The so-called Liao salary is an additional tax paid to suppress the rebellion after the outbreak of the Jianzhou Rebellion. The pen, fun, and pavilion www.biquge.info Liaoyu began in the forty-sixth year of Wanli, and after three additions during the Wanli period, it finally reached nine cents, and the one and two cents of the Chongzhen Dynasty was only started in the fourth year of Chongzhen.

At the beginning of the Manchu Qing Dynasty's entry into the customs, Dolgon once righteously and awe-inspiring the Ming Dynasty's three salaries: "The previous dynasty was the worst of the bad government and the people, so that the people were poor and stolen, and then the salaries were repressed, and then the training was carried out for each side, and then the training was increased." However, these three salaries, several times the positive offering, tired the small people, remove the fat and scrape the marrow. At the same time, in order to win the hearts of the people, he even claimed that "since the first year of Shunzhi, all additional distributions have been made in addition to the positive amount, such as Liao's salary, expulsion, training and the purchase of rice beans." ”

It is always good for the people to be exempted from the "three salaries", but in fact, this edict to exempt the "three salaries" has not been strictly implemented.

In the sixth year of Shunzhi, Wang Zhizuo, the governor of Jiangxi, mentioned in Shangshu that the Manchu Qing Dynasty claimed to completely exempt the three salaries and additional commissions, but when the Jiangxi political envoy Si Yamen reported, the Qing court's answer was changed to the tax to be collected according to the old practice of the Wanli Dynasty, so the Liao salary of the Wanli Dynasty - the nine cents of silver that had been added three times were not exempt, and only the additional commissions of the Tianqi and Chongzhen dynasties were exempted.

This incident clearly shows that the reduction and exemption of the late Ming Dynasty and the addition of factions, which were regarded as "moral politics" in the early Qing Dynasty by later generations, are actually just in vain.

In addition, Dolgon built a city outside the border and sent more than 2.5 million taels of extra money and grain to nine provinces, Shunzhi's pro-government order to offset the grain, and the end of Shunzhi once increased the levy of salaries, Ming historian Gu Cheng also pointed out in the "History of the Southern Ming Dynasty" that "Shunzhi also broke his promise in the eighteenth year of self-fertilization, restored the Ming Dynasty's salary, and gave more than 5 million taels." ”

In this way, the early Qing Dynasty claimed to have abolished the additional distribution of the three salaries, but in fact, the one cent and two cents of the Liao salary was only exempted from the three cents, and the collection continued in the name of nine cents of silver, and it was clearly written into the "Enlistment Book", and the other additional commissions were implemented many times under different names.

"According to the statistics of the account books, in Jiangxi Province, the total amount of Liao salary is 361,3621 cents and 4 cents."

The increase in the distribution of Liao salary is a problem that must be faced at the end of the Ming Dynasty. Jiashen changed dramatically, and Dashun shouted the slogan of three years of exemption, which was greatly anticipated at the beginning of the invasion of Beijing. When the Qing army entered the customs, the slogan was also to abolish the three salaries and win the hearts of the people. In the Hongguang Dynasty, Chongzhen's seventeen-year training salary was not only collected, but the Liao salary after that was never exempted.

As soon as they went out and entered, most of the people's hearts were lost, and when the Qing army went south, it was so devastating, how could it be said that there was no cause?

After the collapse of the Hongguang Dynasty, the Manchu Qing Dynasty changed its name and continued to collect the Liao salary of the Wanli period, while the Ming court was very chaotic in taxes, and then the warlords were divided, administrative, soldier-raising, and corruption, all kinds of reasons were calculated, it can be said that this additional distribution was not really exempted throughout the country.

After Chen Wen entered Jinhua Mansion, due to the need to raise soldiers, the Manchu Qing Dynasty did not reduce the taxes in Jinhua Mansion, and nine cents of silver always existed.

The average grain yield per mu in eastern Zhejiang is three to four stones per mu, and according to the current grain price, it is three to four taels of silver. For example, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, when the three salaries were in place, the peasant uprising force in the south was still small and pitiful, and it was precisely because of the prosperity of the south itself that the people could still survive even under the corruption of the government and the apportionment of the gentry.

In the past few years in Zhejiang, although Chen Wen has not been exempted from the additional commission, but the vigorous and serious administration of officials, with the administration of officials in Zhejiang has been greatly improved after several or three rounds of investigations, the continuous strict investigation has greatly reduced the phenomenon of indiscriminate fees, and the impact of ordinary people on the additional assignment has been greatly reduced. Of course, it would be better if there was no additional faction, but at least there has been no official forcing the people to rebel, at most the officials and gentry are dissatisfied.

"What does Senator Rong mean by completely reducing Liao's salary?"

