Chastity Layman

  Chapter 395 Wealth with the country

   Li Shimin felt his head buzzing.

  He could no longer hear what the ministers below were saying. This was the first time he encountered such a situation. The idea he proposed in person was unexpectedly met with unanimous opposition.

Why?

   This is a mature idea that he has thought about for a long time before he finally came up with it. This is a perfect strategy to protect the country and future generations. Why do you oppose it?

  He has already decided to grant world titles to the real meritorious officials, so what reason do they have to object?

  Why did Qin Lang object?

  He is my son-in-law, and I have always treated him kindly, including the Qin family. The Qin family has two actual feudal titles. If the world feudalism is implemented, the Qin family can get two world feudal states.

   Could it be that Qin Lang felt that the feudal governors were not enough and wanted to establish a feudal state?

it's out of the question.

  It is impossible for Li Shimin to establish feudalism for them. The Seven Kingdoms Rebellion of the Han Dynasty, the Spring and Autumn Warring States Period of the Zhou Dynasty, and the Eight Kings Rebellion of the Western Jin Dynasty all show that if the enfeoffment is not well designed, there will be endless troubles.

  Li Shimin thought for a long time before he came up with a way to appoint the governor and governor of the world.

  Let the emperor's brothers and princes be granted the post of governor for the world, let the heroes be appointed as the governor for the world, and then the heroes and the clan's feudal states will restrain each other.

Especially supplemented by Zhengzhou, which is directly under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, and implements the same policy of running parallel counties and states as in the Han Dynasty, coupled with the Hu nationality's Jiyizhou on the frontier, this can form a multi-level enfeoffment system and make the Tang Dynasty more stable. .

In Li Shimin's vision, this secular feudal system only allows the clan and heroes to enjoy the post of governor and governor inherited from generation to generation, and then enjoy one-third of the fiscal and tax revenue of the feudal state, and each secular governor and governor can have one The soldiers and horses of the relatives and tents are limited to less than a thousand people.

Compared with the feudal founding of the country, the powers of these feudal governors and governors are more restricted. They have limited military power, but these people are officials of the court. When a local rebellion occurs, the imperial court can call these people to organize the state army and King Minqin to hunt down the thieves.

  Li Shimin felt that his design should be perfect.

   "Qin Lang, you say that you agree with enfeoffment, but you also say that you oppose the enfeoffment of the governor, then you can explain your reasons. What kind of enfeoffment system do you think the court should adopt?"

  Li Shimin finally came to his senses. He coughed loudly, interrupting the chattering courtiers. The emperor pointed his eyes at Qin Lang, and called him by name unceremoniously.

  Qin Lang didn't really want to comment.

   But the emperor asked him to say by name.

  Say what?

Qin Lang is a time traveler. A well-known historian surnamed Qian said a very famous saying in his book on the political gains and losses of the past dynasties, that is, although ancient China has gone through so many dynasties, the dynasties of each dynasties The political system is actually nothing more than a patch on the political failures of the previous dynasty.

  Patches were made one dynasty after another, so after many dynasties, a thick pile of patches was made, but in general, since the Qin Dynasty, the political system of each dynasty has nothing new, and it has been going around in circles.

   It's like Qin abolished the enfeoffment and established prefectures and counties II and died, so after Liu Bang won the world, he followed the basic system of the Qin Dynasty while restoring part of the enfeoffment system and patched it up. When I arrived in Cao Wei, I felt that the imperial power was threatened by the enfeoffment of the clan, especially Cao Pi had experienced threats from his brothers back then, so he took strict precautions against his brothers and nephews. imperial clan.

  The result is that the Sima family easily usurped the power of the Cao family and took over the world. After the Sima family came to power, they felt that this should be a lesson and they had to guard against it, so they followed suit. The old thief Sima started enfeoffment, letting brothers and nephews enfeoff all over the country, but did not give them any real power, but they are not stronger than the Cao family.

  With these clans in the local area, it can not only prevent the imperial court from being prone to chaos, but also leave a little room to deter courtiers with different surnames.

  It’s just that after the other emperors of the Sima family came to power, they actually patched up the enfeoffment system left by his father...

  In general, from the Qin Dynasty to the Han Dynasty, then to the Wei and Jin Dynasties, then to the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and then to the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

  The enfeoffment system was intermittent, but generally speaking, the power of enfeoffment was always getting smaller and smaller, and even later it was enfeoffed but not established, there were titles but no fiefdoms, there were more fiefdoms and fewer real enfeoffments.

  The power of the vassal states, such as founding the country, founding the government, commanding the army, and governing the people, has been cut off bit by bit.

  For example, in the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian had only five sons, all of whom were descendants of the queen, but Yang Jian's entrustment of the princes was only the general manager.

  Actually, at this time, enfeoffment has actually become an official position, instead of directly building a completely independent and autonomous vassal state for you.

  Even the official positions conferred are not unchanged. Yang Guang has successively served as the governor of Bingzhou, Daxingtai Shangshuling of Hebei Road, and the governor of Yangzhou.

   Li Shimin's idea of ​​being the governor of the world must have been based on Yang Jian's practice in the past as a reference.

There is still a big difference between the governor of the world and the princes. The biggest difference is that even if you are the governor of the world, you are still a part of the imperial court system. inside.

  The vassal states are actually independent of the imperial court.

  Li Shimin not only wanted to enfeoff, but also worried that the vassal states would threaten the court, so in the end he came up with such a system of feudal governors and governors.

  From a certain point of view, this system of enfeoffing governors in the world is definitely an improvement compared with the enfeoffment of vassal states in the Han Dynasty, and it is beneficial to the court.

