All provinces in the world were undercurrent due to the drastic changes caused by the impeachment case of Li Xiang due to the water conservancy rectification issue, but Guangdong became the center of the storm again.
Li Xiang is a Cantonese after all.
In the 16th year of Zhengde's reign, Zhang Fujing went south. A major corruption case in Guangdong and Guangxi broke out due to the first Tuen Mun battle. Almost all high-ranking officials were wiped out, and Guangdong began to clear out its land.
In the first year of Jiajing, due to the hurricane disaster and the pressure of new laws, rebellious gentry appeared in Guangdong, and Zhang Fujing ransacked his house again.
In the second year of Jiajing's reign, Guangdong's government offices underwent major reforms, including trial implementation of procurement laws, commercial laws, tax laws, and compilation and review of scientific regulations. Guangdong, which had gone through great turmoil among officials and gentry, had no more troubles.
Now at the beginning of the third year of Jiajing reign, Guangdong Xinke Jinshi impeached his first assistant. He was first praised by His Majesty for his loyalty, and then his behavior was found to be "first close to the new party, and then impeached the leader of the new party. He is a villain with ulterior motives."
Li Xiang's parents died young. After becoming a Jinshi last year, he had already brought his wife and children to Beijing.
But in Xinhui County, Li Xiang's relatives, teachers and friends are still there.
Zhang Fujing did not draw his sword this time, but said to Ma Yong: "General Secretary Ma, at the provincial, prefectural and county levels, you need to carefully deploy manpower to help collect local taxes."
This is a new name set after the unification of local laws and regulations. The tribute required by the imperial court from Guangdong was purchased by the annual office and the office, and was paid by the Ministry of Household Affairs.
This part of the corvee pressure that used to be borne by the local government has been transferred to the commercial firms that undertook the purchase, and the tax department can extract part of the commercial tax from it.
The local government's own miscellaneous offices and other corvee apportionments have been unified into local taxes, which are apportioned per acre and the land rights are calculated. After the tax is collected, the government still purchases it.
The top priority in Guangdong this year is the collection of local taxes.
At the provincial affairs meeting, Sun Jiao was no longer present - news came from Beijing that he had left for Beijing early. One was for the emperor's "safety", and the other was for Empress Sun, who would probably give birth around March.
However, there are still many relatives of the New Dynasty in Guangdong, such as Ma Yong, An Bin's father, the former Jizhou military officer, and the current director-general of the Guangdong Public Security Department.
After listening to Zhang Fujing's words, he looked at Jiang Xiuyi, the chief military officer of Guangdong: "Under the Public Security Department, in addition to the Haiphong Road and the Inspection Department, they are mainly the fast squads and strong squads of the original prefectures and counties. If there is a situation, General Jiang will be needed
There are many soldiers to take care of you."
Jiang Xiuyi just nodded silently.
Zhang Fujing looked at Zhai Luan, who had been re-elected as the head of the tax department: "If Zhai encounters obstacles in handling the tax, he can send someone to report it in time."
Zhai Luan went south as an official to promote education, but now he has been transferred to the Department of Taxation. The reason is for no other reason - this is the first time such taxes are collected, and it is the first time that taxes must be strictly imposed on officials and gentry. Zhai Luan has the experience of being the head of the Ministry of Punishment
.
"If the officials in Guangdong fail to perform their duties well, Huo Xun, who is in charge of the three-level imperial censors in Guangdong, will not tolerate it."
Huo Tao learned a lesson, and now he was lucky enough to stay in the job and get promoted, and he agreed repeatedly.
"It's hard work even if Cao is punished. This year, we still need to use the name of punishment to calm the people's hearts and deter young people."
Duanbi's father, Cao Cha, was already a fourth-rank magistrate, and this time he was directly promoted to the chief official of the Sentencing Department in charge of the punishment of a province in Guangdong.
After Cao Cha agreed, he asked: "Futai, in the middle of the court now..."
He hesitated to speak.
Although they are both relatives of the country, the ninth concubine has not been established since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. The father of the queen was granted the title of marquis and was hereditary earl; the father of the concubine Shu was granted the title of uncle and was hereditary for three generations; but the fathers of the nine concubines were only appointed officials.
Even though they have been promoted, they are not qualified enough to know the truth.
The current situation is that the Marquis of Jing'an and Sun Jiao, the cabinet scholar, hurried back to the capital after learning the news.
If the emperor was forced by Yang Ting and Ling, would these relatives of the new dynasty still cooperate with the new law in Guangdong?
