Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Miaoyu rolled her eyes at Jia Cong and said softly, "Crabs are cold in nature, so you should eat less."

"No matter how cold the crabs are, they can't suppress my enthusiasm." Jia Cong smiled and raised his eyebrows at her.

Miaoyu bit her lip, not daring to look at the people sitting at the same table. She felt her heart beating wildly, and secretly cursed Lecher hundreds of times, saying some crazy things in front of everyone.

The girls seemed unaware and continued chatting, laughing and drinking.

Jia Cong knew Miaoyu was young, so he stopped teasing her and whispered, "When will we do our business?"

"What's the matter?" Miaoyu was secretly angry and ignored him.

"Life Events."

"Bah, if you keep talking nonsense to me, I'm leaving." Miaoyu quietly stepped on his foot under the table.

"Okay, okay, I should follow the example of Tang Xuanzang, who went through 81 difficulties before obtaining the true scriptures. Amitabha, my Buddhist name is Sese, please give me some advice, Master." Jia Cong said.

Miaoyu couldn't help laughing, and quickly pursed her lips and spat, "Don't insult Master Sanzang, what a weird Dharma name."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "The Buddhist scriptures say that form is not different from emptiness, emptiness is not different from form, form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Your Dharma name has a great origin."

Everyone at the table laughed, except Xichun, who disagreed and secretly complained, "What do you know about Buddhism? You can only lie to girls."

Miaoyu felt ashamed and angry, so she gave him a fierce look and ignored him.

Jia Cong laughed, turned to Xing Xiuyan and said, "Sister Xiuyan, are you used to living in the capital? Well, you are not a child anymore, I will help you find a good marriage.

Whatever kind of young man you like, I will find him for you and I guarantee you will be satisfied."

Even though Xing Xiuyan was a carefree person with an indifferent personality, she could not stand Jia Cong's fierce words, and said coquettishly, "Are you drunk, Third Brother? Why are you talking in such a rustic way?"

Jia Cong said with a smile: "Men should get married when they are old enough, and women should get married when they are old enough. There is nothing to be embarrassed about. Look, didn't I arrange a good marriage for Baoyu? We are all family, so don't be polite."

It would have been better if he hadn't said it. After he said it, everyone couldn't help but burst out laughing and quickly covered their mouths.

"What jokes are you telling over there? Tell them out loud so we can all laugh together." Lady Jia heard it, looked over and laughed.

The girls glared at Jia Cong and blamed him for his nonsense.

Jia Cong said loudly: "Nothing, we are talking about finding an opportunity to go to Suzhou in the future, and Master Miaoyu will treat us to eat hairy crabs."

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Okay, I'll go too. I haven't tasted Yangcheng Lake crabs for decades."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Great! Next year, the old lady will celebrate her 80th birthday. We will go to Suzhou to hold it. It will be a good opportunity to entertain the old relatives from the noble families in Jinling."

Grandmother Jia was even happier. Her child was born on the third day of August, which was close to the season for eating crabs. If she could invite her old relatives from Jinling to join in the fun, it would be a great comfort to her life.

"Master Miaoyu, we are sorry to bother you." Grandmother Jia said to Miaoyu with a smile.

Miaoyu was slightly embarrassed and said, "What are you saying, old lady? I have lived in your mansion for the past few years and have been taken care of by you. If I could repay you a little, I would be very happy."

"Okay, if you can go to Suzhou, you can also visit Min'er's grave." Grandmother Jia sighed again. Seeing that her mood suddenly turned low, everyone hurried to comfort her.

Miaoyu whispered, "You are good at treating me. I wonder if my ancestral home is still there."

Jia Cong chuckled and said, "I have already ordered people to repair your house and expand it greatly. I guarantee that our family can accommodate everyone. Especially our house, it is carefully built. This is called preparing for a rainy day."

Miaoyu blushed and lowered her head, cursing the vile guy inwardly.

As they were talking and laughing, a maid came to report that Granny Liu from last year had come.

Grandmother Jia was overjoyed and hurriedly asked him to come in.

Yuanyang quickly agreed and took two maids to welcome her in person.

Baoqin, Xing Xiuyan and other people who didn't know the man all asked about it, and everyone explained to them with a smile.

Before she could finish, Yuanyang came in with a thin, capable and energetic old country lady. It was Liu Laolao.

Jia Cong stood up to greet her and asked with a smile, "Grandma, are you still healthy?"

Granny Liu smiled and said, "Thanks to God's great blessing, I am still able to work." As she said this, she was about to kneel down and kowtow.

Jia Cong rushed forward to support her, and said with a smile: "Grandma is the elder, how can we do this? Come and sit with the old lady." Then he led her to Jia's grandmother's table.

Grandmother Jia also smiled and said, "Come quickly and sit next to me. My grandson got married yesterday, and I finally feel relieved. I just want to find an old man to talk to.

