My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 166: The Golden Sword Prophecy, the Prince and the Aristocratic Family Fight for a Person
Taiji Palace, Taiji Hall.

Great court meeting.

Hearing session.

Something big happened today.

Liu Lan, General of the Right Guard and Governor of Daizhou, was convicted of treason.

You Wenzhi, the county lieutenant of Huxian County, was imprisoned for committing a crime and sentenced to death. In order to make a meritorious service and save his life, You Wenzhi reported Liu Lan's conspiracy of rebellion.

The reason was that there was a man named Xu Xuan who could interpret prophecies. He said to Liu Lan, "There are people in the world who are old, and they all say that General Liu will be the ruler of the world." Liu Lan's son Liu Zhao also said to his father, "The prophecy says that the emperor will be born in the north of the sea, and my family is in the north of the sea."

Li Shimin was very shocked and angry.

Because this involves the prophecy of the golden knife.

Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, the emperor of the time would not have thought much about other rebellions. However, when he heard that someone with the surname Liu was rebelling, he would become very nervous.

The so-called golden knife is the Mao golden knife, which is Liu.

When Liu Bang established the Western Han Dynasty, his capital was Chang'an. The old site of the Chang'an Palace is now located northwest of the imperial palace, within the Forbidden Garden.

Later, Wang Mang deposed Liu Ying and established the Xin Dynasty.

However, only sixteen years later, Emperor Guangwu of Han, Liu Xiu, established the Eastern Han Dynasty, which lasted for thirteen generations until Cao Pi usurped the throne and the Eastern Han Dynasty perished.

Although Liu Bei, the Emperor Zhaolie of Shu Han, failed in his three attempts to rebuild the Han Dynasty, the influence of the Golden Sword Prophecy has not weakened.

Later, at the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Guangwen of Han Zhao, Liu Yuan, considered himself a descendant of a Han princess and raised an army under the banner of restoring the Han Dynasty. He proclaimed himself the King of Han in Zuoguo City and rebuilt the Han Kingdom.

There is also Liu Yu, the Emperor Wu of Song in the Southern Dynasties, the 22nd generation grandson of Liu Jiao, the King of Chu and the younger brother of Emperor Gaozu of Han Liu Bang.

He was born in a poor family and made a living by chopping wood, farming, fishing and selling straw sandals.

Then, as a descendant of the royal family of Liu, he gradually seized power in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, established his own regime in place of the Jin Dynasty, made Jiankang his capital, and named the country Song.

It seems that every time a dynasty comes to an end, a person named Liu would appear, make a call from a high place, and amaze the whole audience.

The Tang Dynasty has only been established for a few years, and now Liu Lan has emerged.

How could Li Shimin not be nervous? All emperors after the Eastern Han Dynasty were afraid of rebellion by those surnamed Liu.

"How about according to the law?"

Li Shimin asked in a deep voice.

"Behead according to the law."

Minister of Justice Zhang Liang bowed and replied.

"allow!"

Li Shimin made a direct conclusion without even bothering to investigate further.

The prophecy of the golden sword has come out. No matter whether it is true or not, let’s kill Liu Lan first.

It is better to kill someone by mistake than to let him go.

As for the details, we will investigate later.

If someone deliberately framed her, then Liu Lan will have to pay with her life.

In this way, Daizhou Governor Liu Lan was sentenced to be beheaded.

I originally thought that today's morning court session was over.

Chai Xiaocheng, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."

Li Shimin was in a bad mood, so he frowned and said, "Approved."

Chai Xiaocheng glanced at the prince sitting on the four-wheeled carriage, and then he said, "Your Majesty, the prince has opened a business in Jinzhou, which is actually a move to compete with the people for profits."

"We hired the people to mine the land at extremely high prices. Now that it is spring ploughing season, many tenants have abandoned their fields in pursuit of huge profits, leaving the fertile land barren and stagnating spring ploughing."

"This is a matter of farming that is related to the foundation of the country and should not be taken lightly."

"Although the Crown Prince is the heir to the throne, this move is ill-considered. It not only affects the livelihood of the people, but also shakes the foundation of the country."

"I beg Your Majesty to investigate and order the Crown Prince to stop the coal business to calm the people and protect farming."

Li Chengqian remained calm upon hearing this.

He had already received a letter from Li Yuanchang, which explained the situation in Jinzhou clearly.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin looked at the prince and said, "Prince, do you have anything to say about this matter?"

Li Chengqian asked Chai Xiaocheng, "You accused me of competing with the people for profits and disrupting spring ploughing, but you have evidence."

"If there is no evidence, it is a false accusation and the person should be convicted of counter-accusation."

There are two major families in Jinzhou.

The first is the Wei family of Quyang, whose most famous representative is Wei Zheng.

The second is the Jinzhou Chai family, a veritable military family, whose representative is Chai Shao.

