Before hanging himself, Chongzhen lifted the table

Chapter 170: The Power of Thunder
Yangzhou has received news that the emperor personally led the army south.

After all, although Emperor Chongzhen did not officially lead his troops southward, there was such a big movement in Qufu and the suppression of bandits in Xuzhou. He stayed for another three days, which was enough for people to get the news.

If it weren't for the emperor's personal leadership, the Qufu Kong family's punishment would not be so drastic, nor would it be so fast!
If it wasn't for the emperor's personal leadership, how could Gao Jie be included in the Beijing camp, and how could Chen Yongfu be included in the Beijing camp, not to mention that during the Xuzhou competition, the roar of "Long live my emperor" was so deafening!
In Yangzhou Prefecture, some people were happy and some were worried about the news that the emperor personally led the army.

For Shi Kefa, Minister of War in Nanjing, that was absolutely joyful.

You must know that although Nanjing has six ministries, most of them have no real power and exist for the elderly, far away from the real center of power.Although Shi Kefa was sent to guard Yangzhou, who wouldn't like it if he could go to the emperor's side?

For the big salt merchants in Yangzhou, the feelings are a bit complicated.

Roughly speaking, they can be divided into two major salt merchants, one is the northwest salt merchants of Qin and Jin, and the other is the Hui merchants.

Among these salt merchants, merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi not only dealt in Huai salt, but also expanded into the pawn, cloth, leather goods, tobacco and alcohol industries.

However, Huizhou merchants, who were both advantageous and popular, suddenly emerged and were aggressive. Moreover, due to their tradition of "Confucianism on the left and Jia on the right", their cultural level was generally high. They were fond of initiating lawsuits and often had conflicts of interest with merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi.

In layman's terms, the uneducated suffer the loss of the literate, and Huizhou merchants usually win in battles between the two sides.Therefore, we must study hard.However, there is another problem, that is, the number of imperial examination quotas for merchants.

Merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi were specially approved by the imperial court to have "merchant status" because they settled in other provinces. Their children could attend schools in the second Huaiyang Prefecture, and there were 7 places available every year that did not require them to return to their place of origin to take the imperial examination.Huizhou, the hometown of Huizhou merchants, and Huaiyang both belong to Southern Zhili Province. According to regulations, their children are not allowed to go to school there.

In the fifth year of Chongzhen's reign, Hui merchants jointly submitted a letter to officials inspecting the salt administration in Huaihe and Huaihe Rivers, requesting that all children of salt merchants be admitted to school on the spot, which was approved by Emperor Chongzhen.These salt merchants were naturally grateful to Emperor Chongzhen.

However, this inadvertently harmed the interests of Shanxi businessmen with original academic status and caused them to make noises. It happened that the then governor of Yangzhou was from Shanxi and supported the protests of his fellow villagers, so the policy was postponed.In the 16th year of Chongzhen, the old affairs of Huizhou merchants were brought up again, and they were making a fuss. Then Emperor Chongzhen came through time.

In one operation, he led the troops to pacify the north and basically stabilized the situation. Then he carried out household registration reform, abolished the lowly registration, and no longer subdivided the household registration, but mostly classified it as civilian registration.In this case, the battle for quotas among salt merchants is completely meaningless.

Originally, because of the quota limit, it was unfair for you to have it and not for me. But you also have to have it, and so do I. There is still a quota limit, which is still unfair. In the end, the quota is liberalized, and you can do whatever you want, and everyone will be happy.

In this regard, the salt merchants definitely supported Emperor Chongzhen's policy and had a favorable impression of Emperor Chongzhen.

However, when the emperor led his troops southward, the bandits who swept across both sides of the canal, some of whom had black gloves, were naturally attacked, which made them unhappy, of course, secretly.

After all, the salt merchants still welcome the emperor's coming. If they can curry favor with the emperor, there will be many benefits!

Therefore, when Shi Kefa took the lead and discussed how to welcome the arrival, these big salt merchants in Yangzhou naturally participated actively.

Shi Kefa sat in the main seat in the lobby and said to the officials below: "Your Majesty went south to quell the chaos. He will arrive in Yangzhou soon. There are a few things that I must personally inquire and verify first!"

Everyone, including the prefect of Yangzhou, listened attentively.

Shi Kefa said seriously: "First, are there any bandits and bandits in Yangzhou Prefecture?"

