Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World.

Chapter 100 The Imperial Estate Affairs Are Over!

Qingzhang Village.

"My lord said to ask the person behind you for their opinion. Does the person behind you actually agree with this approach?"

He Sheng's face was cold as he spoke.

The seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister's door.

If he were in the Jiang family mansion, he would be the pageboy Hesheng.

Once we left the Jiang residence, hmph!

"Young man, don't forget. This is a royal estate!" Steward Liu replied casually, his expression relaxed. "When it comes to royal estates, we still have to consider the royal family's reputation, don't we?"

"Paying back debts is a matter of course. Those IOUs are not forged in the slightest; they were all borrowed bit by bit by the tenants. As a high-ranking official of the third rank, you should be someone who values ​​your reputation. You can't possibly default on your debts!"

There were many imperial estates throughout the land, and the account books were all kept by eunuchs.

Occasionally, military generals who achieved military merits would have the opportunity to receive imperial rewards.

The stewards of the imperial estates were all connected to each other.

According to the ledger, all of this money was owed by the tenants.

If there is any disturbance, the tenants will not be able to survive.

The only way to keep tenants alive is to settle their debts!
Some managers have already tried this trick.

It works every time!

"Heh!" He Sheng glanced at the group indifferently: "The message has been delivered. You will bear the consequences. Don't say you weren't warned."

"Come, let's see you off."

The servant's domineering tone slightly annoyed Steward Liu.

"Boss, this is twenty thousand taels of silver! We absolutely cannot report this to Eunuch Li!" As soon as He Sheng left, a burly man rushed forward anxiously.

With over 20,000 taels of silver, once secured, it would be enough for future generations to live on for several lifetimes.

Money and silk touch people's hearts!

Manager Liu nodded slowly; he had made the same decision.

If this matter is reported, Eunuch Li might punish him to avoid trouble.

Rather than reporting it, we might as well take a gamble.

In the past, some military officers were granted imperial estates as rewards, but in the end, there was nothing that could be done.

Ultimately, the imperial estates belong to the royal family.

Those important figures still have to consider the impact.

The military officers had grievances they couldn't express, and the civil officials were probably in much the same boat.

Seven days passed in a flash.

At 7:45 AM, the morning mist had not yet dissipated.

Civil and military officials were arranged in an orderly manner.

In the procession, officials of the third rank and below all stepped back by one seat.

Today, one more official of the third rank was added to the morning court.

Many officials glanced ahead furtively, secretly horrified.

Jiang Zhao, dressed in a purple robe and jade belt, with a gold talisman and fish pouch hanging from his waist, was calm and composed, occasionally chatting and laughing with figures of the rank of ministers from the Six Ministries.

At this age, he's a high-ranking official of the third rank with real power!
Absolutely astonishing!

If we're really going to talk about it, only Lü Mengzheng, who became prime minister after only six years in office, could truly outshine Jiang Zhao.

The remaining people, whether it was Ding Wei, who had served as a high-ranking official for twelve years and reached the second rank, or Fu Bi, who had served as a high-ranking official for fifteen years and entered the cabinet, were all roughly equal in ability.

It is almost certain that this is a person who will rise to the pinnacle of a ministerial career.

"Lord Wu, thank you for your trouble."

Jiang Zhaoping smiled and cupped his hands in greeting to Wu Zhongfu, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief.

"Haha!" Wu Zhongfu stroked his beard and laughed, waving his hand: "You're too kind, you're too kind."

It's rare to see such a favor from a junior official!

Jiang Zhao nodded and closed his eyes slightly.

No one has contacted him in the past few days.

In other words, either the steward of the imperial estate failed to report it, or the palace eunuchs ignored him.

Neither of these two scenarios affects his approach.

In any case, the strategy of "courtesy first, then force" has been implemented.

As for the rest?
do not care!
Anyway, what does it have to do with Li the eunuch if he wants to impeach him?
It's one thing to bully military officers, but how dare they provoke civil officials?

"when!"

The bell tolled long and deep.

"Summon all officials to the palace—"

The sharp voice of the Grand Eunuch in charge of ceremonies rang out, and all the civil and military officials rushed into the hall, shouting in unison:

"May Your Majesty be well!"

On the steps of the imperial palace, Zhao Zhen waved his hand and said, "No need for formalities."

"Gentlemen, do you have anything to report?"

As he spoke, Zhao Zhen glanced down at the officials and asked the usual question.

Wang Yaochen, the Minister of Rites, stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I humbly submit this memorial: I humbly acknowledge Your Majesty's ascension to the throne and your long and prosperous reign. On this auspicious occasion of the Thousandth Anniversary of Your Majesty's Reign, I earnestly request that you follow the old rites to uphold the proper etiquette and prepare auspicious ceremonies to celebrate."

It is proposed that an auspicious day be chosen for the civil and military officials to respectfully offer sacrifices to the Heavenly Emperor at the southern suburbs. The procedures, procedures, and expenses have already been instructed to be carefully drafted by the Ministry of Rites, and a memorial should be submitted to the throne.

A request to offer birthday greetings!

Zhao Zhen pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Granted!"

This year, we have made achievements in expanding our territory.

While it might not amount to the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, it's perfectly acceptable to offer sacrifices to one's ancestors.

Upon hearing this, Wu Zhongfu stepped out of the ranks and struck the ground with his wooden clapper: "Your subject, Wu Zhongfu, Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, has something to impeach."

