Zhu Yijun did a lot of work as soon as he came up and carried out the Lianghuai Salt Administration, but it was not Zhu Yijun's intention to bully honest people.
It is really forced by the situation, and someone must take on this important responsibility.
Short of money!
Let’s break down what Zhu Yijun has to do now.
Official administration, tax system, land transfer, sea opening, re-establishing the Shaofu, promoting the emergence of natural philosophy, splitting up the Southern Zhili, improving the tribute system... and so on.
There is nothing that does not require the backing of solid military power.
Military training always requires a lot of money.
This brings us back to the question - when considering where the money is spent, you must first answer where the money comes from.
How much money each ministry and department had in its treasury was the first thing he needed to explain to Zhang Juzheng after he made him his wife.
Zhang Juzheng didn't want to hide it from him, and gave him some relief as soon as the results came out.
Among them, Guanglu Temple is in the worst condition.
In the seventh month, I asked Hu Keyou to work for Feng Shi, and went to check Guanglu Temple.
The results were obtained in September, and the report stated that Guanglu Temple's revenue and expenditure over the years had not been equal, and there had never been any balance.
That's all. From the time Longqing changed the Yuan Dynasty to the fifth year, a total of 195,200 arrears were found in all provinces.
In other words, not a cent of the Yinzhimao grain was left, and the accounts of each province gradually began to fail to be collected.
Then there is the Treasury of the Ministry of Revenue, which is the treasury.
After Zhang Shouzhi became official, Wang Guoguang took up the post of Minister of Household Affairs and immediately conducted a thorough investigation of Taicang.
The results came out last month.
Taicang Bank, ended at the end of June.
In fact, the various items of silver totaled 2,525,616 taels, 465 taels of gold, and 1,619,480 copper coins.
All converted into silver, even if it is estimated based on the high conversion, it will only be five million taels of silver!
This is the national treasury! The Celestial Empire has only five million taels in stock in the national treasury!
As far back as the second year of Longqing, the annual expenditure was 4.4 million taels, and as recently as last year, more than 3.2 million taels were spent.
In other words, the national treasury only has more than a year's worth of silver. No wonder Gao Gong said that the war should not be started lightly. With this little money, any war would empty the treasury.
Almost all other large and small enterprises, such as the Taipusiku of the Ministry of War, are in this state of struggling to make ends meet.
Internal money is no exception, otherwise the late emperor would not have gone to the Ministry of Household Affairs to ask for money.
Especially after spending 1 million in August, there were only 2.3 million taels left.
Zhu Yijun already had a rough idea of ​​these situations.
So I made plans to open source early.
How to create financial resources?
Whether it's tax law, land acquisition, or sea development, these truly open-source matters require money and long-term preparations.
Therefore, with the first start-up capital, Zhu Yijun set his sights on the salt administration!
There are six departments responsible for transporting salt, namely Lianghuai, Liangzhe, Changlu, Shandong, Fujian, and Hedong.
No matter which well it comes from, it is these six departments that collect it and transport it by water.
However, most of the salt administration in the world will fall on the two rivers and the Huaihe River.
It is said that Changlu Shandong has cheap salt, but Huai salt accounts for half of the world's salt.
However, the salt policy brings in quick money, but it does not mean that the tax revenue is high.
During the Hongwu period, there were 30 salt fields in Lianghuai and Huaihe River, producing 350,000 salts per year, which translates to 140,000 kilograms.
As a result, now, only the unit of measurement has been changed, from 400 jin per yin to 200 jin per yin.
It sounds like there are 700,000 kilograms, but in fact it is still 140,000 kilograms.
Very stable.
Of course, corresponding to this, the number of private salts of unknown origin is increasing day by day, as if it is really sea salt dried by Japanese pirates.
In fact, that's all. If he pays the tax in full, Zhu Yijun can tolerate it for a while.
But what about reality?
Last year, the total amount allocated to the Ministry of Transport, Taichang Temple and other treasury was only one million taels!
This is simply deceiving!
From salt merchants, salt farms, local government, to the transshipment department, water transport yamen, central borers, inside and outside, up and down, I don’t know how much they collected!
That's why he called Hai Rui back.
Even Zhang Juzheng would not necessarily support corruption on this scale.
As long as there is a personal relationship, the overall situation must be considered first.
Especially in the Ming Dynasty, private requests became common practice.
