Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

"Those two bastards from the Li family, don't just kill them with one blow, cut them a few more times!"

"It's good that the officials seized the property! All the assets of these corrupt officials should be confiscated, and not a single penny should be left for them!"

"Kill the corrupt officials! Kill the corrupt officials!"

"..."

Faced with the shouts of the onlookers, the executioner actually obeyed the public opinion and stabbed Li Bangyan's sons twice before they died.

Wang Chongyang had already entered the Imperial Academy by this time, and all the students, including him, came to watch the execution.

There were also students from the prefectural and county schools of Kaifeng, who were brought to the execution ground by their teachers, and at that moment they all felt a chill run down their spines.

The students were almost numb; this was the seventh wave in several months, and they had no idea how many people the Emperor and His Majesty intended to kill.

Just last month, a corruption case also broke out in the Ministry of Works, which was exposed by local officials.

From officials of the third rank to those without rank, six were sentenced to death, eleven were exiled, and many others were imprisoned.

The month before last, the Ministry of Revenue sentenced nine people to death and fifteen to exile.

The month before last, the Ministry of Personnel sentenced four people to death and twelve to exile.

The above only includes officials; clerks are not included.

All departments were paralyzed for a short period of time, and officials were quickly promoted to fill the gaps, but they were unable to adapt to their new jobs quickly.

More than 20,000 field troops from the front lines in Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Youzhou were transferred back to Kaifeng—Zhao Yuan feared that some civil and military officials might be driven to rebellion because too many had been killed!

All members of the former Song imperial family were placed under house arrest.

Even Zhao Huan, who had already been appointed as an official in charge of promoting agriculture, was ordered not to wander around, in order to prevent anyone from using his name to cause trouble.

Even though Zhao Yuan agreed to amend the "Great Ming Code," and many who were sentenced to implicated and exiled have regained their freedom, there are still too many people involved in the case.

Moreover, the more they investigate, the more they find!

Many prefectural and county government offices were shut down, and due to a lack of officials and staff, they were unable to carry out their duties.

Leaving aside the family members who were exempted from joint liability after the revision of the "Great Ming Code".

Then there are those minor offenders who, due to being out of jail time, paid fines to avoid imprisonment.

Currently, 1274 people have been sentenced to death, 9615 have been exiled, and 4428 have been imprisoned (not all of them are officials; many merchants and gentry have also been implicated).

These are just the cases that have already been adjudicated; many more are still under trial.

Officials in all provinces, prefectures, and counties across the country were filled with anxiety, and government affairs could not be handled normally.

Every day when everyone arrived at the government office, the first thing they did was read the official gazette.

They would slowly search through the newspapers to see which official had fallen from grace, mainly to see if any of their relatives were among them.

Zhao Yuan would never have dared to do this without negotiating a peace treaty with the Jin Dynasty.

To reassure officials, Zhao Yuan announced revisions to the "Great Ming Code" and notified local authorities through official documents and gazettes.

Which of these officials isn't smart?

Many people guessed His Majesty's intention: to severely punish a group of officials after the founding of the dynasty, to rectify the administration of officials nationwide, and to correct the corrupt practices.

This year, the "Great Ming Code" was amended, stipulating that officials could be exiled or dismissed based on their household registration.

Once the administration improves, it will likely be revised again. At that time, it will be that if one person commits a crime, only that person will be held accountable. At most, the parents, wife, and children will be implicated, but the brothers should be fine.

The officials, who had been filled with anxiety, finally felt somewhat relieved.

.....

The trials of corruption cases are still ongoing, with someone being sentenced to death or exiled almost every four or five days.

The number of exiled people has exceeded ten thousand!

People from Guangdong, Fujian, and Zhejiang provinces were exiled to the Penghu Islands, where they established naval fortresses (small naval bases).

He was exiled from Jiangxi, Hunan, and Guangxi provinces to Zhenyuan, Rongzhou (Rongshui), Xunjiangbao, and Linxibao (the two places are in Sanjiang County).

