Xijing, Guangzheng Hall, Zhengshi Hall. Coupon
In the high hall, Zhao Pu and Jin Wang Liu Xi sat across from each other, handed the report in their hands to Liu Xi, and said with a smile: "The officialdom of Gyeonggi Province is very lively!"
Liu Xi took it, looked through it, put it down, and then silently took out a copy of the memorial he had received and sent it to Zhao Pu. After Zhao Pu finished reading, Liu Xi said: "The dispute between the chief and deputy envoys is becoming increasingly fierce, and it has been put on the table! The conflicts at the Gyeonggi Province Department level look very serious, and the lawsuits have been brought to the center!"
Zhao Pu and Liu Xi received memorials from Pan You and Li Shouyuan respectively. In addition to reporting on the current tax reform progress in Gyeonggi Province, the articles focused on describing the problems and difficulties in Gyeonggi Province, and they could not avoid criticizing and blaming each other.
Since the Mid-Autumn Festival, the officialdom of Gyeonggi Province has been filled with overt and covert fighting. Pan and Li fought tit-for-tat with each other, from provincial affairs to tax reform. The officialdom of Gyeonggi Province has become tense every three days. A small matter, a major event in five days, continues to this day, and even the Xijing court cannot help but pay close attention to it, because the dispute between Pan and Li has already affected the overall reform situation.
Originally, this lawsuit could not be brought to the central government. After all, Gyeonggi Province matters should be resolved within the province as much as possible. This may be the subconscious mind of a local official. Otherwise, if the trouble is too big, it is difficult to guarantee any good results. The disciples made the superiors laugh.
But many things are done as one wishes. Pan You suppressed the contradiction below the Gyeonggi Provincial Department. However, the fundamental contradiction was not something he could suppress if he wanted to, and Li Shouyuan was not that easy to suppress.
All of Pan You's authority in Gyeonggi Province came from the trust of his superiors, which was granted by the court system, and Li Shouyuan also had both. Pan You had the first-class administrative power in Gyeonggi Province, but his control over Li Shouyuan was limited. of. Coupon
It is very difficult to overthrow Li Shouyuan through the rules within the system, not to mention the opponent's deep background. The most important thing is that Li Shouyuan has never done a good job in saving face. From the beginning to the end, it is very clear that he is firm in the affairs of the imperial court. Support, and his objection is not Pan You personally, but his too radical approach to seek success.
As for Pan You's doubts about Li Shouyuan in the Yamen Hall, Li Shouyuan later gave an answer. He just went to Yancheng County in the south of Xuzhou for a tour and summoned county government officials and local county squires to comfort and communicate. After some research, half a month later, a new and more detailed data on land acres in Yancheng County was submitted to Si Yamen.
Although it is not known whether this report is comprehensive enough or how many hidden situations there are, at least in terms of results, it is much more reliable and the progress is more obvious than what was previously obtained by Pan You's powerful orders. .
As soon as this matter came out, coupled with Li Hang's achievements in Yuanwu County, Zhengzhou, it was clear at a glance which one was better and which one was worse, which one won the hearts of the people, and whose measures had more support. It is also about promoting reforms. Pan You was angry and resentful when he did it, and there were many obstacles. If he were replaced by Li Shouyuan, everything would go smoothly and everyone would be harmonious...
In this way, Pan You naturally fell into a certain embarrassing situation. The argument of obstructing reform cannot be used as a weapon against Li Shouyuan, and other methods are difficult to be effective.
But Pan You doesn't have a compromising character. When Li Shouyuan made a move, he had to take it. Li Shouyuan made a fuss about the land clearing in Yancheng County, and he immediately focused on Yancheng to verify the results of the report he submitted. At the same time, he sent a group of people to review, and he discovered some problems. .
In the final analysis, Li Shouyuan's reform promotion is extremely conservative and compromising. The land ownership of small farmers and small households is very clear, but it is unclear for those large households with backgrounds and connections. There are many obscurities. Coupon
In the entire county, there are only five households with more than 1,000 acres of farmland, and none exceeds 2,000 acres. Moreover, the number of acres of land for many is stuck at the new medium-level tax rate of 200, 500, 1,000, and 2,000 acres. , how could Pan You admit to such an obvious problem and launch an attack on the grounds that the inventory data was incomplete, inaccurate and suspected of fraud.
Li Shouyuan was well prepared for this. His explanation was that some land was being traded and the property rights were unclear and needed to be confirmed later. Others were said to be abandoned, with no output from the fields, and should not be included in the scope of taxation. .....
Naturally, Pan You could not accept these prevarication reasons and continued to attack. During the subsequent investigation, it was discovered that the official land and professional land were lost. The two sides were fighting fiercely around the county of Yancheng. As a result, the land clearance situation in other places naturally slowed down, or even sluggished again. Everyone was waiting for the outcome of the fight and planned to see which direction the wind was blowing. Take action again.
