Chapter 149

Chen Tingjian was the No. 1 scholar at the age of 19, and He Qingxian, who was 22 years old, was the second place in the same year.

Back then, both of them were considered poor students, even though they had achieved success in Chunwei, after a short period of success, they had to face the incompatibility with Capital City, a wealthy place.

Therefore, in the first two years of their friendship, Chen Tingjian and He Qingxian ate and lived together, and they were inseparable friends.

Until Chen Tingjian made more and more new friends due to the difference in temperament, He Qingxian offended more and more people.

When He Qingxian was pushed out to a place outside, the soft-spoken Chen Tingjian was helpless.

Since then, the two have also embarked on completely different paths to become officials. Chen Tingjian was promoted higher and higher, while He Qingxian was promoted and demoted, and was almost beheaded because he wrote a letter scolding Hua Yang's grandfather.

But the age of early twenties is when a person is the purest and most passionate, and the friendship formed at that time is also the most sincere.

Therefore, even though the two of them haven't seen each other for twenty-five years, when they meet again today, they only need to look at each other to know that the other party is still the old friend in my memory, and the advantages they should have are still there, and the ones they shouldn't have are still there.There is no shortage of faults.

When they first got into the carriage, Chen Tingjian and He Qingxian were very happy. The former hoped that He Qingxian could help him carry out the New Deal, take this opportunity to gain a firm foothold in Capital City, and stop letting it out.The latter hopes that Chen Tingjian can accept the New Deal he drafted, and completely restore the corrupt and ruined world to the prosperity of Taizu and Chengzu, so that the people will be stable and the court will be clear.

However, when He Qingxian took out his thick memorial and Chen Tingjian read it quickly, both of them couldn't laugh anymore, and started a debate with louder and louder voices.

Chen Tingjian originally planned to send He Qingxian all the way to the mansion awarded by Emperor Yuanyou to the upright official, and the two would drink and chat.

However, the fact is that as soon as the carriage arrived at the gate of the city, Chen Tingjian got out of the carriage with a dark face, changed to his own carriage, and took his two sons into the city first.

Palace of Heavenly Purity.

Commander of Jin Yiwei, Liu Shou, reported the news handed over by his subordinates to Emperor Yuanyou and Empress Dowager Qi in detail.

Emperor Yuanyou: "Is it really noisy?"

Liu Shou: "Yes, the people queuing in and out of the city gate heard it. When Pavilion Elder Chen got out of the car, he cursed at the car for being stubborn, and Elder He Ge leaned out of the car window and replied stubborn."

Emperor Yuanyou: ...

He himself is often taught by Chen Tingjian, and he often sees Chen Tingjian reprimanding officials who are not doing well..

He is a disciple, and if he wants to refute Chen Tingjian, he has to be polite and tactful. On the side of his mother, she trusts Chen Tingjian very much, and will only refute one or two when Chen Tingjian speaks for him. hope that Chen Tingjian will be a strict teacher, and don't indulge him too much..

After Liu Shou stepped down, Emperor Yuanyou looked at Empress Dowager Qi: "Mother, if He Qingxian refuses to cooperate with Pavilion Elder Chen's reform method, what should I do?"

You can't just summon someone to Jingfeng Pavilion and drive him back to Nanjing in a few days, right?

Empress Dowager Qi smiled: "If you listen to both, you will be bright, if you listen to one side, you will be dark."

There was no morning court the next day, and Chen Tingjian brought He Qingxian, who had just taken office, to visit Emperor Yuanyou and Empress Dowager Qi.

When the two entered the door, Emperor Yuanyou looked at his husband first, and saw that Chen Tingjian was well-dressed and had a smooth beard, with a calm demeanor, as if he had never had any trouble with He Qingxian yesterday.

Emperor Yuanyou looked at He Qingxian, who was so loud but never seen before, and saw that He Ge, who was obviously three years older than Chen Tingjian, was half a head shorter than Chen Tingjian, and his complexion was the wheat yellow common to farming people.He was straight, his beard and hair were black, his eyes were firm and firm, and he looked younger than Chen Tingjian.

Which emperor doesn't like honest officials?

Emperor Yuanyou had always admired He Qingxian very much. Seeing the real person at this time, Emperor Yuanyou couldn't help praising: "He Ge is so handsome, he really looks like a pine on the top of a mountain, and he is so proud!"

