First Minister of Ming Dynasty

First Minister Section 552

He told Zhu Di in the letter that he discovered a terrible problem, that is to say, there were huge loopholes in the land equalization decree left by his father and the land tax system left behind.

If within ten years, a plan cannot be produced as soon as possible, serious problems will arise.

"You also know that my father has a very high reputation. This gentleman of mine can study my father's loopholes and produce detailed evidence to prove my father's mistakes. How much courage does it take? On him, I saw the real demeanor of Confucian scholars. I didn’t know many friends when I came to Fudan School, but I was very lucky to meet a famous teacher. It’s just that he didn’t know that my father is Zhang Xianggong. what idea……"

Zhang Shuning wrote a lot, and Zhu Di watched patiently. He was also happy for Zhang Shuning to meet a famous teacher he admired.

But what exactly did this teacher study that Zhang Shuning admired so much?

In fact, his research is not complicated, but according to his investigation, among families in Shandong, those who got married three years before Hongwu generally have more than five children.

During this time, it was the day when Daming regained Shandong and began to restore people's livelihood.

There are five children in each family, almost one in two years on average, a little or even more.

And the first group of children is almost ten years old now.

What does this mean?

In another five years, at most five years, there will be a large number of young people who need to get married and start their own families.

There is another terrible problem. Before they were born, this group of children had already completed the division of land according to their heads... In other words, they had no land.

Before adulthood, it is no problem to let parents raise and eat at home.

But once they get married, is it necessary to solve their livelihood problems?

Therefore, the result of the investigation is that a new land division must be started five years ago at the latest, and the land must be allocated to newborns!

This result is not so surprising. After all, when Zhang Ximeng formulated the method of dividing the land, he mentioned that it would be re-divided after ten or twenty years.

Just like the fubing system, this is also something that has existed in history.

But this Mr. Fudan School pointed out a problem, a different problem from before.

When Zhang Ximeng set up the land tax, he adopted a step-by-step tax collection...that is, the more grain there is, the more he pays.

There is no doubt that this is a very fair and reasonable thing, even if it seems that there are more fields and more grain, it is a matter of course to pay more taxes.

But the problem lies in taking it for granted, because a family with five or six children, the population increase far exceeds the upper limit of the land.

In other words, the next time the land is divided, even if everything goes well, the land that each head can get will be greatly reduced.

For example, a husband and wife used to get [-] mu of land, but now they have four children, and the land of one family has to be divided among five families.

The number of acres of land per family has dropped to [-] acres, and according to the law of step-by-step taxation, the actual land tax paid will drop greatly.

It's not complicated, it's just a simple arithmetic. If a family has a field of 20.00 mu and produces [-] shi of grain, and adopts step-by-step taxation, if it is more than [-] shi, it will have to pay [-]%, or even [-]%. How much tax can the court receive?

But if it is divided into five families, each with only [-] mu, what is the tax rate?How much will be handed over to the court?

The difference here is obvious.

In other words, even if nothing remains the same and everything goes smoothly, after the next division of land, the land tax income of the Ming Dynasty will drop sharply.

It has nothing to do with land mergers or tax evasion.

It was originally designed that way.

According to their calculations, the next time the land is divided, Daming's land tax will drop by at least [-]%, or even more.But if the land is not redistributed, the new population will lose their land and it will be difficult to survive.

How do you need to survive?

Compared with this fatal matter, other matters are considered pediatrics.The real crisis of Ming Dynasty is not far away.

Zhu Di was so stunned that his mind was confused and his mind was in a trance... Obviously, Zhang Shuning would not lie, and the investigation he participated in was very reliable.

If it was really like what Zhang Shuning said, wouldn't the Ming Dynasty be facing a catastrophe of life and death?

Zhu Di knew that this matter was very important, so he didn't dare to talk nonsense, but two days later, it was Empress Ma's birthday. As the only son who was around, Zhu Di helped her mother and queen.