When it is difficult for both parties to come up with something decisive, they will naturally need more authoritative support. In the end, it will inevitably be submitted to the court and handed over to the central government for decision. As a key demonstration area for tax reform, the imperial court is of course paying close attention to it and is aware of the changes. It had not spoken before and wanted to see further development.
However, the situation has developed to this day, with the chief and deputy envoys criticizing each other, and the political struggle has reached the point where it is either/or and irreconcilable. Both Zhao Pu and Liu Xi know that it is time for the central government to take action.
Looking at Liu Xi, Zhao Pu sighed slightly: "Since ancient times, all kinds of disputes and disputes are unavoidable in reforms. This should have been foreseen. With the formulation and promulgation of new regulations, and the advancement of the reform process in various places, disputes will only More and more. It’s just that this is still in the first stage. It’s just a matter of clearing the land, so many things have happened, and it’s a bit unexpected that it has reached such a stage. Your Highness, do you think this is a problem of the new system or a problem of people? "
Regarding this question, Liu Xi did not answer casually, but after some thought, he solemnly said: "His Majesty once said that there is no perfect system. We can only take great benefits, endure small harms, and supervise at the same time. And reform Problems often arise at the implementation level. Judging from the Gyeonggi Province incident, at least from what appears on the surface, it is at the implementation level. The two sides have different opinions on how to implement the new system, and there are huge differences!" Coupon
"Then your Highness thinks that Pan You has more problems, or Li Shouyuan has more problems?" Zhao Pu asked again.
Liu Xi frowned and pondered, as if this question was difficult to answer. Seeing this, Zhao Pu smiled softly and said, "What do you think of Li Shouyuan, your highness?"
"Is Mr. Zhao testing me?" Liu Xi raised his eyebrows, picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said calmly.
"Don't dare!" Zhao Pu said calmly with a smiling face: "I still understand Pan You. He may be somewhat controversial in politics and lacks means, but he is very able to understand the will of the court and can implement the New Deal tasks meticulously. But I don’t quite understand Li Shouyuan..."
Zhao Pu's words seemed to be biased. Liu Xi couldn't help but glance at him and said solemnly: "I don't know much about Li Shouyuan either! However, judging from the current problems in Gyeonggi Province, I only have an understanding of the new system. The execution issues are not related to the second envoy himself. As for the problems exposed, as the chief and deputy envoys, both are responsible!"
Hearing what Liu Xi said, a look of surprise flashed in Zhao Pu's eyes, and he sighed inwardly. He had known that King Jin was smart and slippery, but as expected, he saw the problem very clearly and did not express his position easily.
After thinking for a while, Zhao Pu finally showed a serious face and said: "The dispute in Gyeonggi Province has seriously affected the advancement of tax reform and must be resolved. How to deal with it? Does Your Highness have any suggestions?"
Liu Xi thought about this for a while and said calmly: "Since it is an internal conflict, it is best to resolve it internally. The dispute between the two should be coordinated!"
"What if the coordination is not good?" Zhao Pu asked.
Liu Xi said decisively: "Then the central government will have to take decisive measures!"
Hearing this, Zhao Pu nodded and said: "Everything should be focused on tax reform. No matter what, if it affects the overall reform, the imperial court will not tolerate it!"
As he spoke, Zhao Pu added leisurely: "Pan You is, after all, the chief official of Gyeonggi Province appointed by the imperial court and the chief general of tax reform. No matter what his style is or what objections his subordinates have, he should not resort to such means to resist. In this way, both It is not conducive to solving problems and promoting reforms. It also damages the authority of the chief official and is not conducive to the implementation of the imperial court's will to reform..."
When Zhao Pu said these words, his attitude was already very clear, and he was obviously firmly on Pan You's side. Of course, this is understandable. After all, Pan You is the reform general promoted by Zhao Pu. As long as he does not commit any principled issues, other issues are just trivial matters. As for the problems and contradictions that arise during the reform process, the central government has already made preparations.
In this way, as long as Zhao Pu's phase is stable, Pan You will be as stable as Mount Tai. Even if there are some twists and turns, the overall situation of Gyeonggi Province will not fundamentally change. Coupon
Obviously, some people think they are smart, but in the end they fail to grasp the changes in the situation, and their understanding of the general trend is still too taken for granted. Of course, different positions lead to different actions. Under this premise, all behaviors can be explained.
But people like Li Shouyuan, although they support reform on the surface, even if they speak loudly, how can they hide the direction of their butt from the discerning eyes of the high hall.
And if the change is still unknown, then the iron fist from the center will come down without hesitation. In these matters, Zhao Pu has the determination and the power.
