Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 109 Eunuch Tax Commissioner's Control over the Inner Court (Part 1)

The silk and tea industries in the Ming Dynasty were indeed very promising, especially during this period of flourishing overseas trade.

At this time, European colonial bandits considered wearing fine silks and satins to be beautiful, and every wealthy person wanted to own several sets of them, while those who wore coarse cloth and linen were the poor.

Tea is even more remarkable. Whether it's nomadic tribes or European colonial bandits, they all love to eat meat and dairy products, and if they don't drink tea, they will get all sorts of strange diseases.

Simply put, it's a lack of various vitamins, and tea happens to contain many vitamins that the human body needs.

This life-sustaining substance naturally sells well, and there is a great demand for tea in countries all over the world today.

The problem was that the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty didn't focus on development. These guys were only interested in vying for power and profit, desperately seizing benefits, and never creating any.

Therefore, no matter how scarce silk and tea were, these two industries did not develop at all in the Ming Dynasty. In fact, silk production was greatly reduced because some people sold raw silk for personal gain.

Zhu Jue originally thought that by tricking Zheng Zhilong into coming to the capital, he could control the Ming Dynasty's overseas trade, but he never expected that even the most basic source of goods would be problematic.

The powerful merchant families of Zhejiang controlled the vast majority of the goods; if he wanted to sell anything, he would have to resort to robbery.

Moreover, he couldn't just plunder. Even if he looted all the goods that the Ming Dynasty had, that would still be the amount. After deducting the consumption of the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, he wouldn't be able to plunder much silk and tea to sell.

Therefore, while engaging in robbery, he also needed to develop these two businesses; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to earn enough money to solve the problems of the Little Ice Age disaster and the Jurchen slaves.

He thought about it carefully, and then said solemnly, "Zhongxian, there is still the issue of tea tax. Nowadays, all the tea permits have been divided up, but no tea tax has been collected. You still need to send tax officials to collect the tea tax."

Ode to Tea?

I've never even heard of this.

I thought the Ming Dynasty didn't have a tea poem.

I've never heard of this before, so it must be that those people refuse to hand it over. Looks like we'll have to steal it.

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, how shall this tea tax be levied?"

This is a good question.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue decisively said, "Taimeng, you shall issue an order to all prefectures and counties in Zhejiang, Zhili and Fujian, instructing them to report the production of raw silk and tea in their respective areas."

Uh, do I, as the governor, have that much influence?
Why should they report it?

Those are just ways for people to make money!
Upon hearing this, Xiong Wencan paused for a moment, then cautiously said, "Your Majesty, I doubt that giving the order will be of much use. They will probably either conceal the truth or simply not report it at all."

I am going to deal with those who outwardly comply but inwardly defy me.

Zhu Jue replied without hesitation, "If you feel that they are concealing information, or that someone dares not to report, then send the tax commissioner to investigate."

Should I send a tax collector to investigate?

Xiong Wencan looked at Wei Zhongxian with some confusion, then cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, where did this tax envoy come from?"

The tax collectors were naturally brought in by Wei Zhongxian, but they couldn't be left unsupervised.

During the Wanli reign, the tax collectors were unrestrained and became local tyrants, levying exorbitant taxes and barely distributing any of the looted money to Wanli. Not only did they not give him more than 10% of the looted money, but they also caused chaos in the local areas.

The core competence of those in power is recognizing and employing talent. This includes controlling people. If someone escapes control, it's no longer about employing them. They can't allow these tax collectors to run amok.

Zhu Jue then solemnly said, "Zhongxian, pick out three people who dare to arrest civil officials and have them each lead a hundred Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) to serve as tax commissioners in Southern Zhili, Zhejiang, and Fujian."

There are plenty of people who dare to arrest others; none of my subordinates would be afraid to arrest a civil official.

Wei Zhongxian pondered and said, "Your Majesty, what do you think of sending Li Chaoqin, Wang Chaofu, and Li Yongzhen?"

You decide who the people are, I'll decide the rules. Zhu Jue nodded slightly and said, "If you think it's okay, then it's fine. But you have to explain things clearly to them. They have to listen to Tai Meng and Zi Xian, and they can't just run wild without any restraint."

Well, it's one thing to listen to Xiong Wencan, but why listen to Xu Guangqi?
Wei Zhongxian thought about it carefully, then cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, if they find corrupt officials, can they arrest them and imprison them in the imperial prison to seize their ill-gotten gains?"

