I was reborn in the first auxiliary imperial examination essay

Chapter 104

In the case of the downfall of Yangge's Laozhong Duke's Mansion, Yuzhou not only advised Emperor Wende, but also uprooted the power of the two aristocratic families of the Yang family and the Liu family that had been operating for hundreds of years, and wiped out all their wealth.

Yuzhou also suggested that Emperor Wende did another thing, which was to ban the special treatment of temples and Taoist temples in the world.

He had wanted to do this for a long time.

The reason is also very simple. Due to Master Baotai's troubles, the Buddhist temples in the Jing Dynasty have been too smoky these years. They usually use feudal superstition to harm people, and they even invade the people's land resources in disguise.

Because in many dynasties in ancient times, monks and Taoists were exempt from tax, and so did the regulations of the Jing Dynasty.

Therefore, temples and Taoist temples will purchase a large amount of land and hoard it after obtaining incense money.

Because of this generous policy, those corrupt officials also took the opportunity to sell "degree certificates" at high prices to the people in order to earn huge profits.

And the ultimatum is a certification document issued by the imperial court to monks, nuns and Taoists. After all, being a Taoist monk can be exempted from taxes.

Yuzhou proposed to Emperor Wende,

"Your Majesty, the reason why the imperial court exempted monks, nuns and Taoists from taxes is that they can only rely on pilgrims to live on alms. Monks and Taoists have a difficult life. Do a good deed and pray for the country."

"However, not all monks, nuns and Taoists in the world are truly noble people. Among them, because of the Buddhist saying, 'put down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha immediately', a large number of criminals escaped punishment by renunciation."

"In recent years, Master Baotai has used temples and Taoist temples all over the world as a tool to collect money for him to seek the throne and usurp the throne, causing the temples and Taoist temples to become smoky..."

"According to my statistics, the tax-free land I hoard in temples and Taoist temples has reached millions of hectares, and the number of monks, nuns and Taoists has reached more than 200,000..."

"If things go on like this, the interests of the court and the people will be damaged, and the stomachs of those fake monks, Taoist priests, and officials who sell diplomas will be fattened. The court is in danger."

"Master Baotai is the best excuse now, Your Majesty, this cancer can be cured."

People need faith and sustenance. Temples and Taoist temples can exist, but they must not be treated as preferentially as before, allowing temples and Taoist temples to become tools for others to make money.

There are also feudal superstitions that weaken this era, so that in the future, officials in the court will use superstitions to reproduce the events of offering sacrifices to heaven and forcing each other.

"Okay, Yu Aiqing is indeed my right-hand man."

Emperor Wende laughed sincerely when he heard the words.

The dangers of temples and Taoist temples continue to erode the interests of the court and the people, so how could he, as an emperor, not know? The loss of his beloved son made him hate the temple and Taoist temple to the extreme.

He had wanted to eradicate this cancer for a long time, but because of the support of the people all over the world for Taoist temples, he couldn't find a suitable excuse to do it. In addition, the silver copied from temples and Taoist temples can make the national treasury much richer.