After hearing this, the prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture quickly came out and replied: "Since our troops were stationed in Yangzhou, the bandits have been afraid of our reputation and have mostly disappeared. There are only one or two private salt dealers who have their own salt dealers to pursue them. This should not attract your majesty." focus on!"

Even in the Taiping years, there were private salt dealers.The emperor wanted to lead troops to quell the chaos, so he certainly couldn't pay attention to such trivial matters.

Shi Kefa nodded and asked again: "Secondly, His Majesty has repeatedly issued edicts to care about people's livelihood. How is the governance of the people in Yangzhou?"

After hearing this, the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture replied again: "Please rest assured, my soldiers, the prosperity of our Yangzhou is well-known throughout the world, and the people will naturally live and work in peace and contentment. Thanks to my soldiers' presence, Yangzhou has been protected from thieves. In addition, The local villagers and virtuous people have all contributed to repairing and painting the houses and streets on both sides of the canal, and they have contributed to our Yangzhou Prefecture. I believe that His Majesty will be satisfied when he sees it."

After hearing this, the salt merchants standing on the outside of the lobby came out one after another, clasping their fists and saying that this was what they should do.

When Shi Kefa heard this, he immediately asked: "It is really commendable that all the sages in the countryside have such kind intentions. Now the Yangzhou garrison has not been paid for more than three months since it was recruited. I wonder if you can make up for it, so as not to be incompetent." If the soldiers make trouble with His Majesty, if the Yangzhou garrison is dismantled and the bandits come, there will be no troops left!"

Upon hearing this, these big salt merchants immediately lowered their heads and began to look for ants on the ground.

They are happy to please the emperor, but asking them to solve the military pay problem is a bottomless pit. Who is stupid?

Suddenly, the scene froze.

When the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture saw it, he quickly smoothed things over and said: "My lord, the affairs of the army have little to do with the people. Maybe we can tell the truth when His Majesty is here. I heard that the imperial court has issued new money, and the capital camp has also Use new money to pay military pay.”

Seeing that the salt merchants did not buy it, Shi Kefa was disappointed himself. After hearing the words of the Yangzhou Prefecture magistrate, he took the opportunity to step down and no longer mentioned the matter of military pay, but only talked about things related to receiving the emperor.

After that, government officials from various government offices were dispatched one after another. Some unsightly buildings along both sides of the canal demanded rectification. Beggars, refugees and the like who had fled to Yangzhou City were expelled one after another.Suddenly, there was a lot of excitement inside and outside Yangzhou.

Within a few days, the vanguard of the Beijing camp arrived outside Yangzhou City.

Shi Kefa led Yangzhou officials and local squires and marched ten miles forward to meet the holy driver.

Emperor Chongzhen rode down the canal. Immediately, a royal guard reported to him: "Your Majesty, the Minister of War of Nanjing, Shi Kefa, has led the officials of Yangzhou Prefecture and local squires to greet the emperor five miles ahead!"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen's mind flashed with the impression of Shi Kefa.

Shi Kefa was from Henan, but his mentor was Zuo Guangdou, one of the famous Six Gentlemen of Donglin.As a result, Shi Kefa also participated in the party struggle.

The most representative issue is the selection of the first emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty in the original history.

Prince Fu Zhu Yousong is the grandson of Shenzong, so he should be made the king based on his seniority and ranking. However, in the three famous cases of the Wanli period, there was a firm denial that Emperor Wanli wanted to establish Prince Fu as the crown prince. This is equivalent to saying that the Donglin Party He has a grudge against King Fu.

If Emperor Chongzhen were to establish Prince Fu as emperor according to his seniority after his death, the Donglin Party members would be worried that they would be settled by the Autumn Queen, so they would have to establish another emperor, which led to the continuation of party disputes in the Southern Ming Dynasty.I had a great time fighting, and gained the Qing's advantage in vain.

Shi Kefa was very passive and extremely mentally retarded in supporting the emperor. Later, in terms of strategy and command, he did not show the level that a court official should have. He even proposed a policy of uniting with the Qing Dynasty to attack Li Zicheng's bandits. policy, but failed to see the changes in the situation that would occur after the Qing Dynasty quickly defeated Li Zicheng's army and occupied the capital.

