Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 253 Severed Hands and Feet!
Abolish the poll tax?!

What is the emperor saying? Why does he want to abolish the poll tax?
When Zhu Yuanzhang uttered those words, everyone in the court was shocked.

They were startled by what the emperor said.

It is said that everyone thought that once the emperor had determined the land survey and established the Yellow Register, the matter was considered finished.

Nothing else major will happen today.

Who would have thought that the emperor would say such a thing so easily?

They're actually going to abolish the poll tax, a tax that's been in place for over a thousand years!
Poll tax has always been an important part of a dynasty's tax revenue.

Naturally, it cannot compare to the amount or importance of the land tax.

But they are equally indispensable.

Now, this damned emperor just waved his hand and said he'd cancel it.

Think of how much less income that would mean each year!
What was on the emperor's mind? Did he even know how to do accounting?
They are very demanding of their many officials, even though performance metrics have been used and the situation has improved compared to before.

However, compared to officials in the Yuan Dynasty and even earlier in the Song Dynasty, they were just as harsh.

As a result, the treatment of the common people below was ridiculously good.

Today this place suffers a disaster, so it's exempt from taxes; tomorrow that place suffers a calamity, so it's also exempt from taxes.

Sometimes, it's not enough to just waive the current year's allowance; you have to waive it for two or three years at once.

That's not all, but now they're even going to exempt them from the head tax!
By doing this, Zhu Yuanzhang was trying to destroy the country and impoverish the Ming Dynasty!
Since the emperor doesn't want this money, he might as well collect the head tax and distribute it to these loyal officials of the court!

Everyone's life will be greatly improved. Who wouldn't be grateful to the emperor? Who wouldn't work hard?
This emperor doesn't do any real work; all he thinks about is how to please the people!
"Your Majesty, this... I'm afraid this is not quite appropriate."

The poll tax has been in effect for over a thousand years, and people have long been accustomed to it.

At present, the Ming Dynasty is not rich enough, and it is a time when everything needs to be rebuilt and things need to be done.

Repairing the Yellow River, surveying and mapping farmland, and building academies all required substantial financial support.

This is precisely the time when money is needed.

If we were to abolish the poll tax at this time, I'm afraid... I'm afraid it wouldn't be very appropriate, as we might not have enough funds."

Someone spoke up, and Hu Weiyong and many others quickly and tactfully tried to dissuade and oppose the matter.

Such a thing must be opposed.

Some people genuinely care about the imperial court and are worried that the court's funds are insufficient.

However, many people have other considerations.

How is the authority of local officials manifested? Naturally, it is demonstrated through things like tax collection.

The less the government needs to do, the less local officials and people will interact, and the fewer opportunities there will be to make money.

Who doesn't have relatives and friends in the local area? Who doesn't have relatives who need to be taken care of?
Naturally, people would oppose the emperor's actions.

There's no need to worry about money or expenses.

The court has reaped considerable benefits from trade with the Northern Yuan.

The Maritime Trade Office also officially opened, and the profits were considerable.

As the business develops, profits will increase.

That's more than enough to offset this small poll tax.

Even better if things go well in the future, it could far exceed the poll tax.

We've already considered this.

When Zhu Yuanzhang said this, many people were immediately speechless.

Some people who truly cared about the country breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and then praised the emperor, saying that his actions were beneficial to the country and its people.

It will surely earn the gratitude of all people and win their hearts.

Among them was Liu Bowen.

However, Liu Bowen was different from ordinary people.

He always felt there was something fishy about this matter, and it certainly wasn't as the emperor had said.

It wasn't that the emperor abolished trade with the Northern Yuan or the Maritime Trade Office because they were profitable.

Most likely, the money will go to the land survey that is being conducted this time.

Nine times out of ten, the emperor is secretly plotting something bad.

They secretly spread this poll tax onto the fields.

After all, he still remembered that his superior had asked him about the proposed land tax reform earlier.

I was startled at the time.

The idea of ​​merging the poll tax into the land tax is certainly possible, but extremely difficult to implement.

Even Liu Bowen would have thought that merging the poll tax into the land tax would be extremely difficult, and many people would oppose it.

Doing things well is really not easy; it's even harder than surveying the fields.

At the very least, the land should be surveyed first before the poll tax is incorporated into the land tax.

But who would have thought that the emperor would now directly abolish the poll tax?

He sensed something unusual about this matter.

He knew far more about the emperor than most people did.

He's not the type to suffer a loss.

For the sake of the people, they are willing to spend money and can indeed implement some good policies.

But for wealthy families and landlords, it would be extremely difficult to get them to pay for it.

So the abolition of the poll tax this time will most likely be applied to the land that was surveyed after the land was cleared.

This is what the emperor previously referred to as the "equalization of land tax and poll tax."

high!
The emperor was truly brilliant!

