my brother-in-law is the prince

Chapter 564
The screams of being hammered to death by the pumpkin stopped abruptly.

But like a nightmare, it is still echoing in the ears of all the ministers.

Just when everyone was shocked.

Zhu Di continued: "Liu Lai, tell me..."

This man named Liu Lai was quite prestigious in the imperial court. He was the censor, and this time he was ordered to inspect the Guangdong chief envoy. When he heard Zhu Di's roll call, his body was shocked, and then he showed a look of fear. He fell to the ground with a slap.

"Sir...Sir..."

There was despair in Liu Lai's voice.

At this moment, he certainly didn't dare to follow the example of the censor who was beaten to death just now, just relying on excuses, he put aside his relationship, and finally ended up dead without a place to bury him.

But... the truth... can this be said?
Zhu Di stared at him coldly, and said slowly: "Finally, life or death is up to you."

His tone was actually calm.

At this time, Liu Lai had no choice but to say: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty... Your... Your Majesty... Say..."

He struggled to say this sentence, his body was half down, but he said weakly: "I went to the chief envoy of Guangdong, first went to Shaoguan and other places, and after the investigation... I noticed many problems, many of them were hidden households. , it is true...it was not found out..."

Zhu Di said indifferently: "Why didn't you find out?"

Where did Liu Lai dare to hesitate, he could only cry and say: "Because...the dedication..."

Contribute...

Liu Laiqiqi went on to say: "The local gentry, and many famous scholars, on the surface, the imperial court... indeed issued a decree, allowing them to be exempted..."

"Naturally, there are rules for exempting taxation. How many acres of land can be exempted from taxation, and how much taxation can be exempted by scholars...there are laws and regulations. It's just...just...if it's just a tax exemption for a hundred acres of land, in fact... In fact... it's a drop in the bucket."

Zhu Di narrowed his eyes slightly, his complexion became more and more gloomy.

Speaking of it, Daming treated scholars extremely preferentially. Not only could they enter the court and become an official with fame, but they also had a lot of preferential treatment in taxation and other aspects.

But Emperor Gao, the great ancestor, was definitely not a fool when he made the rules. How could he allow famous scholars to exempt their land from tax without restraint?
Therefore, the number of tax exemptions is stipulated to prevent this from happening.

Zhu Di said: "Is it because the local people who donate the land, in order to enjoy exemption from taxes, put themselves into the names of famous people, so as to avoid taxes and corvee?"

"Yes... and no..." Liu Lai said, "The reason why it is not is because the land that can be exempted from taxes is limited. So many people have invested their land, and the amount of tax exemption has already far exceeded."

"But if it is... it is because, although the number exceeds the number, but because people have fame and can collude with local parents and officials, they can simply include those who donate into their own families. In this way, There are clearly dozens or hundreds of households, but in the end they became one... And this family has a public name. On the one hand, they can exempt the lower households from taxes and corvees, and at the same time they can borrow Therefore, they are regarded as their own servants, and this...then there is the problem of Hidden House and Hidden Field..."

After hearing this, Zhu Di sneered, thinking it was extremely ridiculous.

The so-called preferential treatment, in fact, has become an opportunity for many people to take advantage of it.

At this time, Zhang Anshi added from the side: "I have also heard some rumors, saying that in the local area, whenever someone wins fame, there are many people willing to sell themselves to him as slaves, or someone will be a slave. His own land is also invested in. Even this scholar, a few days ago, may have been suffering from hunger and cold, but after he has achieved fame, he can have tens of thousands of mu of fertile land and a group of servants in an instant. Such The situation is not obvious in Zhili, because after all, it is at the feet of the emperor, but in many places, it is common practice..."

Zhu Di sneered again, and then said: "That's good, it turns out that there is a golden house in the book, which is actually true. Liu Lai, since you found out the problem, why didn't you play it?"

