After Zhao Xu finished showing off and establishing his authority, Wang Anshi stood up and said, "Your Majesty, this case originated from the tenant farmers, and during the trial, the other party also shied the responsibility to the tenant farmers and the court, which brought shame to the court.
Therefore, I suggest that the court legislate that land tax will be levied on the land, and the court will tax the land to whomever it belongs, instead of transferring the tax to avoid misunderstandings between the court and the people."
Zhao Xu nodded, but before he could speak, Gu Ji, the minister of the Taifu Temple, stood up and said: "I object. Tenancy is a contract between the people. The government has political laws, and the people follow private contracts. If the court intervenes hastily, it may cause the owner to
Tenant farmers could not find land to cultivate, and the tenant farmers lost their livelihood.”
Wang Anshi immediately retorted: "This is not a private contract, but a public contract. If according to the existing laws, those merchants and owners can use a contract to force the court to tax whom, and the court has become their accomplice.
, what is the significance of the tax laws established by the imperial court? This is really a big joke in the world.
Moreover, there are many principal households in the middle, who take advantage of it. If there is a crisis, they can also sow discord between the court and the people. This is a serious hidden danger that must be dealt with."
Zhao Xu nodded and said: "What Academician Wang said makes sense. The imperial court had already given them some slack before, allowing them to pay the deed tax and forget about it. However, they did not know what to do, and instead threatened the imperial court with tenant farmers.
In those white contracts, they had already taken away at least half of the taxes from the tenant farmers, but they still passed all the responsibilities to the court and the tenant farmers. It was really unreasonable. The court could no longer let them act arbitrarily, and this law must be changed.
"
The tone was very firm.
Sima Guang suddenly stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I also think that this law has many shortcomings and needs to be revised. However, the existing tenant contracts and taxes are all related to tenant farmers, and the number of people involved may be millions. This is not a trivial matter.
The court should handle it carefully to avoid causing greater misunderstandings."
Wang Anshi snorted: "Senior Sima is a bit alarmist, but he is just asking the owners to modify a contract. How difficult is it?"
Sima Guang said: "I am definitely not being alarmist. If the imperial court orders, the tenant lease contract must be modified immediately. If the owner is unwilling to bear the responsibility and would rather farm his own land, can he dismiss the tenant farmers on this grounds? This is all up to the imperial court.
It needs to be taken into consideration.”
Wang Anshi said: "Then let them go. If this land is left unplanted, it will not only be the tenant farmers who suffer losses."
Sima Guang said: "You can't say that. If too many tenants are dismissed in a short period of time, it will not only be a simple loss, but it will also add a huge burden to the court, and the gain will not be worth the loss."
"That's the reason again."
Wang Anshi laughed and said: "If you are tolerant to them, you will only get more and more, and if you continue to cut off, you will suffer chaos."
Sima Guang said: "I have no objection to amending this law. I suggest that the court should consider it carefully to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. The ancestral law is to prevent things and control them."
Wang Anshi spread his hands, "If we drag it on, I'm afraid it won't go away again."
Sima Guang said: "I never said I would delay. The imperial court can immediately issue an order. From now on, the tenants can no longer be borne by the tenants in the tenancy leases signed. However, the imperial court should also pay taxes on the tenants' leases that have been signed before.
Give owners and tenant farmers some time to prepare."
Han Qi stood up and said: "Your Majesty, I think what Academician Sima said is reasonable. As for the problems that exist among tenant farmers and government officials, the imperial court has also come up with solutions to these problems before.
Although the methods are good, they are often implemented for a period of time and end in vain. If your Majesty is determined, you should think carefully and prepare well to avoid making the same mistakes again."
Fu Bi, Wen Yanbo and others stood up one after another to express their support for Sima Guang.
Lu Huiqing saw that the other party did not talk about martial ethics, so he immediately stood up and said: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, this issue is very simple. It tests the determination of the imperial court. If the imperial court does not decide immediately, it will give them illusions. This will
This will make the resistance greater, and the further it is delayed, the more detrimental it will be to the court."
Both factions have their own reasons for thinking about it.
Since the Northern Song Dynasty did not suppress land annexation, homesteaders were disappearing in large areas, and tenant farmers had gradually become the main body. This is not a problem for a small group of people, but a main body problem. It cannot be imagined to be too simple. Once a problem occurs, it will be very troublesome. It must be
well considered.
But Wang Anshi believes that this problem does involve many people, but this problem is very simple, and the solution is also very simple. Once you have to think carefully, things will become very complicated.
It is indeed difficult for Zhao Xu to control such a group of people.
But he knew clearly that this problem must be solved immediately, which was related to his authority. After thinking for a while, he asked Sima Guang: "Bachelor Sima, can it be completed within this year?"
This year?
It's only half a year.
Sima Guang was one of the top two, but Zhao Xu's tone hinted to him that if you say no, then I will leave it to Wang Anshi. He held up his hand and said: "I will do my best."
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "This law will be handed over to the Criminal Court for revision."
After saying that, he said to Wang Anshi: "Scholar Wang still has to put the new law first."
Wang Anshi cupped his hands and said, "I obey."
After deciding on this matter, the meeting ended here.
Judging from the looks of many ministers shaking their heads and sighing, we know how badly they lost this time.
They never expected that the emperor would also play this trick.
What a mess.
After they left, Wang Anshi and Sima Guang slowly walked out of the palace.
Wang Anshi looked up at the sky and said with emotion: "My life is really like a beast. I do all the dirty work, but the credit belongs to others. Alas..."
