Dashun Yongchang

From the mouths of these inescapable gentry, the evil deeds of the rebels are naturally exaggerated, and the southern gentry are also full of fear of Dashun out of concern for their family property and safety, but are concerned about the atrocities committed by the Manchus not much.

In fact, such things continued to happen in later generations. After the outbreak of the October Revolution, a large number of White Russian nobles fled to Berlin, Paris and other Western European regions. They described the Red Army as a red devil and Lenin as a murderer, but Western Europe The proletariat does not remember the cruelty of the tsarist machine gun against the proletariat. Why?Because the Russian proletariat was unable to travel so far, they could only stay in the country to overthrow the tyrannical rule of the tsar, so the proletariat of Western Europe naturally could not learn about the tsar's crimes from the exiled Belarusian nobles around them.

The same thing happened in China. When China was liberated with a population of more than 4 million, millions of descendants of former landlords and gentry fled to Hong Kong and Taiwan. prisons, so good people will flee to Hong Kong.But they apparently forgot that only oppressors need to flee from places that don't belong, where they have accumulated so much hatred.

After these oppressors fled to other places, they tried to pack themselves as victims in order to win the sympathy of outsiders, but the oppressors are still oppressors after all, and they will not give up oppressing others just because they changed places .Therefore, Hong Kong became the era of gangsters in the 70s and [-]s, and Berlin also became the birthplace of Nazism after World War I.

It can be seen from this that, whether it is a revolution or a counter-revolution, propaganda is always the top priority. A revolutionary organization that does not understand propaganda cannot organize the people to participate in the revolution, while counter-revolutionaries who understand propaganda will use propaganda to pretend that their suppression of revolutionary actions is Maintain social harmony and stability.

Although the feudal dynasties valued public opinion, they only valued the public opinion of scholars, because scholars were the reserve team of officials and members of the ruler.But no feudal dynasty would take the initiative to promote itself, because the majesty of imperial power lies in mystery and unknowability. If the common people know what imperial power is and lose their respect for the emperor, how can the dynasty continue to rule?

But for the souls of future generations, it is the first priority of the Marshal's Mansion to clarify to the common people who Dashun belongs to, and to the soldiers for whom they are fighting. He gave training to others, but he personally mastered the propaganda work, and it was also the key supervision object of the Statistics Department.

The promotion of newspapers not only brought a new entertainment item to the southerners, but also gave the Marshal's Mansion a channel to speak out publicly. The public opinion that used to be controlled by scholars has begun to give way to newspaper readers in teahouses. people.

Because of economic development, the entertainment industry in the south is much more developed than in the north, and the favorite entertainment of southern citizens is going to teahouses to drink tea. News, but also listen to a book to pass the time.The emergence of newspapers did not hit the teahouse culture in the south, but promoted the development of this teahouse culture. After all, the news in teahouses in the past was mixed, but the authenticity of the news in newspapers can still be guaranteed.

This issue of the newspaper containing Luo Luohun's articles was even more popular with the citizens. Some people couldn't buy this issue of the newspaper at all, so they had to write to the newspaper office in Yangzhou to ask for it.The reason why this issue of the newspaper is so popular is because this is the first time someone has systematically written about the enmity between the Manchus and the Ming Dynasty, and it is the first time that many people know the inside story of some things.

Especially how Nurhachi defeated the Ming army, how Huang Taiji united the three big belors to force his aunt to death, and then how did he kill the three big belors, and finally became the real sweat of the Manchus.According to some scholars, Luo Luohun's writing is still too brief. If the length can be extended and the characters can be described, then it must be a novel on a par with Jin Ping Mei and Water Margin.

The literacy rate of the citizens in the south is still quite high, which is also the basis for the popularity of various strange novels during the Jiawan period. If there were not many literate people, it would be impossible for those booksellers to print books so actively.

This article by Luo Luohun not only contains the ugliness of some Ming officials, but also exposes the brutal struggle among the Manchus. For the idle Jiangnan citizens, this is really more interesting than Jin Ping Mei and Water Margin.After all, the latter two novels still have to comply with Confucian moral concepts. The loyalty of servants to the master and the loyalty and filial piety of courtiers to the monarch can be found everywhere in the two books, but there are no such things in Luo Luohun's article , only facts.

The corruption and incompetence of the Ming officials, the brutality and ruthlessness of the Manchus and nobles, almost no good people can be seen, which shattered the citizens' illusion about the upper class dignitaries, that is, the emperor is good, and the bad ones are all below. traitor.But Luo Luohun told them frankly that whether it was the rulers of Ming Dynasty or the Manchus, they were all selfish bastards, and there was no such thing as a good emperor.

