Chapter 1041 Setting the Tone and Expectations

Chapter 1041 Setting the Tone and Expectations

Chapter 1041 Setting the Tone and Expectations

On the first day of the twelfth lunar month, the discussion in the Bixiao Palace had basically come to an end.

In the Guangcheng Palace hot spring, Shao Xun, who received the news, decided to leave.

The air was filled with mist and the face was almost invisible. He casually grabbed a big white buttocks, not caring whose it belonged to. After releasing himself to his heart's content, he stood up and went to the outer room to undress.

"Stupid emperor!" Wang Huifeng finally couldn't help it and said in a low voice.

"Huifeng, you have to correct me." Shao Xun said with a smile.

"These beauties are much prettier than me." Wang Huifeng put down the manuscript in his hand, gently tidied up Shao Xun's robe, and said, "You pestered me in the first place because of the Wang Clan of Langya——"

Shao Xun smiled but said nothing.

"Or is it because I'm the Crown Princess?"

Shao Xun's face froze.

"You..." Wang Huifeng said helplessly, "The chastity of the palace ladies of Sima Jin and Liu Han has been ruined by you."

"I was ecstatic the day you became pregnant with Sang Yu," Shao Xun said.

"You are very proud of getting the Crown Princess pregnant, right?" Wang Huifeng rolled his eyes at him and said, "It's time to go to the meeting."

Shao Xun had already changed into his imperial robes and said, "I'll go now. Once this matter is settled, the voices urging me to go south and conquer Jiangdong will become louder."

"Isn't Xiangyang difficult to attack?" Wang Huifeng asked worriedly.

"Become a palace lady for me," Shao Xun said, "so that no one can come in and pass on messages when we are in the hot spring."

"Stupid ruler." Wang Huifeng sighed, "You will be 42 after the Chinese New Year. Don't you want to exercise some self-control? If you were not in this world, I don't know how people would attack and kill each other."

"Why is it so?" Shao Xun shook his head and said, "If I were still a general of the Jin Dynasty, the world might be in chaos. Now that I am the emperor of Daliang, if I can maintain stability for a few more years, people's hearts will gradually come to me."

"You also know this truth." Wang Huifeng said: "The country has only been established for more than a year, how stable can people's hearts be?"

"Huifeng is really a good wife." Shao Xun sighed, and suddenly, he turned around and looked at Wang Huifeng, saying: "In fact, when I was still unmarried, someone said that you were a widow at home and asked me to marry you."

"You'll make me so angry that I'll die." Wang Huifeng said with a smile, "And if I marry you, I will really correct you and prevent you from becoming a tyrant."

"Maybe you really are controlling me too much." Shao Xun said.

Wang Huifeng chuckled and said, "Go ahead, they're all waiting for you."

The imperial carriage left quickly.

Wang Huifeng stood in the corridor for a while, then looked back at the hot spring "prostitution cave" and ordered the palace servants, "Prepare the carriage to go to the queen."

******
"Greetings, Your Majesty." Inside the Bixiao Hall of the Suyu Palace, scholars and wealthy merchants from various states bowed down one after another, sincerely convinced.

After Prime Minister Wang Yan stood up, he stepped aside and gave up the main seat.

"The Prime Minister is an elder, why do you have to do this?" Shao Xun asked someone to move the throne and place it side by side with Wang Yan's Huchuang.

Wang Yan then had the Huchuang moved to the lower room before he sat down.

Those who have been to Jianye have heard that Sima Rui and Wang Dao once sat on the throne together. It seemed that there was no one superior to them. But when they looked at Wang Yan, who was more famous, a comparison between the two revealed the situation in the world.

Shao Xun looked at everyone first.

Since the Han Dynasty, Cao Wei, Sima Jin, Shao Liang have their own national conditions.

The national situation is very complicated, but the clearest thread is the existence of aristocratic families.

Foreign wars, national economy and people's livelihood are almost inseparable from their presence, and even in business, they are the main force.

In the past, Gongsun Zan became brothers with the fortune teller Liu Weitai, the silk merchant Li Yizi, and the merchant Le Hedang (all three of whom were "extremely wealthy"). Later, Liu Bei became in-laws with the wealthy merchant Mi family.

However, at that time, the wealthy businessmen had limited military power themselves, and they mainly invested in warlords.

During the Cao Wei period, the gentry directly engaged in business, which was different from the previous situation and seemed more "shameless". This was because in the Han Dynasty, the reason why the gentry became gentry was more because of their noble cultural attributes.

No matter what, now that things have come to this, we must face reality and guide and reform under actual circumstances.

Moreover, everything has its pros and cons and we should look at it dialectically.

At the very least, it is easier for aristocratic families to get political protection when doing business in the early stages when the merchant power is weak.

Mercantilism, agrarianism, capitalism, etc. are just tools. The ultimate goal is to develop productivity. "You are all talented." Shao Xun said, "I don't understand business, you are the masters. I don't want to compete with the people for profit. After all, this is to compensate you. But there is one thing, you must trade in the market and pay taxes according to the law."

"When transporting goods over long distances, there is no tax when passing through checkpoints, but there is a market tax when entering the market, which is currently 10% of the tax. If you buy and sell goods privately outside the market, and the amount exceeds 10,000 coins, you will be severely punished."

What this sentence means is that for now the only commercial tax is "city tax" with a tax rate of 5%, and there are no customs duties or other miscellaneous taxes.

As for whether it will be collected in the future, we will have to wait and see.

Generally speaking, the tax rate is not heavy, and merchants are now very happy to trade in the market, and they are unwilling to do business outside even if you drive them away.

