I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 68: Proposal! Yin Zhengmao: The Ministry of Revenue cannot be the only one unable to sleep
March 8th, afternoon.

Zhang Shuntian, commander of the North City Military Command, Huang Cheng, deputy commander, Song Yizhou, clerk, and more than 30 clerks were all taken to the Ministry of Justice prison.

The charge is: failing to report a matter that should have been reported.

That is, they concealed the fact that disaster victims and refugees were gathering in the suburbs of Beijing, drove them away without authorization, and left the matter unreported.

Near dusk.

Qian Tai, the imperial censor of the Northern City, submitted supervisory documents and relevant witnesses and evidence to the Censorate, adding two more charges against these people.

First, kidnap and sell people.

Abduction and sale means forcibly restricting personal freedom and selling people.

What they are referring to is the fake Yangzhou skinny horses sold in Guagan Tea House. There is sufficient witnesses and evidence to prove that the boss behind the scenes is Huang Cheng.

More than ten people including Zhang Shuntian and Song Yizhou also participated in dividing the spoils.

It is expected that the Guagan Tea House will be sealed off tonight, and the decent girls inside will be rescued. It is likely that Mu Sheng will be reunited with his sister around noon tomorrow.

Second, he levied taxes on his official duties.

That is, without the explicit order from the superior, he arbitrarily expropriated the property of his subordinates.

This is what the people in the Five Cities Military Command do almost every day.

Generally no one pursues the matter.

But the amount of property that Zhang Shuntian and Huang Cheng seized by force was too much.

When Qian Tai investigated, the people knew that he had committed a crime and reported it one after another.

The reason why the city inspector Qian Tai investigated so quickly was that he was worried that he would be involved.

Although he never embezzled a single cent.

However, he had heard about what the North City Military Department had done, and he had turned a blind eye to it, which was suspected of dereliction of duty.

……

It was night in the prison of the Ministry of Justice.

Zhang Shuntian, commander of the North City Military Command, Huang Cheng, deputy commander, and Song Yizhou, clerk, were all wearing prison uniforms and sitting on the hay with depressed looks on their faces.

The oldest one, Huang Cheng, pouted with a look of resentment.

"Driving away refugees...wasn't that...wasn't that common practice in the past? Every year we haven't driven them away? Every year we haven't driven them away? If we hadn't driven them away, the capital would have been in chaos. How come it's become a crime now?"

"And the accusations of looting and misappropriating funds are pure slander! Our salaries are so low, and all the benefits are snatched away by those factory guards. Can't we even start a small business? There are so many officials in the Ming Dynasty, how many of them are honest?"

Song Yizhou, a thin, stuttering clerk, said helplessly, "Maybe... maybe... maybe it's the refugees... there are too many refugees! We... we... we earn too much!"

aside.

Zhang Shuntian, who advocates the concept of "ruling by doing nothing", looked at Huang Cheng.

"Huang Cheng, you have caused me so much trouble!"

"If you don't report the matter as you should, you'll get at least sixty strokes of the cane, and you'll still be able to survive. But kidnapping and selling people will get at least one hundred strokes of the cane and exile for three thousand miles; and collecting money without authorization will get at least sixty strokes of the cane. Add these up and I'm afraid we'll all be dead!"

Zhang Shuntian studied the "Great Ming Code" in depth and was very clear about the punishments for the crimes he committed.

He thought for a moment and added, "But...but, you were the mastermind behind the sale of skinny horses, you were the one who took the initiative to collect money, and you took the lion's share. I'm just an accomplice. I can still survive, but you definitely won't!"

Hearing this, Huang Cheng stood up angrily.

Although he was a deputy, he had seniority and had basically sidelined Zhang Shuntian in the Bingmasi.

"Zhang Shuntian, if it weren't for your family's money, how could you have become this commander?! For the past three years, you've been sharing the money every year. Now that you're in jail, you want to put the blame on me. That's impossible. You're the official, so I'll just say I was coerced and I'll do whatever you say!"

"Fuck your mother's head!" Zhang Shuntian was a native of the capital, and he subconsciously uttered the local swear words, then stood up and started to wrestle with Huang Cheng.

Song Yizhou quickly hid aside, as he felt that his crime was the least serious.

There is no need for another charge of assault.

