Chapter 198 There must be huge dividends after bad governance!
The palace was dead silent.
Xia Zhibai's voice echoed in the hall.
He does not deny that Zhu Yuanzhang's system has many merits.
But all this must be based on feasibility.
It is true that under Zhu Yuanzhang's powerful rule, his system could operate normally, but this normality was actually abnormal. Just like after the Song Dynasty took away local financial power, the 'Anshi Rebellion' did not break out again in the local area.
But at the same time, this also caused local officials to become tax collectors of the court, and also caused local governance and financial expenditures to be out of touch. After seeking court expenditures to no avail, they either levied other taxes from the people, or they had no choice but to Open.
Normal situation.
It is the responsibility of local officials to cultivate tax sources.
But in today’s world system, because it is a small government, it has insufficient manpower and insufficient finances. In this case, they have to rely on sending large households to govern the local area, and many of the local powerful landowners have nothing to do with local officials. There was a connection, and over time, the taxes originally imposed by the court on these large households fell on the small people.
There was no plan for the Ming Dynasty's fiscal budget. It usually increased expenditures based on last year's expenditure. Once there was a natural or man-made disaster, the court was often unable to provide money.
You can only add extra gifts.
The financial collapse of the Ming Dynasty was actually doomed long ago.
The imperial court has taken away all the finances in the world, so it should be responsible for everything in the world. Otherwise, what is the use of the imperial court?
In today's social framework, some things cannot be cut to save money. The small government promoted by Zhu Yuanzhang in the world seems to have saved a lot of expenses, but there are only four or five officials in one county. , being able to rule a place with these four or five officials is simply a fantasy.
Ultimately, power had to be decentralized.
Because these officials had no financial authority, they could not accomplish anything at all, and in the end they could only become tax collectors of the imperial court.
As for the rest, as long as nothing happens.
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Xia Zhibai with livid eyes, filled with murderous intent.
His chest rose and fell vigorously.
Xia Zhibai's words exposed some false truths.
The Ming Dynasty is just whitewashing peace.
The Kongyin case, everyone knows the problem. If the road can be opened and they can be given more time, the Kongyin case will be solved. But building roads requires money. Give it to local officials. More time will delay the statistics of the imperial household department. This delay will delay many political affairs of the household department.
Who bears this responsibility?
No one dares.
The Guo Huan case involves so many people.
There are so many crimes listed and so many excessive taxes and miscellaneous taxes, but has the court really thought about abolishing them?
No.
I just changed the name of these taxes and continued to collect them.
Because of the low tax system of the Ming Dynasty, it could not collect much money. However, the Ming Dynasty had to fight wars, build large-scale construction projects, and reward meritorious officials. It required huge amounts of money for official salaries, army food and salary, school education, and support for the vassal king. For fiscal expenditures, normal tax collection is simply not enough.
We can only notify local officials and let them do it.
The so-called exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes were largely forced by the imperial court.
But no one will admit it.
Once the people are dissatisfied, they will directly kill people to vent their anger. What the people like to see most is that the court kills corrupt officials, but the Qian court will not withdraw any money.
The framework of the Ming Dynasty is to abuse the people behind the scenes on the pretext of loving the people.
Xia Zhibai cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty indeed reads more books than I do, but your Majesty reads over and over again, but only reads about the responsibilities that he should bear, but forgets to bear the corresponding obligations. Everyone in the world who is sensible will You know, there must be huge dividends under the bad government.”
“Otherwise this policy would not have been implemented for so long.”
“Your Majesty’s ban on shipping, your Majesty’s small government, and your Majesty’s production quota. System, etc., these policies can be regarded as bad policies when they fall on the people, but they have always been able to operate normally because there are huge dividends under these policies."
"This is. Corruption of power!”
“Your Majesty doesn’t want the court to bear so many responsibilities, so it should follow the system and give up the benefits that come with it.”
"Just looking at the books, the imperial court has indeed reduced its burden a lot."
"But has the imperial court really settled the accounts behind the scenes?"
"Governing the world has never been done according to the book. Since the Warring States Period, the world has The system of household registration for the people appeared. "
"On the whole, this system was a farming and warfare system managed vertically by the central government, but this system collapsed in the late Han Dynasty."
"The imperial court, which was established from the Confucian old papers of the Wei and Jin dynasties, largely ceded the ability and awareness of grassroots management, and could only rely on grassroots autonomy that turned local management into 'ancestral craftsmanship.' By the Song Dynasty, Wang Anshi's Baojia Law is the last attempt to rebuild grassroots management.”
"It just failed."
"As for the Yuan Dynasty, there is also the Ming Dynasty."
"To a certain extent, it can be regarded as 'the imperial power does not extend to the county'."
"Your Majesty Officials called the common people unruly people and untouchables. It should be clear that to govern such a group of people, more officials are needed. However, there are only four or five official officials in a county in the Ming Dynasty, and they also have to shoulder the political tasks assigned by the court from time to time. , who can do this?”
