"I, I have some savings..." Wei Zaode didn't dare to say that he had no money, because he knew the abilities of those living hell kings in the Metropolitan Procuratorate!
Now that Emperor Zhu wanted to borrow money in front of him, he must have had it checked by people from the Metropolitan Procuratorate. If he didn't tell the truth honestly, there would be no consequences!
Zhu Cixiang smiled and nodded, looking particularly kind. Wei Zaode knew that Zhu Cihong was a smiling tiger, and he had rarely seen him get angry or angry.
But the smiling tiger can also bite people. The happier he smiles, the more dangerous he is!
"Chen, I have accumulated more than 700,000 taels of family property over the years, including more than 300,000 taels in cash..." Wei Zaode's voice trembled as he spoke.
Because at least 400,000 yuan of his family property was obtained through bribery!
To be honest, with the power and status he possesses, accepting a bribe of three to four hundred thousand is not much at all!
He has been the chief assistant since the 17th year of Chongzhen and now in the ninth year of Hongxing. He has been the chief assistant for almost thirteen years. Moreover, he is also the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, in charge of the assessment of mid- to high-level civil servants, and also has the power to nominate mid- to high-level local officials. Before Zheng Zhilong took over the power of the Ministry of Household Affairs, he could also decide the distribution and targets of land taxes and commercial taxes in various places.
The power he has held in these thirteen years is absolutely comparable to Zhang Juzheng!
With such great power, he only collected more than 30,000 taels of bribes a year on average, and it was not blatant bribes, but elegant bribes (that is, the briber bought Wei Shoufu's calligraphy works at high prices) and the filial piety of his disciples... .
Therefore, Chief Wei's official reputation is very good, and few people know that he is also a corrupt official. However, he himself knew that he was a corrupt official, so he still felt guilty.
He also memorized the "Chongzhen Code" revised by Zhu Cixiang. The punishment for corruption and bribery was not very severe. There were no tortures such as skinning and Lingchi. The most serious one was hanging, but it was never carried out.
The punishment for corrupt officials is usually dismissal and fines. If they are too greedy, they will be confiscated and exiled. The whole family will be sent to Taiwan or Ca Mau Peninsula to live a hard life. Oh, there will also be one or two children left behind - if they are willing to cooperate with the confiscation of the house.
Of course, Emperor Zhu did not insist on equality before the law. In the feudal dynasty, where could there be so much equality?
In Emperor Zhu's case, meritorious service and title can be used to atone for one's sins.
Wei Zaode is now the Marquis of Kenantong Prefecture, and has set a reward for being promoted to Duke - he is a Zhuge Liang-style prime minister. Of course he has a share of the credit for the victory of the Northern Expedition, so he deserves to be promoted to Duke.
With the title of Duke of Kengan, it can atone for the crime of being exiled. If the emperor shows mercy again, he can reduce the confiscation of the house to a fine of silver, and maybe there will be some pension money left...
"Ah, are you so rich?" Zhu Cixiang showed a surprised expression, because he had no idea about Wei Zaode taking bribes - Wei Zaode was on the exemption list!
Emperor Zhu's Metropolitan Procuratorate was an yamen that maintained officialdom and law, but it was also a tool for feudal rule.
For those officials who are obedient, able to get things done, have great merit, and whose corruption is not too excessive, Emperor Zhu will put them on a white list that is exempt from investigation. The Metropolitan Procuratorate will only pay attention to them, as long as their official reputation is not too high. Worse, I won't check them.
In addition, the internal vassals and the subordinates of the internal vassals are not within the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.
"My lord, my lord, my lord..." Wei Zaode also realized that something was wrong. Emperor Zhu didn't look like he wanted to accuse him. Could it be that he had misunderstood? This is bad...
"No need to say it," Zhu Cixiang waved his hand and interrupted him, "Don't talk about this now, it's the court meeting now!"
I really misunderstood... Wei Zaode's head was buzzing and he no longer knew what to say.
Emperor Zhu was not angry, but still cheerful, but instead of asking Wei Zaode, he asked Wu Sanfu, the military advisor of the Generalissimo's Mansion, "Sanfu, do you have money? Are you willing to lend it to the court?"
Wu Sanfu replied: "Your Majesty, I and my father both have some savings. Most of them are rewarded by your Majesty, and some are obtained from the increase in land prices. If the court needs it, they can lend it to the court. There is no more, two or three hundred thousand. The two of us can work it out!"