There is no more interesting story than this for ordinary citizens who are full of curiosity.While accepting this story, they finally distinguished Jiannu from Jurchen and Mongols.Especially for the peasants at the bottom, in the past they only knew that the imperial court wanted to increase Liao’s salary, but they didn’t know how the imperial court spent the money. Now they learned about it from the newspapers.

As a result, some new opinions emerged among scholars about whether Liao pay should be levied, and thus exerted a greater influence on the citizen class.In the past, scholars and citizens in the south opposed the collection of Liao pay, because they did not understand the strength of the Manchus and the disadvantageous position of Ming Dynasty in this war.

In their view, the Manchus are just nomads similar to the Mongols. Daming did not spend so much money to fight the Mongols.Therefore, the southerners think that this is because the officers and soldiers in the north are too incompetent, rather than the lack of food and salaries. Since they can't win the war with money, they can simply reward some cities every year to maintain the peace of the border just like dealing with the Mongols. If the Han people in Liaodong want to get back their land, then they should defend Liaodong themselves instead of letting the south bear the cost of the war.

The opinions of these southern people are inseparable from the contribution of the southern gentry, because the war between the Ming Dynasty and the Manchus has begun to affect the lives of the southern gentry.These gentry were worried that the imperial court would allow them to spend money to support the war, so they opposed the expropriation of nine cents of silver under the slogan of thinking about the interests of the people in the south, and proposed that the Liao people guard the Liao land.

However, after the Marshal's Mansion continuously published in newspapers the root cause of the war between Ming and the Manchus, as well as the issue of the Liaodong Han people who were enslaved by the Manchus, some scholars and citizens finally woke up. They realized that the Manchus are now The strength of the Manchus is much stronger than the Mongols, and the Manchus are not nomadic Mongols, but settled frontier peoples, almost similar to the Tusi Kingdom in the southwest.

In other words, the Manchus could not be satisfied with a little market reward. Like those southwestern chieftains, they all had the need for territorial expansion.Compared with the Mongols, the Manchus are more like a mature country, similar to Xixia.Therefore, expecting the Liao people to defend the Liao soil is tantamount to letting the Liao people give up their resistance and join the Manchus. The Great Song Dynasty was wiped out by those Han army princes.

At the same time, those gentry who insisted on standing on the standpoint of the common people against the increase of gentry, their starting point was not to oppose the imperial court's increase of gentry, but to oppose the imperial court's increase of gentry.These gentry enjoyed the privileges and privileges given by the Ming Dynasty, but they did not want to contribute to the Ming Dynasty at all, but after the Manchus entered the customs, they immediately surrendered to the Manchus, and then continued to enjoy the privileges and exemptions given by the Manchus. , while the land of ordinary people has become the land of the Manchus, and even themselves and their families have become slaves of the Manchus.

Therefore, these scholars and citizens began to realize that blindly opposing the levy was actually only benefiting those gentry, because once the Manchus came to the south, the gentry could continue to keep their property and privileges by surrendering the Manchus, but ordinary people But it is about to become the target of robbery.Therefore, what they need to oppose is not the additional levy imposed by the imperial court, but the additional levy imposed on ordinary people and landless peasants. Deal with it.

For the citizens of Yangzhou, they understand this truth the most, because they have personally experienced how ruthless the uncontrolled army is to ordinary people, and they don't think that the soldiers of the Manchus will be more gentle.

After realizing the destructive energy brought by the war, Yangzhou people began to agree with the concept of nation and nation proposed by the Marshal's Mansion.Because only under one country and one nation, the Marshal's Mansion can drive the Manchus back to the north and restrain those officers and soldiers under the imperial court system.Maintaining this country and nation is the greatest interest for these little people. On the contrary, those gentry can swing around on the wall, because no matter who they turn to, they can be accepted.

And after Marshal Du's Mansion sent troops to defeat the Henan Qing army and captured Aixinjueluo, the citizens of Yangzhou had a higher sense of identification with Marshal Du's Mansion. For the Shunjun and the Statistics Department stationed in Yangzhou, It is indeed a good thing.

Chapter 452 Yangzhou II

"The spring breeze in February is really like scissors." Standing in front of a gazebo, Chen Yuanyuan looked at the willow trees full of green buds by the lake, and couldn't help admiring.Different from the bleak scene in the north, Yangzhou is already full of greenery.

This time, Chen Yuanyuan brought a group of female companions to protect the Jiuqu Pond in Hubei. The name of Jiuqu Pond originally came from the garden of the mansion of King Chang Anning in Tang Dynasty. Because the mansion was close to Xingqing Pond, the water of Xingqing Pond was diverted westward. As far as the mountain pool courtyard in the house, there are nine bends in a series of excavations, so it gets its name.

