Qi Jiguang's first reaction when he heard the word "King Lu" was, "What kind of evil has happened to Prince Lu again?"
Gao Pragmatic could tell what he was thinking from his face, but this time Qi Jiguang misunderstood.
"It's not that King Lu did anything this time." Gao Pingshi smiled and shook his head, saying: "It was an official from the Ministry of Rites who went to the Ministry of Education to talk about how King Lu should have gone to the country long ago, but he still stayed in the capital, and he was not exempted from etiquette.
No. Therefore, I asked the emperor about the specific time of the Kingdom of King Lu."
Qi Jiguang asked: "Then what is the emperor's reply?"
Gao pragmatic raised his eyebrows slightly: "Of course the emperor did not reply immediately, but as far as I know, the emperor took the memorial from the Ministry of Rites to ask the Empress Dowager Cisheng for instructions."
"What does the Queen Mother mean?" Qi Jiguang asked again.
"What does the Queen Mother mean?" Gao Pragmatic shook his head: "Of course she wished that King Lu would just stop leaving..."
Qi Jiguang frowned: "I'm afraid this won't work, right?"
"Of course it won't happen. The ancestral system of the country is here. How can it be reasonable for a vassal king to become an adult but not to leave the country? How did Zhu Gaoxu's disaster happen in the past? Even if the queen mother doesn't know, doesn't the emperor know?"
However, Qi Jiguang was silent for a while, and then sighed: "The emperor may know, but before King Lu's wedding, the emperor spent 3869 taels of gold of various colors, more than 8700 green rubies, and 2 coral pearls.
More than 14,000 pieces, 100,000 taels of silver... a total of more than 900,000 taels of silver were spent, and you know these things, Mr. Sima."
Gao pragmatically closed his eyes gently, but did not answer.
Qi Jiguang sighed again and said: "The palace of Prince Lu is almost completed now. It is said that it cost more than five or six hundred thousand taels just to repair the house? This does not count the land. After all, the land is given... The last general is
I’m worried that if King Lu refuses to declare his kingdom a vassal state, then his palace will continue to be built like this, and how much money will it cost?”
Gao Pragmatic still closed his eyes, but replied: "The budget of Prince Lu's Mansion is more than 670,000 taels of silver, but this amount is definitely unaffordable. Even if the people below control the repair, the final completion will definitely cost more than 700,000 taels."
If we can stop at 10,000 taels...700,000, that's not bad, but I'm afraid that the emperor's bottom line may be more than 700,000, and maybe another 100,000 will be added."
Qi Jiguang clenched his fists and suppressed his breath: "We didn't spend 800,000 taels on this war in Yunnan and Burma, right?"
That's definitely not the case. Under the highly pragmatic operation, the court actually only spent some temporary money on this battle, and even made a lot of surplus in the long run.
Moreover, even the temporary expenses did not exceed 800,000 taels - the military pay prepared was almost the same amount. However, since Liu Wei and Deng Zilong's troops only advanced to the vicinity of Ava City, the main battles in the south and central part were caused by
The Annan Expedition led by Huang Zhiting was completed, so the money was actually far from spent.
Gao Jingshi said calmly: "The part spent on the Eight Classics was only about 370,000 taels. Later, I spent some more on rewards and so on, so the total is 400,000 taels."
Qi Jiguang twitched the corner of his mouth and sighed: "Such a war to destroy the country only cost 400,000 taels, but King Lu's palace would cost 700,000 to 800,000 taels. This... well, the general always seems to have some feelings in his heart.
I want to say something, but after thinking about it carefully I can’t say anything.”
Of course Gao pragmatic knew what Qi Jiguang wanted to say. If the court uses this money to raise and train troops, this year... Oh, not this year, it is already winter, and it is not suitable for fighting in the fortress - but with this money after the spring of next year, I'm afraid
It’s enough to march into Chahanhot.
"Nantang Gong, there are some things that you and I both know the crux of the problem, but knowing the crux of the problem may not be able to prescribe the right medicine. It's like I am a doctor and I know that someone is sick, but if that person refuses to ask me to treat it,
Or maybe you think I'm just being alarmist, I can't rush over, tie him up, and then forcibly treat him, don't you think?"
