Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 443 Still No Money
As soon as Yuan Chonghuan arrived in Ningyuan, he quickly resolved the mutiny with lightning speed and appeased the soldiers, but the matter was not over yet.

Yuan Chonghuan knew very well that if he could not come up with money to pay the soldiers in the future, the stability in the army would only be temporary and it would not be long before trouble would break out again.

Therefore, solving the military pay issue was the top priority, but Yuan Chonghuan didn't have much money now. All he had was the 50,000 taels given to him by Emperor Chongzhen when he left Beijing. If this money was really distributed, it would be a drop in the bucket, no different from throwing a stone into a pond to create ripples.

Therefore, Yuan Chonghuan did not use the money to pay the soldiers, but instead had people use the money to solve the military food problem first. At least the military salaries could not be paid for the time being, but the military food could not be lacking, and everyone could not be left hungry, right?

This move had some effect. As the food situation eased, the soldiers gradually calmed down. Although they had not received their military pay yet, at least they could have enough food to eat. In addition, Yuan Chonghuan's strength and previous promises made them more hopeful. So they decided to wait for a while, as there was hope.

While dealing with military rations, Yuan Chonghuan was also urging the court to pay for military expenses. He submitted a memorial to Emperor Chongzhen requesting that funds be allocated as soon as possible to stabilize the morale of the Liaodong army.

Emperor Chongzhen received a memorial from Yuan Chonghuan from Liaodong. He was worried after reading it, but at the same time he was also glad that he had appointed Yuan Chonghuan as the commander-in-chief and sent him to Liaodong. If Yuan Chonghuan had not gone there in time, the rioting over pay would have become a big deal, and the whole Liaodong would have been in chaos. By then, let alone pacifying Liaodong, the army rioting over pay might even destroy Liaodong itself.

Now Yuan Chonghuan suppressed the matter and solved the main culprit neatly, which made Emperor Chongzhen very satisfied. But Emperor Chongzhen also knew that the silver promised to Yuan Chonghuan must be delivered as soon as possible. Without the silver, the matter could not be truly resolved. The current solution was only temporary.

Thinking of this, Emperor Chongzhen quickly ordered the cabinet elders and the Minister of Revenue Bi Ziyan to come and ask them to raise military funds as soon as possible and send them to Liaodong in order to completely solve the military pay problem in Liaodong.

Emperor Chongzhen originally thought that this was not a difficult matter. With the implementation of the abolition of the imperial post stations, the imperial court no longer had the large monthly expenses for the post stations. By transferring this expense over, and adding to the funds raised by the Ministry of Revenue from other sources, a large sum of money could be raised.

Moreover, Bi Ziyan had promised the Ministry of Revenue to collect 120,000 taels of silver, which should be close to the 800,000 taels that Yuan Chonghuan needed. But Emperor Chongzhen never expected that when he asked for funds again, the cabinet elders and Bi Ziyan did not respond as expected, but shook their heads like rattles, saying that they could not come up with the money now.

"No money? How is that possible? My dear Minister Bi, you promised me at the beginning, are you going to go back on your word? This is a national affair! The arrears in military expenses in Liaodong have led to a mutiny in the army, and now Yuan Chonghuan has finally suppressed it. If the Ministry of Revenue cannot allocate funds as soon as possible, what should we do if Liaodong is in turmoil again?" Emperor Chongzhen stared in disbelief, not daring to believe what they had just said.

"Your Majesty!" Bi Ziyan was not panicked at all. He saluted Emperor Chongzhen first, and then said, "This is a different time. The national finances are not abundant. There are more places to spend money than Liaodong. Some time ago, the northwest and the Central Plains suffered disasters. The court naturally provided relief to the local areas, which required at least hundreds of thousands of taels of funding. In addition, the red barbarians in the south are also showing signs of stirring up trouble. When the previous emperor was alive, he fought a great battle with the red barbarians in Fujian and drove them out, but now the red barbarians are showing signs of making a comeback. Maybe they will start a war at any time, which is also a place to spend money. In addition, local reports have come that the thief Wang Jiayin has gathered people to rebel in Baishui. Local troops need to be sent to suppress them. The cabinet and the Ministry of War have already sent letters to the Ministry of Revenue. There is also the salary of the royal family. Now it is almost time to allocate funds. I have made a budget here, and all these will cost money..."

Bi Ziyan would talk nonstop as soon as he opened his mouth, saying that money was needed here and there. In his words, there were too many places where the Ming Dynasty needed to spend money, and the Ming Dynasty's finances had always been in deficit. He, Bi Ziyan, had always been robbing Peter to pay Paul, trying to do three things at once.

Even if the post stations are closed now and the court has reduced this expense, it is impossible to spend all the saved money on Liaodong military expenses. The court still has many other places to spend money. If it really uses it all, what about other places?
Besides, there are a few things that Bi Ziyan didn't say at all, that is, can the money saved by closing the post stations really be put to good use? Emperor Chongzhen was too young, and he didn't know the ins and outs of officialdom at all. According to normal expenditure, the state spends at least 685,000 taels a year to maintain the post stations. If the related expenses are also calculated, the amount will be even higher.

