When the people of the world, especially the officials in the capital, were waiting for Gao pragmatism's three-point plan with various mentality, Gao pragmatism did not disappoint them.
Two days later, Gao Pragmatic had just completed the handover of various tasks in the Household Department and reviewed the Household Department branch books for the past years since the first year of Wanli. Immediately after, there was a message titled "Taxers take what they use from the people and use it." Presented to the emperor in "Minshu".
Of course, memorials always go to the cabinet through the General Affairs Department first, so the first ones to see the text are the cabinet ministers.
The opening chapter of "Qi Yong Shu" is quite interesting, almost copying Gao Gong's statement about "the distinction between justice and benefit" almost exactly.
"The Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs is very pragmatic and sincerely wrote: "The Great Learning" says: "This is the useful learning of sages and sages." The eight political affairs of "Hong Fan" are the first to be about food and goods. The three things of "Yu Mo" finally lead to good health. Financial management is the most important task of the royal government.
In later generations, there will be those who are pedantic and interested in fame. They do not understand justice and benefit, and do not distinguish between public and private affairs. They only regard profit without talking about it as high, and even make people unable to serve the country. As everyone knows, gathering people is called wealth, managing money is called righteousness, and calling righteousness the sum of benefits, then righteousness is actually disadvantageous. The distinction between justice and benefit lies only in the judgment between public and private. If it is based on righteousness, then all benefits will be righteous; If it is based on benefit, then righteousness will also be beneficial. "
Gao pragmatic is the successor of Gao Gong. He starts this book with Gao Gong's former views, which has a very obvious political intention. However, it is not just for political purposes, he has always agreed with this view.
Gao Gong's idea of using public interests over private interests is indeed a wise idea. Among them, "gathering people together is called wealth, managing money is called righteousness" is a refutation of the Song Confucian view of "profiting by fame".
On the contrary, Gao Gong gave a new explanation to "righteousness" and "profit", which are mentioned above: the so-called "righteousness" means financial management and the management of the country's property; the so-called "profit" , of course, is to gather wealth and talents to create wealth.
From this, "righteousness" and "profit" are no longer abstract and empty concepts, but the sum of the benefits created by the public for the country.
If one only cares for the benefit of the country and does not care about the gains and losses of personal interests, then righteousness is benefit; otherwise, righteousness is not benefit. Therefore, "righteousness" and "profit" are in a dialectical relationship. The two are interdependent and can transform into each other under certain conditions. The condition for transformation is the "discrimination between public and private".
Gao Gong had a strict distinction between public interests and private interests. In his book "Questions and Debates: Mencius" he once wrote: "Mencius's teachings are most stringent in the debate between righteousness and interests, so he starts this chapter by not taking away or satisfying. This is It is beneficial but not disadvantageous. It is disadvantageous but not disadvantageous to not leave relatives behind and not to inherit the throne. This means that the country does not use profit as a benefit, but uses righteousness as a benefit."
Therefore, Gao Pragmatic has always been very clear that the "profit" that Gao Gong pursues is not personal gain but public benefit, that is, "not profit for profit, but righteousness for profit."
Gao Gong's thoughts are very clear to the current courtiers. Gao Jingshi starts the chapter with this preamble, which is to remind others that he, Gao Jingshi, is the heir to Gao Gong's political ideas, and any reform must be based on Gao Gong's original ideas.
At the same time, this is also a means to unite the forces of the Practical School. After all, the transition from "High Party" to "Practical School" is itself a transformation from a political group bound by social relations to a political group bound by governance concepts. and sublimation.
Next, Gao Pragmatic's memorial continues: "Those who have a country should not use it privately to benefit themselves, but use it as a benefit; they should only use it publicly to benefit others, and use righteousness as a benefit. If you lose the hearts of the people and the country cannot be protected, there is no benefit; if you use righteousness as a benefit, you will gain the hearts of the people and have land and wealth, and the benefits will be endless. This is the argument between righteousness and benefit. As a ruler, you should not think deeply about it. Si?"
This paragraph explains to the emperor why "the distinction between justice and benefit" is important. In fact, this paragraph not only emphasizes the importance of "discriminating between justice and benefit", but also lays the foundation for his reasoning below.
