Chapter 38 says! Why is there so much silver!
Wang Shu hurriedly ran to the steps and knelt down in front of Zhu Youtang.
"I am a humble minister, Wang Shu, who came to Beijing late. Please forgive me."
Wang Shu just arrived in Beijing this morning.
A few days ago, after Wang Shu received Zhu Youtang's appointment decree in Nanzhili, he began to prepare to go to Beijing.
It's just that Wang Shu is older, he is eighty-two this year.
In addition, there are many family members, so the speed of entering Beijing was not fast, and we did not arrive until this morning.
Hearing that today was the day of the court meeting, Wang Shu didn't even return to his residence in the capital. He changed into his official uniform on the carriage and rushed to the palace.
We happened to bump into the scene where Zhu Youtang ordered the execution of one hundred and eighty-one officials just now.
Wang Shu has been an official for more than forty years, except during the Tianshun period, when Emperor Yingzong purged the courtiers and generals who had colluded with both internal and external parties during the Tumubao Incident.
Never before had nearly two hundred officials been executed at once.
Wang Shu was afraid of causing a panic among officials, so he spoke out to dissuade him.
He did not know that the panic wave of officials leaving their posts had passed.
The remaining officials, given a hundred more courages, would not dare to shout about retiring in front of Zhu Youtang.
Zhu Youtang looked at Wang Shu calmly, his tone calm.
"Get up."
"It's not easy for Wang Aiqing to come to court as soon as he enters the capital. I grant you the innocence."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
< br>Wang Shu kowtowed again and then slowly stood up.
“Your Majesty, those who govern a country must have a heart of benevolence and practice justice, so that they can bring peace to the world and bring peace to all the people.”
"Even if an official is at fault, he must be handed over to the Tripartite Division for trial. Dali Temple will decide the sentence and the Ministry of Punishment will impose the sentence."
"Every official must be carefully interrogated and sentenced carefully. How can nearly two people be executed at once?" Hundreds of officials?”
"If Your Majesty acts arbitrarily and executes officials at will, I am afraid it will harm the country."
Wang Shu has been in the officialdom for more than 40 years. When he opens his mouth, he speaks a set of principles and righteousness. All the officials in the court were secretly excited.
Liu Jian breathed a sigh of relief. He really did not misjudge the person.
As expected, Wang Shu, an old minister, spoke very well and calmed down His Majesty with his reasoning as soon as he came.
With him sitting in the cabinet, the cabinet finally has the ability to compete with Zhu Youtang.
Zhu Youtang didn't listen to what Wang Shu said. He only asked: "Wang Aiqing, do you know what these people have committed?"
Wang Shu didn't know. When asked about the inside story at this time, he had no choice but to lower his head and hand over his hand: "I... don't know."
"What an unknown person. You don't know anything, so you dare to intercede for them?"
"Your Majesty, I only start from the Ming Dynasty's punishment regulations and the way of governing the country..."
"Don't talk to me about the way of governing the country!"
Zhu Youtang waved his hand and interrupted Wang Shu. : "Wang Zhi, read it to Wang Shangshu, what on earth did they do!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Wang Zhi nodded and took out Xichang's from his arms. Ledger, read out loud.
"Wan'an, the cabinet's chief minister and the cabinet's chief minister, took a total of 196,000 taels of silver from his home, 8,500 acres of land deeds, and ninety-four boxes of other property."
"Cabinet's bachelor Liu Jue obtained a total of 75,000 taels of silver from his home, a land deed of 1,900 acres, and 26 boxes of other property."
" Liu Ji, the great scholar of the imperial court, obtained a total of 48,000 taels of silver, a land deed of 1,600 acres, and twenty boxes of other property. One hundred and thirty-four thousand taels of silver, a land deed of six thousand two hundred acres, and fifty-three boxes of other property,"
"..."
Zhu Youtang stretched out his hand, and Wang Zhi immediately stopped.
Zhu Youtang stared at Wang Shu and said in a sharp tone: "Tell me! Why can I get so much money from their house?! So many land deeds?!"
"This is just them. I haven't even had time to check their property in the capital and their hometown!" "This..." Wang Shu broke out in a cold sweat.
He didn’t even know that Zhu Youtang could move so quickly. He even ransacked his home before he came to question him.
Isn’t this putting the cart before the horse and putting the effect on the cause?
But this method is the most effective!
In front of the real silver land deed, Ren Wangshu was so eloquent that he couldn't explain why.
According to the salary stipulated by Emperor Taizu, the annual salary of a second-rank minister is 732 shi of rice, which is about 500 taels of silver.
The annual salary of a cabinet bachelor of the fifth rank is only 192 shi of rice, which is about 120 taels of silver.
Even after the San Yang period, Yang Shiqi, then the chief minister of the cabinet, secretly increased the salary of all officials.
The amount of silver that a second-grade minister receives every year will not be more than 600 taels.
The silver taels received by a fifth-grade cabinet bachelor every year will not be higher than 150 taels.
It is said that the salary in the Ming Dynasty was low, but in fact it was not low.
Some people like to use the purchasing power of one tael of silver to the grain at that time to horizontally compare the prices of modern grain to get how much one tael of silver is worth.
In conversion, one tael of silver is almost 800 yuan.
But this is complete nonsense!
Are ancient grains comparable to modern grains?
Modern grain has been improved through research and development by Yuan Guoshi and other scientists. The yield of hybrid rice per mu has reached 2,400 kilograms!
In ancient times, the yield of rice per mu was less than 500 kilograms.
And the arable area is completely incomparable.
Modern my country can produce 1,390.8 billion kilograms of grain every year, while the Ming Dynasty could produce about 150 billion kilograms of grain every year.
In addition, our country imports a large amount of foreign grain every year, and the gap is more than ten times.
Food was a big problem for the people in the Ming Dynasty. Food could be used as general equivalents, which was completely incomparable with modern food.
Comprehensive prices of various commodities in the Ming Dynasty can be simply and roughly converted.
The purchasing power of one tael of silver is actually almost equivalent to ten thousand yuan today.
Six million a year for a second-grade official is really not low.
In the early Ming Dynasty, officials were poor because when Emperor Hongwu paid his salary, he did not give it enough rice.
Lu Mi could only get about 40%, and the rest was converted into treasure notes, cloth or salt tea.
But by the time of Emperor Yingzong, all officials except Lumi could get discounted silver.
Officials in the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty were fully paid.
And the salary is not low, even so high that later Emperor Sejong and Emperor Shenzong wanted to reduce the salaries of officials.
Judging from the salaries of these officials, even if they worked in the Ming Dynasty for a hundred years, they would not receive so much money!
What’s more, there are thousands of acres of fertile land!
Zhu Youtang stared at Wang Shu and said in a bad tone: "Speak, Wang Shangshu, are you mute?"
Wang Shu secretly wiped the sweat from his forehead: "In this case, according to the ancestral system, we should also..."
"According to the ancestral system?" Zhu Youtang sneered.
“According to the ancestral system and the records of the Ming Dynasty, officials who have violated the law due to their wealth have always been beaten with seventy sticks and eighty strings.”
“I have sentenced them to death. Is there any problem? ?”
Wang Shu lowered his head and muttered: “No... no problem, but...”
"There is nothing left to be desired!"
Zhu Youtang stared at Wang Shu and gave him one last chance.
"Wang Shangshu, stand back to your position."
Wang Shu moved his mouth and finally sighed.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
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(End of this chapter)