Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 397 Meeting on the West Lake Houseboat: Which group should be taxed?
Suzhou Prefecture.

After fully recovering, Li Yu began to review his previous policies.

He was busy with wars for a long time and neglected civil governance.

With the help of the favorable conditions brought by the Jiangbei Campaign, it is time to find out the gaps and fill them up.

When the news of the great victory came, the people of Wu were excited, all of them were filled with joy and looked forward to the future.

The important officials walked with a swift pace.
As the business grows, it becomes impossible to do everything by yourself.

Li Yu did not intend to be a 996 emperor, so he chose to delegate power.

……

Economic Minister Fan Jing looked worried.

There are 2 reasons.
First, the current fiscal situation is tight, and the taxable group cannot be expanded without violating Your Majesty's principles.

Second, his father-in-law, the old patriarch of the Fan family, does not have much time left.

West of the city, at the foot of Tianping Mountain.

The Fan family owned a manor of thousands of acres and countless paddy fields and mulberry fields.

On the sickbed,
The skinny old patriarch listened calmly to the details of the Jiangbei Battle, with a strange light flashing in his eyes.

Fan Jing married the daughter of the Fan family because Li Yu had arranged the marriage at random. His purpose was to force the Fan family to join the rebellion, although this was somewhat against the custom of not marrying people with the same surname.

But Jinkou said
Many people privately say,
If it were now, Your Majesty would never allow an important official from the Central Government to marry a Jiangnan family.

……

Only Fan Jing and several sons of the Fan family were by the bedside.

Among them is Fan Zhongmo, director of the Department of Agriculture, who is the fourth oldest.

"The Wu Kingdom is growing stronger and stronger, and it already has the strength to compete with the Qing Dynasty. My Fan family's investment is correct." At this point, the old man coughed for a while, then propped himself up and said softly, "Now that things have come to this, I have a few last words to tell you."

The sons knelt down one after another, looking sad.

"Your Majesty is a man of great talent and strategy, and he knows how to use people well. Xinyue Xiong is even more magnanimous. This is very rare~"

"As long as you don't do things behind His Majesty's back, I think you will have a lot of wealth and glory. After I die, Boss, you will take over as the clan leader."

The eldest son, Fan Chengmo, looked up in surprise.

The brothers around were even more surprised.

Because Fan Chengmo is a "rabbit", and a rabbit that has been fooled by His Majesty.

He is the patriarch?

The old man looked around:
"Ok, deal."

"Second brother, you are smart, go do some business."

"Yes."

"Third brother, you are a casual person who likes to make friends, so you should be responsible for collecting rent from the family's land."

"Yes."

……

The old man picked up the ginseng soup beside the couch, gulped it down, then leaned against the couch and said something surprising:
"The Kong family of Qufu must not be allowed to stay."

Everyone was stunned, and Fan Jing couldn't help but look at the old man, thinking that his time was up and he started talking nonsense.

The old man looked at the roof.

Said in a low voice:

"Your Majesty hates corrupt Confucianism, and everyone knows it. But Your Majesty may not be able to really abolish Confucianism. Whether you abolish it or not, some things cannot be changed."

"The reputation of the Kong family in Qufu is incomparable to that of the Fan family in Gusu. Your Majesty's greatest enemy is the Aisin-Gioro clan, and the greatest enemy of the Fan family is the Kong family."

The old man's eyes were crazy, and he repeated again and again:
"Remember what I said. You must find a way to persuade His Majesty to kill all the Kong family. If the Kong family is not killed, the Wu Kingdom will not be at peace. Otherwise, if the Kong family escapes this disaster and turns over, my Fan family will have no future."

"The theoretical system for assisting the emperor is very narrow, so narrow that it can only accommodate one family. What my Fan family can provide, his Kong family can also provide."

