Winter is a snowy season, and this year's snow in the capital is exceptionally heavy.

Zizi ......

At noon, a group of important ministers came in a sedan chair to step on the snow. Since the snow on the ground has not had time to clear, the boots step on it to squeeze out the air, so it makes a rhythmic sound.

Chang Feng led Jin Wuwei to guard the Xiyuan Gate against the wind and snow, and saw that these important ministers had gathered one after another, but they knew that a grand financial meeting would be held today.

"Ruixue Mega Year, Good Snow!"

Hubu Shangshu Li Si looked a little older, looked up and didn't care about a snowflake falling on his eyelashes, looked at the goose feather snow floating down from the sky, and let out a heartfelt sigh.

Whether it is the finances of the empire or the food and clothing of ordinary people, the Ming Dynasty now needs a bumper year.

Although more and more voices now call the emperor a tyrant, the object of the tyranny of the empire has always been for the rich and the unkind, and the empire enforces benevolent policies to the common people.

If it can usher in a good year, then the imperial court will not only have more fiscal revenue, but also get enough productivity to build water conservancy and develop the state.

As long as you survive the hard days in the early stage, then the Ming Dynasty will definitely become a powerful country in the true sense, and it will be able to grab resources from the surrounding areas to develop itself.

"This snow is not allowed to fall like this again, once the construction period of the shipyard is delayed, Your Majesty will blame the Ministry of Industry and will not be able to afford it!" Jia Jun, the secretary of the Ministry of Works, also came in a thick coat, but protested quietly.

Since the discovery of five gold mines in Luzon by the Ming Dynasty, the emperor was even more convinced of Taizu's dream that there must be high-yielding corn, sweet potatoes and potatoes on the other side of the ocean.

Now the Royal Shipyard has started the plan to build the Zhiyuan Treasure Ship, which will cross the East China Sea and send envoys to bring back the seeds of high-yield crops grown on the other side of the ocean.

Although he is not a Tobe scholar, he is also aware of the value of high-yielding seeds. Once there are really high-yield crops, then the value is far better than the Luzon gold mines, and the people of the Ming Dynasty can live a truly abundant life.

It's just that this snow continues to fall like this, which will not only affect the time when the Zhiyuan treasure ship is launched, but also seriously affect the shipbuilding progress of the Zhiyuan treasure ship.

Li Si, the secretary of the household department, knew the difficulties of Jia Jun's leadership of the Ministry of Works, and what the weather would be next depended on the sky, so he only glanced at Jia Jun.

Because of their different identities, they have different positions, but they ultimately hope that the empire can become richer and stronger.

The sedan chairs arrived one after another, but the sedan chairs stopped more than ten meters away from the Xiyuan Gate, and the officials who arrived later saluted one after another.

"Li Shangshu, please check the number of people!"

The second assistant Liu Ji is now honestly playing the role of an auxiliary politician, and when he saw that the important personnel of the six ministries had almost arrived, he lightly reminded Li Yu, the secretary of the ministry.

Li Yu has been sitting in the position of the secretary of the ministry for four years, and the position of the secretary is becoming more and more stable, and he has become more and more of a great leader.

There are a total of eighteen important ministers in the six departments, and the Imperial History King of the Left Capital of the Metropolitan Procuratorate came to supervise, but the two waiters of the Ministry of Industry and the left waiter of the household department are not in the capital, so the total number of people is seventeen.

After Li Yuqing finished checking the personnel, he reported to Liu Ji: "Lord Second Assistant, except for Lord Yuanfu, the other personnel have already arrived!" ”

Wan An is old after all, especially in winter.

Some time ago, he suddenly had abdominal cramps and couldn't get out of bed, and the emperor sent the imperial doctor to treat Wan'an, but his health was only two days away, but he contracted the disease of wind and cold, causing him to stay in bed for several days.

Emperor Hongzhi was magnanimous to Wan'an, not only sending imperial doctors to diagnose and treat him, but also granting Wan'an's sick leave, and often sending people to care about his condition.

Now Wan'an has not arrived, and it is likely that he cannot be there due to illness.

Ahem......

It was at this moment that a sedan chair came in a hurry from the south, and the people in the sedan chair let out a fierce coughing sound.

"Xiaguan meets Motosuke-sama!" The second assistant Liu Ji and the others faced the rickety old man who walked out of the sedan chair, and immediately saluted respectfully.

After Wan An went through a series of illnesses, although he could always spend it without danger, the whole person looked old, and he was like the figure who was running wildly in Fengtianmen Square that day.

Ahem......

Wan An's hands were as thin as firewood, and when his son Wan Yi helped him out of the sedan chair, he couldn't help coughing a few more times, and waved his hand lightly to the saluting ministers.