Just as the two were fighting fiercely, two prison guards from the Ministry of Justice came over with a prisoner in prison uniform.

"I fought in the Ministry of Justice Prison and I don't want to live anymore!"

boom!boom!
A jailer knocked hard twice on the cell door with a hard chestnut stick.

Zhang Shuntian and Huang Cheng let go of each other and were both a little surprised when they saw the new prisoner.

The visitor is none other than someone else.

It was Qian Tai, the Imperial Censor of North City and the direct supervisor of the North City Military Department.

His crimes are: dereliction of duty and failure to supervise properly.

After the jailer pushed Qian Tai into the next cell, he glared at him and said, "Behave yourself!"

Then, he left.

Zhang Shuntian, Huang Cheng and Song Yizhou all looked at Qian Tai angrily, believing that it was Qian Tai who reported them.

Now that Qian Tai is also in prison, they naturally want to curse him to vent their anger.

"God is watching what you do. Censor Qian, what's the point of you bullying us? Didn't you get in here too?" Huang Cheng said sarcastically.

Hearing this, Qian Tai turned around abruptly.

His face was dark, his fists were clenched, and his eyes were glaring. He was even angrier than the three of them.

"I...how did I run into you three idiots? There are nearly 3,000 disaster victims from Liaodong coming to Beijing. Why didn't you report it?"

"If they get angry and gather together to rebel, do you know how big a mess they'll cause?"

"If you had reported it to the authorities and driven them away, perhaps we would all be safe! Stupid! Idiot! Waste!"

"What's even more terrible is that this matter was reported to the court by the new Minister of Revenue, Yin Zhengmao, implicating a shady scheme in the Liaodong disaster relief funds. This matter will definitely become a big deal. To quell public resentment, the court will depose me, but they will also definitely execute you, the cancerous tumor!"

……

The censor's mouth is as sharp as a knife.

The only ones who can compete with them are those who come from the Hanlin Academy.

When Zhang Shuntian and the other two heard Qian Tai's words, they felt like eggplants hit by frost.

All wilted!
Even if they don't retaliate, they also have their grievances.

Things like expelling disaster victims cannot be stated openly, and there are no clear laws.

We can only comfort the victims, how can we drive them away?

But in reality, every year the main focus is on driving people away, with comfort as a supplement.

Because the capital does not have enough places to accommodate them, nor enough money to comfort them.

The principle of the higher-ups (the Factory Guards) is: in the event of disaster victims or refugees, they will do their best to send them back to their place of origin, but in order to avoid public resentment, they will not state it explicitly.

They were simply following routine.

Now something has happened.

The imperial court wanted to appease the people and avoid public discontent, so they naturally had to take the blame.

As for the fact that their crimes of corruption and human trafficking were also exposed, who can they blame?

It’s not unfair that you are not ambitious, not smart, and not clean.

……

At night, at the hour of Xu.

The lights in the cabinet duty room were bright.

Zhang Juzheng, Lu Diaoyang and Zhang Siwei gathered in a room and had just finished reading the second memorial submitted by Yin Zhengmao today.

Yin Zhengmao requested——

"A thorough investigation will be conducted on the Ministry of Revenue. Any officials found to have colluded with local officials or abused their power for personal gain will be severely punished."

"A thorough investigation will be conducted into the Liaodong local bureaucracy, and all officials implicated in the embezzlement of disaster relief funds will be severely punished."

In addition, he also had suggestions on comforting the victims.

"It is not appropriate to repatriate them immediately. Instead, they should be set up in shanties and soup kitchens in the suburbs of Beijing. Once the situation of disaster relief in Liaodong is clarified, they can be given some appeasement measures, such as exemption from labor service and land tax, before being repatriated."

Finally, he also proposed a new policy, called: the method of joint support between the inner and outer courts.

The inner court refers to the Forbidden City; the outer court refers to the imperial court.

Referring to this incident, it costs money to appease the victims, and subsequent funds will be allocated to Liaodong, and the amount will be very large.

This expense should not be borne solely by the Ministry of Revenue, but should be shared by the Inner Court Treasury (the emperor's private treasury) and the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue, which also have treasuries.

Afterwards, if the Internal Treasury or the Ministry of Works encountered large expenditures, the Ministry of Revenue could also share the burden.

