Chapter 181: Zhu Youjian Has Figured It Out! On the Si Day, Reform It — Take Flight!

That voice, brimming with the high-spirited confidence of one certain of success, formed a stark, almost jarring contrast with the oppressive heaviness that filled the hall.

Almost instantly, every gaze in the room turned toward the source of the sound.

There among the crowd, a figure had already risen from his seat, a faint smile on his face as he cupped his hands and bowed toward the imperial throne.

Huo Weihua again!

Watching him, Zhu Youjian found himself, for a moment, somewhere between laughter and exasperation.

This is fiscal policy, a matter of national grand strategy — and your official dossier doesn't contain a single line of Ministry of Revenue experience. Can you even explain it clearly?

As if reading the young emperor's doubts upon the throne, Huo Weihua bowed once more and declared in a ringing voice:

"To inform Your Majesty: this subject is a jinshi of the forty-first year of Wanli, first appointed County Magistrate of Jintan, then County Magistrate of Wujiang…"

That familiar opening line again.

Zhu Youjian sighed inwardly in resignation. I already know this. You truly don't need to repeat it every single time…

Yet what Huo Weihua said next made Zhu Youjian straighten slightly in his seat.

"Both county posts were in the tax-laden, complex territories of the Southern Metropolitan Region."

"In each term, this subject personally measured the fields, checked the household registrations, built waterworks, and equalized the corvée and tax burdens. Of these detailed realities, this subject is confident he knows them most deeply!"

Huo Weihua's gaze abruptly sharpened, and his voice rose with it.

"The afflictions of the common people under Heaven — how could they lie merely in a trifling tax of nine percent?!"

"The five million taels of the Liaodong levy that the dynasty collects — the layers of surcharges piled upon it and shifted onto the people's backs amount to not just a few million, but tens of millions!"

The moment these words fell, the entire assembly was stunned.

Huo Weihua, heedless of all else, bowed deeply toward the throne, his voice like a great bell.

"This subject begs leave to speak before Your Majesty of this great fiscal malady afflicting all under Heaven!"

Zhu Youjian's gaze drifted instinctively toward Bi Ziyan in the front row.

Yet Bi Ziyan, utterly oblivious to having his thunder stolen, was merely watching Huo Weihua with a grave expression.

Zhu Youjian sighed inwardly.

So be it, Minister Huo. Since you have seized the initiative…

When it comes to the matter of karmic opportunity, he who arrives first, gains it first.

"Approved," Zhu Youjian said with a slight nod, uttering the two words.

"I thank Your Majesty!" Huo Weihua drew a deep breath and swept his gaze around the assembly.

He could feel the stares converging on him from every direction — shock, admiration, contempt, but most of all, the appraising scrutiny one gives a madman.

But he cared not a whit.

Since he had already staked his life and his family's fortunes, why not see this grand wager through to the very end?!

A true man, if he cannot live to feast from the five cauldrons, should die boiled in them!

Huo Weihua cleared his throat and spoke in a deep voice:

"Are not the local magistrates the very men His Majesty relies upon to govern and care for the common people?"

"This subject dares not say that every man among them is corrupt, nor need he speak of those who line their own pockets. Let him speak only of those expenses deemed legitimate and openly treated as official operating costs, without the slightest fear or caution."

"A single audience at court, a single performance evaluation, even a promotion or transfer — which of these does not cost five or six thousand taels of silver?"

"Calculating thus across the fifteen hundred counties and departments of the realm, every time the state selects a new cohort of magistrates, the empire must levy several million more upon the people!"

Zhu Youjian did a rapid mental calculation.

5,000 × 1,500 = 7.5 million.

Divided by a three-year term, that was 2.5 million per year.

So this is Minister Huo's line of reasoning.

Zhu Youjian's own original approach had been to tally up the customary fees of every county magistrate in the empire.

Still, this amounted to the same result by different means.