Granny Liu smiled and said, "That's right. I found out late when I was in the country. I just heard about the big wedding in the mansion, and I didn't have time to prepare. I hurried here and prepared some red dates, peanuts, longans and lotus seeds. I wish Master Bao and Madam Bao to have a son soon, and may they have many children and be blessed with good fortune." As she spoke, she took off the bag on her back.

Yuanyang hurriedly took it.

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Come if you want to. You've even given me something to thank you for your kindness. This is my granddaughter-in-law, the daughter of the Duke of Anguo, Xiao. This is our old relative, Granny Liu."

"Hello, Granny Liu." Li Xiao quickly stood up and greeted her.

Granny Liu looked up and saw a female Vajra. She was startled, but her wrinkled face broke into a smile. She hurriedly supported her and said, "No, no, the Second Madam is a lady from a wealthy family. How can a peasant afford to bear this?"

Tsk tsk, no wonder she is a lady from the Duke's Mansion. She is so elegant and graceful. No other small family could afford her. Only your mansion can match her.

No wonder I dreamed last night that the village land master said, "You will get some good fortune from the golden boy and jade girl when you go there, and you will be able to find a grandson's wife who will bring good luck to her husband in the future."

Li Xiao shyly stepped back, and Jia's mother pulled her and smiled, saying, "My dear, I appreciate your kind words. I will offer you a cup of wine."

Jia Cong smiled, Granny Liu was still as talkative as ever. Only Baoyu secretly complained, "Look, she brings good luck to her husband, I'll give her to your grandson."

Granny Liu took the wine and drank it in one gulp. She said a little embarrassedly, "Country folks don't have anything to offer you. I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, old lady."

Grandmother Jia said, "What are you talking about? Your kindness makes me happier than bringing in mountains of gold and silver. How is your family?"

Granny Liu smiled and said, "Very good! Thanks to Master Cong's grace, Ban'er became Master Huan's personal soldier. He is also very honest. He keeps all the monthly salary and sends it back home. We have built a new house and bought a calf and a mule. Our life is getting better and better."

Everyone nodded with a smile, and Yuanyang next to them said with a smile: "Grandma, you are in the countryside and don't have much information. Master Cong is now a prince."

Granny Liu kept her eyes fixed on him, and she uttered an "ah" and hurriedly called out "God of Heaven". She was about to stand up and kowtow to Jia Cong, saying repeatedly: "I have eyes but cannot recognize the true Buddha. I pay my respects to His Majesty, may His Majesty live a thousand years."

Jia Cong hurriedly ordered someone to help her along, and said with a smile, "Why is Granny Liu here again? It's fine if others call me Prince, but I won't be happy if you call me Prince. Let's stick to the old way of addressing me, Brother Cong, and I'll be happy."

Granny Liu waved her hands and said, "How can I do this? I am not afraid of thunder. I cannot do this. Even the Bodhisattva will not agree to this."

Grandmother Jia also advised with a smile: "Just listen to him. Cong'er is not as frivolous as other children. Just call him Cong'er, it will appear more intimate." The girls also advised with a smile.

Granny Liu reluctantly said, "Then I will risk my reputation. Please don't be offended, ladies, grandmothers, young ladies, and gentlemen."

"That's better." Everyone laughed.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Now that the court is implementing new laws, grandma's life in the countryside will become more and more prosperous. If Ban'er becomes successful in the future, it will be even better."

Granny Liu pursed her lips and laughed dryly, "Third Master is right. We country folk are all grateful for the grace of the court."

Seeing that she looked unnatural, Jia Cong asked hurriedly, "Does grandma have any hidden secrets? Feel free to tell me."

"No, no, everything is fine at home." Granny Liu waved her hands quickly.

Seeing her bitter expression, Jia Cong could see the problem, so he smiled and said, "Grandma, don't try to fool me, but is there something wrong at home?
But it doesn't matter if you tell me. Since we are relatives, we should help each other. If you hide it from me, it seems like you look down on me."

Granny Liu hurriedly said with a smile: "My brother, you are joking. There is really nothing to worry about at home. Last year, thanks to the reward from the old lady, the third master, the grandmothers and the young ladies, our family also bought 20 to 30 mu of land, and we can live quite well.

Now Wang Gou'er wants to sell the land and become a tenant again...Alas, every family has its own problems. It's hard to make the men and women laugh at it. Farmers can't get up. "

Grandmother Jia was surprised and asked, "Why is that? Everyone wants to buy land. Once you buy the land, it's yours. You can manage it however you want and pass it down to your descendants. But if you rent the land, it's always owned by someone else. The landlord can give or take it away at will. Who wouldn't want to be a landlord and want to be a tenant farmer?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Sister Feng explained to Jia Cong in a low voice: "Wang Gou'er is grandma's son-in-law."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It's not as nice as your name."

"Pooh." Wang Xifeng spat at him unhappily and said, "After all, he is still my nephew."

"So you and grandma are of the same generation? I'm so disrespectful." Jia Cong said jokingly.

