Chapter Fifty-Seven: Obstruction of Taxation

  "Shan Ge, let's have breakfast." Lu Haoshan had just finished washing up when Liu Jinchu brought back the breakfast dishes. They weren't bad - there was porridge, noodles, and even some pastries. In a place like Huatian Village, it was unlikely they'd get such a rich breakfast even during Chinese New Year.

  His own younger brother, almost used as a servant, Lu Haoshan felt somewhat uneasy, pulling him to sit down: "Jin Zhu, don't be busy, sit down and eat together."

  Lu Haoshan has adapted to the identity of a seventh-grade county magistrate, Liu Jinchu is dressed in bright clothes and appears majestic on the surface, but still harbors a humble heart inside. This has nothing to do with his status, mainly because his knowledge and cultivation are not up to par, and he still thinks of himself as a small mixed-race person at heart, never seeking any position, just following Lu Haoshan's side to handle affairs, the two came out of Huatian Village together, calling each other brothers, but now they are getting farther and farther apart.

  There's a classic saying from the past: people become picky because their vision and taste have improved, but their economy hasn't kept up. Liu Jinzhu is just the opposite - his economy has improved, but his vision and taste haven't kept up.

  "Alright, Shān Gē", Liu Jinzhu excitedly sat down, picked up his bowl and chopsticks, and happily started eating and drinking.

  After eating for a while, Lu Haoshan put down his bowl and chopsticks, smiling and saying: "Alright, we're not outsiders, so just speak directly."

  At the dinner table, Liu Jinzhu wanted to speak several times but stopped himself. Lu Haoshan couldn't help but look at him with some disdain, knowing that he had something on his mind that he couldn't figure out, a knot in his heart, but didn't dare say it out loud. In fact, Lu Haoshan also knew what Liu Jinzhu wanted to ask, so he simply clarified his thoughts for him, lest he do things with emotions.

  Liu Jinzhu said cautiously: "Shan Ge, you're too good to those Liaodong Hans, Yuan San and the others. You gave them houses, money, silver, and even took care of their daily necessities like firewood, rice, oil, and salt. In one go, several hundred taels were spent, without even listening to their thanks. The matter with Baiyuan Medicine Shop was also settled by you. And, there are a few bachelors, you even arranged for people to find them good wives... this is... too generous, isn't it?"

  It turned out that he was jealous and wanted to throw a tantrum. Lu Haoshan secretly smiled in his heart, thinking that throwing a tantrum wasn't just a privilege of women. Jinzhu felt that his status was shaken, so he had an uncomfortable feeling in his heart. Upon hearing this, he patted him on the shoulder and said: "Jinzhu, I'll ask you, when we were in Huatian Village, why did Li Xiangcai from Zhushan Village raise so many servants?"

  "They're eager to collect interest, and then they're afraid others will snatch their family's silver."

  "That's right!" Lu Haoshan snapped his fingers: "With money and silver, we must protect it well. You see, we've come here, and the benefits we've collected over the years, plus the family property that was confiscated, add up to tens of thousands of taels. Others can't help but be jealous. These are local constables and bailiffs, we're outsiders, and we can't rely solely on them. With so much silver, even if we take it with us, two people can only carry so much. Wouldn't we be worried about being robbed on the road? That money-obsessed Wang Zhang harmed others to the point of death, he's guilty of his own demise. Yuan San and the others are talented individuals, these are people who are hard to find even with money, we naturally want to pull them into our fold and make them our own."

  He paused for a moment, then continued: "In the future, there will be many things that we'll have to rely on them for, and I'm counting on them to risk their lives for me. Some things are better left unsaid, but remembered in your heart instead. Yuan San and his men are real men of honor, and I won't misjudge them. Jinzhu, remember that you're here to enjoy wealth and glory with me, while they're the ones who will be risking their lives for us. So sometimes, you need to let things go and not take it too seriously with them. Our good days have only just begun."

  "Alright, I understand, Brother Shan. From now on, I won't be emotional anymore." Lu Haoshan's example was easy to understand, and Liu Jinchu immediately understood and expressed his support.

  This golden pillar is good at this point, although the ability is general, it wins in loyalty and obedience. Lu Haoshan asked while eating a bun: "Has Zhang Zhushu's group set off?"

  "They set out early in the morning and divided into three groups to collect grain from each village, with three shifts of yamen runners taking away more than half, even the accountants were all mobilized."

  Soft and hard, Lu Haoshan felt that they had a bit of a "Japanese invasion" feeling, but it was good. As long as the taxation started, his own big plan would also be implemented. Now with Yuan San and others around, the chances of winning were even greater. A faint cold smile appeared on the corner of Lu Haoshan's mouth, and this fleeting cold smile went unnoticed by Liu Jinzhu sitting next to him.

  "Jin Zhu, you go to the house in a moment and find a map of Jiangyou. That pancake is not bad, send some to Yuan San and ask if they have any requirements. As long as it's not excessive, try to satisfy them."

  "Yes, Brother Shan." Liu Jinzhu hesitated for a moment and asked in a low voice: "Brother Shan, shall we go and investigate the news? Zhang Zhubu and Zhou Siliu have gone to the countryside to collect taxes. Will they take advantage of the opportunity to receive bribes?"

  People always have a selfish and narrow side. When one has no power, they will judge privilege, but when one has power, they cannot give up the benefits and convenience brought by privilege. Just like Liu Jinzhu, he is not worried about the people, but afraid that there are benefits without his share. In short, it's best to take it for oneself, and others should not take it.

  Lu Haoshan said lightly, "This time the taxation is different from usual. Don't mention getting benefits, they would be burning incense if they can just complete the taxation smoothly and without injury. Following up is useless, anyway, whatever happens will be reported back to the government."

