My Brother-in-law is the Prince - Chapter 322

  Chapter 322 Settle accounts after autumn

  Yao Guangxiao died.

   Monarchs and ministers cry.

   Not long after, Zhang Anshi personally collected Yao Guangxiao’s body and put it in a coffin.

   As Yao Guangxiao’s ‘son’, Zhang Anshi is responsible for all follow-up matters of the funeral.

  Jin Zhong didn’t shed many tears, but his heart seemed to be cut one after another.

  The partner who had shared weal and woe with him at the beginning was finally one step ahead.

  He not only grieved over Yao Guangxiao’s death, but also felt that the era that he and Yao Guangxiao once represented seemed to be gone and dissipated like smoke.

  He grabbed Zhang Anshi’s hand, and didn’t ask Yao Guangxiao what he said when he was dying, but only asked about the situation before he died.

  Zhang Anshi answered one by one.

  Jin Zhong listened carefully, and then sighed softly: “Mr. Yao is far-sighted. He must have his reasons for everything he does. It is a blessing that he can die without complaint.”

   After Jin Zhong finished speaking, he forced a smile.

   It’s just this smile, which is probably uglier than crying.

  Zhang Anshi didn’t know how to answer, but looked sad.

  Zhu Di didn’t sleep all night, he was locked in the dormitory for a full night, and after a night, he walked out of the house.

  He looked haggard, but he seemed to be cheering up. At that moment, he ordered all the ministers to have an audience.

  All the ministers came to Zhu Di, all of them looked sad.

   It was Xia Yuanji, Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, who took the lead and said: “Your Majesty, Mr. Yao has made great contributions. He was originally like a wild fish and a wild crane. He didn’t ask for rewards, but now he is dead. It’s a funeral…”

  Xia Yuanji didn’t finish the rest of the sentence, but the meaning was already very clear.

   For a person like Yao Guangxiao, funerals are not just a matter of inviting people to dinner. The so-called etiquette, even death, requires a complete set of packages, not only the preparation of the funeral, but also the status after death, including posthumous gifts, and finally determine what treatment will be used for the arrangement.

  Zhu Di only raised his head and glanced at Xia Yuanji lightly, as if he had already made up his mind.

   Didn’t wait long, Zhu Di said: “Master Yao is Jingnan’s first achievement…a posthumous gift…he is Rong Guogong…”

He paused, feeling very depressed, but managed to pull himself together, and then said: “His posthumous title has been drafted by the Ministry of Rites, and played as soon as possible. He has no children, and Zhang Anshi, Duke of the Wei Kingdom, inherited the mantle from him. It’s no different. All funerals are handled by Duke Wei. He hopes that he can be cremated, and then set up a stupa to preserve his own relics. This… also makes Zhang Anshi handle it…”

   Speaking of this, Zhu Di’s eyes were red and bloodshot, and continued with sobs: “His pagoda was built in the Taimiao…”

  In fact, Yao Guangxiao in history was the first civil servant to be buried in the Taimiao, and the only one in the entire Ming Dynasty.

  In the nearly three hundred years of the Ming Dynasty, no one has won this honor.

  This also means that any emperor in the future, who wants to offer sacrifices to the Taimiao, must prepare a tribute to Yao Guangxiao, and send ceremonial officials to go to sacrifice every now and then.

  Therefore, when Zhu Di mentioned entering the ancestral temple, Yang Rong, Xia Yuanji and others were greatly surprised.

   It was only very soon, and their mood gradually calmed down.

  Everyone knows that rather than saying that Zhu Di won the world immediately, it is better to say that Zhu Di captured the world under Yao Guangxiao’s plan.

  During the entire Jingnan process, Yao Guangxiao was almost the initiator, organizer, and even the executor of the entire Jingnan.

   This is unmatched by any Jing Nan hero. Without Yao Guangxiao, today’s situation would not even be possible.

  Therefore, none of the ministers objected, and they all said: “Observe the order.”

  Zhu Di let out a sigh of relief, then looked at Zhang Anshi and said, “Zhang Qing, this matter depends on you.”

  Zhang Anshi hurriedly bowed down and said solemnly: “I will never refuse to die.”

