Wanli Youming

Chapter 170 The Landlords Are Too Cowardly

Chapter 170 The Landlords Are Too Cowardly

"You can't let the rich and powerful officials seize the land of the people, but let the court pay for the social crisis caused by the people's loss of land."

"It is also impossible to ignore the increase in refugees due to the release of a large number of domestic slaves by rich and right households after the implementation of the new policies such as Qingzhang Tianmu, and just wait for them to become rioters and bandits and be killed by the government."

Zhu Yijun slandered, and then asked someone to dig out Qi Jiguang's chapters on recruiting miners in Yiwu from the archives in the study room, and read them carefully all night.

Zhu Yijun didn't intend to recruit Yiwu miners again. He wanted to learn more about the bankruptcy of a large number of self-cultivated farmers and the increase in floating population caused by overpopulation behind the development of the commodity economy in the Ming Dynasty through Qi Jiguang's voluntary investigation.

Although Zhu Yijun needs to learn from Zhang Juzheng on how to carry out reforms and how to use tens of thousands of civil servants across the country to enforce his will, but the insights from later generations can make him notice that the scholar-bureaucrats in Zhang Juzheng’s era ignored Some of the subtle changes that represent new opportunities and new challenges for social development.

For example, the emergence of the working class, and the phenomenon of primitive capital accumulation started by big landlords and big bureaucrats.

As an emperor, he could not ignore these phenomena, nor could he simply interpret these changes as the decline in the world, which led to the increase in the number of troublemakers and crimes.

Because if he ignores or does not intervene, what awaits him in the future can only be greater restrictions on his power and constraints on his life.

Henan, Guide.

While Zhu Yijun was investigating the bankruptcy of the working class and self-cultivating farmers in Daming late at night, Xu Ying met Shen Li that day.

"Mr. Qianzhai has always been knowledgeable. I wanted to ask for advice earlier in the morning, but I didn't have the opportunity. Now that I'm passing by Guixiang, I thought about posting a post to ask if it's convenient. I didn't expect that my husband would not mind bothering me."

As Xu Ying spoke, she cupped her hands to Shen Li and said, "Please condolences for your father's matter!"

"Thanks for thinking about it!"

Shen Li replied, and said: "Second Young Master can come, it will make the humble house luxuriant, not to mention disturbing."

Then, Xu Ying asked: "I heard that Mr. is buying a field recently?"

Shen Li smiled and replied: "But there is this matter. The population of the clan is increasing day by day, and many of them have to leave their hometowns to find work on the canal. As a person with status in the clan, I also intend to buy a hundred acres of clan land. Take tenants and have no land, and don't let them leave their hometowns."

"Mr. is good at running the family, but is a hundred acres enough?"

Xu Ying asked.

Shen Li smiled and said: "There is a limited number of officials, that's all we have to do, but I'm going to let the tribe try to grow the new crop mentioned by the emperor, maybe the hundred acres of land can be enough to solve the hardship of the tribe."

"I have always admired my husband, and I would like to borrow [-] yuan from him to buy a family farm without charging any interest!"

"Just ask sir to order the clansmen to only grow cotton and not grain. When the time comes, my Xu family will recycle all the cotton yarn at a high price, and sir can use the proceeds from selling cotton to slowly repay the debt. I don't know what you think?"

"In this way, the father can not only support more clan members, but also organize the women and children of the clan to spin yarn, without worrying that the clan members will not be able to make ends meet."

Xu Ying suggested at this time.

Shen Li was stunned for a moment, and then said: "Thank you, Second Young Master, for your kindness, but I don't intend to let my tribe grow cotton. After all, if everyone in the world grows cotton, where does the food come from in case of a famine?"

"That's right. After all, it is Mr. Qianzhai, and his concerns are really far-reaching. No wonder my father said that Mr. is the talent of Zaifu."

Xu Ying said with a sneer.

Shen Li said: "The old man is too famous."

Then, Xu Ying changed the subject and asked, "Sir, have you heard that Jiangling Duke is going to implement a system where officials and gentry pay food and errands together?"

Shen Li said: "Master has mentioned it."

Xu Ying asked: "I don't know Mr. Qianzhai, but this is the emperor's intention, or Jiangling's original intention?"

"Natural teacher's meaning!"

"The master did this so that the emperor can only be a benevolent emperor in a prosperous age in the future. Presumably, Mr. Xu, as a public and loyal person, is also happy to see his success."

Shen Li laughed.

"It's Duke Jiangling, my father always said that we are not as good as him."

Xu Ying said with a sneer.

Shen Li just smiled lightly.