Facing the powerful and powerful Zhang Fujing, Cao Cha failed to ask such a question clearly.
Zhang Fujing looked over one by one.
Zhang En, Jiang Xiuyi, Cao Cha, Ma Yong, Zhai Luan, Huo Tao, these are the six giants at the Guangdong Provincial Council.
He simply said: "Your Majesty's decree!"
After saying that, he took out a roll of imperial edict from his sleeve.
Hearing the words "I'm the Emperor", the six of them were all moved in their hearts. They left their seats and knelt down: "Long live your Majesty! Long live! Long live your Majesty! May I ask you about the Holy Annals?"
"The emperor is destined to be supported by heaven, the edict said." After they had finished greeting the emperor, Zhang Fujing directly began to recite the imperial edict, "Practical science, dialectics, and new laws all came from me, and I will provide advice and help. Li Xiang's case, Guangdong is not
It needs to be understood and the new law can be implemented with peace of mind. Guangdong has practiced it and learned dialectics. It is very consistent with my wishes. It is accurate! Yang Ge, the old minister, is responsible for the important task of reform. I really pity his loyalty and bravery. Guangdong does not have to believe it. Qin
this."
"...Your Majesty is Holy Ming!"
After everyone stood up and saluted, they saw Zhang Fujing smiling and passing the imperial edict to them.
To be honest, it feels a little weird, especially the word "pity" and the word "yong" in "pity his loyalty and bravery".
After the imperial edict was conveyed once, Zhang Fujing put away his smile and said solemnly: "Guangdong has been in chaos twice, and there will definitely be another chaos this year. You must not slack off. If Guangdong is like this, what will happen to the world? Now that the central government is united, Guangdong is on the right track.
We must work together. The whole world is watching Guangdong, General Secretary Ma, and Cao Tixing. They are also working together to support the new law, and the situation will gradually become clearer. If the new law in Guangdong is successful, it will show the power of His Majesty's practical learning, dialectics and new law.
The world will never again ignore His Majesty because he is young!"
In the small circle of these seven people, the words were initially made clear.
To put it bluntly, if people with the status of Ma Yong and Cao Cha also vigorously promoted the new law in Guangdong, then the rumors that the emperor was suppressed by Yang Tinghe would slowly dissipate.
But there is a subtle time difference in this.
Because...the separation of taxes and servitude and the sharing of burdens between the rich and the poor are at least something that comes after summer and autumn crops.
But in the face of Sun Jiao rushing back to the capital, can some caring people in other provinces endure it?
…
The clipper Sun Jiao was riding on had already entered the boundaries of Huguang.
It was almost the end of February. When the news of the imperial meeting in the first month of the first month was rushed to Guangdong, it was already the end of the month. Even if Sun Jiao set off immediately, it would not be until March when he arrived in the capital.
The express delivery can be done day and night by changing people and horses along the way, and Sun Jiao also has a baby on board.
Now, Sun Jiao no longer cares about spending more time with his little daughter, who "comes old and gets a daughter", but keeps watching the news that has been coming from Beijing these days.
On his boat, there was a special person.
Sun Jiao called him over and asked seriously: "Is the secret order Commander Luo gave you really true?"
In front of Sun Jiao was Si Cong, the former commander of the Jinyiwei who was here that day. Because he helped Zhang Yanling with loan sharking, he has now been demoted to the position of Jinyiwei Baihu. The assignment at this moment is very special.
Si Cong replied respectfully: "Exactly. The lower official has been secretly trained by Wang Zhenfu for more than half a year. He should have led the special service team to report to General Secretary Ma. But the hidden dangers in Guangdong are not big, but Huguang is more troublesome."
Sun Jiao is originally from Huguang, so he naturally knows that Huguang is more troublesome.
In the case of Li Xiang, the central government created such a situation and immediately began to clean up the water conservancy all over the world. The hidden dangers in Huguang, a province of vassal kings, can be imagined.
What is not known to outsiders during the restructuring of the Guangdong government offices is that the Public Security Department, which is mainly responsible for internal security and anti-theft operations, will set up a special service team in the Public Security Department, organized into hundreds of households. Throughout the Ming Dynasty, Jinyiwei has been established in Beizhen
A special service station was set up under Fusi, with a total of 5,000 people. This secret force is probably only known to Cui Yuan and Sun Jiao among the current advisers.
Now, Si Cong will not go to Guangdong to perform his duties for the time being, but will follow Sun Jiao.
"Where are the people below you?"
Si Congyan said concisely and concisely: "At the Marquis of Zhenyuan. The official came to meet the Marquis first."