However, Shi Kefa was indeed loyal to the court and worked hard as a paper framer, trying to integrate various warlords for the use of the Southern Ming court and regain the mountains and rivers of the north.As a result, Gao Jie was arrogant and was plotted by Xu Dingguo after regaining Henan, causing the Northern Expedition to fail.

When the Manchu and Qing armies pressed on the border, he took in the refugees, but was afraid that the Manchu warlords who wanted to surrender to the Qing would cause trouble in Yangzhou City and harm the people, so he let them leave. While holding on to the city, he refused the Manchus' surrender several times and did not do anything for the Manchus. In the end, the city was destroyed and the country was martyred.

Generally speaking, he is not suitable for leading troops to fight in troubled times, and he is not suitable to be the Minister of the Ministry of War!It is also not suitable for making decisions in the court.

Thinking of these, Emperor Chongzhen saw this famous figure in later generations.

He is not tall and thin, but he takes the lead in kneeling and praying, long live the mountain!
Emperor Chongzhen looked at the leading figures in Yangzhou here, and sure enough, all of them were wearing silk, satin, and mink fur cotton-padded clothes.At a glance, even the servants following behind were well dressed.

After Shi Kefa heard the emperor say "flat body", Xie En stood up first and naturally looked at the emperor secretly.

Of course he had met Emperor Chongzhen before. Seeing him again now, especially since the emperor was still in military uniform and looked so heroic. Coupled with the rumors of victory in battles, he was secretly surprised and even more cautious. He immediately said: "Your Majesty personally After leading the troops south to quell the chaos, the Yangzhou squires burst into tears when they heard the news. They specially raised money to help His Majesty take care of him and reward him for his hard work in the capital. I wonder if Your Majesty can stay in Yangzhou for a while so that the Yangzhou squires can express their feelings."

The current situation is that Huguang Province has been completely occupied, and then Li Zicheng's bandits and Zuo Liangyu's rebels attack South Zhili along both sides of the Yangtze River.

On the south bank of the Yangtze River, most of Jiangxi has fallen, and the soldiers have already invaded the southern Zhili territory adjacent to Jiangxi, including Chizhou Prefecture, Huizhou Prefecture and Ningguo Prefecture.

On the north bank of the Yangtze River, Anqing Prefecture and Luzhou Prefecture, which belong to the westernmost part of Nanzhili, have also fallen, and the rebel army has already invaded Fengyang Prefecture, Chuzhou, and Hezhou.

If the bandit and rebel forces advance further, they will reach Yingtian Mansion.This situation is definitely very critical for the South.

Therefore, Shi Kefa and others judged that the emperor would most likely not be stationed in Yangzhou, but would cross the river to Zhenjiang Mansion, and then enter Yingtian Mansion to face the bandits and rebels.

However, after hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen nodded and said, "I am going to rest in Yangzhou for a few days..."

Upon hearing this, Shi Kefa was a little surprised and said quickly: "The minister immediately went to prepare the barracks and move out the original soldiers and place them in other places."

Emperor Chongzhen did not stop his horse, but walked slowly. Shi Kefa followed on foot. As for the others, they were not qualified to get in front of the emperor and followed from a distance according to their official positions.

There are also those local gentry, including big salt merchants. Maybe they are the king in Yangzhou and everyone must give them face.But in front of the emperor, they didn't even have a chance to get closer, and were kept far away by the imperial guards.

At this time, Emperor Chongzhen looked down at Shi Kefa and immediately asked: "How to place the original soldiers?"

Shi Kefa did not expect that the emperor would ask for the truth. He hesitated for a moment before replying: "We must first give the soldiers in the capital a place to rest. As for the placement of the original soldiers, I will think about it later!"

Thinking about it again, there is nothing I can do!
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen said without hesitation: "No need to go to such trouble, just station the army outside the city!"

When Shi Kefa heard this, he was surprised again and hurriedly said: "It's freezing cold, how can you let your Majesty's troops stationed outside the city?"

It's almost zero degrees. It's really cold.Ordinary armies would make a fuss and enter the city when encountering such a situation.

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen said in a cold voice: "Where can the camp of the fifty thousand troops under my command be stationed in Yangzhou Prefecture? Your subordinates are also soldiers of the imperial court. How can you favor one over the other?"

What he leads is a field army. If he has to be picky about food and accommodation, then he is an old soldier, fighting a fart battle.

Therefore, after Emperor Chongzhen said this, he no longer paid attention to the garrison, but continued to ask Shi Kefa: "Is there a supply of food and grass?"