Chai Lingwu, who served beside Prince Li Tai of Wei, was the son of Chai Shao.

This Ministry of Revenue Langzhong Chai Xiaocheng was also from the Chai family of Jinzhou.

After Li Chengqian finished speaking, he glanced at Wei Zheng.

Wei Zheng lowered his head and looked submissive. It was obvious that Wei from Quyang had also told him the news.

But now Wei Zheng was a real member of the prince's party. He was promoting "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" and was about to be appointed by the prince as the senior official of the Agricultural College. Naturally, it was impossible for him to impeach the prince at this time.

Even among the tenants, Wei Zheng's land in Jinzhou was involved.

Chai Xiaocheng was a little flustered when he heard the prince questioning him, but he soon calmed down. He cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, the evidence is irrefutable. Now in Jinzhou, a large number of tenants have abandoned their fields and rushed to the coal mines. The fields are barren everywhere."

"Moreover, the people all say that the wages offered by the Prince's Company are very high. For every 15 catties of coal dug, one penny can be earned. Such temptation is hard to resist. This matter is already known to everyone in Jinzhou. If Your Majesty sends someone to investigate, it will surely be confirmed that what I said is true."

When these words were spoken, the court was in an uproar.

The reason for the uproar was not that the prince was competing with the people for profit and disrupting spring ploughing.

Instead, you can earn one penny for digging 15 kilograms of coal.

The price of rice is so low nowadays, a dou of rice costs only four or five cents.

Fifteen pounds of coal is just a lot, it's just a matter of a few hoes.

It is not difficult for any adult man to dig five or six hundred kilograms a day.

This means that you can earn dozens of coins a day.

The capacity of the dou in different dynasties was different. In the Tang Dynasty, one dou was about sixteen jin.

So if you dig 600 kilograms of coal a day, you can earn 40 cents, which can be used to buy 10 dou of rice, equivalent to 160 kilograms of rice.

This is the amount of rice an average family of five needs per month.

By other words, an adult man can earn enough food for a family of five for one month by digging coal for one day.

The officials in the imperial court basically all understood arithmetic, so they could understand it by simply converting it in their minds.

The temptation for the people is simply beyond measure.

Intensive farming is not an easy job.

Facing the earth and back to the sky is a true portrayal.

Starting from spring plowing and sowing in February, a series of work including turning the soil, applying fertilizers, and sowing seeds are done every day.

They start working at sunrise in the early morning and end when it gets dark in the evening. It may take five hours, or about ten hours, to work every day.

The entire spring farming season may last one to two months, with almost no rest time.

In summer, field management is required, such as weeding and irrigation.

The weather is hot, and farmers still need to work in the fields under the scorching sun. Especially for irrigation, they may need to watch the water source day and night to ensure that the crops get enough water. There is basically no rest time during this stage, and there may be a short adjustment time of half a day to a day every week.

Autumn is the harvest season. Starting in August, farmers rush to harvest their crops to avoid damage from bad weather.

The work of harvesting, drying, and carrying is extremely intensive, and the daily working hours may be comparable to those during spring ploughing.

The harvest season also typically lasts one to two months, again with little downtime.

Winter is a relatively idle time for farmers, but it is not a complete rest.

Farm tools, houses, etc. need to be repaired.

It is also necessary to prepare feed for the livestock during the winter, such as collecting hay and storing grain.

This is still the case of a good harvest. If there is a natural disaster such as drought or flood, there is no guarantee.

But now, I go to dig coal for the prince, and I can earn in one month almost as much as I earn from farming in half a year.

Two months, three months.

As long as you are willing to put in the effort, becoming rich is just around the corner.

Under such circumstances, who would be willing to farm?

But if no one is farming, will the fields be left to waste?

"Prince, maybe you should give an explanation."

"If you cannot give me a satisfactory answer, then I will stop opening a business and mining coal."

Li Shimin also realized the situation and immediately questioned the prince in a deep voice.

After all, judging from the current situation, people's livelihood has been affected to a great extent.

Li Chengqian said calmly: "It's just alarmist talk."

Then he looked at Chai Xiaocheng and said, "Let me ask you, do you know the requirements for my recruitment of workers in Jinzhou?"

Chai Xiaocheng hesitated slightly and said, "I don't know."

Li Chengqian glanced at all the officials and said, "I have set up a coal business in Jinzhou, and there are three things I won't do when recruiting workers."

"Those who do not have a Tang household registration will not be recruited, those who have land at home will not be recruited, and those who have not yet established a family and had children will not be recruited."

"Then I'll ask Doctor Chai where all these farmers in my coal business came from, and where the fields became barren."

"Why don't you send someone to check who the farmers you mentioned are, and whose fields the barren fields you mentioned belong to?"

"Competing with the people for profit? What a joke! Whose profit are you competing for?"

"Destroying the spring ploughing? That's a huge joke. The company I set up only recruits a few thousand workers."

