March 15, although it was the day of synodism, there was no pilgrimage meeting.

One is because the emperor is young and has not yet been in power, and the other is because the court meeting system has actually reached the middle and late Ming Dynasty, and the emperors have been deserted in the upper dynasty. Jiajing didn't even go to court for 30 years, and the court's ceremony changed greatly at this time.

However, although the emperor did not fall in love with the court after the Zhongming Dynasty, it did not mean that he did not care about the government. Holding a court meeting and going to the court to listen to the government is just a ritual. After arriving in the Zhongming Dynasty, the court meeting was more of a kind of etiquette, a kind of passing scene, and several things were reported at the court meeting every day, all of which were fixed, and even many things had been discussed.

In an era when the cabinet and the celebrant system of internal and external dynasties had been firmly established, there was no big difference between whether the emperor went to court or not.

Liu Jun got up before dawn in the morning, he stayed in Beppu last night, Shen Man, Liu Rushi and Chen Yuanyuan live here, the recent epidemic prevention in Beijing, the entertainment industry is also greatly affected, the three of them simply gave themselves a vacation, stayed at home to play the piano and sing music, Liu Jun also often comes these days.

Liu Ru was combing his hair, Chen Yuanyuan dressed him, and Shen Man was next to him to talk.

After taking care of it, Liu Jun said to them, "You go back to sleep again, it's not dawn yet, let you not get up, and you don't listen, you have to toss for a long time." ”

"It's okay, will you come over at night?" Chen Yuanyuan asked.

Liu Jun tied a short hammer to his leg and put it flat, "When I go to the princess at night, you don't have to wait for me." ”

Liu Ru said with a smile, "The prince is tired of running like this, or the prince asks the princess to see if she can accommodate the three of us." If we can accommodate it, we will move to the Hou Mansion in Zhennan, and serve her by the way. ”

"If it's my sister, don't say it. The princess is pregnant. Shen Man interrupted her on the side, the eldest woman Lu Xueqi couldn't accommodate them, and the Korean princess probably couldn't accommodate the three of them either. Especially now that the princess is still pregnant, they are all people who have been concubines in the eunuchs' family, and they know very well that after those eldest women are pregnant, they are even more intolerant of concubines approaching. In those deep mansion compounds. There is a war between women, and pregnancy can become the fuse of war.

Many wives and concubines in the backyard of many families compete for favor, and they often use pregnancy to give birth to children, and there are also many women who murder those unborn children.

"Isn't it good that you are like this now, you are free, why do you have to go to other people to see your face, it's not that you can't find it. If you are really bored, think of a way to try harder. Having a child doesn't mean there's nothing to do. Liu Jun said with a smile.

"Lord, giving birth to a child is not something that we women can do by ourselves. Lord Wang, you only have less than ten nights on our side in a month, and our three sisters can only get three days a month. A year, it's only thirty-six days, and it's too difficult to conceive a child. Liu Ru said angrily. I have been following Liu Jun for a few years, and there has been no movement in my belly so far. It really makes them feel uncomfortable.

was originally a concubine, and when she was young, she could entertain people with sex. But when Shaohua is no more, if there is no more son and half a daughter, this day will be sad. The big house Lu over there doesn't want to see them, and they haven't let them come to see them so far.

"Okay, I'll just take more time to come over in the future. Trying to get you all pregnant, with twins. ”

"I want a dragon and phoenix fetus!" Chen Yuanyuan shouted with a shy face.

"I want three children, three big fat boys." Liu Ru has a bigger appetite.

"I'm going to give birth to a son for my lord too!" Shen Man was also busy.

"Okay, well, all of them will be born, and if you want to give birth to a few, you can give birth to a few. All of you. I'll go first! Liu Jun laughed and left.

For the women of this era, what sweet words, what jewelry, what mansions and villas are not as happy as giving her a few children.

