Qin Huaidao's words made everyone present feel embarrassed, and they felt that what they wanted to say was inappropriate. After all, they really didn't discuss a solution. Li Er quickly scolded: "Chao Yilang, don't be rude."
"Your Majesty, Mr. Wei is in a high position, but he can't solve even the smallest problem. Instead, he blames a minor minister and deserves to be scolded." Qin Huaidao went all out, but Li Er still refused to give him any face.
"Shut up!" Li Er quickly stopped him sternly. Although it was pleasant to hear, it would be inappropriate to scold him again.
But Qin Huaidao still wanted to scold him, why did he become a villain after suffering Wuwu's disaster?
Fang Xuanling suddenly stood up and said solemnly: "Chao Yilang is right to scold me. Although I am in a high position, I can't solve the major affairs of the court. I really deserve to be scolded. Taxation is the fundamental issue of the court. It is a problem that has not been solved in all dynasties. Chao Yilang said
It’s a trivial matter, and I’m obviously very confident, so why not ask Chao Yilang to give me some advice?”
Using retreat to advance is worthy of Fang Xuanling in Fang's plan.
These words not only admitted the mistake, showed his magnanimity, but also appeased other ministers. In the end, he turned against Qin Huaidao and his army, which can be described as swords and swords. However, this method is used on a junior, which is detrimental to his identity. Fang Xuanling added: "
Chao Yilang, if you can solve this matter, I will definitely give you credit. If not, admit your mistake in front of everyone, and the matter will be dismissed, how about it?"
His words were dignified and upright, showing the style of a gentleman.
Qin Huaidao cupped his hands in admiration: "Master Fang, just ask for credit, why don't you give me some silver as a reward?"
Fang Xuanling did not dare to speak lightly about this matter. Once he was rewarded, he could only do it with the help of the Holy One. This was the rule.
Li Er murmured in his heart, this guy looked so determined, couldn't he really have a solution? When he became interested, he said: "The national treasury is insufficient and everything is stretched, how can I have money to reward you? Well, if you can solve this matter, I promise
How about you do business and be tax-free for five years?"
After saying this, I couldn't help but feel a little proud in my heart. Anyway, I was going to give it. I was worried about how to get the ministers to pass it. Now I put it forward to kill two birds with one stone.
Qin Huaidao was not happy when he heard this. This was the condition for his agreement to go to Lingnan Road to search for Luo Han Guo. The three years he had mentioned at the time had now become five years. An increase of only two years was too little. He immediately said: "Your Majesty, taxation is a state matter.
It is a problem that has been difficult to solve in all dynasties. If Wei Chen finds a way, this reward is too little, right? How about ten years of tax exemption? If possible, Wei Chen will say, if not, forget it."
Everyone was dumbfounded and openly asked for rewards. I'm afraid this person has never died.
Li Er was also so angry that he wanted to hit someone. This bastard was simply too greedy and wanted to refuse, but he was worried that Qin Huaidao really had a solution. The ministers also had the same idea. After all, being able to talk freely on such an occasion must have some confidence in his heart.
For a moment, the scene was a little strange.
Wei Zheng suddenly said: "Chao Yilang, asking for a reward from the Holy One is a crime of disrespect and cannot be mentioned again. I will make a bet with you. As long as your method is feasible, I will give you a thousand acres of fiefdom. How about it?"
"No!" Fang Xuanling said quickly.
"Your Majesty, if Chao Yilang really has a good idea, what if I give it to him? I am willing to do so." Wei Zheng said loudly.
Qin Huaidao could see that Wei Zheng had a public heart, but his temper that wanted to teach anyone he caught was a bit unbearable, so he said loudly: "Your Majesty, Mr. Wei is an upright official, has no property in his family, lives in poverty, and has no income from his fiefdom.
I'm afraid life will be difficult, and I can't bear it, so I don't mind gambling."
"You still know that you can't bear it?" Li Er cursed angrily, then looked at the ministers and said with a majestic look: "My dear friends, do you still have any objections?"
"I have nothing to say!"
Everyone agreed that although it was against etiquette for officials to do business, there were exceptions to the imperial charter. The imperial power was the greatest. As for tax exemptions, during the Zhenguan period, the main tax was agricultural taxes. Commercial taxes only collected market taxes and customs duties. The imperial court stipulated that all vendors could only operate in the market.