Hearing this, Shi Kefa said with some embarrassment: "Your Majesty, there is chaos in the south of the Yangtze River, and most taxes cannot be collected. In addition, Yingtian Mansion is threatened by bandits and needs food and grass, so there is no food and grass allocated to Yangzhou Mansion. The food and grass provided by the ministers are only one meal a day, and they can barely survive."

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately asked: "Does that mean that there are bandits and bandits in Yangzhou Prefecture and other surrounding areas causing trouble, so taxes cannot be collected?"

"No!" Upon hearing this, Shi Kefa quickly denied: "Since Wei Chen was stationed in Yangzhou Mansion, we have not seen large groups of bandits causing trouble!"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen shouted coldly: "Preach it to the prefect of the state!"

Therefore, the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture who was following behind quickly stepped forward to wait for the order.

Emperor Chongzhen shouted and asked: "How is the tax situation in Yangzhou Prefecture?"

When the governor of Yangzhou Prefecture heard this, he immediately began to complain: "Your Majesty, the current war is in chaos and the people are miserable. If the court forcibly collects taxes, the people will have no way to survive, and the ministers will be incompetent. It is really difficult to have a solution that has both ends!"

As he spoke, he knelt down to apologize.

Emperor Chongzhen ignored him and continued to let his horse move forward slowly, and said: "So, can the people of Yangzhou Prefecture survive?"

The magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture heard this and saw the emperor walking away. He quickly got up to catch up with him, and then respectfully replied: "We should remember your majesty's decree and put the people first. The people of Yangzhou Prefecture should live better than other places." .”

It sounds like he is a good official who prays for the people. He does not hesitate to bet his own future and allows the people to live without collecting taxes.

Emperor Chongzhen remained silent for the time being. He looked up and looked around. He saw that the houses on both sides of the canal were indeed good. They did not have the dilapidated and makeshift scenes he saw when he went all the way south.

But the problem is that Emperor Chongzhen knew about something called face project before he traveled through time. He also investigated the public sentiment in Yangzhou Prefecture in advance and knew what the situation of the people was like!

Therefore, he did not come to the conclusion that Yangzhou Prefecture was good because of what he saw and what he heard.

No, Emperor Chongzhen asked calmly: "So, what kind of livelihood do the people of Yangzhou Prefecture do, and how much do they earn? What is the market price of firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea, and what is their monthly income?"

The magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture was dumbfounded when he heard this.

He had never thought about these questions at all, but he did not expect that the emperor would actually think about these questions and ask him.

Looking up, he saw the emperor sitting on a horse, looking down at him coldly.

Suddenly, he felt that it was not cold anymore and he felt like he was sweating.

Emperor Chongzhen looked at him, as if he didn't think it was enough, and added another sentence: "Please tell me, I will send the Jinyi Guards School Captain to verify. If you dare to commit the crime of deceiving the emperor, I can let you see Chen Yan and others. people."

One of the crimes for which Chen Yan, the chief minister of the Ming Dynasty, and others were confiscated and executed was that they were guilty of deceiving the emperor.

Then, the prefect fell to his knees again, kowtowed to the cold ground, and said with fear: "I really don't know!"

Emperor Chongzhen reined in his horse at this time, looked down at him and shouted: "Since you don't know, why do you dare to tell me that the people are living well?"

The prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture knew that the emperor cared about the people the most. Therefore, he thought in the past two days that it would be appropriate and appropriate for the emperor to answer like this when he asked about people's livelihood issues. In addition, these measures had also been taken on both sides of the canal, and the emperor could see it with his own eyes. Replied.

Unexpectedly, the emperor asked such a specific question!

At this time, at least the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture felt that he was sweating, and he quickly said: "Weichen...Weichen heard what the master said!"

The imperial examination in the Ming Dynasty was based on the eight-part system, which had a prescribed format and was very rigid.The advantage of this method is that it can achieve fairness to the greatest extent and avoid the subjective judgment of the examiner.

Therefore, for a long time, those who could pass the imperial examination and become Jinshi were generally very smart people.

However, there are policies from above and countermeasures from below.For hundreds of years in the Ming Dynasty, there were naturally people who specifically studied the eight-part essay and how to write the best eight-part essay.In other words, for later generations to easily understand, it became a test-oriented exam.

