novelonline Chapter 1667 New Policy
Chapter 1667 New Policy
Chapter 1667: Ten New Policies
Daming Palace, Hanyuan Hall
It was the first day of the first lunar month and the weather outside was still a bit cold, but in the meeting hall one could see the floor dragons burning, the fire blazing, and the hot air rising.
On Jia Heng's side, after finalizing the establishment of the government, he looked around at the civil and military officials below, and then said: "The Chief Censor of the Metropolitan Censorate is still vacant. The former Jiangxi Provincial Governor Yu Xianmin is an upright official. He has been transferred to Beijing to serve as the Left Censor-in-Chief and act as the director of the Censorate."
Cabinet minister Qi Kun and other civil and military officials below looked at each other in bewilderment when they heard this.
Yu Xianmin? Could this person be an old friend of King Wei? But I have never heard of his name before.
However, although it was an excessive promotion to transfer a second-rank provincial governor to the central government to serve as one of the Nine Ministers, it was not considered a violation of the rules.
However, not only the position of Left Censor-in-Chief was vacant in the Censorate, because because of Xu Lu's "rebellion", the left and right deputy censors-in-chief and the left and right assistant censors-in-chief were all implicated and imprisoned.
Jia Heng added: "After Yu Xianmin takes office, he will be in charge of reorganizing the Censorate and deciding on the selection of officials for the Censorate."
The officials below, who had originally been dreaming about other vacancies in the Censorate, sighed in their hearts when they heard this.
While Jia Heng was speaking, he raised a memorial in his hand high up, his eyes as sharp as a sword, and said in a loud voice: "My lords, Liaodong has just been conquered. Our dynasty should settle the border and stabilize the country. Since the first year of Qiande, people have been relocated from Shandong, Henan and other places to Liaodong for reclamation. The court will allocate grain and oxen, and exempt all taxes in the first five years. The Jurchen people in Liaodong should be guided to naturalize, and those who were originally Han people should be persuaded to recognize their ancestors. The court will send officials to Liaodong to carefully observe the population and geography, divide the prefectures and counties, set up beacons, and send troops to garrison."
Qi Kun and the officials of the Grand Council all bowed and said yes.
Prince Beijing Shui Rong raised his sword-like eyebrows, looked at the young man in the python robe with burning eyes, and said: "Prince Wei, North Korea has sent an envoy to the Military Affairs Office to present a letter of congratulations to the new king, and to pay tribute to the new king and request him to confer a title on him."
It is worth mentioning that the Han Dynasty had previously stationed troops in Korea to monitor Korea's every move. In addition, Mu Sheng, who was far away in Japan, also monitored Japan's political situation.
Jia Heng was silent for a moment, then said loudly: "The cabinet should immediately draft an imperial edict to enthrone the king of Korea, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs should select precious treasures and toys as New Year gifts to Korea."
In fact, this is the normal procedure for delivering credentials in diplomatic relations between two countries.
Lin Ruhai, holding a pure white ivory jade sceptre, and Song Jing, a doctor from the Kuaiji Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, came out of the formation and responded in unison.
Jia Heng's cold eyes scanned the courtiers below with sword-like brows, and he said in a deep voice: "The early years of Qiande are the years when the new emperor ascends the throne. The whole country is celebrating. The court should hold an imperial examination to recruit scholars."
When these words were spoken, the court officials below were shocked.
After a while, Yao Yu, the Minister of Personnel, holding an ivory jade tablet, walked out of the court quickly and said, "Prince Wei, last year was the first year of Jianxing, and the court had already held an imperial examination. Will the continuous imperial examinations for so many years affect the appointment of officials in the Ministry of Personnel?"
Minister of Works Zhao Yi walked out of the court quickly, holding an ivory jade tablet, and said loudly: "Reporting to Prince Wei, scholars regard the special examination as a grace from the new emperor. Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, his grace is great and he has pardoned the whole country. The special examination will be opened to recruit scholars from all over the world. They will surely cheer enthusiastically and welcome the new emperor, which will be beneficial to the long-term stability of the country."
Jia Heng nodded, his eyes sharp, and said, "Mr. Zhao is right."
In fact, to a certain extent, this is also a way to win over scholars all over the world.
Of course, there is no need to expect too much from scholars to admire his virtues. These people are just seeking fame and fortune. If he loses power, they will also change their attitudes according to the situation.
Jia Heng raised his eyebrows, looked at Lin Ruhai below, and said, "This time, the cabinet's deputy assistant Lin Ruhai will select the scholars of the Hanlin Academy who are well-read in poetry and literature to be the examiners of this year's candidates."
Lin Ruhai, holding an ivory tablet in his hand, walked out of the court again with a leisurely look and agreed to the matter.
