The most reckless man in the Ming Dynasty

Advertise, spread the word.

That's not a good thing to hear.

But Cong Lan has no choice. Is it possible to really let him, the general secretary, provide money to subsidize his work?

What a joke!

He, Cong Lan, has always kept a clean mind and has no spare money at home. Even if he did have money, it would not be enough!

According to His Majesty the Emperor's design for this new foreign newspaper, it is not only necessary to publish a new newspaper, but also to set up local branches, and to set up propaganda officials in the countryside. For this purpose, the General Affairs Department needs to spend a lot of manpower and material resources. Financial resources, a little money simply cannot fill this hole!

Well, according to a rough estimate, it costs at least hundreds of thousands of taels of silver every year, and at least!

With such a huge amount of money, he, Cong Lan, didn't attract investment or advertise, could he expect that despicable Jiao Fang to pay for it?

Even if His Majesty the Emperor opens his mouth, a villain like Jiao Fang will definitely not give more, and he might provoke some bad guys.

Therefore, the best way is to rely on one's own efforts. Although Cong Lan does not have a good impression of merchants, this is for the sake of state affairs and the people, so it is not impossible to deal with these humble merchants.

Look at how happy the officials in the Ministry of Revenue were with the merchants when the Ministry of Household Affairs implemented the policy of opening up funds.

So, as long as you can get money and do things for the country, everything else can be tolerated.

However, all the parties involved agreed, but Zhang Fuhua, the old man, was not happy.

"Your Majesty, how can we allow those despicable businessmen to interfere in national affairs?"

"Once the Ming Dynasty Newspaper is founded, even if it is distributed to the common people, it will still be a public weapon of the court. How can you let humble businessmen who are full of copper odor participate in it? I ask His Majesty the Emperor to think twice!"

What bullshit “investment promotion”!

In a sense, the Ming Dynasty Newspaper is the new policy of the imperial court!

His Majesty the Emperor allowed a group of lowly merchants to participate in this. Didn’t that change the taste?

The Ming Dynasty Newspaper published by the imperial court was published all over the world, and there were small advertisements placed by merchants on it. Zhang Fuhua felt disgusted just thinking about it!

Moreover, this matter has become His Majesty the Emperor’s New Deal. The New Deal always has the greatest resistance. If the gentry uses this to smear and criticize the New Deal, or even falsely accuses His Majesty the Emperor of colluding with merchants to seize people’s interests, then that would be the real face. All is lost.

"What's wrong with the merchants? What's wrong with them smelling like copper? Aren't the merchants my subjects of the Ming Dynasty?"

Zhu Houzhao sneered and sneered at Zhang Fuhua's statement.

It's a pity that the elders of the Five Dynasties were afraid of something, so they directly argued with reason: "Your Majesty, merchants do not know loyalty and do not care about production. They wander around for money. They are a group of profit-seeking people. It is a great kindness for the imperial court to allow them to do business to support their families." Why should we help them develop and let them use the official tools of the court to advertise..."

As soon as these words came out, Zhu Houzhao almost laughed out of anger.

But he didn't get angry. After all, this was not just Zhang Fuhua's opinion, but the opinion of the entire Ming Dynasty.

Regardless of whether the merchants in ancient times were rich or not, their status could be said to be worse than that of a dog.

For example, Shen Wansan, a wealthy man from Jiangnan in the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty, was as rich as Jiangnan and even as rich as the enemy. However, he was punished by the imperial court even if he wanted to.

No one looks down on these scholar-bureaucrats, especially these lowly merchants.

But the irony is that when these gentry were corrupt and took bribes to buy properties, they were unwilling to lower themselves, so they were forced to support these merchants to do business for them and seize the people's profits!

"Mr. Zhang, in the eyes of you famous disciples, all the merchants in the world are despicable people who don't know loyalty and value profits, right?"

"Then why do you disciples of famous religions support merchants to take care of your own industry? Don't you dislike them? Why do you still use them?"

"The Marquis of Zhongshan once said that if you become a bitch, you still have to erect an arch. What I'm talking about is you, the famous disciples!"

Bitch?

Archway?

The thief Zhongshan Hou!

How dare you humiliate our famous disciples like this?

Cong Lan and Zhang Fuhua were so angry that their faces were livid.

They dare not blame His Majesty. Your Majesty cannot be wrong.

Then the problem is that the person next to His Majesty, who used to be the eunuch Liu Jin, has now become the Marquis of Zhongshan!

No wonder His Majesty the Emperor has always been disgusted with Confucianism. The root of the problem of co-authorship lies with Tang Hao, the Marquis of Zhongshan. He is really shameless!

