There is also a thousand-step street between Chengtianmen and Hongwumen in the Imperial City of Nanjing. Both sides of this Qianbu Long Street, like the Qianbu Long Street outside the Imperial City of Beijing, were originally lined with rows of bungalows. These bungalows were where the Six Ministries of Nanjing in the Ming Dynasty were originally located.
However, when Zhu Heji regained the city of Nanjing, the city inside and outside the imperial city of Nanjing had long been in ruins. The bungalows outside Qianbu Long Street have long been converted into stables and warehouses for the Eight Banners of Jiangning Garrison. A large area of bungalows was overheated. After the burning, they didn't know how to repair it. Instead, they tore down the walls and took out the bricks for other buildings. used.
Therefore, not long after Zhu Heji took control of Nanjing, "major demolition and construction" began on both sides of Qianbu Long Street.
After the capital was moved to Nanjing, the imperial court structure of the new Ming Dynasty was gradually improved, forming a structure of two conferences, two government offices, six ministries, and nine ministers.
The two conferences are the Grand Bachelor's Conference and the Consultative Council. The two offices are the Prime Minister's Office and the Military Advisor's Office. The six departments are of course the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Husbandry, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Ministry of Industry. The offices of Jiuqing are Dali Temple, Duchayuan, General Affairs Department, and Hongzhi. Lusi Si, Guozijian, Dongyinqianchang, Zhanshifu, Hanlin Academy, Jinyiwei.
There are a total of nineteen yamen, plus Zhu Heji's own attendant's office, a total of twenty agencies performing their own duties, forming a rather streamlined central government.
However, no matter how streamlined these yamen are, it is still necessary for each yamen to have a square enclosure.
So since October last year, nineteen busy construction sites have appeared between Chengtianmen and Hongwumen (the enclosure for the Attendant’s Office will be built in the Forbidden City, but construction has not started yet), not even during the Chinese New Year. shutdown.
Because the building materials for building the house can be taken from abandoned and damaged buildings that can be found everywhere in and around the Imperial City of Nanjing, the construction progress is quite fast.
Just six months later, nineteen square-shaped buildings of different sizes were already standing on both sides of Qianbu Long Street. However, most of the buildings are still under renovation, and it may not be completed until the end of the year.
However, most of these buildings that are still under construction have been put into use. Among them are the two Prime Ministers Zhuge Sanhe and Yu Zhongxian who share the Prime Minister's Mansion or the enclosure used by Zhongshu Province.
However, the two prime ministers who had just moved into the new government office were worried all day long after Yang Qilong returned to Nanjing. They were not worried that Yang Qilong would squeeze out one of them, but they were worried about the approaching financial crisis!
Although Zhu Heji shouted "no shortage of money" every day, the two great stewards of the Ming Dynasty, as well as Ma Chenglong, the Minister of Household Affairs, felt that the Ming Dynasty was now "very short of money"!
How could it not be short of money?
Although the Ming Dynasty has now occupied six of the richest provinces in the world, Zhu Heji likes to toss... He refuses to collect taxes properly, and has to conquer Jiangnan and Zhejiang last year. What about land and tax equalization in the three provinces of Jiangxi that we won the year before last?
Of course, this matter is not impossible. In fact, the populations of these three provinces are not very large. It is not a big problem to have ten to eight acres of good land per capita. However, the scholar-bureaucrats in these three provinces were not as supportive of land equalization as the feudal clans in Guangdong and Fujian - Guangdong and Fujian had more land per capita, and when clan power was strong, it was difficult to produce big landowners. In the two provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, almost no clan will lose their land due to land equalization. On the contrary, equalizing land played a role in clarifying property rights, equitably allocating water resources and admission quotas for higher education, thus reducing the possibility of armed fights between various clans such as the tide of native tourists.
In addition, the opening of sea trade and the Northern Expedition of the Guangdong court gave the powerful people of Guangdong and Fujian many opportunities to rise and make fortunes.
Under this circumstance, land equalization in Guangdong and Fujian provinces not only proceeds quickly, but also at a relatively low cost. After completing land equalization, a large amount of tax revenue can be obtained, which is considered a very cost-effective deal.
But the situations in Jiangxi, Jiangnan, and Zhejiang provinces are completely different!
