The unified payment of grain and commercial taxes by the officials and gentry almost affected the prosperity of all noble officials, gentry, landlords and landlords in the Ming Dynasty. How could they not oppose it?

For these groups, the survival of the Ming Dynasty is not important, but it cannot affect the food, drink and fun of these groups, let alone their income, otherwise they will vote with their feet.

Officials and gentry are required to pay grain as one unit, and all other miscellaneous agricultural taxes are cancelled. In fact, it means dividing the land into acres. As long as there is land, taxes must be paid, whether it is the former lords, nobles, or the current gentry, officials, and landowners.

There were some taxes that the gentry did not pay in the first place, and those who passed the examination were exempted from the tax. The people who benefited most from this time were the people at the bottom, that is, the farmers.

Looking at the ugly civil and military officials in front of him, Zhu Cixiang couldn't help but shake his head, feeling very disgusted in his heart. He turned to look at the calm civil and military officials, and saw that they still looked calm.

Of course, not all officials stood up to oppose it. Except for the cabinet and the six ministers, the generals were all supporters of the New Deal.

They are basically low-level soldiers in the army. They have been oppressed by their superiors and civilian officials for so many years. After Emperor Shenwu succeeded to the throne, their status has also increased, and now they have suffered the same loss as Emperor Shenwu.

They are well aware of the symptoms of the Ming Dynasty, and the other one is the reverence for Emperor Shenwu. Without Emperor Shenwu, they, the new heroes of the Ming Dynasty, are nothing, and of course they will not object.

The Ming Cabinet and the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers did not move or speak. Although there was some resistance in their hearts, they still chose to support Emperor Shenwu. After all, they were all officials recently promoted by Emperor Shenwu.

Because they all know that any opposition to the current emperor is almost ineffective. It is true that the officials and gentry pay taxes together, which has an impact on them. However, their official reputation has almost doubled. How can the court operate without paying taxes? How can the army protect the Ming Dynasty?

No one knows how the emperor will deal with those officials who oppose the reform in the future, but many examples of officials being killed in the past flash before their eyes from time to time. It is better to pay taxes than to be beheaded.

If compared with the Ming Dynasty vassal kings, the little farmland at home is nothing. It can be said that most officials have learned their lesson now under the butcher's knife of Zhu Cixiang.

The officials who are really opposed to the government-gentleman system are still the same group of people. The meaning of their existence is to oppose for the sake of opposition, regardless of whether the policy is right or wrong.

They only think about the interests of the groups behind them, and the court is not in their hearts at all. Their purpose in becoming officials is to make money.

Zhu Cixiang gently knocked on the handle of the dragon chair and looked at Sun Chuanting, the chief minister of the Ming Dynasty cabinet:

"Sun Aiqing, what do your cabinet think? Is there a big problem with my manuscript? Is it more serious than the demise of the Ming Dynasty?"

Upon hearing the emperor's question, Sun Chuanting and the cabinet members hurriedly stepped forward to salute:

"Your Majesty is wise. The Ming Cabinet resolutely supports the decision of the Holy One. Compared with the country and the country of the Ming Dynasty, personal gains and losses are not worth mentioning. If anyone dares to act evil, he is going against the people of the Ming Dynasty in the world. Please kill him!"

"Damn it, he is worthy of being the chief minister of the Ming Dynasty's cabinet. He is indeed ruthless. Ordinary civil servants would not dare to speak like this..."

Sun Chuanting's words were somewhat beyond Zhu Cixiang's expectations. You must know that Sun Chuanting is the leader of hundreds of officials. It is rare for him to speak so directly and so unscrupulously.

"Yes, yes, very good. My dear, you are worthy of being a pillar of the Ming Dynasty. You are really devoted to the people..."

As soon as Zhu Cihong praised Sun Chuanting, more than a dozen civil and military officers came forward and bowed and saluted:

"Your Majesty, I firmly support your decision. Only generals like us, who have been fighting abroad for many years, can understand the pain of the country's shortage of military pay and food, and they can only talk about it.

