Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 517 Court Debate

With Meng Jun's personal instructions and extensive publicity in newspapers, the debate on the salt and iron monopoly was generally considered a good thing by the people, and perhaps the prices of salt and iron would even come down.

The gentry and salt merchants were not united, so they did not have a unified voice. The salt merchants strongly opposed the salt and iron monopoly because it affected their own interests. Most of the gentry did not gain any benefits from the salt administration, so they did not oppose the court's reforms.

In the court, two factions were formed because of the debate on salt and iron. Many ministers also reflected on the reasons for the fall of the Ming Dynasty. Party strife was one of the most important reasons. Therefore, now the court, from top to bottom, is very secretive about factional issues, for fear of being accused of forming a party.

However, officials are also made up of people. They will naturally stand together because of a certain issue, or because of their accents, interests, etc. Just like the debate on salt and iron, two factions were inevitably formed between those who agreed and those who opposed. However, overall, those who agreed were the majority.

Among the people opposing the salt and iron monopoly, Liu Jiyan was the leader of the opposition camp.

Liu Jiyan raised his arms and shouted in the court: "The way to govern a country is to prevent extravagance in the world, teach the people to accept their fate, and the government should suppress the profits of industry and commerce, so that the people will not chase after money. Only in this way can the world be governed and education flourish. Now the court wants to promote the salt and iron monopoly, which is actually leading the people to chase after profits. This will definitely ruin the world's atmosphere and destroy the people's loyalty. Since ancient times, agriculture has been the foundation of a country. I think the court should emphasize agriculture and suppress commerce, and stop the salt and iron monopoly!"

What Liu Jiyan meant was that the imperial court was a role model for the people of the world, and that the court should focus on farming rather than taking the lead in doing business. If this continued, the people would follow suit and become cunning. In the future, perhaps growing cotton, mulberry seedlings, and tobacco would bring greater profits, and no one would grow grain, and the country would be in danger.

Li Weitai had debated with people too many times recently, and his experience points were almost full. At Liu Jiyan's words, Li Weitai smiled faintly.

Then he stepped forward and said, "Master Liu, what you said is wrong. If the court ignores the benefits of mountains, rivers, lakes, seas, salt and iron mines, how can the benefits be distributed to the people? Will it let a few wealthy merchants monopolize them? The court needs to support soldiers, officials, provide disaster relief, build water conservancy projects, post stations, horse management, and navy. All these things require money. Master Liu opposes the salt and iron monopoly. Isn't he protecting the interests of wealthy merchants? Does he want the court to levy agricultural taxes? This will really hurt farmers and the foundation of the country!"

Liu Ji said that the court took the lead in doing business and brought about a bad atmosphere, but Li Weita refuted that the salt and iron monopoly only caused some merchants to suffer losses, while the people could reduce their burden.

Liu Jiyan was speechless for a moment. Seeing this, Meng Jun nodded with satisfaction. He couldn't leave the field easily unless it was absolutely necessary. He couldn't play football and be a referee at the same time. As the founding monarch, Meng Jun could certainly implement a policy if he insisted on doing so, but it would inevitably make people unwilling to accept it.

Just as Meng Jun was about to end the debate that had lasted for several days and officially implement the salt and iron monopoly, the Imperial Censor Zhang Kentang spoke up.

Zhang Kentang stepped forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, in the Han Dynasty, the land tax was one-tenth, the people were well-off, and the country was prosperous. Today, the tax is also one-tenth, and the population and land are more abundant, but the tax is lower than that of the Han Dynasty. Why is that? It is because the government is extravagant and many corrupt officials have enriched themselves. If merchants sell salt and iron, if the quality is poor, then the people will naturally not buy it, and the merchants will lose all their money. Therefore, merchants must be good at making goods. If the court monopolizes salt and iron, it will definitely monopolize the market, and the goods will be inferior and the price will be high, forcing the people to buy. This will definitely cause public resentment!"

Zhang Kentang's argument was very tricky and clever. It was obvious that there were few people and little land in the Han Dynasty, but the country was running well. Now there are many people and much land, and the taxes collected are also high, but the court does not have enough money. There must be something wrong with the government. When the time comes, the officials will use the court's laws and use rotten iron and coarse salt to force the people to buy it at the price of fine steel and fine salt. There will definitely be chaos by then.

Li Weitai didn't know how to refute Zhang Kentang's words for a moment. He just frowned and thought silently.

Zhang Kentang saw this and took advantage of the victory to pursue the enemy. He then said, "The sage said that if the people from afar are not obedient, then we should cultivate culture and virtue to appease them. Now the court has been using military force for nearly ten years, raising troops to attack them and stationing troops to prepare for them. The civilians have been transporting food and supplies endlessly, which is a huge waste. The soldiers are exhausted outside and the people are suffering inside. Therefore, I think the court should clarify the administration of officials, select talented people, and wait until the war in Liaodong is over before stopping the war to reduce losses. Scholars, farmers, merchants and workers are all the children of the court. If the court is short of money, it will take away the benefits of the merchants. If the national expenditure is insufficient in the future, it will take away the benefits of the people."

After listening to Zhang Kentang's words, Meng Jun couldn't help but frown. The salt and iron monopoly would definitely have problems, but as far as the current situation was concerned, the advantages would definitely outweigh the disadvantages. However, Meng Jun couldn't think of any refutation for Zhang Kentang's words in the short term.

Meng Jun couldn't help but sigh in his heart, the battlefield was dangerous and could be defeated by force, but the debate on national policy in the court was really a matter of each having his own reasons. However, Meng Jun was determined to implement the monopoly system, and even if Zhang Kentang had a lotus, it would not change the overall situation.

But at this moment, Li Weitai finally saw a clue to the solution. He said loudly: "Your Majesty, in the Han Dynasty, the population and land were not as much as today, but the court's expenses were still insufficient. The reason is that the gentry and wealthy families occupied the land, and the wealthy merchants made huge profits and evaded commercial taxes. The land tax and commercial tax were all embezzled by the big rats. As for Zhang Yushi's words, cultivate culture and virtue to keep it safe. The Jiashen Incident, Yangzhou, and Jiading disasters are all vivid in our memory.

"The past is a lesson for future generations, so Your Majesty has reorganized the army and stationed troops to prepare for the enemy. However, the border troops are short of funds, so you have established salt and iron monopolies to increase financial resources to meet military needs. However, if you stop the salt and iron monopolies, the treasury will be empty at home and there will be less money for defense. The soldiers will be hungry and cold at the border. How can the court support the army and prepare for the enemy?"

Zhang Kentang was speechless for a long time, then he said with a stiff upper lip: "The imperial court's monopoly will inevitably breed corruption and inferior goods."

Li Weitai immediately refuted: "The salt and iron monopoly has not yet begun, how can you assert that it is corrupt and inferior?"

Zhang Kentang thought for a moment and said, "During the Ming Dynasty, many government-run workshops were like this."

"That was the former Ming Dynasty. Now it is the Qian Dynasty. It is corrupt and inferior. So we should rectify the administration and strengthen management, instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater and denying things before they are done." Having said this, Li Weitai bowed to Meng Jun above him and said, "Your Majesty started the army in Suzhou in the past. The Qing Dynasty had already occupied seven-tenths of the world. Who would dare to believe that in ten years, Your Majesty has swept across the world and cleared the world!"