When a governor first arrives in his jurisdiction, he has to take care of many tasks.
In addition to meeting the main officials of the prefectures and counties under his rule, he naturally also has to show his face in front of the people.
Shao Xi looked solemn.
Yang Shen was visiting the gentry in Guangdong. What was the meaning of Yan Song, the governor, who personally went to the fields to care about the people's harvest?
When serving as an official in the Ming Dynasty, unless they were promoted to court for trial or some other temporary circumstances, those above the seventh rank rarely took the initiative to deal with the poor people directly.
Yan Song's appearance now reminds people of Yang Shen squatting in the fields in the "Lingnan Travel Collection" published by the three great talents in Wuzhong.
Isn't the news coming back from Jiangxi that Yan Song was happily chatting with officials and gentry from all over the country?
Yan Song is the governor. As long as he doesn't do anything outrageous in Zhejiang, no one can stop him. What's more, he just took people to the outskirts of the county "on a temporary basis". When he met the first old farmer working in the fields, he called in and asked.
This scene of big and small officials and their entourage surrounding a trembling old farmer is too Guangdong.
Yan Song looked at the farmland in front of him that was about to start harvesting and nodded with a smile: "Brother, don't panic, you didn't say anything wrong, and you didn't say anything nonsense. I will come back to Jiangshan County next year and ask you how your life is going. So, is there anyone oppressing you?"
After finishing speaking, he glanced at the officials from Quzhou Prefecture and Jiangshan County.
Back in the county, the governor will rest in Jiangshan County today.
Yan Song made a gesture, but did not continue to show off his high airs during the dinner.
He calmly accepted the arrangements made by Quzhou Prefecture and Jiangshan County.
During the dinner, when Shao Xi asked him to declare his holy will and instruct local officials in Zhejiang, Yan Song sat and pondered for a moment before speaking: "Zhejiang, a place with seven mountains, two rivers and one farmland, is smaller than Guangdong. It should pay taxes every year." But it is more than three times. The difficulty in this cannot be said that Zhejiang is not doing its best."
Coming down from Shao Xi, everyone couldn't help but feel relieved after hearing this, but they didn't dare to relax completely.
Because Yan Song hasn't finished speaking yet: "In addition to the military salaries and officials' salaries in Zhejiang, the grain reserves in Zhejiang also include rations for orphans and rations for teachers and students. Miscellaneous income includes sacrifices, imperial examinations, transportation, writing and handicrafts, food, etc. Support, relief... In this village, drinking ceremonies, celebrations and welcomes and farewells, as a rule, cannot be paid for with the reserved grain, but can only be spent with the reserved money. Nowadays, for miscellaneous affairs, there are money, banknotes, and silver, and the total is not large. , is it the wealthy gentry and wealthy households in Jiangshan County who have spent money again today?"
"... Futai came to Zhejiang from Jiangshan County, understood the sentiments of the people, and cared about the countryside. The whole Jiangshan County was sincerely happy, and a little wine was not enough to be considered a waste."
Yan Song smiled slightly: "If the treatment of officials can be implemented in all provinces, there will be no need for the wealthy gentry to spend money on the many expenditures between the government offices. As the saying goes, it is easy to take advantage of others. The difficulty of the place , I know it from the facts. Come on, let’s take this first glass of wine to all of you, my hosts.”
"Don't dare! Don't dare! Futai is too harsh!"
The representatives of the gentry and wealthy households in Jiangshan County who were "lucky" to be seated and had spent money and money quickly stood up.
Zhejiang officials up and down couldn't help but think in their hearts: The governor knows the place very well.
So is it just him who understands, or does His Majesty and Mr. Yang Ge also understand?
Yan Song made it clear in just a few words the difficulties in local operations, and it was also another reason why officials and gentry were not called upon to pay taxes or forced to do corvee work: local gentry and wealthy households often came to help bear local financial expenditures.
To put it bluntly, the taxes that local governments can collect are two types of currencies: physical goods and copper coins and treasure notes. If you want to take the Eight Classics seriously, the Ming Dynasty now prohibits the circulation of silver.
