Both Sun Chuanting and Chen Qiyu had the right ideas. One wanted to avoid future troubles once and for all, while the other wanted to seek stability.
However, Sun Chuanting's idea is not advisable, and everything must be done within one's ability.
It is not difficult to defeat the Mongolian tribes in the grassland, but it is unrealistic to completely eliminate them.
At least the current Ming Dynasty does not have this ability.
So what if we kill all the tribes on the Monan Grassland?
In a few years, the influence of large tribes such as Tumut, Khalkha, Wala, and Horqin will spread.
"Okay, you don't have to argue anymore. I already have a plan for how to fight this battle. I just want to give you a break and ask if you have any suggestions."
"I know that the people are exhausted and trapped in corvee labor, so I have no intention of conscripting the people."
Under the leadership of Chen Qiyu, dozens of officials complimented in unison:
"Your Majesty is Holy Ming."
"Chen Qing, I leave it to you to prepare military rations, medicines, and dry food for the army."
"I obey the decree."
"Li Zhongzheng and Sun Chuanting stay, and the rest should leave first."
Zhu Youxiao waved his hand and said.
"Sun Qing, I know that you are an upright person and have always hated evil. I am keeping you two here because I have a new policy that I want to entrust you two to handle."
The New Deal that Zhu Youxiao referred to was the well-known policy in later generations of sharing grains between farmers and farmers, and the government and gentry all paid their share of the grain.
He had the idea of sharing the land between the peasants and the gentry, and that the officials and gentry would share the food together before he succeeded to the throne.
It’s just that I have never dared and never had the chance to implement it.
As soon as the policy of sharing the grain between the peasants and the gentry was introduced, the conflict between him and the bureaucratic gentry group became completely irreconcilable.
It just so happened that this time Datong Mansion was completely cleaned up, there were not many big gentry left, and the officials were replaced with new ones, so the resistance was reduced to a minimum.
He has collected so much land, Datong is the perfect time to implement the method of apportioning the land into acres.
Sun Chuanting is right when he says that only when the borders are stable can the mainland be stable.
Moreover, if a reform like this is implemented rashly across the country, given the current atmosphere in the officialdom, it may not even get off the ground in three to five years.
The courtiers will not support him, and even the royalists who are attached to Wang Zaijin and Wei Zhongxian will stand on their own side and oppose him.
Therefore, he must first find a pilot project and see the results before he can silence the courtiers.
"The so-called allotment of land into acres means redistributing land to farmers. Therefore, Datong needs to conduct a comprehensive land inventory and measurement."
"It is necessary to strictly check how much farmland there is in Datong. After the investigation is completed, it will be allocated to households based on the amount of farmland."
"After the land is measured, it will all be owned by the state. Whether it is officials, landlords, gentry, or farmers, they only have the right to use it, it does not belong to them personally, and they have no right to buy or sell it."
"This can prevent land annexation from happening, and can also make people's lives better, so they don't have to rely on the officials and gentry."
"The government should make public announcements widely and send people to publicize it among the people and in the countryside. It is necessary to let the people of Datong know the policy of sharing the land with the land."
"After the land is divided into acres, the land tax will be canceled for all registered residents in Datong Prefecture, and other miscellaneous taxes will no longer be collected. Only the land tax will be collected."
"The local government has no right to decide how to collect the land tax and how much to collect. It is not allowed to change it. It is up to the imperial court to uniformly formulate tax standards."
"Since people are divided into three, six or nine grades, the quality of these acres of cultivated land must also be divided into grades."
"Of course, those good and fertile fields must be harvested more, whether they are allocated to large households, common people, or officials."
"I won't go into details about these things. You can handle it yourself. How much fertile land there is and how much wasteland is poor land must be re-registered and submitted to the Ministry of Household Affairs for verification."
"In addition, the fire consumption levied by the government from the people must also be changed."
"When Zhang Juzheng reformed the tax policy and implemented the one-whip method, his original intention was to reduce the burden on the people."
"Lest the local government and officials, under the banner of the imperial court, breed unwarranted leaders to collect taxes indiscriminately."
"I didn't expect that this kind of fire consumption has now become one of the methods used by corrupt officials to make money. It cannot be done unless it is corrected."
"My idea is that the imperial court should formulate a unified system of returning fire consumption to the public. For one stone of grain, we can increase the amount of fire consumption. It can't be more or less."
"As for those who pay taxes in silver, the same is true. It is absolutely not allowed to charge the common people an extra copper penny."
"While you are surveying and measuring the land, there is another important matter for you two to handle."
"Datong wants to formulate a unified grain price currency. One penny is one penny, and a bushel of rice is worth as many pennies as it is."
"We will never allow this stupid thing to happen again. Here is a bucket of rice and one tael of silver, and there is a bucket of rice and two taels of silver."
"Do you understand what I mean?"
"If you have anything you want to ask, feel free to ask. You two are the main executive officers, so you must have a thorough understanding of the New Deal system and policies."
Naturally, the two of them heard what the emperor said clearly and clearly.
Abolition of the capitation tax, removal of all miscellaneous and arbitrary taxes, taxation based on acres, redistribution of land, and unified payment of grain by both officials and gentry. This is an unprecedented policy reform.
You must know that the main source of tax revenue in the Ming Dynasty was the capitation tax, which has been collected in this land for more than two thousand years.
Population tax has been levied in all dynasties. How can it be so easy to change?
Once this new policy is made public, it will inevitably cause shock in the world. Officials, gentry, landlords, and even feudal kings will all be dissatisfied.
Officials in the DPRK, no matter how big or small, probably have only a handful of supporters, and most of them must be opposed. This is extremely detrimental to the emperor.
However, although they have not seen the benefits of this new policy, they can tell the good and bad just by listening.
If the reform is really successful, it will definitely give the Ming Dynasty a completely new look, and ZTE is just around the corner. Even when the Tang Dynasty prospered during the Kaiyuan period, it may not be impossible to catch up and surpass it.
While the two of them admired His Majesty for his courage and insight and the new policies that benefited the country and the people, they were also worried about the future of the Ming Dynasty.
At the same time, they were also wondering. They were not the emperor's confidants, let alone officials in the capital, so why were they so valued by the emperor and appointed to implement the New Deal?
Especially Li Zhongzheng, he was puzzled because he had just defied the emperor in public.
During the imperial examination, everyone present could clearly see how much the emperor disliked him.
Is there still a chance of success?
But how did he know that Zhu Youzhan was interested in his character of not fearing the powerful and not following the crowd.
The main reason is that he does not have the same old-fashioned ideas as other officials, which is really commendable.
Although Zhu Youxiao had little contact with him and did not have a deep understanding of him, he could still see from his words and actions that he had a heart for the country and the people.