The emperor was truly shameless and thick-skinned!

To be honest, he had already prepared himself for the emperor to implement the land tax reform and suppress the matter with force, and to be prepared for a bloodbath.

We need to force those people to agree, even if they don't want to.

But little did they expect that the emperor would not even mention the land tax reform, and instead simply abolished the poll tax.

Then they secretly added the abolished poll tax into the land tax.

In this way, the resistance will naturally be much smaller.

Not only will there be no resistance, but everyone will also praise and be grateful!

This emperor really had a whole set of methods for handling things!

They already knew the emperor had many tricks up his sleeve, but now that they realized what he wanted to do, they felt even more astonished.

When it comes to shamelessness and thick-skinnedness, I am truly far inferior to the emperor.

It's simply far from good enough.

The key point is that once the news of abolishing the poll tax is released, the resistance to the subsequent land survey will be greatly reduced.

At least the poor people below will no longer be easily fooled by those with ulterior motives and will not be able to join in the trouble to oppose the major policy of surveying and registering land.

The emperor gained both fame and practical benefits.

That was an amazing move!
Yes, the purpose of the "equalization of poll tax and land tax" was to abolish the poll tax. So why say "equalization of poll tax and land tax" instead of simply "abolishing the poll tax"?
Things are different. After the emperor said that the proceeds from trade with the Northern Yuan and from maritime trade could offset the poll tax, he immediately silenced many who wanted to object.

In addition, many officials also voiced their praises and echoed the emperor's sentiments.

That makes it even more speechless.

Therefore, even if many people are particularly unwilling, they have no choice but to sing along and praise.

"Your Majesty, who should be sent to Jiangxi to oversee the land survey?"

Seeing that the emperor had already made the decision and there was no way to object, Hu Weiyong could only change his approach once again and inquire about the matter.

No matter how good the policies are, one thing will never change.

That is, it all depends on human effort.

Even the best policies need the right people to implement them. The same task, done by different people, will produce different results.

People can accomplish great things, or they can ruin them.

If the emperor agrees, he will recommend some people to work there.

The process of surveying and measuring land would naturally be different.

"We already have this candidate in mind, but we won't say it now. We'll announce it in a few days, and you'll know for yourselves."

Zhu Yuanzhang understood perfectly well what Hu Weiyong was up to.
Therefore, Hu Weiyong and others were not given a chance to speak at all.

That effectively shut down the whole thing.

Just kidding, but the land survey is a matter of fundamental importance.

It's something he absolutely has to handle well, something that can't go wrong.

How could we possibly allow Hu Weiyong to get involved and appoint someone recommended by Hu Weiyong?
Isn't that just making things difficult for yourself?
If Hu Weiyong were someone who was wholeheartedly devoted to the country, then that would be understandable.

The key point is that the events of the previous life have already proven just how despicable Hu Weiyong really is.

That would truly be going against the imperial court.

They opposed land surveys, especially those conducted in Jiangxi.

He certainly wouldn't go looking for trouble.

Upon hearing this, Hu Weiyong felt a pang of regret.

After cursing Zhu Yuanzhang, that dog emperor, in his heart, he naturally didn't say much more about this matter.

We can only wait for the emperor to make a move.

Could it be that the emperor has sent his fourth son to that place again?
If we were to send Zhu Laosi to work over there, things would actually be quite difficult.

Now, after all that has happened, Hu Weiyong no longer dares to underestimate Zhu Laosi.

This guy is indeed capable, but the key is that he's ruthless and cruel, and dares to kill.

Of course, the most important thing is that behind Zhu Laosi is a father who is equally despicable.

If we really sent Zhu Laosi to Jiangxi to do this...

Then they will have much less room to maneuver here.

Things are going to get complicated.

But unless it's Zhu Laosi, it won't be so easy for him to make a name for himself in Jiangxi.

No matter who it is, it won't be easy for them to do this kind of thing in Jiangxi!

This time, Hu Weiyong was determined to go all out and have a showdown with Zhu Yuanzhang!

Hu Weiyong's greatest local power base was in Jiangxi.

To put it bluntly, Jiangxi belongs to the imperial court, but it doesn't necessarily mean it can't be called Hu Weiyong's Jiangxi.

It's said that Longhu Mountain is the most powerful force in Jiangxi.

But to be honest, even Longhu Mountain doesn't have as much influence as Hu Weiyong in Jiangxi.

Zhu Chongba was going too far, constantly eroding the power of the Secretariat and suppressing him, the prime minister.

Now they actually want to undermine their own foundation?

This can't be tolerated any longer!
……

"You know we're going to be surveying the land in Jiangxi, right?"

Two days later, in the Wuying Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the person in front of him and spoke.

