Chapter 4648 Compromise
In the evening, Fang Jun was drinking tea in Li Tai's official residence, and Pei Huaijie came to visit again...
The chamberlain went to lead Pei Huaijie in. Taking advantage of this free moment, Li Tai smiled and said: "Erlang's attempt to drain the salary from the bottom of the cauldron really made the Henan family miserable. Pei Huaijie was even more distressed because he could not explain it to the Henan family. Now it is obvious to the Yu family Unwilling to advance or retreat with other Luoyang aristocratic families, the alliance opened up, and Pei Huaijie became increasingly at a loss. ”
Fang Jun took a sip of tea and said: "This person has a false reputation and insufficient talents. He is at the bottom of Emperor Taizong's 'Tiance Mansion', far behind Xu Jingzong. If there is no Henan family to support him, , he does not have the strength to govern.”
However, this is how things are in the world. In an era when aristocratic families are rampant, no matter how capable an official is, if he does not get the support of aristocratic families, he will not be able to govern a place and display his ambitions. On the contrary, as long as he is willing to obey, even a mediocre official can The best person can be an official.
The aristocratic family is like a mountain range that stretches between the center and the people, isolating the upper and lower parts, making it impossible for wealth to be paid, and even withheld from it, resulting in strong branches and weak trunks, and local areas overriding the center.
Since ancient times, no matter how stupid the king is, they have understood the principle of "water can carry a boat and water can overturn it". They all know that as long as the people can have enough to eat, the world will be peaceful. As long as the central government is not crazy, most of the policies formulated will be beneficial to the people. of.
However, the aristocratic families live among them, isolating the superiors and subordinates, preventing government orders from being sent to the counties and villages. While controlling the power to coerce the central government, they uphold the righteousness of exploiting fish and meat, using the people's blood to nourish the family's inheritance, stealing the foundation of the country and watering the prosperity of the aristocratic family.
The most important thing is that the aristocratic family members monopolize political resources and completely cut off the channel for class jump. The people at the bottom will never be able to achieve class jump through their own efforts. If things go on like this, resentment will condense and the society will be like a pool of stagnant water. Once it breaks out, it will To destroy heaven and earth.
Therefore, the harm caused by the landlord and gentry groups during the Ming and Qing Dynasties is far from being comparable to that of the aristocratic families in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, although both are cancers of the empire...
While talking, Pei Huaijie quickly walked in under the guidance of the chamberlain. After greeting each other, he sat down and took a sip of the fragrant tea served by the chamberlain. Then he looked at Fang Jun and said straight to the point: "If you measure the acres that are not on the account book, , how to deal with the center? ”
Although no one has ever said the true intention of "measuring the acres of land", the most basic intention is definitely to track down the acres of land occupied by the family members.
Measuring the acres in itself is of little importance, but what to do with the excess land that is not included in the family account books after the measurement is found to be a top priority.
It is related to the most basic interests of the family.
Fang Jun asked with a smile: "Every family has acres that are not in the accounting books?"
Pei Huaijie could not and did not dare to tell lies with his eyes open. He could only nod: "Maybe."
Land annexation was carried out all the time. Even though the "Equal Land System" was implemented at the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty and land sales were strictly prohibited, as time went by, aristocratic families naturally mobilized their bloodline power to annex land.
The most direct damage caused by land annexation is national taxation. The tax base for "renting" is "one husband and one wife". However, this "one husband and one wife" owns land. If the land in the family has been "leased", it is actually sold. If it is given to a wealthy family, then this "one husband and one couple" will naturally not be able to pay taxes.
If the tax arrears are not paid all year round, the subordinate officials in the countryside will naturally pursue the payment. This "one man and one woman" can only take shelter under the aristocratic family, and "cancel" the household registration in the village register. In the end, "no such person can be found" and become a hidden person. population.
If things go on like this, the land will be annexed by aristocratic families, the population will be hidden by aristocratic families, and the entire country's tax system will completely collapse...
And this is the biggest crime of the family.
But now we are not far away from the founding of the People's Republic of China, and everything is in the stage of gradual development. Especially during the Zhenguan period, the officials were in charge of the Qingming Dynasty and the country was very powerful. The worst situation was far from being formed.
Fang Jun sighed and said: "There is no royal land in the whole world. Unless the meritorious ones get the fiefdom from your majesty and the permanent fields given by the country, the rest is the land of the country. You are so rich and rich, why are you occupying the country?" Do you think the crime of "stealing farming" is just a decoration? ”
As the saying goes, "Everything in the world is not the land of the king." Even land reclamation must follow strict and legal procedures, otherwise it will be regarded as "stealing farming."
"Zhenguan Law" stipulates, "Anyone who occupies more than the limit of land shall be whipped ten times for one acre, one level for ten acres, sixty sticks for more than twenty acres, one level for twenty acres, and the crime will be suspended for one year. If the person lives in a free place, , don’t sit down.”
"Anyone who steals and cultivates public or private land will be punished with thirty canings for less than one acre, one level for five acres, one hundred for more than one hundred acres, and one level for ten acres. The punishment for the crime will be one and a half years. For uncultivated land, one level will be reduced."
"Anyone who mistakenly believes that public and private land is stolen and sold will be punished with fifty canings for less than one acre, one level for five acres, one hundred canes for more than one acre, and one level for ten acres. The crime will be suspended for two years."
