Chapter 50: The Old Minister Cao Nai

"It's been a long time since I've talked to Cao Qing like this." Zhu Qizhen and Cao Nai sat opposite each other and sighed leisurely.

Zhu Qizhen never doubted Cao Nai's wisdom.

As a junior who is favored by Sanyang, although he was degraded out of Beijing by Zhu Qizhen because of political issues, it does not prevent Zhu Qizhen from respecting Cao Nai.

even said that it was precisely because Cao Nai had enough weight that he would end up degrading Beijing.

People who are too light will not be treated like this at all, but will be dismissed and go home directly.

At this moment, Cao Nai is already dying, no longer on crutches, can no longer walk, and is over eighty years old. A lot of things are no longer about politics.

"Your Majesty, the old minister is old, and Your Majesty is not young anymore." Cao Nai said.

Zhu Qizhen heard this sentence, laughed, and said: "The years urge people to grow old, who can escape this sword of heaven and earth?" ”

also knew that Cao Nai said this, and Zhu Qizhen would react like this, if others said so. Zhu Qizhen will definitely not give a good face.

Because the older Zhu Qizhen gets, the more taboo the word "old" becomes.

Cao Nai said: "Your Majesty, the old minister is old, he doesn't know tomorrow today, and if he doesn't say something to His Majesty, there will be no time to say it again." Please also ask Your Majesty not to be old and decaying, and listen to it. ”

As soon as Zhu Qizhen heard it, he knew that what Cao Nai said next would definitely not be listened to. But if you listen to it, you can't help but listen, and say: "I listen to you." ”

Cao Nai said: "Since Your Majesty ascended the throne, he has inherited the remnants of the previous emperors, made great efforts, attacked the tile thorn in the north, destroyed Annan in the south, conquered Korea in the east, entered Tibet in the west, and expanded the border of the western regions of the counties, Mobei, Northeast, and Nanyang. With the prosperity of the territory of the previous dynasties, there is no one who is better than Your Majesty, and the martial arts of this dynasty are also extremely prosperous. ”

Zhu Qizhen listened to Cao Nai's words, and the more vigilant his heart became.

In Cao Nai's discussion, the territory of the Yuan Dynasty is obviously not included. Of course, Kublai Khan's control of the Great Yuan may not be as prosperous as the Ming Dynasty's control of the territory today.

Smart people pat their ass, they just listen to it, but ministers like Cao Nai, it's not that they don't know how to pat on the back, but they don't want to.

Now that I am shooting like this, I naturally feel that it is necessary.

So Zhu Qizhen didn't take his previous words seriously, he just listened to them, he was waiting for that. ”

Cao Nai's sycophants continued, and said: "Your Majesty, inherit the way of the sages and create the theory of the fifth generation." Changing the law, rectifying the military system, abolishing the officials, reorganizing taxes, and collecting money in the Ming Dynasty, often in the number of 50 million, no less than in the Northern Song Dynasty. It is based on today's trend, martial arts are better than the Han and Tang Dynasties, the tax is more than two Song Dynasty, the real prosperity is also, the flowers are brocade, and the fire is cooking. ”

The number of 50 million is also the number of all the taxes paid by the Ming Dynasty that are converted into money and grain.

One

The whip law itself was to convert taxes into silver taels. The five thousand stone fields of the Ming Dynasty were converted into silver taels, which was about 26 million taels.

After all, it is not only the field endowment that is converted into silver taels, but also a considerable part of the endowment.

26 million taels of silver, plus salt tax, customs duties, tea tax, and other taxes, a total of more than 40 million taels, and then add some income directly into the Ouchi, Shaofu and Japanese silver taels, about 50 million taels less, and after last year's commercial tax reform, it has already earned 3 million taels of cotton cloth tax, and now it is far more than 50 million taels, and after the implementation of the tax system for more than a dozen bulk goods, there will be about 60 million taels.

When the Northern Song Dynasty was in its heyday, the tax conversion was the highest, that is, fifty or sixty million yuan.

It has always been a thousand copper coins, of course, there are also provincial Mo and the like, and it has always been not enough for a thousand articles, so I won't go into detail one by one. After all, the prices of goods in different eras, the quantity of money in circulation, and even the calculation of various conversions affect the quality of fiscal revenue.

In different eras, it is inherently difficult to make analogies.

It's a big deal. I don't need to go into details.

If you look closely, one or two thousand Wen in the Ming Dynasty is more of an official price, and when it is actually implemented, because the amount of silver is not the same. With the inflow of a large amount of silver from Japan, coupled with a large number of copper coins minted in Yunnan, this price can still be maintained in general.

