Chapter 552: Brothers

“what?”

Jiang Ning was stunned.

“This… is not necessary. These are Huashan’s basic physical training techniques. They are not important.”

Jiang Ning frowned slightly and hesitated.

Zhu Houzhao’s face turned serious: “Brother Jiang, do you think I am not qualified to be your brother?”

“That’s not true.”

Jiang Ning shook his head and said, “Since you said so, then let’s do it.”

Only then did a smile appear on Zhu Houzhao’s face.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t asked Brother Jiang how old he is?”

Jiang Ning said: “Twenty-one.”

He just turned twenty last year, and he will be twenty-one after April this year.

“That’s it.”

Zhu Houzhao nodded and said, “You are a few years older than me, so you are my brother.”

Jiang Ning smiled and said nothing.

He didn’t care about it, nor did he care much about what Zhu Houzhao said about calling them brothers.

But Zhu Houzhao was very happy.

He had only been on the throne for a short time and was in urgent need of his own manpower. Now that he had such a ‘brother’, the help he could bring to him was unimaginable.

“Brother Jiang, now that you and I are brothers, you are my elder brother. Since you are my elder brother, it is okay to make you a king.”

As soon as he finished talking about being brothers, Zhu Houzhao began to paint a big picture for Jiangning.

“It’s just that I want to make you a king, but unfortunately there is no precedent in the Ming Dynasty to make a king of a different surname. Even if I want to make you a king, those officials will not agree.”

Throughout the Ming Dynasty, up to the generation of Zhu Houzhao, there had never been a living king of a different surname, and all of them were conferred titles posthumously.

After Zhu Houzhao finished speaking, he added: “But don’t worry, brother Jiang, even if I can’t be crowned king, I will never treat you unfairly.”

“None of this matters to me.”

Jiang Ning’s heart was calm, and he said bluntly: “I don’t care about these. I made friends with you and am even willing to help you now because we have the same path. Other than that, nothing else matters. If one day you abandon this path, even if you have countless guards protecting you in the palace, I can rush into the palace and end your life.”

Hearing Jiang Ning’s words, Zhu Houzhao laughed.

“Brother Jiang, there are not many people in this world who dare to threaten the emperor.”

Jiang Ning also laughed. “You can try to see if I can do it.”

“Of course, I don’t doubt your ability.”

Zhu Houzhao never doubted whether Jiang Ning could kill him, because the other party had the ability to do so.

“Brother Jiang, rest assured. If I really abandon this path, I will kill you without a fight.”

Zhu Houzhao smiled faintly.

At this time Liu Jin trotted into the courtyard.

“Your Majesty, it’s time to return to the palace.”

It was already late. After hearing Liu Jin’s reminder, Zhu Houzhao said to Jiang Ning: “Brother Jiang, see you tomorrow.”

Jiang Ning nodded slightly.

After Zhu Houzhao left, Jiang Ning also left.

“Your Majesty, you seem very happy.”

On the way back to the palace, Liu Jin looked at Zhu Houzhao’s expression and said.

At this time, Zhu Houzhao’s expression did not change much, but there was always a smile at the corner of his mouth.

Zhu Houzhao glanced at him and said nothing when he heard this.

Liu Jin had a smile on his face.

“correct.”

Zhu Houzhao suddenly asked, “Did the head of the Wudang sect submit a memorial some time ago?”

Liu Jin was stunned and quickly replied, “Yes, Your Majesty. Last year, Taoist Chongxu from Wudang Mountain submitted a petition after hearing that Your Majesty had ascended the throne, saying that he wanted to come to the capital to meet Your Majesty and see Your Majesty’s face, but Your Majesty did not approve it.”

Zhu Houzhao nodded when he heard this, but said nothing more, as if he was lost in thought. The expression in his eyes changed, and no one knew what he was thinking. Liu Jin, who was standing beside him, could only occasionally hear Zhu Houzhao utter a few words.

“Jianghu…Zhenwu…Wudang…Devil Sect…”

Seeing that Zhu Houzhao was obviously thinking about something, Liu Jin tactfully did not disturb him.

“Big companion.”

It was unknown how long it had been before Zhu Houzhao spoke again.

“Is there a Zhenwu Emperor Temple in Huashan?”

Liu Jin was stunned, not knowing why Zhu Houzhao asked this, but he did not neglect it at all and nodded quickly.

“Yes.”

After getting the answer, Zhu Houzhao nodded and said nothing more.