He Qingxian was not polite to Chen Tingjian. Facing the young emperor, the king whom the people of the world depended on, He Qingxian was in awe and reverence from the bottom of his heart, and immediately bowed down and bowed: "I have never been liked by emperors and courtiers, and I am grateful for the emperor's appreciation."Only then was I able to enter the capital and enter the court, I was so grateful, and I would like to be driven by the emperor for the rest of my life, and I will die after my death."

Chen Tingjian stood aside, looking at his old friend lying on the ground, and savoring his old friend's words, he really didn't know what to say.

Empress Dowager Qi glanced at him with a smile.

Emperor Yuanyou left the table, helped He Qingxian up personally, and said words of encouragement that made He Qingxian's eyes turn red.

However, Emperor Yuanyou did not forget to speak for Chen Tingjian: "This time the old man was able to join the cabinet, thanks to Mr.'s efforts to overcome all opinions."

This is a fact. Ever since Emperor Yuanyou announced the election of the new cabinet elders, the wave of officials who originally opposed the new policy wrote letters against He Qingxian, and even the officials who had been neutral all the time also wrote letters against him. These were all suppressed by Chen Tingjian.

He Qingxian glanced at Chen Tingjian faintly, and said bluntly: "It's not that the emperor or the empress wants to use a minister, how can he think of a minister."

Embarrassment flashed across Emperor Yuanyou's eyes.

Chen Tingjian didn't care about these things, and when the monarch and ministers had enough greetings, he brought up the topic of the New Deal: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, it's already Dongyue, and there will be an annual holiday in more than a month. The "Regulations on Qingzhang" drafted by the Inner Pavilion earlier, I wonder if the emperor and empress think it is feasible?"

Empress Dowager Qi looked at He Qingxian: "Mr. He Ge has just entered the cabinet, have you seen the "Regulations on Qing Zhang?"

He Qingxian said: "Mother, Pavilion Elder Chen attached a copy to the letter to me, but I think this regulation is inappropriate."

Empress Dowager Qi signaled Emperor Yuanyou to take a seat, and asked humbly: "Please tell Mr. He Ge in detail."

He Qingxian raised his head, held his head high and held his chest high: "When the Taizu founded the country, he ordered the land clearing across the country. At that time, it was calculated that the country had a total of 8.12 million hectares. It stands to reason that with the people's land reclamation year after year, the country's land should be more and more.More and more, but looking through the tax books of more than 200 years, the land is getting less and less, if I remember correctly, the registered land in the whole country last year was only 4.67 million hectares."

Emperor Yuanyou clenched his fists secretly, what is missing is his land!

Chen Tingjian said: "That's why we have to clear the land again, let the officials and gentry spit out the concealed land, register it in the register and pay taxes as usual."

He Qingxian: "But the fields they concealed include some that they did not conceal, and they were acquired from the common people. After the court made such a calculation, it admitted that the fields they annexed were also in compliance with the law. What is the reason for this? According to the minister's opinion, we should strictly follow the laws of our dynasty to re-clear the land, and all annexed land should be confiscated and returned to the people, and those who refuse to return, regardless of clan officials and gentry, will be beheaded!"

Chen Tingjian: "What you said is simple. There are countless officials and gentry annexing land. The imperial court wants to use these officials to clear the land and confiscate their fields. Which official is willing to do it? You are as clean and honest as you are all the officials in the world.?”

He Qingxian: "Corrupt officials are indulged step by step. The court should have strictly punished corrupt officials in strict accordance with the laws of the Taizu Dynasty. If one is corrupt and one is killed, naturally no one dares to be corrupt again."

Chen Tingjian: "You killed them all. Who will work for the court? Who dares to be an official at this time? There are no officials. Who do you rely on to enforce the law?"

He Qingxian: "Someone has to take this step. No one will do it. What's the use of clearing the land? You find out some concealed reports today, and there will be new concealed reports next year. They have concealed reports and registered them in the register."The total number of fields in the land remains unchanged, and this part has to be counted on the people. The people are already suffering enough, and they still have to bear the taxes that the corrupt officials pay less. Are you going to force them to death!"

Chen Tingjian: "This time the clearing is only to measure the land, and the total amount of taxes in various places is still implemented according to last year. If the fields that are concealed by the officials and gentry are found out, the taxes shared by the common people will naturally decrease. Isn't it beneficial to the country and the people?"

