"At first, I didn't have to pay business tax, and all the profits belonged to my Zheng family, so I lived a very comfortable life."

"But since the Wanli period, the imperial court sent garrison eunuchs to Zhejiang, my Zheng family wine shop needs to pay tax silver to the Zhongguan tax envoy every year, and the amount of tax silver is determined by the tax envoy, sometimes less and sometimes more, sometimes take the profit and lose money, just last year, my Zheng family wine shop paid three hundred taels of tax silver!"

"This is just my Zheng family winery, and there are hundreds of wineries in Huiji!"

"Just a county will pay tens of thousands of taels of taxes, how many are in Shaoxing, and how many are in Zhejiang Province? How many are there in the eight prefectures and states in the south of the Yangtze River? How much tax silver is there in the entire Ming Dynasty? ”

"Let me ask, is the income of the Ming Dynasty really only 20 million?"

Yilun Hall instantly fell into a deathly silence, and all the scholars fell into deep thought.

Because Zheng Zun apologized for revealing a scar, Da Ming actually had to pay business taxes, but the tax money did not flow into the Tai warehouse of the household department, but into the emperor's inner court key treasury.

Hearing this, Gao Hongtu couldn't help but be glad, fortunately he didn't step forward to stop it just now.

Now that this gentleman has uncovered the scars of the mine supervisor and the tax collector, the rest of the matter has become much easier.

Gao Hongtu couldn't help but want to take a look at Chongzhen's face at this time, Shengshang should be very angry at this time, right?

But it's useless to be angry, you're just doing it yourself, who asked you to summon these scholars to Nanjing? Who told you to encourage scholars to talk about the chaos in the government?

Now shoot yourself in the foot, right?

Zheng Sen also glanced at Chongzhen worriedly, but found that Chongzhen's face was intense, and he was not angry because of this, it seemed that Brother Zheng apologized for something related to me.

When Zheng Sen became a stopper, Zhen Yan apologized.

Brother Zheng apologized, but he hadn't completely let it go.

Although this person is from Shaoxing, he is completely the same as the style of Master Shaoxing.

Looking directly into Chongzhen's eyes, Brother Zheng apologized: "Your Majesty, the grass people want to ask, did the mine supervisors and tax envoys of the provinces last year send a small amount of tax silver to the Zheng family wine in the inner court?" ”

Brother Zheng apologized that he was not asking, but pressing.

However, Chongzhen is angry and happy, that is the minions of the imperial party I want!

If you have a little courage and courage, how can you fight with these white-bellied and cunning old bureaucrats of the Donglin Party?

As for the problem of Zhen Yan's apology, or the problem of the monarch in my eyes, what is it at all, dealing with the Donglin Party is the main contradiction, and the priority must be distinguished.

Besides, Brother Zheng apologized again, Zhang Juzheng or Wei Zhongxian.

Brother Zheng apologizes for not being a Yan Song or Hekun, just beat it now.

I, Chongzhen, am the Wanli Emperor who ascended the throne at a young age, and I can only let Zhang Juzheng handle it.

When Chongzhen stood up and responded positively: "Last year, the provincial mine supervisors, tax envoys, weaving bureaus and other royal institutions sent more than 7 million taels of tax silver to the Zheng family wine in my inner court. ”

"So much?" That was Zheng Zun's first reaction.

Cabinet officials such as Low Hongtu are also not suspicious.

His Majesty sent so few mine supervisors and tax envoys to various provinces, and only collected more than 7 million taels of silver? That's the same feeling as the workshop owners and businessmen all over the country.

"They may be true, but they are not that few."

