After receiving Zhao Yao’s detailed secret report, the Emperor acted swiftly and soon announced the implentation of the "equal land tax," "standardized grain storage," and "uniform taxation of officials and gentry."
Before the implentation, the Emperor discussed with several ministers of the inner council to see if there were any areas needing supplentation or inadequacies. Pri Minister He and others found that the proposal by Prince Han was very thorough and that there was nothing they needed to add. As for any shortcomings, they couldn’t identify any.
Since there were no issues with Zhao Yao’s proposed three policies, the Emperor imdiately announced their implentation without the slightest hesitation.
Before the announcent, Grandmaster Liu and others reminded the Emperor that once these three policies were declared, they would inevitably face strong opposition, possibly even more severe than the past examinations. The Emperor expressed that he was not afraid.
Sure enough, after the Emperor announced the implentation of the three policies of the "equal land tax," strong opposition from the ministers ensued. Among these, the opposition was most intense from the noble families and the gentry.
Although the examination system had been in place for several years, the majority of ministers in high positions were basically from noble families or the gentry. Most officials selected through the examination system were sent to various regions to serve. A few remained in the capital, but only in the Hanlin Academy and not in key positions. They currently had no voice in court.
The noble families and gentry knew they had no chance of winning by confronting the Emperor directly, so they planned to use a "soft approach" to resist. Of course, before opposing, they intended to rally so influential figures to resist alongside them. First were the Princes, who owned vast lands. If the three new policies were implented, the interests of the Princes would also be hard.
The ministers supporting Prince Dai and Prince Jing largely ca from noble families and the gentry. If they wanted to continue to have the ministers’ support, they had to protect these ministers’ interests. Moreover, protecting the noble families and gentry’s interests was also protecting their own interests.
In the Prince Dai Mansion, ministers supporting Prince Dai repeatedly requested the Prince to persuade the Emperor to halt the implentation of the three new policies.
However, Marquis Xuanping disagreed with Prince Dai taking the lead to persuade the Emperor to abandon the implentation of the three new policies, "Precisely because Your Highness is now the Emperor’s eldest son and your words hold weight, you must not be the first to oppose the Emperor. If Your Highness cos out in opposition, the Emperor will surely be angry with you, and might even be disappointed."
Prince Dai originally planned to go to the Imperial Study to persuade the Emperor to give up, but hearing this from his uncle, he was startled.
"If Prince Dai opposes the Emperor and Prince Chu supports him, who do you think the Emperor’s favor will lean towards?" Marquis Xuanping understood the ministers’ anxiety and concern but was displeased that they were thinking of themselves, not of Prince Dai. "You urging His Highness to oppose the Emperor is tantamount to cutting off His Highness’s future."
After hearing Marquis Xuanping’s words, the ministers imdiately fell silent.
After a while, a minister tentatively spoke up: "So we just watch as the Emperor implents the three new policies?"
Marquis Xuanping said in a deep voice, "If you want to oppose, then go ahead, but you must not drag His Highness along with you. His Highness should absolutely not stand in opposition to the Emperor in such a ti."
Prince Dai nodded and said, "Uncle is right, I must not oppose my father."
Seeing the ministers’ displeased expressions, Marquis Xuanping softened his tone to comfort them, "You go ahead and oppose first, and blow this out of proportion. Once it’s blown out of control, His Highness will naturally step in to speak for you, and by then, the Emperor is likely not to implent the new policies."
The ministers felt that Marquis Xuanping made sense, "Then we’ll go stir things up first."
Subsequently, the ministers supporting Prince Dai discussed how to escalate the situation.
After deliberating for one or two hours, the ministers left the Prince Dai Mansion satisfied.
"Uncle, will the fourth prince truly support father’s implentation of these three new policies?" Although the Li Family is neither gentry nor noble, they own considerable land, and if the fourth prince supports father’s new policies, it would disregard the interests of his maternal family.
"He will. Prince Chu may very well express support for the Emperor’s new policies in the imperial court tomorrow," Marquis Xuanping said with certainty. "This is the best opportunity to perform well in front of the Emperor, and Prince Chu will not miss it."
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