Chapter 898
Changing Name and Fate
The ministers were also bewildered, wondering where this Xu Youzhen had come from.
Hanlin Academy?
Does such a person exist in the Hanlin Academy?
Although we do not know who he is, judging from the content of his memorial, this person is indeed insightful and has great understanding of water management.
So when the emperor casually inquired about the dredging of the Yellow River, officials from the Ministry of Works suggested transferring this person to the Ministry of Works.
The Ministry of Works is currently short of personnel, especially those with practical skills.
Judging from this man's memorial, he not only had insight into water management, but also had some knowledge of local affairs.
The relationship between water management and local authorities is very important, and a Ministry of Works official who knows how to handle this relationship is even more valuable.
The emperor readily agreed.
The next day, when the officials saw Xu Cheng enter the Ministry of Works and introduce himself as Xu Youzhen, everyone thought: ...
That's a really flashy move.
Does the emperor know?
A question flashed through the minds of the courtiers.
Was this idea Pan Yun's?
The ministers exchanged glances but said nothing in front of Xu Youzhen.
Xu Youzhen secretly breathed a sigh of relief. After being successfully transferred to the Ministry of Works, she immediately took on a mission and went out.
The Hanlin Academy is a prestigious and respectable institution, which seems better than working in the Ministry of Works.
However, even within the Hanlin Academy, there were different roles. Some could lecture the emperor, answer his questions, draft imperial edicts, and even walk before the emperor...
But some people can only sit in a corner and repair books, and they repair obscure books. They may be repairing books from the age of thirty to sixty, and they will never even see the emperor.
Xu Youzhen had been assigned this kind of work before.
He was terrified. If he had to live like this for the rest of his life, he would rather resign and go home to find another way out.
Now, he has finally found a way in his official career.
He didn't care about the deeper meaning of Pan Yun's words, nor did he care about the warning Pan Yun gave him with the word "chaste"; he just wanted to seize this opportunity.
Xu Youzhen left Beijing and was gone for five years.
He traveled to many places, ordered to inspect dikes and explore waterways. He sketched the rivers he passed through, gradually creating water maps of several regions.
In his third year, he was finally promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, in charge of the task of managing the Yellow River.
He stayed by the Yellow River for two years. When he returned to the capital, he was dark-skinned, thin, and looked much older, but he was full of energy and had bright eyes.
Pan Yun then said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, when people are placed in the right positions, whether they are virtuous or petty, the results will be twice as good with half the effort."
The emperor suddenly realized, "This is Xu Cheng?"
His eyes widened: "Xu Youzhen is Xu Cheng?"
Of course, that was five years later. At that time, the emperor did not know that Xu Youzhen was Xu Cheng. He even quickly forgot about Pan Yun's words because the news of the late emperor's death on the battlefield had already reached the various vassal states, and each side made different reactions.
In the southwest, Siji launched a raid on Mengyang, which prompted Burma to respond. Wang Ji decisively sent troops, arriving at the Jinsha River in early October, where they were already fighting with the rebels.
In the southeastern seas, the Japanese navy was active and the number of pirates at sea increased. From the first to the fifteenth of the tenth month, in just half a month, six ships sank at sea, the merchants lost their goods, and even the crew members were kidnapped.
The Liao people in the northeast petitioned the court for disaster relief, demanding more than ten times the rewards of previous years. They even asked the new emperor to grant them three plots of land to settle down.
This was an external threat, already a difficult situation, but the internal troubles were even more serious. When the emperor was allocating pension funds to the Ministry of War, he discovered that the Ministry of Revenue was out of money.
He had just ascended the throne, so he held back. Now that he has been on the throne for half a month, the officials' salaries need to be paid and winter is approaching. He needs to set aside some silver for charcoal and grain for disaster relief.
Not to mention, in winter, one also has to prepare seeds, farm tools, and so on for the spring.
Chen Xun laid out all the bills, and the newly enthroned emperor was stunned.
To support the late emperor's personal campaign, not only did the national treasury allocate a large amount of money and grain, but also many granaries in Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Shanxi and other places were used.
These grain reserves also need to be replenished; otherwise, if natural disasters or wars occur in these areas, and it becomes necessary to open the granaries to distribute grain...
The heavy burden of supporting the family suddenly fell on Zhu Qiyu's shoulders, leaving him somewhat exhausted.
Yu Qian's suggestion was to cut expenses, rectify official corruption, and conduct a thorough land survey.
There were ministers in the court who opposed him, and there were also those who supported him.
Whether they supported or opposed it, their reasons were all valid, and Zhu Qiyu felt that everyone's arguments made sense, so he could only go to Pan Yun late at night to get a decision.
Pan Yun said, "If both sides are right, then we should choose according to the order of importance and urgency."
Pan Yun asked, "Your Majesty, what do you think is the most urgent task for the country?"
"Money!" Zhu Qiyu answered after a moment's thought: "Without money, many people will die this winter and next year."
Pan Yun nodded: "Then let's follow Lord Yu's advice and make money first."
Pan Jun smirked and said, "Time is too tight. It's difficult to create value through production. We can only rely on plunder."
Zhu Qiyu glared: "Plunder?"
Pan Yun nodded: "Therefore, Lord Yu proposed to cut spending, to rectify official corruption, and to conduct a land survey."
"Saving expenses means robbing a portion of the people of their rightful income and welfare; reforming officialdom means robbing corrupt officials of the money they have plundered from the common people; land surveys..."
Pan Yun paused for a moment and then shook his head: "This is not something that can be achieved in a short time. Lord Yu obviously knows this. The reason for bringing it up now is to make it more acceptable compared to the previous two proposals, and to allow everyone to be mentally prepared."
After a moment of contemplation, Zhu Qiyu asked, "In the long run, what should we do if the national treasury is short of money?"
Pan Jun said, “Your Majesty, there are many peasants who have lost their land throughout the land. We should make use of these people, help them find jobs, and enable them to create more value, so as to develop industry and commerce.”
Zhu Qiyu: "If we prioritize industry and commerce, won't that harm agriculture? If people pursue profit and all go into industry and commerce, neglecting agriculture, the country will be in chaos."
Pan Yun said, "Therefore, agriculture should not be underestimated. Your Majesty, why has every dynasty started by suppressing commerce when it came to emphasizing agriculture, instead of ever considering reducing land taxes, land levies, and land rents?"
Zhu Qiyu's mouth dropped open: "This..."
Pan Yun said, “The more farmers gain from the land, the more reluctant they are to leave it. You are the king, the father of all people, and you should be considering the interests of the vast majority of people in this world. They are all your subjects and will give back to you and to this country. The people living in this country will also benefit.”
Pan Jun took a grain of rice from the cloth bag and pushed it in front of him, saying softly, "Your Majesty, these ordinary people each contribute very little, but out of the 100 million people in the country, those who pay this grain tax account for 99%, and the national treasury's money and grain mainly come from them."
Zhu Qiyu quickly corrected him, "Our Great Ming doesn't have that many people, only a population of over 68 million."
Pan Yun looked at Zhu Qiyu and smiled: "I said the population of the Ming Dynasty has exceeded one hundred million. Does Your Majesty dare to conduct a population census?"
Zhu Qiyu: ...We just discussed land surveying, and now they're bringing up population census. Are Pan Yun and Yu Qian trying to turn the Ming Dynasty upside down and shake it up again? (End of Chapter)