"Dad, why don't you take a leave!" Wan Yi felt his old father's body tremble slightly, and couldn't help but speak out to dissuade him.

Although Wan An's expression was rigid, his eyes were still sharp, but he glared at his son fiercely, and then handed Liu Ji a look.

Liu Ji and Wan An have been working together for many years, so they naturally know what Wan An means, so he said to the important ministers present: "Let's follow Lord Yuanfu in!" ”

Li Yu, the secretary of the ministry, and Jia Jun, the secretary of the ministry, silently exchanged a look, but they didn't expect Wan An to be seriously ill and still insist on coming, and this act alone was worthy of their respect.

"Old immortal, I'll see how long you can last!" He Qiaoxin, the secretary of the Criminal Department, looked at Wan An's faltering figure, but he hated it.

Although Wan An was also a minister, he was not a Qingliu official, but ascended to the throne by flattering, so he was spurned by their upright officials.

Now after coming to the Hongzhi Dynasty, Wan'an, a courtier, has tried his best to tie up with the tyrant Hongzhi and has become the biggest traitor since the founding of the Ming Dynasty.

It is precisely because of this that they all hope that Wan An and Liu Mian will both die, so that they will be replaced by real Qingliu officials to lead them to restore Zhou Li and create a prosperous world.

Hey?

Wang Yue was not a participant in the Supreme Conference, but had been acting as a bystander, but he noticed the vicious gaze of He Qiaoxin, the secretary of the Criminal Department, and immediately stared at this person with vigilance.

The venue of the Supreme Council is still arranged in the Imperial Study, and the floor heating is now in operation.

After all the important ministers came here, they took off their furs because of the snow hair on their bodies.

The robes on their bodies were a special reward for Hongzhi when he disposed of the spoils of war when the Ming Dynasty recovered Jianzhou last year.

Although their financial resources are not a problem to buy a fur robe, wearing the fur they purchased is too eye-catching, but the emperor's reward is naturally another matter.

It is precisely because of this that they attach great importance to the fur on their bodies, first hanging the robe carefully outside, and then entering the warm spring-like imperial study.

They can be said to be frequent visitors here, and now they enjoy the underfloor heating, and there is an indescribable comfort all over their bodies.

Everyone has become accustomed to this mode of deliberation, compared with the previous model, the decision-making is now more efficient and fast, especially the cooperation between various departments seems to be close.

The twenty-one chairs had already been prepared, and the officials who had come to the ceremony took their seats according to their yamen and official positions after the salute.

"Let's get started!"

Zhu Youzhu was quietly sipping fragrant tea in the attic, and when he saw that the officials of the interior and the six ministries had arrived, he spoke lightly.

The most important thing in the financial meeting is naturally money, although the income of the Ming court has been greatly improved this year, but the expenditure is also huge.

is different from what many people think, thinking that as long as the feudal dynasty can achieve political clarity, it can create a prosperous era of the Zhou Dynasty.

It's just that the social productive forces are here, and the volume of social wealth cannot be exhausted. Not to mention that it is impossible to squeeze all the rich gentry dry, even if all the social wealth can really be returned to the imperial court for redistribution, in fact, it will only be able to live a good life for a few years.

It is precisely because of this that if the Ming Dynasty wants to be truly strong, it is still not enough to get back some social wealth from the official gentry, and the most important thing is the improvement of social productivity.

Up and down the attic, it is already considered two levels.

Guo Yong stood below with Buddha dust in his hand, and when he got the signal, he said in a unique tone: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is next year's financial meeting, and after the household department explains the details of this year's finances, everyone will speak freely!" ”

Although everyone already knew that the household department was overstretched, they didn't know the specific number, so they turned their heads to look at Li Si.

Li Si's buttocks didn't move, but coughed lightly.

Wu Yu, the right attendant of the household department, had already prepared for the release of various economic data of the country, but there was no joy on his face.

"The extravagant tax is only two and a half million taels?"

"Less is a little less, but it's still an important input!"

"The biggest problem now is that our expenses are too large to bear at all!"

……

After hearing the details of the imperial court's financial expenditures, Xu Qiong and other officials of the Ministry of Rites did not have the slightest joy, but seemed worried.

Since Emperor Hongzhi ascended the throne, he has rectified the salt administration, cleared the acres of land, confiscated the first corruption of the Ming Dynasty and introduced extravagant taxes, all of which have increased fiscal revenue.

It's just that, as some people have lamented, the biggest crux of the problem now is that the imperial court's expenditure is too large, so that it is in the predicament of a fiscal deficit.