After the Tang Dynasty, all pools built with gardens near the water and with twists and turns as the winning point will be called Jiuqu Pond, and the Jiuqu Pond here in the Hubei section is also borrowed from this allusion.

Ming people actually liked to travel in the wild, especially scholars. There is a saying that "reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles". It is under the influence of this kind of atmosphere that there are travelers like Xu Xiake.In Jiangnan, because the people are rich and the social order is relatively good, even the ladies have the experience of going out to play, which is completely different from the conservative atmosphere in the north.

But like this time, it is relatively rare for so many officials and women to come out for a spring outing together.Chen Yuanyuan was actually accompanied by only two friends, one was Xu Shanchi, and the other was Liu Rushi who came to visit her from Nanjing. As for the female family members of other officials, they were scattered around Jiuquchi and could not approach here at will.

In front of Chen Yuanyuan, Liu Rushi still maintained a bit of reserve, but Xu Shanchi had already completely revolved around her. After hearing Chen Yuanyuan's emotion, Xu Shanchi immediately continued: "Spring is here, and your majesty may be returning to the south. It’s not far away. This time Your Majesty defeated the Qing army in Henan, and the Qing army’s march to the south has almost failed, and Jiangnan will finally be safe and sound. This is really God’s blessing on Your Majesty.”

Chen Yuanyuan nodded slightly. The news of the great victory in Henan also made her feel very relieved. She was afraid that Li Zi would succeed or fail, and the peaceful life in the south would be disrupted again. Even she didn't know what to do. Where to go.

Liu Rushi patted the railing lightly, and said rather unwillingly: "If I am not a woman, I should go north at this time to see how Your Majesty defeated Jiannu. Jiannu ran wild in the north for more than [-] years, but was defeated by His Majesty's hand, this is really the fate of His Majesty."

Xu Shanchi looked back at the ladies in groups in the garden behind him, and said with a smile: "Indeed, if you didn't feel the destiny of His Majesty, there would be at least half of the people here. Before the meeting on New Year's Day, then The scene was very quiet."

Liu Rushi was stunned for a moment, feeling that Xu Shanchi's words seemed to include herself, after all, she only came to Yangzhou after New Year's Day.To be honest, she came to Yangzhou this time because she wanted to understand the war situation in the north as soon as possible, not to really come here to talk about her sisterhood with Chen Yuanyuan.

It's just that she didn't expect that Li Zicheng suddenly reversed the situation in the north within a few months of going north, which made some of her assumptions before coming to keep up with the changes in the situation.By this time, Dashun had at least saved the situation of confronting Manqing across the Yellow River, as long as Li Zicheng didn't get mixed up.

Originally, Nanjing officials and gentry guessed that the Shun army was defeated or that both the Shun army and the Manchus suffered a loss, because before Li Zicheng went north, the situation in the north was indeed unfavorable to the Shun army, which also caused Nanjing officials and Jiangnan gentry to have a different situation. some other ideas.But after the news of the great victory in Henan, Liu Rushi felt that these thoughts became outdated, and then the relationship between Nanjing and Yangzhou became complicated again.

When Liu Rushi came to Yangzhou, she did not represent herself in essence, but represented her husband Qian Qianyi.After Fu Wang abdicated and returned to the vassal, although the political situation in Nanjing was still in the hands of Ma Shiying, others felt that Ma Shiying would take this position for a long time, because Ma Shiying sat in the position of chief assistant by virtue of his support for Fu Wang. Why is Ma Shiying still the chief assistant?

It's just that the four towns supporting Ma Shiying have now become a more powerful Shun army, and Li Zicheng and the prince have no opinions on changing the status quo in Nanjing, so Ma Shiying can continue to be the boss in Nanjing.If the Shun army was defeated by Jiannu in the north, Ma Shiying would step down no matter whether he took the crown prince across the river or asked King Fu to reset him, because his strength was no longer strong enough to interfere in such a major event.

But who can succeed Ma Shiying?The various factions in the south have not really decided on a recognized leader at this time. Even Shi Kefa, Lu Daqi, Jiang Yueguang, Qian Qianyi and other well-recognized gentlemen and literary leaders cannot really convince the various forces in the south, because Ma Shiying used the four After Zhen supported King Fu to take over Nanjing, everyone suddenly discovered that the imperial court had no power at all. Whoever has power in his hands can organize a new imperial court, so why support these honest gentlemen who were oppressed by Ma Shiying?

When Liu Rushi came to Yangzhou, he hoped that the news of the Shun Army's victory or defeat could be sent back to Nanjing as soon as possible, so that Qian Qianyi could be prepared. After all, whoever made a decision earlier at this time is equivalent to taking the lead. .