Facing Zhu Dichen's cold gaze, Liu Lai tried his best to suppress the panic in his heart, and hurriedly said: "After realizing many problems, the local parents, officials, gentry, and gentry people wholeheartedly welcome you. There is a small banquet every day, and a big banquet every three days. When we talk about each other, we actually... have some friendship..."

Zhu Di said: "Is it important for the country to ignore just some personal friendship?"

Liu Lai was even more frightened and trembling, and said in a panic, "It's not...not just that, but...but...don't mess with it...don't mess with it..."

"Can't be messed with?" Zhu Di smiled: "You can't mess with him, but you can mess with me?"

Liu Lai drooped his head, and said with difficulty: "If I ignore the scholars, then Shilin will abuse me and regard me as a traitor and traitor. Since then, my reputation will be ruined. If it is spread back to my hometown, my family members will also be cast aside and cause harm. Children and grandchildren. But if... cover up for them, the one who covers up is not the only one..."

Zhu Di couldn't help laughing, this smile was a bit desperate, but he said: "You can calculate this account clearly."

Liu Lai said with a bitter face: "The local parents and officials are probably the same. If they are too strict, they will definitely be disgusted by the local scholars, and the official reputation will inevitably be greatly affected. But if... they follow their wishes , must be praised by people, and everyone calls it Qingtian. Even when leaving office, it is inevitable that many people will send each other and present the umbrella of the people. How can parents and officials not be able to tell what is right and what is wrong?"

"As for Your Majesty...Your Majesty...you are too far away, Your Majesty...not to mention that when the magistrate takes office, besides the lowly officials, there are those ignorant people around him. There is no one to talk to, and the only thing I can make friends with are scholars and squires, or discuss the current situation, or play chess, ask for calligraphy and painting lessons, so... naturally... naturally..."

Under Zhu Di's sword-like gaze, Liu Lai shook everything out.

In fact, what he said was nothing more than a sentence. In the end, it was just a circle. Everyone is in their own circle, and they will only value the evaluation of themselves by the people in this circle. Officials should be wary, ordinary people, speaking harshly, may not even communicate with each other in language, it can be said that chickens and ducks can speak official language, and they have the same interests as you, and can ask for advice on knowledge and chess. Apart from scholars, who else can be so elegant and interesting in painting and calligraphy?

Everything you do will be influenced by them, and your reputation and official reputation are also closely related to them.

Needless to say, within a prefecture and a county, there are not a few relatives of these scholars who are officials outside the country, and they are married to each other. Under the censor, it is really a matter of urgency, but it is a lose-lose result.

At this time, Liu Lai's eyes were full of fear and despair, tears streaming down his face, and he said in his mouth: "Your Majesty, please forgive me, I... I am... the one who deceived Your Majesty, I am not the only one, I... I am here Since the dynasty, it has been regarded as a career... a minister..."

When he said this, he couldn't help crying loudly.

I don't know if it's because of fear, fear, or... a feeling of shame.

Amidst the crying, Zhu Di couldn't help but get wet eyes.

Zhang Anshi couldn't help being taken aback, he never expected... Zhu Di's reaction today was so abnormal.

But Zhu Di sighed and said: "Liu Lai is a good official..."

This sigh... At first Zhang Anshi listened, it seemed ironic, but looking closely at Zhu Di's expression, it seemed... It was a sincere sigh.

Therefore, Zhang Anshi suddenly realized.

Liu Lai... is indeed a good official. He was a second-class Jinshi in high school. After that, he first became a scholar in the Imperial Academy and participated in the compilation of "The Great Completion of Literature". Very responsible.

Therefore, he quickly entered the Metropolitan Procuratorate and became a censor. During the process of being a censor, he also submitted many memorials, and there were quite a few of them, which were about pity for the local people and the harm of the country. .

At least...before today, he was definitely a clear stream. Whether it was for Zhu Di or his colleagues in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, he could be called a respected professional and a hard worker.

It is not an exaggeration to say that he is a good official.