Mothers are more precious than children, especially for these concubines, when they have children, they have a guarantee of status. In many large families, if they cannot have children and their husbands die early, they are often forced to remarry or become monks.

Liu Jun's women are not few, not counting those nameless maids and maids, there are only two wives and five concubines. Now the eldest son born to Lu Xueqi will be called Liu Jun's father, and she just found out that she was pregnant again.

The North Korean princess is also about to give birth, and Bao'er and Yaoyao are also pregnant. But the three women in the other house here have not moved.

Under the escort of the brigade guards, Liu Jun rode a carriage to the court.

Although there was no emperor in the court, the hundred officials still went to the golden palace first to bow to the empty dragon chair and shout long live.

The Chancellery's meeting now replaces the Emperor's court.

Under normal circumstances, only a small number of important ministers of the Prime Minister's Office participate in the deliberations, and when it comes to important affairs, they will summon all the important ministers of the DPRK and the Central Ministry, and even the imperial historians and ministers with the science and technology will also come to attend.

Today's premiership meeting was an enlarged meeting, attended by more than 100 people, and even the emperor was invited to listen to the government.

The ministers present at today's meeting had already been notified and reminded that they were talking about recruiting Wu Sangui's rebels and re-establishing contact with the Manchus.

All the officials looked at Liu Jun, but found that the king of Liaodong, who was sitting next to the emperor, was talking to the emperor cordially at this time, and the emperor nodded from time to time.

Everyone thought that Liu Jun was talking to the emperor about recruiting peace and negotiating peace, but in fact, Liu Jun did not mention anything about it in his conversation with the emperor. He was talking to the emperor about salt affairs, and the salt reform had officially begun.

At present, the newly established Salt Administration has officially taken over the large salt farms in Changlu and Lianghuai, and has set up transshipment salt warehouses in some important places such as Tianjin, Denglai, Kaifeng, Yangzhou, Nanjing, Jiujiang, Wuchang, Xiangyang and other places, and salt warehouses in provincial capitals have also been established.

These things have been unfolding, just with a low profile of some scales.

Liu Jun sent the Jinyi guards to keep an eye on the salt merchants, waiting for them to jump out. But to Liu Jun's surprise, I don't know if he has been too strong, causing these salt merchants to be very calm, the salt farm was taken over, the salt was controlled by the Salt Bureau, and the market was withdrawn, but these people have been silent.

Originally, Liu Jun also thought that Wu Sangui's side had raised the banner of Qingjun killing Liu Jun, so these salt merchants should always respond.

As a result, the salt merchants continued to be cowardly.

The salt merchants everywhere are rich. But he also knows how to see the wind and steer the rudder, and now Liu Jun's power is in full swing, and it is not an exaggeration to say that Liu Jin and Wei Zhongxian, who have been more than many years. After many of them went against Liu Jun and ended up, the salt merchants also became more knowledgeable.

The salt merchants also have backgrounds, and now the richest salt merchants in various places are none other than Yangzhou salt merchants. And Yangzhou salt merchants were hit by Liu Jun once a few years ago. Now the richest salt merchants in Yangzhou are standing behind the three wealthy families in Beijing.

They are the Li family of Wuqing Hou, the Zhou family of Jiading Bo, and the Tian family. These three families are all relatives of the emperor, the Li family of the Marquis of Wuqing is the maiden family of the Empress Dowager Li, the mother of the Wanli Emperor, the Jiading Bo Zhou family is the maiden family of the current Zhou Empress Dowager, and the Tian family is the maiden family of the Tian Taifei.

Last time, Yangzhou salt merchants were raided, and Zhou Kui entered the palace to sue Liu Jun. As a result, he was fined and confined by Chongzhen, and he also understood Liu Jun's power. The last time the Beijing army mutinied, the Wuxun family in Beijing was basically implicated, and now who doesn't know that Liu Jun can't be provoked.