Therefore, listening to Xu Shanchi's words, Liu Rushi also felt quite harsh, because she was also one of the speculators.So she immediately shifted the topic to the construction of the new city in Yangzhou, "I heard that the prince summoned skilled craftsmen from the south of the Yangtze River, but he was not satisfied with the blueprints of the new city they produced. At this time, is it really necessary to build a perfect capital city?" Is it? People probably can’t afford it, right?”

Chen Yuanyuan smiled and said: "My sister is not an outsider, so I will be honest. It is too early to say that Yangzhou is the capital city, but the construction of Yangzhou New City must be cautious, because this is not only a city that represents the style of Dashun, It is also a question for His Majesty to give the prince."

Xu Shanchi quietly stood aside and listened. With her status, it was hard to say such words. Liu Rushi felt no burden to ask such questions, but Chen Yuanyuan's statement could reflect many things, and she couldn't help but keep it in her heart. .

And Liu Rushi, who was at the side, was obviously also very interested in this question, so he followed Xu Shanchi's mind and continued to ask: "Examination questions for the prince? Is your majesty going to test the prince's ability to handle affairs? It may be that the prince grew up in the palace since he was a child." How can he understand how to build a city without the experience in the city?"

Chen Yuanyuan hesitated for a moment and then said: "Actually, when His Majesty handed over the construction of the new city to the prince, he said something. If the two sisters don't say it, then I can tell you."

Xu Shanchi and Liu Rushi looked at each other and said to Chen Yuanyuan, "Of course I won't tell others." "If it's inconvenient, you don't have to."

After Chen Yuanyuan looked at the two of them, she smiled and said, "Actually, it's not something that needs to be kept secret. Your Majesty said this to the prince at the time: What kind of city in your eyes can represent a new world, then it is Dashun. For Dashun By the way, the most important thing is not experience, but imagination. But this Dashun does not belong to someone, but to everyone. So if the new world in your eyes cannot meet the wishes of the people, then construction I can't get up."

Xu Shanchi was thoughtful, but Liu Rushi realized that she seemed to have underestimated Li Zicheng's thoughts again. She had to sigh: "I thought that the children from Jiangdong were very talented, but unexpectedly there are outstanding people in the northwest. With your majesty's foresight, In the future, it will be Dashun who will calm the world. My sister is blessed."

Chen Yuanyuan could only take it with a slight smile, then changed the topic and said, "Sister Xu, please ask Sister Pan and the others how to arrange the cruise ship coming soon."

Xu Shanchi withdrew from the pavilion knowingly, and Chen Yuanyuan just said to Liu Rushi: "Sister Liu, I know that you came to Yangzhou this time not only to see me, but now that the war in the north has become clear, it is rare for you to come to Yangzhou this time." Do you want to continue watching?"

Liu Rushi also knew that although this old sister had a high reputation, she was much more sober than Li Xiangjun and others, but she was good at hiding her clumsiness in front of others, so men only remembered her beauty, but forgot her wiser.

She could only shake her head and said, "I really can't hide anything from you. Since you have seen through my intentions, then I won't hide it anymore. I have only one purpose in coming to Yangzhou, and that is to know what Your Majesty thinks of my family. What does Xianggong think, compared to Ma Shiying and Shi Kefa?"

When Liu Rushi compared Qian Qianyi with Ma Shiying and Shi Kefa, he knew what he meant without asking.Chen Yuanyuan hesitated for a moment, and then asked Liu Rushi back: "Shi Kefa is more concerned about his own reputation than about the future of Daming; although Ma Shiying is a dog, he really wants to do something for Daming; as for your husband, what does he want? What do you want? Fame? Power? Do you really want to do something for the people?"

Liu Rushi was questioned by Chen Yuanyuan, she hesitated and said: "Although Shi Kefa cares about his own reputation, it's not so unbearable. Ma Shiying formed a clique for private interests, whether it is for Daming or for his own family. It's also inexplicable..."

But Chen Yuanyuan cut her off and said, "If there is no skin, how can Mao be attached? No matter Shi Kefa or Ma Shiying, their reputation, status and power all come from Daming. If there is no Daming, everything about them will be a thing of the past.

So it doesn't matter who Ma Shiying wields power for, but after gaining power, he is at least stabilizing the basic situation of Daming, rather than trying to separate himself from Daming.However, Shi Kefa, as Minister of the Ministry of War in Nanjing, is the No. 1 official in Nanjing. In order to preserve his reputation, he could not elect the new emperor of Ming Dynasty as soon as possible. Instead, he wanted to invite King Gui from Guangxi to succeed him. ?

