It’s already summer in the capital in May.
The sun is getting longer and the heat is rising. Everyone from the court officials to ordinary people have put on light clothes, but standing under the sun, you can't help but sweat on your head.
The emperor has always been considerate of his ministers, so these days, the morning court time is also well controlled. He rises at sunrise and disperses when the weather is a little warmer.
This is naturally a good thing for most courtiers, but for workaholics like a certain minister named Yu, it is inevitable that there is not enough time.
so……
"I have met His Majesty!"
In the Wuying Palace, Zhu Qiyu looked speechlessly at Yu Qian, who had just come out of court and handed over a sign to see him, and Shen Yi, who was obviously reluctant but was forced to come over.
"You two gentlemen are very diligent. We have just left the court in the morning and haven't had time to rest for a while. You are so anxious to meet us. What's the rush?"
Nothing urgent, I also want to rest...
Shen Shangshu wanted to say this, but when he felt Yu Qian's warning gaze beside him, he had no choice but to say it.
"Your Majesty, there has been a lot of progress in rectifying the military garrison. There is not enough time in the morning court to report in detail. Therefore, I and Yu Shaobao hurriedly came to see your majesty after the morning court to discuss the next steps."
Well, Yu Qian gave him a good look, and regardless of whether the emperor wanted it or not, he stepped forward and said to himself.
"Your Majesty, in the past month, the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household Affairs have forwarded documents to various prefectures and counties according to the field records submitted by each prefecture, and inspected the censors and ordered them to check them in detail. At present, there is no big problem. However, during the inspection, some fields that were still hidden were discovered, and in many places, resistance was encountered when the fields were confiscated."
"In addition, the land clearing in various places has been started one after another. The border clearing that started first has basically been completed. This is detailed data. Your Majesty, please take a look."
As he spoke, Yu Shaobao easily took out the memorandum that had been prepared in his sleeve, without any explanation, thrust it into the hands of the chamberlain on the side, and then forwarded it to the emperor.
Seeing Yu Qian's appearance, Zhu Qiyu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. However, the memorial was handed over, so he gathered his energy and started to read.
Of course, as a considerate emperor, he still ordered people to give Yu Qian and his wife a seat, serve tea, and reward them with several plates of cakes.
This considerate act made Shen Shangshu, who had been standing for more than half an hour and was already quite hungry, almost burst into tears of gratitude.
People in their position are actually much more casual in private situations. In addition, Shen Shangshu was indeed a little hungry, so he ignored the etiquette and took advantage of the emperor to read the memorial. A piece of pastry must be put into your mouth.
"absurd!"
As soon as the pastry came to Shen Shangshu's mouth, he was so surprised that he almost dropped it on his robe. Fortunately, his hands were still steady, otherwise he would have crushed the pastry and scattered it on his body, which would have been a big deal.
Shen Yi put the cake back on the plate with lingering fear. Shen Yi secretly looked at the emperor, but saw that the old man was slightly angry, but his eyes were still focused on the memorial on the imperial desk, apparently not noticing his little gaffe. .
He glared at Yu Qian with dissatisfaction at the old man next to him. What exactly was written in this memorial was not made clear when he was pulled over. This scared people...
Seeing that this memorial was not too thin, it was estimated that the emperor would not be able to finish it in a short time. In order to appease his frightened heart, Master Shen touched the tea cup next to him. Well, the people who serve in the palace have eyes and warmth. just.
He picked up the tea cup and blew it gently. The fragrance of tea overflowed. After taking a sip, the wrinkles on Shen Shangshu's face relaxed a bit.
The tea is good. Let’s think about it later and see if we can get a few cans from His Majesty...
After taking another sip, Shen Shangshu placed the tea cup back on the table beside him with satisfaction.
"Nonsense!"
There was a muffled sound, which meant that Chen Yi's hand was less than half an inch away from the table, otherwise, this fine porcelain would definitely be broken.
However, even so, the sound of the tea cup hitting the table still echoed in Wuying Hall, attracting the attention of the emperor.
Shen Shangshu retracted his hand silently and made up his mind that he would not touch any food or drink in this palace from now on...
Seeing that the emperor was angry, but obviously still intending to continue reading and had no intention of speaking, Shen Shangshu felt that he could no longer sit still and wait for death.
If you are frightened twice more, why don't you retire early?