With his firepower now fully unleashed, Huo Weihua, not content with blasting the county magistrates, turned his guns on the Regional Inspectors:

"And are not the roving Censors the very men His Majesty relies upon to purge corrupt officials?"

"Again, this subject dares not say that every man among them is corrupt, nor dare he speak of those who take bribes. Let him speak only of those practices deemed legitimate and openly treated as established convention, without the slightest sense of warning."

"Such as the fees for auditing accounts, the profits from receiving lawsuits, even the mutual exchange of gift-wrapped books and the presents of gratitude for recommendations — for a single man, these can reach twenty or thirty thousand taels!"

"Calculating thus across all the northern and southern circuits, every time the state dispatches a cohort of Censors, the empire must levy over a million more upon the people!"

As his words fell, Huo Weihua cupped his hands and said calmly:

"The gaps in the law are not the evil of men, but the inertia of the system. Inertia breeds malpractice, malpractice breeds corruption, and corruption endangers the state!"

"All that has been said above, this subject has witnessed with his own eyes through successive local postings and transfers to the ministries. Every sentence is true, every word is fact!"

In the great hall, one could have heard a pin drop.

Were these matters a secret?

Of course not.

Every single man seated here — who did not know? Who had not heard?

Had anyone ever spoken of these matters?

Yes! And more than one!

The most famous of them was a man named Hai Rui!

And the result? A single impeachment, and the entire court became his enemy. In the end, he languished idle in the countryside for over a decade. Even Zhang Juzheng, whose power covered all under Heaven, dared not employ him!

How terribly shortsighted, Minister Huo!

Zhu Youjian took it all in, missing nothing.

He fell silent for a moment, just as everyone assumed he was about to rebuke Huo Weihua for alarmist talk, or else erupt in fury over the corruption plaguing the realm.

The Son of Heaven upon the throne instead broke into a sudden smile.

That smile, like a spring breeze cracking ice, eased the oppressive atmosphere in the hall at once.

Although this speech had been even fiercer and more radical than he had anticipated.

But so what?

The foot soldier had already charged into the fray — could he, the Regional Commander, really hold back?

No leader in the world behaves like that!

"Huo Weihua," Zhu Youjian's voice was not loud, yet it reached every ear clearly, "are you not afraid to die?"

Huo Weihua's expression turned solemn. He cupped his hands once more and spoke, each word deliberate: "To offer counsel for the state, to serve the state unto death — this subject dares not begrudge this body in the slightest!"

Huo Weihua, so long as you never abandon the spirit you have shown today, even if your talents prove merely middling hereafter, I shall guarantee you a ducal title in this lifetime!

Zhu Youjian clapped his hands and laughed. "I shall remember those words of yours!"

His laughter ceased. His gaze, sharp as lightning, swept across the assembled ministers.

"Those who believe Minister Huo's words are hollow, are false — raise your right hand."

The classic show-of-hands prompt — using initiative to apply opposition pressure.

Naturally, no one in the hall raised a hand.

Even those officials who inwardly dismissed Huo Weihua with contempt dared not openly step forward now and deny this blood-soaked truth.

Zhu Youjian waved his hand, gesturing for Huo Weihua to sit, and only then began to speak slowly.

"Indeed. Our dynasty taxes at one part in thirty — how light that is."

"Yet after over two hundred years of peace, how could the petty officials of this realm possibly take only that one part in thirty?"

"So long as the common people still have food to eat and rags to cover their bodies, so long as they have yet to rise up in revolt, those men will only cling like festering sores to the bone, wringing out every last shred and thread until nothing remains!"

His tone grew deep and somber, as though recounting a cold, hard reality.

"Thus it was that our dynasty imposed the Liaodong levy. Those nine cash per mu — they appear to be taken from the hands of the common people, but in truth, they are demanded from the countless petty officials and magistrates across the land, demanded from the feast they have long since swallowed into their own mouths!"