In terms of the system, apart from the part of the grain collected that is handed over to the court, the rest is useful; the government's expenses can only be calculated from the saved copper coins and treasure notes. Under the zese system, some physical objects were turned into copper coins and silver, but no one dared to say that they would not fold or accept treasure banknotes during official business.
But how worthless is Baobao now? Over the years, if local governments do not set up many projects to increase miscellaneous services, the real purchasing power of miscellaneous taxes collected has actually been declining.
As the peaceful days get longer and longer, there will only be more and more welcomes and farewells, and the trend of comfort and luxury will naturally become more and more popular. As long as there are such banquets and welcomes, the people who pay for them are the local gentry and wealthy families.
Yan Song only talked about taking advantage of other people's short mouths, but he didn't say that he was soft on other people's hands.
Over time, the current situation naturally formed: although the wealthy gentry did not bear all the taxes, their actual expenditures were also quite large.
It's just that if you calculate this account, it's nothing more than that they finally obtained more fields, industries, and manpower, and their income exceeded their output.
The price was eventually transferred to the poor people and the government's finances.
Now Yan Song was toasting to the wealthy gentry, and everyone was in a state of confusion when they heard that the topic turned to taxes and expenditures.
"Your Majesty is actually broad-minded." Yan Song talked about other things, "Zhu Yunming wrote "Wild Notes" after drinking in the past, which was used by the traitors many years later. Although the Jiangnan scholars discussed Taizong's old affairs the year before last, His Majesty only ordered Zhu Yunming admitted that his fallacies had spread to the world, but he was still granted the same background as a Jinshi. In the preface of "Lingnan Travel Collection", Zhu Yunming confessed his thoughts and truly admired him. When he went south, he even heard some scholars in Jiangxi ridiculing the three talents in Wuzhong for being late. , Qu Yi Mei Shang."
"...This generation's ignorant fallacies only make people laugh." Shao Xi didn't understand why he talked about this again, and he echoed it, as if to express his stance.
Yan Song just smiled and cupped his hands to the north: "When I was appointed as the governor of Japan, your majesty often said that after thousands of years, right and wrong will be decided by the public. However, whether it is me, the other advisers, or Uncle Taihe, in fact, We all know it. Your Majesty holds the Ming Dynasty and the country in his heart, and holds the trillions of people in the two capitals and thirteen provinces. This is real. Although Your Majesty disdains to argue with some ignorant scholars, he really forgets the teachings of saints for the Confucian disciples. Very disappointed."
He paused and then sighed: "It is because your Majesty was so angry that you killed Zheng Cunzhong, the son of Guangdong Province, so I asked your Majesty to welcome Duke Zhongwu to the Imperial Ancestral Temple."
All the officials and gentry in the room suddenly became solemn, and they all stood up and saluted him: "Futai's act of asking for orders for the Confucian sect, his merits are as good as those of the sages, and his virtues will last forever!"
Yan Song raised one hand and asked them to sit down, shook his head and said helplessly: "Your Majesty is a young hero, but the Ming Dynasty is already plagued by ills. Mr. Yang Ge advocated reform, and your Majesty really hopes that the Ming Dynasty will take on a new look, the people can live and work in peace and contentment, and the soldiers can fight well. . This time the Japanese pirates, with only a hundred or so people, are in Zhejiang as if they were in an uninhabited land. How can Your Majesty not be angry? Mr. Yang Ge Lao denounced the corruption in Zhejiang, which is probably not inferior to that in Guangdong. I am here this time, and I only hope that you will work together. It relieves the king’s worries and brings peace to the people’s livelihood.”
The officials immediately expressed their opinions one after another, while pondering his behavior and words today.
Then Yan Song had a new behavior. After toasting the officials with a second glass of wine, he led everyone to toast the poor people of Zhejiang with a glass of wine, and then left to rest in the post house.
