Sky Curtain: My Great Qin must have an aircraft carrier!

Feeling embarrassed, Old Zhu stubbornly tried to salvage the situation.

"What's the big deal? Tianmu is just nitpicking."

"Tomorrow, have the Imperial Guards conduct a covert investigation of grain officials across the country! Let the common people go directly to the capital to lodge petitions with the emperor! Investigate and handle cases on the same day! Anyone who embezzles even a single penny will be skinned alive!"

Zhu Yuanzhang got more and more excited as he spoke, and slammed his fist on the table.

Zhu Biao pinched the bridge of his nose, his temples throbbing.

He wholeheartedly supports killing corrupt officials, but that's not the problem!

The grain chief and village chief are the backbone of local tax collection. If you cut down the whole backbone, how will taxes be collected? Who will do the job?

We can't expect ordinary people to carry their grain all the way to Nanjing, can we?

Zhu Biao was so anxious that sweat beaded on his forehead, and he spun around in place three times.

Just as he was halfway through the fourth lap, a thought suddenly struck Zhu Biao.

"I've got it!"

"What did you think of? You scared me!"

"Father, do you really think those people are inherently kind and don't want to rob or steal?"

Old Zhu squinted, not understanding how the conversation had suddenly turned to this.

"Human nature is inherently evil! The common people obey the law because of the Great Ming Law, which tells them that robbery will cost them their heads."

Zhu Biao spoke more and more fluently, his mind becoming completely clear.

"Since local powerful families can't be relied upon, let's send people from the imperial court! We'll personally select honest officials and send them to various prefectures and counties to specifically oversee tax collection."

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned, but did not interrupt him, gesturing for him to continue.

Zhu Biao raised his finger, "These people are strictly prohibited from bringing their families when they take office. Their salaries and travel expenses are directly allocated by the imperial court, and not a single penny passes through the local authorities."

Zhu Yuanzhang stroked his short beard and sneered, "An honest official? When they first went down to the countryside, they were completely innocent. After spending a few years in the local area, their methods of making money were more ruthless than anyone else's."

"Then implement the system of appointing officials on temporary assignments, with a maximum term of one year, after which they must return to the court to publicly petition the emperor."

"If someone embezzles during their term of office—"

Zhu Biao gestured across his neck, "Those who commit the same crime will be punished together, and will be severely punished according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty."

The hall remained quiet for several breaths.

Zhu Yuanzhang leaned back in his chair, frowning as if trying to find fault.

The imperial court would provide funds, limit the term of office, prohibit family members from being brought along, and hold those responsible accountable later.

After examining it for a while, I found that I really couldn't find too many faults.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang felt there were still some problems, it was indeed more effective than beheading people.

"The method is indeed a proven one," Old Zhu said, his tone softening. "However, the Embroidered Uniform Guards will be following along, secretly keeping an eye on these inspectors."

Zhu Biao nodded, "That's right, and it was made clear before I took office that the Embroidered Uniform Guard would secretly supervise me."

"When officials have a knife to their throats, they will be more cautious in their actions and work harder."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's lips curled into a wide smile, and a hearty laugh escaped his throat.

"Biao'er, you're showing some of the grandeur of the Ming Dynasty's Crown Prince. You're truly worthy of being our son."

Old Zhu's eyes were full of admiration, and the gloom from before vanished.

The ability to identify problems and, more importantly, to devise solutions is what a ruler who maintains the status quo should possess.

Zhu Biao was a little embarrassed by the praise and scratched the back of his head.

-

Of course, to be fair, Zhu Yuanzhang was born into a rural family and had no experience in governing a country.

Even more critically, the Yuan Dynasty adopted the most outrageous tax farming system.

What is the tax farming system?

The imperial court sets a total tax revenue and then contracts it out directly to local powerful landlords.

You collect whatever taxes you want for me; any excess is yours to keep.

This system is undoubtedly a bad policy for farmers.

Those who bullied Zhu Yuanzhang the most were precisely these local bullies at the grassroots level.

Therefore, it's understandable that Zhu Yuanzhang hated them.

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly.

That's for sure.

When I was a child, we couldn't afford to pay taxes, so my father knelt before the local bullies his whole life.

No matter how many nice words you say, or how many times you wear your knees on them, they'll still urge you on and beat you if they want to.

In those people's eyes, Zhu Chongba was not even as good as a dog.

Dogs can at least guard the house, but poor children are useless except for having more mouths to feed.

His father was driven to his death by this group of people.

The whole family starved to death and couldn't even afford a coffin. It was only thanks to the kindness of a neighbor that they were able to be buried on a small plot of land.

The decision to prevent officials from going to the countryside wasn't made on a whim; it stemmed from a deep-seated hatred.

Those people don't deserve to be called officials; calling them bandits would be an understatement.

However, the grain chief system was only the smallest manifestation of Zhu Yuanzhang's problems with civil administration.

It's no exaggeration to say that afterwards, the emperor and his ministers were desperately trying to clean up Zhu Yuanzhang's mess and frantically patching things up.

Zhang Juzheng only wanted to fix a bug, but it triggered a mountain of code that nearly brought the country to its knees.

Zhu Yuanzhang sat on the dragon throne, recalling the things he had done in the past.

"This is problematic, that is problematic, why are they always picking on us?"

"Liu Bang, that old scoundrel, indulged in wine and women, killed off many of his founding ministers, and allowed the Lü clan to rise to power. Is that what you call wise governance?"

"And then there's Li Shimin, who was praised to the skies. He killed his brothers at Xuanwu Gate and forced his father to abdicate. His descendants' education was a complete mess."

"It's easy for you to criticize without understanding the situation!"

Zhu Yuanzhang grew angrier the more he spoke, feeling that Tianmu was deliberately picking a fight.

Zhu Biao squatted in the corner, writing down all the questions Tian Mu had raised, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

If Tianmu hadn't brought it up, he would never have imagined that the Ming Dynasty had so many problems.

Zhu Biao had a headache and stuffed the Xuan paper covered in writing into his sleeve.

If future generations figure out a good remedy, then we should follow that prescription; if even future generations can't find a solution, then it's best not to do anything for now.

-

Now, let's assume Zhu Yuanzhang's actions were consistent.

If Zhu Yuanzhang had remained rational, astute, and magnanimous after ascending the throne, what heights could he have reached?

It's no exaggeration to say that Zhu Yuanzhang would be a PLUS version of Liu Bang, reaching a level that rivals Liu Bang's.

Once the shortcomings in civil administration are addressed, the potential of the Ming Dynasty will also be raised.

Even when compared to the Han and Tang dynasties, there is room for discussion.

The problem with Zhu Yuanzhang was that he changed so much after becoming emperor that he was no longer the same person.

If you put the Zhu Yuanzhang who conquered the country and the Zhu Yuanzhang who ruled the country together, you might wonder if they've been switched.

Some attribute this to the deaths of Empress Ma and Zhu Biao, which caused Zhu Yuanzhang's personality to change drastically.

Don't forget that of the four major cases, three occurred while Zhu Biao was alive, and two of them occurred before Empress Ma died, and Song Lian still had Empress Ma plead for him.

Forcing an explanation will only lead to a very strange conclusion.

Upon seeing this, Lan Yu, Fu Youde, Han Zheng, and others all felt a chill run down their spines.

If it can be called a major case, it is definitely not something that can be solved by a few hundred people.

The previous Empty Seal case killed so many people; it was practically a river of blood.

What is the third major case? And what is the fourth major case?

Lan Yu swallowed hard, feeling a chill run down her spine.