"Will they, then, because the dynasty faces hardship, slightly restrain their greed and surrender those nine cash?"

Zhu Youjian answered his own question, his voice abruptly sharpening.

"The facts prove — they will not!"

—Bang!

Zhu Youjian seized the Sword of the Son of Heaven, scabbard and all, and slammed it heavily onto the imperial desk!

He rose abruptly to his feet, looking down upon the hundred officials in the hall.

"Therefore, in my view, this matter of the dynasty's fiscal administration is, at its root, a war!"

"An invisible war!"

"What we are collecting is not nine cash from the hands of the common people, but the embezzled funds from the hands of petty officials! The customary graft from the mouths of magistrates!"

"Gentlemen, do you concur with this assessment?!"

He gripped the sword hilt, his gaze like a blade, slowly sweeping over every man.

"Those who do not concur — raise your hand!"

The hall remained deathly silent. The assembled grand ministers wore varied expressions — shock, contemplation, or terror — yet still, no one raised a hand.

"Good."

Zhu Youjian nodded and sat back down.

"We have discussed why the dynasty must levy taxes, and from where those taxes shall be drawn. What follows, then, is the final, and most critical, matter —"

"How to levy taxes."

His gaze at last returned to the man who, from the very beginning, had been left standing ignored in place — Guo Yunhou, Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

"Minister Guo, I ask you: do you know when the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury was established?"

Guo Yunhou was somewhat dazed by this sudden question.

He furrowed his brow, pondered for a moment, and only then answered hesitantly: "Perhaps... at the founding of the dynasty?"

"This is a matter buried in old archives; it is no wonder you do not know." Zhu Youjian shook his head, without reproach.

He turned his head and said, "Companion Gao, read out the findings compiled by the Directorate of Ceremonial for my ministers to hear."

"As commanded."

Gao Shiming stepped forward in acknowledgment, holding a prepared document volume in his hands.

The moment he began to speak, a stir ran through the hall.

"By His Majesty's sacred decree, the Directorate of Ceremonial has examined the successive institutional history of the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury and compiled this text, the 'Examination of the Imperial Ming the the Taicang treasury treasury Treasury.'"

"The the the Taicang treasury treasury Silver Treasury was first established in the seventh year of the Zhengtong era..."

What?!

At these words, Guo Yunhou's pupils contracted sharply. The entire civil and military court erupted in an uproar.

Not at the founding under Hongwu, not during the Yongle golden age — it was established only nearly a century after the dynasty's founding!

Gao Shiming's voice did not pause, continuing steadily.

"The the the Taicang treasury treasury Silver Treasury was initially no more than a storehouse for the silver converted from horse-grass levies in the Southern Metropolitan Region and the surplus silver after the sale of grain from the capital granaries. Its annual revenue was merely a hundred thousand taels or so."

"In the tenth year of the Chenghua era, silver converted from local silk taxes was incorporated into the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, varying from several tens of thousands of taels each year."

"In the sixteenth year of the Chenghua era, confiscation and penalty silver from the Ministry of Justice was incorporated into the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, varying from over a hundred thousand taels each year."

"In the eighteenth year of the Chenghua era, surplus silver converted from summer and autumn wheat and rice levies was incorporated into the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, amounting to over two hundred thousand taels each year."

"In the nineteenth year of the Chenghua era, salt-certificate silver from the Liangzhe region entered the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury; thereafter, the Lianghuai and other regions followed, amounting to over a million taels each year."

"In the first year of the Zhengde era, household-register food-paper silver was divided, half entering the Inner Palace Treasury and half entering the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, amounting to fifty thousand taels."

"In the seventeenth year of Jiajing, a precedent was set to pay silver into the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, bringing in several hundred thousand taels annually, give or take."

"In the twenty-fourth year of Jiajing, ship taxes from the customs passes were paid into the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury, bringing in over a hundred thousand taels annually, give or take."