"Our country is based on agriculture, and pursues business as its end. Our ancestors have established the law, and every word of it is taught. Farmers are the foundation of the world, and they are also the foundation of wealth. Therefore, the ancients believed that if agriculture is prosperous, the country will prosper. But if the world is full of farmers, is it feasible? I don’t think so.
I believe that agriculture is the foundation, just like a tree with roots. If the roots are deep, the base will be strong. In this way, the tree will flourish. However, a tree is a tree, its strength lies in its stem, and its glory lies in its leaves. Although you cannot ignore its roots, you cannot ignore its stems and leaves.
Today I have a saying: Without scholars, the country will be unclear; without farmers, the country will be unstable; without workers, the country will not be strong; without business, the country will not be rich. Although there are successive generations of scholars, farmers, industry and commerce, they cannot be neglected. I hope Your Majesty will consider them carefully.
They are like human beings, with scholars as their heads, farmers as their bodies, workers as their hands, and merchants as their feet. If there are only scholar-farmers left, they cannot move or do anything. How are they different from human pigs?
My great ancestor, Emperor Gao, was benevolent and benevolent. He benefited the world. He cared about the farmers and showed mercy to them. He issued imperial edicts to teach him. The state of the world has been 219 years old, from its two ancestors to your majesty, and has finally focused on attaching importance to agriculture and showing compassion to farmers, and sincerely recommends it to be the best in the past dynasties.
However, since this dynasty regards agriculture as its ancestral law, it does not regard the construction of water conservancy as a common practice. Isn't it strange? The minister investigated its origin and asked about the various yamen, and he would definitely say: Taicang is not enough, and it will never prosper.
He also asked: Why is Taicang not useful? He must say: The people's power cannot be abused, and the people's wealth cannot be fully exploited, so it cannot be enough.
Is the fruit not enough to be evil? I think this is ridiculous! "
At this point in the memorial, the groundwork for Gao pragmatism has been laid, and the "dry stuff" will begin next.
"In the "Record of Income and Expenditure" of Su Zhe of the former Song Dynasty, I found out the income of his household in the early years of Yuanyou. He said: "Today's income for one year, the gold is calculated as two thousand and three hundred, and the income is 4,300." The amount of money that cannot be exhausted is 2,700; the amount of silver calculated in two is 57,000, and the maximum amount is 60,000; the amount of money calculated in thousands is 48.48 million (this number is obtained after dividing the rice, salt and money) ), and the amount of the amount produced is 1.82 million (and it is said that this number should be given by Zhe Fanzhi before it is broken); the amount of silk and silk is 1.51 million, and the amount of the amount is 1.51 million 170,000; the grain is measured as stones, 24.45 million, and the endless supply is 740,000; the grass is measured as bundles, 7.99 million, and the output is 800 One hundred and eleven thousand.'
According to calculations by ministers and colleagues, one tael of gold was worth about ten guan of money at that time, and 4,300 taels was worth 43,000 guan of money; one tael of silver was worth about one guan of money, and 57,000 taels was worth 57,000 guan. Guanqian; each piece of silk is worth about one and a half Guanqian, 1.51 million pieces is worth 2.265 thousand Guan; one stone of rice is worth about one Guanqian, 24.45 million stone is It is worth 22.45 million guan (note: for the conversion standard here, please refer to Cheng Minsheng's "Research on Prices in the Song Dynasty"), totaling about 26.8 million guan. In addition to the tax revenue of 48.48 million guan, the total amount is about 75 million guan.
Seventy-five million yuan can be regarded as a huge amount, but is this the income of the Song Dynasty before the beginning of Yuanyou? No.
I learned that the finance of the former Song Dynasty was divided into two. One was commanded by Zuo Cao of the Ministry of Household Affairs (it was the third division before Yuanfeng was reorganized). It was composed of the transportation department, prefecture and county chief officials, and city and town tax collectors. , who controls land taxes, commercial taxes, wine taxes, regular tribute, and levy profits;
One is commanded by Youcao of the Ministry of Household Affairs (it was Sinong Temple before Yuanfeng was reorganized). It is composed of the Changping Division, Prefecture Tongpan, and County Magistrates and is responsible for the financial management of various yamen. It is in charge of Changping, exemptions, workshops, pits, and River crossings, mountains and swamps, favorable geographical location, goods, and households all have no income.
