"Prince, this year's summer taxes have been put into the treasury!"
In the Yamen of the Ministry of Finance, Zhu Cunqu lowered his head and buried himself in the papers, while the pen tip in his hand moved very quickly.
The small langhao pen can be used freely and dexterously in his hands.
Zuo Shilang in front of him couldn't help but admire in his heart, but he still remembered something important and hurriedly cupped his hands.
"How many times have I told you to call me Minister!"
Zhu Cunqu didn't even raise his head, but the latter was frightened and quickly said yes.
“Beijing can finally eat the new wheat from Henan!”
Zhu Cunqu stretched himself at this time and sighed with emotion.
According to court rules, summer taxes are collected from June to early July. At the end of the year, they must be sent to Beijing.
In the early years of Shaowu in Henan, due to lack of money, grain was levied, which was later changed to silver coins.
However, with the opening of the train from Baoding to Kaifeng, the food channel was immediately opened, allowing Beijingers to eat new wheat from Henan in less than half a month.
In order to prevent the low prices of grain from hurting farmers, the imperial court allowed Henan's summer taxes to be deducted with grain, and the median value of the five years was estimated as the tax collection standard.
The so-called Ping Bian method was to allow localities to freely collect grain and stabilize prices, but it was a new method in the Shaowu Dynasty.
The national taxation departments of various prefectures collected grain from the private sector in accordance with the prescribed prices and quantities. At the same time, the imperial merchants also took action. They just collected millions of grains in accordance with the instructions and stabilized the prices in Henan.
New wheat arrived in Beijing on the train, allowing Beijingers to taste Henan new wheat for the first time.
However, this also means that the price of grain in Henan will be controlled by the court.
The cooperation between the yamen and the imperial merchants allowed the imperial power to continue to expand.
"Because of the railway tracks, the capital can draw new grain from Henan Province in the south to Jilin in the north, so there is no longer any worry about food shortage."
"That's right!" Zhu Cunqu said excitedly: "During the pre-Ming Dynasty, four million stones of grain were transported from the south, of which eight million stones were lost; in the past and present, nearly half of the grain was transported by sea."
"As for the railway tracks, there is no worry of overturning, and there is no pain of transportation. I am afraid that the loss will be reduced to one point!"
One percent loss cost is already ridiculously low.
As he walked, he suddenly thought of something, and immediately opened his mouth and said: "From now on, the National Taxation Department will no longer collect grain."
"This is!"
Zhu Cunqu immediately noticed the loophole.
The National Taxation Department uses tax money to collect grain and then transfers it to the capital. Several of these processes will immediately become a profit-making platform for some people.
Therefore, the best way is to involve the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the imperial merchants.
"Sure enough, my father had the foresight and the emperor's merchants are the best minions!"
Zhu Cunqu smiled bitterly. This operation will create many more corrupt officials.
However, since it is the bitter fruit you brewed, then get rid of it yourself.
Thinking of this, he lowered his head and spoke to the eunuch beside him, and then he prepared to leave.
No matter what his thoughts were, he was always the confident prince.
As soon as he stepped out of the courtyard, a eunuch came hurriedly: "Your Majesty, I have something to call you!"
"Yeah!" Zhu Cunqu raised his eyebrows, then nodded in agreement.
The carriage was set up and a group of eunuchs followed.
After decades of expansion, Yuquan Villa has become larger and larger, covering an area of nearly a thousand acres, which is almost the same as the Forbidden City.
Therefore, it is difficult to travel within the village by foot, and carriage is the most convenient.
After traveling for a quarter of an hour, a heated hot spring palace came into view.
Everywhere you look, you can see beautiful young girls in thin clothes.
The emperor was lying in the hot spring with his eyes closed and was being massaged by several beauties. He was very relaxed.
"Father!"
Zhu Cunqu turned a blind eye, put on his wooden clogs, lowered his head and entered, kneeling on the soft cushion beside him.
"You came?"
Zhu Yixi didn't even open her eyes, feeling the sulfur smell of the hot spring, and said in a slightly hoarse voice:
"I have been living in Beijing for too long, and Jingji has become restless. I am preparing to inspect the West. You can stay in Beijing to supervise the country!"
"Father, Your Majesty, think twice!"
Zhu Cunqu was shocked and hurriedly tried to persuade him.
He was not impressed by the previous southern tour, but if the emperor visited the west at this time, he would understand the influence of the latter.
Even if the old emperor did nothing and just stayed there, he could still scare all the monsters and monsters.
"Think about it, I've thought about it hundreds of times!"
Zhu Yixi lost her previous magnanimity and scolded like an ordinary person: "Letting you supervise the country is training you. What's the point of just being in charge of the Ministry of Finance? You have to take charge of the overall situation!"
"Besides, while I can still move, why not go back to my hometown and have a look..."
Seeing that he couldn't be persuaded, Zhu Cunqu could only give up.
After explaining the matters to be paid attention to in the government affairs, Zhu Yixi stopped talking and closed his eyes to rest.
In fact, if you have been exposed to government affairs for a long time, there may not be a panacea, but Xiao Gui and Cao Sui are very simple.
Naturally, major matters were conveyed thousands of miles away and were handled by the emperor, while minor matters were handled by the prince overseeing the country.
