Chapter 342

The good news came, and the entire capital was boiling.

The imperial army recovered the entire territory of Huguang, hundreds of thousands of rebel troops were annihilated, and the rebel king Wei Wang Weijiarui was captured.

The Bai Lian Sect rebellion, which had plagued Great Great Dayu for three and a half years, once again showed the dawn of being pacified.

Having learned the lesson from last time, Emperor Emperor Yongning, upon receiving the news, was full of worry in addition to joy.

He feared that the northern barbarians would invade again and disrupt the process of pacifying the rebellion.

"Your Majesty, rest assured!

After the last southern invasion, because of the uneven distribution of spoils, internal contradictions occurred within the northern barbarians.

The Tatars took the opportunity to provoke a civil war among the Guifang tribes, and the grassland was killed until it flowed with blood, which will not stop for a while.

Just coming out of the cold winter, it is the time when horses are thinnest, which is not suitable for launching an expedition.

Even if they invade the south again, that will be a matter after autumn.

Within at least half a year, there will be no major changes in the north."

Grand Secretary Wan Wan Junhui said in a great mood.

The good news from the south not only saved Great Great Dayu's decline but also saved his political career.

After Emperor Emperor Yongning succeeded to the throne, the change of high-ranking officials in the court was like a revolving lantern.

A term of office exceeding one year is considered long.

The main reason he, the Grand Secretary, could do it until now was that the mess left behind was too big.

No matter who came to power, the first task to face was to clean up these messes.

From south to north, famine victims were everywhere, smoke was rising everywhere, and the imperial court was also poor, completely a scene of the late years of a dynasty.

Besides fighting for power and profit, the officials also had to consider their own lives before and after death.

Seeing that the dynasty was about to be destroyed, no one wanted to come to power and become the final scapegoat.

The subsequent situation gradually stabilized, and everyone rekindled the heart to fight for power and profit, and Wan Wan Junhui's position as Grand Secretary became precarious.

Fortunately, the Wuchang battle was a complete victory, and the Cabinet shared a portion of the political achievements, which can be considered as making up for their faults with meritorious service.

"Hmm!"

"The northern border still cannot be taken lightly, especially the Three Xuan-Da line, which must be strictly guarded.

Prefectures and counties everywhere must be prepared at all times and absolutely cannot let the northern barbarians drive straight in again.

Next is the critical moment to pacify the Bai Lian Sect rebellion; all departments of the imperial court must fully cooperate and strive to pacify the rebellion within the year!"

As soon as Emperor Emperor Yongning's voice fell, the smiles on the faces of the ministers disappeared all at once.

Wei's rebellion was defeated, and there is indeed some hope of recovering Jiangxi and Zhejiang within the year.

Wanting to completely wipe out the rebellion is not that simple.

The Fu rebels entrenched in Nanzhili and the Wei rebels entrenched in the Shu region are not easy to deal with.

Wanting to pacify them all, a great victory at the level of the Wuchang battle is still needed twice more.

Undoubtedly, this is impossible.

War is fought with money and grain; the war funds for the Wuchang battle were contributed by the Shandong aristocratic families.

Without the great commotion in Shandong, there would not have been this Wuchang battle.

Those families that were raided were courting death themselves; they didn't hide their business with the northern barbarians well and carried the crime of colluding with the enemy.

The world of Great Great Dayu is the world of feudal scholar-officials.

The officials present are all representatives of the scholar-officials of the world.

The same operation must never be allowed to appear a second time.

In fact, even if they wanted to raid the homes, there was actually nothing to raid.

Several provinces in the south were beaten to pieces; the aristocratic families were looted by the rebel army, and a large amount of wealth was dispersed to the rebel soldiers.

In the process of the imperial army wiping out the rebel army, wealth was also transferred.

There were not many spoils of war captured, but the officers and soldiers who participated in the war made a fortune.

These were obtained by people risking their lives on the battlefield; the imperial court could not confiscate them.

"Your Majesty, besides reporting good news, the memorials from the front line are all asking the imperial court for money.

Huguang was beaten to pieces by the war, and tax revenue cannot be collected in a short time.

But the meritorious officials who participated in the war need rewards, the fallen soldiers need pensions, and the post-war reconstruction of the newly recovered prefectures all need money.

Cumulatively, there is a gap of about five million taels.

Adding the previously owed military expenses, the materials and grain owed by the imperial court exceed ten million taels in silver.

Several Viceroys are working hard to raise money, but it is still a drop in the bucket.

If the money and grain problem cannot be solved, the progress of suppressing the rebellion in the southeast is afraid that it can only slow down.

The situation in the Shu region is even worse; a large number of prefectures have fallen into the hands of the rebel army, and even Chengdu Prefecture has been besieged.

Grand Secretary Xu submitted a memorial to the imperial court for help; originally, he was prepared to send the Qin army into Shu, but unfortunately, Guanzhong has not been peaceful recently, and the army dare not move lightly."

