Next, Emperor Chongzhen did not rush to the destination, but visited the area of Suzhou, and after seeing the extravagance here again, he began to retreat.

-Write down the thoughts in his mind with a pen, and after thinking about it for a long time, he entered the chat group, pulled up a temporary group, and pulled Wen Tiren, the first assistant of the cabinet, and Cao Huachun, the eunuch of the palm seal of the celebrant supervisor, into it.

"I have verified with my own eyes the luxurious atmosphere in Jiangnan, drunk and golden, this is because the imperial court did not guide correctly after the material wealth, and this situation appeared. In this regard, I believe that the imperial court is responsible. ”

Seeing the emperor's words, Wen Tiren and Cao Huachun couldn't help but plead guilty. As the internal and external ministers of the Ming Dynasty, they have to be responsible regardless of whether it is their responsibility or not.

However, Emperor Chongzhen naturally did not mean to ask the teacher for his two right-hand men, he just wanted to solve the problem. Therefore, he said: "The etiquette system prescribed during the Taizu period is almost no longer observed. In this regard, I believe that it is still necessary to emphasize implementation, but there are some changes to guide the change of atmosphere. ”

"Your Majesty, please!" When Wen Tiren heard this, he immediately responded.

At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhu Yuanzhang had strict regulations on etiquette, such as Shinong industry and commerce, etc., at each stage, whether there was fame, what level, what color clothes to wear, how many people went out, and how the house was. It's just that with the passage of time, people who are slowly getting rich slowly stop complying, and subtly, that's it.

In terms of law, the court did not let go of this opening, but the people did it, and the government didn't care, so it would be like this. Emperor Chongzhen brought it up again at this time, and naturally there was no problem.

If this matter is brought up again, it is not difficult to implement. After all, this regulation itself is a privileged existence as a privileged class. The higher you are, the more privileges you enjoy. Therefore, Wen Tiren and Cao Huachun didn't raise any objections, just listened to what changes Emperor Chongzhen would make next?

"I think that on the basis of emphasizing the founding ceremony, for those who are not qualified, who have money in their hands and want to enjoy the treatment that they cannot enjoy, they can give some conditions that they can meet. For example, if they want to raise the size of their house to a higher level, then how many good deeds must be done that the government recognizes, or pave roads and bridges, or provide relief to disaster victims, or fund water conservancy construction, or donate to help students, etc.; It can also be to pay for things designated by the imperial court, such as developing something practical for the people, etc.; The same is true for the color, style, etc., all of which are in accordance with what I just said. ”

After saying this, Emperor Chongzhen immediately added: "There is another point to note here, that is, the requirements are different at different levels, such as just ordinary people, but if you want to build the mansion more magnificent and better than you, then the price will be greater." In other words, the further you move up, the higher the price you will pay......"

His idea is actually a bit similar to collecting personal income tax. But at this time in the 17th century, there was no way to collect personal income tax. Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen thought about it for a long time, adapted measures to local conditions, and came up with such a trick. Those who became wealthy first limited their enjoyment of food, clothing, shelter and transportation. Of course, it is also an opening that if you have money, you can enjoy it, but you have to pay the price, which is equivalent to collecting their personal income tax in disguise.

In this world, there can be no businessmen. But if the merchant has too much money, it is not a good thing, and it must be restricted, and this new idea is an attempt in this regard.

In this way, those wealthy merchants, regardless of their background, must enjoy the money they earn. And if they want to enjoy it, they must follow the rules of the imperial court, and they can be guided to invest their money in the places that the imperial court wants them to invest, such as doing good deeds, such as developing something related to the national economy and people's livelihood, and so on.

In fact, there is another layer of implicit circumstances in this policy. is a person like Carpenter Xu, his research and development of flying cars will not be regarded as unprofessional, and there will be some rich people who put their money in the past and let him toss it, but rich people can get super-standard treatment. Once Carpenter Xu has achieved something, the government will also reward him, and his food, clothing, housing and transportation will be better than his neighbors, which will naturally attract the envy of others, and there will be no contempt.

After Emperor Chongzhen explained his thoughts in detail, Cao Huachun didn't say a word, and immediately responded: "Your Majesty's strategy is really wonderful!" In this way, the burden on the imperial court can be reduced a lot, and it will not make those who have money and don't know how to spend it meaningfully! ”

Speaking of which, in this era, if ordinary people have too much money, it is not a good thing, and there will be all kinds of people, from small county officials to emperors in the Forbidden City. But if what Emperor Chongzhen said was really clear, ordinary people would have an extra layer of dependence, which was much better than the routine of showing off their wealth and fighting for wealth in front of them.

Wen Tiren was silent for a while, obviously thinking carefully, before replying: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that this policy is good, but in practice, I am afraid that it is not easy, for example, how much land is in this field, if it is passed down from the ancestors, if it is implemented now, the excess land will be confiscated or who will buy it, in the middle, I am afraid that there will be turmoil!" “

In the old days, when you had money, you didn't hide it in the cellar, but bought it. Only land is the real asset, just like real estate in later generations. At this time in the late Ming Dynasty, land annexation was particularly serious, even if it was civil and military generals, royal relatives and nobles, etc., at least in terms of land and property, they were all over-specified.

Emperor Chongzhen listened, thought for a while, and said: "The matter of land is very important, so you can press it for the time being, and in the rest of the aspects, the cabinet and the celebrant have each come up with a charter, I will take a look at it first." ”

There's no way around it. The matter of land annexation has too great an impact, and there have been successive generations of Qingzhang land alone, but it will not be very successful every time. It was better at the height of the dynasty, but in the last days of the dynasty, it could not be carried out at all.

Emperor Chongzhen has actually been doing this land annexation, such as the feudal kings overseas, and their land can be taken back by taking the opportunity, which is the product of another major national policy. Emperor Chongzhen didn't want to have an impact on this, so he could only put this aside first.

Without the land, Wen Tiren immediately breathed a sigh of relief, followed closely behind Cao Huachun, and replied "obey the order".