Chapter 1298: No Regard for the Rules

Of course, the officials and runners wouldn't just sit back and watch their own revenue streams all become benefits in the hands of degree-holding gentry. There would usually be a back-and-forth negotiation over this. The harvests from those concealed fields couldn't be monopolized by a single household; they had to be shared out for everyone to wet their beaks. Over all these years, in every part of Shandong — or rather, in every part of the realm — a stable, balanced system had long since taken shape.

"Commendation" seemed like a win-win for mutual benefit, but in reality, it carried risks. Those powerful magnates shielded by official degrees would often directly seize the commended fields as their own, turning the commoner farmers who commended them from landowners into tenant farmers or long-term laborers. The commended fields would then truly become the private property of those powerful gentry. Among those who could be invited to Linqing, even if they themselves had never resorted to such extortion, their ancestors certainly had. Otherwise, how could they have amassed such vast family fortunes?

They seized commended land as their own, yet these fields remained concealed land, absent from the official land registers and paying no taxes to the authorities. These powerful gentry households also harbored hidden populations, likewise absent from the official census. These people were merely the private slaves and servants of the gentry, exempt from corvée labor, the head tax, and so on. As a result, the imperial court and local authorities could only levy taxes and apportion duties onto those farmers and landlords who hadn't commended their land and toiled diligently on their own.

The number of people paying taxes and bearing corvée labor dwindled, yet the tax quotas to be paid and the official assignments to be carried out remained unchanged — and were even increasing year by year. In other words, an ever-heavier burden was pressing down on an ever-shrinking number of people, forcing them either to commend their land or to go bankrupt and lose their homes, their fields bought up cheaply or annexed outright. Once these fields fell into the hands of influential magnates, they became concealed land again — a vicious cycle, repeating endlessly.

Since the founding of the Ming dynasty, from the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang down to the current Tianqi Emperor, a nationwide land survey was conducted at the dynasty's founding, and then the acreage shrank year after year. The land was right there, and there was even reclamation of new fields, yet in the registers of the Ministry of Personnel and the various local authorities, it simply dwindled year after year. When Zhang Juzheng implemented the Single Whip Law and conducted a new empire-wide land survey, the acreage increased again — but within a few years of that increase, it began its annual decline once more. The local civilian acreage shrank, and while the military fields in the garrisons had no way to shrink, from the Jiajing era until now, even the garrison military fields have been growing fewer and fewer...

The fields that vanished from the official Fish-Scale Registers naturally all fell into the private coffers of these magnates, exempt from taxes, exempt from corvée, ceaselessly generating wealth for them. The court's exorbitant taxes and levies grew ever heavier; with each natural disaster and man-made calamity, vast numbers of commoner farmers went bankrupt and lost their homes, while the powerful gentry exploited this to annex their land, their strength and financial power swelling more and more.

In the early years of the Great Ming, the localities had farmers, small and mid-sized landlords and gentry, and also powerful magnates. But over these two hundred-plus years, the farmers grew fewer and fewer, the small and mid-sized landlords grew fewer and fewer, leaving only the ever-expanding powerful magnates and great gentry. In the localities, the vast majority of the profits from land, commerce, and industry were monopolized and seized by them. The Great Ming's authorities simply muddled along like this the entire time, its officials and runners manipulating things for their own gain, taking their cut. The Great Ming court and authorities even regarded these powerful gentry as the backbone of the state, relying on them to rule the localities, relying on them to maintain stability.

Zhao Jin would naturally not do this. Zhao Jin and his comrades likewise knew that unless they were as muddled and befuddled as the Great Ming, whatever they wanted to do would inevitably infringe upon the interests of these powerful gentry. No one is willing to see their property infringed upon; no one is willing to see their path to wealth cut off. Since they were all unwilling anyway, there was no need to pay any heed to their thoughts. They would simply proceed according to the interests of Zhao Jin and Xuzhou.

The banquet had fallen silent for a while. Zhao Jin and his comrades were still eating at a leisurely pace. The powerful gentry whose main business was in industry, commerce, and trade remained relatively composed, but everyone else had set down their wine cups and chopsticks, exchanging grave looks. At first, they were still somewhat cautious, but gradually, hushed conversations began. They no longer cared that they were not allies with one another, or that they were even engaged in scheming and rivalry. In the current situation, they had to come up with a plan. Yet what frustrated everyone was that, faced with Zhao Jin's overwhelming might, they simply had no room to resist.

Think of those orderly ranks clad in iron armor, think of those thousands of armored cavalry, think of those great cannons that required over a dozen oxen and horses to drag, and think of all those victories in recent times. In the face of such power, whether you feigned compliance, drew your blade in defiance, or resorted to stalling and inaction, you would be crushed to pieces. Yet no one was willing to simply accept this — it was like having your flesh carved and your blood drained while you were still alive.

They had all grown accustomed to extortion and plunder, accustomed to not paying the imperial grain tax and state duties, accustomed to this life of local tyrants. To think of abiding by the rules of a young man from Xuzhou, of handing over the land and people they had so painstakingly amassed — no one was willing, no one was resigned to it. But they could think of no way out. Those capable of managing great families and clans were not entirely lacking in learning or ability, and naturally knew all manner of historical precedents and stratagems. Yet racking their brains, they could think of nothing applicable to the situation before them.

Even if they had no method, even if they had nothing to say, they absolutely had to make their stance known at this moment. Otherwise, they would be taken as having tacitly agreed, and then they would lose even the moral high ground, which would be even more troublesome later.

