The implementation of the new commercial tax law was blocked. The young eunuch once proposed to increase commercial taxes and increase the existing commercial taxes to fill the national treasury. After all, these days, the national treasury revenue almost only relies on agricultural taxes. The people are already suffering enough. Various taxes are also levied. It is no wonder that people are rebelling. , but the taxes on those businesses are pitifully low, and some even don’t have to pay taxes.
Emperor Chongzhen naturally agreed, and he strongly supported the proposal of the young eunuch, a confidant, to make money for him.
However, several big shots in the cabinet did not agree at first. Wei Zhongxian had done this before and made a lot of money for Zhu Youxiao. He was impeached by the Donglin Party and other civil servant groups for taking profits from the people. In fact, it was just for their own benefit. That’s all.
So as soon as Emperor Chongzhen proposed it this time, the cabinet felt that the remnants of Wei Zhongxian were resurrected. When they heard that it was Chang Yu's suggestion, they even cursed. However, thinking that this guy was leading an army to pursue the Qing army at this time, It is not advisable to be too offended and just hold back your anger and persuade Emperor Chongzhen to give up, so as not to make the people resentful.
As expected, Emperor Chongzhen tried the water with Chang Yu for a while and saw such a big reaction. He sneered in his heart and said, 90% of the business tax will go to the treasury!
The big bosses in the cabinet were immediately dumbfounded. Wei Zhongxian's tea tax and other income at that time was all transferred to the emperor's treasury. They still had reasons. They were speechless at this time. Although they were unhappy, they couldn't find the reason for the moment. reject.
After the cabinet reluctantly agreed, Emperor Chongzhen ordered it to be implemented on a trial basis in the capital and Nanjing at the same time. Nanjing is not yet known, but there have been complaints in the capital in the past few days. Merchants all said that just after the war, the people were having a hard time and they were collecting gross business taxes. They were so poor that they were crazy. Right?
When various news came to the palace, Emperor Chongzhen sneered. He naturally knew that those people were causing trouble behind the scenes.
"Chang Yu is right, you're so spoiled!" Emperor Chongzhen slapped the table and glared. Wang Chengen whispered comfort beside him: "As the old saying goes, the love of rice rises to the level of hatred..."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Eunuch Chun of Dongchang came in with a note." At this time, the eunuch outside Qianqing Palace knocked on the door and said softly.
At this time, the sky was dark and the palace doors were closed. Chunxiang did not have the privilege of Chang Yu to enter the harem directly, but he still handed in a note so late. It must be an important matter, and it was most likely the military situation on Chang Yu's side.
Chongzhen quickly asked Wang Chenen to take the note, then opened it and read it. He was suddenly stunned and his brows were twisted into knots. Wang Chenen knew that something important must have happened, and was very worried: "Your Majesty, could it be Eunuch Chang..."
"No!" Emperor Chongzhen shook his head slightly, spread out the note in his hand, and Wang Chenen glanced at it: King Qin is now in Puzhou (today's Yongji, Shanxi)
The King of Qin's lineage is not small, he is the second eldest son of Emperor Taizu's family, Zhu Xi, whose status is second only to that of Prince Zhu Biao. His military power at that time was not even comparable to that of Zhu Di, the later Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, and his wife's background is not small either. The main concubine is the wife of Zhang Wuji, and yes, she is the sister of Wang Baobao, the king of Henan in the Yuan Dynasty. The side concubine is also the daughter of Deng Yu, the king of Ninghe. Anyway, she is old and powerful, otherwise Lao Zhu would not be able to conquer the ancient capital of the Thirteen Dynasties. Xi'an gave him a fiefdom, and he was known as the first vassal king of the Ming Dynasty!
It’s just that two or three hundred years have passed. No matter how powerful the vassal king was at that time, his descendants are just trash raised in captivity and left to die. This generation of Qin King Zhu Cunji is just like this. It can even be said that he is not even trash. No, he is just a coward and a scumbag who is afraid of death.
Last year, Li Zicheng followed Gu Junen's suggestion of breaking into Xi'an first to establish a base, and led his troops to attack Xi'an and defeated Sun Chuanting. Bai Guangen, who was defending Tongguan, the gate of Xi'an, surrendered, and Xi'an became an isolated city.
It was freezing cold at that time, and the soldiers on the city had no food or clothing, and even had to defend the city barefoot in the ice and snow. Governor Feng Shikong suggested that he take out silver grain and grass from the treasury to reward the troops in order to wait for reinforcements.
The guy ignored him, and Yan Sunchuanting's hundreds of thousands of troops dispersed and surrendered. Where were the Mao reinforcements? At this time, the soldiers on the city were suffering from hunger and cold. When Li Zicheng came to attack, the deputy general Wang Genzi killed Feng Shikong and opened the east gate. After Li Zicheng entered the city, Zhu Cunji took his son King Yongshou with his upper body exposed and carried a thorn to plead guilty and surrendered. The chief envoy Lu Zhiqi led 300 officials to kneel down and surrender...
