Chapter 683: The Emperor Says, Don't Be Absent!

（0683）

“.”

"The six Shangshu, the squire, and the giving must all participate, and no one is allowed to be absent."

Chongzhen thought for a moment and suddenly said.

"Yes, Emperor."

Wang Chengen agreed.

When he turned around, the old eunuch's heart felt a slight emotion. When did the emperor convene a group of ministers to discuss the matter, and he actually had to add a sentence "must not be absent" at the end? The emperor is the supreme of the Ninety-Five, and Chrysostom is the holy decree. The emperor *** indulges in the life and death of his ministers, who dares to be absent? Even if you unconsciously add such a sentence, do you think that someone will say that you are sick and can't come?

Wen Tiren suddenly said that Wang Chengen knew some inside stories about the illness. Wen Tiren really doesn't want to do it anymore and wants to go back to enjoy his old age. After so many years as the first assistant, he has earned enough, enough for generations of children and grandchildren. Now, the situation at the imperial court is getting worse and worse, and it has reached the point of no return. If he doesn't leave now, and if he leaves later, I'm afraid his hands will be long. In other words, Wen Tiren abandoned Chongzhen and wanted to get rid of the haze of the imperial court.

It's just that Chongzhen didn't know that he thought Wen Tiren was really sick. He confidently felt that no one would be unwilling to stay by his side. Unless they don't want them anymore, they will never take the initiative to leave. It is with such self-confidence that after Wang Chengen left, Chongzhen still paced back and forth in the study, thinking about things seriously.

After appointing Yang Sichang, the governor of Tianxiaqinwang, Chongzhen realized a huge problem, that is, he lacked some necessary things in his hands. Such things are money and food. To command King Qin's army, you must have money and food. If the commander has no money and food, the general soldiers, deputy general soldiers, staff generals, guerrillas, and so on below will not listen to you at all.

This is what Chongzhen heard from Jinyiwei. The current army commanders can basically only rely on the distribution of money and food in their hands to control the army. Obedient generals get more money and food. Disobedient generals get less money and food. If you go against the manager, you will be cut off from the supply of money and food. The consequence of cutting off the supply of money and food was that the soldiers at the grassroots level rebelled and demanded money and food.

This is a very deadly control measure, and once it is out of control, a large-scale rebellion will form. However, apart from such fundamental measures, the commander-in-chief of the army could not think of a better way to control it. The authority of the court, the authority of the boss, is constantly being lost with the defeat everywhere. To put it mildly, even if he is the emperor, if he has no money and food in his hands, his army will definitely not be obedient.

However, the treasury has long been empty, and the internal treasury is also empty, even if Chongzhen wants to do his best to help Yang Sichang, he can't do it. Without enough money and food, no matter how great Yang Sichang's ability is, he can't succeed! However, since he wants to support Yang Sichang and expects Yang Sichang to make military achievements, the problem of money and food should be solved as much as possible.

However, after thinking about it, Chongzhen still didn't think of any good ideas. The main source of money and food for the imperial court was Jiangnan. The money and grain in the south of the Yangtze River all entered the capital through Cao Yun. Now, the transportation has been temporarily cut off, and the tax and silver in Jiangnan cannot be transported in time, making the lack of money and grain in the imperial court more and more serious. No one can guarantee when the luck will be restored.

Yang Yipeng, the governor of Caoyun, was actually in the Beijing Division, ready to be dispatched at any time. However, the truncation of Cao Yun has nothing to do with Yang Yipeng. Cao Yun was cut off by the Tartar, and Yang Yipeng had no ability to drive the Tartar away. In the end, the restoration of Cao Yun still depends on the efforts of the imperial court and the army. Only by driving the Tartars out of the customs can the water transport be unimpeded. However, how easy is it to get the murderous Tartars out of the customs?