Old Zhu was still working on his book, and it happened to be about Tianmu. Old Zhu was obviously very satisfied with Zhang Ximeng's arrangement, so he casually handed the manuscript to Zhu Di.

"Look, can you understand?"

Zhu Di was startled, not only could he understand, but he could also see the problem.

"Father, are we going to redistribute the fields?"

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned slightly, "There is such a thing, but Li Xianggong has been suppressing it, I don't know what Sun Yan planned?"

Zhu Di suddenly said, "Then he must be worried about the sudden drop in Tian Fu!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was taken aback, "Well, how do you say that?"

Zhu Di blinked, Mr. Zhang, don't blame me, I also recommend your son!Your family, the meat is rotten in the pot, no loss!

Zhu Di hesitated for a moment, then handed Zhang Shuning's letter to Old Zhu...

Chapter 766 There is a successor

Zhang Ximeng came to Lao Zhu's side almost every day these days, mainly to provide Zhu Yuanzhang with some advice, or to find him some documents from the past.

People's memory will always be biased, even self-modified, and usually, it will change in a direction that is beneficial to oneself.

This is why reading memoirs or oral histories of the parties is often unreliable.

An old man who is eight or ninety years old recalls the events of decades ago. If he does not refer to the records at that time and compare them with each other, there will probably be serious deviations, or even the opposite.

Although Lao Zhu is still not confused, and the difference between before and after is less than 20 years, there is an urgent need for someone to testify.

The funny thing is that sometimes when Zhang Ximeng said it, Lao Zhu didn't believe it, and the two of them would argue with each other red-faced.Fortunately, Zhang Ximeng has left too many drafts over the years, and even holds in his hand the characters that Lao Zhu practiced calligraphy for the first time.

This kind of quarrel usually ends with Zhang Ximeng presenting real evidence.

It wasn't just a day or two that Lao Zhu was depressed, but Zhu Yuanzhang was different today. He was very happy, even a little jumpy. Letting his son slap his father in the face is definitely a good show, especially when it happened to Zhang Ximeng, so it is worth looking forward to.

Zhu Yuanzhang resisted the urge to have a direct showdown, but said in a persuasive way: "Mr. Zhang, we have been thinking about it for several years, and we have been clamoring that there is a huge financial gap, and we can't make ends meet every year... Tell me, did we not think about it at the beginning?" Understood, leaving troubles for future generations?"

Zhang Ximeng smiled slightly, "My lord, you only know now?"

Lao Zhu was stunned for a while, what do you mean?

"Mr. Zhang, could it be that you already knew?"

Zhang Ximeng said: "Not only do I know, I also instructed Menxia Province to release a research project to find out the relationship between population, land, and land tax, but I don't know who won this project, and I don't know if there is any result... If My lord wants to know, you can ask."

Old Zhu pondered slightly, so to speak, this research was arranged by Mr. Zhang, but he didn't know that the project fell to Fudan School, and his own son had to go there...

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help being a little frustrated. It seemed that it was impossible to make him make a big fool of himself.

Lao Zhu thought for a while and asked, "What do you think the problem is?"

"Naturally the population has grown."

Zhang Ximeng said in a deep voice: "According to my understanding, the population of various places is expanding now... Among them, Huaixi and Huaidong have an average of more than seven children per family. There are also a few with more than ten children. Shandong, Henan, Huguang and other places Slightly better, but the number is still quite large. Basically, the sooner it is included in the territory, the more people will be born. Now there are only Hebei, Shaanxi, Gansu and other places, and there are still large areas of open space. Like Henan, it was said at the beginning that there is no one out of ten , and now it has almost recovered to more than [-]% of the original...just wait for this group of young people, after they get married and have children, in another ten years, it is estimated that the number will exceed the number under Yuan Ting's rule."

Zhang Ximeng is very familiar with these things, very clear.

It can be said that the ability of population recovery has exceeded Zhang Ximeng's expectations.