Chapter 3318 Salary Reform

They were exiled from Shaanxi and Henan provinces to the Xihe and Hengshan areas.

They were exiled from Sichuan and Hubei provinces to the Nanguang region in southern Sichuan.

Those from other provinces were exiled to Youyan, Pyongyang, Tsushima Island, and Sado Island, depending on the severity of their crimes.

In particular, in southern Sichuan, the army was even mobilized.

The Nanguang tribe was scattered around Gao County, Gong County, Junlian County, and Xingwen County, and consisted of various ethnic minority tribes.

The garrison troops and transport troops stationed in Sichuan and Hubei mobilized 30,000 men to attack, forcing the various tribes in Nanguang to submit.

They also established fortified villages in key locations, and the exiled officials and civilians settled and cultivated the land around these fortified villages.

...

Imperial City, Council Hall.

The atmosphere at today's imperial council meeting remained somewhat subdued.

Xiao Chu spoke first: "There are only more than 20,000 officials in our dynasty, and now hundreds have been beheaded, hundreds have been exiled, and more than 1,000 are still detained and awaiting trial."

"With one-tenth of officials investigated and punished, there is turmoil both inside and outside the government, and local administration is at a standstill. This is not a long-term solution."

"Your Majesty and Your Majesty's desire to rectify official corruption is excellent, but everything must be done in moderation!"

Zhai Ruwen first looked at Zhao Yuan, then observed Zhao Yuan's expression, and then said, "Please instruct me, Your Majesty, how much longer should the case be investigated?"

Zhao Yuan said, "The investigation will continue until New Year's Day. We will take the first day of the first month of the sixth year of Hongwu as the dividing line. As long as there is no more corruption or bribery in the future, all past crimes will not be investigated."

"If they dare to commit the offense again, both the new and old cases will be investigated."

There was still more than a month until the Chinese New Year. By the time all the cases were tried, it was estimated that more than one-tenth of the officials would have been punished.

Was Zhao Yuan less ruthless than Zhu Yuanzhang?

Although the number of deaths in the three major cases at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty was in the tens of thousands, the number of officials beheaded was not actually that many; a large number of family members and ordinary people were also involved.

As for Zhu Yuanzhang's crackdown on corruption, he eventually stopped killing officials and had to make them continue working while still in shackles.

"There must be both punishment and reward."

Zhao Yuan began to change the subject.

"The rest are either honest officials or just lucky ones."

"I am prepared to raise officials' salaries again so that truly honest officials can live with more dignity."

This is a strategy of giving a slap on the wrist followed by a sweet treat, quickly appeasing the officials.

Zhao Yuan continued, "The salary system of the former Song Dynasty was too complicated. Although the new Ming Dynasty has streamlined it, it is still too complicated and cumbersome."

"I intend to convert all expenses, including material costs, supplementary allowances, rice stipends, official salaries, meal allowances, firewood, charcoal, salt, paper, and other miscellaneous expenses, into cash and grain allowances. Except for the spring and winter clothing allowances, none of these will be distributed separately in the future."

The salary that people usually understand refers to both salary and wages.

But other salaries were also staggering. For example, the prime minister and privy councilor of the former Song Dynasty received 300 strings of cash per month for their living expenses.

This is just the basic allowance; additional allowances are given during holidays and festivals.

The prime minister's meal allowance was 50 strings of cash per month.

In addition, a retinue of seventy followers must be provided, such as the prime minister, who can recruit seventy followers, and the court will be responsible for paying their salaries.

(For officials whose titles included "Envoy" or who held other noble ranks, the maximum allowance was 400 strings of cash, and the maximum allowance for their attendants was 100 strings of cash.)

Compared to the preferential treatment given to civil officials in the Song Dynasty, the new Ming Dynasty was indeed too harsh.

Zhao Yuan said, "First rank: salary of 600 strings of cash and 300 shi of rice."

"First rank: salary of 550 strings of cash and 280 shi of rice."