He only drank three glasses of wine at this carefully prepared banquet, thus ending his first appearance in Zhejiang.
How can other people eat it?
Yan Song left them to figure it out on their own, and called Xu Jie over when they returned to the post house.
"You're newly married. You can't go back to Beijing to enter the Hanlin Academy, but I summoned you to Zhejiang for an experience. Are you unhappy?"
Although Xu Jie was placed in the first class by Yan Song this time, he was later changed to the second class in the second class by His Majesty for some unknown reason, which was the same as Yan Song's ranking back then. In the previous subject, His Majesty did not change the ranking at all. This time, he only changed the ranking of Xu Jie.
Yan Song felt that the emperor meant that he knew about the relationship between Xu Jie and him, so he deliberately pointed at him, although Yan Song still didn't understand what the emperor wanted to point out.
For Xu Jie, being ranked second in the second-tier high school is already quite good. It was true that he could go directly to the Hanlin Academy to become a concubine, but now Xu Jie just said gratefully: "How can the student be unhappy? The experience of the Chief Envoy is from the sixth rank, which is already the number one scholar. The student only I'm afraid I won't be able to do my job well enough to convince experienced officials."
"One is a clear stream, and the other is a local. I can't tell which one is better." Yan Song said with a smile, "Under you, there is only one person in the Experience Department. You are only in charge of sending and receiving official documents, and reviewing and approving them." What is there to worry about when writing documents for officials sent to the capital such as the Inspector of Patrol and the Censor of Salt?"
Xu Jie answered humbly: "To be supported by my mentor, the student only hopes to live up to his expectations and learn more."
"The first thing you have to learn is that you shouldn't come today." Yan Song put away his smile, "Now that you have served as the administrative department of the feudal lord, there are many official documents exchanged in Zhejiang, and you and Shao Youshi will go together as soon as you take office. Come to greet me?"
Xu Jie was stunned and said hesitantly: "But the vassal is destined..."
Yan Song sighed: "Although you were recommended by me, you didn't know how to evade suspicion. Firstly, you were taken advantage of. Secondly, you delayed your official duties and gained yourself a reputation for being ingratiating with your teacher. Thirdly, it prevented me from investigating Zhejiang as quickly as possible." All these matters will leave a reason for impeachment in the future."
Xu Jie, who was new to officialdom, suddenly panicked.
"I'm just talking to you, it's not a big deal." Yan Song smiled again, "Can you understand these three points?"
If Zhu Houcong knew that Yan Song was teaching Xu Jie here, he would probably feel very weird.
But for Yan Song, apart from Xia Yan, Nie Bao, Xu Jie and others, his accumulation is not deep after all. He was quite optimistic about Xu Jie's potential, so he wanted to give him more support.
Now Xu Jie thought about it carefully and then said: "In addition to being used to send students away and let Zhejiang people deal with some old things before the teacher arrives, they also want to use the students to test the teacher's attitude after he takes office?"
Yan Song nodded: "I didn't have anything to say to you during the day. Now that I have summoned you, you might as well tell them clearly that I just don't worry about what bad things have happened in Zhejiang for so many years. You Xu Jie, I am Yan." A nail placed in the feudal government office!"
What he said was quite domineering, and Xu Jie couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
"Do you understand why my master only called you again at night?"
Xu Jie did not shake his head immediately, but began to think carefully again.
Yan Song waited patiently for him to think, and after a while Xu Jie replied: "Not revealing this in front of the gentry during the day will make the gentry think that the mentor has no intention of cleaning up and promoting new officials in Zhejiang. When summoned at night, he just told the Zhejiang Third Division, There are some things that you don’t need to avoid, why not discuss them with your mentor in private?”
"Excellent understanding." Yan Song nodded approvingly, "Don't think that the local area is not as noble as the Hanlin Academy. In the future, if you don't have the experience of governing a local area, I'm afraid there will be no chance to participate in national policies."
Xu Jie was shocked: "Students, please be taught."
