not kill you. I will even support you. However, all your ancestors will become slaves of my family and help us farm the land.

Over time, the scholar-officials owned more and more land, while the common people owned less and less. The government could not collect taxes, but in order to complete the tasks assigned by its superiors, it could only impose heavier taxes on the common people whose land was becoming less and less.

This phenomenon was later called: land annexation!
However, the poor people were like frogs in boiling water and became servants of the literati.

And what about the government?

There is less and less land available for taxation.

In order to complete their tasks, they had to impose heavier taxes on the people.

In the end, the people were outraged and forced to rebel to protest against the heavy taxes.

Anyway, it was the dynasty that was overthrown, and had nothing to do with the literati... These literati suddenly became the ministers of the new dynasty. If we talk about shameless people, these literati are the most shameless in the world.

……

Hearing about these various taxes, even the usually steady Zhu Biao was stunned.

"Buddha money... what the hell is this tax?"

Zhu Biao couldn't help but swear. He looked at Zhu Kai and said angrily, "Second brother, how can you accept money like this? We, we didn't rely on gods and Buddhas to conquer the Ming Dynasty."

"There's nothing we can do. No matter what, someone has to pay the money, right?"

Zhu Kai also found it funny, but there are so many ridiculous stories in reality.

Or maybe we can say that drama comes from life.

The farmer listened to the conversation between Li Qi and Zhu Kai and asked with some concern:
"Two young masters, this land..."

"Of course the land's affairs must be reported!"

Zhu Kai immediately said: "Our Li family has been loyal for generations, so of course we have to report this matter to the court!"

"Yes, it must be reported!"

Zhu Biao also said, "Those taxes..."

Before he could finish his words, Zhu Kai took over and said, "You have to pay those taxes. My great Ming Emperor is devoted to the people and hates rats. All of them should be skinned and stuffed with straw! You should all be skinned and stuffed with straw! To serve as a warning to others! Each of you, wait for me, Li You, to report the matter to His Majesty, and I will definitely punish you!"

"what?"

The common people had never seen such a ferocious young man.

But, isn't this young man a fool?
It's obviously their own land, but they chose to take it away. Wouldn't all the taxes go into the government's pocket?
Duke Hanguo, how could you give birth to two such prodigal sons!
They don't care about the lives of us ordinary people and just flatter the emperor!
(End of this chapter)