First Minister of Ming Dynasty

Zhu Yuanzhang was about to get back on his feet, Zhang Ximeng had expected it a long time ago, so he could only say at this moment: "Listen to the hadith!"

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled slightly, "Today is Mr. Zhang's happy day, and it is also our tenth year in the army... We have grown from a little monk who couldn't eat enough to become an emperor of a country. Naturally, we cannot do without Mr. Zhang's assistant. We I always think about what Mr. Zhang gave us to get to this day? With Mr. Zhang, we are different from Chen Youliang, Liu Futong and others!"

After a pause, Zhu Yuanzhang said: "We think that Mr. Zhang has helped the big guy to recognize thousands of years of history, understand our identities, understand the root cause of our suffering in the past, and also prescribe medicines for us to cure diseases and save lives." A good recipe...Let us say, Mr. is the teacher of everyone, including us!"

"We want to say that from now on, Mr. Zhang's learning will be Ming's official learning, and it will be orthodox in the world!" Zhu Yuanzhang made a decisive decision.

Chapter 499 The Wedding Banquet Speech

For ordinary people, being able to get a promotion and a salary increase and marry a wife is almost like Kennedy riding in a convertible car... the joy is heaven.

But our Zhang Xiang is obviously not an ordinary person. On the day of Zhang Ximeng's marriage, his knowledge was sent to the highest altar, and he became the orthodox official school.

There are hundreds of emperors, and famous officials in all dynasties.

There are only a handful of people who may have achieved something in thought and lead the trend for thousands of years.

And Zhang Ximeng has climbed to such a height at such an age, that is also a cap.

So he didn't have the slightest bit of joy, and what he had was trembling, as if facing an abyss, as if walking on thin ice, as if facing an enemy...

"The lord favors it. I am grateful for the grace of heaven. I am engraved in my heart. But I still have a few words to say, and I ask the lord for permission."

With a smile on his face, Lao Zhu suddenly asked: "Isn't it a resignation?"

"No... not!"

"That's good!" Old Zhu readily agreed, "Sir, whatever you say is fine, let's listen carefully."

Zhang Ximeng bowed deeply, then turned around and bowed again to the guests present.

"I originally wanted to find some time to calm down, organize and summarize carefully, and then explain my views...Since the lord praised the minister so much today, I have to clarify some things."

"Over the years, I have expressed some opinions and written some articles. Some people have praised me, thinking that my ideas can replace Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, or even the way of Confucius and Mencius... Then some people may still ask, what exactly did Zhang Ximeng talk about? Why did he replace the way of Confucius and Mencius? By bragging?"

"This brings me to the first thing I want to talk about. There are four words in Hanshu, which is called seeking truth from facts. The things I said are also summed up from reality. For example, equalizing the land, such as treating the people equally, such as Guangxing Enlightenment... These ideas have helped us develop and grow in the past ten years, and have captured most of the country. The civil and military officials present should more or less feel the power of these propositions. It is no exaggeration to say that these propositions, It is a real sharp weapon that can be compared with a sword. It is the foundation for us to sweep the world like a bamboo."

This was not Zhang Ximeng's bragging, all the civil and military personnel present agreed, and even felt that Zhang Ximeng was being polite.Without a thorough land equalization, how could there be hundreds of thousands of invincible Ming troops?

Even if hundreds of thousands of soldiers can be produced, there will never be millions of uncomplaining civilians behind them.

Anyone can criticize Zhang Ximeng's ideas, but this set of ideas helped Daming get to where he is today. If you have the ability, you can also assist a Holy Master?

Without this ability, no amount of criticism will be nothing more than flies.

"I talk about seeking truth from facts, and Zhu Xi also talks about studying things to gain knowledge. I said that we sum up knowledge from reality, and Confucianism also opposes pragmatism. What is the difference between what I am talking about and Cheng Zhu's Neo-Confucianism?"

"This leads to the second question, which is the word people-oriented that I mentioned... From the perspective of people-oriented, it includes being close to the people, including going deep into the people, understanding the sufferings of the people, and truly standing with the people. That is to say, the people we are talking about are the most common and common people, those poor people who are the poorest, hardest, busy all day, and still can’t get enough to eat. Totally different."

"Here, I would like to share an example. A few days ago, I went to Chenliu's village and told the farmers there that irrigation and drainage of the fields... the imperial court would help them borrow a sum of money from merchants to purchase seeds, Tools, cattle, etc., will be returned after harvest. Think about it, what will the common people say, and what should we think?"

Everyone held their breath, especially Xu Da and the others, as if they had returned to the time when Zhang Ximeng was lecturing in the army. The value of attending this wedding is to dream back to youth.