"I'm temporarily staying in Hengzhou Prefecture, Changsha Prefecture, and Wuchang Prefecture. How will I stay?"
Si Cong didn't need to answer, and said in a low voice: "The Marquis must have received your Majesty's secret order, and I will only listen to the Marquis's orders."
Sun Jiao looked at him deeply and nodded slightly.
The current Huguang includes the King of Chu of Wuchang Prefecture, the King of Liao of Jingzhou Prefecture, the King of Min of Wugang Prefecture, the King of Ji of Changsha Prefecture, the King of Xiang of Xiangyang Prefecture, the King of Jing of Qizhou Prefecture, the King of Shou of De'an Prefecture, the King of Rong of Changde Prefecture, and the King of Hua of Lizhou Prefecture.
Prince Yang, and Prince Rui of Hengzhou Prefecture, who established the new vassal state.
Among them, King Shou and King Rong were both descendants of Xianmiao, and King Rui was the stepson of Emperor Zhengde, with a special status.
There are nine existing princes in one province, ranking first in the entire Ming Dynasty for the most vassal princes.
If we add in the vassal kings who have been deposed for various reasons, Huguang has established a total of sixteen vassals. Some of the original land granted by the deposed vassals was given to the vassal kings who later established the vassal or moved to Huguang, and the rest
All of them were turned into official fields.
Huguang has probably the closest interest relationship with the royal clan.
The boat sailed to Hengzhou Mansion at the intersection of Lei River and Xiangjiang River. This was the fiefdom of King Rui Zhu Zaiyan.
Sun Jiao stayed here for a day and only went to Prince Rui's Mansion in Jin'ao Lane.
It seemed that this was only necessary for etiquette, but in Prince Rui's palace, Queen Xia did not show up. Prince Rui, who was only four years old, wore mourning clothes and met Sun Jiao accompanied by Chang Shi.
After the adoption, he mourned his "father" Zhu Houzhao again.
At the cusp of the storm, the little Prince Rui didn't understand. But his mother probably understood what the situation was like. If it weren't for Sun Jiao's identity, Prince Rui's Mansion would have been closed to all guests.
The Xia family even quickly sent people to send congratulatory gifts to Empress Sun for her upcoming birth of a prince.
It was not yet known whether she would give birth to a prince or a princess, so Xia was very scared. She didn't understand why Sun Jiao insisted on visiting her in person - she just sent someone to say hello.
Let's go now!
When news came about Sun Jiao's actions in Hengzhou Prefecture, he accepted a banquet hosted by local officials of Hengzhou Prefecture.
Faced with various temptations during the dinner, he only said that he believed that his advisers were of one mind and were loyal to the country.
The next day he set off and continued to Changsha Prefecture.
There is also a vassal king here, and Wang Bangrui, the censor of Huguang Water Patrol, is also in Changsha Mansion. The purpose is self-evident.
Prince Ji and Sun Jiao of Changsha Prefecture no longer visited him in person.
On the contrary, Prince Ji's palace chief Shi came to the banquet.
During the dinner, Sun Jiao asked Wang Bangrui: "Weixian and Yu Maogong are both Zhengde and Dingchou Ke Jinshi?"
Wang Bangrui was silent for a moment, and then said: "Bangrui and Xia Gongjin are also in the same field."
Sun Jiao asked him about his relationship with Yu Chengxun, and he mentioned his relationship with Xia Yan, as if he wanted to prove that he was not changed from Shujishi to supervisory censor to inspect Huguang Water Conservancy because of his closeness to Yu Chengxun.
But Huguang Water Conservancy involves so many royal family members, how heavy is the burden on Wang Bangrui? If Yang Tinghe didn't appreciate him and believe in him, why would he send him here.
Sun Jiao nodded: "I heard that when Wei Xian was still studying hard in the government school, he proposed the fourteenth plan to suppress the bandits to the prefect?"
Wang Banggrui was silent for a while before replying: "I am worried about the people and driven by righteous indignation. I only saw it at the time and it is not worth mentioning."
Sun Jiao smiled and said, "Weixian is not yet thirty this year, right?"
"...Xiaguan was born in May of the eighth year of Hongzhi. He is already thirty years old."
"At thirty, your future is boundless and your future life is formidable." Sun Jiao nodded again, "Huguang is a vast territory and there are many things to do. Weixian still needs to think carefully and act with caution."
"...I will keep in mind Mr. Ge's teachings."
The brief conversation revealed very special information, and Sun Jiao seemed to be warning him.
