PFC Chapter 353 Sensitive Old 3, Suspicious of Wei Zhen...
Chapter 353 Sensitive Old 3, Suspicious of Wei Zhen...
As soon as Gu Jingzhi said this, a court official subconsciously stood up and said, "Your Majesty, this is absolutely unacceptable! The government is supervised by the officials. How can we let that eagle..."
He was about to call them "hawks and dogs," but when he thought of the methods used by the Internal Guard, he immediately changed his tone and said, "The six ministries should conduct self-examination of the government's shortcomings. It is the right way to go. For outsiders to interfere with the insiders is a recipe for disaster!"
As he said this, he glared at Gu Jingzhi hatefully.
After hearing this, Emperor Xia just shook his head slightly.
He saw that most people in the court had the same expression, even his trusted minister Wei Xuan. Although he didn't say a word, everything was clear from his expression!
I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
Could it be that, in their minds, the supervisory authority must belong to the Internal Guard Office?
He no longer had the heart to argue with the court officials. Instead, he continued to look at Gu Jingzhi: "Mr. Gu, please tell me in detail how to supervise you!"
When everyone heard this, their hearts skipped a beat.
Finished!
It seems that His Majesty is determined to add another shackle on all officials!
It's really hard for officials to make a living...
Gu Jingzhi and Emperor Xia had a tacit understanding and neither of them argued with the other officials. Instead, they spoke freely, "Your Majesty, the origin of the Empty Seal Case is nothing more than the greed of some individuals. The reason it hasn't erupted is that someone is controlling the court and deceiving your Majesty!"
"The reason why corruption is so serious is mainly due to the lack of supervision procedures and unclear accounting details! Solving these problems is actually very simple. Just..."
He explained everything he had said to Emperor Xia in the Imperial Study, and concluded, "As long as there are strict control procedures and receipts from all parties, there won't be a big error in the actual tax amount!"
"Your Majesty is the Emperor of the Horse Kingdom, and is extremely familiar with the issue of losses. Simply by setting a corresponding loss quota based on local conditions, I think the corruption problem can be controlled to the greatest extent possible!"
"Furthermore, land reform has lasted for over two years, and the fish-scale maps and household registrations of all regions have been completed. I believe that the so-called local minimum tax can be completely abolished..."
"This is the law of supervision. I have named it the responsibility system! As long as responsibilities are assigned to individuals, everyone will be a supervisor. In this way, even if someone embezzles, the wide range of their dealings will inevitably lead to numerous loopholes!"
After Gu Jingzhi finished speaking, all the officials remained silent.
Originally, they thought that Gu Jingzhi was going to suggest to the emperor to set up another henchman department in the court. However, they didn't expect that Gu Jingzhi just made the process extremely detailed to make the accounts clearer. This would indeed greatly reduce the possibility of corruption!
After all, taxes are related to local political achievements. Once the process is refined, the accounts will be clear at a glance. With receipts from higher authorities and the court, it will be clear at a glance how much tax local officials have paid!
This method of supervision is indeed feasible. After all, the refinement of processes is an internal matter. It is better than having a spy around you, right?
"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Xiling's move is a good idea. The reason why the empty seal case is so corrupt is because the court and the local governments don't have information. The court doesn't know how much tax the local governments have paid, and the local governments don't know how much tax the court has received. This gives them an opportunity to exploit the situation!"
"Marquis Xiling's strategy is to keep all accounts in detail, so as to avoid corruption to the greatest extent possible!"
Wei Xuan is a good teacher. If he doesn't understand what Gu Jingzhi says, he will object, but he will never contradict him immediately. However, as long as what Gu Jingzhi says makes sense, he will definitely stand up and agree at the first opportunity.
Gu Jingzhi glanced at him with a faint smile on his face.
However, Wei Zhen, the Minister of Revenue, frowned slightly. "Marquis Xiling, your suggestion is indeed valid, but the time it takes to collect taxes... From the time the people pay taxes to the time the taxes are deposited into the treasury, it takes about two to three months. If the accounts are detailed down to the daily level..."
"If all the account books were submitted to the Ministry of Revenue, they wouldn't have enough time to review them!"
As soon as he said this, many people nodded subconsciously.
If we count the national taxes down to every day, the account will be huge!
"So this method is not feasible?"
An idea appeared in the minds of all the officials!
Although Gu Jingzhi's system was effective, the six ministries were extremely busy. They couldn't possibly add new positions just for tax collection, could they? And even if they did, how many talented people would be needed?
For a moment, everyone sighed.
Some people felt sorry, some watched the fun, and some were worried about Gu Jingzhi.
The third prince secretly gave Wei Zhen a thumbs up. After all, he was an old man from the Ministry of Revenue. He found the loopholes in Gu Jingzhi's plan in one go.
He knew that Wei Zhen and Gu Jingzhi were collaborating, but he didn't expect Gu Jingzhi to make it so big that many people loyal to him were also affected.
In his opinion, Wei Zhen's move was a counterattack.
After all, the power of local taxation is in the hands of Gu Jingzhi. You, Gu Jingzhi, are good at investigating cases, but now that there is a problem and you cannot solve it, it is your dereliction of duty as the Minister of Revenue!
For a moment, the Third Prince was in high spirits. He stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that Minister Wei's words are reasonable. Although the Marquis of Xiling's plan is effective, the court cannot establish a separate official position for this purpose. Such a fuss will inevitably lead to redundant officials! Your Majesty, I beg you to reconsider!"
Now that the Third Prince has spoken, how could the Second Prince be willing to fall behind?
After all, he was the one who suffered the greatest loss in the empty seal case. Seeing that the third brother was about to deal with the eldest brother's people, how could he not get involved?
"Your Majesty, I believe what my third brother said makes sense. This move may seem effective, but it actually violates the principles of state order! Corruption is by no means limited to the Ministry of Revenue. However, if all six ministries were to follow suit, the court would have to add far too many new positions!"
"By then, let alone other things, the official salaries alone... I'm afraid they will exceed the amount of corruption. Implementing this will not be worth the cost!"
The second and third brothers spoke, and immediately attracted the approval of the court officials. Looking at the commotion in the court, the crown prince frowned. He glanced at Wei Zhen, and no one knew what he was thinking!
But Wei Zhen, when he heard the second and third brothers object, he immediately knew that he was in trouble!
To be fair, his words were not really directed at Gu Jingzhi. He was just doing his job to find out the shortcomings and fill them!
After all, he is the Minister of Revenue and knows the Ministry of Revenue very well!
only……
If this incident makes people think that he is attacking Gu Jingzhi, that would be bad!
As soon as this thought came to his mind, he was about to explain, but he never expected that Gu Jingzhi had already spoken: "Master Wei is worthy of being the Minister of Revenue. He saw the problem at a glance!"
Even without Wei Zhen telling him, he naturally knew that accounting in ancient times was different from modern times. If the accounts were really made so detailed, it would be exhausting to check them.
After hearing this, Wei Zhen was slightly stunned. He looked at Gu Jingzhi and became curious!
Upon hearing this, a trace of gloom crossed the Third Prince's face.
These two people...seem to be a little off? Thinking about the past month, this minister who was loyal to him actually followed the boss out to investigate the case, and now he just came back, Gu Jingzhi is speaking for his subordinates!
There's nothing fishy about this, right?