It was already after the second watch, Chongzhen didn't feel the slightest sleep, he simply walked around the courtyard of the Qianqing Palace. The two palace maids stood silently on both sides of the Dan Xiang with two silk palace lanterns, and the other eunuchs and palace maids who were on duty stood far away in the dark shadows, not even daring to come out. As state affairs continue to darken, Chongzhen's temper is becoming more and more elusive, and the palace maids and eunuchs below dare not touch Chongzhen's moldy head easily.

Occasionally, a sharp and cold north wind blew, and the iron horse at the eaves of the palace made a dingdong sound, but Chongzhen didn't seem to hear it. His mind was thinking about the terrible situation that he could not help but worry about, and from time to time he sighed, and seemed very lonely in the darkness. After a long period of panic, he lowered his head and walked back to the East Warm Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace with heavy steps, and sat down in front of the imperial case again.

At present, Jiangbei, Huguang, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, Hebei ...... Half of China, everywhere there are disasters and famines, there are rebellions everywhere, large groups of tens of thousands, followed by thousands, and small groups of hundreds of people are everywhere. South of the Yangtze River, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian and other places also have famines and riots, and even the so-called land of fish and rice in Suzhou and Jiaxing has also encountered droughts and locust plagues, and grain prices have soared.

Since he took over, the situation has gotten worse and worse, and now there is hardly a quiet land in sight. The direct consequence of these things is that the tax revenue of the imperial court is decreasing year by year. And the expenditure of the imperial court is increasing year by year. The most obvious example of this is the growing military spending. The income of the imperial court is completely insufficient for military spending.

In the past, Nanzhili could pay two or three million taels of tax and silver a year, but last year it was only a few hundred thousand taels. Zhejiang, too. In the past, Zhejiang could pay more than 1 million taels of taxes and silver a year, but last year it was less than 700,000 taels. If the situation does not improve, this year's tax revenue may be even less. is a drop in the bucket, such an income is not enough to see.

However, military spending has increased substantially. In addition to dealing with the Dongyu and the Shaanxi rebels, the imperial court also had to deal with a guy named Zhang Zhun. The army of the imperial court is constantly increasing, but there is always no news of victory in the battle. Even if there is, in the end, it is often found out that it is the generals below who have taken the plunge to kill the good and take the lead. While deceiving the imperial court, it also forced more people to join the ranks of the rebellious army.

"The treasury is like a wash, how can it be good?"

Chongzhen felt the pain in his mind as if he was about to faint.

At present, the state affairs are burning, and not only Yang Sichang is in urgent need of food. For several days, he received urgent documents from various provinces every day, either asking for pay or asking for soldiers. Because of his dissatisfaction with Zhang Fengyi, Chongzhen recently appointed a new governor of Jiliao. However, the first thing the governor of Jiliao, named Wu Aheng, did when he took office was to ask the court for money and food, and he also spoke eloquently.

Wu Aheng said in the recital that since he went out of the customs in accordance with the order and moved to Liaodong, he has always encouraged the soldiers and soldiers to repay the country with death, but the shortage of military salaries makes it difficult to defend the war. He said that he was willing to "repay the emperor's kindness by smearing his liver and brains on the ground," but he begged the emperor to order the household department to quickly raise military salaries and transport them outside the customs, so as not to cause the officers and men of the three armies to "fight against the enemy" and lose their morale. The generous and painful wording of this dense letter made Chongzhen both moved and sad, and then felt very helpless.

The supervisors and governors of Liaodong seem to be all the way. The Liaodong Prison Army was not active in sneaking into the army, but it was very active in asking the court for money and food, and a letter arrived on time almost every three days. Every time Chongzhen saw Gao Qiqian's recital, he couldn't wait to lift him over immediately and kick him to death. But after calming down, I didn't care about it again. There aren't many people he can trust now, and Gao Qiqian is one of them.

With the example of Wu Aheng and Gao Qiqian, other towns are naturally desperately calling for poverty and asking the court to allocate food and wages. Wang Kun is shouting, Hong Chengchou is shouting, and all the army commanders are shouting. Even Zuo Liangyu dared to write directly to the imperial court, demanding that enough food and salary be allocated, otherwise, the soldiers might change. This is simply a threat to the imperial court.

