Jinyi Night Walk

Full Text No Advertisement Chapter 1001 Li character pendulum center

Xia Xun nodded seriously, and said: "What your lords said is all true. If you just insult the postmen and harass the local area, you can strictly control them through the law, but hundreds of people occupy the posthouse at every turn." Needing to eat and drink, driving many people to serve and transport, and using many worthless sundries as tributes, forcing my court to accept them, is indeed a problem!"

When Xia Xun said this, the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty and the emperor were a little confused. They didn't know what kind of medicine Xia Xun was selling in the gourd.

However, although he didn't understand his intentions, these words were of great benefit to opposing the voyages to the West. University scholar Jin Youzi seized the opportunity and remonstrated: "Your Majesty, the tribute from all countries is tens of millions from my Ming Dynasty. But what you get can't be as good as one or two, it consumes China and demeans the people, so that the foreign barbarians take advantage of it one by one, and the thick and the thin, but the villain thinks he can count on himself, and look down on our heavenly dynasty, which is really not advisable!"

Xia Xun immediately followed his words and said, "That's right, he is a tribute envoy, can I not accept him? It's only natural to set up a post. It's only natural to drive corvees. Even the so-called tribute they offered was clearly for the sake of profit from the Fanyi. I have to accept it. But this is not the crime of our Great Ming’s transportation to all countries, its disadvantages are actually caused by the tribute trade! Therefore, I beg your Majesty, stop the tribute and restart the city ship!"

Xia Xun's words shocked Shi Potian, and everyone in the hall was shocked for a while.

The city ship system has existed since ancient times. The Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties all implemented the city ship system, and the system became more and more perfect with each passing dynasty.

The city ship system is jointly led by the local chief executive and the local finance chief. The imperial court assigns people to manage specific affairs. The main duties are to issue sea permits and check on board according to the goods declared by the merchants, the people on board and the places to go. , to prevent entrainment of items prohibited by the imperial court and fugitives, "check the truth" for ships returning to Hong Kong, and collect taxes and levies on imported and exported goods.

It can be said that this is a relatively mature way of trade between countries. It no longer undertakes the political task of Huaiyuan Fuyi. Merchants from various countries come and buy and sell goods on their own. The court doesn’t care how high your price is, as long as the market Accept your price.

The imperial court is also not responsible for the reception tasks. It doesn’t have to entertain you for free, and it doesn’t have to provide free labor to help you transport the goods.

Because it is free trade, the visitor is not a tribute status. Local officials do not need to receive free reception, nor do they have to deal with any crimes committed by diplomatic envoys. They can only report to the court layer by layer.More importantly, if it is a city ship trade, both the local government and the imperial court will benefit from it, but the current tribute trade...

The ministers communicated quickly and in a very secret way. Suddenly, like frogs waking up from hibernation, they jumped out one by one, and soon covered the entire golden palace. , attached to the proposal of the Minister of the State, may His Majesty stop the tribute, and promote the city ship!"

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"Wenxuan, civil and military officials, you can control them with one word! You are really amazing!"

Zhu Di said "discuss later" and sent all the civil servants out, leaving only him and Xia Xun in the hall.

Zhu Di took a deep look at Xia Xun, and couldn't help but let out a sigh of emotion.

Xia Xun didn't seem to understand how cruel Zhu Di's words were, and he replied seriously: "Your Majesty, all officials are not ruled by ministers, but by profit!"

Zhu Di frowned, and asked, "Be controlled by profit?"

Xia Xun said: "That's right! Tai Shigong said that the prosperity of the world is for profit; the soil of the world is for profit. The king of thousands of vehicles, the lord of thousands of families, and the king of a hundred families are still suffering from poverty." , let alone the people who have registered households? The opposition and approval of hundreds of officials, in the final analysis, is a profit word at work!"

Zhu Di said: "Where is the benefit?"

Xia Xun said: "Your Majesty, you know that the current tribute trade has one disadvantage and three contradictions, which cannot be reconciled!"

The anger on Zhu Di's face disappeared, showing a look of surprise, and said: "Speak!"

Xia Xun said: "The disadvantages of paying tribute, the ministers have already made it very clear just now, so there is no need for the minister to repeat it?"

Zhu Di nodded and said, "Well, tell me, what are the three contradictions?"

