First Minister of Ming Dynasty

But at this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang rescued Guo Zixing, and managed to resolve the war, preventing Guo Zixing and Zhao Junyong from going to war...In an instant, Lao Zhu became famous, and the old people in the village heard the news and looked at the messy situation again. Divide the fields.

Simply call these soldiers to the ancestral hall and talk to them.

You don't have that ability, don't wishful thinking, besides, you betrayed Mr. Zhu, are you not afraid of Mr. Zhu's accusation?

At first glance, these soldiers seemed to be indeed the case.

They simply gave up their prejudices and went to Linhuai Town to plead guilty.

Before they left, Lao Wang was arrested.

It's all this bastard who caused them to fight among themselves, so they must be handed over to the superiors and severely punished.

In this way, they escorted Lao Wang to Linhuai, and handed over the bag of jewelry that Lao Wang was wearing to Lao Zhu.

At first Zhu Yuanzhang didn't know that this person had something to do with Zhang Ximeng, but when he saw the longevity lock and gold bracelet with engravings on them, he immediately thought of Zhang Ximeng.

"My lord, Linhuai Town is just a small test. Going to Dingyuan, the division of land is the core of everything. It must be divided well, properly, and convinced. Only in this way can we win the hearts of the people!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded again and again, and he didn't want to be like those 100+ idiots, tearing himself apart and fighting among himself.

At this time, Li Shanchang came.

"Superior, I happen to have some opinions in a lowly position. If you want to talk about it, you can refer to it." Li Shanchang is full of confidence.

Chapter 49 Cut off the head of one's own family with a big knife

After Li Shanchang greeted Zhu Yuanzhang, he seemed to glance at Zhang Ximeng inadvertently, and there was even a hint of provocation.

Zhang Ximeng couldn't help cheering up. This man surnamed Li was not an ordinary person, so he had to be careful.

Jia Lu, on the other hand, is still an old god and doesn't care at all. Zhang Ximeng is too young and Li Shanchang's status is too lowly. It's just a child fighting, so he doesn't need to care about it.

"Superior, after delving into the strategy of dividing the land, I have some experience. I think that this method should be born out of the method of equalizing land in the Northern Wei, Sui and Tang Dynasties. I don't know if I am right?"

Zhang Ximeng subconsciously nodded in agreement.

Ever since Chen Sheng and Wu Guang shouted out that princes, generals, and generals have something to do with each other, the people in this land no longer obey the nobles. If you dare to make us unable to survive, I will fight with you to the end!

Knowing the power of the people, the emperors of the Han Dynasty pursued the policy of attacking the powerful and suppressing mergers, responding to the voice of the people.Only then did the great achievements of connecting the Western Regions, destroying the Xiongnu, and sealing wolves live in Xuxu.

After experiencing the super chaos of the Three Kingdoms at the end of the Han Dynasty and the chaos of the Five Hushuis, in order to better stabilize the people's hearts and gain the support of the people, starting from the Northern Wei Dynasty, a clearly stipulated land equalization system appeared.

As the successor of the spirit of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Sui and Tang Dynasties all continued this path... and in the early Tang Dynasty, the land equalization system was more complete.

A Dingkou can get Yongye Field and Koufen Field. Yongye Field is used to grow mulberry and can be passed on to future generations. Koufen Field is used to grow food. After death, it needs to be taken back and then redistributed.

At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the system of land equalization was practiced, the tax collection was based on rent adjustment, and the military system was based on government soldiers... The combination of these three is the great army of the Tang Dynasty, sweeping all the mysteries of the world.

When Zhang Ximeng wrote the method of dividing the land, he introduced the thinking of the Tang Dynasty... It's just that he replaced Yongye Field with a ration field, and added the stipulation that the ration field is exempt from rent.

Of course, a facelift of this scale cannot be concealed from an old official like Li Shanchang, so Zhang Ximeng admitted it frankly.

"Mr. Li, do you have any advice?"

Li Shanchang smiled, "I can't talk about advice, I just have a little doubt...Mr. Zhang, this ration field should be available to everyone, right?"