  Zhu Di said again: “As for Master Yao’s Shinto inscription, I want to write it myself, so there is no need for the Ministry of Rites to draft it.”

   Then, he stood up slowly.

   This is just Yao Guangxiao’s funeral. The funeral is simple, but there is one more thing that is not easy.

   That is to fulfill Yao Guangxiao’s wish.

  Zhu Di took a few steps before he said, “How is the situation in Ningguo Mansion?”

   All the ministers were silent.

Zhang Anshi said at this time: “The government office, the county office, and all the officials have been detained. Those who should be beheaded will be beheaded, and those who should be ransacked will be ransacked. In addition, Jinyi Xiaowei dispatched 3,725 people to start Thoroughly investigate the fraud case of the Ningguo Mansion, and all those involved in this case will be dealt with severely.”

“The minister also dispatched a group of officials from the Taiping Mansion to rush to deal with the aftermath. In each county, the minister ordered people to set up drums similar to Dengwen drums to prepare for the final alienation. In addition, it is to check the hidden households and Hidden field, and the situation in Latin.”

  Zhu Di said in a deep voice: “The most important crime is added to the third class, and it cannot be tolerated.”

  Zhu Di said categorically, this is no longer a question of killing Yao Guangxiao, or, Yao Guangxiao was not killed by these people at all, with Yao Guangxiao’s ability, relying on these people, is he worthy of being killed?

  But Zhu Di understood that Yao Guangxiao just hoped to use his own death to lift the cover, use his own death to make Zhu Di make up his mind, and use his own death to announce it to the world.

Zhang Anshi said: “No, there is no need to add a third class to the crime. The situation that I have found is already shocking. Killing innocent people indiscriminately, corrupting ink, hiding population and land… are already heinous. As for daily life, many people use The lynching, the indiscriminate killing of innocent people, are too numerous to mention. Also, this time, in order to catch escaped households everywhere, many families organized strong men to chase and intercept them, and there were not a few ordinary people who were victimized.”

   Zhu Di’s eyes showed resentment, and said: “Master Yao came here because he knew this. He just wanted to avoid these people and continue to kill countless people. Jin Yiwei… must investigate strictly to the end, and no one will be let go.”

  Zhang Anshi said: “Follow the order.”

  Zhang Anshi is holding back his anger now.

   I have to say that Yao Guangxiao’s last words made him feel a little bit better. Zhang Anshi has been a human being for two lifetimes, and he has always hoped to use the morality of the previous life as his outlook on doing things in this era.

  That’s why he is dizzy, and sometimes he is unwilling to do everything right, and he is often cautious about things that affect his family.

  But only now do I know that people in future generations are like atoms, they are individuals, at most they are just a small family.

  In this era, people live in the form of a family. If you are a little weak or hesitate, you don’t know how many people will be killed by others.

  Zhang Anshi took the order, and without further delay, he immediately began to arrange without stopping.

   Soon, a large number of treason and deception cases began to surface.

  In the entire Ningguo Mansion, there is almost no situation where people and fields are not hidden.

  In the yellow book of Ningguo Mansion, the so-called arable land recorded in it is actually less than 30% of the hidden land.

   In other words, 70% of them were hidden.

   And the last year is only 50%.

   Within a year, the direct deterioration to this point is hard for anyone to imagine.

Zhang Anshi was also very straightforward. He directly set a red line. Those who hide more than 100 acres of land will directly confiscate their property. Those with thousands of acres may have to consider the issue of beheading. All relatives were exiled.

  As for the amount of cultivated land below 100 mu, the number of cultivated land hidden, starting from Emperor Taizu Gao, made up for the taxes on the 100 mu of land in the past few decades.

   Jin Yiwei has begun to appear in various townships, and the officials dispatched by the Taiping Mansion are also handy in clearing the land.

  Every day, a large number of people are detained here in the government office, and then the officials from Taiping Mansion will directly judge.

  There are more than a hundred people killed every day outside the city.

  The prison in the mansion was also overcrowded. As a last resort, Zhang Anshi directly used the seven or eight confiscated houses as temporary prisons.

  Suddenly, the Ningguo Mansion was full of wailing.

   And that Xia Chang who was originally in the government office, who claimed to be Xia Chang, and was a kind and humble man, was brought to justice again.