So, after taking another look at Yu Qian who had become extremely calm and calm, not caring about anything except the memorial on the ground, Chen Yi had no choice but to stand up and said.
"Your Majesty, please calm down and take care of your dragon body."
"I am frightened. I wonder what happened in Shaobao's memorial that made His Majesty so angry?"
"Sir, see for yourself!"
The emperor was obviously in a bad mood and handed the memorial to the chamberlain beside him, and then passed it to Chen Yi's hands.
With a curious attitude, Shen Shangshu opened the memorial and took a quick look. It was normal at the front. Yu Qian reported the detailed data of the military settlements during this period.
As Yu Qian said, the border clearing has basically come to an end. According to the latest official documents sent back, a total of about 60,000 acres of hidden land have been identified across the border.
During these days, under the leadership of Chengguo Gongfu, Changping Marquis Mansion, Fengguo Gongfu, Jing'an Bo Mansion and other nobles, each family's nobles, more or less, have sent gifts to the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household Affairs. According to the field records, the total number is about 17,000 hectares.
After excluding this part, the remaining 43,000 hectares, about 20,000 hectares, are in the name of local gentry, and there are still many owned by border generals or middle-level generals who have served on the border, and military officials. Some are huge, but also very scattered.
The last 23,000 hectares are quite concentrated, but they are the most troublesome because these acres are all in the name of the clan.
Moreover, of the 23,000 hectares of land, 20,000 hectares are concentrated in the hands of a few vassal kings. The Thirteen Sai Kings established by Taizu were either abolished or moved inland, and now there are not many left.
But, after all, there are still some. Now the King of Qin is in Xi'an and the King of Jin is in Taiyuan. These two mansions are close to the border and can barely be regarded as the king of Sai, but they are no longer very close to the border.
These two prefectures alone each occupied four thousand hectares of military camps on the border.
In addition, Prince Qing, who was in Ningxia, and King Dai, who was in Datong, occupied a terrifying six thousand hectares of land.
You must know that among the fiefdoms of these vassal kings, there are fields granted by the court. If calculated according to this amount.
Even if it is a conservative estimate, the combined land controlled by these princes is at least close to, or exceeds tens of thousands of hectares!
Tens of thousands of hectares, millions of acres...
What a terrifying number!
Even though there is more wasteland available for reclamation because it is at the border, this number is still too scary.
As a result, Chen Yi finally understood what the emperor's "ridiculous" sentence just now meant.
As a member of the royal family and a vassal king, he is worshiped by all the people in the world, has a respected status, and has a good life. He already has endless wealth and splendor, but he is still so greedy that he reaches out to the military camp.
Now, except for the border, the settlements in other places have just passed the stage of surveying, and the official settlement has not been long ago, so there are no specific figures yet.
However, if the situation on the border is not an isolated case but a common situation, then the fields occupied by the clan kings alone account for more than one-third of the total number of military camps.
You must know that according to the data from the Qing Dynasty during the Hongwu period, the number of military camps in the Ming Dynasty should account for about a quarter of the total land in the world.
Based on this data, it means that a full 10% of the current acres of land in the Ming Dynasty are occupied by dozens of vassal kings from various places.
This is such a chilling conclusion. No wonder the emperor was so angry.
However, that's not the only thing that makes people angry.
Reform has always been difficult. Logically speaking, for such a big thing as rectifying the military settlements, if you really have to cut out a big piece of flesh from these people, there will inevitably be constant troubles and many obstacles.
Shen Yi has long been aware of this, but in fact, from the beginning when Yu Qian patrolled the border to do preliminary investigations, to later forming a new team of the Ministry of War, formulating detailed regulations, and promoting the adoption of the regulations at the court meeting, until the actual dispatch Officials and imperial envoys went to various places to clear their heads.
Although it has been such a long time, although it has encountered many difficulties, it is still much simpler compared to Shen Yi's original preparations.
Especially the most difficult group of nobles, in the hands of the emperor, they are simply flat and round, and they obediently vomited tens of thousands of hectares of land just for such a mere ducal palace.
During this period, the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household Affairs were busy, but the real difficulties and resistance were not great.
But now, the real challenge is coming!
Looking down this boring but shocking piece of data, the key points of Yu Qian's memorial slowly came to light.
"The magistrate of Luoyang County reported that on the seventh day of April, when the court officials were clearing their land, they were chased and beaten by servants in Prince Yi's palace. Three people were killed and seven were injured."
