First Minister of Ming Dynasty

Zhang Ximeng smiled wryly and shook his head: "Mr. Jia, you also know that in this war, we mobilized hundreds of thousands of people just in Shandong. It will affect the farming season. Therefore, the lord wants to send half of the cattle and horses to Shandong, so that the common people can get some benefits by equalizing the land this time."

Jia Lu was slightly taken aback. Because of Mao Gui, Shandong is indeed much better than Central Plains, but that's all.They are still very poor and their livelihood is difficult.This time, the elders in Shandong gave their all to help, and it was unreasonable not to give anything in return.

Zhu Yuanzhang's decision was completely reasonable, and even he couldn't say anything.

"Then, isn't that half left? Me, I'm not too little."

Zhang Ximeng was even more helpless, "This half is also a bit troublesome, and I need to convince someone."

Jia Lu didn't care, "Master Zhang, is there anyone in the world who can't be persuaded? Your mouth can bring the dead back to life, even His Majesty can't handle it! It's nothing serious."

Zhang Ximeng sullenly said in a low voice, "What about the queen?"

Jia Lu was stunned for a moment, "Well, why is there something about the queen? Besides, our queen is notoriously wise. If she knew that the Central Plains was in decline and people's livelihood was difficult, she might take the initiative to send it over! What's the trouble?"

"You always don't know!" Zhang Ximeng said, "For this war, the Empress raised a lot of military supplies in Yingtian. Especially the money. Before the war officially started, she borrowed 800 million treasure notes. Up to now , I estimate that it is at least 200 million. Although she didn't say it, I also know that the empress pointed at these seizures and paid the interest!"

"Repay the interest?" Jia Lu's eyes widened.

"That's right, the principal will not be repaid, but the interest must be paid, right? Otherwise, the court's credit will go bankrupt. The precious banknotes we have painstakingly maintained will follow in the footsteps of the big ingot banknotes."

As soon as Jia Lu heard this, four words popped out immediately: Open the river to change money!

That's right, it was because of these four words that the Great Yuan Dynasty caused chaos in the world, and the country was ruined and the family was destroyed.

As a result, when it comes to Daming, it is still a matter of precious money to control the Yellow River and restore people's livelihood in the Central Plains.

Still say different, isn't it exactly the same?

"Zhang Xiang, you, do you have any good plans?"

Zhang Ximeng sighed lightly, "It's not a good strategy, just print more money!"

"No!" Jia Lu yelled almost subconsciously, you really want to repeat the same mistakes!

Zhang Ximeng smiled slightly, "Mr. Jia, things are not as you think. Of course, treasure money cannot be issued indiscriminately, but excessive issuance is not necessarily a bad thing. Now we have swallowed Shandong and Henan in one go, and the territory has increased so much. Business exchanges, restoration of people's livelihood, spending money everywhere, and sending more appropriately, as long as the rhythm is controlled, there will be no problem."

"But there is a premise."

"What premise?" Jia Lu was still hesitant.

"The premise is to wait for a season of crops to be planted. It is best to see the harvest. At that time, the harvest will still be harvested, and the treasure banknotes will be issued, and the money and grain will be matched. The problem will not be big."

After listening to Zhang Ximeng's explanation, Jia Lu was so angry that he almost fell on his back... It's as if you said something.

We want to restore the people's livelihood in the Central Plains, control the water and farm, and urgently need a sum of money... Then you told me that as long as the farm harvests and there is food, we can pay more money.

You, aren't you talking nonsense!

A few years ago, Jia Lu would have wanted to slap Zhang Ximeng a few times... But this kid's official position is getting higher and higher, his reputation is getting more and more, he is a good minister in the world, and his master is still alive, so he really can't slap him anymore.

"Zhang Xiang, according to what you said, is it a dead end now?" Jia Lu asked helplessly.

Zhang Ximeng shook his head, "Maybe it's worse, to tell you the truth, now the prisoners can only get two taels of food every day."

"Two or two?"

Jia Lu was really shocked, "Well, let alone a living person, even a cat or a bird is not enough!"