"The old farmer told me that they would rather exhaust half the people to death than borrow money! Half the people are exhausted! They don't even take their own lives seriously! How stubborn and ignorant this is! The kindness and good governance of the court, If it cannot be implemented, it is all due to the ignorance of the people. These idiots are hopeless. So what should be done?"

"Is it necessary for the people to let them know, but not to let them know? Although the meaning of this sentence is still debatable. But throughout the ages, there are still many people who advocate making the people stupid. Like Daming, he spared no effort, It is even more unprecedented to promote enlightenment, to educate soldiers, to educate the poor, and to educate women!"

"Why are these people's words wrong? We must first understand why the people resist borrowing! Because they have suffered too much! Donkeys roll, loan sharks, borrow ten and pay back ten, one person borrows money, and the whole family suffers. I borrowed today Farm tools and seeds, it won’t be long before the allocated land will be taken away by others, and if you finally have a piece of land of your own, you will become a tenant farmer again.”

"Think about it, guys. If you were that old farmer, would you still dare to borrow money? If you don't borrow money, maybe half of the people will die, and there is still hope in the family. But once you borrow money, it will be over, the whole The family is about to lose! I would like to ask you guys, if you really stand in the position of an old farmer and think about it, do you still think that the people are ignorant? Do you still think that they are resisting the orders of the imperial court and are hopeless? Smart, or stupid?"

Zhang Ximeng's loud question caused a slight change in the expressions of many people, including Zhu Yuanzhang, who were quite shocked.How did the old Zhu family lose in the first place?

My father was infected with the plague, and my mother and elder brother also passed away one after another. At that time, many families in the village borrowed money to save their lives. As a result, many people died, and they owed unpaid debts, and eventually became slaves... The people are Suffering from being cheated, and scared of being cheated.

The survival wisdom accumulated over thousands of years makes them resist all changes and stubbornly reject any external forces... because they know that [-]% of these things are harmful.

Perhaps this is the consciousness of the earliest leeks.

"The same thing, how should we look at it, how should we interpret it, should we scold the common people from the standpoint of a scholar-official, or should we stand in the perspective of an old farmer and recognize the exploitation and oppression for thousands of years? This is what I think The second point is to stand with the people."

"In recent years, we have eradicated the tyrants, restrained the big households, divided the land evenly, and promoted education. We are trying to make everyone have property, have books, and understand things... In our place, the traditional scholars, farmers, businessmen, four This hierarchy has been broken. Under the Son of Heaven, all the people are generally the same. Starting from this point, we will find that simply emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, and taking agriculture as the foundation, are only beneficial to scholar-bureaucrats. Farmers, businessmen, and all kinds of craftsmen are all The same people are the power to prosper our country. Therefore, in my opinion, some discrimination against merchants that existed in the past dynasties should be completely abandoned, and merchants and farmers should be put together."

"Of course, when I say this, I also want to remind businessmen that it is only natural for farmers to farm and pay for food. It is also natural for you to do business and pay taxes. Whoever wants to dig a hole must learn the royal law of the court!" Zhang Ximeng glanced at the back row A group of merchants on the edge smiled slightly, "One more thing, I advocated that the inventions and creations of Baigong, and the new things researched should also participate in the distribution and share the benefits. It is also because of this point that the merchants You can rely on your ingenuity, buy low and sell high, and make a profit. Baigong can make a fortune by relying on ingenuity, this is a truth."

Zhang Ximeng once again summarized some recent policy propositions, and then said: "Having said this, it almost leads to the third point I mentioned, which is the unity of knowledge and action."

"We stand on the standpoint of the people, seek truth from facts, understand the plight of the people and the difficulties they face, and then we must solve them. This is the unity of knowledge and action!"

"The Central Plains experienced wars and natural disasters, the Yellow River flooded, people's livelihood was in decline, and the people could not make a living. It is urgent to control the flood of the Yellow River and restore the people's livelihood and economy. This is the most important thing for the Ming Dynasty. How can we achieve this goal? "

"There must be at least three points. First, Jia Canzheng and other famous water control experts have drawn up a complete set of strategies. They have clear ideas on how to restore cultivated land and control salinity. You can go to the Ministry of Industry to discuss the plan, or you can read it from the newspaper. .There is no trick here.”

"Secondly, our officials and soldiers must really go to the villages to understand what the people are thinking, and tell them clearly that our Ming Dynasty is not those corrupt officials in the past, nor is it big and powerful. We are sincerely helping the people solve the problem. Difficulties, with the support of the people, we will be able to succeed in the next thing.”

"As for the third, it is to mobilize all forces, including merchants. The imperial court hopes that the big guys can generously donate money and tide over difficulties together. In Daming, merchants can be respected, get the rules they need, and protect you from making a fortune. But you also need You pay taxes, and relieve the court's worries at critical times. All in all, you have to do things for the family, and if you do something that is not good for the family, the family law will not be ambiguous."

