Da Ming: The system granted me immortality; I clock in every day.

"Wait a minute."

Gu Yannian shook his head slightly, interrupting him.

"If you go to measure the land in a grand manner, you will play right into their hands. They only need to stir up trouble in the countryside, saying that the court is going to increase land taxes, and they will immediately incite a peasant uprising."

"At that time, once you've been accused of persecuting good citizens, even if you, Zhou Chen, had ten heads, it wouldn't be enough for the Emperor to chop them off."

Zhou Chen broke out in a cold sweat and quickly asked, "Then, in your opinion, how should we break this deadlock?"

A deep light flashed in Gu Yannian's eyes.

"To break this deadlock, you need to use clever tactics. When you arrive in Suzhou, do not check the government's official records; those records have long been altered beyond recognition by clerks. Instead, check the clan ancestral halls in the countryside."

"Inspecting the ancestral hall?"

Zhou Chen looked puzzled.

"That's right. Clan concepts are very strong in Jiangnan. Although those gentry may have manipulated the official accounts of their land holdings, they would certainly record them exactly as they were in their own family genealogy and ancestral land accounts in order to highlight the legacy of their ancestors."

Gu Yannian picked up the teacup and blew on the tea.

"You only need to send a few shrewd and capable confidants to secretly copy the genealogies and land holdings of several major families, and then compare them with the official records. It will be clear at a glance who has more and who has less."

"With this irrefutable evidence, if we go and cause trouble for those gentry, even if they have extraordinary abilities, they will be unable to defend themselves."

Zhou Chen felt as if he had been struck by lightning, and his eyes widened in shock.

Overwhelmed with emotion, he suddenly stood up and bowed deeply once more.

"Your Excellency's plan hits the nail on the head; it's truly a plan beyond the comprehension of even the gods and demons! I have learned a great deal!"

Gu Yannian accepted the bow and continued, "This is merely an appetizer. The most fundamental aspect of implementing the silver-based system lies in the word 'silver' itself."

"The wealthy merchants of Jiangnan hold vast amounts of loose silver. They will surely hoard it and speculate, secretly raising the price of silver and lowering the value of copper coins and grain. This will leave ordinary people without silver to pay taxes, making the new policies extremely difficult to implement."

"You should be wary of such methods of manipulating market prices."

Zhou Chen took a deep breath, his expression turning cold.

"Your Excellency understands. If they dare to cause trouble in the market, your Excellency will use the imperial decree to imprison all those money shop owners who hoard silver!"

Gu Yannian smiled noncommittally and waved his hand.

"It's getting late, you should set off now. Don't panic in any situation, this Ming Dynasty ultimately belongs to His Majesty."

"While you charge into battle, the Ministry of Revenue, your powerful backer, will ensure that your supplies never run out."

Zhou Chen bid farewell and departed, riding swiftly with his entourage to Tongzhou Wharf, where he boarded an official ship bound for the south.

A protracted, yet perilous, financial and tax power struggle in Jiangnan, though seemingly without bloodshed, has begun.

This is destined to be a battle that cannot be decided in a day or two.

Rather, it was a long and drawn-out struggle concerning the fate of the Ming Dynasty.

The following day, the morning court session was held at Fengtian Gate.

The rising sun shone on the golden glazed tiles, making people dizzy.

Officials lined up according to their rank and filed into the court.

Emperor Hongxi, Zhu Gaochi, sat upright on the dragon throne.

He is now in excellent health and full of energy, and is handling government affairs with increasing ease.

As soon as the court assembly began, the Left Censor-in-Chief stepped forward to present his report.

This Left Censor-in-Chief was from Changzhou in Jiangnan, and many officials in the court who were from Jiangnan followed his lead.

He held the ivory tablet in his hands, his expression solemn.

The loud voice echoed throughout the hall.

"Your Majesty has a memorial to present! Your Majesty has promoted Zhou Chen to Governor of Jiangnan and implemented a system of converting taxes into silver. I believe this method is utterly flawed and should never be implemented!"

"The people of Jiangnan mostly make their living by farming and weaving. They only have surplus grain and homespun cloth in their hands; where would they get real gold and silver?"

"If taxes are forcibly paid in silver, the people will inevitably sell their rice and grain to exchange for silver. Merchants will take the opportunity to drive down prices, causing farmers to suffer losses and families to be ruined."