"Stop interrupting and listen to grandma." Feng Jieer smiled and pushed him.

Granny Liu said, "What the old lady said is reasonable. Wang Gou'er had no choice but to do it. We are a small family. If we have some land, it will attract vicious dogs. It would be better to have nothing."

Jia Cong asked, "But are the clerks in the government office difficult to deal with?"

Granny Liu said, "The officials didn't do anything wrong, but they just collected too much taxes. We can't afford it."

Jia Cong was stunned and said, "The new law of the court stipulates that the tax is distributed according to the land, and the surplus is returned to the public. How can there be any exorbitant taxes? Even the head tax is exempted."

Granny Liu shook her head and said, "We don't know what Third Master is talking about. I heard that the gentry did pay more land taxes, but we ordinary people paid as well. The head tax is gone, but the land tax has increased. So, in fact, we have paid more."

"How could this be?" Jia Cong was shocked. Is this new law a scam? Impossible. He had promoted it in Liaodong before and it worked very well. There must be something wrong down there.

He hurriedly asked, "Grandma, the purpose of the new law is that those with more land should pay more, those with less land should pay less, and those with no land should pay nothing. How much can your family pay with only 20 or 30 acres of land? How much tax do you pay per acre of land now?"

Granny Liu counted on her fingers and said, "The government said that the usual practice is to collect three cents of silver per mu, and add three cents and three cents per cent."

"What do you mean?" Jia Cong asked Baochai hurriedly.

Baochai explained: "It means to collect one penny of silver per mu of land."

"That's not high." Jia Cong frowned and said, "Does our family also pay taxes based on this amount for our land?"

Daiyu nodded and said, "That's right. This is the constant value approved by the Ministry of Revenue. It varies according to whether the land is irrigated or dry. On average, one coin of tax is levied per mu of land."

Jia Cong was surprised and asked, "So your family's twenty or thirty acres of land is only worth two or three taels of silver a year. What is it worth?"

Granny Liu waved her hands again and again and said, "It's far more than that. If it were really that many, we would have to burn incense and kowtow to the Emperor every day."

"Anything else?" Jia Cong asked.

"In addition, local governments will levy additional taxes on large-scale construction projects such as building bridges and roads, digging canals and building ponds. The tax has increased tenfold from one penny to one tael of silver," said Liu Laolao.

All the women exclaimed, the tax was a bit heavy.

"Huh?" Jia Cong was also a little bit unbelievable, and looked at Daiyu hurriedly, saying: "Could it be that our family has also paid so much?"

Daiyu shook her head and said, "I've never heard of adding taxes."

Granny Liu said with a smile, "Third Master, your family is of such high status that how dare you send a dog to disturb us? That's like a chicken hitting a stone."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "That's right, grandma, go on. Are you going to sell your land just because of the 20 or 30 taels of tax every year?"

Granny Liu shook her head and said, "If it were just that, we could still bear it if we gritted our teeth, but this kind of extra payment happens more than once a year, at least 10 to 20 times.

We have to pay a hundred taels of tax every year, which is like a crutch. We can't support ourselves anymore.

Nowadays, in the countryside, a family with ten acres of land cannot support ten people, and many people would rather sell their land and become tenant farmers to avoid being apportioned. "

Everyone was silent. It was obvious that what Granny Liu described was completely different from the world they had imagined.

Jia Cong took a breath and said, "What is the reason for allocating the money?"

Granny Liu said: "Speaking of the yamen, there are many things to do. The peasants have to pay for the errands, the government office, the post horses, the watering, the doormen, the long-term servants, the clerks, the yamen runners, and the sedan chair.

The village baojia and village headmen also borrowed money from the official and private sectors, and deducted all the money for their own use, such as buying land, repairing houses, food, and clothing, from the tax money.

It is not easy for farmers to dig for food in the soil. How can they afford to work hard for a year to barely support their families? "

Jia Cong said: "If that's the case, then don't the people who buy your land have to pay these heavy taxes? They have more land, so won't they be even more overburdened?"

"How could that be possible?" said Granny Liu. "The officials in the government office are all very clear-headed and prudent. The grain collectors dare not chase after the prominent gentry in the village, and the head of the village dare not visit their homes.

The government just collects more taxes from those who are easy to control and less taxes from those who are difficult to deal with. On the contrary, the big landlords and gentry don't have to pay much tax.

So we sell the land to him, and we can raise some chickens, ducks, pigs and dogs to make some money. Although we have to pay rent, it is much less than paying taxes, and we can still save some money after working hard for a year.

This will benefit both families, but the land cannot be sold at a high price, and who asked us to beg him to buy it?"

Jia Cong nodded slowly and said, "I know about this. Grandma, you don't have to rush to sell the land. The court has its own laws to deal with such harsh policies, and the people will not suffer."

"Okay, I'll listen to you, brother." Granny Liu was very happy, finally she was worthy of the trust of the young and old men in the village. (End of this chapter)