“Most of the local governance power falls on local subordinates.”
"The Ming Dynasty's court is too high."
"It's so high that people can't see it. Nowadays, the chief ministers, states and counties have no power to promote local infrastructure construction, such as water conservancy construction, which the court is most concerned about. , road improvement, education and culture, etc., the local government has no ability at all and does not have the power. It can only rely on the court. "
"And the court has little money and can only allow corruption." When the imperial court becomes corrupt and the barbarians from the north move southward, the imperial court cannot organize the strength to resist or defend itself.”
“Your Majesty wants to catch everything, and in the end he gets nothing. .”
"The Ming Dynasty currently has problems in politics, military, education, economy, diplomacy and other aspects. The root of the problem lies in His Majesty's self-righteousness. Your Majesty thinks too highly of yourself and the world. The world cannot reach it. The ideal situation that His Majesty wants to reach.”
“It cannot be done now and it will not be possible in the future.”
“And”
“Your Majesty cannot deprive them of their right to pursue a better life!”
“No one likes to be in captivity.”
The anger in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes gradually dissipated.
People were completely silent.
Xia Zhibai's eyes were calm and he continued: "As for why I said this was instigated by His Majesty, because everything I proposed was indeed prompted by Your Majesty, but His Majesty may not have done it intentionally, or even at all. I have never had such an idea."
"But it does have something to do with His Majesty."
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned.
He didn't speak in a hurry and waited for Xia Zhibai to explain.
Xia Zhibai said: "When the Kyoto Salt Industry was launched, the resistance from the court was not small, but why were so many salt companies built in the Jiangnan area in less than a year?"
< br>“Where has the resistance from the imperial court and local governments gone?”
“The answer is simple.”
“Dead!”
“The Ming Dynasty implemented a small government.”
“The official power itself is conservative and resists new things. Therefore, if the Ming Dynasty was a big government, it would take a lot of time and effort to promote salt enterprises in Jiangnan. , and most of them will be stopped, but because it is a small government, these possible objections will be eliminated after His Majesty’s killing.”
“The new officials are more energetic and energetic.”
“Under the old rights system, they cannot profit from it, and it is difficult for them to take advantage of the old system. Therefore, it is beneficial to them to break the existing structure. Using steam to make salt can become a With the key to breaking the old interest structure, the local salt enterprises in Jiangnan were established so quickly."
"So the major changes in Jiangnan are mainly due to His Majesty's promotion."
< br>
"Although His Majesty has no such intention."
"Your Majesty's idea is just to see that steam engines can save manpower, but the Ming Dynasty is short of people, and the world's corvee is getting heavier and heavier now, and I want to use these tools to Free up a certain amount of manpower to share the increasingly heavy labor for the world."
Zhu Yuanzhang was silent.
This is indeed his true thought.
But what Xia Zhibai said does make some sense.
If he didn't kill him, I'm afraid the Jiangnan region wouldn't be able to introduce 'steam engines' at all.
To a certain extent, he was indeed the one who fulfilled Xia Zhibai.
Xia Zhibai added: "As for opening the sea, if the government does not occupy it, it will be occupied by others. The sea route is too convenient for commerce and trade. It can save too much manpower and time. If the imperial court If you don't occupy it, you will definitely give this part to others, and the court will not be able to ban it."
"Especially the people on the coast, they make a living by fishing. If the sea is banned, what will they do for a living? ?”
“Your Majesty is driving them towards the pirates”
"It is better to block than to open up."
"When the benefits are great enough, the local government will spontaneously fight against the Japanese pirates."
"Besides."
"The station is indeed the Ming Dynasty A very important part.”
“But today’s inns have too strong a military meaning, and it is easy to be swayed by wartime policies. Once the tail is not lost, it will be a huge burden for the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty does not need so many. Post Ding, it is impossible for the Ming Dynasty to go to war every few years. In the end, these post stations will become a huge burden for the Ming Dynasty.”
"Once millions of workers are really raised."
"The Ming Dynasty can't solve it at all."
"Therefore, liberalizing sea transportation is also a planned reduction of the number of post workers, so that The post office has always been within the controllable range of the imperial court, and the separation of military and civilian affairs in the north will also help to absorb the burden of supporting the imperial court in the future."
"The Ming Dynasty's existing financial policy is destined to promote streamlined troops and streamlined administration. ”
“After the North is pacified, the number of military households and post-houses will definitely be reduced. Otherwise, such a large number of military households and post-houses will consume millions of stone every year. Once there is any major natural or man-made disaster and the Ming Dynasty's finances are insufficient, these military households and postmen will complain. "
"Military households and post offices are not ordinary people."
"Many of them are young and strong. When they really can't survive, there are too many things they can do."
Zhu Yuanzhang's gaze A cold.
But it was quickly hidden.
He grasped Yu Ruyi hard with his palms, and his eyes became deeper and deeper.
(End of this chapter)