Zhu Biao's face flushed red.
Chen Shu's words made him, the crown prince, feel ashamed.
He understood that there was a hidden meaning in Chen Shu's words. If he emphasized the authority of officials, he would naturally envy the authority of officials.
It is not a gentleman to take pride in power!
Zhu Biao, who thought that he wanted to be a good emperor, was immediately flushed red when Chen Shu revealed his subconscious thoughts.
"I clearly hoped that Brother Chen would become a pillar, but I used those corrupt officials to tempt Brother Chen.”
Zhu Biao stood up and solemnly bowed to Chen Shu.
"However, this Zhu is curious. Brother Chen really doesn't have any thoughts about fame?”
"At least, I'm not interested in being under the rule of Emperor Taizu!”
Chen Shu shook his head and took a sip of wine.
Zhu Biao saw that there was a chance. This time, he should be able to get what Old Zhu wanted from Chen Shu.
He filled Chen Shu's glass and continued to ask,"
"Is it because Brother Chen doesn't like the current emperor?”
"What do you mean I don't like it? If it's about the emperor treating the people, there's nothing to say!”
"But being an official under him is a little life-threatening!”
"Why?"
Zhu Biao remained calm and continued to pour wine for Chen Shu.
"Brother Zhu, the house you bought is worth a thousand taels, right?”
Zhu Biao nodded and admitted to Chen Shu's question.
"If you are in the Ministry of Revenue, you will at most be a seventh-grade official. The salary you receive will not exceed 60 dan of grain per year!”
"A total of thirty taels of silver!"
"If Brother Zhu can afford to buy this house of yours, it will take at least thirty years. Of course, if Brother Zhu is promoted all the way, he will probably get it ten years in advance!“
"This is even when Brother Zhu doesn't eat or drink, and all his income is provided by his family!”
"Then why does Brother Zhu want to fight for this benefit?”
"Is it the glory you mentioned, or the hidden power?”
Zhu Biao heard this and lowered his head in silence. As the Crown Prince of Ming Dynasty, he naturally did not have to fight for the power of an official. However, the question of Chen Shu did not only refer to him, but also to all the scholars in the world who wanted to bring honor to their ancestors.
Of course, he could say with certainty that he was only dedicated to the people.
However, this was contrary to his original intention of asking questions.
Chen Shu's question reminded Zhu Biao of what he had told Xu Miaoyun a few days ago.
If you let a starving dog stand guard in front of a pile of delicious meat, do you expect them not to steal or snatch it?
The so-called meat was nothing more than power.
As the emperor, he also hoped that the world would submit to him. Everyone was Yao and Shun, wholeheartedly serving the people.
However, Chen Shu's metaphor revealed the truth of Zhu Biao's warehouse, who had been in the palace since he was young.
Humans couldn't withstand the test, and human nature couldn't withstand the test.
Then, what he said verified Chen Shu's statement.
"Sir, if it were me, I think I could keep my original heart!”
Zhu Biao was helpless. He couldn't say it in front of Chen Shu. He also suspected that the Emperor was doing something wrong.
However, after Chen Shu heard this, he narrowed his eyes and smiled.
"I admire your choice, but that was not my choice!”
"Moreover, Brother Zhu, you can make such a choice because you really have a house that costs 1,000 taels of silver!”
"You're not hungry. A well-fed man doesn't know the hunger of a hungry man!”
"Don't be in a hurry to refute me. Since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, how many officials has His Majesty killed?”
Zhu Biao opened his mouth, but he couldn't organize any effective objection.
Seeing that Zhu Biao was speechless, Chen Shu chuckled and said,
"Everyone has their own aspirations!"
"Just as Brother Zhu said, there are many benefits to being an official!”
"But at the same time, it has its difficulties. I don't think I'm a firm person. If I have to endure the test of human nature day and night, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold it in!”
"After all, there are only a few evil people in this world. Most people are ordinary people like me!”
