Chapter 319: The Minister of Revenue Cries Poverty at the Court Meeting

The next day.

In the Jinluan Hall, above the court hall.

The news that the Tang Dynasty naval fleet expedition to Goguryeo, conquered its royal city Pyongyang, and under the leadership of Jin King Chen Longxiang, proclaimed Emperor Zhaowu's adopted son Chen Lingwu as King of Goguryeo, has naturally become the focus of discussion among civil servants and generals at today's court meeting.

Of course, Chen Lingwu's status as the deposed emperor of the previous dynasty, and the scandal between King Chen Longxiang of Jin and the former Queen Mother Su Waner, were naturally not known to the civil and military officials of the dynasty.

In the eyes of the world, the former deposed emperor Zhao Lingwu and his mother Su Waner had already died by throwing themselves into the river on the day when the Dragon City Navy fleet broke through the Daxin Dynasty Navy camp.

The secret letter from Qi Jiguang, the admiral of the Tang Dynasty Navy and Duke of Dingguo, was not forwarded to the emperor through the Ministry of War, but was directly presented to Chen Huaian through the hands of Luo Yucheng, deputy commander of the Longcheng Internal Guard and Wuping Hou.

Therefore, at today's court meeting, the controversial topic of civil and military discussions in the Manchu Dynasty is whether the subsequent attitude towards the Goguryeo Dynasty is to continue the system since the Han Dynasty, classifying it as a vassal state and bowing to the Tang Dynasty, paying tribute and paying taxes;

Or, based on the fact that King Chen Longxiang of Jin has established a new king, the Goguryeo Dynasty will be included in the territory of the Tang Dynasty, and will be controlled by the orthodox dynasty of the Central Plains from then on.

Regarding this issue, the court of the Tang Dynasty was also divided into three factions:

One group believes that the Goguryeo Peninsula is barren and lacks resources. Only a few coastal cities are suitable for agricultural development, and it also has to face natural disasters from the sea such as typhoons and tsunamis.

There is really no need to incorporate the Goguryeo Dynasty into the territory of the Tang Dynasty. It is better to restore the system since the Han Dynasty and let it bow to the Tang Dynasty, pay tribute and pay taxes every year, and be a suzerain state with no hands left;

Otherwise, the Tang Dynasty would have to allocate funds to Goguryeo every year, increasing the tax burden of the Tang Dynasty.

The representatives of this group are mainly Zhang Fu, the Minister of Rites, and Jiang Xiao, the Minister of Hubu. Their basis is based on the ancestral system of past dynasties and the actual economic development of the Tang Dynasty.

The other group believed that the Tang Dynasty should take this God-given opportunity to bring the Goguryeo Peninsula under the territory of the Tang Dynasty. While expanding the territory of the Tang Dynasty, it would also give the Tang Dynasty one more port to go to sea;

After the Goguryeo Peninsula was included in the territory of the Tang Dynasty, the naval fleet of the Datang Dynasty could directly depart from the Goguryeo Peninsula and reach the four Japanese islands, providing strategic support for the Tang Dynasty to further expand its influence;

Furthermore, the Goguryeo Peninsula is only separated from the Liaodong region of the Tang Dynasty by a river. It is also very convenient for the Central Plains Dynasty to manage, and it can also prevent border frictions from occurring;

Since the Han Dynasty, the reason why the Central Plains Dynasty and the Goguryeo Dynasty have maintained suzerain and tributary relations is because the Central Plains Dynasty was unable to occupy the Goguryeo Peninsula due to various reasons;

Nowadays, the Tang Dynasty Navy fleet has descended from the sky with its magic troops, directly bypassing the natural dangers in the Afeihu Ridge area of ​​the Goguryeo Dynasty, and has even occupied the royal city of Goguryeo in one go;

Coupled with the bridgehead established by the naval fleet after taking over Nanpu Port, the troops of the Tang Dynasty could be continuously transported from the sea to Goguryeo itself. In conjunction with the Tang army's eastern expedition in the Liaodong region, it was only a matter of time to fully occupy the Goguryeo Peninsula. a matter of time;

Why not take this opportunity to incorporate the Goguryeo Peninsula into the territory of the Tang Dynasty?

Let me ask, which founding emperor would despise the territory of the dynasty he single-handedly established as being too large?

The representatives of this faction are mainly the three founding fathers of the Tang Dynasty, Chen Qingzhi, Chang Yuchun and Pang Xianchu, as well as the group of founding generals of the Tang Dynasty behind them;

For these generals who conquered the country on horseback, conquering enemy countries and opening up territories for the dynasty they were loyal to, seemed to be something engraved in their bones;

It is no exaggeration to say that as long as Zhaowu Chen Huaian gives an order, these princes, marquises, earls, etc. of the Tang Dynasty can immediately go into battle again and continue to conquer the world for the Tang Dynasty.

