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In the square in front of Fengtian Gate, apart from the sound of flags blowing in the cold wind, only Hu Guang's voice echoed: "The soldiers have no pay, they cannot support their families when they advance, they cannot make a living when they retreat, they have no clothes to cover their bodies, and they are hungry and cold..." "

Having said this, a sneer appeared on Hu Guang's face and he said: "Look at you, you are many times better dressed than the soldiers on the side. You have only been standing for such a while, and I can already see that some of you can't stand!"

When he said this, the thousands of officials below did not dare to make any small moves and all stood up straight.

"To save others by oneself, why do you ask our soldiers of the Ming Dynasty to kill the enemy bravely and keep the enemy at bay?" Hu Guang got excited and stopped sitting. He stood up and pointed into the distance and said, "Do you see now that the enemy has already attacked?" We have reached the capital, and we have reached the capital! Do you see the dangers of the imperial court being unable to pay military salaries?"

The civil and military officials below were a little surprised when they heard this and looked up at the emperor. The only slight difference is that the generals on the right were a little excited in surprise, while the civil servants on the left were surprised and more surprised.

Hu Guang paused, glanced at the civil and military officials, and then said in a gentle tone: "The imperial court has no money, how can the thousands of refugees in the capital provide disaster relief? If anyone is still unclear, go out and take a look after the court meeting. It's not just They, the Ming Dynasty is suffering from drought and flooding, and the basic water conservancy has not been repaired for many years. Everything like this needs money, you know, the court needs money!"

He almost yelled the last sentence, and then regained control of his emotions and said: "If you feel that these don't care about your affairs and that it has nothing to do with you, then I ask you, do you think your salary is enough? ? Civilian officials’ salaries come from the Ministry of Household Affairs, while royal honors and honors come from the Ouchi. But neither the Ministry of Revenue nor the Ouchi have money. It’s not that they don’t want to give you enough salary, do you understand?”

When he said this, the civil and military officials couldn't bear it anymore and knelt down one after another.

"Also, because the court has no money..."

After talking for a long time, Hu Guang didn't want to say any more, let them stand, and then issued an order: "If you have any ideas on how to increase the revenue of the national treasury, please report them!"

After saying that, he sat back.

However, the square was quiet and there was no movement at all, as if there were just thousands of clay Bodhisattvas standing in the square.

Hu Guang felt a little cold when he saw it. I have said so much, and I explained the purpose of today’s court meeting in advance yesterday, but not a single person has made any suggestions?

It’s really hard to be this emperor! Hu Guang thought about it, so he had to speak again: "Bi Qing, you are the Minister of Household Affairs of the Ming Dynasty. Do you have any ideas?"

After Bi Ziyan came out, he had no choice but to say: "Your Majesty, I think it is nothing more than increasing revenue and cutting expenditure. Today, it is hard to say how to open up revenue. The proposers may want to open a mine, but are worried that the gain will not be worth the loss, and they will still cause chaos; Increased taxes, and tariffs have been increased, will only hinder business travelers. As for the establishment of stalls, it is a strict and careless government. We weigh the children and mothers, and there are people who are serious about their work. For today's plan, we hope that the little will make more, and the public will be more. To achieve an easy task, there is nothing more than an additional strategy."

The implication of his words is that after all is said and done, there is still only one way to send others, and the others are not good. Hu Guang frowned but did not speak.

"Therefore, I think that for today's convenience, more money should be allocated, which can be divided into field tax, customs duty, salt tax and miscellaneous items. The field tax has been increased from nine cents to one and two cents, and the payment of silver is 660 More than 70,000 taels, excluding military shortages, more than 5.22 million taels of silver can be levied. In addition to customs duties, salt taxes and miscellaneous items, it is estimated that 7,488,298 taels of silver can be levied."

When he said this, he had obviously thought about it beforehand, and that was why he came to this conclusion.

However, before Hu Guang could express his opinion, a man coughed and went out to report: "Your Majesty, I have no objection to this. It's just that if the additional allocation is calculated in terms of acres, the people may not be able to make a living!"

Hu Guang looked around and saw that it was Liu Mao from the military department who was in trouble. Seeing this, he suddenly remembered, wasn't he responsible for the abolition of the inn?

Some people in later generations, including the famous Liang Qichao, had a view that the reason why the Ming Dynasty fell was because the abolition of the post station forced Li Zicheng to rebel. Hu Guang could only laugh at this, how childish!

But at this time, since he remembered the abolition of the inn, he asked: "Liu Qing, you axed the inn to save money, how is it now?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Mao looked a little ugly and hesitated to speak. But remembering the emperor's words just now, he resolutely said: "It is very difficult to abolish the abolition! If you are too slippery to take care of the inner armor, you will be resentful; if the officials of the post office are not able to ask for the official regulations, you will be resentful; if the officials of the yamen are reluctant to take over, they will be resentful." Horses are resentful; state and county officials are not allowed to break husband's horses privately, then resentment arises; Taoist and government agencies are not allowed to use and abuse them without permission, then resentment arises; that is, those who care for and care for colleagues with ministers are not allowed to have many personal differences, then resentment arises. What is not allowed The only one who complains is the peasants!"

He used the word "resentment" six times in a row to express his difficulty, which made Hu Guang couldn't help but feel moved. He frowned and immediately ordered: "Liu Qing will write a detailed memorial about the abolition of the post station. I will solve the difficulties for you!"

This plan to abolish the post station was too rigid, so Hu Guang decided to discuss it carefully to see how to reduce the resistance to reform, and even turn waste into treasure, and build the post station into an institution similar to the postal service of later generations.

When Liu Mao heard this, he burst into tears, fell to his knees, and replied with a choked voice: "I obey my orders!"

Since the abolition of the inn, as he said, he has almost become a loner like an emperor. Because of interests, everyone has stayed away from him and excluded him, making him very helpless and depressed. It also made him always worry that someone would slander and make the emperor change his mind, then he would really be a different person inside and out.

Unexpectedly, the emperor would now express his position at the great court meeting, which showed that the emperor's determination had not changed, and he still valued him very much. This kind of kindness made him moved to tears.

If it were in the original history, it would have been as he feared, and he would have ended up as a human being. He finally resigned in depression in the third year of Chongzhen, and died of illness before reaching his hometown in Shaanxi. His family could not hire anyone to carry the chariot, so he was kept in a hotel and could not be buried in his hometown for many years.

"Ding, the achievement value is +3, from the military department to Liu Mao!"

Hu Guang no longer has the motivation to look at the achievement value in the chat group. It is really that this achievement value is not enough to fill his teeth. However, he was satisfied with Liu Mao's admiration for him. Thinking of what he had just said, he asked: "What do you mean when you say that if you increase the number of people to increase the number of acres of land, you may make it difficult for the people to make a living?"

"Your Majesty, the land in the north is vast and sparsely populated. Although each household has many acres, the yield per acre is very small. If we increase the allocation based on the number of acres, the burden on each household will be several times that of the south. Now there is a drought in the north, so if we increase the allocation Under this situation, the number of civil unrest will definitely increase dramatically!" Liu Mao said loudly.

Hu Guang heard that what he said made sense. Just when he was about to say something, he heard several coughs suddenly coming from below, and several people came out in unison.