"On the 20th, Zhang Feng, the censor of Henan Province, went to Luoyang and personally presided over the purification of the abbot. The official documents were transferred to Prince Yi's Mansion. After being rejected, Zhang Feng went to the fields to purge the abbot. He was attacked by gangsters. The county government went to arrest several people. The thugs fled into Prince Yi's Mansion in full public view. Later, the Prince's Mansion notified the county government, but no one was seen."
"On the 25th, King Yi hosted a banquet for Zhang Feng. During the banquet, there were several servants who looked like thugs who attacked the fields. According to Zhang Feng's report, during the banquet, King Yi threatened him to leave Luoyang within ten days. Otherwise, your life will be in danger..."
King Yi, whose fiefdom is in the ancient city of Luoyang, is notoriously difficult to mess with.
However, Shen Yi did not expect that King Yi would be so domineering.
He blatantly prevented the farmers from clearing their land, instigated thugs to attack court officials, and protected criminals. That was all. After the attack, he even dared to entertain Zhang Feng at a banquet and let his attacker serve.
This is simply arrogant beyond measure...
No wonder the emperor, with his calm personality, couldn't help shouting 'Nonsense'.
Of course, it’s not just King Yi.
Yu Qian's memorial was very detailed. Basically, the officials sent by the imperial court to clean up the land were met with varying degrees of obstruction.
Although they are not as unscrupulous as King Yi, they still have their own methods.
Bribery, intimidation, hiding behind closed doors, instigating people to beat the officials of the Qing Dynasty, and even sending people to guard the fields. Anyone who approached would be beaten severely, openly, secretly, relying on the reputation of the royal vassal. Now, various methods have almost made it difficult for the officials sent by the imperial court to the local areas.
But the crux of the problem is here. The status of these vassal kings is too high. With the instructions of the emperor and ancestors, local officials have no way to deal with them.
But it just so happens that if you want to clear your land and reorganize your army, the people you can’t get around the most are this group of people...
After reading it, Chen Yi let out a long sigh of relief. Seeing the emperor's angry look, he couldn't help but become serious and said.
"Your Majesty, I am bold. The vassal kings, especially the King of Yi, are acting like this. They have no regard for the imperial court and are a blatant offense. If such connivance continues and other places follow suit, the imperial government's great policy of reorganizing the military and military settlements will definitely come to a standstill."
After the words fell, Yu Qian stood up and followed closely.
"However, King Yi's seniority is too high, his status is respected, and he has been operating in the vassal territory for many years. It is almost impossible for ordinary officials to implement the Qingzhang in his vassal territory!"
"Furthermore, even if what Yi Wang did is so obvious, if we really want to judge him, there is nothing to hold him to. There is no evidence to prove that the person who attacked Zhang Feng was Yi Wang."
"Those who hid in Prince Yi's Mansion, as long as Prince Yi refused to surrender, no one dared to break into the Prince's Mansion. As for those who threatened Zhang Feng, they may have been drunk and 'nonsense'."
"For this matter, your Majesty is asked to issue an edict and reprimand a vassal king. Where is the respect for family and clan?"
I tm……
Chen Yi turned around and glared at the sarcastic person in front of him.
It's obviously you who handed over the memorial, but I'm here to help you, you know?
Why, do you have to say all the good and bad things alone?
Why didn't he realize before that Yu Qian, you thick eyebrows and big eyes, turned out to be this kind of person!
However, Yu Qian was indifferent to Shen Yi's dissatisfaction. He didn't even bother to look at him and just looked at the emperor calmly.
In front of Zhu Qiyu was the memorial that had been taken back by the chamberlain. After a moment, he finally spoke.
"Mr. Yu is right. After all, King Yi is my great-uncle. Without proof, it is hard to criticize the clan king for no reason, so..."
At this point, he stopped and looked at Yu Qian with the same interest.
Unexpectedly, Shaobao was not embarrassed to have his little thoughts exposed, so he continued talking as a matter of course.
"Therefore, the imperial court should send important ministers to Luoyang to personally preside over the purification of the abbot. Only in this way can King Yi be afraid and not dare to act rashly."
"Your Majesty, King Yi's matter is of a bad nature. If it cannot be properly resolved, clans from all over the country will follow suit and fight against the imperial government."
"Therefore, I am willing to leave the capital in person and go to Luoyang to preside over the Qing Dynasty. I must press this sign firmly!"
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