The truth is of course this truth, and Qi Jiguang also understands it, so he just shook his head slightly: "If Young Sima can't even start, then it seems that this matter is really hopeless."
"A gentleman cannot think beyond his position." Gao Pragmatic said: "After all, I am just the minister of the Ministry of War. What I can contribute now is to try my best to handle the affairs of the Imperial Guard. When the imperial court can launch a thunderous strike, the Imperial Guard will
The army can also go outside the fortress and show its power on the grassland."
Qi Jiguang nodded and said: "The last general should do his best to train his troops so that he can live up to the expectations of the young Sima."
Gao pragmatically said: "This is not my wish alone, but the wish of everyone in the government and the public." Then he paused: "Where did you just say it?"
Qi Jiguang replied: "It's time for the emperor to ask the Empress Dowager Cisheng for instructions."
"Oh, yes." Gao Pragmatic nodded and suddenly laughed: "Nantang Gong might as well guess what the Cisheng Dowager said."
Qi Jiguang shook his head and said: "Young Sima, this junior general doesn't dare to make random guesses."
Gao Pragmatic chuckled: "Okay, let me tell you the truth - the Empress Dowager Cisheng said: 'Although there is no age limit in the country of vassal kings, it is usually after the wedding. The Ai family understands this. However,
Although the country's vassalage is an ancestral system, the emperor previously said that King Jing's property would be transferred to King Lu. I wonder if King Lu has got it now? If he has, then the Ai family has nothing to say, and of course they agree with King Lu's vassalage. But.
If you didn't get it...emperor, you wouldn't watch your brother go to Wei Hui to drink the northwest wind, right?"
When Qi Jiguang heard this, his expression immediately changed, and he said in a deep voice: "Prince Jing's property is still in the hands of the imperial court? How did the general hear about it..."
Gao Pragmatic said calmly: "King Jing's property has been gone for a long time, and it has all been returned to the local people."
Qi Jiguang was stunned and said hesitantly: "Does the Empress Dowager know about this?"
"If she doesn't know, why would she ask this?" Gao Jingshi curled his lips and said: "If what I expected is correct, someone may be giving the Queen Mother advice on this matter behind her back. As for the reason, one is to delay the Kingdom of King Lu.
, Secondly, even if it cannot be delayed, it can still make King Lu rich in wealth, and he will become a vassal with great joy."
Qi Jiguang was stunned for a while, sighed, but said no more.
In fact, Gao pragmatically recalled carefully how many rewards and properties King Lu received in history, and he even took the whole thing seriously several times.
In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, there were very few additional rewards of property to the princes. Everything was done in accordance with the standards set by Zhu Yuanzhang. However, in the early Ming Dynasty, petitions and land rewards were gradually begun, but the amount was small and not yet
Become customized.
After Xuande, due to the experience and lessons of the Jingnan Campaign and the Gaoxu Rebellion, the imperial court's preventive policy against the clan became more and more strict, and the guards and military power of each vassal were successively deprived of them. Politically, they basically "sit in vain"
"Extremely rich and generous".
The princes and princes could not and did not dare to do anything politically, so they turned to the direction of amassing wealth and expanding their estates by any means.
During this period, the imperial court was also willing to give generous salaries to various princes, thereby depriving them of their political rights. Therefore, petitions became more popular and the amount of land rewarded gradually increased.
Under such a situation, the early feudal princes took advantage of their privileges to annex a large amount of land by petitioning, accepting donations, expropriating and other means. Later princes followed the early feudal princes in terms of industry, trying to catch up with or surpass the early feudal princes before and after they entered the vassal state.
Prince's Mansion.
During the Chenghua period, the amount of land requested and approved by the kings of De, Chong, Ji, and Hui of the vassal vassal reached thousands of hectares, and the pace of annexation of land by the princes was greatly accelerated.
In the Jiajing Dynasty, Zhu Zaizhen, King Jinggong (the one who competed with Longqing in the Yuwang period), used Shizong's favor and took advantage of the opportunity of the country to obtain 40,000 hectares of land and a large amount of rent, mining and salt taxes through petition.
No matter how much the courtiers at the time objected to the boycott, Jiajing ignored it, so King Jing still set a precedent for large-scale land acquisition through petitions.
At present, King Lu is Zhu Yijun's only half-brother. The government and the public call him "the head of all vassals" and "the vassal watcher". In terms of favor and grace, he is even better than King Jinggong Zhu Zaizhen.