Xia Xun said: "These three contradictions are the contradictions between civil servants and eunuchs; the contradictions between the imperial court and the local government; the contradictions between the royal family and wealthy families, landlords, and rich merchants!"

Zhu Di leaned forward slightly, and said in a deep voice, "Why do you explain this, please explain it in detail!"

Xia Xun said: "The minister will be blunt. Let's talk about the first contradiction, that is, the contradiction between civil servants and eunuchs. When sailing to the West, the construction of ships and the purchase of various commodities are all in charge of the eunuchs. , The civil servants are completely out of hand.

Civil officials not only can't get in their hands, they also have to assist from the side and obey the orders of the eunuchs.The eunuchs not only financed money, but also led troops, not only led troops, but also arranged posts, dispatched corvees, and intervened in government affairs.How can the civil servants who take the world as their own responsibility bear it?

What's more, because the eunuchs were a disaster to the world in the Han and Tang Dynasties, since then, all civil servants have always been suspicious, wary, hostile, and contemptuous of the eunuchs. Seeing that the eunuchs are getting more and more powerful, how can they rest assured? "

Zhu Di's eyes flickered slightly, but he said nothing.

Xia Xun dared to raise this point because he knew that the so-called statement that the emperor was worried about sending his ministers to sea would rebel and stand on his own feet was simply the imagination of ignorant people!If you want to worry about this, since ancient times, the eunuchs have committed crimes, and there are no one who wants to be the emperor.Besides, civil servants have families and businesses, and their families, wives and children are all in the country. Isn't it easier to restrain them than eunuchs?

Among other things, although the leader who led the boat to the sea was an eunuch, the tens of thousands of soldiers he brought were accompanied by the commander-in-chief. Military generals are more likely to develop ambitions than civilian officials. If someone really wants to stay away from overseas, claim Emperor, as long as the leading eunuch is killed, aren't those generals still self-reliant?

Furthermore, the consumption and supplies of such a huge fleet are also astonishing. Without the support of the country, without the supplement of personnel and armaments, it is not easy to gain independence in a distant foreign land. This is not a reason at all.

The reason why Zhu Di used eunuchs was because when he was in Jingnan, many eunuchs were loyal and contributed to him, and he reused all the civil servants and generals who were loyal to him. Naturally, he had to arrange a way out for these meritorious eunuchs.What's more, such missions, promulgations, and visits are all temporary duties. Even Zhu Yuanzhang, who hates eunuchs intervening in politics the most, has not only sent eunuchs to missions and prospered once, because in Zhu Yuanzhang's view, these things Although it looks majestic, it cannot hold power for a long time and will not cause any harm.

Therefore, the reasons why Zhu Di used eunuchs as envoys are actually very simple. One is the favor and trust of eunuchs, and the other is to follow the old rules of the country. Because of Zhu Di's own strength, he is confident that he can deter all officials. In fact, he did. So he has no idea of ​​establishing a eunuch group to fight against the civil official group, which is also the basis for Xia Xun to raise this question.

Otherwise, he would not have raised this point at all, because for the higher purpose of maintaining imperial power, economic interests can be decisively given up, and this will remain the case until hundreds of years later, and he would never expect an emperor to do what he wants s Choice.

Zhu Di tasted it for a while, his face gradually softened, and asked in a deep voice: "The second point, what is the conflict between the court and the local government?"

Xia Xun said: "Your Majesty, all officials hope to serve as an official, to benefit one side, to serve the king at the top, to have a good political performance, to be popular with the people at the bottom, to be loved by the people, and to gain a good reputation. Some officials insisted that What is the reason for stopping sea transportation and promoting river transportation? Isn't it because river transportation is good for the people they manage or the people along the canal in their hometown?

But what good does the tribute trade do to them now?When imperial ships go to sea, everything is provided by the local government as a matter of course, and even a lot of corvée is allocated for free. When foreign envoys visit, they are responsible for receiving them. When public resentment boils over, they will be scolded and suffer.Not at all, these foreign envoys deal directly with the imperial court!

Including our treasure ships going to sea, the same is true. Most of the profits go to the inner government, and a small half go to the national treasury, completely bypassing the local government.Local officials have only responsibilities and no interests, how can they not hate it to the bone, and report to them layer by layer to oppose it? "

Zhu Di's face became a little ugly, and he said, "What about the third one?"