Minister of War Wan Wan Yuxuan immediately threw out a difficult problem.

On the issue of suppressing the rebellion, he can proudly say that he absolutely has no selfishness.

The deteriorating situation made the Ministry of War live like a year.

All kinds of ice and charcoal tributes in the past have now disappeared by 70%.

Local generals are busy fighting and have no time to go to the capital to report on their duties, so naturally, there will be no tributes.

The imperial court's finances have deteriorated, and the military expenses allocated to various places are also decreasing.

Although they increased the commission, they couldn't withstand the faster decline in the total amount, and the benefits shared from the hands could only passively decrease.

It seems that during the war, the power in the hands of the Ministry of War increased, but in reality, everyone's income decreased instead of increasing.

It's not just the loss of money; the key is that they also have to be responsible for the failure of the war.

The supervisory responsibility is not great, but they can't withstand the fact that they always lose on the battlefield.

The Minister of War is often reprimanded, and the younger brothers below shouldn't think about having a good time either.

They didn't get political achievements, but they received a lot of reprimands from the emperor and the Cabinet.

These are all political stains that must be considered when promoting and appointing, which will seriously affect everyone's official career.

"How could it be so much?"

Emperor Emperor Yongning said in shock.

He knew that war costs money, but spending so much all at once still exceeded his expectations.

In the peak period of Great Great Dayu, the financial revenue was equivalent to 20 to 30 million taels of silver.

Affected by the war, the money, grain, and cloth revenue of the imperial court last year, when converted, was only more than 10 million taels.

This also includes the book revenue increase brought by the rise in grain prices.

"Your Majesty, the accounts should not have any major problems; even if there are problems in the details, the error will not exceed 100,000 taels.

The money and grain owed by the imperial court all have data that can be checked.

The reward silver for meritorious officials and pensions for the fallen reported from below are also executed according to the standards stipulated by the Great Great Dayu law.

In order to reduce expenses, many officers and soldiers who originally wanted to take reward silver were also persuaded to accept job promotions.

There are not so many positions in the army, so they were all given honorary titles.

Even if the Ministry of Revenue bargains again, at least 8 million taels of silver must be paid to the Guangdong and Among Guangxi military.

Huguang and Min-Zhe combined need to pay more than 1 million taels.

The huge burden is all pressed on the people below; several Viceroys are indeed unable to launch a great war."

Minister of Revenue Pang Pang Chengjie said with anxiety.

As the department that owes money, he doesn't want to say these words.

But there is no way; the emperor asked about the accounts, and he couldn't answer that he didn't know.

Either there is a problem with the report from below, or they really owe so much.

As a smart person, he knows very well that one cannot be serious about the bills.

Sending an investigation team has no meaning other than offending people.

The Ministry of War did not verify the heads and directly implemented military merit, which is enough to explain many problems.

It seems to be giving face to the meritorious nobility group, but in reality, it is a political gesture of trust.

No matter what he thinks in his heart, now that he wants to use people to suppress the rebellion, he must make a gesture of trust.

After all, compared to the previous few, these few in the meritorious nobility group are indeed much more capable.

All battlefields are advancing triumphantly.

Coaxing them first to wipe out the rebel army as soon as possible is what the imperial court needs most.

The rest are side issues that can be solved by thinking of ways later.

Don't say 10 million taels; even if it is discounted to 20 million, he dares to admit it.

Anyway, no matter how much is owed, the Ministry of Revenue is unable to pay.

Being able to allocate 10% or 20% is doing their best, and the rest can only be owed.

Dragging it on for a few years, the new debt will become an old account.

By that time, he will have moved to a new position, and the problem will be for the next Minister of Revenue to consider.

Financial deficit is a long-term problem; except for the rebound in the late Emperor's reign, Great Great Dayu's financial problems have plagued the imperial court for a hundred years.

Everyone is getting by, and he doesn't need to stand out and poke the window paper.

"Ministry of Revenue, how much money and grain can you take out?"

Emperor Emperor Yongning asked with concern.

He is at ease with the Minister of Revenue; since Pang Pang Chengjie took office, he really spends every copper coin as if it were two.

All kinds of expenses are saved whenever possible.

Even when he, the emperor, wants money, he is often discounted.

The sky-high procurement accounts of the imperial palace were all found to have problems by the Ministry of Revenue, and the palace expenses dropped significantly.

"Your Majesty, the imperial court has many places to spend money, and it must prioritize the northern border defense line.

The current cash that the Ministry of Revenue can mobilize is less than 500,000 taels; squeezing it, at most 800,000 taels can be allocated.

Grain and cloth cannot be moved; this is the key to stabilizing the situation in the north.

Without the canal grain from Huguang, the grain price in the capital has increased by a full two times compared to five years ago.

Let the local areas raise the military grain themselves!"

Pang Pang Chengjie gave the answer quickly.

If there was no other way, he wouldn't want to take out these 800,000 taels either.

After the imperial court delegated power, the local Viceroys had the right to levy taxes, making it much easier to raise money and grain than he, the Minister of Revenue.