Zhang Juzheng is backed by the Chu Party, has a lot of disciples and old officials, and is entangled in many connections, and he will be dragged away by everyone.
Not to mention the Zhejiang Party and the Jin Party are madly holding back.
It can be said that no one except Hai Rui can handle the salt administration in Huaihe and Huaihe Rivers.
Anyone with an official status will understand the twists and turns here to some extent.
Hai Rui is certainly no exception.
He reacted instantly and asked in silence: "Has the center reached this point?"
The Lianghuai salt policy is much more difficult than exploiting the people.
Now that the Lianghuai salt policy is being launched, it must be because the central situation has become urgent.
Zhu Yijun secretly praised.
This is why he admires Hai Rui.
He is persistent but possesses extraordinary political wisdom.
An honest official is also a capable official.
As long as one can control it, which superior person would not cherish it?
Zhu Yijun nodded and said bluntly: "Hai Qing may not know the extent of the central government's financial losses."
"If we don't take advantage of the fact that we still have some strength to find ways to raise taxes, I'm afraid..."
Zhu Yijun points to the end.
Then he went into detail about the cash deposits of each treasurer.
Hai Rui's face was solemn, and he felt that the situation was shocking.
Zhu Yijun saw Hai Rui listening carefully.
Then he said: "That's all. The tax money collected from various places has been getting smaller and smaller over the years, and there are even arrears."
“When the chief secretaries of many provinces changed their positions, they did not acknowledge the previous one’s account.”
"And the predecessors said they didn't know about the transfer."
“As a result, only 80% of taxes were collected this summer.”
"There was also a matter of military pay that almost caused trouble."
"In July, when the officers and soldiers at home and abroad learned that the late emperor had passed away, they started making noise together and asked the governors of various places to collect back pay, as if they wanted to mutiny."
"In the end, I and the cabinet really had no choice but to make do with it."
"At the August court meeting, 300,000 taels were released from the Taiku of the Ministry of Revenue. The Ministry of War deducted 300,000 taels of silver from the warehouse of Taipu Temple. The Ministry of Works petitioned the mausoleum to lower its regulations and saved 20,000 taels of silver from the Jieshen Treasury.
One hundred thousand taels."
Having said this, Zhu Yijun raised a finger and said in a complicated tone: "I will take out one million taels of my internal funds."
"A total of 1,800,000 taels, including 664,319 internal and external officers and soldiers, and 2 taels of silver each."
"At least I suppressed it."
He looked at Hai Rui: "Hai Qing, I really don't want the Ming Dynasty, so the responsibility lies in my hands."
Hai Rui looked at the young emperor in front of him who was concerned about his country and his people, and was stunned for a moment.
When he came back to life this time and left his hometown, many people said how he could still bear such heavy responsibilities when he was almost 60 years old. They advised him to live a good life at home and serve his mother.
But now I see that this young emperor, with his young and frail body, is carrying the world on his shoulders. Isn't it harder than Hai Rui?
After Zhu Yijun finished talking about the hardships and explaining the necessity, he got to the point: "So, I want you to clarify the tax policy starting from the Lianghuai Salt Administration."
This matter can be said to be extremely difficult.
If you don't kill everyone, don't even think about it.
And the danger involved is self-evident.
Hai Rui finally came to his senses, but he didn't agree easily.
Instead, he sat upright and asked cautiously: "What does Your Majesty want me to do?"
While agreeing to this, it is also a reminder.
Today was his first visit to the new emperor.
Although the emperor treated him with great courtesy and sincere affection, he still did not understand the emperor after all.
Hai Rui was afraid that the emperor was young and would think things too simply.
At first, we only dealt with Xu Jie alone, but accidentally provoked a "civilian uprising".
That's only 300,000 acres of fertile land. Now what the emperor wants to touch is the food and clothing for millions of laborers!
Hai Rui was not afraid that this matter was of great importance, but he was afraid that if he messed up the matter, he would ruin the overall situation and betray the emperor's trust.
Zhu Yijun did not answer directly.
When he saw that the dishes were all served, he stopped talking.
He turned around and said, "Haiqing must be hungry after a long journey. Let's finish eating."
Hai Rui wanted to speak again, but Zhu Yijun quickly held him down: "After lunch, we will go to another place and talk. I will take you to meet a few people."
The former immediately stopped talking, bowed, and began to eat his lunch with some restraint.
During this period, Hai Rui looked at the emperor again and again.