Gao Shiming recited this all in one breath, then concluded:

"Thus, from the founding of the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury to the present, one hundred and eighty-four years have passed, during which it has undergone more than a dozen changes, great and small."

"Its annual revenue has also grown from an initial hundred thousand or so taels, accumulating from many sources, to reach its present figure of three million three hundred thousand taels."

With that, he cupped his hands in salute and quietly withdrew.

Only then did Zhu Youjian turn his gaze to Guo Yunhou, who was still in a state of shock, and said slowly:

"Minister Guo, do you know why We had the Directorate of Ceremonial investigate the history and reforms of the the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury?"

Guo Yunhou shook his head blankly.

Zhu Youjian sighed.

"If one is to wage war, one must see whether the armor and weapons are sharp, and whether the military system suits the times."

"Can you take the chariot troops of the Spring and Autumn period and send them charging through the towering mountains and dense forests of Yunnan?"

"Can you take the infantry formations of the Tang and Song and use them in an age where firearms are gradually rising?"

"Only by examining the rise and fall of past ages can one assess the gains and losses of the present."

"This is precisely why We have ordered the Hanlin Academy to begin collating the classics and histories of former times and compile them into volumes!"

"The emperors and civil officials of every reign of the Great Ming already recognized that the dynasty's fiscal administration had problems, and they had already begun to reform and adjust it!"

"This — this is the truth We have discovered among these piles of old papers!"

"The past, unforgotten, is the teacher of the future. Within the histories, there is indeed much sound counsel!"

Zhu Youjian's gaze burned bright as he fixed it upon Guo Yunhou.

"So, Minister Guo, do you now understand what it is that We intend to do?"

If Guo Yunhou could not understand by now, after the matter had been laid out to this extent, then his tenure as Minister of Revenue would be at its end.

He stared in disbelief at the young emperor before him, his entire being finally snapping back from the crushing weight of that earlier pronouncement — "revenue can exceed expenditure, and each year shall have reserves."

This new sovereign had come fully prepared!

Guo Yunhou faced the throne and bowed deeply. "Your Majesty is sagely wise! Does Your Majesty… believe that this Ministry of Revenue must reform?!"

"Precisely!" Zhu Youjian slapped the imperial desk and declared loudly, "Exactly so!"

"The the the Taicang treasury treasury treasury has changed — how could the Ministry of Revenue have remained unchanged?"

"At the dynasty's founding, the Ministry of Revenue established thirteen provincial bureaus, each managing the taxes and levies of the realm's provinces directly!"

"Yet now, the Shandong Bureau concurrently oversees the salt tax, the Guizhou Bureau concurrently oversees customs duties, the Yunnan Bureau concurrently oversees the grain tribute, the Northern Metropolitan Region has been assigned to Fujian, the Southern Metropolitan Region to Sichuan…"

"How has the august fiscal ministry of the Great Ming become so absurd and laughable!"

Zhu Youjian fixed his eyes on Guo Yunhou and asked, weighing each word:

"Minister Guo, in former dynasties, the post was often called 'Finance Chancellor.' Do you feel that the present Minister of Revenue can still be called a 'Finance Chancellor'?"

Guo Yunhou's face was filled with bitterness as he said hoarsely, "Of the dynasty's fiscal revenues, only two or three parts in ten reach the Ministry of Revenue. This subject… how could he be worthy of the title 'Finance Chancellor'?"

"If We say you are, then you are!" Zhu Youjian's voice was resolute. "Guo Yunhou, Finance Chancellor of the Great Ming — receive your orders!"

Guo Yunhou trembled from head to toe. He was silent for a moment, then with every ounce of strength he possessed, answered solemnly: "This subject… is here!"

"This day, We assign your Ministry of Revenue three tasks to carry out!"

"The first: 'Restructure the System'!"

