The Great Han Dynasty: From Feng Lang Juxu to the Eternal Emperor

Chapter 442 Taxation Problems

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had no expression on his face, suppressing all the anger in his heart, and compromised for the first time: "How should we deal with it now?"

"You three provinces can give me a solution!"

The three provinces suggested asking the crown prince, but Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty insisted that the three provinces come up with a solution.

In the end, only through diplomatic means, the sixteen countries in the Western Region could return all this batch of armor.

But no one knows whether the sixteen countries in the Western Region will return the armor.

Li Guangli was severely reprimanded and his position was not reduced. It seemed that the matter ended there.

After everyone left the Qilin Hall, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty covered his forehead with a splitting headache.

After a while, the pain eased a little, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty fell into deep thought.

He did not expect that Weining's influence in the court had reached such a high level that all the officials seemed to be leaning towards him.

Of course, he pushed it up bit by bit with his own hands!

But I can pull him down little by little!
He wanted to see when Wei Ning would come to admit his mistake and apologize to him.

……

Ministry of Household Affairs, there has been a problem with commercial taxation recently. When local households increased commercial tax collection, it was obvious that the amount they collected was not much different from when they had no bills.

In other words, even if the Ministry of Household Affairs has implemented tax reforms, they still have not reached the ideal level.

They didn't know what the problem was, so they reported the matter to the Ministry of Revenue. All the officials in the Ministry of Revenue were also thinking hard, but they still couldn't figure out the reason.

Sang Hongyang went to the East Palace with his hands behind his back to ask for a meeting with Weining. The tax reform was almost planned by Weining at the beginning, but now that he encountered problems, the only person Sang Hongyang could ask for advice was Weining.

Unfortunately, the servants in the East Palace told Sang Hongyang that the prince had no power to interfere in government affairs now, so he should let Sang Hongyang go find the emperor.

Sang Hongyang was helpless. He didn't know what Wei Ning was thinking. If he continued to be so angry, wouldn't he be afraid that his position as crown prince would be replaced by someone else?

It's not that Weining hasn't thought about this.

Zhang Tang was his, Huo Guang was his, and almost all officials in the court were his.

It was not easy for Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to touch him. Even if he was replaced by a prince, as long as he did not die, he could still control the country!

……

Sang Hongyang went to Weiyang Palace, found Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and informed Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty about the tax issue of the Ministry of Household Affairs.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was furious and said: "You ask me? You are an official of the Ministry of Revenue. You should know better than me which link there is a problem with."

"You ask me now, how can I solve it for you?"

Sang Hongyang hurriedly clasped his fists and said: "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness was responsible for the original commercial tax planning. If there is a problem, His Highness must be more aware of it."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty said angrily: "Then you go to the East Palace to find him! Why are you coming to me?"

Sang Hongyang said: "His Highness no longer manages government affairs. I went to see him, but His Highness sent him away."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's chest was heaving, and his face was terrifyingly gloomy. He said to Sang Hongyang: "Go to the East Palace! Tell him that I asked you to go there!"

Sang Hongyang nodded and said: "I obey the order!"

Not long after, Sang Hongyang came to the East Palace again.

When he confessed that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked him to come, the gate of the East Palace was opened.

Sang Hongyang found Weining and saw that Weining had become much more cheerful recently and seemed to be more relaxed.

Only then did he suddenly realize that all the previous political pressure was on Weining, which shows how heavy the burden was on Weining.

Now that the burden has been removed, I feel much more relaxed.

Sang Hongyang's eyes were complicated. He did not directly ask about the household affairs. Instead, he asked: "How long does Your Highness plan to do this?"

Weining: "?"

"What do you mean?" Sang Hongyang said: "There is no overnight feud between father and son. All we have to do is go to His Majesty and make it clear."

Wei Ning shook his head and said, "I don't have any grudges, and I don't want to talk about it."

"I'm relaxed now."

Sang Hongyang asked: "If the prince is lost, can he still be relaxed?"

Wei Ning said: "Perhaps it is easier. I have devoted myself to this country and your Majesty's health. I have no regrets."

"I didn't do anything wrong."

Sang Hongyang said: "I know that Your Highness is right, but how can we judge matters between family members in terms of right and wrong?"

"As an heir, you should understand the difficulties of being a father no matter what."

Wei Ning pressed his hands and said to Sang Hongyang: "Master Sang, if you come to tell me this, then there is no need to say it. I have something to do."

Sang Hongyang quickly stopped Weining and said, "Your Highness, there is a problem with commercial taxation."

"The commercial taxes collected after last year's reform are not much different from before. We can't find where the problem lies."

Wei Ning was stunned for a moment and asked Sang Hongyang, "Have all the local household officials verified the profits?"

Sang Hongyang said: "Everything has been verified, there is no problem."

Wei Ning frowned and said to Sang Hongyang: "Go and show me the business profits of some local households."

"It's just empty talk that we can't find the problem."

Sang Hongyang nodded and said: "Your Highness, wait a moment, I'll be back as soon as I go."

Sang Hongyang quickly returned to the household department and randomly brought over the account books of several local household officials.

Wei Ning carefully looked at the tax account books of several local households in the study room of the East Palace.

There is no problem with the account books, the income and expenditure are clearly written, and there are no problems with the documents.

The question is, why are these commercial units so rarely profitable?
Wei Ning thought for a while and said to Sang Hongyang: "Bring me the receipts for all income and expenses."

Sang Hongyang said: "Your Highness, wait a moment."

Not long after, he brought two clerks from the household department and came to Weining carrying the documents.

Wei Ning checked the documents against the account books. After looking at them for a while, Wei Ning put down the account books and documents and fell into deep thought.

There is no problem with income bills, and there is no problem with expenditure bills. The bills cannot be faked. The government has its own defense label, and the private sector cannot fake it.

These bills are all genuine and have been verified by the Ministry of Accounts.

So where does the problem arise?

Weining couldn't think of a reason for a while, but he was sure there must be something wrong.

Sang Hongyang sat aside and waited quietly for Wei Ning.

I don't know how long it took, but Wei Ning suddenly discovered something. He asked Sang Hongyang, "Do you have any money with you?"

Sang Hongyang said: "I brought dozens of coins."

"Give me ten coins."

Sang Hongyang sent Weining ten cents. Weining wrote on the paper that he would receive one hundred cents from Sang Hongyang, and then gave Sang Hongyang a receipt.

He glanced at Sang Hongyang and said, "Do you know where the problem lies now?"

Sang Hongyang was stunned for a long time, then he suddenly came to his senses and said, "So that's what happened!"

"They are issuing false documents!"

"These large-value documents can be used as cost offsets. In this way, many businesses can avoid paying taxes!"

(End of this chapter)