Hai Rui is not a stupid straight person.
On the contrary, Hai Rui is a paranoid smart man.
When I was a county magistrate, if I met the governor's son who accepted bribes but could not afford to offend him, I would pretend that he was an imposter and kidnap him and send him to the governor.
Then he admonished Shizong, knowing that all good things could be said, and that his nature was good, but he later slacked off on this tone.
Later, when dealing with Xu Jie in Nanzhili, although he was defeated, he also showed flexible means.
Hai Rui naturally understood that the young emperor in front of him and his various previous performances had an element of trying to win people's hearts.
However, he was still prepared to accept this job without reservation.
Naturally, it's not that he likes to bow down to others, but that Hai Rui has Hai Rui's code of conduct - Hai Rui only observes his actions.
No matter how fancy the words are.
If he, Hai Rui, was asked to whitewash the situation or come back to be a supporting singer, he would turn around and leave without any room for negotiation.
On the other hand, if the errand of Hai Rui entrusted to him really benefits the country and the people, he would not hesitate to do it even if his body is shattered!
Therefore, when he heard that the moths in Lianghuai River were to be cleaned up, he did not hesitate at all and immediately agreed to the matter!
Hai Rui always only does what he thinks is right.
He will only live for justice and morality!
…
The two of them were busy talking about business and ate very quickly. After a while of eating, they ended their meal.
Zhu Yijun led Hai Rui out of the Wenhua Hall.
Asking the attendant to stay away, he turned back to the previous topic.
The two of them walked on the wide royal road, with no one around them.
Zhu Yijun said apologetically: "As the saying goes, if the emperor is not secretive, he will lose his ministers. After all, Wenhua Hall is crowded with people and it is not as convenient as an open place like this to discuss things."
This was explaining the reason why Hai Rui was interrupted at a crucial point and kept silent.
Hai Rui glanced at the emperor in surprise.
It is hard to imagine that this is a palace that a young emperor can have, and he should be wary of a place like Wenhua Palace.
He couldn't help but feel a little complicated.
Zhu Yijun waved his hand: "Where did you talk about just now?"
Hai Rui said cautiously: "Speaking of which, how far does Your Majesty want my ministers to go?"
Is it necessary to stop at the point?
Or are we going to stir up trouble?
Or investigate thoroughly and expose the Nine Heavens?
If the emperor has different goals, he will naturally have different responses and methods when he takes office this time.
Zhu Yijun walked in front, extending his hand to signal Hai Rui to come closer.
Then he turned his head, looked at Hai Rui and said seriously: "Hai Qing, I don't want to use you like a disposable sword."
These words are spoken from the bottom of my heart and are truly sincere.
Hai Rui naturally felt it, but he didn't dare to accept the words. After all, it was suspected of insinuating the late emperor.
I immediately apologized.
Zhu Yijun supported him and hurriedly advised: "Listen carefully to what I say."
The Three Cardinal Principles and Five Principles are in my mind, and a good commander is a good commander, but when I get along with him, I am really not used to it.
At least he managed to persuade Hai Rui.
Then he continued: "I will draw a line for you regarding the Lianghuai matter."
Hai Rui was puzzled and said: "Your Majesty, please make it clear."
Zhu Yijun nodded and said eloquently: "First of all, this matter does not have to be a complete success. A 40 to 50% success rate is enough. You can take care of it yourself."
"Secondly, let's forget about things that happened before the first year of Wanli."
There are still two months left before the first year of Wanli, enough time for Hai Rui to reach Lianghuai.
Not checking the old, and leaving room for new things are necessary compromises.
If we must get to the bottom of it, the fire will definitely burn half of the sky.
It is impossible to say that he will be set on fire for carrying Hai Rui to rebel against the emperor.
Who dares to guarantee that Zhang Juzheng, Lu Tiaoyang and others he relies on are all pure and pure?
Even his father-in-law, his queen mother, his three princes, his inner court, and his royal guards, can any of them be clean?
Setting off an indiscriminate anti-corruption prison is nothing less than a dark turmoil.
On the contrary, what is really to be done will be magnified, lose its structure, and then end hastily.
But the truth was this, and he was still a little afraid that Hai Rui would be stubborn and unwilling to agree.
After all, historical images and real people are not necessarily the same.
After saying this, he couldn't help but glance up at Hai Rui, wanting to see Hai Qingtian's reaction.
