"Enough Xu Jie, you are wasting my time. Tell me, what is your request?"
Xu Jie sighed." Your Majesty, Zhao Ji doesn't have many requests. He wants a new painting of Tang Bohu and a calligraphy work of Zhu Zhishan's wild cursive and regular script." As for the rest, just follow the rules!"
"The Four Great Scholars of Jiangnan? It was so famous that it had even spread to the ears of the foreign emperor?”
"Your Majesty, the four great scholars are just joking. There's no need to take it to heart." However, Zhao Ji was proficient in calligraphy and paid close attention to the calligraphy masters of the Nine Prefectures. Thinking about it, Tang Bohu's painting was just an addition. He might still value Zhu Zhishan's calligraphy.”
Zhang Haiduan couldn't help but say,""That's right, although Zhu Zhishan is not very good, his cursive and regular script are extraordinary. The cursive was unrestrained, but the regular script was extremely rigorous, with a strong ancient style. If they were combined to form a calligraphy treasure, it would definitely be rare in the world. Even I want to get one.”
Yu Qian nodded." Zhao Ji is indeed a talent. He can even think of this. I admire him!"”
"Alright, Cao Zhengchun." Zhu Houzhao nodded.”
"This servant is here!"
"Send people to Jiangnan to find Tang Bohu and Zhu Zhishan. Yes, although I am the emperor, I can't let them work for nothing. How about this, I will give you ten thousand taels of gold and a thousand rolls of silk from the treasury. That should be enough, right?”
"Your Majesty, this is too much!"
"That's right, Your Majesty. This one million taels of silver is enough to pay the salaries of the border guards. How could Tang Bohu and Zhu Zhishan have such a price?”
The ministers discussed animatedly, clearly coveting the one million taels of silver.
It was not necessarily greedy. The various yamen had to have some small treasury, right?
"This is an internal fund allocation. What does it have to do with you? You said to look for the Ministry of Revenue."
Was ten thousand gold taels a lot? There were indeed many.
However, when they were watching a movie, Tang Bohu's words could easily cost hundreds of thousands.
If he paid too little and did not match the price, how embarrassing would that be? It was too repulsive.
It was better not to pay a single copper coin. Instead, he would be in a better mood.
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue is really out of money."”
Crying about poverty was a necessary skill for every Minister of Revenue.
"How is that possible? Zhen remembers that he was quite old last year."
"Your Majesty, there are too many major events this year. The Ministry of Revenue is really out of money.”
Zhu Houzhao was speechless. He touched his chin and said,""Looks like there's still a problem with the current tax system. It's only been half of this year, and there's already no money. Are we all going to drink the northwest wind together?"
"Your Majesty, you are generous and benevolent. You will definitely not mistreat the officials of the court, right?”
I understand. This is the idea of using the internal treasury. Unfortunately, you're thinking too much.
"Shi Jie, you're the Minister of Revenue. You can't even manage a year's worth of expenses? What use do I have for you?"
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have the heart but am powerless.”
"I understand now. It must be a problem with the tax system.”
"Your Majesty, the tax system is the law of our ancestors. My Ming Empire has always been extremely strong, so there will definitely be no problem.”
"That's right. The Ming Dynasty has been strong for hundreds of years and is one of the big countries in the Nine Regions. There is no problem with the tax system.”
"Your Majesty is still too young."
"Oh, young and impetuous, so I said that the emperor can't be too young. It should be better for an older person to be the emperor, just like us officials.”
No one knew who said this, but the surrounding people all retreated.
Yuan Shifan, you're so good-looking. I can't tell that you still dare to say such words. You're really not afraid of death.
Yuan Shifan didn't think much of it. I'm the Imperial Censor of the Left of the Imperial Censorate of the Three Judicial Departments. I'm not on the same path as you. What I want is to be honest.
Just as he was thinking about it, he suddenly felt that something was wrong. A few sharp gazes were like blades that scratched his neck.
Yuan Shifan turned his head and saw Zhu Houzhao staring at him fiercely. The two personal maids behind him were the same, making him feel a little suffocated.
Yuan Shifan hurriedly shrunk his head, feeling that his head was about to move.
Thinking about the emperor's behavior, should he bring out his daughter?
However, his high official position was clearly not in line with the ancestral system.
Zhu Houzhao retracted his gaze from Yuan Shifan and was too lazy to care about the people who were still discussing.
"Shi Jie, I'll give you half a year. At the end of the year, report to me and determine if the tax system needs to be changed.
"Zhang Juzheng, you are the left assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel. I will give you a mission to study the tax system.”
"I accept your orders!"×2
Zhang Juzheng was overjoyed. He had long had ideas about the tax system, but unfortunately, he was only the left assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
Although his rank was as high as the third grade and could be considered high and powerful, he did not have much power.
Now that Zhu Houzhao had specially given him a mission, it was obvious that he valued him. This was an opportunity for him to climb up.
All the ministers present had different thoughts.
How could they not see that the Emperor was clearly going to make a move on the tax system?
He just didn't know how to do it, so he could only stop it with silence.
Even if he objected, it was useless.
It wasn't that he couldn't object, but he was just researching and hadn't started yet.
This was normal work. Unless he was unreasonable, there was no way to stop him.
On the other hand, Yang Tinghe, the Minister of Official Personnel Affairs, was a little unhappy.
Did the Emperor's attention on Zhang Juzheng mean that he might threaten his position in the future?
Although Yang Tinghe was very powerful, he was also a normal person.
His mood was similar to Xu Jie's. His subordinates were restless.
"Your Majesty, this old minister's hometown is in Jiangnan. I've lived in the Imperial City for many years, and it's difficult for me to return home. Your Majesty, please allow me to go home with the East Chamber to visit my relatives.”
The one who spoke was Grand Preceptor Hua, a first-grade official.
However, he had been a statue all year round and had not done much.
This was not his fault. The Grand Preceptor, Grand Tutor, and Grand Protector established by the Ming Empire were ranked first and were known as the Three Dukes.
The three dukes of other countries might be very powerful, and their power was equivalent to that of the prime minister.
However, it was different in Great Ming. The three dukes were just empty positions and had no actual power. They were considered mascots.
Of course, he was also the emperor's teacher and could often meet the emperor.
Grand Preceptor Hua used to be Zhu Houzhao's teacher, the Crown Prince's Grand Preceptor. When Zhu Houzhao became the Emperor, he was promoted to Grand Preceptor.
"The Grand Preceptor is very thoughtful. Cao Zhengchun, when the Grand Preceptor returns to Jiangnan with you, you must ensure his safety.”
"This servant will obey!"
"If there's nothing else, quickly withdraw from the court. If there's anything, look for the cabinet.”
"Your Majesty, I have a memorial!"
Zhu Houzhao was a little annoyed. If you had something to say, you should have said so earlier. Now that the court is about to retreat, what are you trying to do?
"Speak!"
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