In the first two years of the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty was full of hungry people, refugees, and deserters. The army had a serious shortage of military pay and was withheld, resulting in a serious decline in the combat effectiveness of the army and a serious decline in the quality of firearms due to funding problems.

All this has been changed by His Majesty's iron-blooded methods. For the long-term peace and stability of our Ming Dynasty, and for the stable life of the people of the Ming Dynasty, not to mention a small tax, we are willing to sacrifice all our wealth..."

The person who took the lead in speaking this time was Emperor Shenwu's biggest supporter, an upstart from the National Defense Army.

They are Zhou Yuji, Sun Yingyuan, Cao Bianjiao, Lu Xiangsheng, Huang Degong, Zhang Shize, Chen Zilong and others

"Okay, very good. All of you are worthy of being the pillars of our Ming Dynasty. When the Ming Dynasty enters its prosperous age, I will never let you down..."

Everyone hurriedly bowed and thanked:

"Thank you, Your Majesty, Your Majesty is wise..."

When they said this, the opponents became anxious. What is the Holy Ming? This is a rhythm that wants to force us to death. They hurriedly kowtowed upward again:

"Your Majesty, you can't. This matter involves too much. Please think again, Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty, please think twice, this will damage the foundation of our Ming Dynasty..."

…

Seeing that they were still chattering, Zhu Cixiang's good mood was instantly ruined. He glared impatiently and said:

"As ministers of the Ming Dynasty, you are resolutely opposed to my reforms. If I insist on doing this, what can you do to me?"

They are about to break up, but these people are not afraid at all for the sake of profit, because they know very well that the New Deal has not yet been implemented. Just opposing the New Deal will definitely not be beheaded. At most, it will disgust the emperor. They often did this in the Chongzhen Dynasty...

A censor saw that the emperor was trying to act helpless. He suddenly became angry and lost his mind. He raised his hands and shouted:

"Your Majesty, if you do not withdraw your order, I will request to resign and return to my hometown. Please grant your permission."

Most of these people were candidate officials from the south and represented the interests of the southern gentry.

In the past, they could say that power could reach the sky with a handshake, but recently the trend has changed. Many military generals have been rising in status, while their civil servant group has been completely suppressed.

They were all people who were transferred to take over the officials whose houses were confiscated. They thought that there was a serious shortage of personnel in the court and the emperor would never allow them to resign. They wanted to threaten the emperor by resigning and not doing anything.

One of the censors had a sudden fit and asked to resign. The others had already gathered together to keep warm, so they could only follow suit. There were actually as many as fifty or sixty people asking for resignation.

This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! They looked at each other, and they were secretly proud. So many officials resigned. Seeing how the little emperor can cope with it, he might even pee his pants.

Bar?

Zhu Cixiang could see through their little tricks at a glance. There were too many people who wanted to be officials in the Ming Dynasty, and they were not all monolithic. Just look at the performance of the ministers after Jiannu entered the customs, so he smiled coldly:

"Awesome, you guys are so awesome that you dare to threaten me. Since you want to resign, I will also make things difficult for you. Just remember, when you return to your hometown, don't forget to hand over the extra fields, let alone pay the food!

Li Ruolian, leading the royal guards, immediately escorted them to the school grounds to stay for one night. Since they are no longer officials of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court granted them the residence and immediately took it back, allowing them to leave the capital tomorrow and return to their hometown to farm."

Li Ruolian suppressed his smile and immediately bowed to accept the order:

"According to the order!"

At this point, these officials have begun to feel confused. Many people secretly complained about the censor who took the lead in resigning. Why did he resign because he had nothing to do? Is it easy for me to get to where I am today in the imperial examination?

Zhu Cixiang sneered secretly in his heart, but his face remained calm as he continued:

"Although I am not very old, I have always liked the beauty of adulthood. Don't you really want to go back to your hometown? I will never make it difficult for you. I will let the royal guards escort you back to your hometown in glory. I hope you will farm well and contribute to the treasury of the Ming Dynasty..."

"Oh my God, Your Majesty, Wei Chen was joking just now. If Wei Chen doesn't return to his hometown, Wei Chen won't resign..."