In the former Song Dynasty, Zuo Cao was under the jurisdiction of the Hubu Shangshu, and Youcao was not under the Hubu Shangshu, so the world's wealth was divided into two. And Su Zhe's "Yuanyou Accounting Records" also said: "If the accumulation of You Cao's treasure inside the house, and the fact that it is sealed with the world, is not taken by the past three divisions, it will not be included in the accounting, and will be written in another book, so as to Ready for viewing. '
It can be seen from this that the 75 million yuan converted by the ministers is not the annual income of the official tax that can be accounted for by the Ministry of Revenue, and the income of the right Cao of the Ministry of Revenue is not even included in it. Looking at it this way, the territory of the former Song Dynasty was not as good as that of our dynasty, but the annual income was no less than ten times! With your majesty’s sage and wisdom, don’t you think it’s strange? "
Speaking of practical matters, Gao Pragmatic compared the fiscal income of the Song and Ming dynasties here - although he only talked about the Song Dynasty, the emperor certainly knew the annual income of this dynasty, so there was no need to say more.
As for the result, it was of course shocking, so much so that Gao Yonggong used the word "no less than ten times" to describe it. The next step is not over yet, Gao Pragmatic continues to illustrate the huge gap in fiscal income between the Song and Ming dynasties, and then uses various production indicators such as iron, grain (roughly estimated output), cloth, silk, etc. to prove that the Ming Dynasty's actual " "Productivity" actually exceeded that of the previous Song Dynasty.
However, all this is to introduce another factor. He said: "Therefore, the income of the former Song Dynasty was about 100 million, but the land tax was only about 30 million guan (including 24.45 million guan of rice collected in kind, and the part collected in cash). Unknown, but the number will not be large), the proportion is only 30%; non-agricultural taxes are as high as 70%. Therefore, the minister said: The wealth of the two Song Dynasties was not in agriculture but in business.
However, one might say: Our dynasty is tolerant to the people and loves its people, so it implements this kind of benevolent government that has never been seen in the past. This is advocated by a righteous saint. Why do you compare it with the harsh government of the two Song Dynasties?
I have also been taught by saints, and I also advocate benevolent government. However, when it comes to taxes, it is not just reduction or exemption, but I also believe that benevolent government!
It is taxed and is neither owned by the imperial court nor your Majesty. This money is taken from the people and used for the people.
Your Majesty will act on behalf of the Heavenly Herdsmen, and your ministers will assist your Majesty. When taxes are used for the emperor, they are only used to enable the emperor to herd the people, and are not restricted by expenses; when taxes are used for ministers, they are only used to enable the envoys to effectively assist the emperor, and are not restricted by food and clothing. A grain of rice and a half millet, a needle and a thread, are all used by the herdsmen to feed the people. How can we talk about harsh governance?
Or it can be said: In ancient times, there was Tang and Chang, and there was also Jie and Zhou. How can I, the emperor, be a master of the divine, cultural, and martial arts, and know that all his descendants will be virtuous? If there are only one or two unworthy people, there is still a limit to the meager taxation. Wouldn't heavy taxation be an abuse of the people?
He also said: Although there are restrictions on the appointment and dismissal of officials, it has not been possible to fully detect those who are honest, treacherous and inconsistent in appearance and appearance. What if the imperial court imposed heavy taxes and committed crimes and greed for their own gain, what would happen now? ?
I think this is the urgent need to establish regulations in advance. Where taxes are levied, the accounts must be clear, and the comings and goings must be clear. This is not the reason why the separate tax law should be changed, but also the old accounting system of the Ministry of Household and other government offices should be changed. Incoming and outgoing accounts cannot be done by one person; putting in and out of treasury cannot be done by just one person. Check for leaks at every level and pursue deficiencies at every level.
If the accounts are incorrect, they must be compared step by step; everything must be investigated, and it will take ten generations to complete! I would like to follow the old system of four ministers in the Ministry of War, and also set up two ministers in the Ministry of Household Affairs to take charge of the two new offices. These two new officials are called the Audit Office and the Customs Office.
The former specializes in auditing and has six departments under its jurisdiction. It is called the Agricultural Audit Department, the Industrial and Mining Audit Department, the Commercial Audit Department, the Customs Audit Department, and the Du Branch Audit Department.
The latter specializes in border and maritime trade and has five divisions under its jurisdiction. They are called the Border City Division, the Harbor Division, the Land Division, the Sea Division, and the Political Research and Support Division.
