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

Civil officials, on the other hand, did not receive such good treatment.

They messed up Jiangxi's land tax reform system terribly!

According to the testimony of Xie Dan, the Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi, he did not engage in illicit activities in order to embezzle funds.

The main problem was that the gentry and clans in Jiangxi were too powerful and influential, and many members of these large clans held official positions.

They did not openly resist, but only secretly obstructed the process, making it impossible to implement the land tax reform, and even the land survey was a half-hearted effort.

However, the imperial court had issued a strict order that officials at all levels were required to fulfill their duties.

Thus, local officials deceived county magistrates, county magistrates deceived prefectural officials, prefectural officials deceived provincial officials, and provincial officials deceived the imperial court.

Throughout Jiangxi province, only a very few local officials completed their tasks.

Most local officials just went through the motions, and some even took the opportunity to embezzle and accept bribes.

The provincial administration and the provincial judicial commissioner were at a loss; if they urged the process forward, the prefectural and county officials could only make things worse.

If they don't push for progress, the prefectural and county officials will keep delaying.

Gradually, everyone started to slack off and reported to the imperial court that the reforms had been successfully completed.

In fact, Zhai Ruwen's relative by marriage, Xie Dan, was the Left Provincial Administration Commissioner of Jiangxi. He did not embezzle too much money and could be considered a relatively honest official.

However, he helped local officials deceive the imperial court, and when this caused a civil unrest, he had to step in to cover it up, otherwise the actual situation in Jiangxi would be fully exposed.

.....

Imperial meeting.

"The case in Jiangxi is still under trial,"

Zhao Yuan took out a secret memorial he had just received.

"This was sent by Li Bing, the newly appointed Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi. He said that the gentry in Jiangxi are too stubborn and their intermarriages are deeply entrenched. Taking advantage of this major case, we should break up the powerful clans."

"Without dismantling clan migration, let alone the integration of land tax and poll tax, even the land survey would be difficult to implement in Jiangxi."

As Prime Minister, Liu Jian was the first to receive and read the secret report.

As Liu Jian watched, he grew increasingly impressed with Li Bing. Li Bing even suggested that the Zhang family should be separated first.

The Zhang family of the current imperial concubine, and the Zhang family of Zhang Gen, the retired prime minister and Duke of Gan!

Zhao Quan was the second to read the secret memorial. After reading it, he remained silent and handed it to Zhang Shuye, who was standing next to him.

One person passes it on to the next, and after reading it, no one says anything.

There are too many officials from Jiangxi, and they not only intermarry with each other, but also with powerful families from other provinces.

Once the entire province is divided up by powerful clans, it will not only involve the imperial concubine's family, but also countless officials.

Zhao Yuan asked with a smile, "What is the Prime Minister's opinion?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Qian almost cried, deeply regretting becoming this worthless prime minister.

Unless Liu Jian strongly opposes this, regardless of whether he agrees or not, he will be criticized to death by countless officials as soon as this decree is issued.

Since people can't criticize the emperor, they can only criticize the prime minister!

Of course, Li Bing, who first proposed this, would also have a terrible reputation.

Liu Jian replied, "This is indeed the best time to deal with the situation in Jiangxi, but we should still proceed with caution."

It seemed like they said something, yet it also seemed like they said nothing at all.

Absolutely correct nonsense.

Zhao Yuan then glanced at Li Hanzhang, Qian Chen, Meng Zhao, Bai Chongyan, and others, but these old friends dared not speak recklessly at this moment.

If the imperial concubine's family were not involved, they could still voice their support.

But now the imperial concubine's family is also involved, so what if we offend the imperial concubine and the crown prince?

In the silence, Chen Dong suddenly stood up: "I support the dismantling and relocation of prominent families in Jiangxi!"

Zhao Yuan smiled approvingly: "Excellent."

Liu Jian hesitated, his mind in turmoil, before finally sighing and saying, "I also support it."

"I second that proposal." The other senior officials also echoed this sentiment.

In addition to cabinet members, the heads of the Court of State Affairs, the Censorate, and the Six Ministries also attended the Imperial Conference.

After Zhang Gen and Xiao Chu retired one after another, no officials from Jiangxi were able to attend the Imperial Conference.

However, the left and right vice ministers of the six ministries, as well as the ministers of various temples, totaled four people from Jiangxi.

As long as they weren't afraid of offending the imperial concubine, none of those present would feel any qualms about taking action against Jiangxi!

Chapter 3573 The Uses of Cruel Officials

Zhao Yuan then asked, "Li Bing is a man of action. He submitted two secret memorials, one exposing the popular uprising and the other advocating the dismantling of clans."

"I am very confident in him being appointed as the Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi."

"But he's too inexperienced and might not be able to handle things. Who among you is willing to go to Jiangxi to take charge?"

“Your Majesty, I am willing to go to Jiangxi to oversee this matter.” Wei Liangchen, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, stood up.

In the last major national corruption case, Wei Liangchen was almost implicated by his younger brother, and since then he has become even more diligent and cautious in his work.

Even his classmate and close friend Qin Hui, Wei Liangchen deliberately kept his distance.

Since I have already decided to remain loyal to the cause, this trip to Jiangxi is an opportunity to make a name for myself.

"it is good!"

Zhao Yuan greatly admired Wei Liangchen and said, "I hereby appoint Wei Qing as Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince and order him to immediately proceed to Jiangxi to assume the post of Governor-General of Qingtian."

"Your subject will certainly not fail in his mission." Wei Liangchen bowed respectfully.

He was already the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, and now he has been further appointed as the Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince, thus qualifying him to join the cabinet.

Even if you just coast along from now on, as long as you don't make any mistakes, you can still make it into the cabinet within ten years.