This night, Chongzhen slept very unsteadily, lying on the bed, still thinking about how to raise money. After thinking about it, he finally came up with a quicker and more effective method, which was to ask the royal relatives and nobles to give the country some money. He thought that the royal family "received the grace of the country" and "shared weal and woe" with the country. At present, the country is very difficult, and others are unwilling to pay, so they should take out the money to advocate it, and also let the subjects of the world know that he is not selfish as a monarch.

But which royal family should be called an example?

Chongzhen heard on weekdays that there are three richest families among the imperial family: one is the queen's maiden family, one is the maiden family of Tian Guifei, and the other is the Li family of Wuqing Marquis. The first two families are all new households, relying on the status of the emperor's relatives and the queen and Tian Concubine are favored by the emperor, annexing land and operating businesses in the Gyeonggi area, and the situation of more than ten years has accumulated a lot of property, surpassing many old royal relatives.

The Marquis of Wuqing is the maiden family of the Empress Dowager Xiaoding, the mother of the Wanli Emperor, and the current generation of Marquis Li Guorui is Chongzhen's cousin. Legend has it that before Wanli's pro-government, state affairs were presided over by the Empress Dowager Xiaoding and the Minister of Power Zhang Juzheng, according to legend, the Empress Dowager Xiaoding often transported the gold and silver treasures in the palace to her mother's house, some were publicly rewarded, and some were not publicly rewarded, so until today, the Marquis of Wuqing is still very rich, second to none among the old and new emperors.

Among the three royal families, one of them can set an example, and the rest of the royal relatives are kind enough to convince and pay the money. But Chongzhen refused to stab the heart of the queen and Concubine Tian, and he couldn't ask Zhou Kui and Tian Hongyu to set an example first. Thinking about it, it is more appropriate to call Li Guorui as an example. Because of Zhang Juzheng's relationship, Chongzhen was not very kind to Li Guorui's family. This time it's going to bleed, just like their house.

I also want to ask the royal relatives for money, but it may not go well, and in case of resistance, it is bound to be strictly responsible, and even use national law. But this is not an ordinary event, there is no such story among the ancestors of the past generations, will the ancestors be surprised by the spirit of the sky? What will all the royal relatives say? Thinking about it repeatedly, Chongzhen suddenly hesitated again.

Finally, when it was time to go to the court, Chongzhen tried his best to shake his spirits, finished dressing, and then came to the Wenhua Palace. The Wenhua Hall was originally a place where the emperor specially received the new science and technology scholars. Now, Chongzhen is here to discuss matters, mainly to change the environment and change his mood by the way.

The scholars of the cabinet, as well as the scholars of the six ministries, the squire, and the ministers, all stood here. Wang Chengen announced the arrival of Chongzhen, and all the ministers knelt down and saluted. Three kneeling and nine bowing in a proper manner, there are many etiquettes. Wang Chengen sang next to him, his face was serious and meticulous.

I don't know why, Chongzhen didn't say anything about being polite today, Mu Ran sat on the dragon chair and asked all the ministers to salute obediently. Chongzhen probably felt that these people in front of him were holding their own money, but they couldn't help him solve the problem, they were like waste. Even if it's not a waste, it's a mediocrity. For such waste and mediocrity, let them kneel a little more.

After the salute, Chongzhen had nothing extra to say, and the ministers who were directly present solved the problem of food and salary. As a result, as soon as his words fell, the entire Wenhua Hall was cold, and there was only the sound of whirring wind. Thirty or forty ministers stood in the huge Wenhua Hall, quietly listening to the wind outside, and had no intention of speaking at all.

Today, the wind and sand in the city are particularly strong, and the Han generals at the gate of the Wenhua Hall are almost unstable on their feet. The wind and sand have been blowing for four days and four nights in a row, shrouding the entire *** city in a gray cloud. Even in the Forbidden City, there are many places where the wind and sand have not yet been cleaned, not to mention many places in the city.