The clan power here is relatively weak, and the power of the Jin gentry is relatively strong... In the 18th year of Shunzhi, only the four prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, Zhenjiang and Liyang County were revolutionized. Taking into account the literati and officials who were demoted, the number is as many as 13,000!
Just from this number, we can see how powerful the Jiangnan Jin gentry is?
What Zhu Heji wanted to do was not only to equalize land, but also to gradually abolish the imperial examination. Compared with the Qing court's expropriation of money and grain, it would be a much stronger blow to the powerful Jin gentry in Jiangnan.
Of course the powerful Jiangnan Jin gentry had to resist after being beaten!
Their means of resistance include, first, inciting the people to resist clearing land and checking households - if the households cannot be checked, of course there will be no way to equalize the land; second, the gentry in Jiangnan and Zhejiang used the excuse that they had donated money to the Qing court and the Ming Dynasty twice last year. Therefore, I cannot afford to pay the autumn tax anymore, so I ask for a reduction or exemption.
So last year, less than one-third of the autumn taxes in the three southeastern provinces were completed...
"Prime Minister Zhuge, Prime Minister Yu's annual final accounts for last year have been completed."
Ma Chenglong, the Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs, the same Ma Xiucai who joined the revolutionary ranks when Zhu He was the "Five Village Warlord", was making a report to Zhuge Sanhe with a grimace.
"Although the annual income last year was more than 13 million, the amount of money spent was incredible! It exceeded more than 15 million, and there was a deficit of more than 1 million! Fortunately, there was some surplus in the previous two years, which can be made up for Go up to the hole. But this year..."
"What happened this year? How dare the powerful gentry in Jiangnan and Zhejiang not pay their taxes?" Mr. Yu became angry when he heard this. "Who do they think they are? Do they dare to resist the heavenly soldiers? They really made my Qi Zi angry. There is no way for them to survive!”
Ma Chenglong shook his head, "Before the household inspections are completed, the taxes and grains in the four provinces of Jiangnan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Jiangbei can only be collected according to the Wanli six-year quota. The four provinces plus one will be about 10 million shi... ...According to the discount of six yuan and one stone, it is six million taels. The land tax quotas of Guangdong and Fujian provinces plus one dollar are almost six million taels. The land taxes of the six provinces added together are 12 million taels. two.
The rest of the transportation tax, salt tax, business tax, real estate tax, mining tax, profit tax... It would be good to collect 8 million in total. Therefore, this year's revenue budget is 20 million, and the expenditure budget is 18.5 million, with a surplus of 1.5 million. If it can be realized, then the deposits of the household department will exceed 2.5 million taels.
But after Military Advisor Yang came back, King Ming immediately planned to give 4 million taels to the Dengzhou Tianwang Mansion, and also planned to give 1 million taels to Wu Yingqi. This time there is an extra five million taels. Not only are the savings of 2.5 million taels gone, but I also owe another 2.5 million taels... Mr. Prime Minister, I, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, am really doing this. No more! "
Yu Zhongxian sighed: "I thought our Ming Dynasty was the richest among the three thirds of the world, but I didn't expect that we were actually the poorest. At the end of last year, the national silver inventory was only one million taels... .”
Prime Minister Zhuge also sighed and almost shed tears: "I, Zhuge, really have no talent for governing the country... I obviously guard the richest provinces in the world, but how can I become the poorest in the world? "
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Zhu Heji's voice suddenly coming from outside the door: "Prime Minister Zhuge, who are you talking about as the poorest in the world? Is it Kang Mazi or Wu Gouxiong?"
Zhu Heji is here!
The three people who were having a small meeting in Zhuge Sanhe's study quickly got up and left their seats, heading towards the door.
At this moment, Zhu Heji came in with a cheerful look on his face. Zhuge Sanhe, Yu Zhongxian and Ma Chenglong were all stunned when they saw King Zhu Daming.
Because this "sage" did not wear a trousers dress today, but was dressed like a Jiangnan scholar. He also held an unfolded paper fan in his hand. On the fan was the original painting of Bada Shanren, and what was hanging on his belt was not a long one. The sword is an empty hammer, but a jade pendant and sachet.
"Your Majesty," Zhuge Sanhe finally came to his senses and replied quickly, "I just said that our Ming Dynasty is the poorest in the world! Your Majesty, the current amount of silver in the treasury is less than one million taels..." It’s impossible for Kangxi and Wu Yingxiong to only have such a small amount of money in their treasury, right?”
7017k