Then, Xu Ying asked again: "Then I don't know how you think about this strategy?"

Shen Li smiled and said: "I am in the village for the people, and I no longer care about political affairs; no matter what the court does, I only follow orders."

Xu Ying nodded.

……

"Shen Zhonghua said it was Jiang Ling himself."

After meeting Shen Li, Xu Ying took a boat all the way down to Yangzhou, and finally returned to Huating. After returning to Huating's house, she told Xu Jie about the matter in Beijing and how he was looking for Shen Li. thing.

"If it's just Jiang Ling's own idea, it would be better, but Shen Zhonghua's words can't be taken seriously."

Xu Jie said something at this time.

"Father, no matter what the situation is, we have to come up with a solution now!"

"Cancelling the preferential treatment is not only as simple as paying food and doing errands, it is undoubtedly not conducive to our extensive land acquisition. Those who have contributed to our Xu family in the past may not want to contribute anymore."

Xu Ying said.

"Just wait and see."

Xu Jie thought for a while and replied.

"Wait for it to change?"

Xu Ying was taken aback for a moment, and then said: "Father, my son has an idea, why don't we unite with a few big families and take away the embankment of the Wusong River that Hai Gangfeng built in the form of work relief when he was the governor of Nanzhi. Already!"

"As long as the good fields along the coast are submerged, the number of victims will increase greatly, so that we can merge the land at a low price! After the imperial court cancels the preferential treatment, the extra profit collected from us will be made up from the multi-merged fields!"

"It's easy to get your home ransacked against the imperial court, but the common people can always be offended!"

"You kneel down for me!"

Xu Jie suddenly changed color and scolded Xu Ying.

Xu Ying hurriedly knelt down: "Father please give me instructions!"

"You are doing this to ruin the reputation of my Xu family! Where do you want to put the old man's face?"

Xu Jie asked.

Xu Ying replied: "Father, since Hai Rui came to Nanzhi, does our Xu family have any face?"

"you!"

Xu Jie pointed at Xu Ying, who was uttering a word, but couldn't speak for a while, his face turned purple, and he kept tapping the floor with his crutches.

"Father, my son knows that we are now phoenixes that have lost their hair and are not as good as chickens. He Jiangling wants to change the system. We dare not violate it, and we dare not resist, but can't we even make up for some losses from those untouchables?!"

Xu Ying continued to talk at this time, and said: "Besides, we have so much land now, if we really pay food and work honestly, it will not be a little money!"

"Get up."

At this moment, Xu Jie's tone softened suddenly.

"Yes!"

Xu Ying said something at this moment.

After Xu Ying got up, Xu Jie said: "Even if we want to do this, we are not going to do it! It's not just our Xu family who can't stand the New Deal, there are so many gentry in the whole world. Dazu, why do we need to be such an early bird?"

"That's what my father said, but when are we going to wait?"

"After the implementation of the examination method, we have endured the pursuit of the tax payment; we have also tolerated the clearing of the farmland; now that the officials and the gentry pay the grain together, if we continue to endure, other big households will be completely disappointed in us!"

Xu Ying said at this time.

"Then you have to wait!"

"You want my Xu family to be the leader, but when something goes wrong, let us take the blame, no way!"

"If anyone really destroys the embankment and floods the fields, our Xu family can follow along to take grain and merge the fields, but we can't do such a thing that is easy to beheaded. If we want to do it, let the ancestors of the Nanjing family who have made great contributions to Daming do it. !"

Xu Jie continued to speak at this time, and said: "The most rare thing in the world is the word 'waiting'. He defeated Yan Song in order to fight, and waited for his father for 20 years. Can he, Zhang Juzheng, be in power for 20 years?"

"What's more, now that the imperial court has begun to expand its troops, it is undoubtedly equivalent to sharpening its sword and waiting for one or two prominences to be slaughtered, so as to serve as a warning to others!"

"How can my Xu family take the lead at this time? Wouldn't it just fall into Jiangling's trick?"

"Hold it first, and wait until the unbearable ones make the first move, and let the imperial court lose their sense of control, then we'll make another move!"

"Son understands!"

Xu Ying replied.

……

"The Xu family didn't take any action?"

After Zhu Yijun got the Xu family information from Jin Yiwei from Huating, he asked Zhang Jing.

Zhang Jing replied: "Returning to the emperor, Xu Huating must be cautious. He doesn't want to get other notoriety besides being incapable of managing the family, and even give the court a handle to punish his Xu family."

Zhu Yijun nodded after hearing this, but he also had to admit that it was not without reason that these Han landlords were pushed to the ground and rubbed against by ethnic minorities in history.

(End of this chapter)