Due to the continuous entry of the Tartars, the northern part of the Ming Kingdom, a desolation, a large number of fields were abandoned, coupled with perennial drought, a large desert was formed, which was the main reason for the formation of wind and dust storms. However, most people don't understand the principle and think that the gods blame and that God is punishing certain people.

The old people of the city say that this is something that has not happened in hundreds of years. There are rumors in the secret that I am afraid that the sky will change. These rumors reached Chongzhen's ears through Jinyiwei's secret agents. In addition to his anger, Chongzhen also had a trace of inexplicable fear. When it comes to gods and ghosts, most people would rather believe in what they exist than what they don't.

Seeing that no one spoke, Chongzhen was secretly angry in his heart, and his hatred for these ministers in front of him became stronger and stronger. I don't know when Chongzhen started to have a suspicious and hostile attitude towards all civil officials, believing that they could not help him solve problems at all. It was cold for a long time, and still no one spoke. Chongzhen had no choice but to ask, "How much silver does the household department have at present?" ”

The Hou Sui of the Hubu Shangshu came out of the ranks, and Mu Ran, who had a dead face, replied: "There is no way to send the salt tax in Jiangnan to Jingshi, and there are less than 10,000 taels of silver in Taicang at present. ”

The ministers present were all silent.

The sound of the wind whistling outside seemed to be even louder.

The dignified Taicang silver, the dignified treasury of the Ming Empire, is less than 10,000 taels of silver! When you say that, you feel like you're going crazy. Many people wonder if Hou Sui has said one less word "10,000", less than 1 million taels is about the same. However, this is the real situation. No one doubted that Hou Sui would tell a lie. Hou Sui said that the treasury was less than 10,000 taels of silver, that is, it was really less than 10,000 taels of silver.

Hearing this terrifying figure, the new first assistant Liu Yuliang had to cough, knelt down, and said bitterly: "The treasury is empty, and Weichen is really to blame, and I ask the emperor to give him the blame." ”

Although he is the newly appointed first assistant, he does not have much responsibility for the mess left by Wen Tiren. However, for the sake of safety, Liu Yuliang was the first to confess. His cultural level is not very high, and the last thing he wants in his life is to study, and he is admitted to the imperial examination, completely because of some other reasons. Wen Tiren suddenly fell ill, and he suddenly became the first assistant, which made him feel a lot of pressure. Somehow, Liu Yuliang is always worried that he will be used as a scapegoat by Chongzhen.

Faced with the mess in front of him, Liu Yuliang was absolutely powerless. The imperial court wants no people, no money, no food, no grain. Even Wen Tiren is so smart and has such a skill, he can't play, how can he play? If it weren't for the fear of angering Chongzhen, Liu Yuliang would want to leave now. He didn't know how Wen Tiren suddenly fell ill, if he could learn Wen Tiren's skills, he would also come to do this. The current Shoufu is definitely going to kill people!

Chongzhen frowned and said, "Now is not the time to ask for guilt, we have to find a way to solve it." ”

Liu Yuliang was a little relieved, and then went back to the queue.

The other ministers all looked down at their toes and refused to speak.

Seeing that he was about to continue to be cold, Chongzhen had to encourage and said: "The speaker is not guilty, no matter what suggestions you have, you can speak freely, and I will definitely not blame." ”

Fan Fucui, a university scholar, said: "The day before yesterday, a student wrote to Weichen and described some ways to raise food......

Chongzhen frowned and said: "National affairs, where is the turn of the students to talk too much?" ”

Fan Fucui insisted: "After Weichen read it, I feel that it makes some sense. Perhaps, the emperor and all the ministers present can listen to it, and those who speak are not guilty! ”

This is a bit unkind to say, and it has the flavor of making Emperor Chongzhen accept his opinion. However, the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty basically didn't care about this, especially the cabinet ministers, who often competed with the emperor. Fan Fucui's anger a few days ago has not completely subsided, and it is not strange to say such a thing.