Therefore, some people use this kind of examination to achieve leapfrog. Although they eventually become Jinshi, they spend their whole life studying the eight-part essay, and they appear to be mentally retarded in other aspects.

No, the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture in front of me is most likely such an official.Emperor Chongzhen only had to ask a question for a moment.

At this time, Emperor Chongzhen stared at him condescendingly and asked again: "How much grain will each county in Yangzhou Prefecture finally collect this year?"

The magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture was still lying on the ground. After a while, he finally managed to say: "Wei Chen...Wei Chen needs to go back to the government to check." After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen didn't want to talk to him anymore, and immediately ordered Fang Zhenghua Said: "Send the Jin Yiwei and take him back to the government office to bring this year's tax account books, as well as the field tax and other account books back to the army."

"My servant obeys the order!" After hearing this, Fang Zhenghua immediately agreed. He immediately lit the flag of the Imperial Guard and asked him to take his men and carry the Yangzhou Prefecture magistrate to the city first.

When the officials and gentry following behind saw this scene, their faces changed with fright.

This is for the emperor to pick up the wind and wash away the dust and reward the army. How can you say that you will fall out if you fall out with him? How can the prefect do it?
At this time, they suddenly realized that accompanying a king is like accompanying a tiger. Look, if you are not careful, the tiger seems to be eating people!

Shi Kefa has heard about the whole thing, so naturally he won't make blind guesses like others.He wanted to express his love to the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture, but he didn't know what to say at the moment.If he made a mistake and there was something wrong with the emperor's account later, he himself would be in trouble.

At this time, only silence is better than sound!
Emperor Chongzhen saw that he was silent, but did not let him go. He said to him: "There are many wounded soldiers in our army who need medical treatment. Please make arrangements and try to let the doctors in Yangzhou Prefecture see them."

There is a Lanling Camp in the Beijing Camp, but the female soldiers in the Lanling Camp are just ordinary women after all. They have learned some basic treatment methods to take care of the wounded soldiers.In some cases, it is more prudent to ask a doctor to see you. Medicines and the like are more available in Yangzhou City.

When Shi Kefa heard this, he thought it would be easy, and immediately responded: "Wei Chen accepts the order!"

At this time, they had almost reached the outside of Yangzhou City, and the army began to set up camp. Shi Kefa led the officials and gentry to retreat.

When they entered the city, they happened to meet head-on with the imperial guard who had entered the city before.

He saw the Jinyi Guardsman driving an ox cart with a stack of account books piled on the cart, which was placed in the arms of the Yangzhou Prefecture Magistrate. Beside him, there were Jinyiweixiao Lieutenants sitting around him, sandwiching him in the middle.

When the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture saw Shi Kefa with a mournful face, he quickly shouted: "My lord, please help your majesty to intercede for mercy!"

Shi Kefa ignored him and looked behind his car. The two masters of the prefect were also taken away by the imperial guards. He immediately sighed secretly in his heart and passed quickly.

The salt merchants, after Shi Kefa left, all dispersed, very angry: they paid money to give the emperor face, and they braved the cold weather to flatter the emperor, but ended up patting the horse's leg. It was really unlucky!
When many people returned, they told their subordinates that the emperor was outside the city and asked them to hide in their homes as much as possible to avoid getting into trouble.

Outside the city, the emperor's military tent was erected first. It was similar to a yurt, and it wasn't very cold inside.

The magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture and his two masters knelt in front of the emperor, with account books and other items piled up in front of them.

Emperor Chongzhen was sitting on his seat, drinking hot tea, looking at them and asking: "I want to know how much grain Yangzhou Prefecture has collected this year? Report it by county!"

The magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture is a hard worker. When the account books are placed in front of him, he doesn't know which one to turn to.Fortunately, his two masters did help him handle these matters, so they didn't waste any time. After quickly looking through the account books, they reported it to the emperor with trepidation.

It's just one prefecture, and it doesn't take long for each county to compile information.

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen didn't know whether it was acceptable or not, but asked again: "How many grain fields are there in Yangzhou Prefecture? Please report by county!"

Soon, the two masters made another report.

Emperor Chongzhen heard the problem immediately and immediately asked: "There are no bandits in Yangzhou Prefecture this year. The grain fields should be planted, so why do you only pay such a small amount of money?"