These people did not expect that the little emperor would not follow the routine. Not only did he allow them to resign, but he also confiscated their mansions. It was too cruel...

A group of gossips immediately collapsed to the ground, shouting that they would not resign...

They are accustomed to living a life of debauchery. If they are driven back to their place of origin to farm and pay for food, it would be better to kill them!

However, if they really kill them, they must be afraid of death...

No one can change or stop Zhu Cihong's determination to reform. Be polite to them this time, otherwise they will all be exiled to the prairie.

Emperor Shenwu smiled coldly:

"You don't resign, but you are joking with me in the court? Do you want to deceive the emperor? How can officials like you who are dishonest in their words be used by our Ming Dynasty? The Jin Yiwei will kick them out."

"Follow your orders"

Zhu Cixiang shouted, and a group of royal guards broke into the Huangji Palace. Without explanation, they dragged the crying officials out.

Zhu Cihong's ears instantly became clear. He rubbed his temples and said:

"I have given my oral instructions that the reform document will be distributed to local governments tomorrow, and the specific implementation plan will be decided upon through consultation between the Ministry of Finance and the Cabinet!"

"Sun Chuanting and others stayed, and other officials withdrew from the court."

"I'll take my leave."

Other civil and military ministers began to withdraw from the court, and only a few people named by Zhu Cixi remained in the Golden Palace.

Zhu Cixiang discussed with several ministers the follow-up issues of commercial tax collection, and finally decided to establish a tax bureau and customs.

Except for the six independent departments of the Customs and Taxation Bureau, they did not belong to any department and were directly responsible for Emperor Shenwu.

Huang Daozhou temporarily serves as the top official of the customs, Liu Kongzhao serves as the tax bureau chief, and Shen Wanwan serves as Liu Kongzhao's assistant.

Huang Daozhou has an upright temperament and is an honest official, so it is not a big problem for him to temporarily serve as the customs commissioner.

…

After two years of development, Ming Dynasty has completely embarked on the path of rapid development. As long as maritime trade is opened, Ming Dynasty's economy will take off rapidly.

The Ordnance Bureau of the Ministry of Industry was not only able to produce rifles and guns on a continuous basis, but the technology of grenades, grenades and revolvers was also becoming increasingly mature. Almost all the main armies of the Ming Dynasty had been equipped with rifles.

Shipyards in various places are also working hard to build ships. Twenty-five more large warships have been launched and have completed sea trials.

During this period, some small neighboring countries saw the strength of the Ming Dynasty and sent envoys to the capital one after another.

I want to become a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty again and continue to maintain a suzerain-vassal relationship with the Ming Dynasty.

These include Champa Kingdom, Chenla, Myanmar, Xiaoliuqiu, Boni Kingdom, etc.

Zhu Cixi could understand the early practices of these small countries. He knew that they were sometimes controlled by other countries and had no intention of paying tribute, so he did not blame them.

For example, the Ryukyu Kingdom wanted to maintain a vassal relationship with the Ming Dynasty, but it was actually controlled by the Japanese Kingdom and it was difficult to take this step.

Zhu Cixiang sent a decree to the Ministry of Rites that as long as they continued to pay tribute, the Ming Dynasty could still maintain a vassal relationship with them.

However, the tribute must be doubled on the original basis. If it is really difficult, it can be offset by other materials. The days of unilaterally reaping benefits like in the past will not happen again.

If they think the price of paying tribute is too high, they can stop becoming a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, and it will become a province of the Ming Dynasty in the future.

It is actually very good to become a province of the Ming Dynasty. North Korea now does not have to pay taxes for three years. The people live a good life and have a sense of belonging to the Ming Dynasty.

Now North Koreans all hope to have a local household registration in the Ming Dynasty, so that they can enjoy the treatment of true Ming Dynasty citizens and not kneel when they meet officials in North Korea...

The officials of the Ministry of Rites still had a very good attitude towards these small countries that came to pay tribute, at least much gentler than that of Emperor Zhu Cixiang of the Ming Dynasty.

In order to make several small countries sincerely surrender, Zhou Lishun, the minister of Honglu Temple, personally took them to visit the Ming Dynasty army training.
To be continued...