To avoid a government office being stretched to the limit and unable to make ends meet.

Zhang Siwei couldn't help but smile after reading it. Yin Zhengmao's abacus was so loud that he could hear it even in the cabinet!

In his eyes.

The other party conducted a thorough investigation of the Ministry of Revenue in order to completely separate themselves from the affairs of their predecessor, to stop having to cover up their mistakes, and to establish their own authority in the ministry. This was done with some selfish motives.

The thorough investigation of local officials in Liaodong was intended to let all officials in the court know that they could not embezzle or take the money from the Ministry of Revenue. This was a move to establish authority and rules.

These two requests are quite reasonable in this case.

He could barely accept it.

But Yin Zhengmao's method of joint support between the inner and outer courts was a joke.

There were only three places in the imperial court where the real money was: the Neiku, the Ministry of Revenue (Taicang Warehouse), and the Ministry of Works.

Taicang was often in financial difficulty, while the Neiku was always full, and the Ministry of Works was self-sufficient.

This is the current norm in the Ming Dynasty.

Since the Jiajing period, when the inner treasury was insufficient, the emperor would send eunuchs to demand it. When the outer treasury (Taicang warehouse) was short of silver, people would ask the emperor for help to release the inner treasury, but the emperor would not agree easily.

This resulted in the Ministry of Revenue always being short of money and suffering from famine.

If this so-called "method of joint support between the inner and outer courts" is really implemented, the Internal Treasury and the Ministry of Works will support the Ministry of Revenue almost throughout the year.

Even without this law, the Ministry of Revenue would not dare to refuse to provide assistance if the inner treasury was short of money.

of course.

When encountering a major disaster or spending a large amount of military expenses, even if the Ministry of Revenue has no money, the Neiku will still provide money.

But the prerequisite is that the Ministry of Revenue has no money.

Even if the cabinet agreed to Yin Zhengmao's strategy of getting something for nothing and benefiting himself without benefiting others, Empress Dowager Li and Feng Bao would not agree.

Although they were all working for the Ming Dynasty, they still had to share the food.

The primary function of the Neiku was for imperial use, followed by state use, and finally civilian use.

Little Wanli knew this.

Yin Zhengmao's strong and shameless attitude was his way of meddling in the royal treasury as soon as he took office.

Zhang Siwei felt that this person had the ambition to join the cabinet, but he had absolutely no ability to do so.

Although Zhang Siwei disliked Yin Zhengmao.

But since Zhang Juzheng did not speak, he did not express his attitude.

When he entered the cabinet, the words "follow the prime minister into the cabinet to work" written by the young Wanli were something he would remember for the rest of his life.

At this time.

Zhang Juzheng looked at the two of them and said, "I think Minister Yin's request is acceptable."

"As for the last new policy, it's probably because the Ministry of Revenue has been struggling financially in the past two years. It's open to discussion and can be discussed publicly at court tomorrow. What are your thoughts?"

Zhang Juzheng initially thought this plan was naive, but he knew Yin Zhengmao. The latter was by no means a reckless person and might have other tricks up his sleeve.

Whether it succeeds or not.

He was still satisfied with Yin Zhengmao's courage to reach out to the royal treasury.

It's all the court's money, and the inner treasury is sometimes really too stingy.

Lu Diaoyang said decisively, "I have no objection!"

He knew Zhang Juzheng's speaking habits very well.

If Zhang Juzheng expressed his personal opinion before asking the question, he only needed to second the motion; if he had not expressed his personal opinion, it would be appropriate for him to state his personal opinion.

Zhang Siwei thought about it and did not dare to refute the memorial, but he expressed another concern.

"If we thoroughly investigate the Liaodong bureaucracy, shouldn't we transfer one of Zhang Xueyan, the Liaodong Governor, or Li Chengliang, the Liaodong General? They've been in Liaodong for several years, and more than one censor has accused them of forming a clique."

Zhang Juzheng stroked his beard and said sternly, "What is forming a clique? Forming a clique and using it for personal gain to harm the country is forming a clique. If the two are found to have committed no fault upon investigation, there is no need to transfer them based on some groundless rumors!"

"Other...other...I have no objection!" Although Zhang Siwei is only one year younger than Zhang Juzheng, his aura is a generation weaker.

