warring states careerist

Chapter 743

This conflict has not lasted for a day or two. There were some things that could have been resolved earlier, but Sishang has been obstructing and stirring up, and there is no chance at all.

The cause of the civil turmoil in the Song Dynasty this time was because of the tax issue. In fact, this was just a fuse, but a total outbreak of conflicts that had accumulated for 20 years.

This incident originated seven years ago, that is, the period of peace before the Qi-Mo war broke out.

The emperor's father, Yueling, wanted to use the common people's power to suppress the rest of the nobles by using the common people's power to suppress the other nobles, so he asked people to spread the word.

It is said that in a world of great struggle, one cannot be without an army. Without an army, the country will not be defended, but without money, there will be no army.

The people of the Song Dynasty, who were outside the aristocratic fiefdoms, bear the taxes, but the aristocrats do not pay taxes and still maintain their feudal rights. The people are very dissatisfied with this.

The emperor's father Yueling wanted to use this dissatisfaction to incite the people to support him in completing the centralization of power, so he said that the fiefdom nobles should bear the taxes and pay according to the size and number of fiefdoms to form a standing army.

He said that on the one hand, many farmers who lost their land and came to Shangqiu to work in order to join the army can also reduce the burden on the people.

After the campaign was made, the people in the Common People's Court were very happy about it, thinking that the emperor's father, Yueling, had finally done something. Many people thought that this might really be a good nobleman.

The emperor's father Yueling said that he can take the lead, and his fief also needs to pay taxes, but the military power must be in his own hands.

The rest of the nobles are not stupid, they pay their own money, and then those peasants who lost their land and jobless joined the army, the imperial father's family gained a good reputation, and also expanded their military power and strength, will they come to clean up themselves in the future?
So the nobles of the Gentlemen's Court expressed their opposition, thinking that "soldiers are also murderous weapons", and that raising a standing army is a waste of money and will lead to war. It is better to follow the original rules and continue to adopt the system of conscripting peasants and soldiers to serve.

Not only refused to pay military expenses according to the fiefdom, but also spread the word that under the original public land system, the income of the Song Dynasty was enough to pay for military taxes and sacrifices. Now that the output of one mu of land has increased several times, and the wealth has increased several times, why should the tax be increased? ?
From the point of view of the nobles, not only should taxes not be increased, but taxes should continue to be reduced, which can also benefit the people.

This kicked the ball back to Emperor Yueling.

There were also experts among the nobles, who not only kicked the ball back to the emperor's father Yueling, but also provoked conflicts among the people.

It is said that many Daze can actually be cultivated because of the iron tools. Look at Sishang, the government also pays for the people to reclaim the land and own cattle.

Since this is the case, we might as well let owner farmers and industrialists and merchants pay more taxes as the cost of helping those farmers who lost their land. These additional taxes can be used to buy seeds and iron farming cattle, and organize the people who lost their land to go to some uncultivated big swamps for reclamation.

Owner farmers and industrial and commercial people are definitely not willing to pay. They can't bear to see those landless farmers suffering, but if they are asked to pay, they are not willing.

Seeing that there would be conflicts at the bottom of the common people, and when the emperor Yueling could use the power of the people to fight against the nobles, the Sishang Mo family decisively chose to take action.

At that time, Shi Jiatun, who was in charge of money, immediately came to Shangqiu and publicized that the Mohists were willing to give the money to help the people who lost their land, and lent them seeds, cattle and iron tools.

However, there is not enough land in Sishang, and the distance is far away, so it is best to arrange it in Song Dynasty.

By the way, the Mohists need someone to help manage it, because many planting techniques need to be taught, and they also need to monitor whether anyone uses this rescue for personal gain.

The people cheered and applauded, but the emperor's father Yueling and the nobles immediately objected.

Back then, the Mo family went to Sishang to do justice, and now the coast of Surabaya belongs to the Mo family. If the Mo family were to extend their hands into the Song Kingdom, how could it be done?
The emperor Yueling wanted to deal with the rest of the nobles, but he didn't want to make himself a powerless plaything like Marquis Teng and Marquis Zeng. He was far more wary of the Mo family than other nobles.