The details of the two departments and eleven departments above have been reported by me..."
As expected, the memorandum received by the cabinet was followed by a thick note detailing the roles and functions of the "Audit Office" and "Customs Office" proposed by him, as well as the areas under their jurisdiction. Scope, goals to be achieved.
In addition, the eleven departments of the two agencies were explained in detail, including the significance, functions, goals, etc. of each department's establishment.
Even Shen Shixing couldn't help but admire the pragmatic nature of this memorial and the "according to the memorial".
In particular, the attached note contained tens of thousands of eloquent words. The details of the specific matters it focused on and the thorough arrangements it made were completely beyond Shen Shixing's imagination.
After Shen Shixing admired in his heart, he felt deeply alarmed: Gao Pragmatic had only been in office for three days as Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs. It was hard to say whether all the officials in the Ministry of Household Affairs could recognize them. How could he come up with such a detailed plan for the establishment of two new departments? Come? No matter how pragmatic he is, no matter how talented he is, it will never be possible.
Therefore, it can only mean one thing: this plan must have been planned for a long time!
God knows when Gao Pragmatic started thinking about these things!
But Shen Shixing thought about it and felt that Gao Pragmatic had never expected that he would be transferred to the position of Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. After all, with his status as the Sixth Number One Scholar, even if he had been sent to other places as an official, he would not consider joining the cabinet from the Ministry of Husbandry after returning to Beijing, but would join the cabinet from the Ministry of Rites, or simply imitate his third uncle Gao Gong and then start a new cabinet. A precedent for the Ming Dynasty, the official minister was appointed to the cabinet!
Anyway, Gao Pragmatic must be thinking about joining the cabinet. Shen Shixing can guess this with his toes.
In this case, when did Gao Pragmatic start thinking about the Ministry of Household Affairs? What was his reason for pondering these things?
Shen Shixing used himself to save others, and of course he would not think that Gao Pragmatic did this just to save the Ming Dynasty. His train of thought involuntarily began to go astray: Did Gao Pragmatic think that his status as "the world's most courageous writer" and "the world's best writer" was not enough to be favored, and he wanted to build himself into another Cai Jing?
(Note: One of the main reasons why Cai Jing was favored during the Song Dynasty was that his financial management ability was basically irreplaceable in Huizong's view. However, civil servants in the Ming Dynasty generally believed that his financial methods were nothing more than harsh governance. Here Shen Shixing compares Cai Jing to Cai Jing's pragmatism. , also stems from this consideration.)
When thinking of Cai Jing, Shen Shixing, who regarded himself as a gentleman, couldn't help but break out in a sweat. When Yan Song was in power in the past, many people compared him to Cai Jing, which shows Cai Jing's power and influence on the emperor when he was at his peak.
Nowadays, Gao Pragmatism's influence on the emperor is probably not as strong as that of Cai Jing and Yan Song. He is now in charge of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and even wants to turn the Ministry of Household Affairs into a "four ministers system" like the Ministry of War. Previously, Shen Shixing only thought of his plan. At least it seems quite thorough, but now that I think about it...
Oops, he is cultivating power!
Why do you think so? Not to mention that with the addition of two more ministers to the Ministry of Revenue, the authority of the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue will definitely be stronger. Just say that there is a lot of trouble in his "Audit Office"!
The last of the six departments of the Audit Office, which Gao Pragmatic placed, is called the "Duzhi Audit Department". Although this department is not high in rank, it is just a "division" and the chief officer is only a doctor of the fifth rank, but it has great authority!
How big is it? All financial expenses of the central government offices must be audited by it! When the accounts are entered at the beginning of the year, they must be reviewed, and at the end of the year, the accounts must be verified by it to see if your yamen’s expenses this year are correct, whether there is any underreporting, and whether there is any abuse!
Shen Shixing gasped and sweat started to fall on his forehead: You are such a pragmatic person, but you are going to strangle the necks of the entire central government offices!
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Thanks to book friends "Cao Mianzi" and "Cheng Yue Sui Feng" for their support, thank you!
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PS: Today’s chapter contains a bit too much in classical Chinese. I wrote it from about six o’clock in the evening to a quarter past eleven. Judging from the subscription status of this book, my "cost-effectiveness ratio" is really too bad. If it were replaced by Gao Pragmatic, I guess he would go on strike.