That's why His Majesty said before going north that the important thing at present is not who is more suitable to be the chief assistant, but why those who want to be the first assistant should be the first assistant. What if a morally perfect person sits in the position of the first assistant? Don't do it, even if he is expected by everyone, what is the significance of him being the chief assistant to the country and the people?

Therefore, what matters is not what His Majesty thinks of Qian Xianggong, but what Qian Xianggong thinks of the position of chief assistant.The death of the Ming Dynasty was the result of a group of people who were unwilling to take responsibility and sat in the position of chief assistant.I, Dashun, will not repeat this mistake. "

Liu Rushi could tell that this was probably not only what Chen Yuanyuan said to herself, but also what Li Zicheng wanted to say to Qian Qianyi.Fortunately, I conveyed it on my behalf, otherwise my husband would not be able to accept such severe criticism from Li Zicheng.Because Li Zicheng is obviously dissatisfied with people like Shi Kefa and Qian Qianyi, otherwise he wouldn't be so heartless.

However, Liu Rushi was also a little dumbfounded. If Shi Kefa and the others had the courage to take responsibility and the South united with Emperor Hongguang, how could the Shun army easily force Emperor Hongguang to abdicate?That sounds really weird.

Chapter 453 Yangzhou III

However, in front of Chen Yuanyuan, Liu Rushi could no longer speak her mind as unscrupulously as before, because she had been in contact with the other party these days, and found that the other party was now looking at the problem from Li Zicheng's standpoint. Any criticism may arouse the other party's resentment.

Although Liu Rushi was a little sad, and the friendship that everyone talked about in the past seemed to have faded, but she didn't think Chen Yuanyuan betrayed the old sister's feelings.Qinhuai Bayan is essentially a means for eight weak women to protect themselves together. After all, in this society where men control everything, famous prostitutes are still men's playthings in essence, although they are sought after by celebrities and refined scholars.

If someone breaks the situation with strength, no one will fight against power for a plaything. This is Chen Yuanyuan, no matter how famous she is, she will be taken to Beijing by the powerful to give to the bigger powerful. The so-called confidant who chased after her in the past Peng didn't dare to speak out at all.

This is also Kou Baimen's high-profile showing off of marrying Baoguogong; Dong Xiaowan has a deep affection for Maoxiang, and takes Maoxiang first in everything; these people actually just want to escape from the Qinhuai River and find a home for themselves.

No matter how good the friendship between the sisters was back then, they would not destroy their home for the sake of the sisters. Just like how she cares about Qian Qianyi's matter now, Chen Yuanyuan also regards Li Zicheng's matter as her own.This is not because their sisterhood has deteriorated, but because their interests are different.

Of course, Liu Rushi also admitted that what Li Zicheng gave Chen Yuanyuan was worth what Chen Yuanyuan paid now, because it was something other men couldn't afford, and that was power.No matter how much Qian Qianyi dotes on Liu Rushi, everything she enjoys comes from Qian Qianyi's gift. Without Qian Qianyi, what she enjoys now will not belong to her.

But Chen Yuanyuan's situation is different from hers. Although Chen Yuanyuan was able to take the position of Director of the Statistics Department because of Li Zicheng, Li Zicheng did not interfere too much with Chen Yuanyuan's actions. Most of the decisions were entirely made by Chen Yuanyuan and his two deputies. It was determined, which made the Statistics Department more and more an independent and responsible department, unlike the emperor's eagle dog and Ming Dynasty's factory guard system that some scholars said.

For example, Chen Yuanyuan who is in front of Liu Rushi now, she is a little unclear whether the other party is speaking to her as Li Zicheng's woman or as the director of the statistics department.But obviously, the current Chen Yuanyuan is indeed much more free than his wife, Qian Qianyi, even if the wife of the wife and the ladies who are not willing to associate with these good women like them, now they still have to use the distance from Chen Yuanyuan to decide their relationship. status.

Although there were mixed feelings in her heart, Liu Rushi quickly grasped the point and said to Chen Yuanyuan: "Sister's words are reasonable, but if you are willing to take responsibility, you can be the chief assistant. Could it be that even Ma Shiying and Ruan Dacheng are so virtuous?" Can a corrupt person be the chief minister? How can this convince the world?"

Chen Yuanyuan actually agrees with Liu Rushi's views in her heart. After all, the education she has received since she was a child also made her believe that only a gentleman can be a good official, and a person with low moral character will definitely become a corrupt official.But Li Zicheng obviously doesn't think so, so she can only look at this issue from Li Zicheng's standpoint.

