"Humph, that's nonsense!"
After hearing what Yan Song said, Jiajing slammed the table and said in a deep voice.
When Yan Song saw this situation, a look of panic appeared on his face, and he quickly knelt on the ground and begged Jiajing for forgiveness.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
Jiajing stood up from the dragon chair, came to Yan Song, leaned down and said slowly.
"Old Yan Ge, then according to what you say, I can't touch them?"
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, Wei Chen doesn't mean that. Wei Chen just thinks that this matter should be discussed in the long term. For this reason..."
A look of shame appeared on Yan Song's face at the right time, and he explained to Jiajing, but before he finished speaking, he was coldly interrupted by Jiajing.
"No, that's what you mean!"
When Jiajing said this, he paused for a moment and then continued.
"I know that Mr. Yan Ge is also a scholar. Although you are the chief minister of the cabinet, you inevitably need to rely on the power of those gentry!"
Yan Song saw that the emperor understood his difficulties, and the expression on his face became much better. The corners of his mouth moved, but he did not make any sound.
"Mr. Yan Ge, I have a question here that I need you to answer for me."
After Jiajing finished speaking, he turned his gaze to Yan Song, who was kneeling on the ground, and said in a deep voice.
"Your Majesty, please speak clearly!"
Yan Song noticed the non-rejection contained in Jiajing's words and had no choice but to respond.
"In the Ming Dynasty, the gentry did not pay taxes, and the landlords and powerful landlords also used various methods to pay less or even no taxes. I want to ask, who did the part they paid less fall on?"
After hearing what Jiajing said, Yan Song knew that there was no chance of retreating and responded in a deep voice.
"Your Majesty, the part they underpaid will eventually fall on the common people."
After Jiajing received this answer from Yan Song, he also nodded, quickly looked away from Yan Song, and said slowly.
"Old Yan Ge, it seems you are not too confused."
After hearing Jiajing's evaluation of himself, Yan Song looked ashamed, kowtowed on the ground several times, and cried.
"Your Majesty, I am ashamed of my trust in you. I am guilty!"
Jiajing didn't express anything about Yan Song's words, and then continued.
"Everyone knows about this, but no one talks about it!"
"As for the reason, it's very simple. Who wants to harm their own interests? Why don't we just muddle along like this?"
"After I die, I won't care about the flood!"
When Jiajing said this, his tone suddenly increased.
Lu Fang, who had been focusing on reducing his sense of existence, couldn't help but tremble when he heard this. His eyes were full of fear when he looked at Jiajing.
At this moment, large beads of sweat were already rolling down Yan Song's forehead, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
"If the weather is good and the harvest is good, the people can still tolerate the exploitation."
"And once there is a year of famine, when no food can be grown in the fields and the people cannot even protect themselves, how can they afford such heavy taxes?"
"You must know that the portion that the gentry and landlords pay less will eventually fall on the common people in various ways. The common people cannot afford to pay taxes, so they have to sell their land and become refugees."
After Jiajing said this, he came to sit on the dragon chair, turned his eyes to Yan Song, and asked him.
"Yan Song, do you think I should implement the integrated payment of grains between officials and gentry?"
Yan Song saw this, and after thinking for a moment, he immediately responded respectfully.
"Your Majesty's words made me suddenly enlightened. I felt that we should implement the integrated payment of grains between officials and gentry!",
"It's just that Wei Chen feels..."
Jiajing noticed the hesitation on Yan Song's face, raised his eyebrows, and asked him.
"What do you think?"
"Weichen feels that this matter should be discussed in the long term. A specific charter should be drawn up first and then implemented. In this way, not only can resistance be reduced, but also hidden dangers can be eliminated by pooling wisdom."
When Yan Song saw Jiajing asking him about this, he carefully considered his words before answering, for fear that he might say something wrong and make the emperor unhappy.
When Jiajing heard this, he waved his hand and immediately gave instructions.
"In this case, let's wait until the next cabinet meeting to discuss this matter!"
Seeing that the matter had been settled, Yan Song suddenly breathed a sigh of relief and responded respectfully.
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
Then, Jiajing picked up the teapot on the table, poured himself a cup of hot tea, and said slowly.
"Old Yan Ge, I have one more thing that I need you to do!"
After Yan Song heard this, the expression on his face did not change, but he had already begun to feel uneasy in his heart.
"Does your Majesty still have anything difficult for me to do?"
Then, Yan Song suddenly came back to his senses and responded respectfully.
"Your Majesty, just do what you tell me, and I will do my best to share your Majesty's worries!"
Jiajing seemed to see Yan Song's uneasiness and laughed loudly.
"Don't worry, this is a good thing!"
Facing Yan Song's doubtful gaze, Jiajing continued.
"I plan to give officials one day off every week to rest. What do you think of Mr. Yan Ge?"
Hearing this, Yan Song had a look of disbelief on his face and confirmed to Jiajing with a trembling voice.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, did I hear you correctly?"
Seeing this, Jiajing nodded slightly and immediately spoke.
"Yes, that's what I planned!"
Yan Song immediately jumped for joy after getting the exact news from Jiajing.
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
"In this way, many officials of our Ming Dynasty will be grateful for your kindness all the time."
Jiajing withdrew his gaze, immediately picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and gave the order to expel the guests.
"Okay, I don't have anything to do with you here, you can go back."
Upon seeing this, Yan Song immediately plucked up the courage and asked Jiajing.
"Your Majesty, where do you want your ministers to go? To the cabinet or to your home?"
Jiajing heard this and responded angrily.
"Why, Mr. Yan Ge, do you still want to stay at home?"
As soon as Jiajing finished speaking, Yan Song suppressed the excitement in his heart and bowed respectfully to Jiajing.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"
"Well, you should go back to the cabinet first!"
Jiajing waved his hand impatiently and issued an order to expel the guests.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
After Yan Song responded, he didn't dare to stop at all, and immediately turned around and left the Yangxin Hall.
Watching Yan Song leave, Lu Fang stepped forward and asked Jiajing with hesitation on his face.
"Your Majesty, Feng Bao's side..."
Hearing this, Jiajing turned his gaze to Lu Fang and said slowly.
"Don't worry, it will come in handy, just give Yan Song an explanation!"
Lu Fang felt relieved after hearing this, and then stood beside Jiajing as usual.
…
Forbidden City, Cabinet.
When Xu Jie entered the cabinet in a good mood for the day, he suddenly discovered an unexpected figure.
Seeing this, the smile on Xu Jie's face suddenly froze, but soon returned to its original state. Then, Xu Jie came to Yan Song with a look of concern on his face.
"Mr. Yan Ge, are you feeling better?"
After hearing this, Yan Song stopped reviewing the memorial, immediately raised his head, and responded with a smile.
"Thanks to Mr. Xu Ge's concern, my health is much better!"
(End of chapter)