"Any official who invades and seizes private land will be punished with a rod of sixty for less than one acre, one grade for three acres, one hundred for more than one acre, one grade for five acres, and the crime will be punished for two and a half years"...
Occupying land beyond the limit, “stealing” public and private land, mistaking public and private land for trade and selling, and appropriating private land by officials are all serious illegal acts.
The culpability of the crime has been established, and no matter whether the officials or the people are punished together, it will never be in vain and can only be "punished and redeemed".
Now that the "penalty and redemption" system has been abolished, as long as the "Three Law Divisions" are convicted, it will be enough to completely overthrow the Henan family.
Pei Huaijie was almost speechless and could only say: "Lack of laws, poor supervision, insufficient greed...there are many reasons at the same time. Does the court intend to pursue it to the end?"
Even if the law is clear, which aristocratic family in the world would not invade and annex land?
Without land, how can we inherit the family?
He hoped that the imperial court would measure all the land under the sun, then take back all the land occupied by all the aristocratic families, and hold those responsible for the occupation accountable.
But this is obviously impossible.
Taking the Hedong Family as an example, there is still room for discussion on the forced takeover of its salt ponds. But if all the land occupied by its clans were taken back in one fell swoop and held accountable, do you believe that the Hedong Family would immediately dare to raise a flag to rebel?
All the aristocratic families in the world will be allies of the Hedong aristocratic family!
Sure enough, Fang Jun shook his head and said: "The law does not punish everyone, how can the court pursue the case despite the chaos in the world? However, these fields are indeed illegally occupied by aristocratic families, and there must be an explanation. In my opinion, Your Majesty probably allowed everyone to The family purchased the occupied acres with gold.”
Pei Huaijie said: "In this case, the official will use this statement to communicate with the Henan aristocratic family. After the land measurement is completed, the occupied fields will be registered and then discussed by the court on how to deal with it."
This is right. The mystery that has troubled the family members for a long time has finally been revealed. Fang Jun encouraged and encouraged His Majesty to measure acres across the country, just to find out the land that had been occupied by the family members, and then sell it to the family members. Get huge wealth.
For the family members, this money is heartbreaking, but it is not unacceptable. At least the occupied land has been changed from illegal to legal, and it will be recorded in the county government's land account book openly, and can be passed down to future generations. .
"That's right!" Li Tai, who didn't speak much, said happily: "Everything requires timely and effective communication. As long as you know the will of the central government to implement administrative orders, why bother to resist and obstruct it? After all, those lands are Illegal occupation, you can buy it for yourself, not only get the land, but also give His Majesty a step, why not do it. ”
Pei Huaijie said: "What His Highness said is true, but before, Shangshu Xu came in a menacing manner and could not explain anything clearly, which inevitably caused misunderstandings. Now that it has been said, both Luoyang aristocratic families and Henan sects will naturally fully cooperate with the implementation of the central government's decree. ”
Li Tai did not want to pretend to be confused and waved his hand: "Go and communicate with the Luoyang family and make a decision quickly. Don't delay the implementation of the central government order."
He actually issued an eviction order.
Pei Huaijie stood up with a wry smile, knowing that he would become an "evil guest" in front of the King of Wei, but he had no choice but to bow and apologize before exiting, and hurried to various Luoyang family mansions.
The real intention behind the "measurement of acres" decree was unknown before, so every family was extremely panicked and had no choice but to take measures to resist.
Now that we know that the center plans to make money from this, there is no need to worry too much.
Although this must be a huge sum of money, compared with being able to get the court's recognition of the legalization of the occupied land, it is not unacceptable...
……
In the official residence, Li Tai watched Pei Huaijie walk out and then asked in a low voice: "Is the central government really just trying to collect a sum of money by going to war and even sending you out of the capital to take charge personally?"
As far as he knew, there was no shortage of money either in the Ministry of Civil Affairs' treasury or in the emperor's internal funds. Why would he go to such great lengths for money and risk angering the world's elites and causing instability in the country?
Fang Jun put down the tea cup and glanced at Li Tai: "Your Highness is very curious about this? Then I will explain it in detail to Your Highness, which involves His Majesty's long-term plan..."
"Ahem!"
Li Tai coughed twice and poured tea for Fang Jun from the pot: "Um, this tea is good. I will send you a few more kilograms someday."
He is just a little curious, but is he crazy or stupid to explore His Majesty's conspiracy? Although he didn't know the truth, he guessed that there must be an unknown plan behind this move, and this was something that a prince should not investigate to the end.
Break a taboo...
Fang Jun smiled and said: "So Your Highness doesn't need to think too much, just stay here in Luoyang, repair the palaces and palaces left over from the former Sui Dynasty, and dredge Luoshui River and Cao River, so as to be ready to welcome His Majesty from the east." , such a great achievement, the prince’s position is stable, don’t get too involved in anything.”
Li Tai sighed, poured tea from the pot again, and then raised the tea cup: "If it hadn't been for Erlang's advice, I might have gone astray now. Not only would I not be able to sit in that position, I would even harm others, myself, and the whole family and children. Thank you. Without further ado, I would like to propose a toast to Erlang with tea instead of wine." (End of Chapter)