It is true that local government offices are in difficulty, but it is not that there is no way to solve it.

"How come it's so little? I remember that the revenue from donating official positions alone contributed 5 million taels.

Could it be that the money was spent so quickly?"

Emperor Emperor Yongning asked with a frown.

He can understand the Ministry of Revenue bargaining, but cutting it so fiercely is still beyond his expectations.

The officers and soldiers on the front line have made great achievements; the imperial court must show something, and a few coins won't fool them.

If it is done like this, then the rebellion-suppression war will really be delayed.

"Your Majesty, the imperial court's deficit is too severe, and the Ministry of Revenue cannot keep money.

After the donation revenue entered the treasury, it first paid the partial arrears of salaries for the hundred officials and the imperial clan, and then a large sum was spent on rebuilding the military equipment of Three Xuan-Da.

If I hadn't saved money, even these hundreds of thousands of taels wouldn't have been left."

Pang Pang Chengjie answered with a straight face.

The deficit accumulated over the years in Great Great Dayu, let alone 5 million taels, even 50 million taels could be swallowed instantly.

"Not enough!"

"The rebellion-suppression war cannot stop; the money and grain problem must be solved. Minister Pang, do you have any countermeasures?"

Emperor Emperor Yongning asked with expectation.

The damage brought to Great Great Dayu by the Bai Lian Sect rebellion is too great and must be suppressed as soon as possible.

Having finally seen the dawn, he doesn't want the rebellion suppression to fail because the money and grain supply cannot keep up.

Although he has not received a perfect imperial education, he has also read history books.

In history, for all dynasties, as long as they encounter large-scale rebellions and are not suppressed in time, the national power inevitably moves towards decline.

The longer it drags on, the harder it is to save the situation.

"Your Majesty, if you can't give cash, then give official positions directly!

The last time the imperial court accepted donations, it didn't cover the south; just take the opportunity to cover it.

Take out a batch of empty positions, the imperial court will verify a benchmark price, and how much can be sold is their ability.

Jiangnan is a wealthy place; perhaps the final donation figure will even cover the military pay for the subsequent great war.

If someone offers a high price, some official positions in remote prefectures and counties can actually be considered for real appointment."

Pang Pang Chengjie answered calmly.

Once such a thing as selling official positions starts, it can never go back.

Just releasing a bunch of empty titles can exchange for white silver; who wouldn't be tempted!

However, this kind of official position with only honorary titles and no real power has less attraction.

After changing to real vacancies, the price can be even higher.

Official positions in remote prefectures and counties have long been severely understaffed, and no one wants to go at all.

Many times, when the appointment was issued, people would hang their seals and leave, making the Ministry of Personnel look gray-faced.

Being able to sell them for money didn't damage everyone's interests.

After all, outsiders dislike them, but locals won't dislike them.

No matter how poor the place is, there will be a few wealthy households who can afford this money.

"Good, just do it!

The Cabinet will draft the plan today, and the official document will be issued early tomorrow morning.

Notify the government offices along the way to fully cooperate with escorting the rebel king Wei Wang Weijiarui to the capital.

Whoever's jurisdiction has a loophole, I will remove them from their position."

Emperor Emperor Yongning made a decision quickly, not giving the hundred officials a chance to oppose.

Experience tells him that once there is a solution, he must cut the Gordian knot quickly.

Handing it over to the hundred officials for discussion, arguing for a year or a half, might not produce a result.

As for the sequelae of being an official in the local area, it won't be too late to deal with it after the rebellion is pacified.

The imperial court didn't promise that after buying the position, the official's position could not be adjusted.

When a term of office ends, just have a big reshuffle, and most of the problems will be solved.

……

Looking at the magnificent city wall, the Annan envoy team let out another exclamation.

Since receiving the mission to go north, they have exclaimed countless times along the way, but none were as shocking as the capital.

"The capital is an important place, different from other places; please observe the rules, envoys.

Specific rules will be taught to you by officials when you arrive at the place."

After verifying their identities, the city-guarding officer immediately instructed.

It can be seen that they have a lot of experience in vassal states sending envoys to the court.

"Many thanks for the general's reminder."

While speaking, the old man handed over the prepared wallet.

"Easy to talk, easy to talk!

Platoon Leader Zhang, you take a team of soldiers to escort the envoys to report to the Court of State Ceremonial."

Looking at the face of money, the middle-aged officer changed his face quickly.

"Zhao Er, you go and notify the Marquis Hanshui Marquis Mansion, saying that the Annan envoy team has arrived in the capital."

After watching the envoy team leave, the middle-aged general immediately ordered his personal guards.

As a Battalion Commander, he doesn't need to guard the city gate personally.

It was just that the higher-ups gave him a task, so he came to squat and guard personally to avoid any mistakes.

The effort was not in vain; the Annan envoy team arrived as scheduled.

What the people above want to do is not a problem he cares about.

(End of chapter)