Chapter 135: The birth subsidy pioneered by the Ming Dynasty and the population growth enabled the Ming Dynasty to reach its peak.

"Reporting to Your Highness, Liu Qi, the son of Marquis Yihui, has been arrested and is now being interrogated in Fengyang."

"All officials involved in the case have confessed to their crimes. There are many people involved, not only Yihui Hou Liu Jizu, but also many gentry and powerful people."

"The crimes they committed are even more varied, but without exception, they are all related to defrauding the people's livelihood. Their crimes are unforgivable and unforgivable."

"Also, when Liu Qi was arrested, many people in Yihuihou Mansion concealed the truth. Under torture, the guards in the mansion could not bear it and confessed."

"As for Marquis Yihui, he should arrive in the capital this afternoon. After all, he is old and tired from the long journey, so he is not as fast as the Jinyiwei."

The Jinyiwei flag officer who was heading to Fengyang looked at Prince Jin Zhu Gang in front of him and reported.

"He should be here to plead for his son. That's almost a no-brainer."

Zhu Gang waved his hand nonchalantly.

"Such a crime, treating the people like pigs and dogs, if it is forgiven, where is the law of our Ming Dynasty?"

Zhu Biao, who was sitting next to him, said with a cold look in his eyes.

"Pass the order, if these gentry and powerful people have committed murder and illegal activities, kill them."

"As for the vassal accomplices, all of them will be demoted to hard labor, and not a single one will be spared."

"His family members were all beneficiaries. Their property was confiscated and they were exiled to Xi'an, Lingnan, and Beiping."

"As for the officials involved in the case, if any of them pervert the law, they will not be spared but killed."

"But if it's just corruption, he will be beaten with 50 sticks, his property will be confiscated, and he will be demoted to hard labor. No mercy will be given."

"But remember, everything must be proven with solid evidence. As for their family members, don't make it difficult. Just treat it as a good example for the future and to keep these corrupt officials in check."

“Let them understand that if they take bribes and abuse the power, they can be exempted from death, but they cannot be exempted from punishment.”

"As for those who break the law, no matter how serious the crime is, they should be killed and no mercy will be shown."

Zhu Gang lowered his head again and looked at the Jinyiwei, and said softly.

"As ordered."

The Jinyiwei quickly clasped his fists.

“This is also an imperial decree.”

Zhu Biao also raised his eyes and said softly.

"According to the order."

The Jinyiwei's pupils shrank and he clasped his fists again.

"Go on errands."

Zhu Gang waved his hand, and the Jinyiwei retreated.

"This is really a great opportunity. I was just worried that I would not have a chance to take action against the Huaixi gentry."

"You should understand what I mean?"

Zhu Gang raised his head again and looked at Zhu Biao with a smile.

"Li Heng, tell the Jinyiwei to thoroughly investigate all areas west of Huainan. The law of the country comes first, and no one should be spared."

"If anyone refuses to obey, the Jinyiwei can immediately judge and punish them for the crime of perverting the law and execute them."

"Also tell Hu Weiyong that while implementing the policy of equalizing the land tax and the unified taxation of officials and gentry, also ask him to thoroughly investigate the evidence of collusion between the gentry and powerful officials in eastern Zhejiang and corruption and abuse of power."

Zhu Biao immediately looked at Li Heng and said in a deep voice.

If he still doesn't understand Zhu Gang's meaning, then he is unworthy of being a brother.

Although this incident only happened in Fengyang, such a huge case was enough to shock the court and make the emperor furious.

So how can it be so easy to calm down?

If there is no river of blood to serve as a warning and deterrence, how can they understand the Ming Dynasty's determination to rectify the government?

There was also Zhu Biao's own idea, which was to let Hu Weiyong fall deeper until he had no way to retreat.

"According to the order."

Li Heng bowed and left the imperial study.

"Do you want to set this fire on Hu Weiyong?"

After Li Heng left, Zhu Gang smiled with a hint of amusement.

"This is a great opportunity to severely suppress the gentry and powerful people, as well as the corrupt officials."

"But if it's just to swat mosquitoes, isn't that putting the cart before the horse?"

"Since Hu Weiyong was in collusion with many officials, whether he cut off his arm to save his life or insisted on keeping it was up to him."

“But whether he cuts off his arm to survive or insists on keeping it intact, he will be in a dilemma.”

Zhu Biao smiled again.

If he cut off his arm to survive, Hu Weiyong would inevitably become alienated from these officials. If the conflict broke out one day, Hu Weiyong would have no choice but to die.

But if he insisted on preserving his life, would it mean that all the people in eastern Zhejiang were good people, with no bad people at all? So even if he deceived the imperial court, he would still die.

This was equivalent to digging a big hole for Hu Weiyong, and it was a big hole that he had to dig.