"Your Majesty, only some of the famous disciples have colluded with merchants..."

Zhang Fuhua wanted to save the bad impression of the famous disciples in the heart of the Emperor, but Zhu Houzhao laughed even more after hearing this.

"Part? Is it a small part or a large part? Why should Mr. Zhang deceive himself? The ministers of the Manchu Dynasty are not civilized and martial, and whose family does not have a large business in their name. And these ministers have to go to the court to discuss politics and handle official business, so what about them? Who takes care of the family business?”

"Do you really think that I don't know anything? Just like Hou Ninghou and Uncle Jianchang, these two good uncles of mine supported four merchants, Zhu Da, Zhou Hong, Du Cheng, and Tan Jingqing, but they embezzled a lot of money. It’s a national benefit. One breath of salt can cost tens of thousands of dollars!”

Facing His Majesty the Emperor's unabashed truth, Zhang Fuhua's old face couldn't stand it.

He did not expect that in just five years, His Majesty the Emperor would grow to where he is now.

I recall that when Emperor Zhu Houzhao first came to the throne, when he encountered the deliberate difficulties and constraints of the civil servants and gentry, he would immediately get angry and appear extremely immature.

But five years have passed, and the Zhengde Emperor in front of him has grown into a Ming Emperor who is able to understand the purpose of his courtiers!

Marquis of Zhongshan, Marquis of Zhongshan, is this your achievement?

Zhu Houzhao did not want to criticize Zhang Fuhua, a veteran of the Five Dynasties, who not only worked hard for the Ming Dynasty all his life, but also created a clean and efficient Metropolitan Procuratorate for him at the last moment!

So no matter what, this Mr. Zhang is worthy of Zhu Houzhao's respect.

"Sir, didn't this sage also say something?"

Cong Lan listened quietly for a long time, and then immediately added: "Guan Zhong, the pioneer of Legalism, said: 'The four common people, scholars, farmers, industry and merchants, are the stones (pillars) of the country.'"

Zhu Houzhao glanced at him and was very satisfied with Cong Lan's success. He continued: "Cong Aiqing is right. Scholars, farmers, industry and commerce are the pillars of the country, and they are indispensable."

“For the country to prosper and society to prosper, the development of industry, agriculture, and commerce are equally indispensable!”

"There is no stability without farmers, no wealth without work, no life without business, plus the people who are the foundation of the dynasty, scholars, farmers, industry and commerce are indispensable. This is the right way!"

"You must keep these words in mind that the Marquis of Zhongshan told me to awaken the world!"

There is no stability without farmers!

No work, no wealth!

There is no life without business!

Plus the people who are the foundation of the dynasty!

It really is...a mantra to wake up the world!

These words were like thunder, resounding in the ears of the three of them.

After all, the meaning of this statement is simple and easy to understand. Without agriculture, the dynasty will not be stable; without industry, the country will not be wealthy; without commerce, economic life will not be active.

Cong Lan's eyes lit up and she secretly admired His Majesty the Emperor's insightful words.

After all, he is still young, so he can accept new things more easily than Zhang Fuhua.

Zhang Fuhua murmured to himself several times, and also figured out some taste.

However, because his life span has come to an end, his three views have long been finalized, so he is not so easy to accept new things.

Zhu Houzhao smiled when he saw this. When Tang Hao told him this, he was like this and froze on the spot.

So, the damn guy Savage is really loved and hated at the same time, but he is also full of...philosophy.

"Give me a simple example!"

"For example, Jimmy Long, the tribute presented by University Scholar Qiu Jun earlier."

"Before Long Jimmy became a tribute, Longji Village, an old town in Chengmai County, was just a barren small mountain village."

"Even though the people of Longji Village work from sunrise to sunrise every day and never dare to slack off, they still live in poverty and it is very difficult."

"Because of the tax assessment issue we just mentioned, their burden will only become heavier and heavier, and in the end they will be forced to become tenant farmers."

Zhu Houzhao followed Tang Hao's example, his eyes brightening as he spoke.

Because if you listen to others say it, if you go through it in your head, or if you say it with your own mouth, you will have a completely different understanding of the matter.

Zhu Houzhao explained with a smile: "But after Jimmy Long became a tribute, everything was different."

"Grandmaster Qiu Jun recommended this dragon Jimmy to the late emperor. The late emperor was very happy after hearing this. Because the dragon represents the emperor and Ji represents auspiciousness, it means that the emperor's dragon body is auspicious. Therefore, Long Jimmy was also regarded as a tribute rice of the court. , all year round.”