Sure enough, Chongzhen didn't care too much, nodded and said, "You can say it." ”

Fan Fucui said slowly: "This student is named Li Lian. He said that when there is a great chaos today, the northern country and the Central Plains have been completely eroded, and only the southern part of the Yangtze River remains. However, for many years, there has been no disaster in the south of the Yangtze River, and large households have annexed land, operated businesses, only known about fine clothes and food, competed for luxury, had groups of wives and concubines, and thousands of gorgeous houses, just to satisfy their own selfish desires, and did not think about the difficulties of the country. ”

"The root cause of the great turmoil in Qin, Jin, Henan, Chu and other provinces was that the big families only knew how to exploit the small people and annex the land, resulting in a huge disparity between the rich and the poor. Even in a good harvest year, the small people are still hungry and cold. When there was a famine, the weak had to starve to death by the roadside, and the strong rose up to rebel. The chaotic people in Shaanxi are constantly killed, and this is the most fundamental reason. ”

"Gangnam seems to be stable today, but in fact there are crises lurking everywhere. If we don't annex the land as soon as possible and relieve the hardships of the small people, then the catastrophe of the collapse of Qin, Jin, Henan, and Chu will also appear in the south of the Yangtze River. He implored the emperor to resolutely issue an edict, ordering the big households in Jiangnan to automatically report their properties, pledge military salaries, and confiscate his family property if they disobeyed, and not tolerate it at all. In addition, he also suggested that the annexation of large households should be strictly prohibited, and the land should be carefully cleared so that the burden of the people would be equalized. ”

After Fan Fucui finished speaking, the Wenhua Hall seemed even more silent, and no one dared to speak. Originally, everyone thought that this student had something to offer, but they didn't expect it to be Zhang Zhun's set! In Fan Fucui's paraphrasing, there is a very serious problem, that is, re-measuring the land. Why re-measure the land? Prepare for the redistribution of land, of course! Zhang Zhun's "Juntian Order" is such content! Why did everyone present hate Zhang Zhun? It's because Zhang Zhun wants to divide their land!

Now, this student named Li Lian actually braved the world's condemnation and mentioned such content in the recital, I really don't know how the dead word is written. Jiangsu and Zhejiang are the financial resources of the imperial court, and the imperial court can make moves anywhere, but it can't do actions in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. If Jiangsu and Zhejiang are messed up, the imperial court will be completely finished.

After Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he was also half happy and half worried. The method provided by this Li Lian, on the surface, is indeed feasible. The problem is that it must not be moved in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. If the big families in Jiangsu and Zhejiang rose up against the imperial court because of Li Lian's suggestion, the ruling foundation of the imperial court in Jiangsu and Zhejiang would also completely collapse. After hesitating for a moment, Chongzhen said slowly: "Ministers, what do you think?" ”

Fan Fucui couldn't help but sigh slightly. He knew that Chongzhen would react like this. Not being decisive when you should be decisive, not being merciful when you should be merciful, this is Chongzhen's biggest problem. Regarding Lu Xiangsheng's mistakes, he seemed so arbitrary, without thinking about it, he couldn't help but say anything, and put Lu Xiangsheng in prison. But Li Lian's proposal, he was indecisive and didn't dare to make an idea.

If Chongzhen has a resolute attitude and echoes him, there may not be fewer people. In Jiangsu and Zhejiang, there will not be many people who dare to fight against the imperial court. However, once Chongzhen put on the appearance of asking for opinions and was not resolute, this suggestion was easily beaten back. Is it easy to get money out of someone's pocket?

Sure enough, Fu Zonglong, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, took the lead in refuting it, believing that Li Lian's suggestion shook the foundation of the imperial court. Now, there are many displaced people all over the world, and the only source of finance and taxation is the large households in various places. If even they were dissatisfied with the imperial court, the consequences would be unimaginable. Fu Zonglong proposed that Li Lian be beheaded for public display to reassure the people. The other ministers also spoke one after another, and they did not approve of Li Lian's proposal.

This time, it was Chongzhen's turn to be depressed again.

If you don't have enough money and food, how can you help Yang Sichang create military exploits?

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