Domineering Daming

Li Jingbai lowered his head, but kept observing Zhu Xu's expression with his eyes. After King Lu finished speaking, he quickly continued: "Your Majesty, many officials are promoted locally, which will help stabilize the place. Now the summer grain has been harvested almost. It is [-]% more than in previous years, and the governor's office in Shandong is far more capable than the third department in the past..."

As soon as Yan Mingtai heard this, he knew that this was an opportunity to grab merit, so he raised his hand and said, "Back to the emperor, Shandong's military affairs are strictly organized, and they regularly take turns to train with the Longxiang Army. Whether it is suppressing bandits or rebelling against bandits, they are strong and powerful. Please rest assured, Your Majesty! "

Zhu Xu was quite satisfied with the Shandong matter. Although these three people had a lot of selfishness, they didn't let go of the business at all. According to his request, they did a good job.

He smiled and said, "Well, King Lu..."

Before Zhu Xu could finish speaking, a servant came in from outside and said, "Your Majesty, Prince Jing is begging to see you."

Zhu Xu raised his head and said, "Biography."

King Jing came in and said, "I pay homage to the emperor."

King Lu and the others came to report on their work and to ask for credit, but they didn't expect to kill Chen Yaojin halfway, and they all looked strange.

Zhu Xu waved his hands, looked at King Jing and King Lu, and said with a smile: "Well, King Jing and King Lu, you have done a good job in your errands, and you have rewards for each of you. In addition, on behalf of me, you will go to a Travel to Liaodong, Dongjiang, condolences to the soldiers..."

What an honor!Wait for the emperor to act!

Both King Jing and King Lu were overjoyed, and they said: "Observe the order!"

After the reward was given, Zhu Xu inquired about the situation in Shandong in detail, and after a full hour, the four of them were released.

As soon as the four of them left, Zhao Han, the Governor of Shuntian Mansion, walked in from the outside.

Zhu Xu looked at him and said, "How's the preparation going?"

Zhao Han's expression was quite excited, and he stood there and said, "Back to the emperor, Zhou Shangshu of the Ministry of Officials dispatched many officials from Jiangsu, and the minister also selected many people from the Political Yuan. When they arrive in Henan, it should be enough to select from the local area."

When Fan Jingwen takes over as governor of Shuntian Prefecture, Zhao Han will be transferred to governor of Henan Province.

This was planned by Zhu Xu a long time ago, and he nodded when he heard the words, and said: "Very well, make a lot of preparations, and be prepared. Henan is not like Shandong. It is intricate and rich in humanities. It needs to be handled carefully. Don't make too much noise."

Zhu Xu has always been cautious about the administrative restructuring. If it causes a local backlash, the resistance to the restructuring will increase countless times. If there is a "non-cooperation", it will be enough for Zhu Xu to have a headache.

Zhao Han said: "Don't worry, your majesty, I will act cautiously and walk slowly."

Zhu Xu nodded, asked carefully for a while, and finally asked him to go to Li Jingbai and others to learn from them.

Zhu Xu was busy inside the palace, and never took a break outside the palace.

Qin Liangyu took over the military power of the four towns in the north, and started to rectify the soldiers and horses and arrange defenses. At the same time, the Ministry of War also dispatched troops and deployed firearms. A huge trap was formed at the mouth of Xifeng little by little.

These four towns have guarded the northern Daming for a hundred years, Shen Ke is complicated, and it takes a lot of effort to sort it out.

Fortunately, Qin Liangyu had been in the army for half his life, and he was strict in running the army. As soon as he took over, he acted vigorously, picked the best, cut off the disabled and weak, ignored the nobles, and vigorously rectified.

Half a month later, the list of local examinations from all over the country was sent to the capital. Bi Ziyan, who had been in Jiangsu for a long time, also finished the process and returned to the capital.

Chapter 383

Qianqing Palace, Yuntai.

Bi Ziyan stood in front of Zhu Xu and said, "Your Majesty, the political structure of Jiangsu is strong and powerful, and the implementation of various government affairs is stable..."

Although Bi Ziyan was going to rectify the finances of the former Southern Zhili, he was an imperial envoy after all, and he also inspected other aspects.

Zhu Xu listened for a while, then smiled and said, "Well, continue."

Bi Ziyan was surprised by Jiangsu's system, and felt that it was very suitable for the current Ming Dynasty. If he wanted to rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty, he must have a strong and powerful execution ability, and he could not tolerate the unscrupulous local governments, and even openly confronted the imperial court. To break the stereotype, do not break do not stand!

He has also done detailed research and agrees very much.Listening to Zhu Xu's words, he said: "Your Majesty, Huang Liji, and Fu Zonglong have all done their best. The governor's yamen has ruled the entire Jiangsu. The implementation of every government affairs has been effectively supervised. The appointment and dismissal of officials and the ability assessment are all in accordance with the Ministry of Officials. With the new law, it can be said that Jiangsu has done the best in the administration of officials, and it is worthy of emulation by other chief secretaries."

Zhu Xu nodded and said, "Well, I'm quite satisfied with Jiangsu's affairs, let's talk about the tax system."