So Chen Yuanyuan replied calmly: "Chen Ping stealing money from his sister-in-law is also a good prime minister. Zhao Pu loves wealth but has no official integrity, but he established the unification of the Song Dynasty and ended the chaotic government since the Five Dynasties. It can be called a prime minister. Therefore, the Master said: I judge people by words, and I lose them. I judge people by appearance, and I lose them. I judge people by virtue, and the Ming Dynasty perishes.

Because on weekdays, we can only see private morality but not public morality. People can love their family members, but they may not love everyone in the world, because people have their own selfishness.Therefore, with the ability of the great ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, he also generously rewarded the feudal clans because of his love for his descendants, thus leaving a change of Jingnan for the descendants.

Therefore, instead of pursuing the illusory moral rule of the country, it is better to retreat to the next best thing. It is the most practical way to ask those capable people to sit in the right positions and restrict their power. "

Liu Rushi was silent for a while, and finally sighed: "This is indeed a practical approach, but it is not the way of the Holy Son of Heaven. Those scholars expect the Holy Son of Heaven to rule, not a court that coexists with villains. I Worry, if things go on like this, an honest gentleman will not dare to be an official in the future."

Chen Yuanyuan also said helplessly: "Although there is such a possibility, an honest gentleman can at least maintain the atmosphere in the village if he is in the wild, and it is better for a villain to be restrained in the court than to let them exploit the common people in the village. What's more, Your Majesty does not consider himself a saint, so he is not willing to chat with a group of righteous gentlemen who talk about morality in the court, so that the world will no longer starve to death, which is the goal he pursues in governing the country."

Liu Rushi was dumbfounded for a moment. It is impossible for an honest gentleman not to want to be an official, otherwise they would not be worried about a Ma Shiying as the chief assistant. The reason why the Hongguang Dynasty in Nanjing collapsed was that an honest gentleman wanted to exclude Ma Shiying from the court. In addition, trying to form a court composed entirely of honest gentlemen, it's just that Ma Shiying united the army and nobles to overthrow the dining table of these honest gentlemen.

Chen Yuanyuan's reply was that if you don't want to be an official, you can educate your children in your hometown. Anyway, Li Zicheng doesn't plan to be a holy king, and there is no need to create a situation where all the officials are prosperous.Liu Rushi couldn't answer this at all, otherwise Qian Qianyi's faction, which was already loose, would immediately disperse like birds and beasts. In the future, everyone in the Qian clan would probably hate her to the bone, if Li Zicheng was really allowed to stabilize the country.

Liu Rushi could only avoid the topic of morality, and went on to say: "My family is not greedy for the position of chief assistant, but it seems that it is not appropriate for someone like Ma Shiying to sit in this position. Even if you don't comment on his character The question is, even the ability to govern the country is criticized by the gentry in Jiangnan, where the wealth and taxes of the country are located, if the people in Jiangnan complain, will this chief assistant be able to continue working?"

Chen Yuanyuan didn't have any ill feeling toward Ma Shiying. Although the people she dated in the past were sons from Donglin, it was too late for her to sever ties with these people, so how could she continue to speak for them.On the other hand, Liu Rushi, the object of Congliang is Qian Qianyi, the big boss of Donglin. Naturally, he has to take a stand that is incompatible with Ma Shiying and Ruan Dacheng, otherwise Donglin party members and Fushe scholars would not be able to support Qian Qianyi.

Although she can understand Liu Rushi's position, Chen Yuanyuan has no intention of accommodating the other party, because Ma Shiying and Ruan Dacheng are quite friendly to her and the Statistics Department, especially the latter has almost become half of the Statistics Department's eyes and ears, and even the Statistics Department sent people in Nanjing. The borrowed house was assisted by Ruan Dacheng, while the so-called Donglin Party members and Fushe gentlemen regarded the Statistics Department as a scourge and were unwilling to approach it at all. Under the changing conditions, it is impossible for Chen Yuanyuan to help these honest gentlemen To deal with powerful people who have taken refuge in their own homes.

Therefore, she could only kindly remind the other party: "The people in the south of the Yangtze River have complaints about Ma Shiying, we know it, but what Ma Shiying is doing now is approved by the Marshal's Mansion, and to oppose Ma Shiying is to oppose the Marshal's Mansion.

As far as we know, the grievances of some Jiangnan people do not seem to be directed at Nanjing, but are dissatisfied with the local squires, who believe that these squires rely on their privileges to allocate all the taxes of the imperial court to them.As for the benefits given to the local area by the imperial court, they were again withheld by the gentry.

Now these gentry are trying to transfer the grievances of the villagers to Nanjing, and even the Marshal's Mansion. It seems that they have no choice but to oppress the local villagers, and they are forced by Nanjing and the Marshal's Mansion.