When he was in later generations, he had read the information and knew many strange things in the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

For officials, reputation is very important, especially reputation in the officialdom. Therefore, civil servants in the Ming Dynasty paid great attention to reputation in the officialdom.

For example, when civil servants engage in court battles, this is exclusive to Qingliu and can be recognized by civil servants in the officialdom.Therefore, many people even resort to cheating in court battles to increase their reputation. As long as they can survive the fight and recover from their injuries, they can rely on this reputation to be recommended by other officials, and their work will go more smoothly. It is a kind of qualification.

For example, for Ming Dynasty officials, collecting taxes was just a matter of plundering the people's wealth. There was no understanding that the country needed taxes to do things normally.As a result, such a weird thing happened. A frame was placed at the gate of the government office, allowing the people to pay as much tax as they wanted. No one would check if they didn't pay. This showed that the officials were asking for orders for the people!

Therefore, Zhejiang, a major tea-producing province, has a tea tax of only a few taels of silver a year, which is absolutely shocking to later generations, but the civil servants of this era can form a tacit understanding.

The reason is actually not difficult to understand.

The "people" mentioned by these officials are not real ordinary people, but officials and gentry, that is, local powerful people.

If you charge them less tax, you can win their favor, and the officialdom can also be a boost, so why not do it!

As for the taxes for real ordinary people, not only is not even a penny less, but all sorts of extra taxes are added.However, ordinary people are exploited when they are exploited, so what can be done to them?
As this situation becomes more and more serious, ordinary people will naturally start to rebel because they cannot survive!
Having said that, in Yangzhou Prefecture, Emperor Chongzhen knew that the real ordinary people had to dig wild vegetables to satisfy their hunger, but there were also grain fields along the way.Since there is no chaos caused by large-scale thieves and there is no taxation, there is only one possibility.

There is definitely food, but it has not entered the official warehouses, nor has it reached the hands of the people!
For this reason, Emperor Chongzhen directly began to audit the accounts.

No, under his questioning, the master confessed truthfully.

Most of the grain fields in Yangzhou Prefecture are owned by local powerful people, such as major salt merchants and some officials and gentry.Individual people have tax-free quotas, but when it comes to collecting taxes, Yangzhou Prefecture will not charge taxes on all the grain fields of these people.

The taxes were owed. After a few years of arrears, the court officials wanted to check the accounts and said that they couldn't collect them anyway, so it was better to ask the emperor to do a favor and waive the arrears.

The emperor was sitting in the Forbidden City and never came out. How about knowing the truth of these things outside?If the atmosphere in the court is good, there may be honest officials who will crack down on this situation and tell the emperor; but when the atmosphere in the court is completely bad, all officials can benefit from this kind of thing, and whoever Will he tell the emperor the truth?

Then the emperor was taken advantage of and felt that the people were indeed poor and the tax would not be collected if it was delayed any longer, so it should be waived!
Thus, this matter came to an end, and the officials and gentry did not have to pay taxes at all.

Of course, for those who are powerless, even if they really cannot pay taxes, the government can force them to sell their children and daughters. There is no such thing as being unable to pay taxes.

This is the current situation in the late Ming Dynasty!

This kind of thing is actually not difficult to check.It's just that people who have the power to investigate are often in the same group, so it's useless to investigate!

But this time, Emperor Chongzhen came to investigate, and the truth was naturally placed in front of him very clearly.It is clear how many grain fields there are in Yangzhou Prefecture, who owns them, and whose family has paid or failed to pay taxes.

All the outstanding accounts were quickly sorted out, and even under the pressure of the imperial authority, the two masters who were responsible for the specific work revealed everything they knew about the situation.For example, it is also stated how much food income each family will have this year.

As for the governor of Yangzhou Prefecture, he was trembling there for a long time, knowing that he was doomed.

But this is not over yet!Emperor Chongzhen immediately sent an order, asking Fang Zhenghua to personally bring five hundred imperial guards to the magistrate's office, control everything from the inside out, and then ask two masters to take them with them to check the accounts of recent years.

As for the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture, he was also taken with him, and he still had to be asked about some accounting matters.

In this way, the inside and outside of the prefect's yamen were all controlled by the Jinyiwei Xiaowei. The people in the original yamen, including the prefect's family members, subordinate officials, yamen servants, etc., were all controlled in the yamen.Just looking at this posture, it looks menacing.

