Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 3 The clown turned out to be me!

Now that a compromise was reached, Fang Chongyong naturally changed from a "prisoner" to a "guest".In his previous life, his parents had taught him that he must be a "useful" person in the future. This moment was magical and unparalleled in persuasion.

Fang Chongyong was invited into a special tea room, and a beautiful maid dressed in light gauze came to make tea, with skillful techniques and a peaceful smile on her face.

Surrounded by foldable wooden screens, the azaleas and larks on the screen are vividly painted, as if they are about to run out of the painting, and they are from the hands of famous artists.

This is the taste of luxury from Chang'an!Even when Zheng Shuqing took office in Kuizhou, he always carried this precious screen with him.

The teapot made of white porcelain is boiling on the tea stove. The light-colored cracks on the teapot are both white and mysterious.

Then light the charcoal of fine texture, with the smell of incense.The three-legged copper tea stand supports the tea pot, which is indescribably noble and elegant.The two small white jade teacups next to it were placed in a silver saucer inlaid with gold rims inlaid with lotus flowers, unabashedly flamboyant and exaggerated.

The maid's soft and white hands broke the tea cake into pieces and gently put it into the tea pot. The shape and shape were pleasing to the eye.

Fang Chongyong was fascinated, until the other party added snow-white...salt to the tea.

Add salt to tea?

Seeing this scene, he was taken aback for a while.

Zheng Shuqing thought that Fang Chongyong was overwhelmed by the luxury of the tea set, so he introduced it proudly: "This tea is Kuizhou tribute tea Xiangshan. Xiangshan tea is produced in Shexiangshan. The tea sticks are tight, smooth and straight, and the front is exposed. It is both green and green, with a rich and long-lasting internal aroma and a fresh and sweet taste.

Shexiang Mountain is located [-] miles southeast of Kuizhou City. It is not very far. What is even more amazing is that there is a mountain spring on the mountain. The water quality is sweet and clear, which is different from the river water and mud.

This tea comes from the spring of Xiangshan. It is really wonderful to cook Xiangshan fragrant tea with the spring water of Xiangshan.

We also have Jiannan Mengding Stone Flower, Dongchuan Shenquan, Shaanzhou Bijian, Changzhou Yixing Purple Bamboo Shoot and other fine teas here.If the local tribute tea in Kuizhou does not suit your taste, it is also very interesting to switch to tribute tea from other states and counties, hahahahahaha. "

Zheng Shuqing touched the long beard on his chin and smiled, almost making Fang Chongyong vomit blood from nausea.

Fang Chongyong was speechless for showing off his wealth like this, because the other party said it too naturally, just like a local tycoon in his previous life said that he would spend 10,000+ to stay in a hotel.

But thinking about it, he was relieved. In terms of Zheng Shi's family background, what kind of bowl to drink and what kind of tea to drink, it has been a part of life since he was a child.

Even if he watched vulgar dances, if the dancers didn't dance for an hour or two, he didn't even bother to watch them.

A luxurious meal that ordinary people cannot afford in their lifetime may even be pig food that cannot be eaten in the eyes of these people.

People are born different. Your end may not even reach the starting point of others. Is the meaning of life just that you have been there before?
Fang Chongyong, who wanted to say "the rich man's wine and meat stinks", held back his swearing.

People are under the eaves, low-key and not shabby.

After a while, the tea was cooked. Zheng Shuqing poured tea for Fang Chongyong himself. After waving his hand, several maids in the tea room quietly exited and closed the door.

"Go ahead, say whatever you want, whatever you want."

Zheng Shuqing said calmly, having already put away the smile on his face.

"Zheng Shijun, no matter what, the huge amount of customs money can only be obtained from Kuizhou itself, which may be detrimental to your reputation..."

The politeness is over, it's time to get down to business, Fang Chongyong said with some hesitation.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Shuqing waved his hands impatiently and said: "There is no need to talk about such nonsense. How can we make up for the shortfall if we don't get money from Kuizhou? Obviously there is only one way. What I want to know is how to transfer 30 guan Make up for the shortfall."

His patience is limited and so is his time!
"Someone saw the scenery of Kuizhou and wrote a poem that said:

Spring grass grows at the top of Baidi City,
The Shujiang River is clear at the foot of Baiyan Mountain.

The southerners come up and sing a song,
Northerners should not be moved by nostalgia.

