Chapter 209: Discourse on the People's Livelihood

Previously, Zhu Youjian had issued an edict that, apart from exempting disaster-stricken prefectures and counties in Shanxi, Shaanxi, Shandong, Henan, and the capital region from three years of taxation, starting from the tenth year of Chongzhen, all newly reclaimed land would be exempt from taxation for the first three years and taxed at half rate for the following three. This measure would bring enormous benefits to tens of millions of farming households in the north. But Hou Xun, as Minister of Revenue, knew clearly that the court would lose a huge sum of income, and having grown accustomed to hard times, he felt deeply reluctant to part with it—which was why he seized the opportunity to offer his suggestion.

Ever since the Ministry of Revenue began splitting the salt profits with the Emperor, the Taicang treasury's silver reserves had increased dramatically, and moreover, many large expenditures were paid out by the Emperor from the privy purse, which saved the Ministry of Revenue a great deal of silver. Since the ministry had become wealthy, its officials had completely shed their former cowering demeanor when meeting outside officials—now they all spoke in loud voices, as if afraid others might not know the Ministry of Revenue had money.

Why had they previously feared meeting outside officials? Because everyone who came was asking for money, and always with legitimate reasons. If you had no silver to give them, after exhausting your explanations, they would leave in a fury after a loud quarrel. After this happened many times, everyone in the Ministry of Revenue began to feel as though they owed others money, so whenever an outside official came calling, they would hastily find excuses to avoid them.

Wen Tiren and other senior ministers, curious, had once asked the Emperor why he used his own money for many expenses that ought to have come from the state treasury. After all, most emperors of the Zhu dynasty had been misers, deeply averse to ministers' requests for silver from the privy purse to fund state affairs. These predecessors of Zhu Youjian held a strange conviction: state affairs were the business of the outer court, and it was only proper for the court to fund them—why should the Zhu family spend its own money for the sake of the state?

Zhu Youjian was naturally left dumbfounded by such bizarre reasoning from his predecessors. Wasn't this realm the Zhu family's own? Aside from covering the imperial household's expenses, shouldn't royal money be used for state purposes? If the Great Ming were to fall, wouldn't the mountains of silver piled up in the privy purse simply become someone else's?

Zhu Youjian's answer to the ministers' question was very simple: this realm is the Zhu family's, and the realm's wealth ought to serve the realm—what distinction between public and private is there?

Wen Tiren and the others were filled with admiration for the Emperor's answer—this was the breadth of mind and bearing a true sovereign ought to possess.

Hou Xun's formerly wrinkled, bitter-melon-like old face had now grown somewhat plumper, and he looked considerably younger. In his excellent spirits, the old man, nearing sixty, had even taken a new concubine, who was reportedly now with child—which forced Zhu Youjian to admire Old Hou's formidable vitality in certain respects.

Zhu Youjian spoke: "Our dynasty's situation has been turbulent for over a decade. Now that the realm within our borders has begun to stabilize, this is precisely the time to let the people recover and rest. Only when the people are prosperous can the state be strong. I do not wish to see a Great Ming where the state is rich but the people are poor! Minister Hou's words may be intended for the court's benefit, but at present, whether it be the Taicang treasury or my own privy purse, neither lacks the paltry grain and silver the people need to feed themselves. Levying and collecting additional land taxes is the true act of contending with the people for profit! Minister Hou's words have in fact reminded me of something—I have suddenly thought of the matter of Gold Flower Silver. As the Son of Heaven, I should consider the people's welfare in all matters. Gold Flower Silver has existed for nearly two hundred years, and circumstances today are vastly different from the beginning—I believe the time has come for a change!"

The establishment of Gold Flower Silver began during the Zhengtong reign and had always been the most important source of the imperial family's private income.

In the first year of Zhengtong, Zhou Quan, Left Vice Censor-in-Chief, submitted a memorial to Emperor Yingzong, Zhu Qizhen, suggesting that in regions with underdeveloped transportation such as South Zhili, Huguang, and Zhejiang, land taxes be converted into cloth and silver for payment, so as to relieve farming households of the difficulty of paying taxes.

Zhu Qizhen accordingly issued an edict converting the summer and autumn land taxes of over four million dan owed by the six provinces of South Zhili, Huguang, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiangxi into silver payments, sparing the people the hardship of travel.