Generally speaking, since the center of power was transferred to the capital, there has been no sign of Jin Yiwei in the south.But now, the Jin Yiwei, who represents the imperial power, puts on this posture in Yangzhou City, which really scares many people.

In the evening, when Emperor Chongzhen was thinking about what to do, Li Laiheng asked to see him outside the tent.

As soon as he entered the Chinese army's tent, Li Laiheng received the courtesy and immediately reported: "Your Majesty, the general's subordinates refused to accept reports at night. Yangzhou Prefecture set up a checkpoint twenty miles away from the city to prevent the people who were affected by the military from coming. According to the report The investigation has lasted two days, and more than 2000 people were blocked, and many people froze to death in the fields!"

The army in the Beijing camp was marching, and Ye Bushou, who was in charge of the sentinels, was fully deployed to serve as the eyes and ears of the army.Li Laiheng was responsible for the night traffic in one direction, and he happened to hit it.

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he was furious.

No wonder there are no refugees fleeing the disaster here in Yangzhou Fucheng. It turns out they were stopped and not allowed to come over!
Emperor Chongzhen immediately sent out cavalry troops and led the army's spare military tents over, setting up camp on the spot to shelter the refugees from the cold overnight.Otherwise, it is already evening weather, and many people will freeze to death again tonight.

In the evening, Fang Zhenghua came back from the city and presented the compiled results to the emperor.

Emperor Chongzhen took it and took a look. He was not surprised at all. It has been like this almost every year in the past few years.The grain fields owned by the powerful officials and gentry were basically confiscated. The grain fields of ordinary people were taxed for various reasons. If the people could not afford to pay, they would abandon the land and run away. In the end, these grain fields fell into the hands of the powerful officials and gentry.

Seeing the emperor standing there with a cold face, Fang Zhenghua reported again: "Long live my lord, many of the powerful people in Yangzhou have government backgrounds, and several of the big salt merchants in Huizhou are related to Yingtian Mansion."

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen immediately sneered and said: "As expected, there is nothing surprising. The list is ready and we will deal with them when we get to Yingtian Mansion!"

His time is limited, and he cannot stay in Yangzhou and directly cut the knot and deal with the affairs in Yangzhou.

Afterwards, he summoned the generals to discuss matters in the central military tent.

All the general soldiers were surprised when they found that the emperor did not enter the city, but stayed in the central military tent for the night, and held a military meeting even at night. At first, they thought there was an emergency military situation.

As a result, Emperor Chongzhen said seriously after they met: "The officials in Yangzhou are corrupt. Although Yangzhou is prosperous, the people are miserable. The income from the salt administration is huge, but the income of the court is far less than that of the mere salt merchants and the masters behind them. Many. I am determined to use the power of thunder to rectify Yangzhou and reform the salt policy..."

If these military generals have interests in salt merchants, they may object if the emperor does this.

However, these military generals, including the Beijing camp they led, were all brought from the north and had nothing to do with the salt merchants in Yangzhou.It's even more because Emperor Chongzhen's prestige in this capital camp has reached the point where he can do whatever he says.

Therefore, after Emperor Chongzhen said this, although these generals were surprised that the emperor did not lead them to quell the chaos, but wanted to rectify the government first, they did not hesitate at all. They all immediately stood out, held fists in their hands, and responded in unison: " The general will obey the order!"

When the sky dawned the next day, most of the people were still hiding in their warm quilts, but the Beijing army marched into Yangzhou City and quickly took over the city defense, and also imposed martial law on the entire city.On the street, there is a post every three steps and a sentry every five steps.No one is allowed to take to the streets without a will.

Then Gao Yigong and Huang Degong were responsible for arresting people, ransacking their homes, and sealing off shops.

All of a sudden, the people of Yangzhou heard the sound of horse hooves, yelling, and crying on the street, making them tremble at home.

I originally thought that Yangzhou City would at least be safer if the emperor led the army passing by, but I didn't expect this scene to happen.

In troubled times, the people's fear of the army has increased.

Emperor Chongzhen ignored these for the time being.He sat in the prefect's yamen, accompanied by the pale Shi Kefa. He listened to the Jinyi guards going in and out to report the news. He captured a certain big salt merchant, confiscated how many gold and silver properties, shops, goods, etc., and interrogated so-and-so. So, what situation has been verified, etc.