The Marshal's Office will not hold special views on the political dissent between Mr. Qian and Ma and Ruan, but my sister should persuade Mr. Qian not to be kidnapped by some gentry and attack Ma Shiying on the surface, but actually Trying to fight against the Marshal's Mansion is forcing the Marshal's Mansion to express its position between the two parties.I think that Mr. Qian will definitely not like our statement. "

The coldness in Chen Yuanyuan's tone made Liu Rushi a little uncomfortable. Such a tone should not appear on women like them, but only in the mouths of those powerful people who really hold the power of life and death.

But at this moment she still flinched, and she said to Chen Yuanyuan: "Qian Xianggong has absolutely no intention of fighting against the Marshal's Mansion, but the burden of the people in the south of the Yangtze River is indeed heavy. The tax of a southern county is higher than that of a northern prefecture or several High. My sister should know that the high taxes in Suzhou are indeed the highest in the world..."

Chen Yuanyuan also said tit-for-tat: "But the land price in Suzhou is the highest in the world. The land is in the hands of the gentry, and ordinary people hardly have much land. Compared with the land price in Suzhou, the land tax in Suzhou is not high. If Compared with the ratio of land price and land tax in the north, Suzhou is low.

Therefore, the Marshal’s Mansion also said that if the people of Suzhou find it difficult to pay taxes, the country can exchange land in the north or overseas land. The land in the north can be exchanged for the land in Suzhou, three for one, and overseas land for the land in Suzhou. Thirty for one, and overseas land will not be taxed for 30 years, but so far, very few people have signed up. "

Liu Rushi was finally choked and speechless. The method of exchanging land that Marshal Du's Mansion came up with really frightened a group of gentry. Everyone just hoped to reduce their land taxes and outstanding debts, but Marshal Du's Mansion threatened them with land exchange. Everyone, this is going too far.

No matter how heavy the land tax in Suzhou, it is still profitable, because the price of grain in Suzhou is the benchmark for grain prices in the south of the Yangtze River. That is to say, there are actually many people in Suzhou who eat commodity grain. The land here is not purely planted. Food, various cash crops, and a large number of handicraft workshops exchange the land in Suzhou. Although it seems that more land in other places can be obtained, the income is actually greatly reduced.

What's more, Suzhou has always been in a fairly harmonious and stable situation. It is not at all a place with bad social order in the north and overseas. Therefore, people here actually enjoy the invisible benefits brought about by peace and stability.Just like a problem of reading, even a teacher in Suzhou who enlightens children can be called a representative of scholars in a county in the north.Therefore, the cultural level in the south is getting higher and higher, while the level of cultural development in the north is always different.

The Suzhou gentry, who tried to shout a few times so that the imperial court could benefit them, naturally shut their mouths when they saw that the imperial court was serious about it this time.

Chapter 454 Yangzhou IV

Although Liu Rushi was the one who cared the most about state affairs among the old sisters, compared with Chen Yuanyuan, who had already begun to really influence state affairs, her knowledge was still not beyond the category of celebrities after all.

After all, she doesn't know whether her idea will have a good or bad impact on the country after it becomes a reality, but Chen Yuanyuan's current judgment can affect the fate of hundreds or thousands of people.After realizing the burden of responsibility brought by this kind of power, Chen Yuanyuan supported the decision-making of the Marshal's Mansion more than others, because she felt that her personal judgment could not be compared with the Marshal's Mansion. The decision made by the Statistics Division is more reasonable, and the Statistics Division should not have too independent judgments, because the Statistics Division itself has too much power.

Therefore, Liu Rushi, who was known for her unique insights among the celebrities, suffered for the first time in front of this sister who didn't seem to care much about state affairs in the past.When she realized that she couldn't convince this younger sister with the opinions of famous people like Qian Qianyi, she immediately changed her way and said: "Then what does my younger sister think my husband should do to get His Majesty's approval?"

Chen Yuanyuan thought for a moment before speaking to Liu Rushi: "Your Majesty told me before he went north, he said that the key to world affairs is only two words, money and food. The army needs money and food to fight wars, and the country needs money and food to build water conservancy and roads. Relief The disaster victims need money and food. No matter what they do, they need to calculate the money and food first, otherwise it will be impossible to succeed.

How did this money come from?The country itself cannot produce money and food, and the country consumes money and food.Therefore, there is actually only one purpose for the existence of the country, how to develop the economy so that the people can produce and trade with peace of mind, and then collect taxes at an appropriate rate, and finally arrange them reasonably for various aspects of the country's expenditures, such as education, transportation, and medical care. etc., so that the people can develop production and trade with more peace of mind. This is a circular model of continuous economic expansion.