Gao Pingshi remembered that in the original history, King Lu did not become a vassal now. He only officially became a vassal in the 17th year of Wanli. At the same time, he used his special status to follow King Jing's precedent and petition King Jing for his legacy.
Zhu Yijun always responded to King Lu's petitions, and of course he did so this time. He also ordered the relevant courts, divisions, roads, and offices to copy the original amount of Jingfu's farmland from the Ministry of Household Affairs and transfer it to each county, survey and determine the boundaries, and discuss
The amount of money and food that should be paid at each location.
The problem was that during the reign of King Jing, due to the confusion of traitors, the amount of property under his name was already huge. Hong Qidao, who was the magistrate of Huangpi County at the time, said: "Jingfu reported to the government some years ago that
There are many traitors who have donated their money, and there are people’s fields hidden inside.”
Moreover, twenty-four years have passed since the removal of the Jing Fan Kingdom to the Kingdom of King Lu. The actual number of people who originally belonged to King Jing will definitely only decrease, not increase. "History of the Ming Dynasty" records: "The vassal of King Jing has died of illness.
The people of Chu were very happy to report that they had captured tens of thousands of hectares of Pitian owned by Jingfu and returned it to the people."
Jingfu's imaginary amount was originally 40,000 hectares, and after the country was annexed, Xu Jie "took tens of thousands hectares and returned them to the people," indicating that basically all - or at least most of them - were returned to the original owners.
, or those whose fields belong to tenant farmers will pay the taxes and serve as errands.
For example, in Huangpi County, after the death of King Jing, the land was "returned to the people". In the ninth year of Wanli in history, after the land was measured, it was "recorded in the book". This means that the land of the original Jingfan was included in the national book, and the land was returned to the people to pay taxes.
As an errand.
Therefore, when King Lu complained about King Jing's legacy, "the departments of courtyards, divisions, roads, and prefectural households copied out the numbers of Jingfu's village and farmland, etc., and transferred them to the county to survey and determine the boundaries." And the county "is close to Sheyuan Township."
Zhumuling checked the amount of the land and harvested 607 hectares of rented land, and collected rent according to the original Jingfu rent collection dragon ticket.
Therefore, the work of appropriating the land of Prince Lu's Mansion was actually the original empty quota of Jing Mansion. According to the records of the Ministry of Household Records, private property was forcibly taken away from the original county of Jing Mansion's land! This move aroused controversy between the government and the public.
Strong resistance.
The villagers, on the other hand, "changed their expressions after hearing this" and gathered at a meeting of the gentry to petition the prefecture and county to ask for reassignment or reduction of duties. The prefecture and county magistrates jointly petitioned the officials to handle the matter, and the officials at the court repeatedly petitioned to resist.
In August of the 16th year of Wanli, the Ministry of Household Affairs pointed out in the reply to Shangshu: If the land originally owned by the Jingfu government and originally owned by private tenants was to be returned to the Luwangfu, it would be a loss to the state and harm to the people's livelihood.
"Required that "the Huguang lake land, rivers, and state pits that were originally civilian property should still be returned to their owners."
However, for the sake of this "view of the vassals", Zhu Yijun ignored the objections of local officials and ministers and issued an edict: "Zhuang Tian shall be granted, and the boundaries shall be established with the officials and the abbots so that they can be observed forever." He also asked "to check the corresponding land again.
You might as well give me some more, to show my friendship and sincerity."
In the specific survey work, it is not easy to convert decades of imaginary amounts into real numbers. Although there is a clear purpose, it is still not easy. There are still great difficulties and resistance, and it cannot be carried out smoothly.
Wanli was furious about this, and Long Yan was imprisoned, and the salaries of officials below the Secretary level were also affected. This also affected officials in relevant prefectures and counties, "such as Chief Secretary Zuo, Chief Secretary Wang Yingqian, Zhao Qintang, who was in charge of Wuchang Road Zuo and participated in politics, etc." and related officials were all suspended.
Get salary.
Under this pressure, the relevant ministers and workers who had been deprived of their salaries had to "respect the Emperor's friendship and close relatives" and "work extremely hard on the investigation".
Next, finally change the imaginary number of Jingfu to the real number of Lufu.