"Establish one bureau to specialize in managing the grain and funds of all the realm's provinces — exchanging surpluses and deficits, coordinating and deploying resources as a whole!"

"Establish one bureau to specialize in managing all state expenditures — measuring revenue to determine outlays, forecasting surpluses and shortfalls!"

"Establish one bureau to specialize in managing the troop pay of the nine border garrisons — delivering it on schedule and in full, and putting a definitive stop to embezzlement and skimming!"

"Establish one bureau to specialize in managing the fiscal accounts of the New Policies — keeping independent accounts, so as to observe their results!"

"Establish one bureau to specialize in managing the realm's granaries — auditing their true state, to prepare for years of famine!"

"As for the remaining matters — grain tribute, salt tax, commercial tax — each shall also be split into separate bureaus and properly accounted for. No more of this current muddled chaos and utter mess!"

"Since every reign and every generation has been reforming, let there be no more talk of immutable ancestral institutions! Get down to solid work, and reform according to the most correct and most effective methods!"

"Can this be done?!"

Guo Yunhou felt a surge of heroic passion in his chest and declared loudly: "In reply to Your Majesty! The Ministry of Revenue can do it!"

"The second: 'Open the Ledgers'!"

"For every county, department, and prefectural office under heaven, every military colony of the nine border garrisons, every garrison town, and every frontier supply depot along the routes — how much tax is collected, how much is forwarded, how much is transported by civilian or capital shipment, how much is retained locally, where it is spent, and whether there are delivery receipts — all shall be opened in ledgers and fully accounted for!"

"For distant places, report once every quarter! For nearby places, report once every month!"

"At year's end, compile a summary. For all those in arrears on taxes, compile a register and submit it to the Ministry of Personnel and the Directorate of Ceremonial, to be jointly evaluated for merit and uniformly dealt with!"

"Can this be done?!"

Guo Yunhou drew a deep breath, feeling the burden on his shoulders as heavy as Mount Tai, but without the slightest hesitation, he said through gritted teeth: "The Ministry of Revenue can do it!"

"The third, and the most critical matter: 'Rigorous Selection'!"

"The New Policies in the Northern Metropolitan Region are like painting on a blank sheet of paper — the work proceeds with the greatest ease."

"But the remaining thirteen provinces of the realm each have different local conditions, some simple, some complex."

"The Ministry of Revenue is hereby ordered to take the lead, with the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate in support, to examine and evaluate the current Provincial Administration Commissioners of every province, and determine who is superior and who is inferior!"

"Thereafter, let the Six Ministries and the Nine Chief Ministers jointly recommend capable officials and seasoned administrators — weed out the inferior, select the superior — and dispatch them to every province to strictly press for the full payment of taxes!"

Zhu Youjian's tone became incomparably earnest.

"The difficulty of this task surpasses even that of the New Policies in the Northern Metropolitan Region! Those selected must be men with experience in local governance and the means to wield thunderbolts!"

"The taxes pressed for must not be wrung from the common people, but from the hands of the petty clerks and runners! From those layer upon layer of extortionate customary fees!"

"Its difficulty and its peril make it the very crux of the New Policies! Therefore, Our rewards for it shall also be the greatest!"

Zhu Youjian slowly rose to his feet, swept his gaze across everyone present, and spoke, each word deliberate:

"Whoever can clear up the taxes of an entire province without exhausting the common people shall, depending on the locality, be awarded no fewer than ten and no more than twenty red stripes!"

The moment these words fell, the entire hall erupted in an instant uproar!

Twenty stripes?!

One-fifth of an earldom?!

The breathing of countless ministers instantly grew rapid; they looked at one another, flames of "ambition" burning in their eyes.

In the previous new policies for Northern Zhili, the official ranks involved were all low — the highest, a Prefect, was only of the upper fourth rank, and most of the court's senior grandees could barely take part.

The highest post, Governor-General of Zhili, was fine, but there was only one — the cake was simply too small.