"Don't underestimate the Kong family. When it comes to shamelessness, flexibility, and the creation of a theoretical system, I, the Fan family, can't catch up with them even if I flatter them~"

……

Fan Jing took a step forward.
Said in a low voice:

"You mean, the situation will change by then. In order to survive, the Kong family of Qufu might abandon Confucianism and rush to become your Majesty's vanguard?"

"It even makes Your Majesty hesitate to act rashly, or it is quite useful?"

The old man nodded.

Seeing that everyone was quite unconvinced, he could not help pounding the bed and raising his voice:
"Don't think it's impossible! If you live long enough, you will understand that nothing is impossible in this world!"

Fan Chengmo quickly expressed his opinion:
"Son, you will remember your father's words until you die."

The old man sighed and pointed to the box next to him:
"It's my manuscript inside. After copying it, I will send the original manuscript to Your Majesty. Just say that it is me, Mr. Fan, who is loyal to the court for the last time~"

"Okay, everyone go out, I want some quiet time."

Mr. Fan's eyes widened.

The experiences of this life are like a book flipping in the wind, appearing before my eyes at a rapid speed, faster and faster, until the sky collapses and the earth collapses.

1 quarters of an hour later,
The Fan family suddenly burst into extremely loud crying.

The servants immediately took out various funeral supplies that had been prepared long ago and arranged them in order.

The wealthy and powerful families all have a group of special servants who are responsible for handling weddings and funerals, ensuring that everything is done perfectly and that etiquette is followed.

……

Fan Jing left early in his carriage.
He was very puzzled by his father-in-law's last words about "Kong".

No matter how he thought about it, he still couldn't convince himself to believe the shocking statement that "nothing is impossible in this world."

Maybe,

Is it because I am not old enough? Have I not seen enough?
He shook his head and decided to do something big first - change the tax rate!
When the land was first opened,

He set a fixed tax rate for the merchants under his rule, which won over their hearts.

now,

All the businessmen from Jiangsu and Zhejiang are making a lot of money. Those who make two or three times their money are losers, and there are many who make 10 or 20 times their money!

Fan Jing couldn't tolerate collecting that pitiful commercial tax according to the previous fixed tax rate for the industry!

Although His Majesty did not speak,
However, the ministers should take the initiative to do such things and bear the blame.

……

Hangzhou West Lake is a place of prosperity and dance.

The huge, brand new pleasure boat is breathtakingly magnificent.

More than 20 representative merchants from more than 50 prefectures including Songjiang, Changzhou, Huizhou, Huzhou, Hangzhou, Ningbo and others boarded the ship.

These people also have another identity: "Councilor of this government."

They attach great importance to this semi-official status and can now go out freely.

It is impossible for a situation to occur where a mere 9th-rank inspector would arrest someone and close down the shop.

"We are here to see Master Fan~"

"No courtesy, sit down."

Everyone stood up quickly.

When meeting an official below the rank of minister, a counselor can just bow. But when meeting a minister, one still has to kneel.

The merchants are already very content.
After all, no one is arrogant enough to think that he can sit down and discuss matters with ministers.

……

"How is the father-in-law?"

"Master Fan has come from afar, and my humble city of Hangzhou is honored."

Zhao Lixia and Fan Jing exchanged greetings and were extremely polite.

At last,
He sat under Fan Jing's left hand, matching his status.

Beyond the mountains, there are green mountains, beyond the buildings, when will the singing and dancing in West Lake stop?
In such occasions, everyone naturally wants to enjoy singing and dancing and drink some wine.

Everyone knows that Fan Jing’s visit must be for something big.

but,

Everyone remained patient and communicated in harmony.

After three rounds of drinking,

Zhao Lixia raised his glass and asked everyone's question:
"I wonder what important matter Master Fan has summoned us businessmen for?"

A Huzhou businessman who was making a lot of money from frying raw silk nearby quickly joined in the fun:
"We are grateful for your majesty's kindness. Now that Jiangbei has won a great victory, if you need to donate military pay, it is naturally our responsibility. Lord Fan, please ask, and we will do our best to meet your needs."