This is certainly a good thing, more people are more powerful, but more people mean more resources are consumed, competition is fiercer, and management is more difficult.

This is also the reason why Zhang Ximeng decided to resign and write a book. He hoped to find a way out for the future, otherwise Daming's future would not be very good.

Lao Zhu lowered his head and pondered, he no longer had much interest in watching the excitement, instead he became serious, and said in a low voice: "Sir, what will happen to you when you look at Tian Fu?"

Zhang Ximeng thought for a while, and then said: "I am afraid that the land tax will be reduced a lot. Even if we re-host a sub-land, we can't use the stepped tax rate, we can only adopt the fixed tax rate. The situation in the north and the south is slightly different. It will be final. My estimate is that Daming’s Tian Fu will be stable at 500 million to 3000 million. In other words, it is less than [-]% of the current level. This is a very big gap, and soon It will fall on our heads."

Zhang Ximeng sighed: "Back then, we adopted tiered tax rates. First, we wanted to collect more money and food. Second, we wanted to suppress large households and achieve the goal of equalizing the land through taxation. Now it seems that the increase in population has not allowed us to do so. All in all, the next Ming Dynasty needs to make huge adjustments in terms of finance and taxation. To put it bluntly, the treasury must be enriched so that the Ministry of Household Affairs can continue to operate."

"Although Li Shanchang also knows how to manage money, his thinking is not good enough to solve new problems that arise. He must change people. Of course, what to do next, how to adjust, and detailed investigations are required. Up and down , to start a big discussion. From the imperial court to the governors of various places, land taxes, business taxes, all must be fully discussed, and finally come up with a plan. Finance and taxation are related to the prosperity and decline of a country. No matter which dynasty, from prosperity to decline, it is all planted When it comes to finances, we have to be very careful."

……

Faced with Zhang Ximeng's judgment, Zhu Yuanzhang has completely stopped watching the excitement.

He is the master of this world. In the face of such a big crisis, even life and death disasters, it is impossible for Lao Zhu not to be serious.

"Sir, do you have any ideas?"

"I don't have many options. It's about internal and external." Zhang Ximeng said: "Let's talk about the external first. This is another reason why I have always advocated the development of industry and commerce and attached importance to foreign trade. Because land tax has not only an upper limit. , and will drop sharply as the population increases. There is no possibility of reversal at all. Therefore, it is just a hard work based on farming, no matter how it is done, it will only treat the symptoms but not the root cause.”

"Moreover, I think it is necessary to reform the distribution of finance and taxation. To return financial power to the court, especially the treasury, there must be absolute leadership. In a country as big as ours, if the treasury does not have absolute control, the following will go their own way and violate the law." The meaning of the court. After all, if there is no money, no one will work for the court, and this matter has been the same in all dynasties."

Lao Zhu listened carefully, and then said: "What you said is very true, so what are you going to do?"

"My idea is that the land tax is fixed as a local tax, while the imperial court focuses on business tax."

Lao Zhu thought for a while, and couldn't help but said, "Can you be more specific?"

"My lord, although there is an upper limit to the land tax, the total amount is not low and is relatively stable after all. If there are land mergers and the sky is high and the emperor is far away, most of them are still doing things wrong at the local level. If the land tax is regarded as local income, then there is a need for the locality to maintain the land. , they must prevent mergers and guarantee their normal supply every year. In this way, coupled with the supervision of the imperial court, we can maintain the foundation of equal land, after all, the longer it lasts, the better it will be for Daming."

Old Zhu nodded again and again, "Mister's high opinion is really extraordinary. It's just that we are still worried, what will happen to the household department's food after the land tax is handed over to the subordinates? I'm afraid the court has no food, so I'm afraid it won't work!"

"So it's up to King Yan."

"Fourth? What can he do?"

"Food company!" Zhang Ximeng laughed: "Right now, in Beiping, Liaodong and other places, preparations for a number of large grain companies have begun. They have a large output and can allocate a lot of grain. They use this as a national treasury reserve, which is safe and secure, and the supply is sufficient... ...If the lord thinks it is not enough, we can also choose a suitable granary from other places!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was taken aback, "The granary you mentioned is overseas, right?"