In the blink of an eye, the time has come to the thirty-fourth year of Shaowu, the year 4680 of the Yanhuang calendar, and the year 1680 of the Western calendar.
Shortly after the beginning of spring, Gao Guiying died of illness at the age of sixty-two.
Immediately afterwards, Bian Yujing also died of illness at the age of fifty-nine.
Some elderly people in the palace, such as Sun Xueniang, Mu Han'er, etc., are also getting old.
At first, Zhu Yixi thought of letting them go to the vassal country to take care of themselves. Wouldn't it be nice to have his son serve in his position?
But in the blink of an eye, those remote mountainous places are either bitterly cold or scorching hot. It is simply torture. Traveling thousands of miles away is like torture. It is better to stay in Yuquan Mountain for retirement!
In this way, the fifty-seven-year-old Emperor Shaowu, carrying his young and large palace staff, headed west and began his first western tour.
Sitting on the train and feeling the different speed, Zhu Yixi felt a sense of nostalgia.
The train's compartment is entirely based on royal standards. Every table and chair is luxurious and extremely expensive. It's like a moving palace, extremely spacious.
The train moves forward at a speed of thirty miles per hour, slowly and in an orderly manner, allowing people to take a leisurely look at it.
"Your Majesty, we have arrived at Xuan Mansion!"
Dongzi reminded softly from the side.
"Xuanfu? Let's go and have a look!"
Zhu Yixi became interested. This was his first time coming to Xuan Mansion.
As the west gate of the capital of the Ming Dynasty, Xuanfu and Datong were collectively called Xuanda. During the two hundred years before the Ming Dynasty, it had always been the most important pass and one of the nine borders.
At its peak, there were more than 80,000 mounted infantry officers and soldiers and 30,000 war horses.
At this time, Xuanfu had already evolved into an inland area and was a cattle and sheep distribution center northwest of the capital.
As soon as he got out of the car, he smelled the smell of mutton.
Herds of cattle and sheep were driven here, clearly visible at a glance.
“How many cattle and sheep are there?”
"Your Majesty, there are about ten to ten thousand of them."
The magistrate of Xuanfu reported softly. He had been waiting for this moment for an unknown amount of time, and finally the emperor got out of the car.
"How many people?"
"The four counties of Xuanfu, Huailai, Longmen, Huai'an, Wanquan, have a total of 650,000 people, including about 30,000 Tatars..."
"Where are the taxes!"
"Two taxes and commercial tax, the annual revenue is one million, commercial tax accounts for the majority!"
The emperor didn't say anything, but asked a Tatar businessman to come over for questioning.
"What to sell? What to buy?"
"We sell wool, sheepskins, and cattle and sheep; if we buy, we usually buy porcelain, cotton cloth, tea, salt, sesame oil..."
"In terms of tax, how much is it?"
"Ten taxes and one tax, no more, no less..."
"How many people are there in the family? How many acres of land are there?"
"A family of eight. The land on the grassland is not valuable. They bought houses and fields in Xuanfu and are planning to move here..."
Zhu Yixi didn't ask any more questions. The conversation wasn't very exciting and ended hastily.
"Meng people can't stand the cold!"
Zhu Yixi shook his head.
During the Little Ice Age, the grasslands were bitterly cold, and there was hope and regular channels to go south to Han Dynasty. Who would want to stay in the grasslands?
It is natural to like warmth.
After going around in a circle, he came to a village.
This is a typical village that combines agriculture and animal husbandry.
There were many sheep wandering around in front of and behind the village, and the children grazing them had their faces red with the cold. They were watching over them so as not to harm the crops.
Most people's houses are thatched with earthen walls, simple traditional houses with thick earthen walls, and there are a few clucking chickens in the small courtyard.
Occasionally, I saw horses in a few large tile-roofed houses, which seemed to be for transportation.
Most of the crops outside the village are winter wheat, and there are also some sugar beets.
On the slopes, you can still see traces of sweet potatoes.
Among vegetables, radish is the most common.
When asked about beets, I was told that only the wealthy people in town grow them, and they were not familiar with them.
However, milkvetch and alfalfa are the things that everyone is most willing to grow.
The land in the north is barren, and milkvetch can fertilize the fields; alfalfa does not pick the ground, it is a perennial, and can be used as silage to raise cattle and sheep.
This comforted Zhu Yixi.
The number of children was the largest, but they were watched over by adults and did not dare to move.
Each family has more than three children. Only if they live a decent life can they feed so many people.
There is nothing more prosperous than this.
Zhu Yixi smiled, and said casually, "Each family will be rewarded with one stone of grain and half a catty of brown sugar!"
With that, he stepped onto the train and continued on his way.
Beijing, Xuanfu, Datong, and then to Suiyuan, a grassland province where the number of Mongolians is second only to Chahar.
As the land of Hetao, south of Yinshan Mountain, Suiyuan is a rare good place on the grassland, but this is the first time the emperor has arrived.
Looking at Yinshan Mountain and feeling its majesty and hugeness, Zhu Yixi suddenly felt relaxed and happy.
Seal the wolf to live in Xu, and cut the stone from the Yinshan Mountain, which was the highest pursuit of the ancient generals, but now it is within easy reach. No longer cherish it.
(End of chapter)