"Master Jin, with great undertakings imminent, what is paramount is ensuring stability. This survey of land and census of men is the very thing most likely to incite popular uprisings, which would be detrimental to Master Jin's great enterprise. If Master Jin needs military funds and sources of troops, we shall naturally do our utmost to contribute. We may not count as exceedingly wealthy, but we can still offer a measure of support and will certainly assist with all our strength." An old man stood and spoke. This man was from Shanghe County in Jinan Prefecture. The previous generation of his family had reached the position of Grand Coordinator of a province and retired as a Vice Minister. This generation had only attained the rank of Provincial Graduate and had not taken office, instead staying home to manage the family estate. This man could be considered venerable and respected, vaguely regarded as a representative figure among the Shandong powerful gentry.

Zhao Jin did not stand. He merely smiled and first said to his comrades, "They're naming a price for us. They want us to take a lump sum, and then let everything continue according to the old system."

Chen Sheng gave a cold snort. Shi Manqiang's face was full of frost. Ji Xiang sneered and said, "So in the end, does Big Brother rule the common people, or do they? Even at this stage, they're still thinking of haggling with us."

"They're dreaming," Zhao Jin said. Then he stood up with a smile, nodded to the old squire, and spoke: "Shandong is mine. The population is mine. The territory is mine. Everything is mine. Since it's my own property, there's no reason I shouldn't know its ins and outs. I must conduct a meticulous inventory. Otherwise, there's no way to plan its use. Wouldn't you all say that's reasonable?"

Zhao Jin posed the question lightly, a smile on his face. The assembled Shandong magnates looked at one another, momentarily at a loss for words. It wasn't that Zhao Jin was using specious reasoning, but that what he said was correct. Faced with such an obvious fact, there was truly no way to refute it. Yet if they didn't refute it, their own families would face ruin. This was a matter of life and death; there could be no equivocation. What needed to be fought for, they absolutely had to fight for.

But before anyone here could open their mouth, Zhao Jin smiled and continued, "Zhao understands perfectly well what 'inciting popular uprisings' means. It's nothing more than you all, behind the scenes, goading some clueless outlaws of the greenwood or some sect that burns incense and believes in Maitreya. Perhaps some muddle-headed impoverished commoners might do as well. You might even drag in the Great Ming's official troops. Chaos erupts everywhere, and then our forces must rush everywhere to put out the fires, leaving us battered and exhausted. In the end, we'd have no choice but to yield and soften our stance toward you, agreeing to your terms. Isn't that how it is?"

He spoke these words with a smile on his face, as casually as if discussing some idle matter. Because of this tone and attitude, the people at the banquet didn't react immediately. A moment later, the room was filled with the clatter of chairs and tables as the magnates scrambled to their feet, every face deathly pale. Some trembled uncontrollably, seeming as if they wanted to sit back down even as they stood. They were utterly terrified by Zhao Jin's words.

Although "popular uprisings" were indeed exactly that, there was a world of difference between hinting and stating it outright. There was no sense in someone drawing a real blade when the convention was verbal sparring. This Zhao Jin truly had no regard for the rules of subtlety and decorum. Could it be that he intended to catch everyone here in one dragnet?

Zhao Jin paid no heed whatsoever to their reactions, simply continuing on his own: "What I am telling you all is not up for discussion. What I say, you must follow. Any attempt to disobey, any attempt to resist, will inevitably result in being crushed to pieces. There will be no other outcome."

The banquet hall was utterly silent, not a crow or sparrow could be heard. The face of the old man who had stood to speak was now completely drained of color. At this moment, however, a man of about thirty years of age stood up, speaking with righteous indignation: "Master Jin is now undertaking great things. Shouldn't you be winning hearts and minds, recruiting worthy talents from all quarters? Why such harsh severity, chilling the goodwill of us local worthies?"

"Xuzhou has always been recruiting the worthy and welcoming scholars. Zhao has always been gathering talent. But fools who cannot see the greater trend and covet petty gains — how could they possibly be considered talent? And parasites who only know how to cozy up to officials, prey upon the localities, contend with the state for profit, and contend with the people for profit — how could they be called local worthies? Do I need to care?" Zhao Jin answered with a smile.

Zhao Jin's words were direct and blunt, without the slightest tact or concealment. Nearly everyone present was exactly the kind of fool or parasite he described. It was as if slap after slap had landed heavily across their faces. Every person's expression was exceedingly ugly, yet none knew how to respond. Zhao Jin's comrades all wore expressions of satisfaction. The Li family of Linqing, father and son, remained composed.

Ever since that deep conversation in Tianjin, Ma Chonghao had begun to keep himself hidden. This didn't mean he wore disguises, but rather that he tried as much as possible not to be the center of attention on any occasion. He was also present at this banquet, but sat at a table in a corner. No one else knew his identity, nor did anyone find anything amiss. Ma Chonghao, meanwhile, observed the reactions of the people in the room. Some were terrified, some were mortified, some were terrified.

Ma Chonghao could guess what these magnates in the room were thinking. Before coming, they must have harbored all sorts of fantasies, thinking that Zhao Jin would name a price to win them over and recruit them. After all, Xuzhou had just seized Shandong, and the Great Ming's government offices and yamens still remained. Faced with such an uncertain situation, one would surely need to contend for these local powers. Whoever gained the support of these powerful gentry would control the region. With both sides bidding, they could naturally profit from both, and the price could be driven up. Who could have imagined that Zhao Jin wouldn't raise the price at all, hadn't even thought of recruiting them, and simply laid down the rules directly.

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