Zhang Ximeng nodded, "Yes, indeed."

Jia Lu was even more speechless, but thinking about it, there were tens of 10 horses, and the Yuan Dynasty almost lost all its capital. How could the consumption of the Ming Dynasty be small?

In the Battle of Changping, Zhao State lost tens of thousands of people and fell into a slump. Qin State also stopped for several years and quietly recovered.

For a battle of similar scale, Daming's family background is really not as strong as that of Daqin at that time.Almost all the grain accumulated in the southeast was bet on, and Queen Ma even visited the door in person to raise money everywhere.

Behind the glorious victory is a Daming full of scars and heavy burdens.

"Zhang Xiang, with such a small amount of food, if the prisoners can't survive, I, I'm afraid there will be trouble?"

"That's why Hu Weiyong suggested, can we follow Qin's example and kill these hundreds of thousands of captives!"

"What?" Jia Lu turned pale with shock, "Zhang Xiang, how can this be done? That's hundreds of thousands of lives, not to mention the Central Plains, restoring people's livelihood, cannot do without labor... This Hu Weiyong's heart is too vicious !"

Zhang Ximeng said helplessly: "Mr. Jia, I don't want to do this either, so I wrote the decree on land equalization, advocating river governance. I just wanted to keep these people and find a way to quickly restore the power of the people in the Central Plains. But a clever woman can't cook without rice. It cannot be resolved for a long time, and if the delay continues, there will be a captive riot. Even if the lord does not want to listen to Hu Weiyong, that will not work."

Jia Lu frowned, and said in grief and indignation: "Well, that's tens of thousands of people. Human lives are at stake!"

Zhang Ximeng nodded, "That's right, it's true that human life is at stake, but what can I do? If my lord really ordered this to happen, I can only think of a comprehensive way."

Jia Lu was rather surprised, "Master Zhang, you won't dissuade His Majesty?"

"I have said everything I can say. I am a subject of His Majesty. I will disobey my father in order to invite my name. I will not do such a thing without a king or a father."

Jia Lu was dumbfounded, you are such Zhang Ximeng?

Are you known as a sage in the world?

Where righteousness lies, do my part.

Is this all fake?

Zhang Ximeng chuckled, "Mr. Jia, if I tell my heart and soul, I will be the servant of the lord. I will be in charge of the family and the province. I will be the head of officials in the whole world. We officials are responsible for unconditionally carrying out the orders of the lord. No matter what the order is, even if it is It is contradictory, and we must ensure that it is implemented smoothly. So in essence, we do not pay attention to morality!"

There is a moral vacuum, and it is right to bring the British orthodoxy.

"You! How can you say that?"

Jia Lu was furious and knocked on the table excitedly, "Zhang Ximeng, you, you are Mr. Yunzhuang's junior. In order to help the victims, he fought with officials and gentry during the day and prayed for rain to save people at night. They all fell on the people, so that they were exhausted to death!"

"That's right, that's why he's exhausted." Zhang Ximeng said with a smile: "Jia Gong, I'm talking about the worst situation. Of course, I will try my best to avoid it...and I have an idea."

"What idea?" Jia Lu frowned, "Zhang Xiang, don't play tricks!"

"You're right, it's just a trick."

Jia Lu frowned, becoming more suspicious.

Zhang Ximeng, however, crossed his legs and stopped talking, just drinking tea.

Just when Jia Lu could hardly wait, someone rushed in suddenly, bringing a gust of wind.

"Brother, here I come!"

It was Zhu Ying who rushed in. This kid was travel-stained, with cracks on the corners of his face and mouth, and red eyeballs. When he saw Zhang Ximeng, he was overwhelmed with excitement.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Ximeng meant to exchange pleasantries, so he asked directly, "How much money did you prepare?"

Zhu Ying was stunned for a moment, and then snorted: "550 million guan! Brother, how do you know the money? Don't even ask me how hard it is!"

Zhang Ximeng snorted coldly: "How hard you are, aren't you still alive? If I don't have this money, I will watch hundreds of thousands of people die! You know nothing!"