Your Majesty, you can open a salt class in Kuizhou. If there is a white salt mountain, you will not be afraid that you will not be able to collect salt taxes. "

Fang Zhongyong said firmly.

White Salt Mountain is in the east of Kuizhou City. With this salt well, are you afraid that there will be no salt?If you have salt in your hand, are you afraid you won’t be able to get money?

Hearing this, Zheng Shuqing was stunned. He didn't expect that Fang Chongyong didn't even know such a common sense question.

Zheng Shuqing sighed helplessly and said: "Your talent lies only in poetry, don't underestimate the people of the world. Don't you hear what the children of Kuizhou say: There is no salt on the Baiyan Mountain?"

Not only does Kuizhou have no salt mountains, but most of the salt consumed by the people is imported from Wudi (Jiangnan).Besides, even if the White Salt Mountain next to it is all made of salt, the salt tax is a central policy. How can it be decided by local officials like us?
Even if you want to collect it, it's not our turn to collect it!Is the so-called prodigy only capable of this? "

Zheng Shuqing looked at Fang Chongyong with malicious intentions, and deeply doubted whether he had gone to the doctor in a hurry.

There are many kinds of child prodigies. It can be seen that Fang Chongyong is a good poet, but whether he will make money is really a matter of debate.

Kuizhou’s salt administration is so complicated that it’s hard to describe it in words. There are imports, exports, and transportation to other places as a logistics distribution center. These three states exist at the same time. It is extremely difficult to make money from it, and it will affect the whole body.

"Please take me to the cashier to find out. If you don't look at the local income, there is nothing you can do."

Fang Chongyong cupped his hands and begged.I have to admit that he did underestimate Zheng Shuqing a bit.

"Don't you drink tea? Tea is not expensive, but Xiangshan spring water is under the jurisdiction of the government, and ordinary people can't drink it."

Zheng Shuqing teased, implying that Fang Chongyong was a local idiot.

Fang Chongyong quickly drank a big mouthful of local Xiangshan tribute tea, not feeling embarrassed at all.

The fragrant tea has a sweet taste in your mouth. The addition of salt actually enhances the sweetness and freshness of the tea, which is very nice.It has to be said that although ancient times had very little knowledge about human body circulation and did not know that eating too much salt would lead to serious illness, the pursuit of delicious food was tireless and endless.

Tea with salt added is delicious, but don't drink too much. You can buy a few kilograms of this tea in the future and taste it. There is no need to add salt.

Fang Zhongyong secretly complained in his heart, his face calm.

As for the fact that Tang people boiled tea and added salt to remove the bitterness, he only found out later.

"Alright, now that you've reached this point, you can follow me."

Zheng Shuqing had some hesitation on his face, but he still nodded slightly and did not refuse.

It's not that you can't tell others about the secrets in the government's accounting room, but it's not very suitable for Fang Chongyong, the son of the former supervisory censor.

The current situation is already very tense. Li Linfu's personal letter was only delivered to Zheng Shuqing yesterday, and he actually asked him to settle the customs duties at Kuizhou Jiangguan before the Shangyuan Festival next year.

That's 30 guan, not [-] guan or [-] guan!
Li Linfu completely ignored Zheng Shuqing's plea for defense in his letter last time. He had a very tough attitude and did not mention pursuing the murderer to recover the tax money!
Li Linfu's meaning is very clear: it doesn't matter whether Zheng Shuqing wants to steal or extort money, or even let local government soldiers pretend to be water bandits to rob merchant ships!As long as the money is settled, everything is no longer a problem.

Moreover, no more censors like Fang Youde will come to Kuizhou to cause trouble. I hope Zheng Shuqing will take good care of himself and not make mistakes!
As Li Linfu's henchman, Zheng Shuqing is well aware of the opponent's temper.If Li Linfu does not give the "chance" at all, it means that there is still room for turning things around and bargaining can be made.But since the other party has already spoken, there is still more than half a year before the Shangyuan Festival next year. If it really can't make up for the deficit, Li Linfu's methods are not vegetarian!
The opportunity has been given to you and if you can't seize it, then don't worry about me ruthlessly cleaning up the house!

Li Linfu is best at using rules "within the system" to kill his colleagues or subordinates.

Compared with Li Linfu's sharp tactics, Zheng Shuqing felt that Fang Chongyong, a child with a yellow mouth, was not afraid.