Sima Guang couldn't hear the sarcasm in him, and he laughed and said: "You are not destined to be a beast, you are just born in the wrong era. If you were born in the Han Dynasty, even if you were not Huo Guang, you would at least be Wang Mang and his ilk. If you were born in the Tang Dynasty, you would be
Changsun Wuji and Yao Chong, it’s a pity that you were born in my dynasty.”
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Wang Anshi looked at him and said, "You are Wang Mang and his ilk."
He waved his sleeves and left.
Sima Guang's meaning is very simple. It's not that I'm taking your credit, but that the emperor can't let you take over everything. It's impossible for you to be one person below ten thousand people in the Song Dynasty.
After Wang Anshi left, Sima Guang's expression gradually became serious. He knew very well that getting this matter done was not as simple as imagined.
As long as this period of time passes, it will definitely resurface.
For example, Han Qi made several reforms to the Yamen government, but they failed and gradually returned to the same situation as before.
The Fangtian method was not first created by Wang Anshi. It was designed by Guo Shen and Sun Lin during the Renzong period. It went back and forth and was implemented several times. The court did not say it would abolish it, but in the end it returned to the original point.
This kind of reform involving interests seems to have a suction force. No matter how far you pull it, it can always be sucked back.
Sima Guang, who studies history, knows this very well. He is actually not sure that after the changes are completed, it will continue to be implemented like this. On the contrary, he thinks that it will change back to the current situation in a few years.
He is pessimistic about this.
But as far as the moment is concerned, Wang Anshi is right. Now that the landlord class is in turmoil, this is an excellent time. We should push forward in one wave and not give them a chance to breathe. Otherwise, it will become even more difficult.
Nowadays, there is no need for the imperial court to issue an edict, and the landowners are already preparing to pay the white deed tax.
But the question is, the white deed is only part of it. The land placed in the Xiangguo Temple and the land placed in the Xiangjia House. Do taxes need to be paid on these lands?
If you don't pay, will you sue us?
Not to mention the landlords, even the royal family and relatives are considering this issue.
Many people are already asking about this matter.
The white deed is definitely illegal, but placing it in Xiangguo Temple to avoid taxes is definitely legal on the surface.
Not long after Zhang Fei returned home, before he had time to hold a celebration banquet, Ma Tianhao and Chen Maoqian rushed over and used Xiangguo Temple to consult him on this issue.
"It's hard to say."
Zhang Fei shook his head and said: "According to the laws of our court, there is an upper limit for the tax-free land of the Situation House. However, monks and Taoists need an ultimatum issued by the court to be tax-free. As long as the court takes back the ultimatum, they must pay taxes.
.And the ultimatum is only for individuals. If the court wants to sue, the lawsuit will definitely be fought."
Chen Maoqian said: "In other words, all these lands have to pay taxes?"
Zhang Fei was very puzzled and said: "My agricultural tax is actually not very high. I only charge one bucket of rice per mu of land. Except for the two officials, who are so rich, how can they evade this tax?"
Zhang Fei asked: "I would like to hear the details."
"I...."
Chen Maoqian suddenly shut up and said nothing.
Ma Tianhao said carelessly: "There are only three of us here, there is nothing we can say."
After that, he said to Zhang Fei: "The agricultural tax is indeed not high, but as long as we pay the tax honestly, just wait and see, the tax will definitely be higher every year."
Chen Maoqian nodded: "Those officials are not good men and women. They all bully the weak and fear the strong. Why did those first-class households lose their families? They were not bullied by the landlords."
They are different from scholar-bureaucrats. They are in the middle of the food chain and are very likely to be eaten by others.
Zhang Fei said: "If you pay taxes in accordance with the law, if you have any problems, you can file a lawsuit to resolve them."
Ma Tianhao said: "Wouldn't that be more expensive?"
"...?"
Zhang Fei was speechless.
Chen Maoqian said: "Litigation is also very difficult to solve. Just talk about transfers, losses, and distortions. These are all laws that can be followed, but there is a bottomless pit. If the court is short of money, can it really enforce the law impartially?
"
Zhang Fei frowned and said nothing.
Ma Tianhao said: "We spend so much money in your store every year, you have to help us solve these problems."
Zhang Fei didn't know these issues. He had studied this lawsuit thoroughly for a long time. He waited for Ma Tianhao's words and pretended to be confused, "If you are just worried about paying too much tax, instead of
If you don’t pay taxes, then there is a solution.”
Ma Tianhao hurriedly asked: "What can I do?"
Zhang Fei said: "Charity."
"charitable?"
Ma Tianhao was stunned.
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "If you donate all the land, then naturally you don't have to pay taxes."
Ma Tianhao was stunned for a while, then said with bulging eyes: "What's your idea? It's like stabbing yourself to death if you are afraid of getting sick. You won't get sick again, but you will also die."
Chen Maoqian also nodded.
Zhang Fei said: "You donate to Xiangguo Temple, aren't you also donating?"
Chen Maoqian whispered: "That's not a donation, that's a release. There is a contract between us."
"Okay, okay!"
Zhang Fei said: "I don't want to donate, then let it go for charity."
So casual?
Ma Tianhao asked: "What on earth do you mean?"
Zhang Fei said: "Don't you understand this? This is the same as your cooperation with Xiangguo Temple. It just turns Xiangguo Temple into a charity organization dedicated to doing good deeds, and then you deposit the land into it."