Zhang Ximeng was suddenly enraged, murderous look appeared from the corners of his eyes and eyebrows...Zhu Ying was frightened, and said, "Brother, you, please don't be so fierce!"

Zhang Ximeng got up straight away, and said angrily, "Okay, just wait. I'll go see the lord right now."

After speaking, Zhang Ximeng turned around and left, going out directly.

Looking at Zhang Ximeng's back, Jia Lu suddenly showed a sighing smile, and said to Zhu Ying, "Don't be afraid, your elder brother is not targeting you, he is angry with Hu Weiyong!"

"Hu Weiyong? How dare he anger my elder brother? Me, I boiled him!"

Jia Lu stopped Zhu Ying and sighed, "Your eldest brother and Mr. Yunzhuang are actually the same people, and he is more strategic than Mr. Yunzhuang. It is a blessing for all the people in the world to have him around!"

4 Chapter Ninety

"Obviously I won, why is it so difficult!" Zhu Ying scratched her head, very confused.

Jia Lu was not surprised at all, and he even had some experience in it.

"It's the same open river, and it's also precious money. It also requires civilians, and it also costs money. Can't change the court, God will send blessings, dikes will not be repaired, but food will be solid, and food will be available without planting? In the end, our Ming and The difference between Ni Yuan is nothing more than the heart of the people in charge above. That's why I said that the presence of Zhang Xiang is a blessing for all people."

Zhu Ying rolled her eyelids, and suddenly said: "Then you always think that my godfather doesn't have this kind of heart?"

Jia Lu was helpless, "How dare I criticize the Son of Heaven, I mean, even if His Majesty has this intention, he may not be able to find a safe solution in the face of the current situation."

Zhu Ying thought about it seriously, then smiled lightly and said: "I see, you probably guessed wrong, my godfather can't think of a safe way, but he can always think of a way, if you don't believe me, just wait and see!"

……

Does Zhu Yuanzhang really have a way?

"Hu Weiyong, you let us learn from the state of Qin and kill the prisoners... If we do this, wouldn't our reputation be ruined? You want to trap the father of the king for injustice?"

Hu Weiyong was so frightened that he fell to his knees in a panic, "Superior, I dare not have such treasonous thoughts. If I really dare to frame your father, I will let my body be divided into five horses, and the sky will be struck by lightning. I will die a bad death!"

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted lightly, "You don't need to swear, God is so busy, even if you kill a hundred people a day, it's not just a villain... If you have any detailed plans, you can just tell them, let's listen carefully. "

Hu Weiyong wiped the cold sweat from his brow in fear, and then said: "Master, now that there are so many prisoners, the food consumed every day is not a small amount, and they have to be allocated from the army. However, the army rations are also limited. We just won a big victory, and the rewards are not enough. But it doesn’t make sense to ask the soldiers to cut down on food and clothing to feed the captives.”

Zhu Yuanzhang kept silent with a gloomy face, how could he not know about this?

"Go on and let us listen carefully."

Seeing that Zhu Yuanzhang was like this, Hu Weiyong relaxed a little, and then said: "Superior, Yuan soldiers harmed the people, killing is useless. The people in the Central Plains, ten out of ten. Such a big blood feud must be avenged. I feel that it is okay to use the name of revenge to avenge the pain." Kill me, get rid of this scourge!"

"killed?"

"Well! This is what I mean. As long as they kill innocent people indiscriminately, they deserve what they deserve. No one will question the superiors. On the contrary, they will say that the superiors are wise and eliminate harm for the people!"

While talking, Hu Weiyong was watching his words and expressions, trying to see something from Lao Zhu's face.

But Zhu Yuanzhang's face was serious, like a piece of pig iron, and he didn't give Hu Weiyong a chance at all... After pondering for a while, Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Hu Weiyong, if you want to talk about eliminating harm for the people, killing the generals of the Yuan court, and getting rid of those officials, there is still reason. You told us that more than 20 people are going to be killed, and you think no one understands what's going on? You also underestimate the wisdom of the world, is it true that everyone is a fool and you are the only one who is smart?"

