I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 298 It is easy to bully the common people, but it is hard to bully God? !

"The common people are already living in hardship during the disaster years, and the court has sympathized with their difficulties by reducing taxes. But those people still collect taxes as usual. What do they want to do? Do they want to force the common people to death? Do they want the officials to force the people to rebel?" Zhu Houxuan's angry voice echoed in the palace, and he spoke very harshly.

"Your Highness, please calm down." All the ministers said in unison.

Zhu Houxuan rarely got angry, but today he could not help it. "These people are all well-read people. Have they read all the books of sages? They talk about benevolence, righteousness and morality, but they do such despicable things in private. It is a shame for civil officials!" Zhu Houxuan slammed the table angrily.

Zhu Houxuan's anger is understandable. Zhu Houxuan knew that corruption was rampant in the Ming Dynasty officialdom, but corruption must have a bottom line. The act of snatching the last copper coin from the victims was an act without a bottom line at all.

Disaster years are not as good as good years. In good years, the common people always have something to eat. But in disaster years, it is different. The common people are already hungry and their lives are extremely difficult. The taxes collected as usual may become the last straw that breaks the camel's back.
This could really cause large-scale deaths among ordinary people!

And based on Zhu Houxuan's understanding of this era, there is a second layer to this matter.

The first level is that local officials put the collected taxes into their own pockets.

The second level is to suck the blood of the common people again with the local gentry.

When natural disasters occur, countless common people go bankrupt. When the government forces them to pay taxes, their situation becomes even more difficult. This is when the local gentry, the "good guys", come out to show their personal charm.
The common people could only give up their few possessions: houses, fields, and even their children.
They could only humbly take out these things, mark a price that is impossible to be low under normal circumstances, and let the gentry pick and choose with disgust.
If there are disaster victims everywhere, they will be so inward-looking that they will sell themselves for a meal.

It was under such circumstances that the civil servants and local gentry completed their exploitation of the local people, and the gentry also annexed more land.

As for the lives of the common people, no one cares.

In the feudal era, who most wanted good weather and good harvests? It was not the gentry who controlled a large amount of land, but the small farmers.

The ideal year for the gentry is a few years of good harvests followed by a moderate disaster, so that the small farmers can continue to reap the harvest.
Why did Zhu Houxuan know this? Because the Royal Group had become a thorn in the eyes of many gentry. It was not because of the salt industry, but because the Royal Group's factories provided a large number of jobs for the nearby proletariat. After the local small farmers had a fixed source of income and savings, their ability to resist risks increased dramatically, which directly prevented the gentry from harvesting the small farmers.
After seeing Zhu Houxuan so angry, the ministers present began to have a headache. They did not expect that things would change so quickly, and such an insignificant matter would develop to the point where it could shake the court and the country.
Now the scope of involvement has become even larger, and they all feel a little uneasy if the lid is lifted.

And from Zhu Houxuan's look, he wanted to get to the bottom of it, which made everyone present start to wonder, and their mentality began to change. The network of relationships among civil officials was very complicated. Although the ministers present had no connection with the offending officials, it did not mean that their students and former officials had no connection with the offending officials. For the future of their students and former officials, they did not want to expand the matter, or expand it out of their control.
"Your Highness, please calm down. There will always be some bad apples. We just need to clean them up in time." Finally, Grand Secretary Jiang Mian stood up.

"Then what suggestions does Lord Jiang have?" Zhu Houxuan looked at Jiang Mian with a bit of indifference. "We must investigate," Jiang Mian said slowly, his brain working rapidly, "but this matter involves too many people. According to your Highness's investigation method, it involves too many people, at least hundreds of people, so how to investigate needs to be carefully considered, so as not to cause everyone in the court to be insecure and delay the government affairs."

Many people nodded slowly, Jiang Mian really expressed the thoughts of everyone present.

Zhu Houxuan understood what Jiang Mian meant, and also read what the ministers meant from their expressions.

He sneered and said, "Dear gentlemen of Yanyan, do you still remember that your salary is the blood and sweat of the people! It is easy to abuse the people, but it is hard to deceive God?!"

Once these words were spoken, everyone was speechless. Some people even felt ashamed. Who let Zhu Houxun occupy the commanding heights of righteousness?
The ministers present were not used to Zhu Houxun's style of attack. Most of the previous impeachments were based on hearsay, and many of the statements were subjective and without much evidence. However, Zhu Houxun directly put the ironclad evidence in front of everyone, which made the ministers who were used to the slow pace unable to react and were caught off guard.
"I will also ask the Jinyiwei to assist in the investigation. I will keep an eye on this matter," Zhu Houzhao said firmly.

Everyone saw Zhu Houxuan's determination.

Liang Chu felt extremely helpless when he looked at Zhu Houxuan. You are just a prince regent, why are you so powerful? All the prince regents of this dynasty were extremely cautious at the beginning, but you, you directly and forcefully launched a major case. Do you know what is going on?

"Your Highness, this case involves hundreds of people. If all of them are dealt with, a large number of official positions will inevitably be vacant. If so many official positions are suddenly vacant and no one takes over, it will affect the government." Liang Chu finally spoke. He wanted to stop Zhu Houxuan one last time.

"No one takes over? Do you mean that the court lacks reserve talents?" Zhu Houxuan asked.

Liang Chu thought he had persuaded Zhu Houxuan and was about to make further efforts.

"If the situation is serious, I will consider holding an imperial examination to deal with it," Zhu Houxuan said bluntly.

"Enko?" Everyone present was stunned.

You, a prince who is in charge of the country, actually want to hold an imperial examination. You really don't understand. Is this right something a prince like you can touch? Why are you so aggressive?
Zhu Houxuan, on the other hand, did not seem to care. He was now hoping that Zhu Houzhao would take away the title of Prince Regent.
Liang Chu stared at Zhu Houxuan absentmindedly, and the image of Zhu Houzhao suddenly appeared in his mind.
He suddenly realized that he didn't know when he started to miss Zhu Houzhao.
He cried out in his heart: "Your Majesty, please come back soon, this life is almost unbearable"

This chapter took me nearly four hours to write, and I fell asleep twice.
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(End of this chapter)