The eldest son of the red mansion

Jia Ke thought for a while, and finally decided that since the emperor had made a move, he had to respond.

So Jia Ke came out of the shift, cupped her hands and said, "Long Live Lord, if this year's lack of these taels of silver, I'm afraid the court will be unsustainable. Please, Long Live Lord open the internal treasury to allocate the silver taels to make up for this year's tax."

Old Meng Ming who was standing below heard Jia Ke's idea, his eyes lit up.He felt that this idea was really good, and it was time for the emperor to shed some blood, after all, this country belonged to his family.

So old Meng Ming also came out of the class and cupped his hands and said: "Report to the emperor, Mr. Jia is very right. Please open the internal treasury to make up for the lack of tax revenue of the court."

Sitting on the throne, the emperor frowned after hearing what the two of them said.According to the practice of previous years, if the court's tax revenue is not enough, then the emperor will open the internal treasury to make up for the shortage for the court, so as to avoid turmoil in the court.

But this time, the emperor wanted to weaken Jia Ke, a powerful minister. How could he open the internal treasury and let Jia Ke tide over the difficulties?

So the emperor turned his head and asked Xia Shouzhong in a pretentious manner: "How much silver do we have in our internal treasury? Can we allocate some for the imperial court to use?"

Xia Shouzhong, as the emperor's confidant, is also a clever man, so he doesn't understand what the emperor means.Hearing the emperor's question, he quickly knelt down on the ground, and said in a crying voice: "Long Live Lord is the fault of the slave. This year's Huangzhuang harvest is really not good. Many places have been hit by disasters, and the internal treasury needs money to relieve the disaster. The shops here don’t have much income either. Now the internal treasury can’t make ends meet, and I’m afraid there is no money to support the court.”

After hearing this, the emperor said angrily: "Don't tell me these things are useless, how much money do you need for the internal treasury?"

"If you go back to Lord Long Live, there is less than 20 taels of silver in the internal treasury. I'm afraid it won't be able to maintain the expenses of the palace this year. How can there be silver for the court."

After the emperor finished listening, he said to the ministers below: "You have also heard, it's not that I don't give it, but that there is no money in the internal treasury."

Jia Ke looked up at the emperor, then lowered his head again and said, "If I say it, why not stop all the rewards given to the chieftains in the south this year. This will also save a few 10 taels of silver."

The emperor narrowed his eyes when he heard it above. This method seems to be good, but it has great consequences.Over the years, the relationship between the chieftains in the south and the imperial court has improved, and they all respect him as the emperor.And the emperor gave them silver rewards, which can be regarded as a kind of compromise reached by the two sides.But at this time, the rewards are stopped, and I am afraid that the south will be full of wars again.

This Jia Ke wanted to embarrass herself. Once there was a turmoil in the south, I am afraid that soldiers and horses will be needed to quell it in the end.At that time, more silver will be consumed.

Chapter 360 Countermeasures 2

Liu Yu, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, heard Jia Ke's words and felt that it was very inappropriate. Now that the south is finally stable, once there is chaos, the tax-heavy areas in the south will be threatened.

Moreover, he also saw the embarrassment of the emperor, so he hurried out to relieve the emperor's worries, "Master Jia's words are inappropriate. If the rewards are stopped, the barbarians in the south will probably not let it go. Once a war breaks out, the imperial court has no military pay. When the time comes I'm afraid things will get worse."

After hearing what he said, Jia Ke didn't refute it, and then acted like I had no other choice, and you guys figured it out.

Seeing Jia Ke's indifferent expression, the emperor was so angry that he really wanted to take Jia Ke out and give him a beating to vent his anger, but when he saw the plaque on the main hall of the East Nuan Pavilion that read "Beware of haste and patience", he calmed down again. .

Seeing Jia Ke's appearance, Liu Yu knew that he should not count on Jia Ke in this matter, and he had better figure out a way for himself.

Liu Yu, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, thought about it carefully, and then came out of the shift and cupped his hands and said to the emperor: "Long Live Lord, if there is a real shortage of silver taels, there are always a few ways to solve the temporary difficulty."

The emperor sat on the top and looked at Liu Yu, feeling a little dissatisfied with him. Could it be that Liu Yu hasn't noticed the strangeness yet?Give me an idea at this time, isn't it embarrassing me?