No matter what the outcome was, Zhu Biao would be happy to see it. After all, the Ming Dynasty would not lose anything, but would benefit from it instead.

Because to cut off the arm in order to survive would mean clipping Hu Weiyong's wings, and to insist on preserving it would mean increasing Hu Weiyong's guilt.

Until the day when he completely explodes, he will be the Ming Dynasty version of Qin Hui, and will have to kneel before the world for the rest of his life.

It may be a bit cruel, but that's what you picked, idol.

"It's really not easy to be the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Gang rubbed his temples gently.

"As long as Hu Weiyong abides by the law, I would be happy to employ him."

"But not only is he not law-abiding, his crimes are heinous, but he is also extremely ambitious and will not surrender easily. This is also his crime."

"After all, he has been testing me and trying to use the power of the prime minister to attack the imperial power, and he has never given up. For this reason alone, I will never let Hu Weiyong off."

"The Ming Dynasty doesn't need such ministers either."

Zhu Biao continued to smile.

This is what is called life and death are only a thought away. Of course, this thought is between Zhu Biao, but also Hu Weiyong.

After all, those who do evil will eventually destroy themselves. Everything is their own fault. How can they blame others?
"Give Tang Bo an order to allow him to dispatch the troops in Huaixi to prevent rebellion."

"After all, this is a big move, so we should be on guard against it."

Zhu Gang also agreed with Zhu Biao's point of view, so he nodded and suggested.

"Ah."

Zhu Biao also nodded without thinking, "That's what I was thinking."

"Also, it's time to take some action regarding the case of the Jiangnan gentry colluding with the grasslands."

"Let the Jinyiwei hiding in Jiangnan arrest them all and bring them back to the court for interrogation."

"I want to ask them in person who gave them the courage to be so disloyal."

A hint of ruthlessness flashed across Zhu Gang's eyes again.

"Well, after all, we can't always hold on to the officials. On the contrary, we have not taken any action against the Jiangnan gentry."

"Since cases keep coming one after another and they don't want us to have an easy life, then we shouldn't let them have an easy life either."

"This way, we can enrich the national treasury. With the support of silver, we can also put our work on the agenda."

Zhu Biao also smiled in a very unkind way. Since Zhu Gang returned to Beijing, in less than a year, the national treasury has been very full, coupled with the effective operation of the Ming treasure notes, it is really thriving.

At least in the recent period of time, Zhu Biao went on tours incognito, and there have been very few cases of people starving to death in Yingtian Prefecture. There are also fewer refugees, and the people can be said to be living and working in peace and contentment.

It is enough to show that the Ming Dynasty was truly moving towards prosperity.

How could Zhu Biao not be pleased?

Now that the national treasury can be filled, all plans and reforms can be put on the agenda again.

This is also a responsibility to the people of the Ming Dynasty.

"Silver is only part of a country's development. The most important thing is population."

"We must encourage people to have children, and in order to prevent them from abandoning their children because they cannot afford to raise them, we need to set up orphanages."

“I am also planning to open a subsidized department.”

"Any family with more than two children can apply to this department for a certain amount of subsidy to feed the children and maintain the family operation."

"Then this is equivalent to the court encouraging them to have children. The more children they have, the higher the subsidy will be."

"Also, if parents at home are disabled and cannot work or farm, we can provide them with certain subsidies. All of this is for the children and for the people of Ming Dynasty."

"Then the population of our Ming Dynasty will increase dramatically in a short period of time."

Zhu Gang shook his head at first, but then rubbed his hands and said.

In fact, it is the family planning subsidy in later generations, and its meaning is not difficult to understand. It is the money given or assistance provided by the court to families that comply with the family planning policy.

For example, some families who only have one child or have children in accordance with court regulations may receive some financial subsidies or special care to help them reduce the burden of raising children.

This money usually comes from the state, and its purpose is to encourage everyone to have children according to the court's plan and maintain balanced population development.

However, given the current situation in the Ming Dynasty, family planning is unnecessary. After all, there were few entertainment activities in ancient times, especially at night, when there were almost no activities.

Then all the energy will be focused on applauding love, and the more people applaud for love, the child will be born naturally.

However, these children cannot be counted as part of the population because of limited medical care, poverty of the people and many other issues. Some children simply cannot grow up, die in infancy, or are abandoned and die.

But the people are also helpless. They really cannot afford to raise their own children. It’s not that they are really willing to abandon their own flesh and blood, but they would still feel heartbroken.

Of course, this does not include parents who are beasts. After all, there are such beasts no matter where you are.

Therefore, if the population is to increase dramatically, making the people wealthy is one aspect, and the court must also make the people understand.

If they have children, the court will give them minimum guarantees so that they can afford to raise their children.