After Zhang Ximeng finished speaking, he turned to Zhu Yuanzhang and said, "My lord, what I said was orthodox in official studies, what did I say? That's about it... As for the next step, I will study hard and study hard to enrich my knowledge." , assist the lord, govern the world!"

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled all over his face and couldn't be more satisfied.

Old Zhu didn't even expect that, he thought that Zhang Ximeng would attribute the division of history, equalization of land and establishment of schools to Zhang Xue, thus replacing Confucius, Mencius and Chengzhu.

But in fact, Zhang Ximeng didn't have any at all. He just talked about seeking truth from facts, being close to the people, and uniting knowledge and action...anything that meets these three items can be attributed to Zhang's learning, or it can be attributed to official learning.

It is said that he respects Zhang Ximeng, but Zhang Ximeng has not really turned himself into a sage who says nothing.

What he hopes is that more intelligent talents will stand up together and solve problems together.

Let me ask, is there a better official school than this?

As for the sale of government bonds, it is just a matter of convenience. Compared with these, it is really not worth mentioning.

"Sir is worthy of being a teacher in the world. This high-level discussion is enlightening, like drinking fine wine. Come, bring the gold medal we prepared for you!"

Zhang Ximeng was slightly taken aback, what the hell?Wouldn't it be a gold medal for avoiding death?

I don't want that stuff!

While Zhang Ximeng was stunned, a gold medal measuring one foot and eight inches was brought up, with four large characters shining brightly on it.

Master Fu Guoyuan!

Zhang Ximeng breathed a sigh of relief, such a piece of gold melted a lot of money...

Chapter 500 Chic Bridal Anniversary

Zhang Ximeng knew very well that Zhu Yuanzhang would definitely be able to do the work, but he never expected that he would make such a big one, a full one foot and eight inches!

Master Fu Guoyuan!

Can these four words be given casually?

With these four words, there is no doubt that Zhang Ximeng is the number one civil servant in the dynasty. Not only that, but with the establishment of his official status, he has almost become the teacher of the whole world, and it is right to educate the common people.

This position is really too high, and the burden is too heavy.

Zhang Ximeng even doubted himself when it got so serious, why should he teach the common people?

Is it only based on the experience of later generations?

If you don’t put your body into practice and unite knowledge and action, I’m afraid you won’t be able to convince the public at all... You must practice being the same outside and inside, and be consistent inside and outside. Only by being a true gentleman can you stand the test and have a clear conscience!

Looking at the gold medal again, Zhang Ximeng felt a heavy weight on his heart.

Zhu Yuanzhang's favor for himself is not a spur!

"My lord, thank the emperor for his grace!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded with a smile, and then asked Zhang Ximeng to stand up, "Sir, today is your big day, the big things that should be said are over, we should have fun together!"

What else could Zhang Ximeng do, he just nodded and agreed, and died.

To be honest, these people really didn't dare to do anything to Zhang Ximeng, but they had no choice but to ban alcohol for such a long time, and finally let it go. Everyone's alcohol bugs rebelled, and there was a lot of trouble in their stomachs, so they couldn't do without drinking!

Especially people like Chang Yuchun and Huayun, they were even more massive. They kept pouring wine into their stomachs with bowls of wine, and then let Zhang Ximeng do whatever he wanted.

What can Zhang Ximeng do? Of course he won't accompany him, but at least he should take a sip. If he takes a sip at this table, he must drink at the next table!

After more than a dozen tables, Zhang Ximeng became top-heavy.

"Hahaha!" Chang Yuchun laughed wantonly, "I finally know that Zhang Xiang can't do anything, Zhang Xiang can't drink! Big guys, work harder, let Zhang Xiang down!"

Chang Yuchun's clamor made Zhang Ximeng's heart skip a beat... Madam just told her not to lose her composure and to be self-disciplined, self-disciplined!

"Lan Yu, Zhu Ying, Li Wenzhong, Zhu Wenzheng... Come on four of you, I respect you for me, I, I have a kidney failure." Zhang Ximeng didn't bother to waste time when he escaped by urinating.

Look at the sky, the sun is about to set, and the bride is still waiting!

Zhang Ximeng smoked and went to the bridal chamber.

When he came in, he didn't find the bride, she must be in the study, he walked a few more steps inside, and sure enough, Jiang Nan was holding a pen and an abacus in his hand.

Looking at the account book, there are also several official documents written by Zhang Ximeng, mainly related to the matter of land equalization.

Really hardworking!

Zhang Ximeng coughed slightly, Jiang Nan hurriedly put down the brush, looked back, saw Zhang Ximeng came back, hurriedly got up, looked carefully, saw that he didn't smell heavily of alcohol, and then breathed out.

"What about those guests? Are they all handled properly?"