The so-called hiding wealth from the people and refusing to pay taxes, and using the taxes collected by the country for the enjoyment of some people without giving back to the people are destroying the foundation of the country's existence, so these two kinds of people are not suitable to be the leaders of the country .

My sister asked me what Mr. Qian should do to get His Majesty's approval. My sister thought that this was actually wrong.If Mr. Qian wants the position of chief assistant, he should come up with a reasonable plan for tax collection and distribution to gain the approval of the people.Because this is the chief assistant of the people of Dashun, not the steward of His Majesty. "

Liu Rushi was a little confused by Chen Yuanyuan's words, and she couldn't help asking: "If the gentry in the south of the Yangtze River support my family's husband, will your majesty also agree with my family's idea?"

Chen Yuanyuan stared at the sister for a while before correcting her: "I'm talking about the recognition of the people. The gentry is just one of the four people and cannot represent the four people. Otherwise, the Marshal's Mansion would not exist. Your Majesty The proposal to establish councils in various places is to hope that the people can elect their own representatives to participate in the discussion of state affairs, instead of being like the Ming Dynasty, the people have no right to speak or veto on state affairs, and can only rely on force to fight against the imperial court .

If the councils of all provinces agree with Mr. Qian's proposition, why does His Majesty have to go against the mainstream of the people?Sister should know that the reason why His Majesty has come to this point is because of the support of the people. If the people of Ming Dynasty had not opposed the Ming court, His Majesty would not have been defeated again and again.Without the support of the people, His Majesty can no longer be called His Majesty, this is where His Majesty's legitimacy lies. "

Liu Rushi finally realized that she had made a mistake from the very beginning, that is, the Dashun established by Li Zicheng was not the same as the orthodoxy advocated by the Ming gentry, so she tried to use the consensus of the Ming gentry to argue with Chen Yuanyuan. Communication, the result can only be chicken and duck talking, what the two sides see is not the same thing, how can we discuss it?

After reacting, Liu Rushi quickly realized a problem, so she asked Chen Yuanyuan: "According to my sister, the council represents the people from all over the world, but now Dashun has not really unified the world, and the provinces south of the Yangtze River are still Obeyed by Da Ming, and Sichuan is in the hands of Zhang Thief...Xianzhong, if it is really necessary to decide the world's major affairs according to the council, the world may not belong to Da Shun, right?"

Chen Yuanyuan hesitated for a moment before replying: "For the council to decide major events in the world, there must first be a few consensuses. Unified under the rule of one country, major events are discussed by the public, minor matters are decided by the court, and the minority must obey the majority. Maybe the world It may not be returned to Dashun, but the world will return to unity and peace will be restored. This is what His Majesty believes is the general trend that the people of the world desire most. If it goes against this general trend, it is impossible for Marshal Du's Mansion to gain the support of the people. "

Even if Liu Rushi was still attached to Daming in his heart, at this moment, he felt that Li Zicheng's proposition was simply incredible, because it was equivalent to the fact that the warrior who was most likely to use force to unify the world voluntarily gave up force, and tried to let the people of the world choose an emperor by themselves. , This is simply against common sense, it is hard for her to imagine that such a naive person exists in the world.

Liu Rushi then asked: "Those generals who follow His Majesty will also agree with such a proposition? Didn't they follow His Majesty to fight for more than ten years to win the status of a hero who founded the country? If His Majesty is not His Majesty, where will they be placed? "

Chen Yuanyuan asked back: "Since ancient times, how many heroes of the founding of the country have a good end? Han Gaozu and Ming Taizu, are there still few heroes who were cleaned up in order to stabilize the country? It's not that your majesty is not for your majesty, but I hope to be able to In order to restrain the power of the emperor and bring the world back to peace as soon as possible, we do not want the flames of war in the north to spread to the south of the Yangtze River, and the destruction of millions of lives is only for the ambition of a few people."

Liu Rushi finally fell silent. The large population reduction brought about by the wars in the north over the past few years had already been spread all over the south of the Yangtze River along with the scholars and people who fled south and the imperial court's report.The previous slave revolts that broke out along the Yangtze River also brought great shock to the scholars and people everywhere.Because they never expected that before the Shun army in the north reached the Yangtze River, the servants around them had already started to rebel, and the anger of these servants towards their former masters was even more frightening.

The reason why the Jiangnan gentry refused to cross the river in the four towns before was not only because they were afraid that these officers and soldiers who were used to being arrogant in the north would plunder in the south of the Yangtze River, but also because they were afraid that these troops would collude with the local servants to cause chaos.Troops from other places are not very restrained when they enter the local area. If there are servants who understand the local situation to lead the way, these foreign troops will have almost no scruples.