Zhang Ximeng nodded, "That's right."

"Then I would like to ask, if a certain family gave birth to a child, and an old man happened to die, what should we do with this ration field?"

Zhang Ximeng was taken aback for a moment, but soon understood.

The ration field is to ensure the basic food and clothing of the people. That is to say, if the family has a child and increases the number of people, it is necessary to give more to the ration field. There will only be more and more acres of land, and after reaching a certain level, his method of granting land will be difficult to maintain, and will fall into the same collapse as the land equalization system of the Tang Dynasty!

Zhang Ximeng understood what Li Shanchang meant, but he was also confused.

"Mr. Li, what happened to the Yongyetian in the Tang Dynasty? Isn't it 'all Yongyetians are passed on to their descendants, and they are not limited to accepting and teaching'?"

The content of Zhang Ximeng's speech comes from "Tang Tongdian", which is also the understanding of many people in later generations about Yongyetian, thinking that it belongs to the common people and can be passed on to future generations.

It's just that, as Li Shanchang said, if it is really passed on to the children and grandchildren, the land equalization system will definitely not be maintained!

Seeing Zhang Ximeng thoughtful, Li Shanchang smiled inwardly. After all, he is a young man who has never experienced actual government affairs.Not only has he been a scribe for many years, but he also specializes in the study of land and mu taxation, which is very professional.

I saw Li Shanchang smiled indifferently, and read in a calm and unhurried way: "The Yongye field, the prince has a hundred hectares, the minister is sixty hectares from the first rank, and the county king and the minister are fifty hectares from the first rank each. Forty hectares for the second rank of the official, and 35 hectares for each of the second rank if the county magistrate... If there is any surplus, it will be recovered, and if it is insufficient, it will be given. All Yongye fields are passed on to their descendants, and there is no limit to accepting them, that is, the descendants will be removed. Those who inherited it will not pursue it."

When Li Shanchang finished reading, Zhang Ximeng suddenly became enlightened... He suddenly understood what was going on. It turns out that the Yongyetian that can be passed on to his descendants is only limited to officials and ordinary people. Sorry, your Yongyetian will still have to be taken back after death. of.

But if this is the case, how did it get the name of Yongyetian?

Li Shanchang said calmly: "Yongyetian began in the Northern Wei Dynasty, and it is indeed stipulated that it does not have to be returned... But it is only limited to the men who were allocated Yongyetian for the first time. If they can't catch up, that is to say, future generations can only inherit from their ancestors. Of course. , if the population is prosperous and the population is increasing, the imperial court still has spare land at this time, and it will grant Yongye Tian according to the maximum number, but if the land is not enough...then there is no way."

Old Li talked eloquently, including Zhu Yuanzhang, who listened attentively. This man really talked about the key points.

Zhang Ximeng was particularly touched, because it was unreasonable to grant Yongye land but not accept it.In other words, Yongye Yongye is only the first lucky ones to catch up, and the rest can only depend on God's will.

Although doing this is completely different from Juntian's original intention, but after thinking about it carefully, is there a better way?

Zhang Ximeng shook his head helplessly, he couldn't think of it for a moment.

"Mr. Li, according to what you said, there is no difference between Yongye Tian and Kou Fen Tian?" Zhang Ximeng asked humbly.

Li Shanchang smiled and said: "The difference is not small. In actual work, the Yongye Tian granted for the first time does not need to be handed back. There may be Yongye Tian in the future. Logically speaking, it should be handed over and re-divided... ...But most likely not, after all, the scribes and servants in charge of affairs also need their own heads! Not to mention Yongye Tian, ​​even Koufen Tian, ​​after one or two generations, you won’t be able to get it back.”

Zhang Ximeng listened very carefully, carefully chewed on Li Shanchang's words, and continued to deduce, he finally figured out the reason... Suppose the grandfather of the family was the first generation to get Yongyetian, a total of [-] mu, and he had three sons.

After the grandfather died, he gave the twenty acres to the eldest son.

In addition, there is still a shortfall of forty acres.