After Jia Heng finished speaking, he cast his calm gaze towards Beijing Prince Shui Rong and asked, "Prince Shui, I visited the Nine Frontiers some time ago and found that they were reducing their troops. What is the situation?"
As Shui Rong spoke, he took a half step forward and said with a folded hand, "Prince Regent, most of the troops in Yulin, Guyuan and other places have been cut. The number of troops in Shanhaiguan has been reduced to 50,000. This is the specific situation after the reduction of troops. Please check it out, Prince Wei."
As he spoke, Shui Rong handed the memorial in his hand to Jia Heng through a eunuch.
Jia Heng took the memorial handed over by Shui Rong, read it carefully, and said, "The court has cut half of its elite troops in the nine frontiers, which will save the court half of its annual military expenditure. The Ministry of Revenue will allocate this military expenditure to the navy in the future."
Prince Beijing Shui Rong's face became solemn, and he cupped his hands and said, "Prince Wei, the preparations for the navy are in full swing. I am willing to preside over the preparations for the navy. Please agree to this, Prince Wei."
Jia Heng nodded, his eyes flashing fiercely, and said in a deep voice: "Then from now on, Prince Beijing Shui Rong will be responsible for the preparation and construction of the navy."
He could see that Prince Beijing Shui Rong was very enthusiastic about the planning and establishment of the navy, or in other words, when Shui Rong led the navy to conquer Taiwan, he already had some ideas about the navy.
Prince Beijing Shui Rong's face became serious, and he bowed and said "yes".
At this moment, Shi Jie, the Minister of War and Grand Councilor, holding an ivory jade tablet, stepped out of the court and said in a loud voice: "Reporting to the Regent King, now that the rebellion in Bashu has been quelled, our troops in the capital camp should return to the capital as soon as possible to avoid wasting money and food, and to satisfy the officers' wish of reuniting with their families."
Jia Heng nodded and said, "The day before yesterday, Xie Zaiyi sent a pigeon to the capital, mentioning the chieftains of Sichuan. The court wants to implement the policy of changing the chieftains to commoners. If there is any rebellion in the local area, Xie Zaiyi can lead the elite troops and it should be quickly suppressed. If he returns to the capital, it should be in April or May. However, the rewards for the meritorious officers should be distributed to Sichuan in a timely manner by the Ministry of War."
Shi Jie's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this, and he cupped his hands and said, "If that's the case, the troops of the Beijing camp don't need to rush back to the capital."
While speaking, he stepped back.
Jia Heng was silent for a moment, his cold and calm eyes fell on the faces of the ministers below, and said: "In addition, the Ministry of Industry is looking for coal mines and smelting in the country. The Ministry of Industry will set up a special mining bureau, and the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Internal Affairs will work together to manage the affairs."
As he said this, he set his eyes on the Minister of Works Zhao Yi and ordered, "Minister Zhao, select capable clerks from the Ministry of Works to serve as directors of the Mining Bureau."
Zhao Yi's face was extremely solemn, and he said, "Don't worry, Prince Wei, I will send someone to take care of this matter right away."
It can be said that in the current Han Dynasty court, Jia Heng has in fact become the emperor who issues orders.
Jia Heng raised his eyebrows, and his clear voice resounded throughout the palace: "In the first year of Qiande, the court has ten major tasks: one is to rebuild the official roads, two is to explore for minerals, three is to build a navy, four is to rectify the administration of officials, five is to train the military, six is to revise books and spread literature, seven is to open up channels for people to express their opinions, eight is to develop the country through science and education, nine is to reduce taxes and levies, and ten is to strictly enforce the laws."
Among so many new policies and strategies, only developing the country through science and education is the national policy he really wants to promote. As for the others, they are all conventional options for wise rulers to govern the country, which means they are not very specific.
Or, the so-called New Deal is more of a framework concept that can be filled with private ideas, while other miscellaneous things such as reforming the imperial examination system and establishing new schools are just actions without words.
Subsequent new policies are supplementary items and will not be reflected in national policies to avoid causing criticism from all levels.
As for requiring officials and gentry to pay taxes together, there is no need for this at present. Otherwise, it would be seen as "perverse" and "an act that makes it difficult for officials to make a living" in the eyes of scholars all over the world.
Today, his foundation is not yet solid.
Jia Heng was silent for a moment, then said, "Please circulate the specific measures of the Qiande New Deal for your careful reading."
As he spoke, he motioned to the eunuch who was serving beside him with his hands clasped, and asked him to distribute the policy memorials in his hand to the ministers below.
Qi Kun took the imperial copy and looked down at the memorial which listed the strategies for governing the country. A look of shock could not help but appear on his resolute and calm face.
The other ministers who were reading the memorial had different expressions on their faces.