Zhu Di's ability to directly name Liu Lai is obviously because Zhu Di himself has a strong impression of this censor, and even belongs to the emperor's future cultivation target. From Zhu Di's perspective, Liu Lai will definitely not be an unknown person in the future.

The reason why Zhu Di feels so emotional is probably because his heart is ashamed and his thoughts are completely destroyed.

Even such a good official is like this, unable to eradicate the stubborn disease of Yinhu, such a strong person, but he has to cooperate with the local scholars and parents and officials, choose to compromise, and conceal the truth.

So... even Liu Lai is like this, what about the others?
Zhu Di's pessimism is almost conceivable.

When Liu Lai heard these words, he couldn't cry anymore, so he grabbed the ground with his head and cried loudly: "A crime of ten thousand deaths, a crime of ten thousand deaths..."

There is grief in the sound!

But Zhu Di stood up at this time, with deep sorrow in his eyes, he waved his sleeves, and said: "Wait, everyone should be punished, everyone should be killed... But if I punish you all, will there be anyone in the world?" ?”

Zhu Di's pain is obvious!
On the contrary, Zhang Anshi blinked his eyes and said without losing the opportunity: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."

Zhu glanced sideways at Zhang Anshi, took a deep breath, and the sadness in his eyes seemed to be a little less at this moment, and said: "Fortunately... fortunately, there are still people like Zhang Qing and Hu Qing in this world. People, if not...Da Ming is exhausted, even if he can survive, he is nothing more than a walking corpse."

After a pause, Zhu Di glanced at the warehouse, sighed, and then continued: "What can't be done in the state capital of the world, the postal department can sort it out in a few months, so what's the use of having hundreds of officials in the imperial court?" ?”

No one dared to answer this sentence of interrogation.

At this moment, Zhu Di fixed his eyes on a person, and said, "Xie Qing...how should I say it?"

Xie Jin, who was suddenly named, immediately put away the matter as if it had nothing to do with him.

In fact, in this matter, Wenyuan Pavilion has some responsibilities, but not many.

Of course, it doesn't mean that there is no responsibility, but compared to the parents officials and the censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate below, this responsibility is already very light.

After all, they are called Zaifu, but they are not really Zaifu. All they can do is to convey the emperor's will and give some admonitions.

Xie Jin didn't hesitate for too long, and said: "Your Majesty, the documents of the Postal Department should be copied immediately. Not only must they be submitted to the Ministry of Households, but they must also be sent to Wenyuan Pavilion and the Imperial Academy for storage. It's just...what I worry about is that if In the future, if the documents of the Post Office are changed, so what?"

No one expected that Xie Jin would suddenly ask this!

This is also where Xie Jin is smart. At this time, he raised a new question, which not only diverted Zhu Di's attention, but I am afraid that the censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate who have been silent are not grateful at this time. It's time.

Zhu Di squinted his eyes. It was obvious that the most important thing was to solve the actual affairs right now. He lowered his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said: "If there is any change, just submit it in time. The Ministry of Education and the Post Office... …to communicate with each other at any time.”

But immediately, Zhu Di pondered again.

If the situation of the hidden households is tracked down, if it is handed over to the postal department, the postal department is only a government office under the Ministry of Railways after all, but it has to bear such a heavy relationship.At the same time, it is necessary to communicate with a big department like the Ministry of Households. Xie Jin has something to say, but he didn't explain it thoroughly.

Because as long as it takes a long time, a large department like the Ministry of Households will not necessarily pay attention to the small postal department. In the end... the postal department may have to act according to the eyes of the Ministry of Households.

Then the situation of the yellow book may be distorted at any time.

Seeming to see Zhu Di's worries, Xie Jin said: "Your Majesty, you might as well worship the Post Office Transit Envoy as your minister. I wonder what Your Majesty thinks?"

As soon as these words came out, Yang Rong, Jin Youzi and the others subconsciously looked at Hu Mu.

Even Hu Guang was dumbfounded at this time.