At this time, the imperial court still had extra land, so they filled up the [-] mu and gave it to the second and third sons.

But in the third generation, the three brothers also have three sons, which is nine children.

The grandfather's Yongye field is only passed on to the eldest grandson of the house, so eight children need 160 mu of Yongye field.

In addition to the 120 mu from the previous generation, [-] mu must be obtained from the imperial court.

But at this time, the imperial court could not provide 120 mu of Yongye land, and there was no more land, and the land equalization system collapsed.

Of course, there is another situation. The other family was too unlucky to have so many males. As a result, there was only one male in the third generation. At this time, the court could theoretically take back some Yongye Tian from this family. The one with the most people.

But the question is who is willing to hand over their land for nothing?

They will definitely think of various ways to refuse to hand over the land.

Furthermore, in the era of peace and prosperity, the population will multiply, and the land will definitely not be enough.

At that time, as Li Shanchang said, after the population has grown, don't talk about Yongye Taguchi dividing the land. After any family gets the land, they will die and will not let go. Unless they can't survive, they will sacrifice their lives!

At this time, the government servants still want to take back the land, and divide it according to the average population... It's completely a tiger's mouth, waiting to fight with every household!

Regardless of the honesty of the common people, they must have really touched their lives, and these people will not be polite.

Everywhere there are large-scale armed fights over water sources or a little land. Hundreds or even thousands of people fight on a large scale.

Anyone who dares to enter the village to ask for land will be beaten to death, leaving dead bodies everywhere.

In a word, when there are more people and less land, and the madness rolls up, no matter how good the law is, it cannot withstand the cruel reality.

Thinking of this, Zhang Ximeng's expression also became serious. Looking at what he wrote, it seems that he is not so brilliant!

Can the ration field be cancelled?Simple split?

Zhang Ximeng shook his head again, because the cancellation of the grain ration field would inevitably pay for the grain as a whole. For the poor and poor people, it would be a nightmare.

"What good advice does Mr. Li have? Please advise." Zhang Ximeng asked humbly.

Li Shanchang thought for a while and said with a smile: "I dare not give advice, although after several generations, this strategy may not be effective, but now it seems that there is no better than this... I only have two suggestions, First, tell all the people that the ration field is only for this one time, and there will be no division of the ration field when there will be more people in the future. As for other fields, it may be possible to add a deadline."

Zhang Ximeng asked, "How much is appropriate?"

"For example, once every ten years, it will be redistributed evenly. Because within ten years, the population will increase, and there will be many young adults. If they are not given land, it will be difficult for them to survive, and they will become refugees."

Zhang Ximeng nodded again. It may not be easy to redistribute the acres once every ten years, but the idea is still correct.It changes every ten years, every 20 years, and naturally it can also change every 30 years, let's assess the situation!

It’s just that Zhu Yuanzhang, who has been silent all this time, suddenly said: “We remember that Mr. Zhang suggested that the more acres there are, the higher the land tax to pay... If every ten years because of the increase in population, the land is redistributed, will the amount of land tax be reduced?”

Zhang Ximeng nodded helplessly, "My lord is wise, indeed."

"Is that... okay?"

Without waiting for Zhang Ximeng to speak, Li Shanchang said: "Your position, ten years of work is not a short period of time. If you manage it properly, your position should be the beginning of success. If you need to change course, it may not be impossible."

Zhu Yuanzhang groaned and looked at Zhang Ximeng subconsciously, only to find that Zhang Ximeng nodded slightly, which naturally agreed.

"Okay then!" Zhu Yuanzhang could only agree, "Mr. Li, you are so proficient in the matter of allotment of land, you must be a master when you see this matter!"

Li Shanchang quickly saluted, "Thank you for your trust, I am willing to donate [-] mu of land starting from my own home as an example! Rest assured, from now on, there will be no shortage of soldiers, horses, money, food and people... If you can't do it, The humble official is willing to bear the responsibility!"

Chapter 50 Destiny

Li Shanchang succeeded in gaining a firm foothold with this insight on the land, he hurried to plan the details, and couldn't wait to show his superiors.