But the emperor couldn't help but speak, "Liu Aiqing, if you have any ideas, speak up quickly. Let's discuss it together. Even if it doesn't work, it's better than standing still."

Only then did Liu Yu bow and say, "The salt merchants in the south are the richest in the world. Since the founding of the country to the present, because most of the salt merchants paid off when the dynasty was founded, Emperor Taizu's salt tax on salt merchants in the south of the Yangtze River is the lowest in all dynasties. .Now that the imperial court is in trouble, it is easy for them to ask them to reimburse several million taels of silver."

As soon as the emperor heard Liu Yu's idea, he frowned.The Jiangnan salt tax is indeed the lowest in all dynasties, but this is only on the surface.All the salt merchants secretly sent a large part of their profits to the palace every year, and this was only known to the emperor after he ascended the throne.

Since the salt merchants in the south of the Yangtze River have given so much money every year, the emperor has no reason to ask them to repay them. Otherwise, what kind of person would the emperor be, and what is the difference between him and a robber?

So the emperor said directly: "This is absolutely impossible. The salt tax in the south of the Yangtze River was set by Emperor Taizu, and the ancestors of these salt merchants have contributed a lot to the court. If you ask them for silver taels at this time, Jiangnan will definitely be in turmoil, and the hearts of the gentry will be unstable. This strategy is not feasible, you should think of another way.”

Liu Yu was also a little annoyed when he heard this. Now everyone in the world doesn't know the riches of the salt merchants in the south of the Yangtze River. If they don't get money from them, what else can they do?

At this time, the left governor, Shi Tianye, stood up. He bowed to the emperor and said: "The emperor doesn't want to increase taxes and make the gentry uneasy. I have a way."

The emperor looked at Tian Ye, and said with some displeasure: "If you have any ideas, just say it."

Tian Ye also saw the emperor's displeasure, and guessed the emperor's intention at the same time, but for the stability of the court and society, he had to risk offending the emperor to come up with this idea.

"Your Majesty, there are so many banknotes in Jin Province, and many of these banknotes have millions of dollars in silver. Why don't you find a few leading banknotes in the name of the imperial court, and loan them 300 million taels of silver. After a few years, the imperial court will be rich. Return slowly."

When the emperor heard this, he was annoyed, "What are you talking about? How can the court lend money to poets? I don't want to lose face anymore, so I won't talk about it again."

Hearing the emperor's words, Tian Ye could only retreat helplessly.He thought to himself that the emperor was determined to attack Jia Ke regardless of the overall situation of the court.

They discussed for an hour or two, but there was no way to fill the hole.After all, this is not a small amount, and it cannot be filled with a little money from somewhere.

The emperor finally said with a cold light in his eyes: "Then you have nothing to do, then I will give you an idea."

When the ministers of His Highness heard that the emperor had an idea, they cupped their hands together and said, "I respect the emperor's orders."

"Our world is still relatively peaceful now, and the Tatars in the north haven't been making much trouble these past few years. Why don't we reduce the military pay of some troops in the Nine Frontiers, and make up for them when the court has more money in a few years. Everyone What do you think for Aiqing?" The emperor said confidently with a smile, this is a clever plan to deal with Jia Ke that he came up with after thinking for a long time.

When Lei Ying heard the emperor's words, he was frightened out of his wits. He never thought that the emperor would be so crazy. If the military pay is reduced, it is okay to reduce the old and weak soldiers in the interior. of different races.

Thinking of this, Lei Ying hurriedly came out to advise the emperor: "Your Majesty, this matter is absolutely unacceptable. If the military salary is not enough, our Ministry of War can slightly reduce the military salary of the inland army. For the elite from the Nine Frontiers, it is absolutely necessary to lose a penny."

At this time, old Mengming also came out and said: "The emperor also agrees with Lei Ying's suggestion. If the silver is really unlucky, like those weak soldiers in the mainland, it is okay to reduce them by one or two layers, and the number of soldiers in the mainland is large. If it is distributed to the whole country, each person will not be able to share much, which will cause less turmoil."

The emperor felt embarrassed when he heard what they said. If it is true that the court is not paying enough taxes, if it is necessary to reduce expenditure, it is a good way to reduce the salary of the internal soldiers by one or two tiers.But now the emperor's main purpose is not to reduce expenses, but to use his financial power to break up the army controlled by Jia Ke.Therefore, he absolutely cannot agree to this method.