Although the amount of money he and Wu Xiang could afford was about the same as that of Wei Zaode, the two father and son were really upright officials.
Wu Xiang and Wu Sanfu were recognized as upright officials. They did not engage in corruption or bribery, and they did not even accept food, drinks and entertainment from their subordinates. If they went out to eat, drink and have fun with their colleagues, their father and son would pay for them.
The reason why the two of them are so "clear" is because Emperor Zhu asked Wu Sanmei to greet them - they must set an example for the armed forces, but I don't know how many people are watching them! Don't let the whole charge of corruption and bribery be brought down. When the queen has no foreign aid, the concubine Zheng, who is very good at giving birth to sons, may go further... The Wu family will really have to pay compensation. All is lost!
Of course, these two honest officials are both rich men. On the one hand, they are both princes. After following Emperor Zhu into Nanjing, they received heavy rewards and made a lot of land and real estate!
On the other hand, Emperor Zhu also gave them a lot of extra benefits! The biggest one was that shortly after the opening of the Shanghai Commercial Port, they were given a street each. Wu Xiang got a Shanhaiguan Street, and Wu Sanfu got a Wujiang Street. He also informed them that they would only rent it and not sell it!
Although these two streets are not long avenues, they are extremely prosperous. In the center of Shanghai's commercial port, the land on both sides of the street belongs to the Wu family. These alone are now worth 200,000, and they are still rising. The rent collected every year is tens of thousands of taels.
Zhu Cixiang smiled and said: "Well, you and the old Duke are really the pillars of the imperial court, setting an example for all officials... I have also heard about the reputation of your father and son in the palace. However, the imperial court cannot borrow your money in vain. Your money is hard-earned, and you can earn interest even if you deposit it in the bank!
How about this? Let the Ministry of Accounts issue a bond with an annual interest rate of six cents. The principal will be repaid in twenty years and the interest will be paid every year! The coupon rate is a bit lower, and it is not as good as lending money by yourself. However, the court’s financial resources are limited, so I am afraid that I will mistreat you, the upright officials of the court! "
"Don't treat me unfairly, don't treat me unfairly!"
"Even if there is no interest, we are still willing to lend money to the court!"
"Your Majesty, I am willing to lend money to the court without interest..."
What a good honest official! Moreover, all of them are very rich, and they are all rushing to lend money to the court. They are trying to live or die with the court!
Zhu Cixiang smiled and nodded: "Okay, okay, you are all upright officials and loyal ministers of my Ming Dynasty! The remaining wealth in my hands is hard-earned, and I can't lose it to you... Duke Quan, what do you have?" The best of both worlds?”
"Your Majesty," Zheng Zhilong said with a smile, "Why don't you link the bond notes with the distribution of unofficial and ownerless land in the north! If you divide one acre of land, you can subscribe for one or two face value bonds... The unofficial people in the north , there are at least hundreds of millions of acres of unowned land, and one tael per acre is equivalent to 100 million taels of silver!"
"This is a good idea!" Zhu Cixiang smiled and nodded, "The unofficial and ownerless land in the north has long promised to be distributed to meritorious ministers and righteous people. I will keep my word!"
Are we really going to divide the land in the north?
The faces of the senior officials of the two governments in the main hall all showed joy, except for Zheng Zhilong, Shen Tingyang and Wei Zaode. Zheng Dafu and Shen Erfu looked down upon the farmland in the north at all, but Wei Zaode couldn't even cry... Originally, as a prince, he could be allocated at least 10,000 acres of land, and it would also be allocated in Tongzhou (he was Tongzhou (people), it’s so miserable now!
"Your Majesty," Shen Tingyang frowned at this time and interjected, "One tael per acre is nothing to the high officials in the court, but to the soldiers and righteous people who have little wealth, I'm afraid it is not a small amount. ah!"
Zhu Cixiang nodded: "That's right! What should I do if I can't get it out? How about this... Land clearing in the north will also take time, so the court first issued transferable land certificates and tied bonds.
These land certificates can be exchanged for farmland, mountains, forests, mines, or homesteads in large northern cities. The Hubu and Liudu Hubu will work out a detailed rule as soon as possible... Remember, we must not let the soldiers and volunteers below suffer! "