However, Yanli is a big piece of fatty meat, and now this piece of meat has been swallowed by Liu Jun alone, and these people are also distressed, but they dare not speak out.

Liu Jun also knows this. This is what he talked to the emperor about today.

Liu Jun told the emperor that he was willing to contract all the imperial stores. In the future, all the shops of the royal family will be handed over to Liu Jun, and then there is no need to manage them, just sit and take the money.

"A net proceed of two million silver dollars a year."

Zhu Cihong was very moved when he heard this proposal, and the imperial store was also a characteristic of the Ming Dynasty. The emperor is a private shop opened by the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and it is said that it began in the time of Zhengde.

Most of these emperors' privately owned shops were located in places with convenient transportation in the north.

Such as Beijing's Jiumen, Mingyu, Jiqing Erfang, Rongzheng Street, Lugou Bridge and Zhangjiawan, Hexiwu, Linqing along the canal, and the military towns in the north Xuanfu, Datong, Shanhaiguan, Guangning and other places. The shop houses were either from the confiscated powerful shops, or from the official stores, or they were built after the forced demolition of private houses.

The managers were directly appointed by the emperor. For example, when it was built in Zhengde, it lasted until the end of the Ming Dynasty in the Rong Government Street, and other six imperial shops, that is, by a governor of the eunuch, and dozens of clerks of the secretary's banknotes, the office of the governor and eunuch was set up in the treasure and shop.

The purpose of opening the imperial shop is mainly to make profits, and the specific business is either a tea hotel, or a tooth shop, a storehouse, or a flower wine shop where prostitutes live, and some are used to collect commercial taxes. Among them, only Baohe six stores collect tens of thousands of taels of taxes a year.

But the management officials of the imperial store. often used the name of the emperor and his power to intercept merchants at will, extort and extort money.

Until now. In fact, although there are many imperial stores, there is very little money that is actually handed over to the emperor. Most of the proceeds were embezzled by those who handled it.

Not to mention two million a year, if there can be a million emperors a year, they will laugh from ear to ear. Although Zhu Cihong is young, he also understands the role of money.

Huangdian, Liu Jun thinks, as long as the business is good, it is really good to make money, with the golden sign of Huangdian, what business is not good?

However, Liu Jun wants to contract the royal store not to make money, Liu Jun has a way to make money. He wanted to contract this imperial store, firstly, because he didn't want those officials and eunuchs to succeed him, and he used the imperial store to embezzle and demand money everywhere in the name of the emperor. On the other hand, he wanted to use this imperial shop to make up for those nobles and royal relatives.

Liu Jun plans to pull these people into this imperial business, but they don't need to really participate in the operation, as long as they invest some shares and silver, and then sit and wait for dividends with dry shares.

As long as the operation is good, even if so many imperial stores in the Ming Dynasty pay five million in contract fees to the emperor a year, and after removing the tax amount, they can still make a lot of money. Take out part of the profits and distribute them to these nobles, Liu Jun thinks it's okay.

Just spend money to raise these noble pillar insects first, so as not to make trouble with these guys. It's not that Liu Jun doesn't want to liquidate them, it's just that it's not time yet, so stabilize them first.

"In the future, all the imperial stores will be integrated together, and it will be called Daming Royal Department Store Commerce."

"Can you really hand over two million silver dollars a year?" The emperor asked with great interest.

"Of course, and you can pay a million deposits first, and the rest in batches." Liu Jun assured.

"Brother Huang, I still have more than 50,000 acres of Huangzhuang, but I receive very little grain every year, and I have to send a large number of eunuchs to manage it, do you want to contract these Huangzhuang too?" Zhu Cihong is now very sensitive to money, and he will take the initiative to attract investment.

The Huangzhuang and the Huangdian are similar, and the emperor privately owns the Zhuangtian. However, the imperial village not only has the emperor's Zhuangtian, but also the Crown Prince's Zhuangtian, and the palace of the queen and the queen mother.