But now, this Provincial Administration Commissioner was a high official of the lower second rank!

This was practically a stairway to heaven, tailor-made for every high-ranking official in the capital!

As long as one performed well, next year one would be nailed on as a Minister of the Six Ministries, or even enter the Grand Secretariat and become a Grand Secretary!

Thirteen provinces, thirteen chances!

This was simply... a Dragon Gate the Son of Heaven had opened especially for them!

Zhu Youjian, however, paid no heed to their reactions; he only stared fixedly at Guo Yunhou and asked, each word deliberate: "This matter — can the Ministry of Revenue carry it out?"

Guo Yunhou's heart surged with emotion, so stirred he could scarcely contain himself.

Reforming the system, opening the registers, and evaluating all the Provincial Administration Commissioners of the realm!

This was what a Finance Minister truly was! This was the true Finance Minister of the realm!

He abruptly bowed to the very ground and, with all the strength in his body, declared: "Reporting to Your Majesty! This matter — the Ministry of Revenue can carry it out!!!"

"Good!"

Zhu Youjian let out a great laugh.

"The various items of the new policies have all been laid out. I have only two final matters to address."

He straightened his body, retrieved his sword, and hung it back at his waist.

Seeing this, the assembled ministers in the hall also reined in their thoughts and rose to their feet one after another.

"First: after the assembly disperses, each of you shall go to Gao Shiming to receive your letter of commission."

"Within the letter of commission are detailed explanations of each item, its objectives, its deadlines, and most importantly — the number of red stripes assigned to each task!"

"Second: this is my final admonition to all of you."

Zhu Youjian's gaze grew deep and icy.

"Since my ascension to the throne, those able to speak on affairs of state have been few, while those who impeach and attack others have been many."

"Who stands behind each person — disciples and old associates, native place and scholarly lineage — all are listed one by one upon my desk. I have simply been disinclined to speak of it."

"Loyalty and treachery are hard to distinguish; the human heart is hard to read."

"I look at none of that!"

"I look only at practical achievement!"

"Only at practical achievement!"

"Only at practical achievement!"

He repeated it three times, his voice shaking the roof tiles!

"He who can clear a province of its foul miasma for the state — shall be an earl!"

"He who can train fifty thousand crack troops for the state — shall be an earl!"

"He who can manage a million in annual revenue for the state — shall be an earl!"

"Merit, fame, profit, emolument — I lack for nothing, and I stint on no reward!"

"If any man still hesitates and vacillates, trimming his sails to every wind, then let him simply request leave to return home and spare me some breath!"

Zhu Youjian paused, his tone softening slightly, yet growing all the more meaningful.

"I shall wait to see the grand statecraft memorials you personally submit — not, as today, where I must point out and assign each letter of commission one by one."

"I have said all I wish to say. Each of you, take care."

With that, Zhu Youjian gripped his sword hilt, cast not another glance into the hall, turned directly, and strode with great, swift steps toward the rear of the hall.

By now, the sky outside the hall had gone completely dark; within, the candlelight blazed bright, flickering unsteadily.

The dim yellow candlelight fell upon every minister's face, elongating and twisting their varied expressions — some stirred, some greedy, some fearful, some lost in thought — like a grotesque and dazzling tableau of demons.

A crisp crack of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's whip startled everyone awake.

The assembled ministers in the hall — whether Grand Secretaries, ministry heads, ennobled dignitaries, or military officers — rose from their seats in unison and, facing that figure vanishing into the darkness, crashed to their knees.

A roar like mountain cries and tsunami waves resounded through the night sky of the Forbidden City.

"Long live His Majesty! Long live! Long, long live —"

Author's note: Couldn't fit it in, damn... writing it here.

Huo Weihua's "Hai Rui-style" performance today — its original historical source material was adapted for use here.

The original source material comes from: the memorial submitted by Liang Tingdong, Minister of War, on the twenty-sixth day of the eighth month of the third year of Chongzhen.