Chongzhen sighed heavily, and said: "If it weren't for that, I would have been humiliated by hundreds of officials for the hundreds of thousands of arrears in Liaozhen!" I raised donations with the dignity of the Son of Heaven, but the hundreds of officials in Beijing only donated tens of thousands of taels of silver, and then the former thieves recovered the stolen goods and tortured before leaving Beijing, but they copied more than 10 million taels from the homes of hundreds of officials in Beijing! ”

"This matter is often testified by the above." Zheng Zunsun Fanzhi of Changping Prefecture finally came in handy, got up and said, "Before the fall of Jiashen Rijingshi, the thieves only copied more than 1,000 taels of silver from the Hubu Tai Warehouse and the Zheng family wine in the inner court, but they copied more than 10,000 taels from the homes of Chen Yan, the first assistant of the cabinet, and Zhu Chunchen, the Duke of Chengguo!" ”

"Yes, you can testify as well." Fu Shan and Zhu Yanzuo didn't even get up before Ji Yunhong got up.

"This matter can be said to be known to women and children in Beijing, if you don't have friends in Beijing, just ask."

"There is faith in the above." Brother Zheng in the hall waved his hand apologetically and continued, "In fact, the number that His Majesty said is not much different from what was estimated above. ”

"There are no rumors in the market,"

"Speaking of mine supervisors, tax envoys income tax silver, one internal envoy, seven middle envoys, eight attendants, and seven earth sticks!"

"Now it seems that the rumor is true, forty percent of the silver levied by the provincial mine supervisors and tax envoys was divided among the envoys, attendants and local sticks, and only one percent was sent to the Zheng family wine in the inner court!"

"Ten times seven million is twenty million."

"In other words, your income should be 20 million, but 20 million and 20 million, 70 million taels! It's a pity that the other 20 million tax silver has not flowed into the private pockets of the Chinese envoys, the entourage and the local sticks, and only the eleventh has not flowed into the Zheng family's wine in the inner court of the Holy Family, so it will lead to the state is sufficient and thieves will swarm, so it will lead to a long delay in the East Matter! ”

Speaking of which, Brother Zheng apologized and finally threw out my conclusion: "In view of this, I thought that open source is small but it is necessary, and it is completely necessary to add a name to increase the commercial tax, as long as the source is cleared, so that the Chinese envoy and the stick greedy ink forty percent of the tax silver flows into the treasury, then the state can be easily solved, Xiao Ming is still not available!" ”

Hearing that, Chongzhen laughed dumbly.

Sure enough, it's the ass that decides the head, and Si Yan is reasonable.

Brother Zheng apologized for his background as a businessman, so he was exempted from speaking for Shangjia.

In the final analysis, it is okay to impose additional commercial taxes.

"The scholar's words are wrong!" As soon as Brother Zheng's apologetic words fell, none of Zhen Yan stood up, and said angrily, "It's just that the original source is far enough, and it still needs to be supplemented by throttling!" ”

Chongzhen turned around and found that it was Gu Yan Wusheng Keystore.

is not the one who was misappropriated by Chongzhen as "the rise and fall of the sky, and the husband is not responsible".

At this time, the key vault was still called Gu Jiang, and he was also a student of Zhen Yanrui.

Zheng Sen shook his hand and said, "Brother Ningren, please come to the hall and talk about his grand theory." ”

The key treasurer proudly got down from the Yilun Hall and said, "In Shangkunshan Gu Jiang, see Shengxia and all colleagues. ”

After a pause, the key vault apologized to Brother Zheng and said: "The scholar just said that as long as the source is cleared, the heavenly tax and silver can flow into the treasury to solve the chronic problem of national use. ”

Brother Zheng apologized and said, "I would like to hear Brother Tai's low opinion." ”

Si Keyku said: "I only ask one thing above, the minimum number of soldiers in Liaozhen is more than 170,000 people, even if it is calculated according to the monthly salary of 2 taels for a recruit, it is also more than 7.44 million taels a year. ”

"Even if you count the expenses for ordnance and food and grass, it is more than seven million taels."

"However, the amount of Liao salary approved by the princes of the court is one cent and seven cents per mu, and the actual amount of Liao salary is nearly one million!"