Li Zicheng was overjoyed and made him a powerful general.
Then... his family property was confiscated, and his palace was used as a palace!
And he took him with him during the Eastern Expedition. Historically, Zhu Cunji went to Beijing for this reason, but was defeated and killed on the way back to Xi'an more than ten days later. The location and time were very similar to Li Yan, both in Zhending. Mansion!
Of course, these are all things pieced together from later generations' historical data, but at present, Emperor Chongzhen knew very little about Zhu Cunji. He heard that Xi'an was occupied by bandits in October last year, and thought that the lineage of the King of Qin was over.
Unexpectedly, later news came out that Zhu Cunji was not as good as a general after being killed, and that he had surrendered.
Emperor Chongzhen was skeptical when he first heard about it. After all, the propaganda of the bandits these days was very watery, and it was difficult to tell the truth from the false. They also deliberately stirred up trouble. Later, more and more rumors spread that Zhu Cunji was indeed not dead, and he became furious. abnormal.
If Zhu Cunji is not dead, it can only mean one thing, he really surrendered!
Because of Li Zicheng's past behavior, if he destroyed a city, he would definitely kill the vassal king! Even those who surrendered were not allowed. Zhu Youfan, the Chongwang of Runing, was the cousin of Emperor Chongzhen. After Li Zicheng broke the city, he shot the guard Yang Wenyue to death. The Chongwang family surrendered, and Li Zicheng named him Xiangyang Bo. The dignified Ming Dynasty vassal king was It was a great shame and humiliation to be granted the title of earl. Zhu Youfan did not accept it, but Li Zicheng was very happy and killed him directly!
But Zhu Cunji is actually living well! It can be seen that he not only surrendered, but also shamelessly accepted the reward from the thief!
I tolerated the civil servants subjugating thieves, and the military generals subjugated thieves, I tolerated it. However, the majestic Ming Dynasty king surrendered thieves and became mere pawns, which not only insulted the ancestors, but also the face of the royal family and the country.
Emperor Chongzhen naturally couldn't bear it!
However, Emperor Chongzhen was very puzzled, why did Zhu Cunji appear in Puzhou? He did not know about Zhu Cunji and Li Zicheng's Eastern Expedition together. He was wondering whether the rumors were wrong and he escaped instead of surrendering to the intruders.
Although Emperor Chongzhen regarded the vassal king as a thorn in his side, it was not easy to unjust him. If he really escaped, he would have to be comforted or killed... Well, it would be a little tricky without the little eunuch around.
In order to find out what was going on, Emperor Chongzhen asked Chunxiang to enter the palace to elaborate on the matter.
But what Chunxiang knew was unknown. A few days ago, he sent a fan to Puzhou to convey the military order of the young eunuch, asking Gao Jie and others to garrison the banks of the Yellow River and monitor their military discipline.
But just now someone outside the city sent news that Gao Jie and Liu Zeqing had captured King Qin in Puzhou and had confirmed their identity, and were preparing to send people to Beijing to claim credit.
What's more, these scoundrels are so shameless. They were ordered to pursue Li Zicheng, and the three of them made a lot of money, but they still reported to the court that they had merit in defeating the thief and asked for a reward.
Emperor Chongzhen's face turned dark at that time, and he cursed angrily in the palace, but he could not say anything clearly. He also sent eunuchs to deliver oral instructions and commendations, saying that after the Tatars retreated, he would also reward the generals, temporarily stabilizing a few people. live.
At this time, Zhu Cunji was asked to reward him without permission, which really challenged his patience and bottom line.
I have to say that Gao Jie and the others are all brainless. They thought Zhu Cunji was a treasure, but in fact he was a hot potato. Chang Yu would have either secretly let him go or secretly killed him, so he wouldn't take it out. Ask the emperor for rewards on the table.
How to deal with Zhu Cunji is a family matter, but it is also a troublesome and troublesome matter. If Emperor Chongzhen does not handle it well, he will be scolded by the cabinet and the government and the public.
Therefore, he urgently needs a confidant to deal with it, and the young eunuch is the most suitable one, and he has several experiences. However, it is difficult to lead the troops at this time, so should Wu Mengming be allowed to go? Although this guy was loyal, he was rough in his work. After thinking about it, he looked at Chunxiang and said, "Go and find out whether King Qin escaped or surrendered."
Chunxiang gave the order, but as soon as he left the Qianqing Palace, he was stopped again. Emperor Chongzhen stood at the door of the palace and stared at him: "You know what to do, right?"
Chunxiang couldn't help but get goosebumps: "I know, little one."
"What do you know?" Emperor Chongzhen asked coldly.
"Youngster, you don't know anything." Chunxiang looked down at his toes. Emperor Chongzhen grunted and raised his hand: "Go ahead and beat those bastards!"
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Before the war, let the supporting characters have some air. If you like this book, remember to vote for it. Thank you for your support!
