I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 507: Tenant Rent
Shanyang County, Gaoping County.

More than ten days had passed since Wang Can met the people and complained about their grievances to Chenliu King Liu Xie.

After passing through Jiyin County, Wang Can came to his hometown.

Since he went to Luoyang with his father six years ago, Wang Can has not returned to his hometown. Now that he is close to his hometown, Wang Can is not sure whether he should go back. If he does not go back, he always feels it is too deliberate.

Now his whole family is in Luoyang, and most of those who stay in his hometown are uncles, nephews and nieces.

At this moment, Wang Can was telling the children in the tribe about his great achievements.

"Have you heard about the heroic deeds of the King of Chenliu in Chenliu some time ago? Let me tell you, I was there at the time!"

"When I was studying at Hongdu Gate, Prince Chenliu also treated me with courtesy and was quite familiar with me. He was only two or three years older than you..."

——"So how did the Prince of Chenliu entertain my uncle some time ago?"

"I was on official business and did not recognize the Prince of Chenliu."

——"So, it seems that my uncle is not as powerful as he says he is?"

Wang Can immediately explained eagerly: "What's the point of talking about the affairs of scholars and officials... A gentleman is loyal and chaste, how can he covet power?"

Just a few words made everyone present laugh, and the atmosphere was filled with joy.

As a result, Wang Can's clansmen all knew that Wang Can had offended someone he shouldn't have offended. Even his father Wang Qian couldn't help him, and the King of Chenliu didn't want to see him...

All the distant relatives and old friends who had originally heard that Wang Can was returning home and were preparing to visit him stopped in their tracks upon hearing the news.

Down and out, family.

“If you are poor in a busy city, no one will care about you; if you are rich in the mountains, you will have distant relatives.”

Listening to Wang Can's self-deprecating words, Wei Yan was somewhat puzzled: "Lord Wang, I once heard that if you don't return home when you are rich and powerful, it is like wearing brocade clothes and walking at night. You are only demoted in name only, and your future is bright. Why do you want to make yourself infamous at home?"

Wang Can heard this and smiled slightly: "Don't you think you have been much quieter these days, Mr. Wen?"

Wei Yan thought to himself: "It's peaceful now, but now everyone knows that you've fallen on hard times. Isn't that embarrassing?"

He didn't dare to complain about this in front of Wang Can.

But Wang Can seemed to see through his thoughts and said, "Those who abandon me now are all those who seek to curry favor with the powerful. What's the pity? Not to mention that I know that my talents will be put to good use in the future. Even if I really fall into poverty, I will be happy with it."

"As the saying goes, one should not be surprised by praise or criticism. Wen Chang, your cultivation is not up to par yet!"

Wei Yan couldn't help but complain in his heart: "How can you, a son of a wealthy family, understand the feelings of a poor man like me?"

However, when he looked at Wang Can's face and figure, which looked extremely ugly from any angle, he suddenly felt that Wang Can might really have this state of mind.

After teaching Wei Yan a lesson, Wang Can explained the real reason: "My father was the Minister of Guanglu before, and is now the Minister of Shaofu. If I don't do this, I'm afraid others will still think of me as the son of a minister with a bright future. Now I've only lost some reputation, but it can make people ignore me, so what's wrong with that?"

After hearing this, Wei Yan praised him, saying, "Your Excellency regards fame and honor as dirt for the sake of state affairs. You are truly a role model for our generation!"

If he had to bear the stigma in his hometown, he might not be able to do it.

Wang Can waved his hand and said, "It's not that exaggerated. With my talent, if I want to become famous, I just need to write an article that spreads all over the world."

Wei Yan:? ? ?
Looking at Wang Can's ugly face with a smile, his sandbag-sized fist suddenly felt itchy.

Wang Can seemed to sense a hint of murderous intent. He knew very well that when dealing with someone like Wei Yan, he needed to stop when he was ahead, so as to avoid irritating the other party and making him angry.

He then said, "Just looking at the situation in my tribe, how are the tenants living?"

When this topic was mentioned, Wei Yan's mouth twitched and he said, "As far as land rent is concerned, there are some kind people among your clan." Wang Can pursed his lips. He heard Wei Yan's voice-over - the rest who can't be called kind people...

"The long text is straightforward."

Wei Yan said: "Due to the different conditions of the tenants, the rent they pay is also different."

"If you provide your own oxen, farm tools, etc., the land rent should be no more than 50%. There is no fixed amount because of the different acreage of land. But I asked around and no one has exceeded 60%."

"As for those who want to rent oxen, they need to add another 10%."

"If you can't even afford farm tools and seeds, and you don't have a house... and only the people are alive, then you're generally 70 percent dead. But when you're in this situation, most people will look for opportunities to sell themselves into slavery. After last year, most of those who hadn't sold themselves into slavery went south."

Wei Yan concluded: "More than 50% of people have cattle, and more than 60% of people don't have cattle."

"No wonder Cai was able to produce a queen!"

They had previously visited Chenliu County and seen tenants cultivating Cai's land. Their rent was similar to that of the imperial court's military farms: 45% for those with cattle and 55% for those without. The extra 50% was a tax to be paid to the imperial court.

Wang Can felt a little embarrassed after hearing this.

He was still young when he left and didn't know much about the clan's land affairs.

When he first saw that the Cai family was doing so well, he thought that his Shanyang Wang family was also a prominent family in the county, a family of gentlemen who had been deeply influenced by poetry and etiquette. Even if they didn't do better than the Cai family, at least they weren't much worse!

But right now, it seems far from that.

It was the first time that Wei Yan saw Wang Can's frustrated expression. He could not help but observe it carefully and remember it in his heart. At the same time, he also comforted him: "Don't be too ashamed, this is not your fault."

"When I was in my hometown, even if I didn't have to rent oxen for farming, the rent for the land was still 60% or even more. At that time, there was also tax calculation and tax increase, which forced people to sell themselves into slavery. Now, about 60% is enough for people to survive."

To survive...

Wang Can suddenly felt that these four words were particularly harsh.

That day, he met the elders of the tribe.

"In the past, when my family moved to Luoyang, the family's land was handed over to the elders to manage." Wang Can announced very straightforwardly, "Now that the general trend is, the rent for the rented land can be reduced! As for the standard, it will be based on the Queen's family."

"Zhongxuan better reconsider it?"

"No, I've made up my mind!"

Seeing Wang Can's determined attitude, the elders criticized him bluntly: "Zhongxuan has never been a head of a household, so he doesn't know how hard it is to get grain... The tenants are not going to survive... Why waste the money and grain?"

"Has Zhongxuan discussed this with your father?"

"It's not the lack of land that is worrying, but the inequality. If the rent of your land is reduced, other tenants will know about it and will inevitably be dissatisfied..."

Wang Can waited for the elders to finish speaking, and then emphasized: "Let's do it this way! The rent for my family's land should be like this. As for father, I will write a letter to inform him."

Seeing that the elders were still unwilling to accept, Wang Can said, "I have offended the powerful people in Luoyang, but this does not mean that I am weak and can be bullied!"

The elders then remembered that even if Wang Can had offended someone and was demoted, he was still the Chief Secretary of Langya State, a height they would never be able to reach in their lifetime.

I just thought Wang Can was a stupid man with a lot of money and said nothing more.

Afterwards, Wang Can made a note in his little notebook.

(End of this chapter)