Under the escort of two entourages, Zheng Shuqing led Fang Chongyong out of the mansion, directly entered Kuizhou Fucheng from the north gate, and came to the accountant's room of the government office.I saw piles and piles of Kuizhou household registration, account books, maps, and official documents on the cabinet.

They are all arranged in different categories, not as chaotic as imagined.

Fang Zhongyong couldn't help but give Zheng Shuqing a high look. Even officials with a vegetarian diet may not be as incompetent as he thought, and daily affairs can still be handled well.

Holding a stack of account books, he came to the desk and checked page by page. Fang Chongyong quickly noticed something was wrong.

The account is done very well, and there is no outstanding payment!You must know that farmers, especially self-cultivators under the equal-field system, have seasonal and regular flows of property in and out of their homes.Rent arrears are often due to natural and man-made disasters.

In addition, the standards for renting in the Tang Dynasty were based on ordinary families when the land was plentiful at the founding of the country.After a hundred years of development, land annexation has become extremely serious. It is common for ordinary families to default on paying taxes, and it is impossible to collect rents so neatly.

After all, the "tax farming system" was not used in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. As long as every household did not have a black household registration, the rent would be transferred to the government.

The big local households may play tricks on the people, but the government dare not play like this casually, and it will be difficult to deal with things if they get big.

"Look slowly, if you can't finish reading, continue tomorrow, and don't rush for a day or two."

Zheng Shuqing yawned and said.

Yellow-mouthed child, what can you see?Zheng Shuqing felt that he might have to explain to the other party.

He felt more and more that he was going to the doctor in a hurry.

"This account book looks weird. It looks like...a fake."

Fang Chongyong put down the account book in his hand, and said with a wry smile, seeing Zheng Shuqing stopped talking.

Huh?
Zheng Shuqing sat up straight involuntarily, and squinted his eyes to look at this unremarkable immature boy in front of him!
It is not difficult for an old official who has been working in the government office for many years to spot the fishiness in the account books.But it is not easy for a child with a yellow mouth to see it, and to see it after turning a few pages.

"How can you see it?"

Zheng Shuqing pinched his beard and asked.

Although he didn't admit it directly, it was tantamount to acquiescing. He just hoped that Fang Chongyong would tell him the reason.

"There are all kinds of things in the world. Birth, old age, sickness and death have a fixed number. People don't have a hundred days to be happy, and flowers don't have a hundred days to be red. Everyone will have a difficult time. There are too many people paying taxes in the account books of the envoy, and the rent paid is more mediocre than usual. How can it be okay if you want more?"

Fang Chongyong could tell at a glance that the average amount of tax revenue in this account book was too high.

During the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, a rule was established that every Ding should pay "rent" chestnuts and two stones per year, and "tune" according to the local production, and pay silk (or damask, tug) two feet, cotton three liang, or cloth two feet and five feet, hemp Three catties.

At present, this standard is obviously more than one-tenth of the fixed number, but every township has paid very neatly, and there is no default.

Fang Chongyong had so many tax evaders in his previous life, how could there be none here!Not only do you pay everything on time, but you still charge more than the quota, you think you are a fool!

"You don't understand this. How many people and households are there in Kuizhou? Does the court know how many people there are? Do they know if there are too many people or too few? Does anyone know how often they check the household registration?"

Zheng Shuqing stroked his long beard and asked triumphantly.

Fang Chongyong was speechless, how could he know these routines!

"Let me tell you, the imperial court doesn't know at all, and it doesn't expect to know, let alone send people to verify it every year. People in the imperial court will only ask if this year's taxes have been paid, and how it compares with last year.

If there are more than last year, then the evaluation will naturally not be bad. Who will care whether these account books are real or fake?

Now I am charging [-]% more on the account on the grounds that the border towns in Sichuan are unstable and need military supplies. There will be natural and man-made disasters in the future, and there is room for decline. You know what.

Let me tell you, the actual tax collected by this official is only [-]%, and it can be raised in the future! "

Zheng Shuqing said triumphantly.

He is not an old coin, but he is definitely an old bureaucrat, and he is very familiar with the routines in the court.Zheng Shuqing actually charged less, but charged more on the book, and there was a fluctuation of [-]% in this way, which was enough for him to deal with various emergencies.

As for why this is possible, it is because the entire account book is a black box, and the court does not know the specific situation.

"So... these are all fake?"

Fang Chongyong asked calmly, he had already seen the trick, but he just hoped that Zheng Shuqing could confirm.

"You don't need to know that, you just need to find a way to help me make money."