The long history of Prince Ji's Mansion in Changsha had a different expression.
He was re-elected by the Ministry of Rites in the past two years. Why doesn't something seem right about Sun Jiao's performance now?
Queen Sun was about to give birth, but he was still so unhurried in Huguang.
The situation was sensitive, and Prince Ji of Changsha Prefecture did not arrange for anyone he truly trusted to interact with Sun.
The next day, Sun Jiao set off from Changsha Prefecture, passed through the Xiangjiang River, Dongting Lake and entered the Yangtze River.
The water was wide, so he changed to a bigger boat.
In Wuchang Mansion, the governor of Huguang, the Chief Envoy, the Dusi, and the Prosecution and Prosecution Department were all making preparations.
Then, it was the commander-in-chief of the Huguang Du Commandery Department who left Wuchang Prefecture first and headed for the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.
In Baling County, Yuezhou Prefecture, at the mouth of Dongting Lake, the Marquis of Jing'an, the abbot of the state, and the cabinet's great scholar met with Zhenyuan Marquis, the first military official in Huguang.
Gu Shilong had just turned forty this year, but when Sun Jiao saw him, he only felt that his health was worse than when he passed through Huguang and went south the year before last.
"Zhongxun, why are you so thin?" Sun Jiao was worried.
Huguang is so important now, Gu Shilong, the commander-in-chief of Huguang, cannot make any mistakes.
Gu Shilong's father ascended the throne as a concubine and served as an official for thirty years. He was honest and law-abiding. Gu Shilong inherited his father's style and acted meticulously.
He shook his head: "No problem. Mr. Ge, my son Gu Huan is now the Red Helmet General guarding the Forbidden Palace. After Mr. Ge returns to the capital, I hope to take more care of him."
He said it without any hindrance, but there was a sense of entrustment in his words.
Sun Jiao was shocked: "What happened in Huguang?"
Gu Shilong solemnly said: "The King of Chu has been quite bold recently. Many of his subordinates, concubines, and merchants from Huguang have secretly interacted with my unfilial second son Gu Yu. I would like to plead guilty and impeach the King of Chu for secretly befriending honorable ministers and having some evil intentions!"
"
Sun Jiao looked at him in confusion: "Young Master is already deeply involved with the Prince of Chu's Mansion?"
Gu Shilong nodded heavily: "In the thoroughfares of the nine provinces of Wuchang Prefecture, I took my second son with me and neglected to discipline it. The dogs have already devoured a lot of the sacred land of Xianning and Jiayu counties in the south of Wuchang Prefecture. Huguang has been rectified for water conservancy, and the water conservancy has been rectified.
When I arrived at Wuchang Mansion, I had no way of proving my innocence. My family was in misfortune, so I could only set an example and help His Majesty."
Sun Jiao's heart became heavy and he asked again: "Where are the generals under my command?"
"Naturally, I also bought a lot of good land." Gu Shilong said decisively, "After I plead guilty, there is still a list of names to be submitted. Please ask Mr. Ge and Cui Zuojun to do it on your behalf, so that I can still guard Huguang and use the generals on the list.
If officials are appointed everywhere, there will be no chaos in Huguang."
Sun Jiao asked seriously: "Is there a guard station to connect with the vassal king?"
"Of course there is." Gu Shilong said, "Huguang has fifteen prefectures and two prefectures, with a total of 108 counties and fourteen scattered prefectures. The area is larger than Nanzhili and Zhejiang combined. Although it has to support nine princes and one county king, the land tax
It accounts for less than twenty-one of the country's weight. Of course Mr. Ge knows the reason why."
Sun Jiao nodded solemnly.
The water network in Huguang is dense, and the amount of fertile farmland is not comparable to that of Guangdong or Zhejiang. Although there are many clans in Huguang today, the land tax is so small. Most of the reasons are due to frequent bad harvests due to floods and other reasons. In addition, the clan, the military attache of the Wei Institute,
In Huguang, civil servants and gentry often invaded people's farmland, and the problem of hiding farmland and hiding households was much more serious than in Guangdong.
To solve the problem in Huguang, the first thing that cannot be avoided is the clan.
Now, Gu Shilong is ready to attack the King of Chu.
There is no doubt that he will also let Yang Tinghe use him as the leader of the nobles to perform the surgery together, but he will ask Sun Jiao and Cui Yuan to protect him.
Sun Jiao thought about his daughter who was about to give birth. Judging from the letters home, His Majesty took good care of her.
So he said flatly: "I will stay in Huguang! You can't handle this matter in Huguang alone!"