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Chapter 954: Tang Dynasty Enfeoffment Order (Part )
Fang Xuanling felt that most of those medicines were overbearing medicines that stimulated the body's potential. Every time Li Shimin took them, he would be filled with energy and extremely excited, and then he could not wait to go to the harem to visit his concubines.

After having sex, he would look depressed for a while. Over the years, his health had been deteriorating at a noticeable rate.

The emperor is also a human being. No one can persuade him to pursue immortality and fulfill his desires.

Therefore, Fang Xuanling brought up the issue of appointing a crown prince many times. In his opinion, Li Shimin did not have much time left and did not have the energy to train another imperial grandson. It would be better to appoint a mature, stable and experienced crown prince.

Li Shimin certainly understood what Fang Xuanling meant, frowned and asked, "Can't the eldest grandson of the emperor be enthroned?"

"Your Majesty, the world is far from stable, and the country depends on the long-term ruler!"

The aristocratic families were rampant, the powerful enemies were watching, and the situation was complicated. It was not something a child could handle. If the emperor's grandson took the throne, the imperial power would inevitably fall into the hands of others. Therefore, Fang Xuanling mentioned this in an obscure way. He believed that Li Shimin could understand what he meant.

Li Shimin's expression sank, and the childish face of Li Xiang flashed through his mind. Then he saw the steady and solemn King of Shu Li Ke, King of Wei Li Tai who was supported by all the ministers, and the aloof King of Jin Li Zhi. Then he fell into deep silence.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore. I'll think about it again."

Li Shimin waved his hands and suddenly said, "Xuanling, I believe I can still do it in three years. So, I want to take advantage of this time, while I am still healthy, to implement the decree of equal division of property. What do you think?"

"This"

Fang Xuanling's face suddenly changed, and he became more cautious than when he was talking about the crown prince just now. Looking closely, there was a trace of deep fear on his face.

He knew that the law on equal distribution of property was modeled after the Enfeoffment Edict issued during the Han Dynasty to deal with the princes, but it was made more detailed, promoting the idea that "every child has the legal right to inherit their parents' property" in order to break up and restrict the development and growth of powerful families.

A few years ago, Li Shimin had a covert conversation with Fang Xuanling.

The power of the aristocratic families in the Tang Dynasty was too strong. Fang Xuanling felt that once this order was issued, it would inevitably cause a joint backlash from the aristocratic families, so he advised Li Shimin to take a long-term view.

After several years of operation, especially the stabilization of relations with the Turks and the implementation of the feudal system, the attention of a large number of aristocratic families was drawn to the Turks and the Western Regions, and the imperial power was also strengthened to a certain extent. Li Shimin wanted to give it a try.

If it can be implemented, it will be able to dismantle the situation in which aristocratic families and imperial power share control of the world since the Han Dynasty.

Fang Xuanling always felt that this policy was too sensitive, so he carefully chose his words to dissuade him: "Your Majesty, family inheritance is related to the core interests of every aristocratic family, and it involves too many aspects. Should we wait and see?"

"Your Majesty just conquered the Western Regions at the end of last year, and implemented the feudal system at lightning speed."

"There are three major groups: royal family, meritorious officials, and aristocratic families."

"Except for a few princes with lofty ambitions, most of the other members of the royal family only enjoy the title of king, but have no actual territory or power. The emperor gave them a piece of land, allowed them to establish a country, and raised soldiers in an open and aboveboard manner, so they were naturally happy."

"It's similar for meritorious officials and military generals. They have a high status but no real power. They are very supportive of being crowned kings and establishing a country on their own."

"But those noble families, especially the Five Surnames and Seven Noble Clans, have influence in the Tang Dynasty that is no less than that of the royal family. They may not be willing to move to the remote areas in the west to enjoy the treatment of local emperors. In addition, they each have many branches, and enfeoffment cannot solve the problem of them all."

"But this law regarding property will deeply affect their interests."

Li Shimin's face was very serious: "Xuanling, I know what you said. In fact, the feudal system is to ease the resistance of the aristocratic families. The property distribution law is to add a push from behind, to pull and push them to migrate to the Western Regions."

"Of course, I will not completely block the way. I will explain that this decree is only implemented in the Central Plains. It does not cover the various feudal states. In addition, the people do not sue, and the officials will not investigate. This decree on the distribution of property is not mandatory."

"If the descendants of the family can negotiate peacefully and the bastard voluntarily gives up the inheritance of the family property, then the government will not interfere."

"This will relieve the pressure on the family from two aspects. Let's do it step by step. First, solve the problem of implementation. Then, depending on the situation, we can make modifications. Do you think this is okay?"

Seeing Li Shimin's insistence, Fang Xuanling thought for a while and sighed in his heart. No matter how lenient the law was, Xiang Zhuang's intention to attack Pei Gong was exposed. Once this proposal was made, the court would immediately stir up a wave.

"Well, however, I still suggest that you find a censor first and bring it up during the court meeting to test their reaction first?"

Li Shimin shook his head and said immediately: "Xuanling, those censors are too weak. This strategy will definitely cause opposition from the aristocratic families. If we find an unimportant minister, I am afraid that in turn, it will become a channel for the aristocratic families to protest against me."