However, the court would conduct checks from time to time to prevent the death of children, and they would also use this as an excuse to ask for relief funds from the court.

Because this is against the law, the people must also be made aware of this.

You can apply for and receive relief funds, but you must not break the law, and violators will be held accountable.

This is also the fundamental concept of governing the country by law.

"The Ming treasure notes are under the control of the imperial court and have been effectively operated, which can indeed benefit the Ming Dynasty."

"But silver is equal to food, so the court gave them silver and Ming treasure notes, but what if there is no food?"

"So even if the Ming Dynasty can save it temporarily, it can't save it forever."

Zhu Biao shook his head and objected.

This is not because Zhu Biao was not concerned about the people, but because grain production has been a big problem since ancient times.

Years with strong winds and major disasters are everywhere, and it is impossible to prevent them.

Therefore, once the Ming Dynasty faced a food shortage, even if relief funds were given, people still could not afford to buy food.

The only option is to increase the relief funds. However, once the relief funds are increased, people can afford to buy food, but the Ming treasure note system will slowly collapse.

It is better to maintain the status quo. If you have a child, the court will give a certain subsidy, but this subsidy is not long-lasting but a one-time one.

For example, if a commoner family gave birth to triplets, the court would reward them with ten ingots of banknotes and five shi of rice.

In this way, the imperial court will not be brought down.

"You killed so many gentry and powerful people, as well as the Jiangnan gentry."

"Not to mention the silver on the books, the food they have piled up is enough to sustain the Ming Dynasty for the next ten years."

"Then what are you worried about?"

"Besides, the farmland is there, and the price increases every year. Even in a year of disaster, there will still be food, it's just a matter of how much."

"And I don't believe that the Ming Dynasty will suffer from disasters every year in the future. That may not be a natural disaster. It's time for our old man to reflect on whether he has made any mistakes."

"So neither grain nor Ming Dynasty banknotes will collapse because of this."

"Then the most urgent task now is to increase the population. As long as you have people and as long as these children can grow up, whether it is for foreign military operations or economic construction, to show prosperity, there is no shortage of them."

"Besides, once we have a population, as long as the population base is growing, we can send troops to the Indochina Peninsula and use iron-blooded means to engulf it, uproot it, and incorporate it into our territory."

"Will the Ming Dynasty still be short of food?"

"So, Boss, don't just focus on this piece of cake. It's meaningless. It will only limit your poverty and your thinking."

"Because compared to the current silver and food, population growth is the top priority for our Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Gang looked at Zhu Biao directly with an unpleasant look.

No matter how smart the ancients were, they were constrained by their thinking. This is why Zhu Biao, who was as smart as a tiger in politics, could be so stupid.

As expected, none of the descendants of the Zhu family have a business mind, let alone understand the super-strategic thinking of maximizing economic benefits.

"This"

A hint of thought flashed across Zhu Biao's eyes again. It was obvious that this guy was frantically settling accounts.

Because he hasn't figured out yet whether it's worth it.

"You don't have to calculate it there. Believe me, as long as the population can grow, everything will be there."

After a long time, Zhu Biao still couldn't figure it out, so Zhu Gang was still unhappily.

"it is good."

Because he trusted his younger brother, Zhu Biao nodded.

But there was still no color in his eyes, and he frowned from time to time, it seemed that he was still calculating the gains and losses.

Zhu Gang, who saw this scene, waved his hand speechlessly and left the imperial study directly.

"The population is growing. With the current reserves of the Ming Dynasty, there is still food to continue to grow, and the Ming Dynasty's treasure notes are used to maintain operations. This seems to be a balanced and balanced state."

"So if we calculate it this way, as long as the population can continue to grow, this little bit of relief money is still taken from the people and used for the people."

"After all, according to what you said, the relief money is used to help children. Although it is enough for a certain period of time, you still have to continue working and farming. After all, the significance of the relief money itself is to ease the pressure of raising children."

"The third brother? Where is he?"

Zhu Biao pondered for a long time before he finally understood the reason. He raised his head and looked at Zhu Gang with a hint of excitement in his eyes.

But as soon as he opened his mouth, his excitement froze, and in this huge imperial study, where was Zhu Gang to be found?

But Zhu Biao didn't care. He had figured it out anyway. Even if the population increased dramatically, it would not bring down the Ming Dynasty.

After all, both the Jiangnan gentry and the powerful gentry have given too much support to the Ming Dynasty. Whether in terms of food or silver, they are extremely wealthy and can fully support it.

Thanks to the cousins ​​in Jiangnan and the gentry and powerful people for their selfless dedication to the Ming Dynasty.

Bow to you, my friend.

The gentry and powerful families in the south of the Yangtze River: "."

(End of this chapter)