But the number of more than 50,000 hectares of Huangzhuang is still very scary, that is more than 5 million acres of fields. However, if it is compared with the Zhuangtian occupied by the clans and clans of the Ming Dynasty, it is nothing. The farms of the vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty are more than 200,000 hectares and more than 20 million acres.

"If Your Majesty intends to hand over the Imperial Village to the ministers, it will be fine. How to pay the field rent according to the annual output of 30% and 5% of the field rent per mu? ”

Zhu Cihong calculated in his heart and asked, "How much did you produce that year?" ”

Liu Jun thought about it, Huangzhuang is all good and good land, and there must be a lot of output. "Now more than 50,000 hectares, how many grains can Huangzhuang hand over in a year?"

According to some of the situation in the Huangzhuang that Liu Jun now knows, the tenants in the Huangzhuang are far worse than the ordinary tenants, they are called tenants, their status is still hereditary, and they not only have to pay the tenants of the village, but also have to bear the state taxes, which is regarded as one tenant and two taxes.

"I know that the rent of Huangzhuang land is three times that of Mintian."

"Zhuang rent three times as much as Mintian?" Liu Jun was shocked.

Zhu Cihong, who was still a little proud just now, was a little surprised, "Is it very high?" ”

Liu Jun nodded, it was really tall.

"Your Majesty, the minister thinks that it is not a good thing that the rent is too high, this is killing chickens and taking eggs, and fishing with all his might. The imperial court has recently implemented rent and interest reductions to recuperate and restore the vitality of the world. The minister thought that the Huangzhuang should also implement rent reduction. ”

"Do you want to reduce rent? How much more tenants can you rent that year? ”

"If it is reduced to thirty and a half, even if it is calculated according to one stone of grain per mu, there are three and a half buckets, 50,000 hectares of land, and there are 1.75 million stone of grain a year, which is 3.5 million yuan according to the current calculation of two silver dollars per stone of grain." Liu Jun replied.

Zhu Cihong was surprised when he heard this number, "No, it's reduced to thirty and a half, and there are still three and a half million silver dollars?" Then why did I check Zhuang Tian's accounts and find that the annual rent collection is less than one million? ”

Zhu Cihong felt that he had been cheated again.

"Brother Huang, I will hand over all the more than 50,000 hectares of Huangzhuang to Brother Huang to take care of, and I only need to give me 3 million a year, okay?"

Liu Jun listened to the emperor's words, and also understood that the emperor must have been pitted by the eunuchs below and the stewards of Zhuangtian. The output of grain is relatively fixed, and the rent collected by the farmland is so high, but the emperor does not get as much rent as the normal landlord, and there is no doubt that the people who handle it in the middle are embezzled layer by layer.

Liu Jun was a little strange, what did the emperor want so much silver for? He was a little emperor in his teens, and he just saw the money like this, did he know how to spend it after taking so much money?

However, Liu Jun still agreed, more than 5 million acres of land, take over, even if he doesn't make money, he can benefit many people. Although this may offend many eunuchs and the head steward of the grange, Liu Jun doesn't care much about these moths.

After negotiating a two-to-one deal with Liu Jun, he could get a stable income of five million silver dollars a year, and the little emperor Zhu Cihong was very happy and announced the start of the prime minister's meeting.

Feng Yuanbiao, the right attendant of the Ministry of War, came out of the ranks and proposed to surrender Wu Sangui and liaise with the Manchus to renegotiate peace, and Chen Xinjia, the secretary of the Ministry of War, seconded the proposal, and Wu Fu also agreed.

Zhu Cihong asked Liu Jun, "Brother Huang, what do you think?" ”

"Since Yuanfu and the ministers all feel that it is the best policy to recruit Wu Sangui and negotiate peace with the Manchus, then I have no opinion."

Zhu Cihong nodded, "Since Wu Shoufu and the county king have agreed, let's negotiate peace!" (To be continued.) )