I won't paste the original text; suffice to say, it's even more scathing than what was written in this chapter.

In my original extrapolations, I was very cautious about writing various reforms, anti-corruption measures, and land surveys.

I kept worrying that some civil-official clique, some landlord grandee, some palace assassin, or some Liaodong warlord would come for my dog life.

But the more historical sources I read, the more I realized — my worries were nothing.

In history, there was even a civil official who said that if taxes were being collected too urgently, the rich could be made to pay in advance on behalf of the poor! Can you believe that?!

Forgive me for taking up paid word count to paste historical sources; this is the first time I've done this in this book, because it was simply too shocking, and moreover, this will determine my future writing approach.

Third day of the ninth month, fourth year of Chongzhen, Zhu Guangzuo, Director-General of the Grand Canal:

Because the advance levy of the new surtax was burdening the common people, he petitioned that wealthy households be encouraged to take the lead in voluntary payment, so as to ease the shortfall among the poor, and cited precedents already carried out in Jiangling in support of his proposal.

Jiangling, comprising one hundred twenty-five li, was assessed roughly five thousand taels for the three-tenths Liaodong levy; rounding down and taking one hundred li as the basis, each li should pay fifty taels and each jia should pay five taels.

At the time, Magistrate Zhou Ruibao had just received the travel orders for his diligence review; the directive had only just arrived and it was extremely difficult to raise the sum on short notice. I took the lead myself: for that year's fourth installment, according to the itemized schedule of exemptions and relief surtax silver, I paid my full twenty-five taels in advance, covering five jia.

Those with grain holdings as large as mine were urged to follow suit — they need not pay in full; if just one man paid five taels in advance, that would cover one jia's quota. With ten men, ten jia would be complete; with a hundred men, ten li would be complete. Extending this further, tens or hundreds of taels — the more the better. In four or five days, with several hundred people, the entire county's advance levy could be settled.

The magistrate adopted this method, the surtax was collected, and the registered households were not harassed — this is not paying on behalf of others. It is merely paying one's due grain tax a few months early. There are four advantages: first, it spares the government the need to press for collection; second, it prevents yamen runners from making arrests; third, it saves the new village heads from debt interest; fourth, it lets poor and isolated households keep their chickens and dogs in peace. (This line notes that this had already been implemented in Jiangling County.)

If this method were adopted everywhere, every face in the land would be that of a righteous subject, and nowhere under heaven would the suffering of advance levies be seen. This is what is meant by "grant a little leniency, delay a single day, and the people receive a single day's blessing."

The Emperor considered it an excellent method of flexible accommodation and ordered the Ministry of Revenue to circulate and strictly enforce it; the memorial was issued downward. (Zhu Youjian's way of "promoting" it — how is that any different from not promoting it at all?)

None of his subjects responded. (As expected — the result was that nothing came of it. Chongzhen's work methods and execution rate… ah, truly painful to watch.)

If I were doing it, I would give those wealthy households who pay in advance some benefits, honors, and opportunities, incorporate this matter into the performance evaluations, and then select localities for pilot programs, and so on.

Then dispatch eighteen lines of intelligence to verify from every angle and in every respect whether the thing has truly been carried out to the letter.

Not like Chongzhen here — "ordered the Ministry of Revenue to circulate and strictly enforce it."

Chongzhen even deeply agreed with Zhou Yanru's remark: "In ancient times there were those who netted sparrows and dug out rats yet the soldiers' hearts never wavered — why is it that now they stir up mutiny at the slightest provocation?"

Truly fucking incredible. Rich second-generation kids who've never gone hungry really are built different.

Even if I, His Majesty the Yongchang Emperor, did absolutely nothing to climb the tech tree, just by relying on my way of doing things and this kind of normal human insight, I could still hang Chongzhen up and beat him silly.