If he really couldn't get rid of the trouble in his eyes, he would have to resort to other plans.
However, to his surprise, Hai Rui not only did not shout that all corrupt officials must be killed and would never be tolerated.
Instead, he looked at me with admiration and approval.
It wasn't until the emperor gave him a confused look that he reluctantly explained: "Does your Majesty think I am some kind of crazy person?"
After all, he started from the county magistrate and worked his way up to the central figure.
I don’t know what the world has taught him.
Even the young emperor was afraid that he was such a stubborn old man.
Zhu Yijun coughed slightly to cover up his embarrassment: "That's not true. I'm just afraid that corrupt officials will go too far and make you angry."
He looked around and continued: "Wherever you go in the examination, I will distribute the results."
"Previously, my salary was insufficient, which caused all officials to lose their restraints. This is also my fault in virtue."
"But, if after passing the exam, your performance is full and you still don't know how to restrain yourself, Haiqing, you don't have to worry about it."
Liang Huainan Zhili are also included in the scope of this examination.
If the salary is not enough, just give it up, otherwise the Zhu family will always be blamed.
But in the future, if performance is distributed and we still don’t know whether to live or die, then don’t blame the emperor for being cruel.
High salary does not necessarily lead to integrity, and it must be accompanied by thunderous tactics.
Hai Rui next to him didn't know whether he was thinking of his embarrassment and poverty in officialdom, or whether his colleagues who were greedy because of poverty appeared in his eyes.
A trace of complexity flashed in his eyes.
He bowed his hands and bowed, and performed a thank-you ceremony: "Your Majesty is kind and kind, and I would like to express my gratitude to you on behalf of the clear stream of the world."
Isn’t Hai Rui short of money? Doesn’t he have the desire to make his wife, children and mother live a better life?
But the imperial salary was only so small, and he had nothing to do.
He understands the situation of relying solely on salary, and naturally also understands how difficult it is for ordinary people to persist like him.
How many colleagues have gone astray?
Now His Majesty expresses his gratitude for the hard work, and with the virtue of performance, he really expresses gratitude for future generations and colleagues.
Zhu Yijun ignored him and helped him up.
Then he said: "As for how to deal with it, I will draw a few more lines for you."
Hai Rui bowed and listened quietly.
Zhu Yijun put his hands behind his back and talked eloquently: "First of all, the powerful petty officials who have no official status in the family, the gentry and salt merchants, please deal with them seriously and kill as many as you can."
Without an official body, your energy will always be limited and you will not be able to make big waves.
It was a good opportunity to clean up a group of moths, ransack homes and exterminate families, so as to replenish the national treasury.
"Secondly, if it involves matters below the seventh rank, I will handle them in accordance with the law and don't worry about gossip."
These people must be dealt with.
The atmosphere has gone bad, and these petty officials are about to be eliminated to free up key positions and leave them to officials who have passed the legal examination.
"Third, for those of the third and fourth grades, your Majesty must clarify the canonical punishment and work with Wang Zongmu and the Ministry of Punishment to complete the case. If you need to make arbitrary decisions, please inform me before taking action."
Those with rank seven or above can be said to be high-ranking officials in a place.
Even if Hai Rui is given the title of imperial governor, he cannot act arbitrarily.
The purpose of completing a solid case is naturally to reduce Hai Rui's political risks.
If you want to fight for opportunities and make expedient changes, then report it to him, and he will naturally help to make up for the procedures afterwards. If someone is held accountable, he will take the responsibility.
As for Ming Zhengdian punishment, there are also some considerations.
Senior officials of this level are the weather vane of regional political atmosphere.
You have to kill a group of them carefully to have a deterrent effect.
"Fourth, for those of the fourth rank and above, please don't do anything without permission. If your fourth rank body can't handle it, please let me know directly and I will make the decision for you personally."
Hai Rui, the censor of Qiandu, was only of the fourth rank, and there were a lot of ministers of the third rank and ministers of the second rank in Nanzhili.
Not to mention there are some super-class people who are old but not dead.
If these people were really involved in the case, Hai Rui wouldn't be able to stand it anymore.
If you let others support it, there is a risk that it will break easily.
Zhu Yijun has not yet reached this point.
Naturally, he needs to take it in person.
Hai Rui listened quietly to the emperor's sincere exchanges and drew a line for him.
The few words he said were decisive and murderous. For some reason, Hai Rui suddenly showed a smile on his face, and the smile became brighter and brighter.
