His question is that the situation in Daming is already so bad, how to break the situation?

Before, when Zhang Mingwei was about to answer this question, he was interrupted by Wang Dehua.

As long as you have a little eyesight, you can actually see that the Ming Dynasty at this time is terminally ill, even if the main force of the Ming Dynasty does not perish, for people in this era, they are powerless. It is precisely in this way that even Emperor Chongzhen, who has never been out of Beijing and is the most reluctant to perish in the Ming Dynasty, has already felt the breath of the country.

This is not alarmist, and a very simple example illustrates the situation.

The background of the Battle of Songshan was that Zhang Wenheng, who took refuge in Jianyu and served as the deputy director of the Jianyu Secretariat, reported the situation of the Ming Dynasty to Huang Taiji, which triggered Huang Taiji to attack the Ningjin defense line again.

The traitor said: "He is a civil and military official, big or small, all bought with money. The unscrupulous nature of the text and the lack of courage of the martial arts. Those who manage military horses and horses will pay for the army; Those who make equipment will have their official money reduced. The sergeant is bored, the equipment is not practical, why should the soldier use his life? Every time he goes out on an expedition, he takes advantage of the king of diligence and blindly loots. As the saying goes: "Tartars and thieves are combs, and their own soldiers and horses are better than grates." "Soldiers and horses are like this, although there are many benefits! In addition, the eunuchs are autocratic, good money is happy, and rewards and punishments are unpopular. A good ruler who is in charge will not do what he can't; A good man who has not done anything has refused to come forward. Up and down, inside and out, all of them are lying, and everything is very bad. ”

This description, Zhang Mingwei saw it when he checked the information back then, and he was very impressed.

At this time, when Emperor Chongzhen asked again, he first quoted this passage, and then said to Emperor Chongzhen with a serious face: "This passage is really not an exaggeration, it has been proven by history. Therefore, after careful consideration, I propose to Your Majesty ......"

Emperor Chongzhen had recovered from the blow of the fallen monarch at this time, but after hearing these words, his face was still pale, and then he hurriedly responded to Zhang Mingwei and said, "Sir, please speak!" ”

When Zhang Mingwei heard this, he turned his head to look at Zhu Cihong and said, "First, the prince is on a southern tour." In case Your Majesty and I do our best and fail in the end, the Ming Dynasty still has the backbone, and there will be no more kings in the history of the Southern Ming Dynasty competing for the throne, and the ministers will fight for power because of this, but the enemy is still in constant internal friction. ”

Emperor Chongzhen has seen the history of the Southern Ming Dynasty through a documentary. Therefore, he did not resist this proposal in the slightest, and immediately nodded: "Just do what Mr. said!" ”

As for letting the prince tour the south, there has never been such a thing, but he doesn't care about it at this time. After all, Da Ming is going to die, if there are still all kinds of scruples, it would be really stupid!

In fact, since a few years ago, Emperor Chongzhen has not cared about everything in order to save the situation.

For example, in the eleventh year of Chongzhen, Zhang Renxue, the governor of Henan, saw that thieves were all over the world, harming the people, but the generals were afraid and did not dare to fight, so he played and asked to "change to a military position, leap on a horse, and seek peace for the court."

However, this incident immediately aroused strong opposition from the Ministry of Officials, the Ministry of War, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, saying that "there is no precedent for a civilian official to be reappointed to a military position, and he may be allowed to continue to be in charge of the military in the name of supervising the military and imperial history." However, Emperor Chongzhen finally went his own way, allowed Zhang Renxue to play, and named him the governor of the capital and the chief military officer of Henan.

Historically, it is said that Emperor Chongzhen wanted to tour the south, but was finally persuaded by the civil officials. It can only be said that if he really decides, no matter what the reason is, it will be impossible to prevent Emperor Chongzhen from moving south. In the final analysis, it was just his reluctance to go.

At this time, Zhang Mingwei proposed the prince's southern tour in case of contingencies, and for Emperor Chongzhen, who already knew the historical results, of course, he didn't care if there was a precedent or not, and agreed at one bite.

After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei still asked with a serious face: "Your Majesty, how is the tax income in the north of the Yangtze River now?" ”

Hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen's face darkened, and he looked up to the sky and sighed: "There are thieves raging everywhere, so how much tax can you receive!" ”

"Then don't take it!" When Zhang Mingwei heard this, he immediately took over the topic, and his words were amazing, which immediately attracted the attention of several people in the palace, "Anyway, I can't collect it, Your Majesty doesn't make a decree, the state capitals north of the Yangtze River will reduce the taxes by half by the local officials, and the money and grain obtained will be used to consolidate the city defense and raise the people to defend the city." There are three main benefits to doing so. ”

Emperor Chongzhen's face was grim, and he asked seriously: "Please also ask Mr. for advice!" ”

"First, it is to fight for the hearts of the people!" Zhang Mingwei raised his voice very seriously and emphasized, "If the Ming Dynasty wants to prosper, the people's will is the most important. ”