There is another faction in the court that maintains a neutral state and continues to maintain the relationship between Goguryeo and the Central Plains Dynasty. The relationship between the suzerain state and the vassal state that has lasted for hundreds of years is okay, and the Goguryeo Peninsula is included in the territory of the Tang Dynasty;

Anyway, they neither care about money nor command troops. How to deal with the relationship with Goguryeo depends entirely on the emperor's personal preference;

The representatives of this group of people are the Hanlin Academy bachelors in the court.

In contrast, what they are more concerned about is whether the first imperial examination of the Tang Dynasty can select good talents for the dynasty. Judging from the feedback from the rural examinations currently being carried out in various counties and counties, it is terrible!

The book returns to its true story.

Above the court, Jiang Xiao, the Minister of Household Affairs, was complaining to the princes with an aggrieved look on his face, saying: "You guys, you are not a householder and you don't know that firewood, rice, oil and salt are expensive;"

"I also know that if the Goguryeo Peninsula can be included in the territory of our Datang Dynasty, our Datang Navy fleet will be able to traverse the four seas, and the influence of the Datang Dynasty on the sea can be further expanded;"

"but--"

Jiang Xiao changed the topic and said: "The taxes collected by the Ministry of Household Affairs every year cannot support so many people!"

As he said that, Jiang Xiao opened his hands and counted: "My lords, generals, and I will let you all calculate an account. Since the emperor ascended the throne and founded the country, all the people of the Tang Dynasty have enjoyed the policy of halving taxes within five years. ;"

"This alone means that the imperial court's annual tax gap is fifteen million taels of silver!"

"In addition, those local aristocratic families in the south who control 70% of the local land economy proactively announced the opening of the city gates and pledged allegiance to the emperor before the founding of the country, and obtained the emperor's promise. Within five years, these aristocratic families will enjoy the benefits of the future. North Korea’s preferential policies remain unchanged;”

"As everyone knows, these wealthy families in the southern region did not pay even a penny of taxes to the court during the previous dynasty;"

Eh--

After Jiang Xiao sighed, he continued: "The official looked through the tax records of various places in the previous dynasty's Ministry of Household Affairs. Good guy, the annual tax exemptions for these powerful families in the south gave the court another 10 million. The tax gap of two silvers;”

"In the previous dynasty, during the reign of the second tyrant Zhao Qian, the annual tax revenue was only more than fifteen million. According to the current situation, in the next five years, the Ministry of Household Affairs will not only not be able to earn one tael of silver in tax revenue, but will instead receive tax revenue of one tael of silver every year. We need to pay at least 10 million taels of silver in order to be able to maintain our basic expenses;"

"Not to mention that we have to allocate special funds to open the North-South Grand Canal, develop Shenji Camp, build imperial mausoleums and other expenses!"

After a pause, Jiang Xiao continued: "If we follow the wishes of several princes and include the barren Goguryeo Peninsula into the territory of the Tang Dynasty;"

"This move means that the tens of millions of people in Goguryeo can enjoy the same five-year tax halving policy as our people in the Tang Dynasty;"

"So, judging from the population and resource output ratio of the Goguryeo Peninsula, the imperial court must spend at least five million taels of silver every year to support the development of the Goguryeo Peninsula!"

At the end, Jiang Xiao, who was the CFO (Chief Financial Officer) of the Tang Dynasty, had a tearless expression on his face, and looked at Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huaian on the dragon throne with an innocent and helpless look.

In fact, there was one more thing that was on Jiang Xiao's lips, but he didn't dare to say it in front of the civil and military officials and the emperor.

That is, during times of famine, the imperial court allocates disaster relief funds to various places, which is also a huge sum of money!

The reason why I didn't dare to tell this cruel fact in front of the emperor and the civil and military officials of the entire court was because I was afraid that someone with ulterior motives would label him as a curse to the Tang Dynasty for its many disasters.

But in fact, these natural and man-made disasters have always existed.

For example, during the Jian'an period of Daxin II, droughts in the north and floods in the south caused millions of people in the dynasty to suffer. As a result, the population in many areas dropped sharply, and ten houses were empty. It has not recovered until now.

Jiang Xiao, the Minister of Household Affairs, made a speech as if he was crying, which really blocked the mouths of Chen Qingzhi and Chang Yuchun, who advocated the annexation of Goguryeo.

At the same time, the question was also thrown to Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huaian who was on the dragon throne.

Facing the gazes of civil and military officials from all over the court, Chen Huaian, who was sitting on the dragon throne, remained as steady as Mount Tai. He even joked with Jiang Xiao, the Minister of Revenue, in a leisurely manner.

Chen Huaian smiled and said: "Jiang Aiqing, I heard what you said, are you here to cry for poverty?"