The grain paid by the six provinces was converted to silver at the prevailing market price—each dan of rice or wheat converted to two qian five fen of silver—amounting in total to roughly one million taels of silver from the six provinces' land taxes, all of which was deposited into the Inner Receiving Vault.

Emperor Yingzong then fixed the annual silver quota at one million taels—this was the origin of the imperial Gold Flower Silver.

Wang Cheng'en, standing nearby, knew his master's temperament well. The moment he heard Zhu Youjian mention that Gold Flower Silver was due for a change, he hastily said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, that is one million taels of silver—keeping it could accomplish many great things! Your Majesty, our own household must also live well!"

The assembled ministers in the hall showed little reaction to the Emperor's words; they had grown accustomed to his various ways of dispensing wealth over the past few years. It appeared the Emperor intended to exempt Gold Flower Silver.

Though it did not concern them personally, the ministers were nonetheless deeply admiring of the Emperor's practice of giving up private wealth for the benefit of the common people. Rarely in any dynasty had there been a sovereign as benevolent as the present Son of Heaven. Far back, there were Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing of the Han; more recently, Emperor Renzong of the Song—though they too were enlightened rulers who treated the people well, neither was both benevolent and generous like the one before them.

Zhu Youjian ignored Wang Cheng'en and continued in a low, grave voice: "In the past, I seldom left the palace and knew little of the people's suffering. But after several years of personally inspecting agricultural affairs at the imperial estates, I have come to understand the people's hardships! An ordinary farming household of several members, old and young alike, toils for an entire year only to barely scrape together enough grain to feed itself. And one must remember that daily life requires more than grain alone—oil, salt, vinegar, soy sauce, cloth, thread, needles, seeking medical treatment when ill, and countless other things—which of these does not require silver? Yet where are farming households to obtain the silver they need? I know that in most families, the able-bodied young adults hire themselves out during the slack farming seasons, exchanging their labor for meager wages to support the entire household. But do you ministers know? What they earn from a whole season of hard labor cannot even match the cost of a single meal for those in this hall!"

Upon hearing the Emperor's words, some of the assembled ministers felt shame in their hearts, while others remained unmoved.

Zhu Youjian's voice gradually rose: "Many impoverished households can barely survive when no illness or disaster strikes, but once something unexpected occurs—say, a family member suddenly falls gravely ill—after the family exhausts its meager savings, the sufferer will ultimately die for lack of money to pay for treatment! Such cases occur countless times every single day throughout the Great Ming. As the sovereign of this nation, and you ministers as officials who shepherd the people, have you ever asked yourselves whether you have truly done your duty? I am not teaching you to sacrifice yourselves for the people, but since I am the common lord of all under heaven, if plucking a single hair from myself would benefit the realm, why should I not do it? I do not demand the same of you ministers—I only hope that when you deliberate on policies concerning the people's livelihood, you will give more thought to the people's hardships and difficulties, rather than focusing solely on your own interests. I ask you all to reflect on this!"

All the ministers fell silent; the Emperor's words had touched many hearts. But these ministers were, after all, men of high position who had never truly experienced the people's hardships firsthand,

and so, though moved in their hearts, they still lacked a more genuine understanding.

Zhu Youjian knew that words alone could hardly give the ministers a visceral sense of the people's difficulties. Without concrete measures, his words today would pass like a gust of wind, gone in the blink of an eye.

He continued: "I observe that the people of the Great Ming's officialdom today—whether they sit in the court or have long served in the provinces—share one common trait: they are accustomed to standing aloof and high above, considering themselves superior to others. Many officials believe that the so-called common grass-people are as insignificant as weeds—once one crop is harvested, new grass will grow the next year, in an endless cycle of renewal. They believe the common people are born to till the fields and weave cloth to support the government, and that no matter how the government oppresses them, the common people ought to submit meekly and endure. How absurd is such thinking! Do they not know: the salaries and emoluments you receive are the people's flesh and blood; the lowly people are easy to oppress, but Heaven above is not easily deceived! I once heard that several years ago, an official in Shaanxi berated refugee peasants, demanding to know why they did not simply stay home and wait to die instead of causing trouble for the government! When I first heard of such words, I felt the same shock and fury as I did today upon learning of the Xinyang affair! What baffles me is how such a person managed to study, pass the examinations, and enter the court! How are his words and deeds any different from those of a beast?!"