"What are you talking about? Don't you know how many people are in the mainland? If the military pay is reduced, how will their families survive, and if so many people make trouble at once, it will be difficult for the court to deal with it. The inland area is much higher, and there is no need to reduce expenditures on all nine sides, just pick one or two that are under less defensive pressure, and reduce the military pay." The emperor said firmly, with determination in his tone.

Immediately, the emperor had made up his mind, and it was useless for them to persuade them, so they all bowed their heads and waited for the emperor's orders.

The emperor's face is uncertain now. He knows that if this decree is made, the northern border will definitely be unstable. If the Tatars don't come, let it be. Desperately resisted.But now that the arrow is on the string, it has to be launched.

So the emperor gritted his teeth and ordered the following ministers: "The two towns of Jiubian Zhongxuanfu and Liaodong are the closest to the capital, and the capital has 20 people. If there is an emergency in these two places, we can immediately reinforce them. Therefore, starting from this month , Only [-]% of the military salary of these two places is paid. Wait until the imperial court has a surplus in a few years before making up for them."

Everyone felt a chill when they heard the emperor's words. The emperor was blatantly planning to attack Jia Ke.

And Jia Ke stood there without a trace of expression. When he was at the military plane just now, he already knew the emperor's plan.And he has already figured out how to deal with it. This time the emperor's sudden attack on him is his crisis, but from another perspective, this is his opportunity.If the emperor does this, the dissatisfaction with the emperor will probably reach the peak among the people in these two places. Like some middle-level generals who still have hope for the emperor, they will be completely disappointed in the near future.The emperor is destroying the Great Wall himself.

After the emperor finished talking about his solution, he kept staring at Jia Ke. How did he react when he saw Jia Ke?If Jia Ke strongly opposed it, he would naturally have another reason to dismiss Jia Ke. This time, he would continue to reduce the military pay no matter what.

But the emperor was completely disappointed, Jia Ke stood there without any expression, and did not object.It seems that he agrees with the emperor's approach, which makes the emperor a little confused.But since Jia Ke had agreed, it just saved him a lot of trouble.

So the emperor said again: "For the defenders north of Miyun, their salaries will also be reduced by [-]% this year."

The emperor did this to let the world see that he was not targeting Jia Ke specifically.After all, apart from Jia Ke's direct descendants, other troops have also begun to reduce their salaries.This is how you show your fairness.

When Jia Ke heard the emperor's words from below, she almost fell to the ground. What is the emperor going to do?To reduce all the military salaries of all the troops in the north of the capital, this is simply asking for a dead end.Did he think that these hungry troops would really fight to the death when they met the Tatars?

But what the emperor said next made Jia Ke understand what he meant.

"All the troops in the north of the capital have reduced their salaries. I am afraid that the defense of the north of the capital is a bit weak, so we are deciding to let Xiaoqi Battalion go north and set up defenses between Miyun and Xuanfu Town, so that the two sides can cooperate. What do you love?" Confidently said his way, he didn't sleep for several days in order to think of this way.

If the Xiaoqi Battalion was transferred away, then Jia Ke would not have his own troops in the capital. Although the other three battalions were still controlled by Jia Ke, many of the generals had served in the camps for generations.Thinking about it, his loyalty to the emperor would not be less than that of Jia Ke.

After the emperor finished speaking, the hall was completely silent.Everyone stared at Jia Ke to see how he would reply.

Jia Ke just responded with a sneer in his heart. Did the emperor really think that he could not completely control the other three battalions besides the real control of the Xiaoqi battalion.If it was someone else, maybe this situation could still happen, but for Jia Ke, the emperor's thinking like this was just fantastic.So what if I promised him myself?If I strongly oppose it, I am afraid that the emperor will not have the guts to proceed with the next steps.How about just agreeing to him, isn't there such a saying?To make a man perish, first make him mad.From Jia Ke's point of view, the emperor is crazy enough now.

So Jia Ke came out of the class, bowed and cupped his hands and said: "I completely agree with the emperor's opinion. If the military pay is lowered in these three places, I am afraid that the army's morale will be unstable. Transferring the Xiaoqi battalion to the middle of Xuanfu Town and Miyun is just right. Stabilize the situation at critical moments."

The emperor and all the ministers of military affairs did not expect Jia Ke to agree at all. Among them, old Meng Ming looked at Jia Ke with a satisfied smile.