The Great Ming died of the Little Ice Age, died of the rot of a dynasty in its final days, and also died of Chongzhen's ability and character…

As for the comments section saying that going to Liaodong to audit the accounts would mean assassination squads and military commanders defecting to the Later Jin.

Let me explain.

From the first year of Tianqi to the seventh year of Tianqi, a whole slew of people audited the accounts. Never mind what the hell they ultimately turned up — in the process, several dozen military commanders were dismissed, stripped of office, and thrown into prison.

Which civil official died on the road during an audit? Which military commander defected to the Later Jin?

The truth is, what the military commanders did was send their trusted men to reside permanently in the capital, stuff them full of money, and keep themselves thoroughly supplied with intelligence.

Then when someone really came to clear up the military payroll, everyone sat down and had a proper talk, each took their cut, and then they tossed out a few unlucky bastards.

That is the normal, rational logic of the bureaucratic world.

To put it bluntly, in 1627, the Great Ming's prestige was still genuinely intact. Everyone might be corrupt, but the central government's authority over life and death, over bestowal and confiscation, still held.

Therefore, I hereby formally declare:

The protagonist Zhu Youjian has figured things out.

From now on, his conduct will truly be: "On the si day, he reforms" — charge, charge, charge!

From now on I will not write "the protagonist wants to do something but cannot because of this or that."

Except for things like abolishing the civil examinations right from the start, or launching a nationwide cadastral survey without any groundwork — those still require caution.

Everything else — anti-corruption, bureaucratic discipline, payroll audits, tax increases — so long as it falls within the normal cognitive world of the Great Ming, he will just go ahead and do it.

I will only write: "The protagonist wanted to accomplish something, but because of corruption and bureaucratic malfeasance, it ended up going the opposite way, or failed to reach its goal."

But the road is winding, the future is bright — win people's hearts, set rewards and punishments clearly, kill, kill, kill all the way, add in some interest allocation, and the outcome will ultimately be good.

In short, release the protagonist's shackles.

From now on, when I write antagonists, I will only write "moral antagonists," such as Liu Zongzhou.

Or "bottom-rung antagonists" — for example, officials who, after such-and-such a day, still refuse to repent.

But the kind who scheme obsessively, who regardless of their own interests insist, absolutely insist, must oppose the New Policies — even at the cost of their own careers, who want to pull some "doubling" stunt — those I basically won't write anymore.

I've asked every friend I have in officialdom, and I've never fucking seen such a miraculous figure in the bureaucratic world.

At most, you get soft resistance, foot-dragging, that sort of thing…

"Doubling" — doubling my ass. Don't they want promotion? Don't they want to get rich? Doesn't the big shot whose coattails they're riding have KPIs on his back? Did he even agree to it? Their brains are full of holes, every last one of them.

(The "doubling" here means deliberately using doubling to sabotage the New Policies. The kind who, in a zeal for political achievement, mess things up and cause disaster, or the corrupt officials who keep piling on extractions — those don't count, I'll still write those; that's also a normal political phenomenon.)

Everything must be about interests; gains and losses must be made clear.

When the central government is dead set on pushing a certain policy, rather than "doubling" it, you'd do better to go look at where your own incremental gains lie.

Let alone talk of the Southern Zhili landlords rebelling…

In the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, when the dynasty was in its death throes, Jiangnan was still obediently paying taxes — I didn't see Jiangnan rebel.

The more property a man has, the more spineless he is.

The propertyless men of Shaanxi are far fiercer than any Liaodong military commander or Southern Zhili landlord.

If you still think what I've written is too illogical, you could try a different angle:

Just read this book of mine as a feel-good power fantasy, haha.

Finally, I'll leave a brain-cell deposit station here.

I've calculated it — I've probably eaten about seventeen hundred characters' worth of your paid word count. I'll find time later to repay you with a free chapter.

Zhu Youjian — a debt must be repaid! No need to worry.