Is all you think about is making money and currying favor with your superiors?

well.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly and said, "If they find corrupt officials, they should be thrown into prison to recover their ill-gotten gains. But they can't investigate randomly. Tai Meng and Zi must let them investigate first before they can investigate."

Uh, do we have to listen to Xu Guangqi about this too?
Wasn't Xu Guangqi always staying in the inner court farming?

Wei Zhongxian thought for a moment, then cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, is Lord Xu also going to Jiangnan this time?"

He didn't just go to Jiangnan.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then solemnly said, "Zixian, you'll have to work hard. I'm promoting you to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, Minister of War, and Minister in charge of Agriculture. You'll have to do a good job of reforming the agricultural administration of the Ming Dynasty."

This rectification included the construction of farmland irrigation systems, the assessment of land and tea taxes in various prefectures and counties, the promotion of fertilizer production, and the promotion of mulberry planting and silkworm breeding, tea cultivation, sweet potato cultivation, potato cultivation, and so on. In short, you could manage anything related to agricultural administration.

"I'm also entrusting the command of the extra 50,000 troops from Zhilong to you. When you feel that any local officials are problematic, you can have the tax commissioner sent by Zhongxian arrest them and imprison them in the imperial prison, then replace them with the newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations)."

Does the Ming Dynasty still have a Prime Minister?
This naturally exists.

Historically, Xiong Wencan served as the Prime Minister and Minister of Military Affairs for the provinces of Southern Zhili, Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, and Huguang.

Yan Maoqing, a famous official during the Jiajing reign, also served as the Minister in charge of salt administration in Liangzhe, Lianghuai, Changlu, and Hedong.

The position of Prime Minister is more powerful than that of Governor-General, and the responsibilities are also much greater.

The minister in charge of agriculture bears the responsibility for the rise and fall of agriculture in the entire Ming Dynasty.

Upon hearing this, Xu Guangqi's face immediately turned solemn.

He thought about it carefully, and then cautiously said, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, the construction of farmland irrigation and the assessment of land tax and tea tax are relatively easy to handle. We can say that we just need to employ people."

However, promoting fertilizer production and encouraging mulberry planting, silkworm breeding, tea cultivation, sweet potato cultivation, potato cultivation, etc., requires not only people but also land, and a lot of land is needed.

For example, with potato and sweet potato seedlings, even if we apply enough fertilizer to cultivate good varieties, the seedlings cultivated from one acre can only be enough for a maximum of twenty acres of planting. In other words, the seedlings cultivated from ten thousand acres can only be enough for a maximum of two hundred thousand acres of planting.

Even if all the land was cleared for planting potatoes and sweet potatoes, it would still yield at least several million acres. If potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other crops were planted in rotation in the south, it would require seedlings for at least tens of millions of acres.

Based on this calculation, we would need at least several hundred thousand acres of land to cultivate seedlings, and if we want to promote it on a large scale, we would need at least several million acres of land to cultivate seedlings.

Furthermore, planting peanuts, rapeseed, and soybeans, and cultivating large quantities of green manure seeds such as milkvetch and alfalfa to ensure the supply of nitrogen and potassium fertilizers also requires a large amount of farmland.

Uh, at least several million acres?

This land costs about twenty taels per mu, so several million mu would be tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of taels.

Where am I supposed to get so much money?

The problem is that potatoes and sweet potatoes must be widely promoted. Even if only tens of millions of acres can be planted in rotation, and even if the yield of potatoes and sweet potatoes grown by ordinary people is only half that of Xu Guangqi, the food problem can be almost solved.

I have no money to buy land, so am I supposed to let Wei Zhongxian rob it?
If Wei Zhongxian were to eliminate any of the princes in Henan and Shanxi, he could seize millions of acres of land. The problem is that Henan and Shanxi are currently suffering from disasters, and the climate is too dry to cultivate seedlings. Moreover, rebels are running around everywhere, and the seedlings will probably be snatched and eaten by them before they can be cultivated!

Where can he possibly seize at least several million acres of land right now?
Most of the princes in Huguang were newly enfeoffed since the Jiajing era, so they probably didn't have that much land. As for the princes in Shaanxi, forget about it, as the disaster there was even more severe.

Zhu Jue subconsciously looked up at Wei Zhongxian, then shook his head slightly. This shake of his head landed squarely on Zheng Zhilong's face.

Oh, right, Dongfan!
(End of this chapter)