Zhang Cheng is now a Jinyi Wei Qianhu. After entering the palace, Zhu Youxiao gave him a seat. Then he asked: "When Zhang Qing was in Guozijian, I heard that he was very good with a classmate surnamed Liu, what is his name?" ”

Zhang Cheng said: "Guozijian Shichen and Brother Liu Jingwen get along very well. I don't know if this is what Your Majesty is talking about. ”

"It should be this person, is he very interested in the affairs of the Liaodong spy?"

"Back to Your Majesty, it should be Brother Liu Jingwen."

"Is he still in the country?"

"Brother Liu won't finish his studies until next year, and he is still in Guozi Prison."

Zhu Youxiao asked people to announce Liu Jingwen, and then said to Zhang Cheng: "I have an idea, I want to supervise the corruption of officials in various places, although there is a royal history now, but the effect is not very good. I wonder if Zhang Qing is interested in this? ”

Zhang Cheng was already a child, but now because of his sister, he has become a Jinyi Wei Qianhu, but he can't continue the imperial examination. So when I heard that there was such an opportunity, I was naturally overjoyed.

Zhu Youxiao asked him to get up, and the two chatted. After a while, Liu Jingwen arrived, and after seeing the ceremony, Zhu Youxiao asked him some basic information, only to know that he and Zhang Cheng were both eunuchs (Guozijian who entered as lifters), so he said: "Liu Qing is already a lifter, and next year will be the year of the big exam, I don't know if you want to continue to study or come out to do something now?" ”

Liu Jingwen looked at Zhang Cheng when he heard this, Zhang Cheng kept squeezing his eyes at Liu Jingwen, and Liu Jingwen immediately knelt down and said, "I am willing to serve Your Majesty." ”

With his grades, the chance of participating in the examination and being able to get into the jinshi is very small, and now he comes out to do something, and it is the emperor who wants him to do something, so the fool will not agree.

"Very well, I am optimistic about people who do practical things. As I said to Zhang Qing just now, the corruption of officials is serious, and the imperial history does not seem to be able to play a good role in supervision. The establishment of the Department of Integrity in each prefecture, the establishment of the Bureau of Integrity in each prefecture, the establishment of the Department of Integrity in each province, and the establishment of the Office of Integrity in Beijing, which is directly managed at all levels, has nothing to do with the local government, and is mainly responsible for supervising the corruption of officials. “

"Of course, it's just been established now, so I'll monitor the tax situation first, and then do other things when there are more people. As for the personnel, all of them are recruited by yourself, and you cannot recruit officials at all levels. The issue of money is all paid by me, and accordingly, you only need to be responsible to me, and even the head of the cabinet cannot interfere in your affairs, understand? “

Zhu Youxiao knew that whether it was supervising the imperial history or giving things, he was inextricably linked with the officials of the DPRK and China, so it was difficult to make them fair. The Independent Commission Against Corruption, whether it is money or people, has nothing to do with officials at all levels, so its independence can be guaranteed.

The two hurriedly agreed, and then Zhu Youxiao briefly explained to them some rules, which were basically based on the Hong Kong Independent Commission Against Corruption, and finally he stressed that it is convenient for the people to report by setting up a "public and honest" box outside the anti-corruption institutions at all levels, because he knows that the anti-corruption must rely on the broad masses of the people, and the supervision of a few people is not as good as everyone's eyes in any case.

The next day, the emperor decreed that Zhang Cheng of Jinyi Wei Qianhu was appointed as the director of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Zheng Qipin), and Liu Jingwen, the supervisor of Guozi, was the deputy director (from Qipin), and the Daming Anti-Corruption Office was established. The Independent Commission Against Corruption has the power to supervise 100 officials.

Although this decree was simple, it startled the hundred officials, especially the Supervision Yuan and the Sixth Branch immediately came to the emperor to ask about the situation, only to learn that there were only two people in the entire Independent Commission Against Corruption, so they laughed it off, thinking that it was just that the emperor wanted to find a real shortage of officials for his brother-in-law.

As for the situation of officials, Fang Congzhe's plan is that the true color of officials at all levels is 12 taels of rice per year, which is the same as the original, and the folding color is stipulated to be 60 taels of silver per year from the ninth grade of officials, and there is no other depreciation of color, and for each grade, 30 taels of silver are added every year.

According to this plan, taking Yang Lian's Zhengqi product as an example, he can get 210 taels of silver per year, which is more than 15 taels per month, and if it is a positive product, it is 570 taels of silver per year.

