Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 439 Chen Minggang's Abacus

Chen Ming just thanked him and sat down, his eyes flicked on Xiong Buyou's face.

"Master Xiong, please speak if you have something to say."

"Old Ba!" Xiong Buyou also used Wang Zhaomin's name to show his affection, but at the same time, he did not demean himself.You must know that the gentry in the county also have to call him "Old Ba".

"I have something, you have to tell me the truth." Xiong Buyou got straight to the point--in terms of the communication skills of the two parties, it is easier to communicate straight to the point.

He repeated Wang Zhaomin's request, and then asked, "What's wrong with the county's autumn grain collection?"

"Of course there are questions." Chen Minggang seemed to have expected this question a long time ago.His calm expression told Xiong Buyou that he knew about this a long time ago.

"Master Xiong, does Australia also collect food?" Chen Minggang asked.

"Imperial grain and national taxes are everywhere in the world. Australia is no exception." Although the agricultural tax was abolished in this time and space, it was only abolished for a few years.

"Master Xiong knows how Australia collects grain," Chen Minggang asked, "What are the disadvantages?"

Naturally, Xiong Buyou didn't know about it. Presumably, the government would abolish the agricultural tax. Benefiting farmers is one aspect, and one of the reasons is to cancel the disadvantages of disturbing farmers.I had to say: "I don't know much about this, maybe there are."

"That's it. There are difficulties in each line." Chen Minggang spoke very calmly, "Take Daming as an example, two Fus in summer and autumn every year are the main items of the imperial court. However, there are always some unruly people in each county who are stubborn Come on, if the county chased him tighter, he would abandon the fields and flee to another country. The county magistrate should not chase too closely for the sake of performance..."

This is very different from what Xiong Buyou heard about Ming Dynasty taxation in the Ming Dynasty social situation lecture.Besides, would the big tax-paying households just throw away their land and flee?After thinking about it, the lecture on social conditions in the Ming Dynasty talked about the disadvantages of the system. Chen Minggang was one of the biggest beneficiaries of the system. How could he speak ill of the system?Let's listen first and then speak.

"The number of households in the county is the county magistrate's performance appraisal. If there are fewer household registrations during the term of office, the performance evaluation will not look good. Therefore, it is inconvenient to investigate such troublesome people. How much you pay is how much you pay."

"The gentry in the county, don't they just pay the grain?"

Chen Minggang nodded: "Master Xiong's question is on the point. According to the rules of this dynasty, the gentry naturally have the benefit of being free of food, but the gentry inevitably used this preferential treatment from the court to 12 points. A few stones are exempted. More than a dozen stones, free of dozens of stones, free of hundreds of stones. Mr. Xiong must have heard of Guiji."

Xiong Buyou recalled his study materials and nodded, he understood a little bit.

"Has anyone recently offered land to the nobles?"

"That's not true." Xiong Buyou, as the main person who deals with the locals, should report this kind of news to him according to regulations.

"It's coming soon. On the eve of the autumn grain levy, people will probably come. Master Wu is worried about this, so he asked Master Wang to come and talk to Master Xiong."

"So that's how it is!" Xiong Buyou fully understood that the county was most afraid of a group of "tricksters" who would rely on the power of the crossing group and not pay the autumn grain, so they hurriedly asked Wang Zhaomin to come and talk to them about the grain payment.

If the Traveling Group is willing to take the lead in paying the autumn grain, it will be a shock to all circles in Lingao. Those who originally wanted to rely on the Traveling Group to pay less or no grain, have to weigh it carefully.

However, Xiong Buyou thought, things are not that simple.He casually said:

"So, this year's autumn grain is not easy to collect?"

"Of course it's not easy to recruit." Chen Minggang replied without hesitation, "Everyone probably knows that Lingao is a place where the sky is high and the emperor is far away, so the unscrupulous people have to be more unscrupulous. It's really not easy to do things without a villain around. .”

Xiong Buyou thought, who is this "villain"?Of course it was the brothers of the Gou family - the two brothers had undertaken the collection of food and taxes in Lingao many times.It is a well-known "grain poor" in the county.

The "grain messengers" are not necessarily the yamen servants in the yamen, but most of them are "wicked people" in the local area. They usually have their own livelihoods, or they are simply green-skinned gangsters.They all had connections with the household book office in the county yamen, and when the yamen began to collect grain, they would cooperate with the yamen servants to go to the countryside to collect rent, and took the opportunity to blackmail and reap benefits.

At first, this kind of "grain difference" was just a thug of the book office. After a long time, powerful landlords and gentry in some places also came to get involved, using their power in the countryside to monopolize taxes.Then bully the people and squeeze the peasants.When the imperial grain and national taxes were levied, he couldn't help but make a fortune.What's more unscrupulous, Xiaomin has already paid taxes, but is withheld by such people, and instead causes the county to owe taxes every year.At the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, the counties and counties in the south of the Yangtze River owed a lot of taxes. When the Qing government cleared up the old arrears, someone once said very clearly: the common people do not owe taxes, and those who owe taxes are the gentry and landlords who "take taxes".