"Wandering on the edge of good and evil, if given a choice, who wouldn't want to be a decent person!”
"However, people are not saints. Who can keep their original heart when they are hungry and cold?“
"So, Brother Zhu doesn't need to persuade me!”
At this point, Zhu Biao understood that Chen Shu really had no intention of becoming an official.
However, Chen Shu's words made Zhu Biao feel very uncomfortable. The person he was talking about was his most beloved father.
Was his father really wrong?
Chen Shu was someone that Zhu Yuanzhang valued. In Old Zhu's heart, Chen Shu was the benefactor who had guided him to become the Ming Emperor.
After being seen through by his benefactor, Zhu Biao understood that Chen Shu's denial of Old Zhu's concept of governance would make his father very uncomfortable.
、
He could not help but defend his father.
"Actually, I also understand the Emperor's difficulties. My Great Ming Dynasty has opened its court, and what follows is the mess left behind by the previous dynasty!”
"Now that the Yellow River has changed its course, some of the people in our Nan Zhi Li are still suffering from floods!”
"In order to let the world recuperate, Great Ming also reduced taxes!”
"Even the emperor himself is also thrifty and rarely eats meat!”
"The Imperial Court has no money, and there are many places to spend it. There really isn't much money for officials!”
When Zhu Biao said this, Chen Shu suddenly laughed.
"If I didn't know that each prince's annual salary is fifty thousand shekels of rice, twenty-five thousand strings of banknotes, forty bolts of brocade, three hundred bolts of silk, one hundred bolts of gauze, five hundred bolts of silk, one thousand bolts of winter and summer cloth, two thousand taels of cotton, two thousand taels of salt, one thousand catties of tea, and fifty bolts of horse fodder per month, I would have to pay you.”
"I almost believed Brother Zhu's words!”
"Our emperor still hasn't gotten rid of the mindset of a farmer. How could he think of such a plan to destroy the country?”
"He's here!"
Zhu Biao had talked to Chen Shu for so long just to get an answer to this matter.
"Why do you say that?"
He quickly filled Chen Shu's glass with wine, hoping that Chen Shu would say more.
"You're also about to work for the Ministry of Revenue. Don't you know how to count?”
"Let me ask you, the Ministry of Revenue is in charge of the world's money and grain. How much does our Great Ming Dynasty earn in a year?”
"20 million dan of grain is equivalent to 12 million taels of silver!”
"This already includes the salt tax and other income. Although it's not accurate, it's not bad!”
Zhu Biao had helped the Emperor handle affairs since he was young, so he knew these data like the back of his hand. Chen Shu nodded slightly when he heard Zhu Biao's casual arrival.
This Brother Zhu in front of him wasn't some profligate son who was bent on seeking an official position.
Just by looking at how familiar he was with Ming Dynasty's finances, one could tell that this guy would at least be a capable official in the future.
"How many children does the emperor have?"
" The Emperor has ten princes, nine of whom died early. Currently, there are nine princes."
"Where's the princess?"
"Eight!"
" According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty, the prince earns 50,000 dan of grain every year, and the princess earns 1,500 dan. You can ignore 1% of it."
"Nine princes, a total of 450,000 dan of grain, accounting for two-thousandths of the Ming Dynasty's annual income!”
When Zhu Biao heard this, he frowned. This wasn't much.
However, as Chen Shu continued to calculate, his expression gradually changed!
"The emperor is in his prime, and it's not a problem for him to give birth to ten more. This second generation prince of the Great Ming Dynasty can consume 900,000 dans of food from the imperial court, accounting for 0.5% of the annual income!”
"For the third generation, if each of these princes gives birth to two children, then the annual income of the imperial clan will be 2.7 million stones! Revenue…"
"By the third generation, it would be seven million stones, which would take up nearly thirty percent of the tax revenue!”
"The fourth generation…"
"Sir, don't say anymore!"
When Chen Shu did a simple calculation, Zhu Biao broke out in cold sweat.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。