Zhu Youxiao said: "Won't this be too little?" ”

Fang Congzhe said: "There are already a lot, officials are exempt from forced labor and taxes, and there are a large number of people in their hometowns who will hang their acres of land in their names, so that they can have a lot of income." In fact, the really poor officials in the court have few acres of land at home, and now this plan can at least allow them to have enough silver to feed their families, and when the collection of commercial taxes is better, Your Majesty can make another decree and raise some money, so that everyone will be grateful to Your Majesty. ”

Zhu Youxiao likes to listen to this, and if he can think about the emperor, he is a good official. However, he remembered another question: "Then if the official's family has tens of thousands of acres of land, won't the imperial court pay a lot of taxes?" This doesn't work, you have to change it. ”

"Your Majesty, this policy has been implemented since the Taizu years, and there is a quantitative limit, according to the merit, the Jinshi can be exempted from 2,000 acres of taxes, the lifting is 400 acres, and the Xiucai is 80 acres. Generally speaking, tens of thousands of acres at home can only be exempted from paying taxes of 2,000 mu, but some officials conceal the acres and population, or use other methods to make their own acres of land not have to pay taxes. ”

Only then did Zhu Youxiao know that he had taken it for granted, and now it was not easy to get the ministers to agree to collect commercial taxes, and first get this matter right, because now the agricultural tax accounts for too much of the annual revenue, and the clean-up will cause a very serious backlash. After the commercial tax came up, the money of the imperial court was abundant, and then it would come to clean up the hidden fields and hidden households.

So the next day, the emperor decreed: starting in October of the first year of the Apocalypse, commercial taxes will be collected nationwide, and the tax rate will be set at half percent. In October, officials will be given a new standard of stipends, and when the state treasury situation improves, they will be reissued before October of the Apocalypse.

Zhu Youxiao summoned Wei Zhongxian: "Wei Factory Supervisor ,......"

Wei Zhongxian immediately knelt on the ground: "Holy Lord, the slave maid does not dare to be called this name, dare to ask the Holy Lord to still call the slave and maid companions." ”

Zhu Youxiao said with a smile: "Okay, okay, you are also a person with an official title now, and it is not good to call you a companion again." ”

Wei Zhongxian kowtowed and said: "The slave and the maid are the grace of the saint, everything about the slave and the maid is given by the saint, and the slave and the maid will always be the saint's slave and maid, and I just want to accompany the saint and take care of the saint when the saint is in the prosperous world is the slave's greatest wish." ”

"I know your loyalty, but after all, you are a person with a position, and it would be better to call you the factory governor."

"Then the slave and maid please call the slave and the maid the factory minister, the slave and the maid are the saint to oversee the East Factory, and it is the factory minister."

was taught a lesson by a semi-literate eunuch, Zhu Youxiao couldn't help but feel funny, so he said: "Then the factory minister." Factory Chen, you asked Dongchang to check for me, the situation of land annexation in various places, those officials who have too many acres of land are the key targets of the inventory, I am going to be ready to start in this regard, and then your intelligence will be a powerful weapon against them, understand? ”

"The slave and maid understand, please rest assured, when the saint cleans them up, the slave and maid will prepare sufficient evidence for the saint."

"The second question, in order to prevent people from resisting taxes, you asked Dongchang and Jinyiwei to set up branches all over the country, ready to deal with those who resist taxes at any time.

Wei Zhongxian smiled sinisterly and said, "Holy Lord, if you let the slave and maid deal with the mud legs, the slaves and maids may be a little unable to let go, because the slaves and maids are originally from the mud legs and know their difficulties. But to deal with these profiteers who are unkind to the rich, the slaves and maids will definitely make them unable to survive and die. “

Zhu Youxiao applauded and said: "The factory minister said well, those ordinary farmers are our foundation, as long as they have food and money, those high-ranking officials and nobles are actually tigers made of paper, and we will fall down with a light push." So when we do things, we must first ask, is it good or bad for the people, if it is good, even if it is infamous on its back, even if the people do not understand it for a while, we must do it, this we can call it people-oriented, if I forget one day, you have to remind me. “

Wei Zhongxian didn't even dare to say with a panicked face. Zhu Youxiao said: "There is nothing to dare to, as long as it makes sense, I am not a person who can't distinguish between good and bad, and with my trust in the factory, will I still blame you?" These words moved Wei Zhongxian to tears again, and he kowtowed again and again to thank the emperor for his kindness.

Zhu Youxiao asked him to get up, and asked, "What is the monthly money of the people in the palace?" “

"Holy Lord, there are regular rules for eunuchs and palace maids with functions according to their ranks, and the general practice of the inner palace is about 10% of the court officials. It doesn't cost much in the palace anyway. Of course, if there is no grade, there will be no monthly money, like when the slave maid used to follow the saint, there was no grade, and they only relied on the saint's reward to be rich. “

Zhu Youxiao thought about it, he didn't seem to reward him with money back then, and he had to make up for it later. So he said: "Okay, you can count the number and age of the eunuchs and palace maids for me, and list their monthly routines, in detail, I will use them." “

"Holy one, shall those of the kings be counted among them?"

It doesn't seem good to move in the palaces now, so let's move later. Zhu Youxiao thought for a while and said, "Let's calculate it together and count it separately." “