"Second rank: salary of 500 strings of cash and 250 shi of rice."

"Second rank: salary of 450 strings of cash, and 220 shi of rice."

Chapter 3319 The Stingy Emperor

The high-ranking officials did not react much upon hearing this.

This is because it involves converting all welfare benefits into monetary and food allowances.

Even in the Ming Dynasty, where officials were treated harshly by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, there were still other benefits besides their regular salaries.

The fabric issued in winter and spring alone was worth a fortune, but now we have to buy it ourselves, while the court only provides two sets of official robes.

Moreover, such a high salary was only for a first or second-rank official.

How many first and second-class items are there in the whole country?

The treatment of a third-rank official will definitely be significantly reduced!

As expected, Zhao Yuan continued, "Third-rank official: 350 strings of cash, 200 shi of rice. Third-rank official..."

See, compared to the second rank, the monthly salary of the third rank is directly reduced by 100 strings of cash.

When officials reached the fifth or eighth rank, their salaries plummeted again.

Zhao Yuan said: "Seventh rank: 50 strings of cash and 60 shi of rice. Seventh rank: 45 strings of cash and 55 shi of rice. Eighth rank: 30 strings of cash..."

Of the more than 20,000 officials nationwide, over 80% were of the eighth or ninth rank.

This is the bulk of the salary expenditure!

The Song Dynasty claimed to treat civil officials well, but this only involved drastically increasing the salaries of high-ranking officials, while officials of the eighth and ninth ranks lived a very difficult life.

The revised salary system established by the father and son resulted in significantly lower actual salaries for mid- to high-ranking officials compared to the Northern Song Dynasty.

However, the treatment of officials at the lower ranks (seventh, eighth, and ninth grade) was somewhat better than in the Northern Song Dynasty.

Zhao Yuan continued, "If it is an official position with harsh conditions, such as serving in a desolate and remote place, there will be an additional allowance in addition to the salary."

"In principle, regardless of whether it is a substantive position or a nominal title, the highest-ranking position shall be the standard, and it is absolutely not allowed to receive two or three salaries."

"In addition, those who are promoted to the rank of Three Masters, Three Young Masters, Pillar of State, or Special Envoy can receive an extra salary."

Although the cabinet ministers present were not short of money.

But the new salary law announced by Zhao Yuan still brought smiles to their faces.

It's not about the money, but about feeling that you've received the respect you deserve.

Zhao Yuan added, "You should recruit your own personal attendants; the court will not pay them salaries."

Zhao Yuan continued, "The benefits of the noble title have also been improved!"

"The monthly allowance for each household in the fief will be increased from 25 cash to 30 cash, and the number of households receiving the fief will also be increased."

"In addition, increase the number of titles for civil officials, and grant a large number of titles after the Jin dynasty is destroyed."

"The new dynasty can have marquises with ten thousand households, and they will receive real fiefs!"

Upon hearing this, the courtiers were taken aback.

In order to suppress military generals, the Northern Song Dynasty firstly prohibited the hereditary inheritance of titles, and secondly restricted the number of households receiving real fiefs.

In the Northern Song Dynasty, a fiefdom of three thousand households was already the highest one could attain, yet the emperor actually said that it was permissible to have marquises with ten thousand households.

Putting aside the honors, what practical benefits does the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households offer?

Each household receives 30 coins, and even if they are granted fiefdoms to ten thousand households, they only receive 300 strings of cash per month.

How many households can exist at the same time?

There were probably only one or two, and even among the founding nobles, there were at most four or five.

This amount of money may not be much for the imperial court, but it can bring great honor to military officers, who are truly willing to risk their lives to achieve merit.

Zhao Yuan added, "The title of nobility decreases when it is inherited, and the real fiefdom decreases even faster when it is inherited."

"This is to encourage the sons of noble families to earn their living through their own hard work and not to rely on the legacy of their fathers."

Unlike the Song Dynasty, the titles of nobility in the new Ming Dynasty were hereditary.