Chen Wen does tax reductions and exemptions almost every year in Zhejiang, targeting disaster-stricken areas. In Jiangxi, this year's summer and autumn taxes have also been abolished, and the financial pressure is entirely supported by Zhejiang and the seizure and confiscation of the property of such killer Manchu officials as Liu Guangbi and Cai Shiying. If the 9 percent of the salary inherited from Jinhua Mansion is reduced again, it will be unbearable for the finances that are still tight today.

"The lower officials do not mean this, and the lower officials are foolish, as long as the supervision and punishment are strong enough, and the officials of the prefectures and counties do not dare to charge fees arbitrarily, the pressure on the people will not be too great. As for what the lower official wanted to say, it was another matter. ”

"Oh?"

"As far as the lower officials know, the proportion of the examination of my Ming officials is not equal, but the tax collection is rarely sufficient. However, the court was extremely strict with the test results, and it must be collected in full, and the previous arrears of taxes must also be recovered, such as the taxes during Jin Shengheng's period of rectification, which were recovered by the Tartars after the suppression. ”

"I see."

"The lower officials suggested that it is strictly forbidden for officials in various prefectures and counties to exploit the people in the name of recovery."

Although after the First World War, the Manchu Qing Dynasty unprecedentedly launched a tax reduction and exemption policy for some disaster-stricken areas, but from the Manchu court to local officials, the recovery has never stopped.

Chen Wen was in Zhejiang, and he had also recovered the taxes owed by some gentry before, and at that time, he designed two roads for them to evade taxes when they evaded taxes - either they signed an agreement and never evaded taxes in the future, otherwise they would use their family property to offset their taxes; Otherwise, you will recover the arrears accumulated over the years, and if you can't pay them, you will be exempted from fame, and it will have nothing to do with preferential exemption from now on.

As soon as this law was issued, although there was a huge opposition, in the face of Chen Wen, a name that was becoming more and more terrifying to the gentry, he basically either signed an agreement or paid the arrears. In the final analysis, the preferential exemption policy of the Ming Court is something that they are never willing to give up, and it is really exempt from taxes ranging from tens of meters to thousands of acres, not for fun.

"How are the preparations for the Jiangxi Di Bao going?"

Chen Wen did not immediately reply to Rong Qian's proposal, but asked another civil official about another matter.

"If you go back to the king, you are basically ready, and you can finalize and print it tomorrow at the latest."

"Jiangxi Di Bao" and "Zhejiang Di Bao" are the same, both are the mouthpiece organs under the Propaganda Department. After determining that the "Jiangxi Di Bao" would soon be up and running, Chen Wencai turned to Rong Qian and said: "The order of the day cannot be changed." The specific details will be discussed when the investigation team returns, and the decree will also need to be explained in the "Jiangxi Di Bao". ”

"Xia Guan understands."

Seeing that Rong Qian didn't sit down, Chen Wen asked, "Does Senator Rong have anything else to say?" ”

"Xia Guan still has something to explain."

"Please continue."

I have been working in the government of Zhejiang for a long time, and what is important here is that there are opinions that can be raised, but once the decree is issued, we must do our best to implement it. The first proposal was not clearly agreed, but Rong Qian was not discouraged.

"According to the investigation of the lower officials, Jiangxi Province, including Nanchang, Ruizhou, and Yuanzhou, all have the phenomenon of floating grain. The time in Yuanzhou and Ruizhou is too tight, and the lower officials have not yet confirmed, but only in Nanchang Province, except for Wuning County, the floating grain is as high as 195,122 taels of silver, and as much as 149,131 stones. ”

Floating grain, according to records, originated from the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty entrenched here Chen Youliang's levy, at that time the additional levy higher than the tax at that time was called floating grain, and the Ming Dynasty did not abolish it. In the Qing Dynasty, many officials sent by the Manchu Qing Dynasty to Jiangxi, including the governor, the political envoy, the governor, and the prefect of the three prefectures, had many of them who applied for exemption or exemption of floating grain, such as Cai Shiying, and the prefect of Yuanzhou who had just returned to Shun not long ago.

In fact, in the Qing Dynasty, floating grain was reduced and reduced many times, but in the end, it was not completely completed. This additional tax weighed on the people of these three prefectures for 600 years, and although the Manchu Qing Dynasty made limited reductions and exemptions for floating grain, they continued to increase the amount of grain and other items, and the burden on the common people was even heavier than in the Ming Dynasty.

Hearing the results of this investigation, the officials present began to talk to each other, and some people had already come into contact with this matter, but they did not investigate as specifically as Rong Qian. As soon as they heard Rong Qian mention it at the meeting, they began to think about the impact of this matter on the departments they were responsible for.

"There is no floating grain problem in Wuning County?"

"It doesn't exist."

Nanchang Province is geographically divided into two parts, one is the area where the Ganjiang River flows out of Linjiang Province and flows into Poyang Lake, and the other part is the mountainous area in the northwest of Jiangxi, of which Wuning County is in the north of the latter, near Jiujiang Province.

"The matter mentioned by Senator Rong is very important, but this matter is very important, and it is necessary to send an investigation team to conduct a detailed investigation and reach a conclusion before discussion."