For this number, Zhu Qizhen is a little happy.

In his opinion, the territory of the Ming Dynasty is far better than that of the Northern Song Dynasty, and after several generations of experience, it is not possible to talk about the Qing Dynasty of the Yan River, but it is also peaceful, and it can be compared with the Qingli period of the Northern Song Dynasty.

That is, one of the peaks of fiscal revenue in the Northern Song Dynasty.

Therefore, it is normal for the Ming Dynasty's annual income to exceed that of the Northern Song Dynasty, if it seems that the Ming Dynasty's tax revenue is much worse than that of the Northern Song Dynasty, then there is a problem.

Even if Zhu Qizhen knew that Cao Nai was patting him on the back, now he was a little smoky.

After all, this tickled Zhu Qizhen's itch.

Just hear the last eight words. Zhu Qizhen immediately came back to his senses.

Because flowers are brocade and fire is not a good word.

Sure enough, Cao Nai's words took a sharp turn. He said: "In the prosperous era, the minister is infinitely glorious, even if he sees Emperor Xuanzong underground, the minister has something to say, but the minister is old and will die, I am afraid that there are some words, the old minister does not say it to His Majesty, no one will say it to His Majesty." ”

"Under the prosperous times, there are hidden dangers."

Zhu Qizhen said: "I don't know, what is the hidden danger? ”

Cao Nai said: "The minister thinks that it is the morale, the people's style, and the people's heart. ”

"Your Majesty also has feelings, since the orthodoxy, the magistrates in various places are not as good as one term, the greedy ministers, all the same, the words of the saints, can be written in flowers, but in fact there is a set in the mouth, the heart

In one set, greedy for profit and fame, there are few simple ministers who founded the country, and people who dare to speak. ”

"Since the meeting of Biyong, Confucianism has been divided into four, one is called Xinxue, the second is Gewu, the third is called Ram, and the fourth is Taoism. The scholars of the world are at a loss and don't know what to do. Between each other, they regard themselves as what they are, and what they do not do. ”

"If you ignore it now, I'm afraid that the imperial court will generally not exist in the future."

Xinxue is initiated by Chen Baisha, and there are many southern scholars who agree, and the momentum is quite large, after the death of Wu and Bi, it seems to be a grandmaster. And Gewu is headed by Bei Lin, and some Beijing scholars have joined, and Bei Lin is now old and no longer on the front line. But Gewu also spread the word.

After all, with Wu and Bi as endorsements, it is also regarded as a line of Confucianism.

As for the ram, it is naturally the core of Zhu Qizhen's theory of changing the law, but there are no core people on it, most of them are in the officialdom, such as Qiu Jun, Wang Shu, and other ministers agree with this.

In many imperial examinations, if you are biased towards the side, you will have more chances of being admitted.

As for Taoism, it is Cheng Zhu Lixue, and the hundred-legged insect is dead but not stiff. Moreover, Taoism, which started at the end of the Tang Dynasty and lasted for hundreds of years, naturally has its own advantages.

In the face of today's chaotic situation, there are naturally many people who adhere to Taoism, especially many people in the north.

But there is a lack of an important leader.

Among these studies, the real advantage is the study of the mind.

Cheng Zhu Lixue is already very stiff, and the system is perfect, and it is difficult to make changes. And the so-called ramology is a political slogan, even if a few people put forward it at the beginning, they may not really believe in it. Therefore, the foundation is the most vain, and after the death of Wu and Bi, Gewuxue was criticized by many Taoists, believing that it was the study of craftsmen and could not be elegant.

Belin's foundation in Confucianism is too shallow, and the two sides cannot negotiate and can only break up. Although Gewuxue has the endorsement of the royal family, he even lectures in the main hall.

But the basic plates are all craftsmen, and they are also spread around Beijing, and the influence is too small.

Only the study of the mind itself has a foundation, and the foundation is the study of Yongjia in the Southern Song Dynasty. Many people only know Wang Yangming's psychology, but they don't know that the concept of psychology has been around for a long time.

After Chen Baisha was processed again, it was given the characteristics of the times, especially in line with the psychology of some businessmen. It is widely spread along the southern coast.

What is the integration of the four people, Confucian and Shang theories, are all derived from some of Chen Baisha's doctrines.

The reason why Cao Nai thinks that this is a great disaster for the imperial court is because it is contrary to the doctrine itself and the support of the unification of the imperial court.

This unification is itself the result of ramology.

It is not only a political unity, but also an ideological unity, which summarizes all the ideas in the world into one, which is the so-called one morality. Let everyone in the world speak with one ideology.