……

For the next few days, Jiang Ning went out early and came back late, and basically talked with Zhu Houzhao in the same courtyard, communicating ideas and perfecting some of the things Zhu Houzhao wanted to do next.

Zhu Houzhao had just ascended the throne and did not have much power, so his most important task was to take back power.

Jiang Ning could not help much in this regard, because this was a struggle in the court, and Jiang Ning had no experience in this regard. It would be possible for him to kill all these officials, but that would cause chaos, and Zhu Houzhao would never do that. If he really did that, it would be even more troublesome for him to take back power.

However, Zhu Houzhao never thought of asking Jiang Ning to help him regain power. Sometimes the struggle for power is very dangerous, but also very simple. After all, Zhu Houzhao’s identity has already given him great advantages.

Moreover, the current court and harem are not like those of the Hongzhi period. If Zhu Houzhao cannot even get back the power, all the ambitions in his heart will be nonsense.

A few days later, Jiang Ning still came to talk with Zhu Houzhao every day. In the following days, he talked about the population tax.

One of the reasons why the lower-class people are becoming increasingly poorer and having a harder time living is the poll tax.

The poll tax originated in the Qin Dynasty. As the name suggests, the tax is based on the number of people in a family. This was not a big deal in the early years of the dynasty, but as the dynasty reached its middle and late stages, the land in the world became less and less due to the annexation of princes and nobles. The people had less land, but the number of people in their families did not decrease. The taxes they paid remained the same, but they ate less, forming a vicious cycle.

The poll tax was not necessarily the fundamental reason why the people became increasingly poor, but it was an important factor in the people drowning their newborn boys and girls.

Therefore, Jiang Ning suggested that if Zhu Houzhao wanted to change taxes in the future, he could abolish the population tax and instead collect a tax based on the amount of land a household had.

That’s right, it is the tax rate based on the land area.

“If you are to say so, collecting taxes based on land would indeed reduce the pressure on the people, but the court would be able to collect less taxes.”

Zhu Houzhao said something, but he did not refuse. Instead, he realized the difficulty.

“Now most of the land in the Ming Dynasty is in the hands of officials, gentry and many princes. If they don’t pay taxes, the Ming Dynasty will only become poorer and poorer. If we want to do this, we have to first survey their land and make them spit out the land they have embezzled over the years…”

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Houzhao felt a chill on his back.

If he really did that, even if he was the emperor, he would feel that his life would not last long.

“We still have to keep the army in our hands.”

Zhu Houzhao was startled.

To do these things, one needs an army at hand. Now the Ming army’s combat effectiveness has declined after the Hongzhi period. If Zhu Houzhao wants to try out the new law, he must first take back power and the army, and then build a reliable and feasible army.

Jiang Ning also knew this, so he was not in a hurry for Zhu Houzhao to start doing it now. In addition, Jiang Ning also said.

“If you really start doing these things in the future, and someone tries to harm you, I will come to the capital to help you personally.”

Zhu Houzhao smiled and said, “It’s a deal.”

Chapter 553: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

“I’m ready to leave Beijing.”

Jiangning Road.

Zhu Houzhao was shocked.

“So early?”

Jiang Ning shook his head and said, “It’s getting late.”

He has been in the capital for seven or eight days, and it is time to return to Huashan.

Zhu Houzhao nodded, feeling a little sorry.

During the conversations over the past few days, he increasingly felt that Jiang Ning was a rare talent, outstanding in terms of strength, ideas, and abilities.

It’s a pity that the other party has no intention of entering officialdom, otherwise he would definitely be of great help to him in the court.

“Have you decided when to leave?”

Zhu Houzhao asked.

Jiang Ning said: “The day after tomorrow.”

Zhu Houzhao nodded and said nothing more.

At this moment, a eunuch stopped not far away. It was Liu Jin.

Liu Jin looked a little anxious, as if he had something to report to Zhu Houzhao, but when he saw Jiang Ning and Zhu Houzhao were talking, he hesitated and did not come over.

Zhu Houzhao frowned and said, “Big friend, what’s the matter?”

After hearing Zhu Houzhao’s words, Liu Jin came over.

“His Majesty.”

Liu Jin said this and stopped talking, looking at Jiang Ning as if he was in trouble.

Zhu Houzhao frowned when he saw this, but he understood that Liu Jin must have something urgent to say, so he stood up and said to Jiang Ning, “Brother Jiang, excuse me for a moment.”

Jiang Ning nodded.