With this kind of rules and regulations, his talent is even better than that of Shizong.
Why couldn't he understand the intention?
With Hai Rui's many years of experience, he knew immediately that this was on target.
Your Majesty is like a marching army setting up a formation, knowing yourself and the enemy, dividing them into divisions, and defeating them one by one.
In addition to this heroic figure, the trust and care in it moved Hai Rui's heart even more.
Those below level seven can be dealt with casually.
Follow the process for level 4 and below.
What kind of trust is this?
Other imperial envoys, even if they received the royal flag, would not be able to shout and kill civil servants at every turn.
Your Majesty has completely delegated power to him.
What's even more rare is that those of level four and above are not allowed to be killed.
Without this sentence, the emperor would still regard him as a knife that can be thrown away after use.
But once he added the last sentence... Hai Rui sighed in his heart, there was really nothing he could do in return.
However, despite being moved, he also did not forget to check for omissions and fill in the gaps.
Hai Rui asked respectfully: "Your Majesty, where is your royal family?"
Don’t think that the salt administration in Lianghuai is just local corruption.
In the two capitals, most of those who hold high positions are involved, and some of the royal family members must also be involved.
Zhu Yijun had already thought of this joint.
He said in an incomprehensible tone: "Let them come to me and say, I have a big business here, don't worry about petty profits, otherwise don't blame me for turning against you."
If you give them face, then you have to exchange benefits. If you don't give them face, you can only take off the face of these nobles.
This is a bit of a sell-out.
But if the emperor didn't say anything, Hai Rui wouldn't ask in detail.
He just bowed to express his obedience.
Finally, another reminder: "Your Majesty, Wang Zhigao, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, has heard that he was quite popular in officialdom in Southern Zhili."
Let's kill, let's kill.
But the censor of Qiandu can only handle cases at most, and he will kill wherever he can.
If we want to clarify the canonical punishment, this matter must fall on the Ministry of Punishment.
But the current Minister of Justice, Wang Zhigao, is a bit too popular in Southern Zhili.
Zhu Yijun naturally heard the implication.
He shook his head slightly and said solemnly: "I will not follow the procedures of the Criminal Department."
"The Minister of Punishment of Southern Zhili has already taken up his official position. I will not fill the vacancy for the time being. By then, Wang Xijue, the left minister of the Punishment of Southern Zhili, will cooperate with you."
"And Chen Dong, the new young minister of Dali Temple, will follow you to Lianghuai."
Hai Rui was impressed.
The Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Dali Temple...this was a three-law division tailor-made for Hai Rui.
It's really a no-brainer.
Unexpectedly, Hai Rui would be able to do things without worrying about his authority.
He saluted again, with a firm tone, and issued a military order: "Your Majesty has such trust, I will definitely fulfill my mission!"
Zhu Yijun suddenly grinned: "Hai Qing, don't worry, there's more."
"Come on, I'll take you to the school grounds and give you a few more people."
Note 1: The imperial edict takes 300,000 taels of silver from the Ministry of Household Affairs, 300,000 taels of silver from the Ministry of War, 200,000 taels of silver from the Ministry of Industry, and 1,000,000 taels from the internal treasury, and rewards them to internal and external officers and soldiers, as in the first year of Longqing.
Send four members of the army to each border to join the governors, care for and support them, and reward the host and guest border troops. From Liaodong to Gansu, there are 664,319 people, with two taels of silver each.
Note 2: According to the Ministry of Household Affairs, at the end of June this year, the Taicang Bank had a total of 2,525,616 taels of silver, 465 taels of gold, and 1,600 copper coins.
One hundred and ninety-nine thousand, four hundred and eight articles.
Note 3: Feng Shi made two remarks in Hu Keyou's statement that the money and food received by Guanglu Temple for one year was only enough for one year's use. There was a large ceremony in Qingguo, and the expenses were not affordable. From the time of the Longqing Dynasty to the fifth year of the Yuan Dynasty, the total calculation of each
The provincial government owes a total of 195,200 yuan in arrears.
Note 4: Zhang Shouyue, the censor of Zhili, made a statement on the Six Salt Laws... He went to the Ministry of Household Affairs and talked about the Taicang Bank. In the fifth year of Longqing's reign, the income was only more than 3.1 million yuan, and the output was more than 320 yuan.
Ten thousand.
Chapter completed!