Emperor Chongzhen did not let him stand by and just listen. Instead, he asked Shi Kefa to record the news reported by the Jin Yiwei.

For example, how much tax evasion and evasion by a large salt merchant, which bandits he raised, what land he annexed, how much private salt he sold, who he bribed, etc. are all recorded.Many salt merchants among them have even been involved in murder cases during the production and sale of salt.

Shi Kefa actually knew a little bit about some things, but the water here was too deep for him.Without Hai Rui's leadership during the Jiajing period, few people would have dared to intervene.

At this time, the emperor took action with thunderous force and actually pulled up all the radishes by their roots and dirt.If it weren't for the army in hand, I wouldn't be afraid.

In response to this, he was secretly frightened and could only do things silently, not daring to say "no".

One day later, martial law was lifted in Yangzhou City, but the city defense was still under the control of the Beijing camp, and there were soldiers from the Beijing camp patrolling the city.

The reason why Emperor Chongzhen did this was because he knew that ordinary people had no food in their homes, and if one day of martial law was used to raid homes and seal shops, it would already affect ordinary people, and it would be difficult to continue the martial law.

Regarding the property inventory of Yangzhou's powerful people, mainly the big salt merchants, the inventory is still going on, and the current focus is on money and grain.

The food they had saved was enough to last an army of [-] people for two months.

After the approximate number came out, Emperor Chongzhen ordered Shi Kefa to do something.

First, the Yangzhou Prefecture implemented food control. The price of food was one stone and one tael of silver as the basis. However, you could not buy more, but only bought two days' worth of food per head.

Second, the Lianghuai Capital Transfer Salt Transport Envoy Office in Yangzhou colluded with the big salt merchants and brought all the charges to trial. Shi Kefa also served as the Salt Transport Envoy, abolished the previous salt policy, and established a salt factory under the Salt Department to be responsible for salt. The production and sales of Zaoding have been abolished. The original Zaoding can enter the salt factory and use the sun salt method to produce salt. Those who are wounded in the army and can no longer fight on the battlefield will be arranged to work in the salt factory to receive salary, and the salt price can only be implemented. The principle is small profits but quick turnover.

These salt policy reforms were first tried out in Yangzhou, and the decree was transmitted back to the capital.

Third, local armies must settle military pay and must not default on military pay.

Everything is a big deal and requires a lot of time and energy, especially salt policy reform, which requires even more worry.

Especially the original officials here in Yangzhou Prefecture were all taken advantage of by Emperor Chongzhen.It is even more difficult to do these things.

In the end, Shi Kefa recommended Ren Minyu as the prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture. In the original history, he also recommended Ren Minyu as the prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture. In the end, when the city of Yangzhou Prefecture was destroyed, he died together with him.

Emperor Chongzhen agreed to this choice.

Then in terms of the local army, Emperor Chongzhen directly put Shi Kefa's adopted son Shi Dewei in command.

As for the problem of lack of manpower in the yamen, let the convicted low-level officials wear shackles and do their work first.

Shi Kefa’s own energy was mainly focused on the salt policy reform.The framework principles have been given to him, and part of the manpower has been given to him. Emperor Chongzhen has no time to take care of the rest, leaving him to explore and do it himself.If there is really a problem, give him another memorial.

As for the main group of people arrested, including the prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture and the big salt merchants, Emperor Chongzhen did not keep them from causing harm to the food supply, so he went directly outside Yangzhou City.

The people of Yangzhou Prefecture were so frightened by this dizzying change that they tried not to go out and hid at home waiting for the news to pass.

Seeing that the emperor seemed to have reached an end of his busy schedule, Fang Zhenghua asked for instructions: "Long live Lord, do you want to send an order to Admiral Cao Jiang and ask him to lead a fleet to pick up the army to cross the river?"

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he turned to look at the whistling north wind outside the window, and he had some doubts in his heart.

Because he remembered that in Shi Kefa's records, there was this passage: After New Year's Day in spring, the weather was extremely bad, with strong winds uprooting trees and snow several feet deep to a person's waist.

Now it has been confirmed that it is indeed very cold in the north. The snow was up to the knees in the past few days. According to the news in the past two days, the heavy snow is still continuing. In places with heavy snow, it is estimated that it is not impossible to reach a person's waist.

So the question is, strong winds uprooted trees, this must be a typhoon, right?

(End of this chapter)