Bi Ziyan knew that this was what the emperor was most concerned about, so he organized it a little and said: "Your Majesty, tax distribution has basically been established in Jiangsu. The governor's office has several capitals under its jurisdiction, which are responsible for commercial taxation, grain taxation, and distribution to the prefect's office. In addition to the strong pressure from the governor's office, no matter whether it is an official, a businessman, or a local wealthy family, they dare not default on their arrears, so there is no doubt about their ability to collect taxes..."

Zhu Xu nodded, this is the system, and motioned for him to continue.

Seeing that Zhu Xu had no objection, Bi Ziyan continued, "In just one month, the governor's office collected more than 100 million taels of commercial tax. For the whole year, I estimate that Jiangsu alone will exceed 500 taels."

Zhu Xu frowned first, then suddenly realized.At the beginning, the centralized collection will naturally be more, and when it stabilizes, 500 million a year is not too small.

Seeing that Zhu Xu listened seriously, Bi Ziyan thought for a while, and said: "The grain tax, the grain tax of several other provinces has already been collected by the Ministry of Households. In Jiangsu province, the minister has paid the arrears over the years, plus the summer grain, and now it is collected. More than 1000 million shi, the specific amount is still under review, it should be more."

Zhu Xu immediately raised his eyebrows. The current grain tax in Daming has been decreasing since the Wanli period. Last year, it was less than 2000 million shi!

But in Jiangsu Province, it is more than half!

He couldn't help picking up the teacup beside him, his eyelids twitched, and as soon as his lips touched the water, he looked up at Bi Ziyan and said, "Do you know how much tax and food are in arrears?"

Bi Ziyan came from the Ministry of Household Affairs, so he knew it clearly, and said: "Back to the emperor, Tianqi has been in arrears for five years, and the arrears have reached 500 million shi. If it exceeds three years, the record will be automatically deleted."

As soon as Zhu Xu drank a little, he raised his head again, and said with some surprise: "You mean, after three years, there will be no further collection?"

Bi Ziyan glanced at Zhu Xu, pondered, and said: "Your Majesty, there are customs in various places. If the collection cannot be collected for more than three years, it means that the collection cannot be obtained. Therefore, I will stop worrying about it."

Zhu Xu also knew that there was a tax and food arrears in the local area, so he didn't care much about it. He thought about rectifying it in the future, and it would be collected at one time, but he didn't expect that there was such a hidden rule!

He put down his teacup, tapped his fingers on the table, thinking about it.

He is well aware of the darkness of the officialdom, especially at this time, no matter how clean and honest the officials are, no matter how dedicated they are to the country, they are all trapped within the established framework, like an endless loop, no one can break free.

But I didn't expect that there would be such a well-known unspoken rule!

Zhu Xu was furious in his heart, and said under pressure: "Well, then, Bi Qing, how much do you think my taxes and rations for next year will be normally?"

Bi Ziyan frowned, his expression showing a thoughtful look.

This question seemed easy to answer, but there were many constraints in it. He was worried that he would hit the emperor again if he said more or less.

For a long time, under Zhu Xu's direct gaze, Bi Ziyan said: "Your Majesty, in the 20th year of Wanli, the grain tax was about 500 million shi. Now the drought is not going on in various places. I estimate that 800 million shi can be collected. If With the rectification like that of Jiangsu, plus the arrears over the years, I am sure that in the past three years, there will be 3000 million shi every year!"

The corners of Zhu Xu's eyes twitched. This number was even more than he expected.However, Bi Ziyan has been in the household department for many years, and his words are more prestigious than Fu Changzong.

Zhu Xu was also a little excited in his heart. If he could really harvest so much, even if it decreased in the future, it would be an extremely good background, enough to last for several years, not to mention the sweet potatoes and other harvests that were not counted in it.

After thinking for a while, Zhu Xu took a deep breath, stood up with a smile, and said, "Well, Bi Qing did a good job. I have written down what you said. As for the other chief secretaries, you have to take your time. The Shandong side I have just completed the restructuring, and Henan is next, but it has to be done slowly so as not to cause too much commotion."

Seeing that Zhu Xu was not impulsive, Bi Ziyan felt relieved inwardly, raised his hand and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, the problem with my great Ming lies in the court as well as in the bottom. The party struggle is over, and the reform of the provinces is also beginning, I don't know, what is the emperor going to do next?"

Bi Ziyan also asked this question before. Zhu Xu looked at the clear sky outside the palace with his hands behind his back, and said with a strange smile: "Secondary distribution of wealth."

Bi Ziyan frowned, thinking about a few words carefully, but he couldn't understand what Zhu Xu was going to do next.

Although his face was calm, there was actually some worry in his heart.In his opinion, after the emperor ascended the throne, the reforms became more and more serious. Fortunately, they were all in different fields, and the opposition caused by them could be suppressed. To be turned upside down!

Zhu Xu didn't give Bi Ziyan a chance to question, turned his head to look at him and said with a smile: "Currently there is no suitable position for Bi Qing in the imperial court, how about this, add Master Dongge to Mr. In three days, come to teach me, I should study hard..."