Zhu Youzhu in the attic silently took a sip of tea, and also sighed secretly, and also realized that the biggest financial problem was actually excessive expenses.

However, the Ming Dynasty is now full of ills, and the quality of life of the people will continue to decline. If nothing is done, even if there is no Jianzhou Jurchen, there will be other forces to overthrow the decaying dynasty.

It is so, although he has no intention of changing the political system, to build the most powerful dynasty, and even to become the only tyrant to rule the world.

"Although we have a lot of financial expenditures, which one is not a good move, and which one can be stopped?" Li Yu, the head of the household, listened to these voices in his ears and immediately sent out soul torture.

Due to various factors, the financial expenditure of the imperial court is indeed very high, but each expenditure is not the result of hot-headedness, but a well-thought-out decision-making by them.

Harnessing the Yellow River is related to the people's livelihood and water conservancy projects, and it is also the livelihood of the people in Henan, Hebei and Shandong provinces, so it is impossible to stop it.

The development of Jianzhou is not only the hope for the survival of millions of victims, but also the Northeast Granary Plan related to the food security of Daming Beijing, and there is no reason to stop it.

The plan to strengthen the army, which is the cornerstone of the Ming Dynasty's prosperity, not only guarantees the safety of the Ming Dynasty and the border people, but also escorts the Ming Dynasty to go out, so it can not be stopped.

Zhiyuan treasure ship, which seems to be the least important project, but it is a strong guarantee for the Ming Dynasty to truly become strong, through the promotion of planting high-yield crops so that more people can be freed from land constraints.

Daming has been intensively cultivating for thousands of years, many of the planting experience has been perfected, and with their composting technology, the only way to increase production is to invent chemical fertilizers.

It's just that the progress of science and technology is never achieved overnight, but requires accumulated scientific research.

Even now, the Ministry of Industry still can't get nylon ropes, and it's not easy to get fertilizer, so the best thing to do is to introduce high-yield crops.

If high-yielding crops are available, the productivity of the whole society can be increased, and food can also increase rapidly.

It is precisely in this way that, compared with the rapid growth of grain production, it will be a very cost-effective transaction to squeeze a financial expenditure to build a Zhiyuan treasure ship, and there is naturally no reason to stop.

"It's useless to fight more, empty talk is misleading the country, and hard work is prosperous! Now we have to focus on the current difficulties and solve the most urgent funding problems in the near future! Li Yu, the secretary of the ministry, is now more and more calm, and immediately expressed his opinion.

Xu Qiong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, and other officials knew that these expenses really could not be stopped, so they silently closed their mouths.

"At present, the biggest problem is the initial funding gap for the development of Luzon gold mines, and after the verification of the officials of the accompanying Ministry of Industry, it is estimated that 3 million taels will be invested!" Li Si, the head of the household, sighed lightly, and revealed the biggest problem.

The development of the Luzon gold mines had been scheduled for several months, but the emperor could no longer afford the upfront costs of opening the mines after allocating all the silver prepared by the household to the royal shipyards.

Originally, the autumn harvest had already filled some funding gaps, but civil and military officials, clansmen, martial artists, imperial relatives and the army all needed to pay money, which was a large amount of expenditure.

Although three million taels does not sound like a lot, after all, this is an era when there was no crazy influx of overseas silver, and today's three million is simply an astronomical amount.

Li Si grabbed handfuls of hair during this time, but there was still no good solution, and the gap of three million taels was like a mountain pressing on his heart.

In the face of such a difficult problem, he also added: "There are not many transactions of luxury homes in Beijing this year, so the luxury tax will be reduced by more than half next year!" ”

In the proportion of luxury tax, the largest proportion is actually luxury houses in Beijing, but the capital in Beijing is no longer keen on speculating in luxury houses, and the decline in transaction volume has also affected the income of luxury tax.

When officials such as Jia Jun, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, learned that the income had decreased, they sighed secretly in their hearts, and now the finances are really worse.

"Didn't we mention earlier that mining funds could be raised through the issuance of treasury bonds? How is the investigation of this matter, and it may be tried on a trial basis? Xu Qiong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, suddenly asked, as if he had thought of something.

Everyone also thought of this, and couldn't help but turn their heads to look at Li Si.

Although eating food is seen as drinking to quench thirst, it is a win-win practice that gold mining will have a sustainable yield now.

Li Si didn't speak, and Wu Yu, the right attendant of the household department behind him, stood up and said: "Our household department has done a questionnaire survey, but the effect is not ideal, and everyone is still worried about the court defaulting on the contract!" ”

As soon as these words came out, the hearts of everyone present were half cold.

(End of chapter)