"I mean that you should bring it up in the court."

"You are the Minister of Works, the Minister of the Secretariat, and the Minister of the Left. You have great prestige and influence. Your attitude is almost as good as mine. If you propose this, the noble families will feel my determination to implement this policy and put pressure on them."

At this point, Li Shimin patted Fang Xuanling's shoulder with a firm look: "Xuanling, don't worry, I am the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, not Emperor Jing of Han, and the Seven Kingdoms Rebellion will never happen, and you will not repeat the mistakes of Chao Cuo." It would have been better if Li Shimin didn't say anything. As soon as he said it, Fang Xuanling trembled all over and shuddered unconsciously. There was a deep worry in his eyes. Looking at Li Shimin's expectation, he nodded silently and said helplessly: "Okay, I will bring it up."

next day
"Long live my emperor, long live, long live!"

Amid the grand ringing of bells and drums and the cheers of his ministers, Li Shimin, wearing a dark yellow dragon robe, sat on the high dragon throne in the Taiji Hall.

He looked at his ministers and began the court meeting.

First, officials from the three ministries of Zhongshu, Menxia, ​​and Shangshu came forward to report on the implementation of the important policies recently implemented by the court; next, the six ministers came forward one by one to report on the government affairs in their respective areas of responsibility and the implementation of the court's major policies.

Finally, the governors and provincial governors from all over the country were summoned by the court to report on their work and listen to the emperor's arrangements.

Everything was in order, and after several procedures were completed, it was almost time to leave the court. Usually at this time, Li Shimin would make a final summary and ask the officials of various departments again whether there were any incidents to report.

Then he announced the end of the court session.

So everyone breathed a sigh of relief. After more than an hour of court meeting, everyone felt a little tired and couldn't wait to leave the court and relax.

Unexpectedly, at this last moment, Fang Xuanling stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have a plan that can benefit all the people. I hope Your Majesty will accept it."

"Oh, Sikong, you don't have to be polite. Just say whatever you want to say." Li Shimin smiled and said kindly.

Fang Xuanling said sternly, "Your Majesty, since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, many aristocratic families and local tyrants have doted on their legitimate sons and passed on all their family property to them, leaving a large number of illegitimate children without support."

"They live a hard life, some of them are just like slaves, it's really miserable."

"Since the early years of the Wude era, some children born into wealthy families have been driven out of their homes and left on the streets, with no means of living, due to the transition from old to new in their families. Many of them have filed a complaint with the government, hoping that the court can make a decision for them and allow them to enjoy the blessing of their family's wealth."

"They are also the people of the Tang Dynasty."

"I suggest that the court should issue some laws to protect these illegitimate children and the concubines who were driven out of the mansion because of the new head of the family. They have certain rights to distribute the property, so that they can live safely even if they leave the wealthy family."

Li Shimin pretended to be surprised and asked curiously: "Oh, this is quite interesting, Sikong, can you explain it in detail? What should we do specifically?"

After the emperor and his minister spoke in unison, Fang Xuanling recounted the specific details of what had been discussed in the imperial study the day before.

At first, no one paid much attention to it. However, as the details were explained, all the civil and military officials in the court gradually understood what it meant. So this is what it meant.
One stone caused a thousand ripples, and the entire court was instantly boiling with excitement.

All the ministers began to discuss, but no one directly refuted it. One reason was that the one who proposed this suggestion was Fang Xuanling. Everyone knew that he and the emperor were in the same boat. Maybe this suggestion was what Li Shimin meant.
Secondly, more than half of the people in the court are from aristocratic families, and most of the rest also have direct relations with the aristocratic families.

Even people like Ma Zhou and Chang Sheng, who came from humble backgrounds, had intricate ties with the aristocratic families.

Everyone knows that the reason why aristocratic families can be passed down from generation to generation and have such a strong influence is that they are always united. All the property and power in the family are controlled by the direct line, which is how they can keep other illegitimate children firmly under their control.

Only with unity of purpose and all resources put together can we continue to climb up, have stronger competitiveness and defeat other opponents.

Let alone the aristocratic families, even at the grassroots level in a village or county, if there is a blasphemer, everyone will jointly fund for him to take the imperial examinations, hoping that if this person succeeds, the whole family will benefit.

At this time, Fang Xuanling actually wanted the aristocratic families to change their inheritance model, so that all descendants would enjoy the right to distribute property. This was like dividing the world into several parts when the emperor passed on his throne, so that each descendant would occupy one part.

Isn't this nonsense?

Aristocratic families have power, influence and resources, and most of them have many wives and concubines, and naturally many children.

Although Fang Xuanling said that this decree was only implemented in the Tang Dynasty, and based on the principle of voluntariness, the officials would not investigate unless the people reported it.

Everyone knows that if those illegitimate children also have the right to distribute property, who will voluntarily give it up? At that time, everyone will go to appeal, and the court will intervene forcefully. It won't be long before a large family will be divided into several small families.

If we further subdivide it, within a few generations, the aristocratic families will become ordinary people's families, and will lose the qualifications to compete with the imperial power.

This is to cut off the fire from under the cauldron, to encourage the noble families to fight against each other, to disintegrate the power of the noble families from within.
(End of this chapter)