New Shun 1730

"In the past, when I was still in Wendeng, I was young and ambitious, and talked about permanent land tenancy, abolishing canals and converting them into seas, reforming the military system, revitalizing industry and commerce, and relocating and colonizing..."

"Now the external things seem to be over. But the internal things are becoming more and more complicated. How can I say that the great things have been accomplished?"

"People say that when you are sixty or sixty years old, you know how to retreat but never advance. How old is your love to have such a sense of decadence?"

"In the past, Rakshasa raids were made by Ai Qing, but Ai Qing ignored them; the Western Regions did not arrive for hundreds of years, but Ai Qing called them a smooth road; the Japanese had transgressed for thousands of years, but Ai Qing made them profess their vassals in one day; the winds and waves in Nanyang were high, but Ai Qing took several months to do so. Peace. Many of these things are considered difficult by ordinary people, but I take them lightly."

"Is it possible that there is no hope for this internal matter in Aiqing's eyes? I know your temperament, and if it can be done, you must do it. You are so depressed, which makes me a little surprised. I pardon your innocence, Just say it boldly…”

Liu Yu originally wanted to pave the way for his future escape in advance, but he did not expect that the emperor would think so. Basically, he was labeled as "the inevitable defeatism of the feudal dynasty".

He really felt that there was no way to solve it internally. He was stunned for a moment when the emperor asked him, and he quickly kowtowed and said, "Wei Chen doesn't dare! Wei Chen has absolutely no such intention."

The emperor felt even more depressed when he saw Liu Yu admitting his mistake there.

In the past, Liu Yu was young and frivolous, and fought for everything he thought he could do; but now he is no longer young and frivolous, and he is more measured, which is what the emperor wants to see.

But this is not measured at all, and he is no longer young and frivolous.

Just a few years ago, Liu Yu would write letters every day and discuss matters like the expedition to Southeast Asia and India. At that time, he was no longer young and frivolous.

What made the emperor depressed was that Liu Yu had always seen things very accurately. Could it be that he had concluded that there was no hope for many internal matters?

I have no confidence at all, that’s why I’m so depressed?

The seemingly powerful external enemies were easily defeated; the internal problems were actually a hundred times more difficult than the external enemies, frightening even Liu Yu's confidence?

After sighing for three or five times, the emperor said: "I have never blamed Aiqing, so why is Aiqing so scared? I know that things in the world are difficult, but at least Aiqing can come up with ideas and methods before I do things. You know, if you are sure, you will definitely bring it up. Now, Ai Qing doesn’t say a word about the affairs of the world. Does this mean you feel unsure?”

"My beloved, I feel that there are no internal matters that I can be confident about, which makes me worried."

While Liu Yu was kowtowing there, he thought to himself: Sooner or later, in fact, I have been busy digging graves and pits for the Dashun Dynasty. Now you ask me, if you don’t say that it will last forever, at least it will extend your life for a long time. Isn’t this nonsense?

After thinking rapidly for a while, Liu Yu found an excuse and said: "Your Majesty, when I was in Songjiang, I came across a plan for change..."

Immediately, he raised the issue of increasing taxes to 1 in 10.

After finishing speaking, Liu Yu said: "The Yellow Emperor is surrounded by people and knows the affairs of the world. Your Majesty, a saint, also knows the affairs of the people. Even if you don't patrol the south of the Yangtze River, you can also know the methods of subordinate officials, local officials and gentry. Your Majesty should know that if you implement this policy, it will be of great benefit to the country."

This is not just flattery.

The emperor is not a fool. How could he not know some methods at the grassroots level?

After listening to Liu Yu say this, you will know what this matter is.

The basic idea is that the gentry all pay for themselves and serve as servants. This is something that has been debated and discussed since the Ming Dynasty but cannot be implemented at all.

On the surface, this is one tax for thirty and one tax for ten.

But appearances are only what is written in the law.

The emperor understood the meaning as soon as he heard it.

Vaguely, the emperor seemed to be able to feel Liu Yu's despair and "defeatism" emotions.

"What do you think, Ai Qing, of this matter?"

Liu Yu kowtowed and said, "I was so happy when I first heard it that I couldn't sleep at night; when I thought about it again, I was so sad that I couldn't sleep at night either."

"Ai Qing, are you worried that all the gentry in the world will oppose you?"

The emperor asked very directly.

Liu Yu's denial was also very direct.

"I...is not someone who is blind to what is happening outside the window. I have seen the history of the previous dynasties like the gentry in the world. What I am sad about is that if the court continues to be like this, it will not be short of money. On the contrary, it will not be needed. There is no big battle to be fought now about raising taxes. Not only is there no shortage of money, but we can also save the world's money every now and then. There is really no need to raise taxes to the tune of 10%."

"I suddenly became sad that night, and I thought, if I really collect this money, how will I use it? Where will it be used?"

“If you don’t know what to use it for, why bother collecting it?”

"If you knew what to use it for, why didn't you accept it before?"

"If it can be done by human power, why has no one done it for thousands of years?"

"It can be seen that there are some things that cannot be changed by human power. When I think about this, sadness comes from my heart and cannot be contained, so I feel depressed."

This sounds like crazy talk.

But after hearing this, the emperor understood where Liu Yu's sadness came from.

"As for what I am worried about, I have thought of a story. I must have heard it before, so I might as well tell it to you again. There are people in the State of Qi who are worried about the collapse of the sky and the earth. Those who die will lose their sleep and food!"