  After all, the vassal state is completely an independent kingdom. Military power, taxation, civil power, etc., all belong to the vassals. In the Han Dynasty, the vassals even used their own year names, which was different from the imperial court.

   But the problem is, it is not the Han Dynasty anymore.

The Han Dynasty was not a few decades away from the Warring States Period. Everyone was used to the independent state of the countries during the Warring States Period. Not to mention the countries, even the feudal monarchs of each country. right.

   It can only be said that the environmental background is different.

   From Qin to Tang, thousands of years.

   History has changed.

  Why is the enfeoffment system not as good as one day, and the power is getting smaller and smaller?

   This is the choice of the times. It is necessary. The unification of the imperial court is a historical trend. No one can turn back the wheel of history. Whoever turns back the wheel will be run over by the wheels of history.

   "Qin Lang?"

   Li Shimin asked impatiently.

   "Your Majesty, I think that the governor is the head of the state capital of the imperial court, and the enfeoffment is the title of princes conferred by the imperial court. They cannot be confused."

"It's a good thing that your Majesty wants to set up enfeoffments, but I suggest that not only Guannei and Henan cannot be enfeoffed, but also extend this scope to the entire north of the Yangtze River and even the north of Wuling. Your Majesty wants to follow the example of enfeoffment for three generations. In fact, the enfeoffment of the Zhou Dynasty The sons of the heroic officials also assigned the feudal lands of the princes to areas outside the actual control of the king of Zhou."

   "The enfeoffment of the king of Zhou is to let them open up the fiefdom and expand the territory, not to split the land that the king of Zhou actually owns."

"There is one more thing. Your Majesty said that the emperor's younger brother, the prince, was named the governor, and the hero was named the governor. I feel that this is not fair. For example, the meritorious officials who are rewarded by the court have real seals, and they are divided by the number of real seals. For example, the princes , 800 households are sealed, and meritorious officials are sealed from 100 to 1,800 households, so the meritorious officials of 100 households are also named governor of a state, and the meritorious officials of 1,800 households are also appointed governor of a state. How can this be called fair and just?"

  The emperor listened carefully. At first he was very dissatisfied with Qin Lang, but he immediately realized that what he said made sense. This kid is always so smart, and his speech hit the nail on the head.

"continue!"

   "Your Majesty, I believe that the purpose of enfeoffment is firstly to praise public morality, and secondly to screen the imperial court. Therefore, with this as the starting point, then the enfeoffment system should not be the previous method of enfeoffment in the Central Plains."

"If you want to be sealed, you should be sealed in the frontier. This is the method of enfeoffing the sons and daughters of the three generations. If the number of seals is small, the state governor or county magistrate can be sealed."

  Qin Lang originally wanted to directly propose to change the title of governor to Duke of the State, and change the fiefdom to feudal state.

  But think about it, forget it.

   Li Shimin obviously still doesn't want to create a vassal state.

   "Sealed in the frontier?"

   Li Shimin was surprised.

   "Yes, enfeoffment in the frontier, opening up the territory for the Tang Dynasty, guarding the border and reassuring the people, and the center of the Ping Fan, this is the real enfeoffment."

   "Allocate the clan and heroes to the frontier, enfeoff the border area for generations, keep the area forever, and share the same ties with the country, for generations to come!"

  Qin Lang's words made the hall quiet down.

   Not only Li Shimin is thinking about these words, but even the big troll Wei Zheng is also thinking.

These words are very predictable. Li Shimin's previous secular law was obviously splitting the Tang Dynasty, so big trolls like Wei Zheng would be eager to go viral. Also immediately objected.

   Qin Lang's enfeoffment method is different, this is not splitting but pioneering, it is aggressive, of course it is different.

   "Please be more specific, divide the frontiers, and give an example." Li Shimin said directly.

"Your Majesty, for example, the three provinces in Lingnan, and the two provinces in central Guizhou and Yunnan in the southwest. Up to now, only a few state capitals are under the actual control of the imperial court. For example, Yunnan is not even controlled by the imperial court at all. Therefore, if you can In the five lands on the border, we set up prefectures and counties, entrusting the heroes of the clan to guard them, and I think it will be of great benefit to the court."

  When he heard that he was going to be entrusted to those places, Li Shimin hesitated for a moment.

  Even Zhang Sun Wuji and others felt that what Qin Lang said was too much.

  You said that you were assigned to Jiangnan and Bashu, which are far enough away, but now you are actually assigned to those wild places. Is this enfeoffment or exile?

Just like Changsun Wuji, if the top aristocrats in the court are entrusted to Yunnan, then according to the imperial court system, once they are entrusted, they will get the vassal and the country, then the Changsun family will have to move to Yunnan, and Changsun Wuji is willing to go. ?

  The place in Yunnan is really a land of alienation, the sky is high and the road is far away. If you go there, you will be completely far away from the political center. Wouldn't the Changsun family be marginalized?

   How well is the eldest grandson family living in Chang'an now? Why do you want to go to Yunnan to be some kind of secular governor?

  No one wants to.

   Isn't this like hiding all the birds?

  At this time, Wei Zheng began to stroke his beard. He suddenly felt that Qin Lang's method was quite suitable for his old Wei.

  Yunnan, Lingnan, and these places have never been the areas under the actual control of the Central Plains, they are all controlled by the barbarians, but if they are divided according to Qin Lang's method, maybe these places can be turned into areas under the actual control of the imperial court.

   Just like places like Jiaozhou and Guangzhou, they used to be the territory of the barbarians. From Qin to Han, and all the way back, after generations of hard work, they have now become the enclaves of the Central Plains Dynasty.

  (end of this chapter)