"Can these thousands of people ruin the spring ploughing of the entire Tang Dynasty?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the court suddenly became quiet.

All the officials understood at once.

Those workers of the Prince's Company and those farmers mentioned by Chai Xiaocheng were not considered the population of the Tang Dynasty at all, but the hidden population of the aristocratic families.

In other words, in order to become coal workers, a large number of tenant farmers from aristocratic families fled and chose to register their household registration at government offices.

As an illegal household, they naturally did not receive the land allocated under the equal-field system, which also met the recruitment requirements.

The so-called barren fields are not the government's fields, but the hidden private properties of the aristocratic families.

Concealing population and land has become a common practice in the Tang Dynasty today.

The noble families concealed their population not by controlling the people with force, but by tempting them with benefits so that the people voluntarily became illegal residents.

Although the imperial court decentralized land and every adult was entitled to a hundred acres, from the perspective of the common people, after paying all kinds of miscellaneous taxes, that was all they would have left.

Moreover, the land was not given to the people by the court, but rented to them. It was like the people were working for the court. They only had the right to use the land but not the right to buy or sell it.

On the contrary, if you farm for a noble family, there will be no taxes or levies, and this money will go into your own pocket.

After paying the rent, they could have more left, and as an illegal resident, they could also avoid corvee labor.

Therefore, people naturally prefer to become illegal residents and are unwilling to register their household registration with the government.

When Li Shimin heard the prince's words, he also reacted.

It turns out that the prince is competing with the aristocratic families for people, which is a good thing for the Tang Dynasty.

He snorted immediately.

Chai Xiaocheng panicked for a moment, and immediately bowed and said, "Please forgive me, Your Highness. I was negligent and failed to understand the reason."

Li Chengqian laughed and said, "If that's the case, then Doctor Chai is slandering me."

"Minister Zhang, how do you usually rule in this kind of situation?"

Minister of Justice Zhang Liang bowed and said, "Your Highness, I will dismiss you according to the law."

Li Chengqian nodded: "Then dismiss him."

Chai Xiaocheng looked at the indifferent Majesty with a bitter face, and bowed: "Thank you, Your Highness."

The prince's decree is equivalent to the emperor's imperial edict unless it is objected by the emperor.

Li Chengqian had the power to dismiss and appoint any official below the third rank.

Of course, this method was later called Mochixiefengguan.

This has nothing to do with the crown prince. Even if he is appointed directly by the emperor, he is still called this.

There is one thing that makes the imperial examinations of the Tang Dynasty different from those of any other dynasty: after passing the examinations, one only has the qualifications to become an official, but cannot become an official directly. One has to go through training, exercise and examinations, and only those who pass can be assigned to positions. These systems effectively eliminate the problem of high scores but low ability or exam cheating.

The Menxia Province was mainly a supervisory body responsible for maintaining political order and correcting violations by officials, including the emperor. The official was not high-ranking but his responsibilities were very broad. Even if the emperor's edicts and decrees were considered to be against ancestral systems and regulations by a small fifth-rank Jieshi Zhong in the Menxia Province, he could declare them invalid and reject them.

Therefore, the political system of the Tang Dynasty was not a monarchical dictatorship, but a system of co-governance between the monarch and his ministers.

This was also a lesson learned from the history of the Wei and Jin Dynasties. After all, if the emperor becomes absurd, he can really destroy the entire country.

It was not until the Yuanfeng Reform in the Song Dynasty that the system truly became a dictatorship of the emperor.

After the Ming Dynasty's Zhu Yuanzhang reformed the system, the imperial power was once again greatly strengthened. In the Qing Dynasty, the imperial power reached its peak. The emperor was truly the country, and all the power was concentrated in one person.

After the morning court session, the prince’s power was once again demonstrated.

The Ministry of Revenue doctor said he should be dismissed from his post.

From the perspective of imperial power, the Langzhong of the Ministry of Revenue seemed insignificant, but compared with later generations, this was a full-time department-level cadre, and a full-time department-level cadre at the central level.

However, Chai Xiaocheng was not one of those who studied very hard.

Although the early Tang Dynasty inherited the imperial examination system of the Sui Dynasty, it accounted for a relatively small proportion in the official selection system, and the traditional way of entering the officialdom still dominated.

Most officials entered the job through connections.

After the morning court session, Li Chengqian returned to the East Palace and Wei Zheng came.

"Duke Wei wants to talk to me about Jinzhou?"

Wei Zheng shook his head and said, "No, I want to ask about the Agricultural College."

"I wonder if His Highness has any instructions for the Agricultural College."

Although there was some loss of land in Jinzhou, Wei Zheng didn't care that much.

After all, if I argue with the prince about this issue, it will easily affect my reputation.

In comparison, the Agricultural College is more important.

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "There are indeed two aspects."

"One is about breeding, and the other is about fertilizer."

(End of this chapter)