Xiong Buyou knew that the brothers of the Gou family had been contracting grain taxes from Guodu County and neighboring areas all the year round, and made a lot of money from it.

Chen Ming just knew that the Gou family was wiped out by them, why did he say such a thing on purpose?He pondered for a while, and a thought flashed through his mind: Could it be that Chen Minggang was hinting at them—they can also do the taxation work?

This coincides with each other!Xiong Buyou was a little excited.If the book office also has this idea, they can use this guy.Learn more about Lingao's tax status from him.

But he didn't make a specific statement for the time being, but just stared at Chen Minggang with great interest.This kind of attitude made Chen Minggang feel a little confused - he did plan to recruit the Crossing Group to take over the county's taxes.

With the power of the Crossing Group in Lingao, if they came forward, even if they just borrowed a big banner, it would be enough to scare the whole county - he could also take the opportunity to make a lot of money.Originally, the Gou family brothers were powerful, but there were quite a few gentry and landowners who would not buy it. Now that there are Australians, no one would dare not buy it. His personal income will naturally be much larger.

As for the specific handling, the Australians knew nothing about Daming's grain requisition-not to mention these overseas visitors, the whole county knew this except themselves, and that was Mr. Wang.Although Master Wang understands it, he doesn't have the county's Yulin book in his hand.I have to listen to his arrangements for specific affairs...

Thinking of this, Chen Minggang was even a little flustered. With the Australian, a powerful "grain messenger", Chen Minggang was going to take care of the few families who were against him.

Chen Minggang planned to take this opportunity to make a big deal in the county. Not only did the people in the county dare not make irresponsible remarks, even Wu Mingjin and Wang Zhaomin didn't have the courage to refute them.Anyway, when the sky falls, there will be an Australian, a tall man, to support it.If the Australians can live in Lingao for a long time in the future, and even crack the soil to open a mansion, he will naturally be a hero for collecting food for the Australians; the Australians were expelled by the court, and the excessive expropriation must also be blamed on them.

"Master Bear!" he called out.

"Oh, oh," Xiong Buyou responded, "Old Ba! You mean, you want us to be the 'villains'?!"

Chen Ming just smiled and said nothing.

"I have to go back and discuss it," Xiong Buyou pretended to hesitate, "This is a big deal."

"Isn't food also a major issue for the nobles?" Chen Minggang nodded.

He played this wishful thinking again and again, thinking that there is no flaw, the key is how to persuade the Australians-he thinks the problem is not big, the Australians want to gain a foothold here, food is fundamental.Australians open up wasteland and farm everywhere, which shows how hungry they are for food.At the beginning of the Australians' establishment, they called the leading figures from all villages and villages in the county to collect food and labor. What "reasonable burdens" were made, obviously there was also a huge demand for food.There is such an opportunity to get a large amount of food in a legitimate way, why not do it?

"That's right, that's right." Xiong Buyou simply put on a good posture, tempted him to speak up, and then said hesitantly, "It's just that we are from overseas, and we don't know anything about Ming's tax collection..."

"This, you don't need to worry about it." Chen Minggang felt that he had said enough, and immediately showed his attitude.

"Okay, with a word from you, Baba, I can definitely report back." Xiong Buyou bowed his hands and said goodbye.

Chen Minggang sent him out respectfully, and only returned to the private room when he saw that he was far away.Just as he was about to have a snack to satisfy his hunger, and then he made some careful calculations, suddenly his apprentice named Zhou Qi rushed in.He called out first, "Master! There is something to do!"

"What's the matter?" Chen Minggang asked quickly when he saw that he was walking in a hurry.

"Master, Master—" Zhou Qi stammered.

"What's the matter, Master?" Chen Minggang really disliked his shrew-like wife, Mrs. Zhang, who was well-known in the county for her aggressiveness.His family lived in the back street of the county government office, and his neighbors were almost all officials and government officials working in the county.When it comes to sinister and cunning, there are few people in ancient society who are comparable to subordinate officials, but even this group of people shake their heads when they mention Chen Minggang's wife.

Chen Minggang is also a well-known and uncompromising figure in the county, but there is nothing he can do about this wife.His father-in-law was the secretary of the former Lingao County Yamen's criminal room, his eldest brother-in-law is now working as the secretary in the criminal room, and his younger brother-in-law is working as a government servant in the fast class, they are all of the same spirit.This is a network of human relations built up over generations, even if he doesn't like it, it's okay.

"Master's wife just called Qiuhong!"

"Ah?!" Chen Minggang stood up.Qiu Hong was a prostitute who came from the mainland a few years ago and set up a private door in the county to pick up customers, and after being spotted by him, she became his prison.Chen Minggang was very infatuated with this foreigner woman who was very different from the local women. Because he was worried about his wife's noise, he didn't dare to hide in a golden house in the county town, so he built a house in a place outside the city to house her, and bought her a few The maid used it, and specially arranged people to watch around the courtyard, firstly to prevent his wife from causing trouble, and secondly to guard against mad bees and butterflies who would seduce Qiuhong and give him a green hat.

(End of this chapter)