He Qingxian: "You think those corrupt officials are too stupid. They have been corrupt for several lifetimes. There are policies and countermeasures. I can think of several ways to deal with you. First of all, you have to measure the land, right?The mountains, forests and tidal flats that cannot be cultivated at all are counted, there are so many lands, and the books look good, but the mountains, forests and tidal flats cannot grow food, and this part of the tax has to be added to the heads of the people.”

"Secondly, I am a magistrate, so I can also prepare two kinds of bow rulers. I use the big bow ruler to measure for the powerful officials and gentry. Only six or seven acres of ten mu of land can be measured, and then I can use the small bow ruler to measure the ten mu of land of the common people.After measuring thirteen or four mu, it turned out that the people concealed the land, and the taxes still fell on them!"

Chen Tingjian: "Then let's make it clear in the regulations that mountains, forests and tidal flats are not counted as land. Anyone who dares to pretend to be punished according to the law will be issued by the imperial court. Local officials dare to change their bows for measurement. Once the people expose it, they will be executed!""

He Qingxian: "But you still admitted the land annexation. A large number of fields in the hands of the clan officials and gentry do not need to be taxed. If they annex an additional acre, the imperial court will not collect an acre of tax!"

Chen Tingjian: "Food needs to be eaten one bite at a time, and things must be done step by step. Now the national treasury is empty. There is an urgent need for money everywhere to consolidate border defense, manage the Yellow River, and provide disaster relief. You have offended all the clan officials and gentry in one go. The treasury still has no money. Internal worriesThere are more foreign aggressions, is it feasible? If the court can’t support it, the people will only suffer worse. Now there is a way to make the people feel better, so that the court’s internal and external troubles will be less, why not do it? It’s like a family in a stormThe common people, seeing that the thatched cottages are about to collapse, they also want to live in solid brick houses, but do they have them? Their first priority is to repair the leaky roof of the thatched cottages first, and find a few boards to fix the broken windows.Prison, dawdling and doing nothing, the thatched cottage is about to collapse!"

He Qingxian wanted to say more, but Chen Tingjian scolded again: "You can say that you can dream, and your dreams alone can make the world's corrupt officials disappear in a day, or can you let the clan officials and gentry return the fields to the people obediently overnight? YouIf you really have such ability, I will give you the position of Chief-of-Staff right away!"

He Qingxian: ...

Empress Dowager Qi and Emperor Yuanyou, who sat on the chair without saying a word, seemed to have never existed from the beginning to the end: ...

He Qingxian finally stopped talking.

Chen Tingjian's breathing also gradually calmed down, and his flushed face gradually returned to its former fairness and elegance.

The two looked at the queen mother and the emperor at the same time.

Empress Dowager Qi seemed to be resurrected from a statue, she made a movement, and asked Emperor Yuanyou: "What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Emperor Yuanyou swallowed his saliva, his eyes turned and turned on the faces of the two elders, and finally said: "The new law is still based on the master, but there are indeed some hidden dangers in the regulations of the husband, please ask the elders to make up for it one by one, and bring the cabinetRe-draw it and hand it over to me and the Queen Mother for reading.”

Chen Tingjian bowed first, and said solemnly, "I accept the order."

He Qingxian pursed his lips and lowered his head in the end: "I obey."

The two elders retreated one after the other.

After leaving the Palace of Heavenly Purity, Chen Tingjian held down his long beard as the cold wind blew outside.

Next to him, He Qingxian snorted: "I'm listening to you now. If you don't want to find a way to solve the serious illness of the annexation of the clan, officials and gentry in the future, I will never end with you."

Chen Tingjian was already calm, looking out of the palace wall in the distance, stroked his beard and said, "Keep your feet on the ground, those things can't be rushed."

inside the hall.

Empress Dowager Qi was alright, after the figures of the two elders disappeared completely, Emperor Yuanyou realized that his whole body was stiff, and it was because he was too tense just now.

For a moment, Emperor Yuanyou was really worried that Chen Tingjian and He Qingxian would fight.

Empress Dowager Qi looked at her son and said with a smile: "Now I understand why Pavilion Elder Chen has not transferred He Qingxian to Beijing?"

Emperor Yuanyou nodded.

He Qingxian is a great official, but a good official may not be able to get things done. In terms of actual effect, Chen Tingjian is better.