"Although I, Zhu Yujian, am just an idle vassal king and have never held military power or fought a tough battle, I have learned equestrian skills since I was a child and fought on the battlefield. Even if I am not good at my skills, I have developed a bravery."
"Now it is about our ancestors and the country. I, Zhu Yujian, will never retreat. Even if I bear the eternal infamy, even if I am convicted of bullying, I will give it a try and swear to live and die together in Nanyang Mansion!"
Zhu Yujian clenched his fists and spoke word by word.
Not long after, the Tang Palace posted a recruitment notice. All men over the age of 15 could join the army. They would be paid two taels of silver per month and have three meals a day. If they died in battle, they would receive a one-time pension of twenty taels of silver and allotment. For land, family members will be exempted from taxes for three years.
Inflation was serious in the Ming Dynasty, but the pension of twenty taels of silver was really a lot, twice that of the highest-ranking commander stipulated by the court.
Let's talk about land. It's now the end of the Ming Dynasty, and land annexation is very serious. Many people have become refugees, and the better ones are working for landlords.
After working so hard for a year, I could only make ends meet, and that was without any natural disasters.
Of course, in some places, natural disasters are far less severe than military disasters.
There is a saying that goes like this: Bandits are like combs and soldiers are like grates. Wherever there is war, there is hell on earth, and the people cannot live a good life.
Therefore, with the pension plus land, Zhu Yujian was really bleeding a lot.
Of course, this is only limited to the Ming Dynasty. In fact, the division of land through wars had its precedent as early as the Qin Dynasty.
After Shang Yang's reform, the bottom class was given a very clear path to ascend. As long as you obtain military exploits, you will have a title, land, and status.
Therefore, countless people at the bottom risked their lives and turned Qin into a war machine.
Because of this, Qin Shihuang was able to unify the Liuhe and the four seas, giving the land of China a geographical position in a practical sense.
By the time of the Tang Dynasty, soldiers who had made military exploits would also be able to obtain permanent fields. This was a great thing for the benefit of future generations. Which soldier would not give up his life?
The Ming Dynasty implemented a guard system, which was actually a government military system. They were soldiers during war and farmers during leisure time. Those who served as soldiers had military status.
Your ancestor was a soldier, so you are destined to be a big soldier in this life. If you are lucky and your ancestor gets military honors, you can also inherit the official position from your ancestors.
Now in the late Ming Dynasty, the guard system is on the verge of collapse, and all the land is in the hands of the powerful. Even the soldiers, few can have enough to eat.
Therefore, when Li Zicheng rebelled, his slogan was to divide the land equally.
As the vassal king of Nanyang Mansion, the Tang Dynasty's ancestors worked hard here for generations and laid a solid foundation. Even half of the fields in Nanyang Mansion were owned by the Tang Prince's Mansion.
He was willing to take out the main property left by his ancestors and share it with the soldiers, which shows his courage.
Of course, it was indeed forced and there was no other way.
Let’s talk about the last item, tax exemption for three years.
In fact, it's the same as not saying it. In the eighth year of Chongzhen's reign, taxes have been collected by Chongzhen for more than ten years. Even Henan has collected several more years.
After all, the implementation of the policy of levying Liao pay was the nod of Emperor Wanli and single-handedly handled by Wei Zhongxian. At that time, who dared not give Jiu Qiansui face.
Once the notice was issued, Nanyang Mansion instantly became a mess.
"What? Is the Tang Palace going to recruit troops? He, he's not going to rebel, is he?"
"Be careful with your words, be careful with your words! Don't forget, this is Nanyang Mansion, the territory of King Tang. Although the sky is high and the emperor is far away, the war is now in chaos and the capital has too much time to take care of itself. If these words reach the ears of King Tang, are you I don’t need to say more about the consequences.”
Hearing this, the common man was so frightened that he almost fainted on the spot.
Fortunately, other people did not pay too much attention to him, because the impact of the recruitment notice on them was too great.
As a soldier, you get two taels of military pay, which is really too much money. You know, wages in the Ming Dynasty were notoriously low.
This is also because Lao Zhu was born in grassroots, and his family was ruined by officials in the late Yuan Dynasty, almost wiping out his family.
Therefore, after conquering the country, he was extremely mean to officials. Lao Zhu felt that being an official is to serve the people. What do you do with such a salary? The imperial court has given you a very high status, what else do you want?
Although merchants are rich, don't they also have to wear linen and coarse clothes? Are they qualified to wear silk?
Lao Zhu's way of treating officials is a bit like a certain army school. If you want to get promoted and make money, please go elsewhere. If you are greedy for life and afraid of death, don't enter this school.
In fact, this is a good starting point.
Moreover, at that time, Zhu Yuanzhang had sufficient control over the court and was tough-minded, and a group of officials under his command were afraid of him.
Therefore, there were not many cases of corruption and bending the law in Hongwu.
Several relatively large tragedies were almost all directed and performed by Lao Zhu.
However, his descendants did not have the ability and skills like him, which led to serious corruption in the court, even to the root.
For example, practicing Taoism every day and thinking about the ascended Jiajing Emperor Zhu Houcong.
Other emperors tried every means to fill the treasury, and even used money from the inner palace to subsidize the treasury.
He was lucky enough to use Yan Song and his son to pour money from the treasury into his own pocket, and he looked extremely ugly.
That is to say, people are very smart and know how to use the right people for certain tasks.
If you want to make money, use Yan Song, Yan Shifan and his son.
If you want to fight, use Hu Zongxian, Qi Jiguang and others.
Wanting to balance the court, he supported King Yu and asked him to form the Qingliu Party and the Eunuch Party to fight against him.
Are you angry that I haven't made you the prince yet?
Anyway, Zhu Houcong played this trick very clearly. Fortunately, Sun Ming did not travel to the Jiajing period, otherwise he would have been eaten up by Zhu Houcong, not even the bones and dregs were left.
"What do you think of this matter? There is only the royal seal here, but there is no magistrate's office. If we go to defect, will we be labeled as rebels?"
"You are right. However, His Highness, Prince Tang, has always been upright and upright. He is loyal to the court and will not break the law. I think it may be because the war situation in Lin County is tight, so Prince Tang is in an emergency. , will issue a recruitment notice."
There was a young scholar in the crowd who was knowledgeable and had a good vision. He calmly analyzed the current situation and gave a fairly reliable answer.
But even so, the people were still hesitant.
They were moved by the military pay and pension provided by King Qin, but they did not dare to ignore the court.
Chinese people must have been like this since ancient times.
It’s hard to describe it as resigned, but I do have a tendency to do so.
We can’t blame everyone for being cowardly. This is how Confucianism teaches us.
After 2,000 years of cultivation, the blood of benevolence, justice, propriety, loyalty, and the master of heaven and earth has long been retained in my body.