Rong Qian also knew that nearly 200,000 taels of silver, as well as nearly 150,000 stone of grain, and only one government, this was indeed not something that could be decided in one sentence or two. And he mentioned it just to cause a lot of attention, so that he could conduct a detailed investigation into this matter.

Next, officials from various departments mentioned many problems in Jiangxi Province, which were not announced until lunchtime.

Many investigation teams have not yet returned, and the details of the situation are not yet known, but there are indeed several problems in Jiangxi Province. For example, the population has declined sharply, such as the abandonment of a lot of land, such as tax issues, the tax problems of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, the floating grain that already existed in the Ming Dynasty, etc., often involve a large scope, and must be verified in detail before a decision can be made.

In addition, there are some old problems such as the guardhouse, and new problems involving the palace and the imperial weapon field. All in all, this newly recovered area needs to be managed well, but more needs to be done.

The morning meeting was mainly devoted to the civil affairs work of the governor's yamen, and officials from the departments involved in the meeting were present. After lunch, Chen Wen will start to preside over the afternoon meeting, which is mainly focused on military affairs and military-related matters. However, this time, it is no longer the investigation results of various departments and the discussion of reports, but Chen Wen's public discussion of the matters that have been planned before.

"As we all know, our Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Wang Divisions have now recovered the eight prefectures in eastern Zhejiang, one province in Jiangxi, and some prefectures and counties in Guangdong and Fujian, and are now the largest military group in Huangming. However, since most of this area has been recently recaptured, our military strength is not enough to deal with threats from all sides, and it is one thing to expand our army, and further strengthening our army is also a top priority. Especially in this bloody battle with the Tartars, our spear array and mandarin duck array do not have the upper hand in front of the Spanish phalanx that the captives have learned from Taisi, and they need to find out the shortcomings and strengthen them. ”

Since its founding, Chen Wen's army has always been adjusting its military system and tactics to cope with a more complicated situation. From the original southern anti-Japanese version of the Mandarin Duck Formation, to the northern border version of the Mandarin Duck Formation that began on Tiantai Mountain, and then to the spear formation that was later used to make up for the Mandarin Duck Formation, as well as mounted infantry, professional sappers and artillery, and so on.

Now, the hand-to-hand combat that once relied on its fame has fallen into a disadvantage, if it were not for the stronger ability of the Ming army to endure casualties, especially the sudden rise of the grenadiers, I am afraid that the victor will become the Qing army.

The officials present have long been mentally prepared for this, and Chen Wen has also consulted the opinions of relevant personnel on many things, and military reform is imperative.

"In the past six months, our army has fought two field battles with Tartars in Siming Mountain and Yushan County, and has carried out effective offensive operations against Guangxin Mansion and the fortress north of Guangxin Fu City. Winning is winning all, but there are many problems exposed. First of all, there is the issue of tactics in field warfare. ”

Speaking of this, Chen Wen sat down, and Zhang Gongyan, the operational staff officer of the General Staff Department of the Army, got up from his seat, walked to the end of the conference table close to Chen Wen, and gave the officials present a flat-chested courtesy of the Huaxia Revival Association.

Zhang Gongyan was located behind him on a wooden shelf with a curtain on it. After Zhang Gongyan saluted, he removed the curtain, revealing a board on a shelf with several sheets of paper painted with patterns. Just lift the front sheet of paper behind the board and the next one will be revealed.

Next, Zhang Gongyan walked closer, pointed to the pattern on the paper with a command ruler and began to speak: "As we all know, our army has encountered Tartar's southeast warp standard and other troops in Yushan, tens of thousands of troops, and they have trained a formation called the Spanish phalanx, so as to get rid of the dilemma of not being able to confront our army in the field. ”

"As far as the Marshal knows, and the Judge Advocate General's Department has received information from the Jesuit monk, it is revealed that this formation appeared in Tessie a hundred years ago, and that a high-ranking military general in a country called Spain was modified from the common formation of another country called Switzerland in Tessie. Since the appearance of this formation, it has been rampant in Taixi, invincible, and its combat effectiveness is extremely amazing. ”

This is what many generals who attended the meeting saw with their own eyes on the battlefield, and in the face of the formation of the Ming army, this Spanish phalanx was not inferior, and even had an advantage for a time, and it was conceivable that it could run rampant with Taixi.

"This formation was originally composed of four arms, namely sword and shield warriors, halberders, spearmen, and musketeers. The sword and shield warrior here is a sharp warrior similar to the sword and shield soldier, and the musket is the name of the fire gun in Tessie. Explaining this, Zhang Gongyan continued: "After more than a hundred years of development, there are fewer and fewer troops in this formation, and now there are only spearmen and musketeers left, and the proportion has gradually evolved to half of what the Tartars have practiced, which is consistent with the light and heavy infantry in the mandarin duck formation inherited from Qi Shaobao when our army was on the northern border!" ”