Mid-July of the second year of Zhengde was the hottest season in the north.
Due to fire prevention and safety considerations, it is difficult to see even a tree in the Forbidden City.
The summer heat and inner fear made Prince Rong, the thirteenth son of Emperor Xianzong of the Ming Dynasty, rush to Qianqing Palace with his clothes wet with sweat and peeing like shit.
Zhu Houzhao used this imperial uncle more than he recognized him. It can be regarded as inheriting the Ming Dynasty's gene of guarding against the emperor's uncle.
And he has some opinions about the prince's rich and wealthy life.
In the twelfth year of Hongzhi, King Rong got married. In order to hold the wedding for his younger brother, Emperor Xiaozong sponsored "100 million hectares" of funds, which amounted to about 500 hectares of land in Fengrun County and 10,000 hectares of salt from Lianghuai.
Later, Emperor Hongzhi felt that Yan Yin was really cumbersome and troublesome, so he ordered the Ministry of Household Affairs to convert the ten thousand Yin salt Yin into twelve thousand taels of silver.
In the fourteenth year of Hongzhi, the fourth son of Emperor Xianzong, King Zhu You of Qi, passed away, and he had no heirs.
Logically speaking, this series should be eliminated.
However, Emperor Hongzhi ordered that the three hundred hectares of land owned by King Qi in De'an Mansion in Huguang be transferred to King Rong.
In other words, King Derong had 800 hectares of land at this time, which was a total of 80,000 acres.
He also has ten thousand shi of Lumi every year.
Of course, the rewards of various kinds of cloth and salt in the process are ignored.
Zhu Houzhao will definitely solve the problem of excessive land possession by the vassal vassals, but not this year.
But it's one thing if he doesn't solve it for the time being. It's another thing whether King Rong can donate the land himself. You have so much money, you still have a full ten thousand shi lumi every year. Isn't it enough?
One stone weighs 150 kilograms, and ten thousand stones equals 1.5 million kilograms.
Although the prince certainly does not only spend on food, there must be various expenses. But even so, ten thousand stones is enough
How much tax and grain does Shuntian Prefecture pay per year? In the past few years, it was 80,000 shi, and last year it was more than 100,000 shi.
In this case, there are still 80,000 acres of land.
Zhu Houzhao really couldn't understand it.
He had a feeling that these princes were the shareholders of the Ming Dynasty. He was just a professional manager. He worked hard every day and divided one-third to one-half of the money he earned in a year among them.
So when King Rong came to ask for forgiveness,
Zhu Houzhao deliberately left him alone for half an hour, and then waited for him to come in and found an excuse to say: "Right now, Beizhili is dividing the land, involving more than two million acres of various farmland, hundreds of thousands of people, many things, and the situation is complicated. Call the emperor Uncle, please don’t feel aggrieved if you wait a little longer.”
"I don't dare, I don't dare." King Rong is actually young. He is pampered and has a tender face, but he doesn't look particularly strong. "I am entering the palace this time to request His Majesty to leave the capital and go to the country. , I was supposed to become a vassal in the 16th year of Hongzhi, but due to several changes, it has been delayed until now. As time goes by, I may violate the regulations of our ancestors, so I sincerely ask your Majesty to grant my kingdom!"
Zhu Houzhao felt that it was okay to let his country go.
It can be seen by the person who stirs up trouble behind the scenes. This is effective and induces him to continue taking action, which makes it easier to reveal the truth.
Moreover, it was not an option for King Rong to stay in the capital for a long time.
Look, isn't this just being taken advantage of?
"The late emperor had already decided on the affairs of our country, so of course I can't stop him. But is it because of the rumors in the capital?"
As soon as he heard the rumor, King Rong turned pale and said, "Your Majesty! I am wronged! I have asked everyone in the palace, and they have never done anything like arrow clusters. Hiding weapons secretly is a crime of conspiracy. I am Never dare!"
Probably because of fear, a man in his early twenties actually cried.
To be honest, if you look for any minister today, he won’t cry.
But at this point, the descendants of the Zhu family basically no longer have the grace of their ancestors.
Especially Emperor Hongzhi, he was too kind to his younger brothers, doting on them to the point of harming others, and because Prince Rong was young, he was actually brought up by Emperor Hongzhi.
The eldest brother is like his father. Hongzhi can tolerate the mischief of Queen Mother Zhang's two younger brothers, but he is even more tolerant of his own younger brothers.
So King Rong is not a 'simple, kind and wise' prince, he has done a lot of shitty things.
Zhu Houzhao got up and rummaged through a pile of memorials on the side. It didn't take long and he quickly got one and said: "Cui Guo, the imperial censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, sent a memorial saying that the third uncle of the emperor suffered a great mourning and the country was postponed for four years. If you stay here again without any reason, you will not be at peace with your feelings and etiquette. Moreover, I heard that the king is staying in the court because he wants to perform the ritual of worshiping the temple on his behalf. The emperor respects no one more than his ancestors. He often sends princes to pay homage on his behalf, especially if it is not heard in the world.
Our uncle and nephew were both criticized by others. I have approved this memorial and approved it. When the weather cools down a bit, the emperor's uncle will go to Changde Mansion to join the feudal clan. So the emperor doesn't have to worry, I won't believe those rumors. The vassal will be the vassal, and we will follow the rules set by our ancestors. But at present, the court is in trouble, and there are countless people without land in the capital. Even my imperial estate is being divided. Therefore, the emperor's uncle will only accept the rewards from the vassal, and I can only be simple. "
The meaning of Zhu Houzhao's words is obvious.
The emperor has divided the fields, so why don't you, the prince, follow him?