Lu Diaoyang glanced at Zhang Siwei and thought: Why should I seek trouble?
All the officials in the court knew about it.

Zhang Juzheng had extraordinary trust in the two military generals guarding the north, Qi Jiguang and Li Chengliang.

The stability of the northern border is the key to the implementation of the new policy.

The two men had outstanding military achievements. If they had not made serious mistakes, Zhang Juzheng would never have replaced them. Zhang Xueyan was also a person Zhang Juzheng valued.

"Since both of you have no objection, we will help the new Minister Yin gain a foothold during the court tomorrow!"

Lu Diaoyang and Zhang Siwei nodded at the same time.

As long as all the ministers do not object, what the three of them decide is basically set in stone.

……

The next morning, at the regular court meeting.

The three cabinet ministers, the heads of the six ministries and nine departments, and a group of censors gathered in the hall.

Shen Nian stood southeast of the throne as the official in charge of daily records.

This year's many regular meetings are no longer just rote reading and formalities.

For many things, the cabinet and the six ministries would make plans at the grassroots level, then report them to the court, waiting for the young Wanli's approval.

This way, officials can express their opinions directly.

As for some controversial matters, they will definitely be decided by the cabinet alone.

soon.

Then he talked about the resettlement of disaster victims in Liaodong and Yin Zhengmao's second memorial.

When it comes to thoroughly investigating the Ministry of Revenue and the Liaodong officialdom, no one changes their attitude.

But when the "strategy of joint support between the inner and outer courts" was mentioned, some people's faces changed.

Including Feng Bao.

They thought this was Yin Zhengmao's opportunistic strategy.

The Ministry of Revenue is responsible for raising money.

The Minister of Revenue is supposed to be poor, to carry heavy burdens, to have sleepless nights, and to be chased for money.

Yin Zhengmao also wanted to make the eunuchs in charge of the inner treasury and the officials of the Ministry of Works unable to sleep.

There are no doors!

Although the Imperial Treasury and the Ministry of Works had money, their expenses were also high.

Especially the inner treasury.

If something can be solved by asking the Ministry of Revenue for trouble, the emperor’s private money will never be used.

even.

Even if some issues are not resolved, it will not affect royal spending.

The Ministry of Revenue, which was originally a small lamb, suddenly became aggressive and started to interfere in state affairs, which made some officials feel very uncomfortable.

After Zhang Juzheng finished explaining the contents of the memorial, he asked loudly, "Does the government have any objections?"

Swish!Swish!Swish!
Minister of Works Guo Chaobin, Left Censor-in-Chief Chen Zan, and six censors stood up almost at the same time.

Feng Bao was not in a position to speak in the regular court, but he had his own trained censors who spoke on his behalf.

Minister of Works Guo Chaobin was the first to step forward.

He first glanced at Yin Zhengmao, then shouted, "According to common practice, the Ministry of Revenue has always allocated money and grain, and the Ministry of Works has provided manpower and labor. Why does the Ministry of Works need to pay? Is the Ministry of Revenue planning to incorporate the Ministry of Works? The Ministry of Works can bear its own profits and losses and does not need any help!"

Guo Chaobin is well versed in river engineering and always follows the rules when doing things. He is very dissatisfied with Yin Zhengmao's practice of "dragging people into the water".

After he finished speaking, Left Censor-in-Chief Chen Zan stood up.

"Your Majesty, I also feel this is inappropriate. The Imperial Treasury manages the inner court's money, the Ministry of Works oversees craftsmen, and the Ministry of Revenue manages the state's expenditures. Unless it's an emergency, there's no need for joint assistance. If the Ministry of Revenue doesn't have the money, how can the Imperial Treasury and the Ministry of Works not help? This policy goes against the rules and is unacceptable!"

Immediately, several censors also spoke out in opposition.

At this moment, Shen Nian looked at Yin Zhengmao, who had a calm expression.

He felt that this Minister of Revenue, who was both civil and military, had worked hard for many years and was promoted despite being accused of greed, would never come up with an idea that everyone thought was stupid.

There must be a back-up plan.

If this policy can be implemented, the job of the Minister of Revenue will be easier to do and will be of great benefit to the people.

Shen Nian was full of anticipation.

(End of this chapter)