"Zhou Chen's actions, ostensibly for financial management, are in reality a scourge to the nation and its people! We implore Your Majesty to immediately rescind your order and recall Zhou Chen to appease the people of Jiangnan!"

As soon as these words were spoken, a chorus of agreement immediately arose in the imperial court.

Several censors and imperial secretaries stepped forward, their words sharp and vehement.

All of them were vehement criticisms of the drawbacks of the silver-for-cash method.

It was as if Zhou Chen were an unforgivable sinner throughout history.

Zhu Gaochi coldly observed the indignant officials below, his mind clear as a mirror.

Of those who spoke up, eight or nine out of ten had already acquired substantial businesses in Jiangnan.

Once the method of converting silver into silver is implemented...

The tenants could no longer hide their tax-exempt landholdings.

This isn't advocating for the people; it's clearly protecting their own pockets.

The emperor's gaze swept over the crowd.

It landed on Gu Yannian, who was standing in the front row with his hands folded over his abdomen, as if he were resting with his eyes closed.

"Minister Gu."

Zhu Gaochi called out slowly.

The noise in the main hall immediately subsided.

All the officials knew that the originator of this silver-for-cash method was none other than the unassuming Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Upon hearing the sound, Gu Yannian slowly opened his eyes and stepped out of the queue with steady steps.

"Your humble servant is here."

Zhu Gaochi pointed to the censors kneeling on the ground.

"They say that the silver-for-treasure system has brought disaster to the country and its people, causing grain prices to plummet and harming farmers. You, the Grand Steward in charge of the nation's finances, how do you explain this?"

Gu Yannian remained calm and composed, not even glancing at the officials in the corner of his eye.

He faced the dragon throne, bowed slightly, and spoke in a calm tone.

"Your Majesty, it is true that the officials say the people of Jiangnan have no silver."

"But may I ask you gentlemen, where exactly has all the silver in the market gone?"

He turned around, his deep gaze sweeping over the Left Censor-in-Chief who had just delivered his impassioned speech.

"Since Zheng Gonggong's treasure ships returned from their voyages to the Western Ocean, the Maritime Trade Office has been earning hundreds of thousands of taels of silver every month. This silver flowed into the private sector and did not disappear into thin air."

"The warehouses of money shops and banks throughout Jiangnan were piled high with gleaming silver ingots."

"Ordinary people do not have silver, because gold and silver have long been hoarded in cellars by local gentry, wealthy merchants and big businessmen, and are kept secret from others."

Gu Yannian's words were like an extremely sharp soft knife, cutting straight into the hearts of these Jiangnan officials.

"The imperial court promoted the exchange of silver, and since the people had no silver in their hands, they naturally had to exchange it with merchants. Merchants, wanting to lower the price of grain, had to hold onto their silver tightly."

"But there is a deadline for paying taxes. Once the tax payment date arrives, if the people cannot pay, the local government will hold those gentry and wealthy families accountable."

"In order to keep their heads and official hats, they had to hold their noses and take out the silver from the cellar to settle their accounts."

Gu Yannian smiled faintly.

To the officials, that smile was as chilling as a demon.

"This method of converting silver doesn't deplete the bones of the poor, but rather the coffers of wealthy and powerful families who hoard and speculate on silver."

"If the court were to retract its decree based on a few alarmist remarks, would the Ming Dynasty truly belong to His Majesty, or to the gentry of Jiangnan?"

The hall was deathly silent; you could hear a pin drop.

The Left Censor-in-Chief was sweating profusely, but he stubbornly argued:

"Minister Gu's words are utterly malicious! The gentry of Jiangnan have enjoyed the Emperor's favor for generations; how could they possibly hold military power and act arrogantly? You are trying to sow discord between the Emperor and his ministers!"

"That's enough!"

Zhu Gaochi slammed his hand on the armrest of the dragon throne and let out a thunderous roar.

He suddenly stood up and looked down at the assembled officials.

The emperor's majesty was on full display at this moment.

"I'm not blind! I know perfectly well how much silver is in my national treasury and how much is circulating in the markets of Jiangnan!"

"Zhou Chen is an imperial envoy, acting on behalf of Heaven to inspect the realm. Anyone who dares to obstruct him behind his back will have their entire family executed!"

Zhu Gaochi angrily pointed south, his voice booming like a bell.