"Although I don't understand your concerns clearly, I can guess a few things."

"I have also seen the pamphlets you spread in Japan to confuse the Japanese people. All I think about is, what can I do if I have money?"

"We reformed water transportation, repaired the Yellow River embankment, and moved the people to the Western Regions and Southeast Asia... A hundred years later, the population increased but the land did not increase."

"A couple with four children, within a hundred years, the population will double several times."

"How big is the earth? I thought there was another big nine states outside the small nine states, but now I know it's just this size. The sailboats have traveled all over the earth, and it's just this big."

"When the population grows, the land will not increase, and there will be no more South Seas, Western Regions, and Northeast. In the end, won't the land be annexed, the population grow, and people will rise up, the world will be in chaos, the population will be halved, and a new dynasty will be established?"

"After doing this, in the end, it's just to make wedding clothes for others?"

After saying this, the emperor laughed.

The laughter echoed in the room for a long time, and it seemed that it couldn't be stopped.

After a long time, the emperor stopped laughing and joked: "My dear, you are so sad. You are going to realize the truth. Hahaha! This sadness of the universe is shared by Zhuang Zhou and Lie Zi. So why is it that only Confucius became a saint and Yang and Mo are heretics? It is because they do not ask about the universe, but about human affairs."

"My dear, you are too tired of fighting."

"Okay, let's follow your wishes. You can travel to famous mountains and rivers in the future to see the world's scenery. If there is no major event, you don't have to attend the court meeting. Just go to the censor on time to ask for leave."

"Go, go. With such sadness, you might as well go back to your wife who promised to see the world's scenery after the major event is accomplished, and tell her that I have allowed it."

"Go!"

After saying that, he smiled and waved his hand, indicating that after Liu Yu thanked him, he should go home quickly and not keep him for dinner.

When Liu Yu, who had been fooling around, left, the emperor, who had been smiling just now, couldn't help but sigh.

This kind of cosmic sadness, once it calms down, is indeed depressing.

But the "gentry" problem that Liu Yu, who "has the universe in his heart and is close to enlightenment", no longer cares about is actually in front of him.

Ten percent tax, cancel local levies, return levies and silver differences to the public, and no longer increase levies. This is certainly a better benevolent and good policy than thirty percent tax.

But how difficult is it to do it?

Shaking his head to not think about the gentry problem, he couldn't help but think about the "cosmic sadness" that Liu Yu used to get out of it. The emperor didn't think it was sad.

Of course, he had read the pamphlet on population theory that Liu Yu used to fool Japan.

The content inside is definitely not benevolent.

But the emperor always pretends to be benevolent. The truth in this pamphlet, in this era when productivity cannot see rapid progress, is still very easy to believe if you don't look at the real connotation of the pamphlet, such as "need a middle class that only consumes but does not produce", such as the real class interest deception point, and only look at the population growth point.

But the emperor doesn't care.

What happened to the first emperor's desire for the elixir of immortality?

There are countless emperors in later generations, who have ruled the world, but can any of them achieve immortality?

The title of "Long Live" is just a title, just a title.

Even the dream of immortality seems simple, such as the second, third, fourth, and even ten thousand generations, how can it be achieved?

The usurpation history compiled by the Japanese country claims to last for ten thousand generations, but how many people in power have changed?

The emperor knew this very well.

But this is like, everyone has to die, so why live?

The emperor felt that Liu Yu thought too much and was too tired after the great success - when the Dashun was first established, many meritorious people had similar problems. In the years of war, they were brave and strong; after the great success, they were injured and sick. So there was the incident where the Portuguese in Macau presented the magical medicine Di Yejia, which eventually restored Macau's old trading status.

Dashun had such experience, so the emperor felt that Liu Yu was not physically ill, but mentally ill. It seems that he really thought that the external war was a success, and he fooled the Japanese, which made him pessimistic and desperate.

He felt that he could not escape the law of this cycle after all the troubles, so why bother?

He did not know that Liu Yu had a way in his heart and believed that there was a way to avoid this cycle. Although he could not do it now, he was full of hope and never despaired.

Thinking of Liu Yu's depression and regression, and even a little bit of the intention to retire, the emperor thought he could understand.

But understanding is understanding, and believing that Dashun could not escape is believing, but the emperor was not sad at all.

Instead, he thought that everyone has to die, how can this dynasty be eternal?

However, I want to abolish the canal transportation, repair the Yellow River, open up the Western Regions, go to Southeast Asia, fill the Northeast, and flow to the Southwest.

A hundred years later, I want to be on par with Han Wu, Tang Zong, Ming Zu, etc.

After I die, who cares about the flood?

Dashun cannot last forever, but I can last forever.

Thinking of this, the emperor did not think about the gentry problem caused by the eleventh tax problem that Liu Yu just mentioned, which really gave him a headache.

Instead, he laughed loudly alone in the direction of the figure of Liu Yu who had already left and disappeared.

"My dear, you are really worried, sad, and concerned like a child!"

The red of the child he said.

It is not red.

It is not the extended meaning of the child of patriotism.

But it is the original meaning.

The child means that he is born without eyebrows and hair, and his color is red. The original meaning is a newborn baby.

The emperor thought to himself, this is really a child. If there is no child's heart, how can there be such sorrow in the universe? After twenty years of ups and downs, the heart is still as red as a baby. This is a truly pure heart! I am not afraid of anything else, I am only afraid that I will become a monk in the future.