It was also very easy for the imperial court to collect market taxes. All it had to do was look through the account books and it would be clear at a glance.

This income may not be very good at first, but when everything is on the right track, it will be amazing.

Back then, Sang Hongyang made money for Emperor Wu of Han, and no one knows how much profit he made from industry and commerce.

During the middle and late Tang Dynasty, the first great commercial boom in Chinese history, commercial taxes and salt and wine revenues once accounted for more than 40% of the Tang court's fiscal revenue, and even nearly half.

This is a huge source of wealth and a gift left by Shao Xun to future generations.

However, commercial tax revenue fluctuated greatly throughout the dynasties. It was very high in the Western Han Dynasty, very little in the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Wei and Jin Dynasties, it increased dramatically in the middle and late Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, and decreased sharply in the Ming Dynasty. Whether or not one can have a share of this cake depends on the ability of one's descendants, and Shao Xun cannot control that.

"This year, the land survey in 19 counties including Xiangcheng has increased significantly compared to last year, with more than 301,300 households and more than 1,475,000 people." Shao Xun continued, "The rough survey of land in 39 counties has been completed, and the changes in the north are becoming increasingly apparent. In five or ten years, you will find the benefits."

"You can take this money, but I hope that when you do business, you can benefit the people of the world. I heard that there are still weed fields in Guanxi and Huainan, and the people are working hard. If you want to sell farm tools and oxen, you have to let them change their farming methods."

"Twenty years ago, my wives had to search all over the capital to wear a kudzu shirt. Now there are more and more of them, but they are still expensive and cannot be bought by ordinary people. However, there are many of them in Huainan and Jiangnan, and they can be found everywhere in the mountains and forests. After Wu women cut a batch of kudzu vines every year, they stop cutting and selling them because there is no profit. If you can make Wu women pursue profits, not afraid of scratching their fingers, and go into the mountains to cut more vines and weave cloth, and export them to the north at double or even ten times the price, then ordinary people can also enjoy the coolness of summer."

"This is national wealth, and it is what I hope to see."

Of course, there is a loophole in what Shao Xun said, which is a problem that has occurred in colonial trade: farmers do not have the pricing power of cash crops. Because of market fluctuations, prices plummet, so in order to make up for the profits, they have the urge to plant more cash crops, which further suppresses prices. The so-called the poorer you are, the more you plant, and the poorer you become.

But this is all in the future. At this stage, it is far from being so. Because cash crops like kudzu are basically wild in Huainan and Jiangnan, no one deliberately grows them. Wu women go into the mountains to cut a batch during the slack season. If it is really unprofitable, they will not do this, and they don't expect to survive from this. Their main business is still farming.

Of course, if you were running a slave plantation growing kudzu, that was another matter.

But then again, this thing shouldn't appear in this era...right?

"To sail and drive, to go far and deep, we still need roads." Shao Xun added: "After conquering Jiangnan, the ditches and waterways from the Qin and Han Dynasties and the Three Kingdoms period must be dredged and unblocked to facilitate commerce. This is a critical matter, and I will find a way later. For your sake, I have been thinking hard these days and have lost my appetite. Don't let me down in the future."

"If you have anything to say, you can ask directly. Speak freely now."

"Your Majesty, when will we attack Jiangdong?" someone couldn't help but ask.

Shao Xun glanced at Wang Yan secretly. Lao Deng was reliable, so he said, "Warfare is a major issue for a country. Now the farming in the north is raging. I am worried that someone will cause chaos."

"Your Majesty, why are you worried? If the north loses, the south will make up for it." Cheng Gongyao said with emotion: "Your Majesty has done everything in the business of farming. If you still don't appreciate it, I don't know what to say. Such a crazy person will not have anyone to support him and can be destroyed in an instant."

Shao Xun looked at the others again, encouraging them to speak.

"Your Majesty, if you attack Jiangnan, I am willing to offer 50,000 hu of grain." Someone else said.

Wang Yan nodded imperceptibly.

Shao Xun understood that this was also a favor, so he said, "How can I take your money and food for nothing? It's not right."

"Your Majesty, it is difficult to refuse Zhongxu's eagerness." Wang Yan twisted his beard and said, "Why not keep it in mind for now? In the future, choose a good place in Kuaiji and grant it to him as his family property."

"Well, Yi Fu is still mature and wise in his work for the country." Shao Xun said with a smile, "Let's do it accordingly."

When others heard this, they were like, wow, just by donating grain you can go to a good place like Kuaiji?
What about my offerings of money, livestock, or people?
As expected, Jiangnan is so big that there are rules for who can go where and who cannot go where.

There are families that are relatively well-off and have already had some ideas and are planning to inquire privately.

Danyang and Kuaiji are considered the best places in Jiangdong. I heard that many people in Sima Rui's small court have properties in Kuaiji, so it must be of good quality.

"Everyone." Shao Xun stood up, glanced around, and said, "Now that you know about the new dynasty's noble policies, you should spread the word. After you return home, you can tell your clan members and relatives and discuss it together. Under the general trend, Jiangdong will definitely be in trouble. You will all be rich and noble, and pass it on to your descendants."

After that, he added: "I will hold a banquet in the main hall of Suyu Palace tomorrow. If you have young sons and nephews, you can come with us."

Everyone was shocked when they heard this, and signaled with their eyes. Everything was said without words.

Even Wang Yan paused, secretly sighing that the young men in the clan were not very capable. There were some people in Jiangnan who were praised when they were young, but that had nothing to do with him.

(I have to go out for something, I will update another chapter when I come back in the evening.)
(End of this chapter)