The person in front of me had very short hair and dressed rather strangely, wearing an official robe over a monk's robe.

This man's name is Wu Yin. He used to be a monk, but he recently returned to secular life.

It's just that my hair hasn't grown long yet.

Although I have left the monastic life, I still habitually like to wear monk's robes.

This person was quite famous when he was a monk.

"Your Majesty, I have heard something."

What's your opinion on this?

"It's difficult."

"What do you think we should do to get things done well?"

"kill!"

Wu Yin's answer was straightforward and concise, consisting of only one word.

"Haha." Zhu Yuanzhang laughed: "Well said, we must kill!"

This can't be done without killing someone.

"Even if we don't kill anyone, Jiangxi, which is nominally part of my Great Ming Dynasty, is actually, to a large extent, also part of Longhu Mountain, part of Hu Weiyong's Jiangxi!"

Zhu Yuanzhang wasn't just making things up. Jiangxi was where Hu Weiyong made his fortune, and their relationship had always been ambiguous, especially after Zhu Yuanzhang became prime minister.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew something about this matter before he took action against Jiangxi in his previous life.

But after he actually conducted a land survey in Jiangxi in his previous life, he truly realized just how much power Hu Weiyong had in Jiangxi!

Biao'er and I were right; Longhu Mountain was the largest landlord in Jiangxi.

But in reality, the power of Longhu Mountain was far less than that of Hu Weiyong in Jiangxi.

How powerful was Hu Weiyong?

Tao Wuzhong, the first provincial councilor of Jiangxi, was actually Hu Weiyong's "money purse manager".

For example, he monopolized the Poyang Lake canal transport, controlled the hub for transporting grain from the south to the north, and embezzled a cut of the canal grain by "adding extra charges".

They also controlled the Jingdezhen imperial kilns, turning nearly 30% of the imperial porcelain production capacity into smuggled black market goods, which were then sold to Southeast Asia via Yuegang in Fujian.

Chen Ning, the Assistant Surveillance Commissioner of Jiangxi, was Hu Weiyong's "adopted son".

What famous things did he, the person in charge of the judiciary, do?

He employed members of the White Lotus Society as thugs and fabricated the "Dragon Pool Corpse Drowning Case," which resulted in the death of Liu Lian, who was conducting a land survey.

At the same time, they forged land deeds to help powerful families seize military farms.

This resulted in nearly half of the farmland in Nanchangwei being illegally converted into private land!
Ding Yu, the commander of the Nanchang Garrison, was their military backer.

The Nanchang Guard under his command was actually a private armed force.

They protected salt smugglers, such as the "Ganjiang Salt Gang," and used garrison warships to smuggle Huai salt into Jiangxi, thus impacting the imperial salt tax.

It was later discovered that the annual tax evasion amounted to 200,000 taels!

The Luo family of Ji'an, a prominent family of scholars and poets that had developed since the Song and Yuan dynasties, transformed into a family of imperial examination brokers in the early Ming dynasty.

They bribed Hu's faction to monopolize the Jiangxi provincial examinations, ensuring at least thirty successful candidates were admitted through cheating in each subject.
Five hundred taels per person.

The Ding family of Nanchang monopolized the water transport from the Yangtze River to the Gan River, and their fleet flew "Special Permit Flag of the Central Secretariat" to evade customs duties.

For example, the former subordinates of He Zhen, the Left Chancellor of Jiangxi Province, such as Xiong Tianrui, a powerful chieftain in Ganzhou, outwardly surrendered to the Ming Dynasty, but in reality obtained autonomy through Hu Weiyong.

This formed an alliance between the surrendered officials and Hu's faction to share the spoils.

They manipulated the economic lifeline, using illegal channels to intercept grain shipments and falsely report losses.

Smuggling of imperial porcelain, passing off inferior goods as superior ones, and the theft of imperial porcelain quotas.

The Huai salt infiltrated the area, and armed forces transported smuggled salt.

They also privatized the military power of the garrisons.
For example, in the four guards of Jiangxi, including Nanchang, Jiujiang, Ganzhou, and Yuanzhou, three commanders and seventeen chiliarchs pledged allegiance to Hu's faction.

They turned their own Ming Dynasty garrisons into bodyguards for powerful figures and smugglers!
Chen Ning incorporated the remnants of the White Lotus Rebellion in Jiangxi, appointing him as a "tax official" who levied "double taxes" on merchants.

In addition to the regular taxes levied by the imperial court, a "protection fee" was also collected from the Hu Party.

So many things, one after another, are simply shocking!

Why did he choose Jiangxi as his first choice when surveying land in both his past and present lives?
The point is to make an example of them.

Not only should we deal with Longhu Mountain, but we should also properly cripple Hu Weiyong's hands and feet!
(End of this chapter)