The rest of the nobles were even more afraid that the Mo family would gradually encroach on the Song Dynasty, and their fiefs would be completely chaotic.

Shi Jiatun stayed in Shangqiu with great fanfare for more than a month. As a result, the nobles unanimously opposed it, which made the owner farmers and businessmen in the entire Song Dynasty see through the so-called love for the people of these nobles.

In terms of publicity among the common people, the nobles are no match for the Mohists.

If this is not possible, Shi Jiatun said, since this is the case, we will first pay for the establishment of the standing army of the Song State, one is for non-offensive peace, and the other is to give the landless people a job they can engage in.

Money, guns, and cannons are all paid out from Sishang, officers are also trained by Sishang, and each company must send Mohist representatives.

Money is not a problem, nor are guns. As for the money, it can be repaid slowly. It is all for the benefit of the people and to solve the three problems of the people.

The people felt that there was nothing wrong with this. The volunteers in Sishang were so capable and paid well. Everything in accordance with the Sishang military system could not only solve the problem of landless peasants gathering in Shangqiu, but also enable the State of Song to fulfill the non-aggression agreement signed with the Mohists. covenant.

The emperor's father, Yueling, was not stupid. If he could agree to this matter, Song would be blackened by the Mohists in the future, so he flatly refused.

After refusing twice in a row, Shi Jiatun left after setting up two asylums in Shangqiu.

Originally, the imperial father Yueling wanted to use the people to achieve centralization, while the nobles instigated conflicts between the owner farmers and handicraftsmen and the landless farmers.

The Mo family intervened at a critical moment, destroying the ambition of the emperor's father Yueling, and made the people recognize him; then pushed the question back to the nobles: If you are really for the people, then you shouldn't reject the Mo family's proposal, Now that you have rejected it, then you can figure out a way for yourself.

The Court of Gentlemen chattered endlessly about this matter, the Court of Common People protested and promoted the morality of the Mohists all day long, and many people came forward to satirize the emperor's father Yue Ling and the rest of the enfeoffment nobles.

Not long after this incident, the Great War broke out in the Central Plains. The Mohists sent troops to Fei State on the grounds of "respecting the public opinion of Fei and benefiting all people", directly controlled Fei State, defeated Qi State, Wanmin ruled the law, and the Heze League was revoked The identities of the monarchs of the small kingdoms of Sishang, such as the Marquis Teng and the Marquis Zeng...

The nobles of the Song Kingdom were even more nervous, especially the emperor Yueling, for fear that one day the Mo family would deal with the Song Dynasty, which had a deeper influence, like it did with the Fu Kingdom.

He needs an army, an armed standing army, not a civilian army organized by the people spontaneously after the coup 20 years ago.

The standing army needs money, but the nobles will not give it, because the rest of the nobles can choose to ally with Wei and Chu, and they can also become lords if they defect to Wei and Chu in the future.

Then the Mo family cut off the loan to the emperor's father Yueling, thinking that the policies of the emperor's father Yueling were not conducive to the people, and began to ask for debts, changing the previous closeness between the Song State and the Mo family.

The imperial father Yueling has no money.

Ask the businessman for a loan, but the businessman doesn't lend, because it is obviously a money-losing investment. If you have this money, it is better to invest it in the South China Sea Chamber of Commerce. Only a fool would lend the money to the emperor Yueling who obviously couldn't afford it.

Besides, when I lent money to Mr. Zhongshan at the beginning, it was mortgaged by Mr. Zhongshan with the franchise rights of the domestic salt industry and ironware. What did the emperor Yueling get for repayment?

Businessmen are not doing charity.

Fighting to open up land, surrounded by either Sishang or Wei Chu, neither of which can be defeated, this is obviously a money-losing business.

Moreover, with the opening of the long-term trade in the South China Sea, the return on investment in the South China Sea is obviously higher, and the merchants in the Song Dynasty are unwilling to lend money to the emperor's father Yueling.