"Chen, I don't mean that, please enlighten me!" Hu Weiyong knelt on the ground again, trembling and sweating profusely.

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly: "I'm telling you, this won't work! This time, there are Mongolian soldiers guarding Shanzhou, and there are Mongolian soldiers who marched into Baixingkou... In order to march into the Central Plains, we also first Timur, and many others Rich Mongolian businessmen, they all contributed money and did their best for the country! Among the captives, they are indeed guilty, and we will naturally not let them go, but if we want to kill innocent people indiscriminately, killing 20 people, the millions have already returned What about the Mongols? Are they all killed?"

Hu Weiyong was frightened and hurriedly said: "Chen, I was confused for a while, and I didn't think it through. Please forgive me! Chen, I really have good intentions, but I didn't think so deeply!"

As he spoke, he kowtowed.

Zhu Yuanzhang watched silently, with a sneer on his face, this man has a vicious heart and will do everything he can, he really is a poisonous man!

If Zhu Yuanzhang didn't bother to look at him a few years ago, he would probably have killed him directly.

But sitting on the dragon chair and thinking about it a lot, I understood.

For example, at present, it is almost a dead end, and it is impossible to break it through ordinary methods... Let Lao Zhu kill 20 prisoners, and he can't do it.

Then just think of other ideas.

"Hu Weiyong, how about moving to the rich households in the southeast and letting them enrich the land of the Central Plains?"

Hu Weiyong was slightly taken aback, he didn't quite understand, so he was taken aback.

Zhu Yuanzhang continued: "We are not so unreasonable. For those who take the initiative to lend money to the court, we are still willing to let them pay the money and protect their families. As for those who did not borrow money, they are not of one mind with the court." Of course, you don’t have to be polite, just make a big move and move more. Hu Weiyong, do you think what we said makes sense?”

Hu Weiyong's mind turned quickly, and he finally understood what Zhu Yuanzhang meant.

"The superior is saying that he wants the rich merchants to take the initiative to forgive their debts and stop forcing the court?"

Zhu Yuanzhang's face sank, and he said angrily: "What do you mean they should forgive the court's debts? We let them buy their lives with money, and the buyer is safe. Don't you understand?"

"Understood, I understand!" Hu Weiyong hurriedly agreed, but his heart was pounding, what a ruthless Zhu Yuanzhang!

20 captives cannot be killed, but thousands of wealthy households can still be killed.

Relocating and ransacking the house can not only relieve the debt, but also make a fortune by the way, restore the Central Plains, and have money.

As for whether it is reasonable, Zhu Yuanzhang also has his own set of considerations.

"Hu Weiyong, aren't you in charge of the tax department? You must be familiar with the situation of these big households. We asked you to handle this matter, can you handle it satisfactorily?"

Hu Weiyong is stupid... What is perfection?

Ransacking the house and arresting people, and making people feel grateful?

This, I really can't do it!

Seeing him pondering, Zhu Yuanzhang sneered slightly, "If you are asked to kill 20 prisoners, you don't hesitate. If you are asked to deal with the big family, you hesitate. Hu Weiyong, do you have collusion with the big family?"

Hu Weiyong didn't know how many times he was sweating for the first time, these words were too embarrassing.

"Superior, I don't dare to collude with big families, but I think that if I do this, will it shake the foundation of the country?"

"Absurd!" Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly: "The country of Ming Dynasty is based on the common people! It's not just a few merchants and wealthy households. We asked you to do this, so that the southeast will not disturb the people, and the Central Plains must enrich the people. Dilemma, we I reward you as a political advisor!"

At present, Ming Dynasty is still participating in politics in two phases. If Hu Weiyong can be promoted one step higher, there is no doubt that he will reach the sky in one step.

But is this step easy?

That is to do the dirty work for the emperor.

Dealing with the big families in the southeast is the task that Lao Zhu entrusted to him, and it is also a test for him.