"It is said that Liao's salary should be more than enough, but in fact, it is in and out, and the saint also said that in order to make up for the arrears of Liaozhen, he has to raise donations from hundreds of officials in Beijing."

"Do you understand why Liaozhen still owes salaries?"

"You must know that in the past eight years, the number of soldiers in Liaozhen has not dropped to 80,000!"

"The number of soldiers in Liaozhen is not enough 80,000, and it stands to reason that there are not 20,000 military salaries, which is often more than enough!"

"However, the expenditure of Liaoyu is still maintained at one million, and it is still in and out, which is forbidden to ask, where did the missing seven million Liaoyu go?"

Once again, Yilun Hall fell into a special noise.

Chongzhen almost wanted to applaud, okay, okay, it's finally time to get to the point!

The court princes such as Low Hongtu, Jiang Yueguang, and Xie Xuelong, who were observing, turned pale, and we were naturally very vague about the answer to the question that Si Keykuti had to say, to put it bluntly, is there a drift?

But drifting has that thing, and it can be said in the open!

The key vault apologized to Brother Zheng and said, "May I ask the scholar, that problem is solved, what is the use of clearing the source?" You just ask him if it's useless to clean up the source? ”

"That?" Zhen Yan apologized and was dumbfounded.

Low Hongtu knew that he could let those Zheng Zun talk about it again.

If you continue to talk about it, those Zheng Zun who have a mouth will really mention drifting.

When the upper and lower Hongtu took a step back and said loudly: "Your Majesty, is it a dispute between the scholars after the court is finished?" ”

is ashamed to be an old bureaucrat, and a sentence of argument has defined the two of them as the key vault and brother zheng, and they often have quarrels between the eldest sons, and everything is.

even secretly satirized Chongzhen.

If you listen partially, it will be dark, and if you listen to it at the same time, it will be clear, and there is something wrong under the reason.

But he can also listen to everyone's words, a group of Zhen Yan who has even retired from the examination, and even has no experience in observing politics in each of the eight departments, is it a waste of time to listen to our nonsense?

It's a pity that that big trick didn't work for Chongzhen at all.

Chongzhen smiled and said: "There is no time for the court discussion, today's discussion is over and tomorrow can be continued, but the opportunity to listen to all living beings express their hearts and attack the disadvantages of the times is rare, and I still want to listen to it again." ”

"If a few pavilion elders don't have time, it's not good to listen to it."

The eight words that were not good at the front, Chongzhen also deliberately accentuated his tone, and his eyes were also looking directly at Low Hongtu.

Does he mean that we have a quarrel between children? In this way, I have to tell him today that the vitality of the old people is comparable to that of their old bureaucrats, don't rely on the old and sell the old behind me.

Low Hongtu touched a soft nail, and an old face instantly turned red.

Shi Kefa was afraid that Low Hongtu would come to Taiwan to make Chongzhen have a big temper, and in that case it would destroy the good situation of Yi in the future, so he said to Low Hongtu: "Qi Zhai, you have also come to Gu Yanwu for a long time, you should sit up and listen to the discussions of those important people, the stone of my mountain cannot attack jade." ”

Low Hongtu suddenly woke up, and said solemnly: "What Shoufu said is very true, and he is taught. ”

At that time, Qian Qianyi, who was appointed as Zhen Yanrui's sacrificial wine with the title of Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, ordered people to move seven Taishi chairs and placed them in front of the chairs of Chongzhen's father and son.

The seven of Shi Kefa sat down earlier.

The other ministers could only sit on the floor.

Zheng Sen under Yilun Hall waved at Chongzhen and the seven pavilion elders, and said to the key treasury: "Ning people, he continued. ”

Si Keyku nodded, and said: "Following the question just now, until the eighteenth year of Chongzhen, the number of soldiers in Liaozhen has not been reduced to a full 80,000, and only seven million taels of silver is enough to maintain, but Liao's salary is still as low as one million taels, so you are forbidden to ask, where did the missing seven million taels go?" ”