"Do you think I don't know that you are depriving your subordinates of their clan's salary?"
"The subordinate clan will pay you annual tribute every year, do you think I don't know?"
"The subordinate clan works for you for nothing every year, do you think I am blind?"
"You seize the fields, shops, etc. of your subordinate clans, and you think you are doing it very cleanly?"
"You are so urging me not to reduce the titles of the lower-level clans. It is just for your own consideration. Have you considered the life and death of the subordinate clans?"
Every time Chongzhen said something, the faces of the vassal kings turned pale.
Because these are not in the evidence of the investigation just given by the emperor.
"Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the imperial court has carried out four reforms on Zonglu. From the reduction in Hongzhi to the final increase in Wanli Tianqi, it was set as a permanent amount, which will never be increased. The population of the clan is increasing. Without salary and salary, there are no four industries. What do you think they can do? ?”
When Chongzhen said this, he stretched out his hand and waved towards the corner: "My companion, I will read this to you all!"
Wang Chengen immediately stepped forward: "My lords, here are the memorials from various clans from the Wanli period to the seventh year of Tianqi. Your Majesty has selected some, and I will read them to you, your lords!"
"The first letter was written in the forty-fourth year of the Jiajing reign. General Zhu Congjin and others in the imperial palace reported their achievements. Their movements were prohibited, they had no property to earn, and no one to rely on. They did not eat a single meal for several days. Old and young are crying, it’s so difficult..."
"The second letter is a complaint from General Fengguo and other six people in the palace of Huairen in the tenth year of Wanli. The general meaning is that they were hungry and cold, and they were unable to save their lives..."
"The third letter is a memorial to Shi Zhongwanxiangchun from Henan Governor Shi Tiejun and the Ministry of Rites in the 18th year of Wanli. It roughly means that the lower clan members are not full enough to eat, etc."
…
"The eleventh letter..."
Listening to Wang Chengen's voice, the vassal kings lowered their heads. Although their faces were ashamed, they were still unconvinced.
"This is only half of the number in the clan!"
Chongzhen sneered: "The true status of Jinyiwei's investigation is: there are people over thirty who have not married, who have been exposed for ten years and have not been buried, or begging in the market, or working as civilians, or moving to other places, or starving to death on the road, even though they are members of the clan, they are suffering very much. Poor people.
This is only the situation of the general title, the situation of the lieutenant title is even worse than this.
Tell me, if you don’t reduce their title, what can they do? Can a title be used as food?
If they lose their title, they can have four careers. Do you not understand this truth, or are you pretending not to understand?
Are you really thinking about the lower clan, or do you have ulterior motives? "
These vassal kings had the right to submit jade certificates from their clans, and used this to gain access to subordinate clan members.
If you give money, I will report the names of your heirs to the court and enter them into the jade certificate. If you don't give them, I won't report them.
If the jade certificate cannot be recorded, the court will not recognize him as a member of the clan, and he will have no salary. He will not be able to have four careers. In order to get a meager salary, he can only spend all his money to bribe the clan.
Therefore, the poverty of subordinate clans is partly caused by the main clan.
The reason why these vassal kings opposed it was because after the abolition of titles, they could no longer suck blood from the clan members.
Especially since they were imprisoned in Beijing and their property was confiscated, the clan was their only source of income.
"I have made up my mind to abolish the last five nobles!"
Chongzhen glanced at the vassal kings coldly, and then there was an inexplicable smile on his lips: "How do you know that the people in the subordinate clan will definitely refuse?"
"What if I make an offer they can't refuse?"
An offer you can’t refuse?
The eyes of the vassal kings were full of doubts. Seeing the smile on the emperor's lips, they felt increasingly uneasy.
After a while, King Qin said: "Your Majesty, please give me your instructions!"
"I give them three conditions!"
Chongzhen looked at the ancestral tablet of Queen Qingyan with his hands behind his back: "First, if they agree to reduce their titles, they can engage in the four industries.
If you are doing business, I can support you with some preferential policies, such as no tax payment for three years, interest-free repayment for ten years, etc.;
Second, after signing the letter of reduction of title, as long as the person recorded on the jade certificate is alive, each person will be given ten taels of silver and five acres of fertile land;"
The vassal kings all nodded secretly after hearing the emperor's two conditions.
The first two are considered conventional methods, mainly to appease the clan members.
Business taxes, interest, etc. can all be ignored.
Even if it is calculated based on the 220,000 clan members, five acres per person, and 1.1 million acres in real time, it is converted into 11,000 hectares, which is less than one percent of the vassal kings.
Moreover, these fields were originally raided by these clans, and the wool just came from the sheep.
Spending a small amount of money to settle hundreds of thousands of people is well spent.
If there is turmoil, the experience consumed, the military supplies consumed by mobilizing the army, the impact it will bring, etc. will be far more than this small amount of money to appease.
It's just that although these two items are more tolerant than other vassal reductions, they still can't make the people of the clan willing to do so.
It was King Qin who spoke up again: "Your Majesty, you just said you would offer three items, and now you have said two items. Where is the third item?"
"From the moment the imperial court issues the imperial edict, all members of the clan who are recorded on the jade certificate can later be granted the title of duke or even king based on their merits, and are not subject to the vassal regulations."
hiss……
This time, all the vassal kings took a breath of cold air, their eyes full of horror.
Even the King of Qin, who no longer had any subordinate clan, was confused.
They thought of countless conditions, but never thought of being crowned king.
The Ming Dynasty clan implemented a system of inheritance by the legitimate son, and the remaining sons were demoted. If you want to be crowned king, only the emperor's son can succeed, and the prince's eldest son can inherit the title.
In addition, there is another method, that is, small supplements.
For example, if a prince has five sons, according to the vassal regulations, the eldest son takes the title of prince, and the remaining four sons are county princes.
But if the eldest son dies before his father, leaving only the second, third, fourth, and fifth sons, the throne will be inherited by the remaining four sons in order, and the prince will be granted the title of prince.
In other words, if all the five sons of the prince died, and the eldest son had no heirs, then the sons of the remaining four sons (general Zhenguo) would inherit in order.
It's just that there is a possibility that you can submit a request, and the court has the final say whether to approve it or not.
But after all, it is a path, and there were many such situations in the Ming Dynasty.
More importantly, there has never been a situation where the last five titles of the eight nobles of the clan have occupied the title of King Qin.
Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there has never been a king with a different surname except for those who have been granted posthumous titles. This shows that the throne of the Ming Dynasty is harsh.
Now the emperor says that members of the clan can be granted the title of duke or king based on their merit. This is so tempting.
As long as they are crowned kings, live longer, decline in three generations, and be killed in five generations, a family can have a glorious continuation of at least a hundred years.
No wonder the emperor would make an offer that no one in the clan could refuse.
Although it is difficult to reach the sky, there is hope after all.