When Wei Liangchen joined the cabinet, he was probably not even fifty years old!

Qin Hui watched with immense envy, but he dared not accept such a task.

Because it offends so many people, it will definitely make it a target of public criticism.

Wei Liangchen dared to stand up because he was upright and not afraid of any official's criticism.

If Qin Hui were to do it, he might be impeached one day by someone using it as leverage.

Zhao Yuan cautioned, "Hunan is sparsely populated and borders Jiangxi very closely."

“Some of the prominent families in Jiangxi stayed in their hometowns, while others were relocated to Hunan.”

"The vacated land in Jiangxi was sold off cheaply to local tenant farmers who had no or little land."

"A small favor is appreciated, but a large one breeds resentment; don't distribute the land directly."

"Let the tenants pay an extra land tax each year to offset the debt, ideally in five to eight years so that the debt can be fully repaid."

Wei Liangchen asked, "How should the debts of the relocated landlords and the redeemed tenants be handled?"

"Debts accumulated over three years are hereby voided. Debts exceeding the statutory interest rate are hereby voided," Zhao Yuan said.

What landlord doesn't lend money at exorbitant interest rates?

Even though the Ming Dynasty government was strict in its control, landlords could still circumvent the law when lending money at exorbitant interest rates; it was simply a matter of "nine out and thirteen back."

Now that the imperial court has sent a governor to support them, the tenants will surely accuse the landlords of usury in order to break free from their constraints.

Any debt can be cancelled!

Zhao Yuan then said, "I bestow upon you a royal command flag, which allows you to freely mobilize the garrison troops and transport troops in Jiangxi."

Wei Liangchen was overjoyed: "With the army at my command, if I fail to govern Jiangxi, I will bring my head back to Your Majesty."

.....

After the meeting, Zhao Yuan left work early and went straight to the courtyard of Imperial Concubine Zhang Jinping.

"The Emperor has arrived so early?" Zhang Jinping asked in surprise.

Zhao Yuan hesitated for a moment, then carefully chose his words and said, "I have an important matter that I need your help with, my lady."

Zhang Jinping sensed something serious and hurriedly asked, "What is it?"

Zhao Yuan elaborated on the situation in Jiangxi, and then said: "The gentry in Jiangxi are deeply entrenched, and even surveying the land is extremely difficult. It has not been completed even after nearly ten years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty."

"This time, taking advantage of the major civil unrest case, we can take action to dismantle large migrant families."

“As a member of the imperial family, Zhang should set an example.”

“I will write a letter to my father-in-law. It would be best if my wife also wrote one, to persuade Zhang to relocate to Hunan.”

“The nation is greater than the family, that’s how it should be.” Although Zhang Jinping was somewhat unhappy, she was still willing to listen to her husband.

Twenty days later, before Wei Liangchen even arrived in Jiangxi, the emperor and empress's private letters had already reached the Zhang family.

Duke Zhang Gen of Gan is in poor health and has been bedridden from time to time for the past two years.

After reading his daughter and son-in-law's letter, Zhang Gen sighed, "It's hard to disobey the emperor's orders."

He invited all the clan elders, but before he could finish speaking, each branch and household reacted strongly.

They simply felt that the emperor was cold-blooded and ruthless, and that their own family, being related to the emperor by marriage, was still suffering losses.

Although the compensation would be equal to the amount of farmland in their hometown, and they could even receive more as compensation if they moved to Hunan.

But can different types of land be the same?

Jiangxi is all arable land, but if we move to Hunan, we'll have to reclaim it.

Moreover, the area is sparsely populated, making it difficult to recruit tenants; the Zhang family might even have to farm the land themselves.

Zhang Gen patiently persuaded him, using a combination of coaxing and intimidation: "Other provinces can implement the land tax system, but Jiangxi alone struggles to even measure the land."

"Now, a popular uprising has broken out, and the emperor is furious..."

"This time, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief has come to Jiangxi to oversee the situation, and he is carrying a royal decree flag that can mobilize troops."

“If you push Governor Wei Liangchen too far, he will really kill someone.”

“I am very familiar with Wei Liangchen. He was a student at the Imperial Academy during the former Song Dynasty and plotted to petition the emperor to rescue the current emperor.”

"When the emperor was exiled to Guizhou, he took the lead in advocating that he follow him for thousands of miles."

“I followed the emperor all the way to Guizhou, and then to Jinzhou. I joined the army when the emperor occupied Hanzhong.”

“A person like that really dares to target our Zhang family.”

"If he can't make a breakthrough in Jiangxi, the Zhang family will probably be the first to suffer!"

Chapter 3574 Lin Chong Heads South to Dali

The Zhang clan elders looked at each other in bewilderment.

When Wei Liangchen's resume was presented, they were all taken aback.

So what if the Zhang family has a Duke and an Imperial Concubine? Wei Liangchen is the true confidant of the Emperor!

Zhang Gen said, "The imperial court has decreed that when each ethnic group is divided and relocated, half of the clan members can remain. We'll decide which family moves away and which stays by drawing lots. I'll also participate in the drawing of lots; if I win, I'll carry them to Hunan."

...

The clay prime minister suddenly stood up straight!

When the Imperial Council voted, Liu Jian actually had a "better" option.

In other words, he agreed in principle to the dismantling and relocation of prominent families in Jiangxi, and expressed his support for the emperor's position.

He also emphasized that this matter should not be rushed and must be handled steadily and cautiously in a step-by-step manner, and then there was a constant wrangling over the specific implementation.

In this way, the emperor could either dismiss him or ignore him, allowing him to retire smoothly either way.

Furthermore, even after retirement, he earned the reputation of being an "upright official" and won praise from prominent families in Jiangxi and their in-laws.

But Liu Jian did not do that.