"Well! My lord was the first to leave. Wang Guangyang has already taken those merchants away to discuss the issue of bonds. The rest of the generals will be dealt with by Zhu Ying and the others, so I can be regarded as withdrawn."

Jiang Nan nodded, and said with a sigh of relief, "Then... that Mr. Xiang is going to rest?"

Zhang Ximeng smiled slightly, "It's still early, I just came here because I was afraid that you would be lonely and boring."

Jiang Nan smiled lightly and said, "I can't talk about being lonely or not. I used to read these things every day... By the way, there are still some things I don't understand, can I ask my husband?"

Zhang Ximeng was slightly embarrassed, but Madam asked, but she couldn't answer, so she could only say, "Madam, what don't you understand? I'll explain it to you now."

Zhang Ximeng pulled a chair and sat side by side with Jiang Nan... The husband and wife really had a discussion.

What Jiang Nan couldn't understand was that Zhang Ximeng made a price list, which marked items such as cattle, farm tools, seeds, bricks and tiles, but without exception, the prices behind were all priced with rice.

For example, a bullock with twenty stones of rice, a shovel with two stones of rice, and so on.

"Don't we all use precious banknotes, why do we still need to use rice to denominate the price?"

When Zhang Ximeng saw her asking this question, he smiled and said, "You, it's too late to come here, and I don't know much about the food bank. Don't think it's complicated to use rice to calculate the price. But even if there are all kinds of bad things, One thing is true. People understand this and can accept it, which is more important than anything else.”

Zhang Ximeng smiled and explained to his wife... For thousands of years, the people started from themselves and developed an extremely conservative character, which made them instinctively reject anything new.

The precious banknotes of the Yuan Dynasty were already smelly, and the Ming Dynasty continued to use them.Very difficult.

Huaixi and Southeast relied on years of accumulation and gained trust, so they barely pushed forward.

In the Central Plains, if you simply copy the experience and directly promote the treasure banknotes, something will happen.It is also not in line with Zhang Ximeng's tradition of slowing things down.

So he picked up the food bank experience again.

At the end of the connection with the common people, there is no use of precious banknotes, and all prices are denominated in rice and wheat. Although it is a bit troublesome, as long as the common people can accept it, everything is worth it.

"Look, our officials go down, gain the trust of the people, organize the people to prepare the land, and cultivate... For example, if they can open up [-] mu of land, the land is barren in the first year, and the yield per mu is only five buckets. If you count it all, it will be five thousand mu. Shi. ​​Due to the reduction and exemption of taxes, these are all a village can control. Seventy percent of them will be distributed according to the head, and [-] percent will be given to the young and strong laborers who contribute the most. We can guide the people to take out [-] percent and exchange them for Cattle and farm tools...so they can cultivate more land and get more harvests.”

Zhang Ximeng briefly explained the principle, but it was not complicated. With Jiang Nan's intelligence, it was easy to understand.

"It is true that the common people are more accustomed to using rice for pricing, but, but I am still a little confused... What about the merchants? What they want is money. Give them food, and these people will not agree."

"Hahaha! That would be easier. We only need to set a benchmark price for grain. For example, five hundred Wenbao notes per stone of grain."

Zhang Ximeng said with a smile: "That's my plan. In order to prevent farmers from being hurt by low grain prices, we can set a protective price, and the minimum price should not be lower than this price. During the bumper harvest, the imperial court will take care of it. The common people will not charge too much. If you fight three or five times, you will lose money."

Jiang Nan nodded, "This is indeed a solution, but the court can only set the minimum price, and it may not be easy for the common people to sell more money. Moreover, farmers are still too weak compared to grain merchants, and they are completely manipulated by others." , does Mr. Xiang also have a clever plan?"

Zhang Ximeng smiled, "Ma'am, this is to break the casserole and ask the end. Anyway, I will tell you... In fact, I advocate using the village community to organize the people in the Central Plains. I have thought it through carefully. If this thing is done well, it will cause earth-shaking. changes. From now on, the common people can indeed see the hope of prosperity.”

"How to say?" Jiang Nan asked curiously.

Zhang Ximeng continued to explain...the current village community is to bring the people together to work together and cultivate the land.

However, in order to solve the difficulties of the people, farm tools and seeds will be provided next, and loans will be encouraged.

This account, of course, must be counted on the head of the village community. It is a collective borrowing by the big guys, not on the head of any one person.

Zhang Ximeng encouraged the people to take part of the harvest and put it in the village to repay the debt... Then there was another thing.

If the people harvest more, the surplus grain is increasing, and the farm tools and seeds are enough, can we continue to hand over the grain to the village community?

Zhang Ximeng believes that not only is it possible, but the people should be encouraged to do so.

The reason is very simple, the common people, relying on this little grain in their hands, cannot challenge the grain merchants.

Even if someone is dissatisfied with the lowest price and wants to sell higher, that can't be done.