The so-called "Qing" actually means that the postal department is simply upgraded to one of the nine ministers, just like Honglu Temple and Dali Temple, its specifications are naturally better, and their chiefs have changed from transit envoys to postal department The current Zhengqing also belongs to the ranks of Jiuqing.

Jiuqing and other ministries are not subordinate to each other. Although the official position of Jiuqing is higher than that of ordinary ministers, in fact, they are very independent.

For example, the relationship between the Ministry of Punishments and Dali Temple, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishments is the second grade, and the minister of the Dali Temple is the third grade, but in fact, the Ministry of Punishment is responsible for the punishment and prisons of the world, and Dali Temple reviews many cases of the Ministry of Punishment and judges crimes committed by officials. .Therefore, to a certain extent, Dali Temple even has a certain right to supervise the Ministry of Punishment.

This is actually very much in line with the original intention of the so-called controlling the big with the small set by Emperor Taizu Gao.

And once the postal department is listed as one of the nine ministers, then in many cases, the postal department has the power to directly report to the emperor, and many people in the postal department are afraid that they will also be promoted to rank.

As for the influence on Hu Mu, it is even greater. Jiuqing, who is serious and honest, is undoubtedly the youngest Daming so far, and he is in charge of a government office. He also has the right to go to the court and see him. The Eight Classics stepped into a high position in the temple and became a pivotal role in the Ming Dynasty.

After Zhu Di heard this, he also showed some surprise to Xie Jin's proposal.

I saw him frowning slightly, with a thoughtful expression on his face, but soon he said: "Yes! It's just...the post office..."

Having said that, he paused, and began to think about it. Since he was listed as Jiuqing, it means that in the future, Daming will have ten ministers, and his salary will be improved. What Zhu Di is thinking about is... the issue of money and food.

It's just that his voice fell.

At this time, he was planning to severely deal with the censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, but suddenly, a noisy voice came from a distance.

Zhu Di was actually not in a good mood at this time, he showed displeasure, and frowned, "What's the matter?"

Yi Shiha hurried out, came back in a while, and reported: "Your Majesty, there are many merchants gathered on the corner of the street, and there is a long queue outside."

Zhu Di looked at Hu Mu and said, "Hu Qing, what's the reason?"

Hu Mu suddenly remembered something, and then said: "Your Majesty... it may be because... because..."

Things happened so fast that Hu Mu himself didn't even think about how he became Jiuqing, so Hu Mu couldn't help but feel nervous. He hurriedly said, "It's because...the post office has some affairs that haven't been perfected, so... For some business of the postal department, people have to be hired to come to the government office of the postal department..."

"Business..." Zhu Di muttered, seeming to think about something for a moment, and then said: "What business?"

Hu Mu looked ashamed, but still said: "It's about... the newspaper..."

"Newspapers..." Zhu Di cast his eyes slightly and said, "Are you still selling newspapers in the post office?"

Hu Mu shook his head and said, "No, no, it's not selling newspapers...but because...because there are newsstands all over the world, and...after the business of delivering newspapers, under the instructions of His Royal Highness King Song , The sales of this newspaper have been on the rise! Now, the number of newspapers ordered by the Post Office is as many as one million every month. Except for Zhili, every state and county in the world, and even many villages, order Newspapers are not in the minority."

After Zhu Di listened, at this moment... the haze in his heart was finally cleared away, and his expression eased a lot, but he said with interest: "Millions? This is not a minority, these million copies How much money can the newspaper earn?"

Hu Mu, however, took a quick look at Zhang Anshi, and then smiled wryly, "There's nothing to gain."

Zhu Di: "..."

The daily order amounted to one million, but it was not profitable. This made Zhu Di doubt his life, and he suddenly showed a dull look.

Of course, what made Zhu Di even more unexpected came later!
Hu Mu immediately said, "However...the profit is not in the newspaper, but in...the contents of the newspaper."

(End of this chapter)