Xia Xun said solemnly: "The third thing that I am most worried about is the conflict between the royal family and local wealthy families, landlords, and rich merchants. Your Majesty, every time the imperial court goes to sea, there are countless giant ships, all of which are like floating cities. , The profit is extremely rich. Just now Eunuch Zheng said that the boatload of spices, the profit of tens of times and hundreds of times, is priceless!

But where did all the profits go?The inner government and the treasury!Not to mention that the imperial court does not allow them to conduct such a large-scale trade, even if it is allowed, can their procurement scale and transportation scale be compared with the imperial family's ocean-going fleet?The smaller the purchase, the higher their purchase cost, and the smaller the transport, the less goods they have.

When it comes to transportation costs, they have to bear it all by themselves. The price of the goods shipped back to the country must be higher than that of Zheng Gonggong's goods. In this way, no one will buy their goods. Royal Rivalry?The emperor has issued an edict more than once to prohibit officials from doing business and compete for profits with the people, but in this tribute trade, the royal family has become the largest official businessman, competing for profits with the wealthy families, landlords and merchants all over the world! "

Zhu Di's body shook, but he still didn't speak.

Xia Xun's words were carefully considered. Since he made that important decision, he has thought about many funeral arrangements that need to be arranged. This is an important issue he wants to say to the emperor.

Historically, Zhu Di had just passed away, and Zhu Gaochi, who succeeded him, ordered all treasure ships to be stopped, the tribute envoys of various countries to be repatriated, and the repair and construction of seagoing ships to be stopped everywhere.This is the first counterattack by Zhu Gaochi, who relies heavily on and trusts in the civil official group, to the maritime trade advocated by Zhu Di. He even wants to move the capital back to Nanjing. Zhu Gaochi is a benevolent emperor, but his entire foreign policy It is introverted and Confucian.

Fortunately, Zhu Gaochi died early, and the plan to move the capital was not implemented in time. After Zhu Zhanji, who was more like his grandfather, succeeded to the throne, the proposal to move the capital became completely impossible.Zhu Zhanji allowed Zheng He to go to the West again, but under the pressure of the civil official group, the scale and frequency were greatly reduced.

After the death of Zhu Zhanji and the enthronement of the young emperor Zhu Qizhen, the entire imperial court was at the mercy of the civil servants. The civil servant group that had endured for a long time broke out completely. They stopped all possibilities of ocean trade. In a series of imperial edicts, the first was the prohibition of overseas trade and navigation.

Can you imagine?In such a huge empire, the first important decree of the new monarch is to prohibit overseas trade, which has been regarded by the civil official group as a thorn in the eye and a thorn in the heart that can no longer be tolerated for a day!

Some merchants who tried to engage in foreign trade were executed. For a while, even learning foreign languages ​​or teaching Chinese to foreigners was prohibited. It is not completely clear where the Chinese fleet has been.

In the tenth year of Tianbao in the Tang Dynasty, Tang and the countries of the Western Regions were defeated in the Battle of Talas. Since then, the Chinese have lost the ability to interfere with foreign countries. 700 years later, the Chinese returned to the world's political stage by sea, and the Ming Empire became the world's hegemon again. However, in just 30 years, it stood still and withdrew its iron fist, and its harm has continued to this day.

The benefits of sailing to the West are huge. Even if its income comes from the inner government and the treasury, it has also brought great benefits to the country. As Xia Xun said just now, the impact on coastal cities and various commodity production areas , especially the impact of purchasing a large number of handicrafts on the majority of handicraftsmen, and the impact on the entire market due to the need for sales and expenses in the inner government...

Zheng He's seven voyages to the West did not empty the treasury and impoverish the country. On the contrary, during the Yongle period when the voyages were the most frequent, various large-scale constructions in the Ming Dynasty continued to be launched, such as the Beijing City, the Forbidden City, the Changping Royal Cemetery, the Wudang Mountain, the The Great Baoen Temple, the five expeditions to the Northern Yuan Dynasty, the repair of the Great Wall, and the dredging of the North-South Grand Canal are all major national projects. What happened?