This was judged by Yan Song himself. In addition to the participation of the chief of the imperial study room and accompanying the readings, the team that the emperor really cultivated from the bottom must be sent to local areas to take part in events, rather than staying in the capital all the time.
The concubines of the Hanlin Academy and even the Hanlin bachelors, apart from compiling history and waiting for imperial edicts as usual in the past, are not much more noble now - His Majesty even selected three people to learn arithmetic from Wang Wensu.
Outside the imperial study, no one knew that the emperor himself was the most open-minded and the real source of the new law.
He is just too young to be able to dominate the world with his reputation. Once the official system in Guangdong was changed, it was obvious that those who were able were promoted and those who were unable were demoted. In the future, literary fame, reputation, and reputation may still be useful, but in the face of His Majesty's ambitions, talent must come first.
Your Majesty has always protected Wang Qiong and the others, probably because they can do things well.
Being able to do things is the key. And if he wants to do well in the many major events arranged by His Majesty in the future, Yan Song cannot rely on himself.
So he continued to ask Xu Jie: "What insights have you gained from my teacher's conduct and words today?"
At this moment, Shao Xi was also thinking. The paper was spread out in front of him, and the pen had already been dipped in ink, but he frowned and put it down.
I went to inquire about the farming affairs and reminded everyone in Quzhou Prefecture not to cause trouble for the old farmer. If he says he will come again next year, that means he will stay in Zhejiang for a long time, not just to compete for tribute and plunder for the Japanese mission.
First respect the gentry, then the local officials of Zhejiang, and finally the common people, and then rest after being tired from the journey. The words spoken during the dinner may not have as simple a meaning as previously thought.
Now he even separately summoned Xu Jie, a new scholar who he recommended to Zhejiang.
Gentlemen are very important, so they come first? No, he pointed out that the wealthy gentry paid for transportation to and from places. It was difficult to sympathize with them. But in fact, he still told them: the wealthy gentry paid more, so they naturally wanted more. In Zhejiang, where there are seven mountains, two rivers and one farmland, the people can naturally get less and less.
What about the officials caught in the middle? He talked about His Majesty's great ambition, the three great talents in Wuzhong, His Majesty's disappointment in Confucianism, he asked Yu Qian to share in the Ancestral Temple, and he also mentioned the treatment of officials... Shao Xi was really confused.
Does Your Majesty have the heart to ignore past mistakes and understand the difficulties? He only mentioned Yang Tinghe and scolded Zhejiang once, and the new law only mentioned the treatment of officials. What is the quality of Yang Tinghe, a disciple of Yang Tinghe who always calls you "Your Majesty"?
The final destination is the common people. The implication is that there are only two things that His Majesty really cares about: whether the people can live and work in peace and contentment, and whether the Ming soldiers can conquer and fight. Naturally, it also includes whether the Ming Dynasty is rich or not, and whether it can ensure that the Ming Dynasty soldiers can conquer and fight in terms of money and food.
The young hero must seek change...
Judging from Yan Song's situation in Jiangxi, I'm afraid he is not a complete new party. Did Yang Tinghe take advantage of His Majesty's desire to enrich the country and strengthen the army?
Shao Xi pondered: If the New Party occupies the National Policy Conference, and if the New Party does not go, it would be difficult for someone like Yan Song, who was personally promoted by His Majesty, to enter the cabinet - the cabinet today is no better than before. Although there are more people participating in the discussion of state affairs, in terms of actual power, they have obtained the right to review many internal affairs of the six ministries.
He finally picked up the pen again and began to write a letter coherently.
Yan Song arrived in Zhejiang in the golden autumn, and he was really ready to pay attention to the autumn grain.
Of course, when he was in Ningbo and Shaoxing, he also inquired about the whole story of the Japanese tribute envoys competing for tribute and looting, as well as the treatment of the victims of disasters in the two places.
No one knows whether he has submitted a memorial to Beijing to explain the situation.
With this string stretched, Zhejiang did not dare to have another problem with the autumn grain issue.
At the end of October, a very special group of people were escorted into Beijing.