In theory, the new policy memorial of Prince Wei was the conventional policy strategy after the wise monarchs of all dynasties ascended to the throne. However, when the ministers in the palace finished reading the memorial, they felt that something was wrong.
Given King Wei's temperament, I'm afraid he will implement these policies and strategies to the letter.
Then, will the political situation that has just been stabilized be disturbed again?
At this time, Hanlin scholar Tao Shuyi, holding an ivory jade tablet, said in a low voice, "Prince Wei, the new policy is in line with the actual situation and there is nothing wrong with it. It's just the renovation of the official roads. Although the court has been clearing the accounts of land in the local areas and implementing the policy of allocating taxes to each acre in the past two years, the national treasury is still rich, but is such a large renovation plan of the court appropriate?"
Jia Heng said: "The ancients said that light customs and easy roads will open up trade and ease agriculture. The official roads have been in disrepair for many years. Traffic will be free of stagnation and obstacles, which will be beneficial to merchants. The country can also collect more commercial taxes from merchants, while the tax on grain fields can be appropriately reduced. It will be of great benefit to the national economy and people's livelihood."
As he spoke, he looked at Zhao Yi who was standing beside him and said, "Minister Zhao, select clerks who are familiar with mining affairs from the Ministry of Works and even from all over the country to serve as directors of the Mining Bureau. According to the mineral reserve map I gave you earlier, mobilize the craftsmen to carefully search and dig, and you will definitely find something."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi bowed in agreement.
Jia Heng said: "Since the Chongping period, the imperial court has been implementing the national policy of allocating land tax and measuring land for several years. We need to send imperial censors to inspect the local areas to see how effective it is."
There is no past tense in reform, only present tense.
Over the past few years, although the Chongping New Deal has been very effective, there have certainly been cases of poor implementation at the local level. In addition, the court has to send personnel to verify whether there is collusion between local bureaucrats and gentry to pass the responsibility on to ordinary people.
As Jia Heng spoke, his eyes were deep under his sword-like brows, and he whispered, "Let's discuss today's affairs here first."
The court officials below all spoke up in response.
……
……
Palace Garden, Kunning Palace
Queen Song was wearing a scarlet dress, her long black hair tied into a beautiful bun. She sat on a soft couch, her figure was slender and graceful, her demeanor was elegant and beautiful.
As for the beautiful lady's fair face, I don't know if it was because of the recent spring breeze or the nourishment of rain and dew, but a faint blush appeared on both sides of her white jade cheeks. Her curved eyelashes trembled slightly, and her beautiful eyes were slightly closed, as if she was taking a nap to rest her mind.
At the early morning, the beauty received the ladies who came to the palace to celebrate her birthday. She had not yet made up for her sleep, so she had to make up for it this time.
After a moment, a slim and beautiful female official walked into the warm room in the palace and said, "Your Majesty, Prince Wei and His Majesty are here."
Upon hearing this, Queen Song gently opened her narrow, clear and beautiful eyes. There seemed to be a gleam of water in her sparkling eyes. She stared at the young man in the python robe and asked, "Is the court meeting over?"
Jia Heng approached and whispered, "The ministers in the palace have already left the court and returned home."
At this moment, Chen Luo, who was standing beside Jia Heng, had a kind and loving smile on his handsome face, and whispered, "Mother."
Queen Song looked at Chen Luo with loving eyes under her emerald eyebrows. She stretched out her slender hand and called out, "Luo'er, do you feel tired from attending court these days?"
At this moment, the beauty undoubtedly displayed the mother's love to the fullest.
Chen Luo's eyes were filled with joy as he frowned with a heroic look in his eyes. He said, "Mother, I'm not tired either."
Queen Song's narrow, clear eyes were soft and moist under her beautiful eyebrows. She said in a gentle voice, "Come here, bring two cups of tea to Luo'er."
Then, under her dark eyebrows, the beauty looked at the young man in the python robe with her crystal clear eyes, like condensed dew, and said, "What do the court officials say? Is the implementation of the new policy going smoothly today?"
Jia Heng slowly sat down, stared at Queen Song, and said, "Your Majesty, today's court meeting went smoothly, and the assignments have been made to the court officials."
The specific content, from the surface, is quite standard and there is nothing unorthodox about it.
Queen Song looked at the young man in the python robe with her beautiful eyes, and said, "Governing a big country is like cooking a small fish. Don't be too hasty."
Jia Heng nodded and said, "Don't worry, Madam. I will save you the trouble."
The national policy he had announced in the court earlier, at least on the surface, was impeccable, whether it was about opening up the channels for communication or anything else.
Queen Song said, "Today is the first day of the first lunar month. Just now, Jinyang, Xianning, Chanyue, and Yan'er went to Changle Palace."
When Jia Heng heard this, he felt a little overwhelmed for a moment.
In other words, he couldn't imagine the scene of Jinyang and Xianning bringing their child to be seen by Empress Dowager Feng.