In contrast, Zhang Ximeng was thoughtful and felt that he had gained a lot, but he didn't feel disappointed.

Land to the tiller has been the dream of countless farmers for 2000 years.

All previous peasant uprisings had strong demands for land.

Juntian is almost a main line that runs through the entire history.

Peasants revolted for the land, and people of insight shouted to suppress mergers.

In Zhang Ximeng's view, the land equalization system is naturally the best strategy, and it has been implemented from the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, needless to say the effect.As long as a few loopholes can be patched, everything will be fine.

But after Li Shanchang's analysis, Zhang Ximeng realized that perhaps from the very beginning, the makers of the land equalization system knew that this set of laws would collapse sooner or later.

The population is growing, the officials are playing favoritism, and the local gentry are profiting from it... Even ordinary small farmers are unwilling to hand over the land they have already acquired for redistribution.

The land equalization system lasted only a few decades in the early Tang Dynasty, and it was difficult to maintain it. It was almost impossible to play with it after two or three generations from grandfather to grandson.

What should be done to solve this eternal problem?

Zhang Ximeng was puzzled. Coincidentally, Jia Lu had someone call him over.

After the meeting, Lao Jia teased directly: "Let's make people steal the limelight. Don't you worry if you lose your status as the number one favorite?"

"Why are you in a hurry?" Zhang Ximeng was puzzled, "The world is so big and there are so many things, it is definitely not something that I can take care of alone. I would like to have a few more talents to assist the lord. I can also relax. Some... It's just that I can't figure it out at the moment, how to make Juntian so that it can last for a long time, and it will last forever, boss, do you know?"

Jia Lu looked at Zhang Ximeng like a monster, completely puzzled.

After a while, Jia Lu coughed and said, "Do you really think that Zhu Yuanzhang can win the world?"

Zhang Ximeng was even more astonished, wasn't he?

Not only do you want to win the world, but you also want to create a great Ming Dynasty!

Isn't this a matter of course?

"Master Jia, do you doubt the lord?" Zhang Ximeng widened his eyes.

Jia Lu chuckled, "Why don't you ask Zhu Yuanzhang to see if he's sure? The old man can't figure it out. How did you decide that he could be the emperor at such a young age? You still want long-term peace and stability? You Why don't you think about how to spend the next month?"

Jia Lu was extremely confused, he really couldn't figure it out, where did Zhang Ximeng's self-confidence come from?

Zhang Ximeng was also stunned. He thought about it for a while, and seemed to understand something... When he formulated his strategy, he was naturally thinking of eternity, even exceeding the lifespan of the Ming Dynasty in history, otherwise why would he travel through time?

But for today's people, survival is the first step.

Lao Zhu's soldiers and horses are only in the tens of thousands, and among the heroes, they all belong to the younger brothers.

Anyone who is sure that Lao Zhu can take over the world is just out of their minds!

After figuring this out, Zhang Ximeng also understood what kind of hole Li Shanchang dug for him!

There are indeed loopholes in the equal land system, and the ration fields are not so perfect... But sorry, it seems that there is no need to think about the long-term at the moment.

As long as the fields can be distributed to the common people, the big guys can see the real benefits.Work hard to farm, pay more land taxes, and pay more military service... Let Zhu Yuanzhang have enough strength to defeat the heroes and win the world.

The so-called ten-year period is already too long.

Except for Zhang Ximeng, no one is sure whether they will live until next year?

It's no wonder that there were many disadvantages in the late Ming Dynasty, Ganqing didn't think so long-term from the beginning!

Zhang Ximeng couldn't help complaining, but then thought about it.I really can't blame anything. Before Lao Zhu, who could imagine a beggar becoming the emperor?

Jia Lu used the restoration of the mountains and rivers to fool Li Shanchang, and Li Shanchang used the collapse of the land in the Tang Dynasty to run on Zhang Ximeng... It's really a chain of links, and the calculation is not good!

This group of people who read books are all black-hearted, whether they are court ministers or local officials, they are all virtuous!

Compared with them, I am still a little immature, but if you bully me, don't blame me for being rude.