"Is there no king's land under the whole world, and there is no king's ministers on the coast of leading the land!"

With just this sentence, Zhu Yuanzhang laughed out loud, very happy.

This is the true meaning of the ancients, and it is too good to say.

Old Zhu pondered for a while, and then said: "Mr. has a far-reaching plan and thoughtful consideration. It really is unparalleled in the world, the first in ancient and modern times! We will redistribute the land, adjust the fiscal tax, use foreign troops, and build overseas granaries... nothing the same For easy things, everything requires overall consideration, careful planning, careful argumentation, and practical implementation... With so many things, it is true that they should not be trapped in the complicated government affairs, but should be jumped out."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed suddenly and said, "Mr. Zhang, this time we understand your intentions. In the past, when we conquered the world, we were the monarchs and ministers working together. Now we need the cooperation of the monarchs and ministers to make a perfect match. Look at each other. Do you think this is the case?" mean?"

Zhang Ximeng rolled his eyelids, can I refuse?

To be honest, I really doubt your ability.

Old Zhu saw Zhang Ximeng's dislike, and he couldn't help turning his old face black.

"Are you very clever yourself? Look, this is a letter from your precious son. We don't think he thinks you are very clever!"

Zhang Ximeng was taken aback for a moment before taking it over.

Sure enough, it was a letter from his son Zhang Shuning. He opened it casually, glanced at it a few times, and frowned slightly: So the social survey this kid was talking about turned out to be this matter!

Even Lao Tzu is hiding it, this kid has hard wings, especially why are you talking about these things to Zhu Di?

No, when you come back, you must give him some family law, let this kid know how powerful he is!

Zhang Ximeng gritted his teeth with a fierce look on his face.

Seeing him like this made Lao Zhu very happy. Look, elder brother, don't laugh at second elder brother, everyone will fall down with anger.

Zhang Ximeng quickly scanned the content, and when he reached the end, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Regarding the survey of population and land, Zhang Ximeng was still within expectations, and there were no surprises.But in the last part, Zhang Shuning mentioned a few words of his own discovery.

Due to population expansion, the proportion of children is too large, which directly causes problems. The compulsory education law set a few years ago is almost impossible to implement.

According to Zhang Shuning's description, he found that in some remote villages and towns, the so-called schools are just literacy classes. There is only one teacher for students of different grades, and this teacher may not come to class every day.

This situation will not be much better than the previous private school.

Zhang Shuning did not continue to write, but told Zhu Di that his next investigation project was the issue of local education, which Zhang Shuning cared more about than population and land.

He hopes to get this done before he graduates at the age of 15.Then as the content of your graduation thesis.

Seeing this, Zhang Ximeng showed a gratified smile on his face, "It's not bad, I finally know what to do. My lord, I'm treating guests today. If we don't eat radishes, we can drink. Eat something good. The sheep outside the mouth is fat and juicy."

Chapter 767 Convincing Zhu Yuanzhang

What Zhang Ximeng invited Zhu Yuanzhang to eat was the fat lamb outside Gubeikou. The lamb was really good, not to mention fat, tender and juicy, and it didn't smell fishy at all.

Whether it is grilled or eaten in hot pot, it is top-notch.

Zhang Ximeng simply set up a whole sheep banquet, which was much better than Lao Zhu's water radish and wine.

Sure enough, rich people have thick waists and courage.

Lao Zhu doesn't have much temper, so let's talk about it first.

Zhu Yuanzhang had been busy for a while, and when he was [-]% full, the old Zhu said: "Mr. Zhang, you said that this sheep seems to be much better than Yingtian? Especially the meat, which is fat and thin. How did you feed it?"

Zhang Ximeng smiled, "If I'm not mistaken, it should be fed with high-quality concentrate, similar to a war horse."