  He knelt on the ground in embarrassment. At this time, many people had already been attracted outside the government office.

  Many people came here one after another, talking a lot, because… this Xia Chang is a well-known local family, and his family can even be traced back to the Southern Song Dynasty.

  The wealth and honor of dozens of generations is well known in this Ningguo Mansion.

   Just such a person, now… has long been a gentleman.

  The reason why Zhang Anshi had to come to the trial in person in this case was because the number…was too large.

   Zhang Anshi arrived, and everyone was in awe.

  In the market, some people have compared Zhang Anshi to the living Hades.

  Zhang Anshi doesn’t care about these.

  As soon as the people arrived, the kneeling Xia Chang immediately wailed: “I am wronged, I am wronged…”

Zhang Anshi didn’t even look at him, he directly picked up the book on Qingzhang’s land on the case and took a look, then slammed it in front of Xia Chang, and said angrily and coldly: “Wrong? Sixty-seven thousand four hundred acres of land How many years have you hidden the land, the Xia family? When Emperor Taizu Gao was here, you would still play tricks, take out thousands of acres from the hidden land, and register it in the yellow book. After Jianwen, you are very powerful. Don’t even pretend?”

  Xia Changdao: “The grassroots never ask about these matters, they are all taken care of by the master.”

Zhang Anshi couldn’t help laughing, his smile was full of sarcasm, and he said: “What a boss to take care of. In this way, you have been wronged. Your boss is loyal. To help you hide taxes, you risked such a big Risk. But don’t worry, it’s good that you have confessed to the master. Come and bring the master in.”

   Not long after, someone was brought in.

  The principal’s face had already turned ashen, frightened, and when he arrived in front of Zhang Anshi, he just kept kowtowing his head.

  Zhang Anshidao: “Since it’s all good deeds done by you, the boss, it’s the best. It seems… your crime is relatively light, and the boss… doesn’t kill his whole family, it’s not enough for the people to be angry.”

  When the principal heard this, his eyes turned black and he almost fainted.

But the huge desire to survive taught him to force his spirits violently, and then he wailed: “This is… Xia Taigong’s idea! He is the master, how dare the little one be the master? Xia Taigong… he is not just hiding in the fields, he …When the tenants fled, he organized more than 70 farmers and killed more than 30 people along the way. He refused to let women and children go. , This is called as an example to others. Not only that…he also robbed the tenant’s wife and daughter, he…he…”

  Xia Chang said angrily: “Are you bold, do you want to betray the Lord?”

   It seems that Xia Chang’s residual prestige is still there, and the principal is suddenly too frightened to speak.

  Zhang Anshi smiled and said: “No rush, no rush. In fact, I’m not afraid of you denying this kind of thing. Your Xia family has a big business, and with so many dealers, isn’t it easy to verify?”

“Xia Chang, I have made an agreement with you. Everything you said today is recorded. But if you know what you said, it is all nonsense. You have to understand that Jin Yiwei handles Qin’s case. You are a scholar. Qin You should be clear about the meaning of the case. As long as it is found that all the crimes you have denied will be found, then it will be another deception. You are old and will not live for a few years, but Your family, young and old, I’m afraid they will suffer along with you.”

  As soon as these words came out, Xia Chang couldn’t hold back immediately, and immediately cried loudly: “There are some hidden places…”

  Zhang Anshi sneered and said: “More than 60,000 mu, is it some?”

   “Millions of deaths.”

  Zhang Anshi said: “It seems that you have pleaded guilty?”

   “Recognize, recognize…”

   “What about the other crimes? Do you admit it? Robbing someone’s wife and daughter…Do you admit it?”

   “They did it voluntarily.” Xia Changai said, “Please learn from me.”

   Zhang Anshi heard his plausible words, but felt a chill down his back, and the chill was on his back.

  So he looked at him coldly and said, “Really? In this way, do I have to ask the sufferer?”

  Xia Chang cried, “Is the Lord trying to force the little old man to death?”

  Zhang Anshidao: “Come here…give him the confession. If he is willing to admit these crimes, he will sign and mark them. If he refuses to confess, it’s okay. Let Jin Yiwei continue to investigate thoroughly.”

  A stack of confessions was delivered to Xia Chang.