Business is not allowed in other places. Taxes are collected when entering the market, so it is called city tax. The tax on border customs is called customs duty. There are no other commercial taxes. It can be said that it is a light corvee and a small tax.
Only in the middle of the Tang Dynasty, salt was changed to a special tax, wine, tea, and iron were heavily taxed, and other taxes were also increased.
Qin Huaidao didn't know what happened in the middle of the Tang Dynasty, but he knew the family's appearance. The reason why he wanted to be tax-free was because he was afraid that if he made money, someone would be jealous and stare at him.
Next, they have to sell wine, tea, mangosteen, help people build houses, etc. Each of these items is something that other wealthy families cannot do, so they must rob them, as the brick-burning has proven. If they cannot rob them, and cannot imitate them, they will definitely
It will allow the supporting officials to promote various special taxes for themselves, and we must take precautions before they happen.
The ministers looked over one after another, some were confused, some were disdainful, and some were indifferent.
"Say it." Li Er urged.
Qin Huaidao said sternly: "Your Majesty, the imperial court's land equalization order stipulates that the land recipients are responsible for taxes and corvee service. As the population grows, the number of land recipients increases. Why is the tax reduced? There are two possibilities. One is that the population increases and the land per household decreases.
, we don’t have enough to eat, so we can only evade taxes, and the most direct way is to conceal and under-report.”
"This is impossible. The county government will investigate each household, how can it be concealed?" Wei Zheng retorted on the spot.
Qin Huaidao asked with a cold face: "Mr. Wei, the county government investigation is true, but the execution is carried out by local officials. The officials are local people. They are always humane and sophisticated. It is inevitable to conceal the report. They cannot be selfless. Many county magistrates only know how to do it."
If you read the books of sages and have only a superficial understanding of arithmetic, I'm afraid you can't figure out how many people or lands you rule, and you can't even understand the census data in the newspaper. Tell me, how do you check it?"
"This?" Wei Zheng was speechless for a moment.
Other ministers also pondered. Not to mention the local county government, even the ministers in the DPRK and the Central Government were not proficient in arithmetic and could easily be fooled. Li Er also realized the seriousness of this problem, but there was no one to help him, so he could only figure it out slowly.
Then he interrupted: "We will discuss this matter later and talk about another possibility."
"Your Majesty, another possibility is man-made. Your Excellencies may wish to check the data reported by various places this year to see if the number of unexplained disappearances, deaths, and victims has increased, especially in the case of prostitution. The imperial court stipulates that taxes should be paid on a per-capita basis. For example, a family with hundreds of people would have to pay taxes on a per-person basis.
For an acre of land, you only need to pay a tax of one cent. When the male family members are divided into households when they reach adulthood, they have to pay a tax of two cents. However, the land is still divided into two families of 100 acres. The tax is too much, but the land has not changed. Many people have to fight to survive.
If you don’t sell yourself, even though the court prohibits it, but the mountain is high and the emperor is far away, who will check? The county magistrate? Don’t forget who is standing behind them.”
A few words can break the abscess that everyone sees but dare not speak out.
Of course, the person standing behind them is the aristocratic family. It is no secret that the aristocratic family buys and sells a large number of people.
Everyone was silent and looked solemn.
Fang Xuanling suddenly said: "Your Majesty, it is the negligence of the humble ministers. When the Tang Dynasty was founded, the number of people was small, and each household could be allocated a hundred acres of land. But ten years later, the number of people doubled, and there was only so much land. There is indeed a problem with the tax system."
"I have also neglected this matter. Chao Yilang, continue." Li Er's eyes were full of expectation.
Qin Huaidao nodded and said unceremoniously: "Your Majesty, ministers, one more thing is land annexation. I forgive you for making bold speculations. Local officials collect taxes in accordance with the law, but each household has less land, insufficient output, and no silver to offset the tax.
, the land can only be sold. After the local officials got the land, they cleverly concealed it from the court. The land fell into the hands of certain people, and the person sold himself into certain people's houses. However, the descendants of the people who sold the land would still register with the county government, and it became
The number of people registered in the county government increases every year, but the actual number of people paying taxes decreases, so the taxes will naturally decrease."
"This is unreasonable. Send someone to investigate thoroughly!" Li Er's face turned cold.
"It's useless." Qin Huaidao said unceremoniously.
"What do you mean?" Li Er's eyes became cold and stern, like a lion protecting food. Taxes are Li Er's food. They are the eternal foundation of the country and no one is allowed to get involved.