Queen Song said softly, "I will prepare a family banquet later, and we will have a meal together."
Jia Heng said: "Forget it, I have to go back later."
Queen Song's beautiful eyes were filled with anger. She rolled her eyes at the young man in the python robe and said jokingly, "You are afraid now."
Thinking that soon, all the girls in the family would be his women, she felt something strange in her heart.
Jia Heng raised his eyebrows, his eyes were deep, and he whispered: "You guys can have dinner together, I still have some things to deal with."
While speaking, he stood up and left.
Chen Luo greeted him crisply: "Brother-in-law..."
Jia Heng smiled and said, "I'll come and talk to you when my brother-in-law finishes his work outside."
Alas, father and son cannot recognize each other.
Then, without saying anything else, he quickly stood up and left the palace, heading out of the palace.
After leaving the palace, Jia Heng sat upright on the saddle, holding a rein as thick as a baby's finger, and said to the officers of the Jinyi Palace accompanying him, "Go to the Imperial College."
He planned to visit Xu Guangqi and ask about the progress of the steam engine development.
The Jinyifu officer answered yes and escorted Jia Heng to the Imperial College.
Shenjing City, Imperial College——
In the southwest is a large lake with beautiful scenery of mountains and lakes and numerous attics. This is exactly the office location chosen by Jia Heng for Xu Guangqi.
Xu Guangqi and his disciple Chen Long were in the side room, staring at a jute drawing in a daze.
This blueprint is exactly the steam engine blueprint that Jia Heng drew based on his memories of his previous life, but the lines are rough and it looks a bit simple.
Chen Long said: "Master, this thing is powered by steam and drives the carriage through transmission. It is indeed unique."
Xu Guangqi looked thoughtful and said, "Prince Wei mentioned earlier that steam was rising from the pot lid. The heat contained a lot of power. If we use this power, we can drive the carriage. However, this thing needs to run on rails to reach north and south."
Chen Long picked up another blueprint, studied it for a moment, and said, "This is a fire gun, but the bullet is sharpened into a round shape, which seems to be more lethal."
Xu Guangqi nodded and said, "This thing is not too difficult to make. Just slightly improve the craftsmanship and you can make a finished product."
As he spoke, Xu Guangqi picked up the blueprint of the Red Cannon on the table and said, "This cannon is a smoothbore, which can increase the range. This is quite unexpected."
Compared to the more complex mechanical structure of the steam engine, artillery technology is much simpler. In addition, the world's military firearms technology was at the forefront of historical development, and Xu Guangqi was an expert in this field, so he was able to build it.
Xu Guangqi's expression paused slightly, and a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes under his sword-like brows.
Just as the master and the disciple were talking, a taller servant walked into the hall and said, "Master Xu, the prince is here."
Even as they were talking, Jia Heng, escorted by officers from the Jinyiwei, walked into the hall.
"Your humble servant greets King Wei." While speaking, Xu Guangqi stood up, bowed to Jia Heng, and said in a low voice.
Xu Guangqi's disciples also came forward and saluted Xu Guangqi.
While Jia Heng was speaking, he stepped forward, supported Xu Guangqi with both hands, and whispered, "Mr. Xu, there is no need to be so polite."
Then, Jia Heng sat down in front of the desk and asked, "Mr. Xu, how are the drawings you have been studying these days?"
Xu Guangqi said: "There are still a few things I don't understand about this steam engine, but I know the general principles of these cannons, muskets, and thunder bombs."
Jia Heng smiled and praised: "Mr. Xu is a scholar of heaven and earth. He must be able to understand the origin of the steam engine and its texture."
Compared with the electromagnetic induction of the Second Industrial Revolution, the piston movement principle of the steam engine is much simpler and is more of a mechanical transmission device.
Xu Guangqi said with emotion: "Prince Wei is really a man of great ideas. He can come up with so many instruments."
If it was just one drawing, it could still be explained, but now there are so many drawings, I can only say that it is a genius.
Jia Heng smiled, but didn't take it seriously. He said, "Mr. Xu, you should also take a look at the iron warship map I mentioned."
Xu Guangqi picked up a blueprint on the desk and said, "If we use an iron ship to move on the water by relying on buoyancy, it is not difficult, but if we want to move, we really need this steam engine."
Jia Heng nodded and said, "Mr. Xu is truly a great talent of the time. He hit the nail on the head. So this steam engine is the key. If we have this thing and use it to drive the carriage, I wonder how much manpower can be saved."
Xu Guangqi said: "What the Prince of Wei said is very true."
Jia Heng looked at Xu Guangqi intently and said, "Mr. Xu, I will meet with the Military Equipment Supervisor in the next few days to discuss the method of making this thing."
Xu Guangqi nodded.