  Xia Chang trembled all over. He read it hastily. After all, he was a scholar. He was clear about many things, but in the end, he seemed to weigh the pros and cons, and felt that pleading guilty was better than not confessing. At the moment, he signed one by one.

When the confession was presented, Zhang Anshi only glanced at it, and then threw it to the judge at the side. The judge only pondered for a moment, and said immediately: “Xia Chang hid weapons privately, plotted against the law, deceived the king, robbed the women of the people, murdered… All crimes will be punished together. , ransacked the family, wiped out the three clans, and exiled without clans.”

After hearing this, Xia Chang was about to faint. He shouted indignantly, “I have pleaded guilty and subdued the law, why do I still deceive the emperor? I hide weapons to guard against evildoers, and the murderer is not me. It is my family.” The farmer…forgive me, forgive me…”

Zhang Anshi still looked at him coldly, and said: “Stop playing word games with me, I know that you have studied, you have a clever mouth, and you are very capable, but in this world, you can’t just rely on your eloquence. Denial! I only hate that your family has enjoyed the blessings of dozens of generations, and you have been domineering for most of your life. It is too late to punish your Xia family today!”

   Immediately, he yelled: “Come here, take the driver’s sticker and copy Xia’s house…Take this old dog down, and tomorrow he will be executed with his family.”

  Xia Chang rolled his eyes and passed out.

  The common people who were hearing the trial together outside were all too scared to vent their anger. It is really unimaginable that this magnificent Xia family just disappeared without seeing the government so cruel.

  You must know that even if any son of the Xia family comes to the prefecture, he can have dinner at the same table with the officials of the county and the prefecture, and exchange greetings together.

  Zhang Anshi didn’t react much to the eyes of the people, and immediately ordered the judge: “Now the task is heavy, and we have to cut through the mess quickly. There are too many people to be interrogated. We must deal with it as soon as possible. You and the officials below, work harder.”

“Yes.”

  Zhang Anshi left this sentence and walked straight away.

   A few more days passed.

  Zhang Anshi was exhausted and went to see him in the house.

  Zhu Di did not drive back to the palace in a hurry, but guarded here, and made plans when the Ningguo Mansion was stabilized.

  The emperor did not leave, and the accompanying ministers had no choice but to stay. They all felt a murderous aura in this prefecture.

  The affairs of the Ningguo Mansion were messed up, everyone had to admit this.

  Because too many bad things are in sight, no one can deny it.

  Of course, more people pushed all these to evil officials.

   It’s just that now, in front of His Majesty, everyone dare not make a sound.

  Zhang Anshi came to see him with a money and food booklet.

   Zhu Di heard that Zhang Anshi had come, and knew that Zhang Anshi had worked hard in the past few days, so he immediately ordered the **** who came in to report to bring him in.

  In the small hall of this small house, the ministers were overcrowded, and Zhang Anshi saluted.

  Zhu Di said directly: “Give me a seat.”

  Therefore, Yi Shiha personally brought a chair, and Zhang Anshi sat down unceremoniously.

  Zhu Di then said: “How is the matter?”

Zhang Anshi said truthfully: “A lot of people have been treated, but there are still some follow-up tasks. Besides, it is to prevent the plague. Now that the medicines and personnel have come, there should be no problem. The original medical households also They were all dismissed, and they were given some travel expenses. They thanked you a thousand times, and they all said that your majesty is wise…”

  When Zhu Di heard the word Shengming, he seemed to have touched a certain point in his heart. A sneer appeared on the corner of his lips, and he said with a bit of self-deprecation: “Shengming?”

  Zhang Anshi didn’t say a word.

However, Zhang Anshi quickly changed the subject and said: “There is one more thing… I found out the situation of Yintian, which was shocking, so I severely cracked down on it, and therefore confiscated a lot of family property. The land tax has been cleared up, and the current situation is that, through the confiscation of the house… there are 1.7 million mu of arable land that have not been confiscated.”

  As soon as this remark came out, everyone was shocked.

  Ningguo Mansion has six counties under its jurisdiction, and the number of acres recorded in the yellow book is only 1.4 million acres.

  But now, Zhang Anshi ransacked his home, and actually directly copied more land than the land registered in the yellow book.