Excuse!
All the civil and military officials turned their attention to the past.

Wu Zhongfu was no ordinary censor. He was a third-rank official who offered advice and criticism.

For such a person to speak out against an impeachment is certainly no small matter.

Zhao Zhen folded his sleeves together, signaling to continue.

The position of censor has always been highly valued.

Compared to memorials submitted by other officials, impeachments by censors were more likely to be recorded in history.

"Your Majesty, corruption has become rampant in the imperial estates lately. Some officials are even abusing your authority to bully court officials and exploit the people!"

Wu Zhong kowtowed to the ground, his eyes slightly red: "The chaos of the late Tang Dynasty was all caused by the eunuchs' monopolization of power. Your Majesty must learn from this!"

Upon hearing this, whispers arose in the hall, and many officials looked toward Jiang Zhao.

Imperial estates were very rare.

Generally speaking, it was military officers who received the rewards, and it might take more than ten years for an imperial estate to be given away.

Recently, Jiang Zhao was the only one to receive a royal reward.

Zhao Zhen's face darkened: "Tell me, who is so audacious?"

"Your Majesty, I request that you explain the details," Wu Zhongfu said solemnly as he turned around.

Jiang Zhao stepped forward slowly: "Your Majesty bestowed upon me the imperial estate out of consideration for your subjects, but I never expected it to become a pretext for petty villains to commit evil deeds."

Jiang Zhao sighed: "Imperial estates are all fertile land with low taxes. Renting them to tenants is a benevolent act by the emperor."

However, the stewards of the imperial estates, relying on the backing of the inner court, arbitrarily increased rents and taxes, forcing tenants to sell their wives and children. They even dared to threaten me, saying: "The imperial estates involve the majesty of Heaven; they cannot be touched lightly."

"A single imperial estate was found to have inflated its debts to tens of thousands of taels. Not only were taxes and rents secretly increased, but falsified accounting books were also created. The emperor's benevolent land had become the private pocket of eunuchs!"

After saying this, Jiang Zhao let out a long sigh.

"Countless imperial estates across the land are in the same predicament. Your Majesty, I implore you to thoroughly investigate all imperial estates, dismiss the old stewards, and appoint new officials to manage them."

Jiang Zhao bowed again, saying, "The affairs of the imperial estates should be included in the performance evaluation; the excellent should be promoted, and the inferior should be dismissed!"

A royal estate, when rented to tenants, was almost always distributed as a form of "taxation," rather than a fixed rent.

In other words, the better the imperial estate was managed, the more money would enter the imperial treasury.

Zhao Zhen's expression changed slightly.

After hearing just a few words from Jiang Zhao, he understood the situation.

His rent might not even be 10%, but those in charge dare to embezzle 20% or 30%.

The person in charge colluded with the eunuch to falsify accounts, pocketing the ill-gotten gains and taking the lion's share.

He, the emperor, only takes a small share.

When imperial estates were bestowed upon officials, they were ostensibly a reward, but in reality, they became a burden.

"Your subject Han Zhang seconds this proposal." Han Zhang's simple words provided tremendous support.

"Your subject, Wen Yanbo, seconds this proposal," said Wen Yanbo, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, stroking his long beard.

"Your subject, Pang Ji, seconds this proposal."

"Your subject, Wang Yaochen, seconds this proposal."

"Your subject, Ouyang Xiu, seconds this proposal."

"Your subject Zeng Gongliang seconds this proposal."

……

When it comes to suppressing eunuchs, civil officials have always been very effective.

From Jiang Zhao's words, one could easily discern what had happened.

The person in charge is threatening a high-ranking official of the third rank!

This is just the person in charge; behind the person in charge are eunuchs!

So crazy!
This definitely needs to be treated.

In any case, since it concerns the imperial estates, it doesn't have any significant impact on the interests of civil officials.

Seeing this, Zhao Zhen already had a plan in mind.

The civil service was inherently at odds with the eunuchs, and this matter involved the dignity of the imperial power, so there was absolutely no reason to tolerate it.

Zhao Zhen pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Granted."

"I wonder which eunuch is backing you at the imperial estate where you reside?" Zhao Zhen asked.

Everything has to start somewhere; make an example of someone to warn others.

"It is said that he is Eunuch Li, the head of the Directorate of Palace Attendants."

Zhao Zhen nodded slowly.

He will verify and handle this matter.

With the matter of the imperial estate resolved, Jiang Zhao slowly retreated.

It's that easy!
Is there anything in the world that he finds difficult?

Have!
But there are almost no things that even his teacher, Han Zhang, finds difficult.

The so-called affairs of the imperial estates are constantly being managed by different people, mainly because no one has been found capable of dealing with them.

In the past, military officers were terrified of being impeached by civil officials for bad debts when they encountered such situations.

Bad debts, if not discovered in time, can easily escalate into embezzlement.

Therefore, military generals either ruthlessly drove away the tenants or silently suffered the loss.

This resulted in court officials rarely paying attention to the imperial estates.

Ultimately, royal private property has little presence compared to the affairs of the court.

Now, as soon as someone mentioned it, it was naturally stopped.

……

Within a few days, news of the handling of the matter spread from within the palace.

He was demoted and exiled to Danzhou.

At the same time, the imperial court established a new ninth-rank official position and continuously and unconditionally cancelled the IOUs for imperial estates.

Many eunuchs secretly complained.

Why did you have to provoke the young Grand Secretary for no reason?
(End of this chapter)