Unexpectedly, Prince Rong exclaimed, "Ah, Your Majesty... Your Majesty, I have something unspeakable."
"What do you think?" Zhu Houzhao closed the memorial.
"Although I am a prince, I am a prince in Beijing, not a prince in the vassal territory. According to the rules, the prince's salary in Beijing is only three thousand dan. However, in the sixteenth year of Hongzhi, the late emperor issued an order that I should go to the vassal Changde Mansion. The Ministry of Rites All preparations are in place, and the generals and generals of the royal family are waiting at De'an Mansion. They are all asking me for their rice. I... I really can't afford it."
Zhu Houzhao blinked in surprise, is the prince in Beijing worth three thousand stones? Then if he announced all the princes to the capital, wouldn't he instantly save 70% of the money?
I just don’t know if this bug can be stuck.
In fact, what's up with three thousand stones? It's a lot.
"The emperor's uncle has 800 hectares of land. Can't he support a few palace guards?"
"Chen...chen..."
It's really worrying to see him, a grown man, looking so coy with his mother-in-law.
After struggling for a long time,
Zhu Houzhao finally stopped talking, it was a waste of time, "Let's do this. I will still give the three hundred hectares of land that Prince Qi has in De'an Mansion to the emperor. However, the recent division of land in the capital has been very difficult. The emperor also belongs to Emperor Taizu. Descendants, the world is like this now, I ask the emperor to tide over the difficulties with me. The emperor does not want the 500 hectares of land in Fengrun County, Jizhou. Anyway, Huguang and Changde are thousands of miles away from Beijing. As for the salary of the royal generals The rice came from the three hundred hectares of land in De'an Mansion.
I can't severely punish the squire and officials who occupy the land, and at the same time reward everyone in my own family. If word spreads, people will criticize us, the descendants of the Zhu family, behind our backs. Besides..."
Zhu Houzhao's eyes turned and landed on King Rong, making the guy tremble in fright.
"I was assassinated in the capital, and the arrowhead has not yet been found out. Many people are still making random guesses about whether it has something to do with Prince Rong's Mansion. Therefore, the emperor's uncle must do something wise at this time to let people know that the emperor's uncle is for me. Sharing worries and relieving labor, the way of intimacy in the Tian family is not so easy to sow discord."
The first half of the sentence is okay.
King Rong paused in the second half of the sentence, not knowing how to answer!
But it was obvious that he was still unwilling. He said with a mournful face: "Your Majesty, this... the general of the prince's palace..."
"If they really don't have enough Lumi." Zhu Houzhao lowered his head and stopped looking at him, "Then lay off some people. Uncle Rong is loyal to me. In a peaceful and prosperous age, what do you need so many generals to protect you?" "
King Rong was shocked and knelt down again, "Your Majesty! The guards of the palace are all given by the late emperor! All the regulations are also set by the Ministry of Rites! I have no conspiracy with them!"
His voice floated around the Qianqing Palace, but in fact it didn't stir up anything.
After waiting for a while, he looked up and found that the emperor was already reading the memorial. He just waved his hand gently to signal him to leave.
King Rong opened his mouth, as if he still wanted to say something.
But fortunately he didn't speak.
Anyway, the matter of five hundred hectares of land has been settled.
Zhu Houzhao was too lazy to talk nonsense to him.
After King Rong left, he ordered Liu Jin beside him, "Xuanshen Wuwei commander Xu Guan."
"yes."
The Shenwu Guards under the command of Xu Guan were composed of elite soldiers selected from the personal guards. They were the elites among the elites that Zhu Houzhao must capture.
Especially when the situation changes.
The personal information and family status of all the Shenwu Guards are in the hands of the Internal Guards Supervisor secretly prepared by Zhang Yong, the Royal Horse Supervisor. Their military pay and treatment are also different from others. Before the land was divided, the soldiers of the Shenwu Guards had Profit.
These five hundred hectares, which is 50,000 acres of land, can also be operated.
After Xu Guan arrived.
Zhu Houzhao sat behind the imperial court and said: "The Shenwu Guards will eventually be expanded to 3,000 people, and the remaining vacancies of more than 1,200 people will be gradually filled. As for the salary issue discussed before, I have already found the source for you. . There are 50,000 acres of land, and each person should be able to get 40 acres. Although the location is a bit remote, in Fengrun County, Jizhou, it is still land."
Xu Guan was slightly shocked, "I thank your Majesty for your generous gift."
"You..." Zhu Houzhao paused and thought for a moment, "It's not you. Just you. Don't tell anyone in advance and conduct a drill. Just assume that the palace is under threat. Let's see the effect."
In order to make the people who support you more deeply bound to yourself, appropriate benefit sharing is still necessary.
In the final analysis, that's what the court said. The imperial court is just a few palaces and yamen, and the food must be divided into separate pots.
Like special salaries and official promotions, he still used various means to make a group of people in the civil and military circles loyal to him as the emperor because of the benefits they gained.
This is indeed a kind of inequality to a certain extent, but true equalization of land may now be a disaster.
In the afternoon, because it was too hot, Zhu Houzhao had no intention of reviewing the memorials. Instead, he placed two pieces of ice beside him and took a nap temporarily.
I was shaken awake from a trance,
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Urgent report from the border troops!"
"Well..." Zhu Houzhao muttered in a daze.
Although he suddenly woke up, he sat up from the rocking chair and said, "Bring it here!"
Then he quickly glanced at it and ordered: "The Cabinet and the Military Aircraft Department have entered the palace!"
It was only July, and the Tatars could no longer bear it.
(End of chapter)