Zhang Anshi patiently explained: “Most of the confiscated land is the land of some big gentry and sages. They have the most hidden land, and most of them are full of evil deeds on weekdays. According to the hidden land of more than 100 mu, they copied it. Judging from Yintian’s situation, the current number probably coincides with the situation of Chen’s land registration in Taiping Mansion.”

Zhang Anshi paused, and then continued: “As for those who hide less than a hundred acres of land, I didn’t let people directly ransack their homes, but only taught them to pay the tax owed. However, I predict that there will be many people who refuse to pay the tax owed. I’m afraid… I have to grab some more cultivated land. It’s just… this amount should not be much.”

  Zhu Di was still shocked by the amount of 1.7 million mu that Zhang Anshi just mentioned. This amount is really terrible, far beyond his imagination.

   I’m afraid that more than half of the land in Ningguo Mansion is now under the government.

But if you think about it carefully, for so many years in the court, the national treasury has been short of money, but a large number of people who own a lot of land hide the land and don’t pay any taxes. Instead, other taxes are imposed on the small people. This is really scary.

Zhang Anshi took everyone’s reactions into his eyes, and he continued: “Not only that, but the grain seized was as much as 700,000 shi. I plan to keep 200,000 shi for the relief of the people. The rest Yes, send it to the treasury, what does your Majesty think?”

  Zhu Di nodded: “Keep 300,000 shi.”

  Zhang Anshi said: “Your Majesty is wise.”

  Zhu Di said again: “How to deal with so much cultivated land?”

  Zhu Di said, looking at Yang Rong, Hu Guang and others.

  Hu Guang smiled wryly in his heart. To be honest, Hu Guang felt very complicated when he heard the horrific news. On the one hand, he felt that these gentry and village sages were a group of pig teammates.

   On the other hand, Hu Guang himself was born in a gentry family. So many gentry suffered, their homes were ransacked, and they killed people… It made him feel quite uncomfortable.

   This is a very complicated emotion. In fact, most of the ministers here feel this way.

   “Your Majesty…”

At this time, Jin Chundao, Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice: “According to the law, all the confiscated land is official land or Huangzhuang. It is better to ask the Ministry of Households to draw up a charter. Which ones are official lands and which ones are Huangzhuang. Let’s define it.”

  Zhu Di was thoughtful and thought it made sense. The number of acres of this field is really too large, and it will be of great benefit to both the palace and the court.

  Unexpectedly, Zhang Anshi said: “Your Majesty, I think it is impossible.”

  Zhu Di couldn’t help being surprised, looked at Zhang Anshi and said, “Why?”

Zhang Anshi said: “Your Majesty, I am in the Taiping Mansion, and I am trying my best to implement the New Deal. The Taiping Mansion has three counties under its jurisdiction, and the population is not large. The agricultural situation cannot be taken into account at all. The measures and conditions in this village are very hasty. However, regarding these lands, I think…it is better to arrange and arrange them separately.”

“It is said that there is no stability without agriculture. What the imperial court should do is to encourage farming, increase grain production, and crack down on the situation of grain and tax arrears. If it is directly used for Huangzhuang and official land, it will not only distract the palace from managing Zhuangzi , the official side… the minister is also worried, because he has more than enough understanding but not enough strength.”

  Zhu Di nodded and said: “If you say it like this, I have an idea these few days…”

He made up his mind and said, “I plan to abolish this Ningguo Mansion and merge it under the rule of Taiping Mansion. Taiping Mansion only has three counties. The population is too small and the land is not enough. Now with this Ningguo Mansion, there are nine counties. , the population has reached 600,000 households, and it finally looks like Jingzhao Mansion.”

   “Zhang Qing is still the prefect of the prefecture, and the county officials, Zhang Qing will come to finalize. As for the cultivated land, since Zhang Qing does not want to turn it into an imperial village or official land, you are the prefect of the prefecture, so you have the final say.”

  As soon as this remark came out, the whole hall was in an uproar again.

  Obviously, Zhu Di’s decision was truly beyond everyone’s expectations.

  …

  The first chapter was delivered, I read the book reviews, and understood everyone’s grievances, well, I will try my best to update on time in the future, please ask for a monthly ticket.

  (end of this chapter)