"The men, women, and children in Longji Village have therefore vigorously cultivated Longjimi. Countless merchants flocked to buy the royal tribute rice from them. The lives of the people in Longji Village have gradually improved. In order to increase the output of Longjimi, the local The people worked hard on planting technology, and finally succeeded in growing Jimmy Long in every household, and they can improve their lives with this tribute rice. This is 'no work, no wealth'!"

"And after Long Jimi became completely popular, merchants not only in Chengmai County, but also in neighboring state capitals all sensed business opportunities, so they rushed here non-stop, wanting to resell Long Jimi to make a profit from the price difference, and it was precisely because of the large number of merchants that The influx of people has injected unimaginable vitality into Longji Village. This previously impoverished small mountain village has now become a lively and prosperous market town. This is what 'no business can do'!"

"As for 'instability without farming', I don't need to say anything more. China has attached great importance to farming and mulberry trees since ancient times, because farming and mulberry trees are the foundation of the dynasty, and food is the lifeblood of the dynasty, so there is nothing to say about this. ”

"Scholars, farmers, industry and merchants, these four people are the cornerstone of the imperial court. All four people are indispensable. It is not a good thing for the imperial court to blindly suppress merchants and belittle craftsmen!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole place fell silent.

Shocking!

Zhang Fuhua was shocked.

He never thought that craftsmen and merchants had such abilities.

Throughout the ages, dynasties have suppressed merchants and despised craftsmen, and the Ming Dynasty was no exception.

After all, only those who cultivate the land in peace and contentment are the kind people the court needs!

Instead of traveling around to pursue profits like merchants, it would bring uneasiness to the government.

In short, if the imperial court wants the country to be stable, the people must farm the fields in the countryside honestly!

Therefore, businessmen did not engage in production and often went to other provinces to do business. Therefore, the government always suppressed them.

As for the craftsmen, no one cares.

Craftsmen belong to the craftsman class, and their status is only slightly better than that of merchants.

Because craftsmen do the hardest and most tiring work, they are the main force of the imperial corvée, so who would care about these humble coolies?

Suppressing merchants, despising craftsmen, and valuing agriculture and sericulture are what all dynasties have done.

But the problem is that the Emperor Zhengde in front of him has given a completely new interpretation of the four classes of people.

And the prosperous Longji Village mentioned by the Emperor can just prove his theory!

No agriculture, no stability!

No industry, no wealth!

No business, no life!

Zhang Fuhua claims to be well-read, but he has never heard of this theory!

But the facts are right in front of him, and he can't find any reason to refute it!

Longji Village used to be just a poor and dilapidated mountain village. It was because Longji rice became the royal tribute rice that provided the people of Longji Village with other hopes of survival. Then they seized the opportunity to study the planting technology of Longji rice and promoted it to the whole village, which greatly improved their lives!

Isn't this "no industry, no wealth"?

Because of the popularity of Longji rice, merchants from all over the prefectures and cities flocked to Longji Village to buy Longji rice, injecting a new vitality into Longji Village, so that it has formed such a prosperous and noisy scene today!

Isn't this "no business, no life"?

As for the farmers and good people who cultivate the land, they are the foundation and lifeblood of the dynasties. Only when the farmers and good people cultivate the land honestly, the great country of the dynasties will be stable!

Isn't this "no agriculture, no stability"?

How else can you refute it?

You can't refute it at all!

Zhang Fuhua took a deep breath and stared at the emperor in front of him.

If what His Majesty said is the truth, doesn't it mean that the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were wrong, and even the emperors of the Huaxia Dynasty were wrong?

How is this possible?

However, the facts of Longji Village are right in front of us!

For a time, Zhang Fuhua was confused.

Cong Lan didn't care. After hearing this vivid example, he had already put away his contempt for merchants.

After all, the emperor was right. If it weren't for these merchants, Longji Village would not have become rich, and the people there would not have been as rich and lived a good life as they are now.

Moreover, he had never been involved in financial work. Instead of worrying about whether the emperor's words made sense, he might as well continue to discuss his next newspaper work.

"Your Majesty, you just said that the Tongzhengsi would set up branches in various prefectures and cities, and set up some "Xuanzheng Li" to travel around the countryside. This plan seems to have no problem, but..."

"But what? Just say it! If you have any questions, just raise them. After all, this is your next main task of the Tongzhengsi!"

Cong Lan did not hesitate and simply raised his concerns.

"Such a large-scale establishment of officials will greatly increase the number of local officials, which will bring great burden to the court!"

"And such a large-scale expansion of the local official team will easily lead to some people taking advantage of the situation in a hurry, giving them the opportunity to become officials. By then, I am afraid that my Ming Dynasty will have the three redundancies of the former Song Dynasty!"