The Korean King Li Yi, who was canonized by Zhu Houzhao's envoy, sent a group of members of the envoy under Zongshe Qiandao. They broke away from the team after encountering a storm at sea, drifted to the North Korean sea in a daze, and were caught.
Several months had passed, and there was no news exchange between Ming Dynasty and North Korea. Li Yi quickly sent them to the capital to show his goodwill to the new king of Ming Dynasty.
"Does this case need to be tried properly?" Zhu Houcong said calmly in the imperial study, "Robbing places, these people can just be taken to Zhejiang and beheaded in public."
"Then Song Suqing was also taken away?" Li Chongsi asked, "After all, he came here with a congratulatory form from the King of Japan. Besides, with Ryan and others being escorted to Beijing, the whole Zhejiang province might be worried that he would reveal something else. Come on. It’s better to put this case on hold for now.”
"The Shipping Department has been abolished, so what are you doing?" Zhu Houcong glanced at him, "There is no need to say more about the King of Japan here. The Ashikaga Shogunate can no longer restrain the daimyo from various places. We will wait until they can compete. To make Yan Song do a better job in Zhejiang, punishing Lai En and others instead of beheading them is already a disservice to the people who died in Zhejiang. Using the heads of these Japanese pirates and Song Suqing and others who had no homeland to comfort them can also make Yan Song better in Zhejiang. It has more prestige in the minds of people in Zhejiang."
Song Suqing originally thought that he would be able to speak eloquently when he arrived in the capital, but Zhu Houcong directly handed him over to Luo An.
After a torture session, Song Suqing's purpose in causing trouble became clear to Zhu Houcong: Ogata Muyi was just nonsense, and Tao Yiqing was a native Japanese. He just wanted to use this incident to make Ming Dynasty nervous and give the new dynasty to the Hosokawa family. However, the Ouchi clan lost the benefits from the tribute trade with the Ming Dynasty. From now on, it would have to face the siege of the Hosokawa clan, the Mori clan and others.
Relying on the convenience of easier control of the Ashikaga Shogunate, the Hosokawa family had great ambitions to unify Kansai first and then overthrow the Ashikaga Shogunate. In addition, Iwamiyama was really involved, because Ming people like Song Suqing were active in Japan, and they were already planning to use ash blowing to increase Iwamiyama's silver production, which became another focus of the dispute. Iwamiyama is located in the territory of the Maori family, and the Hosokawa clan sits on the mountain and watches the tigers fight.
Zhu Houcong only hoped that they would consume each other even more now. As for the more wars they fight, the Japanese soldiers will become more courageous in the future. Will the Ming Dynasty’s weapon technology also improve?
There are many benefits to cutting off tribute.
Now, Zhu Houcong, who had finished the national policy meeting, called Xie Changjie over.
"Do you understand what I told you before?"
Xie Changjie stood there: "Although I haven't understood everything yet, I would like to listen to your Majesty's instructions."
"It's normal for you to be so dizzy back then that you can't understand everything." Zhu Houcong looked at him, "I was not the master of the shipping department, but I was punished more severely. I won't care about the past anymore. From now on. Go to Zhejiang and help Yan Song, and at the same time let Zhejiang officials see that you are watching him. If you are not sure about this, just ask Yan Song."
Xie Changjie had no intention of caring about the fact that he had become a seventh-grade censor, and he was getting worse and worse among the old ministers.
He asked carefully: "Your Majesty, are you really staring at Yan Song? I... don't understand."
After all, it sounds like he is just performing in conjunction with Yan Song.
Zhu Houcong smiled: "What you really want to pay attention to about him is whether he is really greedy because of his acting."
"...I understand." Xie Changjie knew that the previous task of promoting the market maker was given to Yan Song.
But isn't His Majesty worried about Yan Song's integrity? He is now following the example of his great-grandfather Yan Qingcai.
I've been really busy with work lately, so I've lost a little more in the past two days, and I'll make up for it at the end of the month.
(End of chapter)