The people are enriched, and the house is overflowing!After the voyages to the West were stopped, there were almost no major projects in the country. Instead, the country's finances were stretched and difficult.In the third year of Emperor Yingzong Tianshun of the Ming Dynasty, the internal officials said: "Yonglejian has enough national expenses."The treasury is now empty.Over the years, the internal and external yamen have produced a large amount of gold used in the ceremonial guards of each Yufu treasure book, and the official treasury has insufficient storage. According to Yongle and Xuande, the internal and external officials went to the West to buy it... "

During the reign of Xuande, Huang Fu, Minister of the Ministry of Industry, said: "In the Yongle period, although Beijing was built, Jiaozhi was sought in the south, and deserts were conquered in the north, there was no lack of funds. Now there is no big expense compared to the country, but the annual expenses are only given. Unfortunately, there are floods and droughts. How will the recruitment be done? Ji?"

During the Jiajing period, the criminal department gave strict and simple instructions: "Since Yongle was changed to the Yuan Dynasty, envoys have been sent four times to summon. If you get rich, the state will also envy you.”

The so-called voyages to the West caused the country's financial difficulties, but some people elaborately fabricated lies and myths. Why are there such criticisms?Because this is a trading method monopolized by the royal family, it is of no benefit to the wealthy, landlords, and wealthy businessmen, the middle class that has cultivated a large number of civil servants.Cutting off people's wealth, such as killing their parents, as their representatives, the civil official group naturally strongly opposes it.

Later, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty was surrounded by the civil official group from birth, and all the information he received was provided by the civil official group. Under the continuous bombardment of information accumulated by the civil official group for many years, how could he know the truth? .Only a few civil officials leaked a few words of the truth, but unfortunately they couldn't listen to it at all. Even if the emperor heard it, he didn't believe it at all.

Xia Xun is well aware that, in addition to its own disadvantages, the tribute trade runs counter to the interests of the most powerful force in the entire ruling class: the civil service group.Instead of desperately fighting against the civil servants, it is better to pull them on board and share the benefits.In this way, through exchanges with countries around the world, their horizons can also be broadened, and new ideas will be born from them.

They used to be the heroes of history, and they were also the sinners of history. The hope of the future is also in their hands.

Zhu Di was shaken by Xia Xun's words, but his thinking was still a little fixed in the glory of "Four Barbarians paying tribute". Since his father Zhu Yuanzhang's time, Ming has implemented a tribute trade policy.Now his voyage to the west is just to maximize the tributary trade, there is no difference in essence, but what Xia Xun said...

Xia Xun saw that he was moved, so he said sincerely: "Your Majesty, the benefits of opening the sea have already been discussed by the minister and Eunuch Zheng, and the disadvantages of paying tribute have also been mentioned by all civil and military officials. Is it necessary to pay tribute to open the sea? If you open the sea Without paying tribute, wouldn't it be possible to gain benefits and eliminate disadvantages, and everyone will be happy? Through paying tribute, can the barbarians really be subdued?

From the tribute they contributed and from their bravado in the posthouse, has the emperor ever seen any trace of sincerity and obedience?Occupy their markets and take away their wealth through market transactions. When the clothes they wear, the utensils they use, and the books they read all come from my Ming Dynasty, are you afraid that he will not sincerely admire the heaven and serve the emperor? "

Zhu Di was still hesitant, Xia Xun saw it, and said something aggressive again: "Could it be that the emperor has no confidence at all to make Siyi Fanuo sincerely accept him, so he would rather use the method of favor and favor in exchange for a false name?"

Zhu Di was shocked, and stared at Xia Xun with a pair of tiger eyes, which shot out a stern light!

Xia Xun showed no signs of fear, and immediately said: "I'm just afraid that such a policy is not in line with the will of heaven, and the result will be...the people are in the government, and the people are in the government, and the government is dead!"

Zhu Di finally couldn't hold back his anger, stood up all of a sudden, slapped Yu An hard, and shouted sharply: "Yang Xu, you are bold!"

Xia Xun was unafraid, and said in a deep voice: "The emperor is inquiring, and I know everything, and I can't stop talking!"

"Bastard! Get out!"

"I retire!"

Xia Xun patted his ass and left. Zhu Di stood behind the imperial case, his chest heaving and furious.

When Xia Xun's figure completely disappeared at the entrance of the hall, Zhu Di's anger was swept away and he became calm.

He sat down slowly, and said, "What do you think of what Yang Xu said?"

"Every sentence comes from the heart!"

Following the sound, the Sanbao eunuch flashed out from behind the screen.

p: Congratulations to Qianzhang, ask for a monthly ticket and a recommendation ticket!

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