The three redundancies!

Zhu Houzhao did not expect Cong Lan to mention this issue.

The so-called "three redundancies" are simply "redundant soldiers", "redundant expenses" and "redundant personnel".

In order to prevent the army from making trouble, the army of the former Song Dynasty often transferred the commander-in-chief, and the highest command was in the hands of the civil servants of the Privy Council. Because the regular army, that is, the imperial army, was managed separately by the three yamen (the Palace Front Department, the Imperial Guard Cavalry Department, and the Imperial Guard Infantry Department), each separate yamen was also expanding on its own.

In addition to the imperial army, there are also wing soldiers. These local armed forces are still expanding rapidly. Although the number of soldiers is increasing, the finances still rely on the central government.

If things go on like this, the combat effectiveness of the soldiers will be low, and their equipment will become worse and worse, but the military expenses they report will increase.

If the court wants to reduce the army, it will infringe on the interests of some military households who rely on military service for a living, arouse the mutiny of the soldiers, and also cause dissatisfaction among some conservatives.

This is the "redundant soldiers" of the former Song Dynasty.

"Redundant staff" refers to civil officials. The administrative system of the former Song Dynasty is actually quite advanced, with many functional departments, and they are subdivided layer by layer, and each department has several officials.

For example, some are responsible for approval, but stamping is not his responsibility, and it is up to others.

The problem brought about by such a detailed yamen is that things are slow to work, and they shirk responsibility and pass the buck.

Moreover, the former Song Dynasty was a world shared by the emperor and the literati. More and more officials and literati formed groups with each other, forming cliques and factions, and the final result was that the tail was too big to be cut off and the government was corrupt!

"Redundant expenses" are much simpler, that is, the funds generated by many reasons such as "redundant soldiers" and "redundant staff" are increasing.

The tax revenue of the Former Song Dynasty was amazing among all dynasties. Although it paid tribute to the surrounding barbarians, this money could be earned back through maritime trade.

However, the treasury was still empty in the late Former Song Dynasty, and the fundamental reason was the redundancy.

Although Cong Lan's words were a bit exaggerated, it is undeniable that doing so might really lead to the problem of "redundancy".

"This matter can be discussed at the court meeting tomorrow. Regarding the expansion of the Tongzhengsi, I just have this idea. Let the court officials come up with a charter at that time."

"But you can start to do it now, and you must implement it!"

Hearing this, Cong Lan was finally relieved.

The two of them continued to read the details of the Ming Dynasty Newspaper with great interest. Zhang Fuhua became more and more flustered as he listened, and finally couldn't help but said: "Your Majesty really intends to... enlighten the people's wisdom?"

"Huh? Is there any problem?"

"Your Majesty, once the people's wisdom is awakened, the court loses its majesty, and the emperor loses his majesty, then the people will naturally be dissatisfied with the status quo!"

"Old minister, let me say something treasonous. Why is it that the person sitting on this dragon chair is not themselves?"

"Once this idea spreads, our Ming Dynasty will be in danger and the world will be in chaos..."

The meaning of Zhang Fuhua's words is very simple. Everyone has opened up their people's wisdom. Those people realize that your old Zhu family is nothing special, so why do they still listen to your orders and obey you?

The heart is like a ravine, and the soil behind it is hard to fill!

This sentence is not unreasonable!

It's just that his words were too straightforward, but he was a veteran of the Five Dynasties, so it was hard to pursue anything.

Zhu Houzhao did not get angry when he heard this, but asked with a smile: "Mr. Zhang, how did my old Zhu family get the position of the Ninth Five-Year Plan?"

Cong Lan's expression perked up when he heard this, and he shouted impassionedly: "Of course it's because Emperor Taizu Gao expelled the Lulu, restored China, saved all the people from fire and water, and saved the people from collapse!"

"Since ancient times, there is no one like him who can achieve the rightness of the country!"

This sentence is the greatest affirmation of Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang’s life achievements!

"In that case, what else do my old Zhu family need to be afraid of?"

"Cong Lan, the front page of the Ming Dynasty Newspaper published the life and achievements of Emperor Taizu Gao, telling the people of the world openly and openly that the reason why my old Zhu family is qualified to sit in this position has never been because of some 'divine right of kings'. It’s because my old Zhu family has made indelible achievements by expelling the Lulu and restoring China!”

"Since ancient times, there is no one better than me in the great Ming Dynasty to achieve the righteousness of the country!"

"This must be known to all the people in the world, and to the entire Ming Dynasty!"