……

Fan Jing raised his glass from a distance and drank the wine in it.

The pleasure boat became quiet.

A nearby pleasure boat received the signal and immediately left with dozens of dancers on board.

The main event is coming.

Under the gaze of dozens of eyes, Fan Jing picked up a piece of vinegar fish with chopsticks and praised it insincerely:
“This fish tastes good.”

Everyone's heart skipped a beat.

Damn, such a good appetite? How much silver do you want?

Those present here can easily collect 0 or million taels without any complaints. You can't add a zero at the end.
Fan Jing drank another glass of wine:

"This wine is paired with vinegar fish, it tastes quite good."

Everyone laughed and quickly offered a drink. …

Another Ningbo merchant couldn't help but throw out some ideas:
"We merchants are grateful for your majesty's kindness. If the court is short of military pay, just tell us the number and we will be grateful."

Fan Jing still did not give a direct answer, but picked up another piece of vinegar fish with chopsticks.

The sharp-eyed people noticed that Mr. Fan grabbed the fish belly~
Not good!

Everyone present was a smart person and had rich associations.

My heart is so heavy.

I'm afraid the water in West Lake is not deep enough~
After all, Zhao Lixia is the father-in-law of the country. He coughed twice and decided to speak for the group.

"Master Fan, why don't you just speak frankly?"

"Everyone present here is a loyal official of the Wu Kingdom who understands the greater good. I am not bragging, but who in the Wu Kingdom is the most loyal to Your Majesty? It must be us, the merchants, big and small."

The crowd echoed in a chaotic manner,

The current order in the Wu State is the best order they can think of.

I have searched through all 24 histories and cannot find anything better.

……

Fan Jing put down his wine glass and sighed deeply.

Dozens of businessmen felt their hearts turn cold in an instant, and they wanted to jump into the lake together.

But I heard this sentence:
"I would like to change the current fixed commercial tax."

It was quiet, with only the sound of the lake water.

"How do you want to change it, Lord Fan? But is it His Majesty's will?"

"No, no. I have never asked for permission from Your Majesty. This is purely a personal act." Fan Jing denied it flatly. "Everyone, now our Wu Kingdom is thriving, the situation is improving by leaps and bounds, and the situation is very good. The fixed commercial tax can no longer keep up with the current situation. If we stick to the old ways, I am afraid we will be ridiculed."

"Please make it clear, sir."

"Taxes are collected based on the number of employees, and can be increased or decreased at any time every month."

Fan Jing waved his hand, and his entourage came forward to distribute information to each seat, obviously coming prepared.

On paper,

There is a striking line of large characters: "Fixed commercial tax to floating commercial tax", followed by "draft" in parentheses.

……

Fan Jing stopped talking, stood up and walked to the bow of the boat to enjoy the scenery of West Lake.

Taihu Lake is too big, and you can’t see the whole picture even from the top of Piaomiao Peak. West Lake is neither too big nor too small, just right.

There are mountains, but they are not high.

There is a dike, beautiful.

Famous, literary name.

After all, time flies, emperors and generals eventually turn to dry bones, and glorious dynasties are nothing but legends.

In the end, only articles and poems are passed down from generation to generation and never disappear.

If he could be buried by the West Lake after his death, Fan Jing would rather exchange it for the title of "Duke".

In a flash,

He thought of Mr. Pan from Pingjiang Road, who came to his rescue in exchange for half of the West Lake as his reward?
Putting conscience aside, shouldn’t the rate of return be tens of thousands of times?
There is a house owned by the former governor of Hangzhou by the lake, covering an area of ​​100 acres and with a private garden. Li Yu secretly passed on the decree to award it to the son of the Pan family. Not many people know about this.
……

Zhao Lixia read the draft word by word.

Fan Jing’s idea was quite novel: to collect taxes based on the number of employees and their monthly wages!

E.g,

一个棉纺工厂，雇佣了1000名女工。600人拿2两月银，350人拿3两月银，剩余50人拿4两月银。

The total wages paid by this factory per month is 2450 taels.