But after the post stations were closed, didn't it mean that the money was surplus? Where did the surplus money come from? As early as when Emperor Chongzhen decided to close the post stations, countless people in the court had set their sights on this money. These people were like hungry wolves, waiting for the opportunity. Once the opportunity came, would they still be polite to you? You took a bite here, and he tore off a piece of meat there. In the blink of an eye, the money was almost gone. How much would be left?
Of course, this kind of thing could never be said to Emperor Chongzhen openly. This was the unspoken rule of the Ming officialdom, and it involved the interests of all parties. Even Bi Ziyan himself was a member of this interest group. How could he possibly tell the truth to Emperor Chongzhen? So he could only make up stories and use other excuses to fool the young emperor. "Your Majesty, I have calculated that the Ministry of Revenue can only pay 100,000 taels of silver at the moment. It is impossible to pay more."

Hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen was furious. He had been tossing and turning for a long time but didn't see any silver. He also messed up the post station, but in the end he only got 100,000 taels of silver? And Bi Ziyan had promised him 120,000 taels before, but now it's getting less and less? Isn't this just teasing himself?
The face of Emperor Chongzhen was livid, and he could not help asking what the 100,000 taels of silver would be used for. Yuan Chonghuan wanted 800,000 taels, plus the subsequent military expenses, there were nearly 4 million taels. You, the Minister of Revenue, said before that you could not come up with the money, and kicked the ball to me. I finally came up with a way to close the post stations, and originally wanted to save nearly 700,000 taels of silver to fill the gap in the Liaodong military. Now, the silver has not been seen, and even the original promise of the Ministry of Revenue is 20,000 taels less?
Bi Ziyan had nothing to say in response to Chongzhen's rebuke. He just stood there without saying a word, looking as if he was ready to give in.

Anyway, it's meaningless for him to be the Minister of Revenue. He can't stand up straight without money. It would be a good idea for Emperor Chongzhen to take this opportunity to dismiss him. Whoever wants to be the Minister of Revenue can do it. Wouldn't it be better for him to return to his hometown to retire?

Seeing Bi Ziyan's look, Emperor Chongzhen became even more furious. He glared at Bi Ziyan and was about to lose his temper. At this moment, the chief minister of the cabinet, Li Biao, stood up and explained a few words for Bi Ziyan.

Although Li Biao was not very old, he had good qualifications. Not only was he a Jinshi in the 35th year of Wanli, he had also served as an official in the Prince's Palace and was a member of the old team of Emperor Taichang.

After Emperor Taichang ascended the throne, Li Biao was the Junior Secretary of the Zhanshi Palace. When Emperor Tianqi succeeded to the throne, Li Biao was appointed as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Assisting the Zhanshi Palace, and later promoted to the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Li Biao was also a disciple of Zhao Nanxing, a leader of the Donglin Party. His name was listed in the "Donglin Comrades Record" of the Eunuch Party. Because Wei Zhongxian was powerful, Li Biao returned home due to illness to avoid disaster. When Emperor Chongzhen succeeded to the throne, the Donglin Party began to counterattack. As a core member of the Donglin Party, Li Biao was reinstated as the Minister of Rites and the Grand Secretary of the Dongge. Later, when Emperor Chongzhen drew lots to decide the cabinet members and the first assistant, Li Biao had good luck and was directly admitted to the cabinet and became the first assistant.

Li Biao and Bi Ziyan were old friends. Although Bi Ziyan was not a cabinet minister, he was the Minister of Revenue. Li Biao was very clear about his abilities and he also knew Bi Ziyan's difficulties. Once Chongzhen was furious and took away Bi Ziyan's position as the Minister of Revenue, who would be responsible for the Ministry of Revenue? It was not easy for the whole court to find someone with economic and financial skills like Bi Ziyan, and as the chief minister of the cabinet, would this trouble eventually fall on him?
Therefore, helping Bi Ziyan was also helping himself. Li Biao immediately stepped forward to explain a few words on behalf of Bi Ziyan, saying that the Ministry of Revenue was indeed in a difficult situation now, and there were too many areas in the court where money was lacking. Everyone could see that Minister Bi was serious about his work and had strong working ability. What he had just said was just a matter of fact, and he had no other meaning. He asked Emperor Chongzhen not to be angry.

With Li Biao coming out to smooth things over, Emperor Chongzhen's anger subsided a little, but the issue of military expenses in Liaodong still had to be resolved, so he immediately asked Li Biao what to do about this matter.

Li Biao thought for a while, and advised Bi Ziyan in front of Emperor Chongzhen, and reminded him that the military expenses in Liaodong must be resolved as soon as possible. This is no trivial matter. Once Liaodong is in chaos, the impact on the country will be enormous. Not to forget that the Jiannu are still eyeing Liaodong.

After some persuasion from Li Biao, Bi Ziyan softened his tone. He was not stupid. If someone spoke for him and he continued to resist, wouldn't that mean he would offend the Prime Minister and the Emperor?

Bi Ziyan thought for a while and told Emperor Chongzhen that he would find a way to collect some more silver, but it would only be 200,000 taels at most. This amount of silver was the limit of his ability and he really couldn't come up with more.

Bi Ziyan changed his words, and Emperor Chongzhen was slightly relieved. Two hundred thousand is better than one hundred thousand. Although this number is far from what Yuan Chonghuan asked for, it can at least help him out. Emperor Chongzhen immediately told Bi Ziyan that this matter must be handled immediately, and Yuan Chonghuan was still waiting. He asked when the money could be transferred to Yuan Chonghuan. Bi Ziyan gave a deadline, and Emperor Chongzhen nodded with satisfaction. The matter was settled.

(End of this chapter)