Zheng Shuqing pretended to say that the complacency in his heart was already written on his face.

Then the two fell into an awkward silence.

"Your Majesty, actually, this method is simple and simple."

Fang Zhongyong paused for a moment and continued: "Kuizhou is next to the Yangtze River, with developed water transportation, and copper coins are easy to get. You can collect copper coins in Kuizhou for rent adjustment, and then use the money in the treasury to buy Jingxiang and Jiangnan during the autumn harvest. grain, and encouraged the use of copper coins to redeem corvee labor.

However, the price of grain in Jingxiang and Jiangnan is low, and after the autumn harvest, large households in various places have to sell old grain.

If the government buys on a large scale, it must be sold at a reserve price.Going back and forth like this, I'm afraid it can save a lot of money.The envoy used these grains as rent, and then took copper coins to buy Shu brocade in Shu, and transported it to Luoyang to exchange for ordinary silk.

As for Yong, he collected all the copper coins and let the prisoners participate in the name of opening up the mountains and fields, leaving another sum of money.

With a multi-pronged approach, won’t wealth come slowly? "

Fang Chongyong folded his sleeves with his hands and bowed deeply to Zheng Shuqing very formally.

Haha, making money is not easy.Referring to the method of making profits in the pension market in previous lives, if the government participates in the monopoly business, then it will not make a lot of money?

Fang Chongyong is very confident about this.

However, he saw Zheng Shuqing staring at him with disdain, his expression seemed to be extremely contemptuous.

"The child prodigy is really just a little clever!"

Zheng Shuqing couldn't help sighing and sighing, his disappointment was beyond words.

"What did the envoy say?"

Fang Zhongyong asked in puzzlement, he didn't think there was anything wrong with his method, after all, he had used it badly in his previous life.This is the accumulated wisdom of thousands of years.

"I don't know whether I should praise you for your ability as Prime Minister Li (Li Linfu), or scold you for not overestimating your abilities."

Zheng Shuqing sighed and said: "Kuizhou has a small land and a large population. From very early on, the mediocrity theory of renting has been in vain, and falsification of government accounts has become common. When I first arrived in Kuizhou, I wanted to change this situation, but after a while, I I found out that I was very wrong.”

It turns out that there is still such a thing, Fang Chongyong nodded slightly and said: "I would like to hear the details."

"Kuizhou is the throat of Shu and Jingxiang, guarding the Yangtze River. In addition to being a battleground for military strategists, it is also a place for merchants to stay and store goods. This is the reason why the imperial court established Kuimen Jiangguan in Kuizhou. one."

Fang Chongyong continued to nod, waiting for the next step.

"The people here live on boats, selling goods and fishing, and their wealth is several times better than farming. The people are impetuous, money is their life, and they are shameless. There are many people who risk their lives in order to make big money. Even so. Arita also mostly grows hemp to weave expensive linen, which is a special product of Kuizhou and is sold well in Shu.

How could such people pay the rent honestly, and how could they farm with peace of mind.It is also a foot of cloth. It is much more cost-effective for them to buy the cloth shipped from Sichuan than to pay rent for the special linen that they worked hard to weave. How can these people enforce the government's tax decree?
Furthermore, Kuizhou also produces white apes, fierce tigers, black ghosts and other special products. Are these mountain people going to the mountains to catch tigers for corvee labor? "

Zheng Shuqing said helplessly. He was full of bitterness, but now he had to talk to a young man. It was really difficult for him.Not to mention having to deal with stubborn people like Supervisor Yushi Fang Youde, the kind of idiot who studies dead books and takes dead orders to do things. On the surface, he is as clean as water. Even his son has only one servant and cannot eat well. Not well worn.

But his harm is no less than that of great greed.If Fang Youde is allowed to govern Kuizhou, the people of Kuizhou will definitely attack the government office and beat him to death!

"So, the envoy asked the people of Kuizhou to pay money, and then used the money to centrally purchase cloth from Shu and grain from Jingxiang?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a shocked look on his face.

"Otherwise, what do you think? This is Prime Minister Li's policy. You, a child with a yellow mouth, can think of it and feel a little proud."

Zheng Shuqing said angrily.

Fang Chongyong wasn't proud at all, his heart was full of bitterness.

He found that instead of finding a shortcut, he had become a clown.

Another express lane is blocked.

　Looking for further reading, asking for recommendations, caring for seedlings

　　


(End of this chapter)