According to the tax rate of 3%, 735 taels of commercial tax were collected.

If the number of workers changes next month, the total wages will fluctuate according to the new total wages.

At first glance, the loophole is huge.

You can underreport the number of workers and their wages.

but,

Fan Jing naturally thought of it and specifically noted the "Implementation Measures for Employment Contracts" in the supplementary terms.

Hire workers,

A labor contract printed by the Wu State Labor Bureau must be provided in duplicate with signatures and seals.

When retiring,

The resignation contract must be signed in duplicate.

……

A bronze plaque is hung at the factory gate.

Bronze engraving:

If a contract is not signed or a hidden contract is used, workers can report it to the authorities regardless of whether they make a profit or not.

After verification,
Severe penalties will be imposed. If one person is underreported, a fine of 1 taels of silver will be imposed. If one person is underreported, a fine of 500 taels of silver will be imposed. The informant can also receive a 1% rebate.

Such measures are enough to eliminate scoundrels.

Zhao Lixia is very smart.

He was amazed by the ingenious design of this draft.

When business is good, more workers are hired.

When business is bad, fewer workers are hired.

Hiring experienced workers pays more, while hiring new workers pays less. So, this makes sense.

In an era without information technology,
Fan Jing has reached the ceiling for thinking this far.

In fact, he has a hidden purpose.
This forced these businessmen to introduce various types of machines and upgrade their technology.

After all, machines are not taxed.

Although Fan Jing didn't understand what industrialization was, he had heard His Majesty talk about it too many times.

……

The above is for production industries. Fan Jing has not yet figured out how to accurately levy taxes on trading businesses.

It must be both reasonable and feasible.

Think of baldness.

No matter what, let’s implement it first.

The businessmen began to talk in low voices. They were all shrewd people, able to speak directly and see the pros and cons clearly.

A tea merchant from southern Anhui said:
"We earn 1000 taels and pay 2 taels to the court. This is not a good thing in the long run, it will be a disaster."

“It’s better to pay taxes than to donate.”

"I think it's acceptable. In business, both sides should make concessions. A business where one party eats the meat and the other drinks the soup cannot last long and will end sooner or later."

The businessmen seemed quite reasonable, but they were also afraid.

His Majesty was reasoning with you but you didn't listen, and when His Majesty overturned the table, you didn't even have time to cry.

Be human,

The most important thing is to know the times!
……

After a while,
Fan Jing returned to the cabin:

"Everyone, is there anything wrong with my draft?"

Everyone stood up in unison and bowed:
"I am willing to accept it."

Fan Jing felt relieved, and the two sides had a cordial and friendly conversation again, and also clarified some minor issues.

E.g,

The land required to open a factory is rented annually at 2 taels per mu.

The imperial court also established corresponding institutions as soon as possible, following the example of the "Xujiang Industrial Park" and pursuing centralization.

E.g,

Carding - Spinning - Grey cloth - Printing and dyeing - Garment

This is the entire process of making clothes.

It would be much easier if we all opened together.

of course,

If you have the financial strength, you can directly open up the entire chain and do all the upstream and downstream.

……

The trip to Hangzhou ended successfully, and Fan Jing went to Ningbo Port with great interest.

He wants to know,

To what extent has the maritime trade here developed!
after that,

He sailed northward, entered the inland river from Jinshanwei, Songjiang Prefecture, and finally arrived at Suzhou Prefecture. He reported the results of his trip to Zhejiang to His Majesty in detail.

Your Majesty can't wait to make Jiangnan the center of global maritime trade.

Every ounce of tea sold to London, every piece of Suzhou embroidery sold to Paris, and every porcelain plate sold to Boston will turn into bullets, whistling towards the enemies of the Wu State!
Li Yu was preparing to solve the last problem:
Received thousands of stranded Saxon Royal Navy and two kidnapped delegation members.

(End of this chapter)