The most important thing is... Song State is too close to Sishang, Mohism has penetrated too much, even if merchants want the franchise rights of various goods in return, they have to think about the consequences.

One is that the Mo family really wants to smuggle, can they resist it?
Another one, the people are already quite dissatisfied with some things, if this is done, it will add fuel to the fire, and if they really can't control it at that time, they may have to be buried with the emperor Yueling.

If a businessman can't borrow money here, he would ask Qi Guo for a loan. Qi Hou said that I have no money, and I have just finished the war, and I am in poverty;

Then send someone to have a secret talk with the king of Chu, one is to borrow money, and the other is to form an alliance. The king of Chu immediately refuses.

If you can't borrow money, there is no other way but to increase taxes, and you can't change the money yourself.

This is exactly how a penny can't help a hero. Rao is quite clever, but he can't do anything without money.

A large number of self-cultivating farmers destroyed the feudal military system of the Song Dynasty. Without the hierarchical system and personal attachment system of the monarch, doctor, scholar, and peasant, there would be no military system under the law of etiquette, and even the army could not be pulled up.

The appearance of firearms ruined the original peasant-soldier system. Peasant-soldiers were vulnerable to the standing army of firearms and cavalry. The emperor's father, Yueling, couldn't just sit back and watch Sishang, which had just annexed Feiguo, be short of soldiers outside Shangqiu city. Three hundred miles away.

To transfer conflicts, you need land.

But the extra land is in the hands of those enfeoffed nobles, and they are unwilling to hand it over. If they don't hand it over, there is no way to reform and alleviate internal conflicts.

Taking the opportunity to start a war with the nobles and incite public opinion, the Mo family will be watching. Once there is a chance, the Mo family will definitely "send troops to help the emperor make Yinzhi benefit the people of the Song Dynasty." Once the public opinion is stirred up, the emperor's father Yueling understands that he is afraid that he will also be swallowed by the raging flames.

And at that time, all countries had just finished the Central Plains War, Sishang was the least damaged, and all the rest were seriously injured.The states of Wei, Chu, and Qi were all powerless to interfere with the possible entry of the Mohists into the Song Dynasty.

Foreign wars and land plundering cannot be defeated by anyone in the surrounding area.

Under the feudal system, the productivity foundation of the old military system has been completely changed, and the new military system has not yet been established. In such a gap period, the emperor's father Yueling really has nothing to do.

In the end, he could only choose the most helpless step: to liberate the peasants in his own fiefdom and grant them the land that originally belonged to him. The price is that they need to serve in order to establish a standing army of his own.

If you have people, you can't do without money.

Moreover, if one's own fief is changed first, and one's own money is less, then one can only choose to compromise with the nobles: the Court of Gentlemen unanimously approves the increase of taxes on self-cultivating farmers and industrial and commercial workers.

Because the peasants and businessmen believed that, with the existence of the Song-Mo non-offensive alliance, the Song State did not need a standing army at all. It only needed the spontaneous defense force of the people. Taxes are necessary.

Of course, this was also guided by the Mohists, who had a strong propaganda ability at the bottom, and it was rampant.

What the emperor's father Yueling needed was a military force in his own hands. He didn't dare to let the power of the people go too far, so he adopted a system similar to the government soldiers, granting land to the people, exempting tax, and serving in his fiefdom, so as to Come to form a special military group as the pillar force of your own rule.

It is impossible for the nobles to pay taxes. If you continue to oppress the nobles, you will incite public opinion. It is very likely that you will not be able to control it. It is better to compromise with the nobles who have enough numbers in the Gentleman’s Court, and let the peasants and businessmen pay taxes to support the emperor’s father Yueling. private army.

The emperor's father, Yueling, had his own plan. Even if something happened to the Song Kingdom, Wei Chu would not let it go, especially after the Mo family's ambitions were revealed after the Heze League. Wei Chu went into the water to fight against the riots of the Mohists and the domestic people together.

(End of this chapter)