In the 21st year of Wanli, the Ministry of Household Affairs wrote: "The Lu Mansion has reported to the Jing Mansion to investigate the legacy of the Jing Mansion. It is clear that the government will check the compensation and distribute the rent. Please open the official salary. According to this." It can be seen from this that the survey work was finally completed.
After satisfying King Lu and the emperor, the salaries of the officials whose salaries were suspended were resumed.
In this way, from the beginning of King Lu's petition in August of the 16th year of Wanli to the end of the exploration work in October of the 21st year of Wanli, it took a total of five years. King Lu finally obtained 40,000 hectares of land and a large amount of rent, mines, salt
Tax.
In fact, since the mid-Ming Dynasty, the trend of donation has become more and more popular. In the early years of King Jing's kingdom, the number of donations was already quite astonishing.
During the Wanli period, the trend of donating became even more intense, so much so that in the 34th year of Wanli, "The Ceremony of the Holy Mother's Emblem Ceremony and the Imperial Edict for Responsibility to the World" specifically stated: "The common people were tired from the service, so they donated their land to the prince's palace to express hope...
…The common people are not allowed to sell their property privately to the prince, except for those who purchase it in advance, and they are left to be guarded by their family members. If the previous abuses continue, the common people will be punished, and the chief of the clan, King Shi Qi, will give them a warning." This shows that the contribution has been taken seriously by the imperial court.
issues of concern.
The main targets of donations were the privileged royal palaces. The Lu Mansion, which was the head of the vassals at that time, received a lot of donations. In addition, there are endless records of the seizure and occupation of people's property by the royal palaces.
It is common in the place where it is located.
It is also stated in the "Edict on the Ceremony of the Holy Mother's Emblem to Responsible for the World": "There are some violent and powerful clans who often leave the closed city without authorization and seize property in various states and counties, but the officials know about it and do not ask."
The farmland in Lufu is spread over a wide area, intersecting with the private fields and connected by treacherous roads. Seizures, purchases and occupations of the private fields often occur.
Hu Zhonglan took Sheyuan Township in Huangpi County as an example in "Wangzhuangyi" and said: Lu Mansion petitioned King Jing's inheritance and obtained 607 hectares of fields within 70 miles of the township, but "the tenants (of Lu Mansion) suffered from
The rent is heavy, and the contested territory is seventy miles away. It is not surprising that within seventy miles there are tens of acres of civilian land. The original land of Jingfu is only a hundred and seven acres, so how can it be as much as seventy miles? There are many tenants and they want to increase their land.
To reduce the rent, the people do not want to cede land with heavy differences. For several years, this has been difficult to decide."
The tenants of Lu Mansion are still fighting for local property in the name of Seventy Miles, let alone Prince Lu's Mansion. Without the backing of Prince Lu's Mansion, how could it be possible that the tenants' quarrel would make it impossible for Yousi to resolve it for several years? But Hu Zhonglan only dared to say
The tenants don't dare to talk about Lu Mansion.
It can be seen from this that there are not a few cases of Lu Mansion seizing and occupying people's property. Wang Yuquan said, "There are only a few ways for princes to obtain Zhuangtian in the Ming Dynasty: imperial gift, petition, acceptance of donation, seizure, and direct occupation."
"Looking at the reasons and processes for the formation of the farmland in Prince Lu's Mansion, there are just a few reasons. Among them, the 40,000 hectares of land that Prince Lu petitioned and approved by Zhu Yijun were the main ones, followed by a certain amount of donations and occupations.
There are so many twists and turns in this. How could Empress Dowager Li, a woman who has been serving in the palace since she was a child, know so clearly? That's why Gao Pragmatic said that someone was giving Empress Dowager Li advice behind her back.
The two of them were silent for a while, and Qi Jiguang finally couldn't help it anymore and asked: "Is that person behind the Queen Mother Li Wenjin?"
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Thanks to book friend "Cao Mianzi" for your reward and support, thank you!
Thanks to book friends "Cao Mianzi", "Zhou Yanyy", and "book friend 160205225421459" for their monthly ticket support, thank you!
PS: In the early days of this book, a friend asked King Lu how much money he spent on the Ming Dynasty. I said at that time that I would write about it later...well, this chapter is the basic answer.