  Liu Jinzhu didn't expect that either, Shang said not to go, so he won't go, anyway listening to Shang is always right, and in fact, Lu Haoshan was also correct, the three teams of tax collectors all encountered big problems.

  In the past, as soon as the county government collected taxes, they would receive strong support from local gentry and village leaders. Not only did they provide money and labor, but also treated them to good wine and meat, with meticulous service. Afterwards, there were red envelopes, various fees for running errands, and expenses for firewood and grain, making it a lucrative position. However, this time was different. As soon as they went to the countryside, they could sense that something was amiss, and local gentry and village leaders all looked worried and complained bitterly.

  "Your Honor, the summer crops haven't even been sown yet. The villagers are still struggling to eat one meal a day, and their grain stores are almost empty. Where will they get the money to pay taxes?"

  "Sir, our Jiangyou has had three consecutive years of poor harvests. Last year's grain yield was less than 60% of a good year's, and apart from taxes, the grain merchants have been forcing down prices, it's really impossible to make ends meet."

  "Not to mention a year's taxes, even half a year can't be paid, and then there's still the additional levy of Liao tax."

  "Director Zhou, your wife's hometown is here, and you are still the son-in-law of our Daliang Village. We are all family, how can we cheat you? It's not that the villagers are not cooperating, but it's really impossible to hand it over. If you don't believe me, go ask your father-in-law about it."

  "Sir, have a heart, look, the rice jar is empty, we really can't get anything out of it."

  "Chen Er, what are you doing? I'm your uncle. As soon as you arrive, you want to collect so many taxes. Isn't this pushing our fellow villagers to death? The Thunder God is in the sky, and the Uncle Official is on earth. If you want to collect taxes, first get past me."

  "Sir Steward, let me off this time, I really didn't do anything wrong."

  .......

  The gentry and landlords complained day after day, one by one beating the retreat drum. Without the support of the gentry and landlords, the resistance of the common people became even more fierce. In the end, they would take away everything that could be eaten, leaving nothing but a desperate situation where if there was no grain, people would really starve to death. Whether they handed it over or not, it was all the same - death. Out of ten households, six or seven were resisting, making it impossible for taxation to proceed smoothly.

  "Officer, if we pay taxes, our whole family will go hungry."

  "After the Spring Festival, I haven't had a single drink, where's the money for wine?"

  "We have old people above and young children below. Officer, now that you've collected taxes from us today, come back tomorrow to collect our corpses instead, we can't survive like this."

  "What? Summer grain hasn't even been sown yet and you're already taxing it? This is something that hasn't happened since the Hongwu era."

  "It's all the same, we'll all starve to death anyway."

  The taxation was not going smoothly, more difficult than Zhang Yunhui had imagined. The three roads of people were taxed for three days, but not a single coin was collected. Moreover, one of the accountants was pushed to the ground and injured his shoulder. It can be said that the expedition was unsuccessful. Zhang Yunhui was furious and felt that he had lost face. He immediately called the local gentry and scolded them severely: "You have a big nerve! This taxation is the imperial edict, the policy of the Ministry of Revenue, it concerns the safety of the Liaodong front line and the survival of the Ming dynasty. You not only did not actively assist in the collection, but also secretly incited the people to resist taxes. Do you really think that this official is easy to bully? The county prison is not a decoration, the three classes of officials are not decorations, the corpses exposed on the city wall are the best examples. You are opposing the imperial court, do you have enough heads to be chopped off?"

  Zhang Zhubu felt his face was gone, and his tone also became severe.

  As soon as they heard the example of the city gate being exposed for three days, everyone suddenly felt a chill and their hearts were stifled. The consequences of resisting orders could be great or small, but no one could escape the fact that their arms couldn't twist around their legs. Everyone suddenly lost their sense of luck, but as soon as they thought about the huge taxes, everyone became pessimistic again.

  "The Honorable Treasurer" An older rural gentry said with a bitter face: "Let's open the window and speak frankly, fellow villagers really can't afford it. If we force them to pay, more than half of Jiangyou's people will be forced to flee, losing their homes and livelihoods. This is truly something that cannot be done."

  "It's just that in the past, when we encountered this kind of thing, everyone would work hard and at least get some running expenses. But now it's pushing people to death. Don't even mention running expenses, being able to collect smoothly is already a great fortune."

  Another slightly chubby Li Zheng sighed and said, "This morning when I got out of bed, I found that the door couldn't be pushed open. I climbed over the wall to take a look, and damn it, there were several large stones blocking the entrance. This time it's big stones blocking the door, next time who knows, they might even throw them in through the window."

  Everyone was talking at once, all crying poor, and many were already retreating, saying they shouldn't have taken this role. Zhang Yunhui sat in the middle, no matter what others said, he just kept a straight face, closed his mouth and didn't speak. He had been the chief clerk for many years, where did he not know the true situation? Now he was also unable to get off the tiger's back.

  When everyone had finished speaking and the room fell silent, Zhang Yunhui said coldly: "This official is also a Jiangyou native, if I could help, would I just stand by and do nothing? Unfortunately, I'm just a small chief clerk, only responsible for taxation, other things are not my responsibility, you're probably asking the wrong person."

  Fortunately, the county magistrate had a foresight and came up with a plan to mortgage official fields. If not, it would not only be impossible to collect taxes but also become a crime in Jiangyou. Zhang Yunhui was good at socializing, this matter was of great responsibility, naturally, Lu County Magistrate took charge of handling it, he took the responsibility, so the credit went to him.

  Everyone's eyes lit up: Although Zhang Zhubu did not agree, he gave everyone a hint that this matter can only be handled by finding County Magistrate.

  Please don't be stingy with your recommendation votes, this is very important. Also, welcome to post book reviews, every single review will be carefully read by the author.

  ;