After a pause, he immediately explained: "The prestige of the imperial court has been ruined by the local tyrants and inferior gentry, especially the officials and soldiers like thieves. If I remember correctly, the reason why the thief Li Zicheng finally stood out from the many thieves was because he put forward the slogan of Juntian exemption and was supported by the people. Your Majesty, this kind of thing cannot be overemphasized, and the court must re-win the hearts of the people! ”

"Your Majesty, if you think about ordinary people, on top of the taxes they usually pay, they have to pay another three salaries, but there are also natural and man-made disasters. Those people who have not been thieves have a hard life, you can imagine! Zhang Mingwei stared at Emperor Chongzhen's face solemnly and said, "At this time, there are rumors that the door is opened to welcome the king, and the king will not accept food when he comes. You say, if you can't survive on the one hand, but if you can survive on the other, what will ordinary people choose? ”

The tragic situation of the people, in fact, has been played in the imperial history, and Emperor Chongzhen has also seen it. Therefore, although Zhang Mingwei did not describe in detail what Yi Zi eats, he immediately thought of those notes.

"Father, Sir has a point!" Zhu Cihong, who had not spoken, suddenly opened his mouth and echoed, "Mencius said, the people are the most important, the society is secondary, and the monarch is light. We must pay attention to the interests of the people, so that the society can be stable. ”

This passage of Mencius does not mean that the common people are more important than the king. Rather, it is judged that in order for the king's rule to be strong, it is necessary to attach great importance to the issue of people's livelihood. Otherwise, Mencius would not have been revered by the feudal emperors as a saint of Confucius and Mencius.

Although Zhang Mingwei had already made it clear enough, he didn't expect the prince to say this, and for a while, he couldn't help but nod approvingly to Zhu Cihong.

Emperor Chongzhen also didn't expect it, and nodded with a little relief: "Well, listen to Mr. Teach carefully!" ”

When the prince saw that his opinion was praised, he couldn't help but be a little pleased, so he hurriedly agreed and continued to listen.

Emperor Chongzhen turned to look at Zhang Mingwei, and there was still worry between his eyebrows: "What Mr. said is extremely true, but if you don't collect taxes, how can you get the government expenses?" Where does the pay come from? ”

"Short-term salary, Wang Dehua, I estimate that I can get a lot. Daming has fattened so many traitors and corrupt officials, unscrupulous nobles ......" Zhang Mingwei said this, showing a little ruthlessness, "As long as you come step by step, first the inner palace, and then the Jingshi, they are all fat sheep to be slaughtered!" ”

For these people, Emperor Chongzhen of course hated them to death. He wants to be the king of the dead country, and it is these moths who have harmed him! Therefore, of course, he would not have a problem with this proposal.

"Cut taxes and win the voice of the people. At the same time, it is necessary to publicize the scourge of thieves and expose the lies of thieves. When Zhang Mingwei said this, he sneered and said, "Public opinion warfare should be taken seriously, and it is the most important part of winning the hearts and minds of the people." In addition, summarize the experience of defending the city in various places, compile it into a book, and distribute it to the magistrates. At the same time, the local officials were given greater powers, and in the event of thieves or captives attacking the city, they were allowed to requisition all the materials in the city, including those of the vassal kings and gentry. After all, once the city is broken, these will all be cheap thieves and prisoners. ”

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he was a little hesitant at first. Thinking about this, will there be disobedient feudal towns?

But as soon as this idea appeared, he was rejected by himself.

Because the local officials of Daming are all officials in different places, and it is impossible to be an official in one place for many years, there is no way to have a situation where the tail is not down. Even if it does appear, its power will only be limited to one city and one pool, and it will not be able to confront the imperial court at all.

Besides, he thinks Zhang Mingwei is very right. Rather than worrying about the possible situation of a "feudal town", it is more practical to think about the situation in case the city is attacked by thieves and captives.

Therefore, after Emperor Chongzhen finished speaking, he immediately nodded and agreed: "What Mr. said is extremely true, if the city is broken, it will only cheapen the thieves and prisoners in vain, and increase their strength." ”

Historically, magistrates did not have such authority. Only a few ruthless people will do this when they encounter a siege by thieves. Most officials, however, thought that if the city was saved, they would be attacked by the powerful vassal kings, and in the end there would be no good fruit to eat. Therefore, most of the officials did not dare to offend the powerful vassal king, and the result was naturally that many cities were destroyed.

Zhang Mingwei then turned his head to look at Zhu Cihong and said, "On the prince's side, it's not just a simple southern tour, there are also very important things to do!" ”

When Zhu Cihong heard this, he immediately became more respectful, and asked respectfully: "Please also ask Mr. for advice!" ”

For being able to save the Ming Dynasty from the danger of destroying the country, to be honest, Zhu Cihong, a little kid, has a sense of mission and is very excited.