"As I get older, it's time to give up my position."
In the courtyard where the meritorious officer was, in the old meritorious officer's apartment, the other two meritorious officers were surprised that the old meritorious officer retreated as soon as he said so.
"Teacher, you are the mainstay of the county government and have assisted more than a dozen county magistrates. How can you just quit at the drop of a hat?"
"It would be a bit honorable to return it yourself. It would be shameful if you were kicked out. It would be even more worthless if your home was confiscated and exiled in the end." The old meritorious officer stroked his beard and smiled. Zhao Renben had accepted his resignation, although it was a bit direct, which made him slightly melancholy.
But when I returned to the public housing, I finally felt relaxed again.
"Teacher, you and You Pu She have a good relationship. Who can touch you?"
Facing the other two meritorious officers, the old meritorious officer was willing to tell the truth. These two people were originally his students, "Youpushe and I just worked together in the same government office. Back then, Youpushe offended the powerful minister Yang
Su was demoted again and again and served as magistrate three times."
Speaking of those days, it was already over twenty years ago.
Li Jing was born into a noble family in Guanlong. At the age of thirteen, he learned the art of war from his uncle Han Qinhu, the famous founding general of the Sui Dynasty. At the age of twenty-one, he became a ninth-rank Chang'an Gong Cao. At the age of thirty, he was a sixth-rank military officer. Unfortunately,
He offended Yang Su, took away his official position and served the people, and was demoted to Ji County Magistrate. At the age of forty, he was promoted from Ji County Magistrate to Anyang County Magistrate, then to Sanyuan County Magistrate, and at the end of his term he was promoted to Yanmen County Magistrate.
Lao Gongcao worked with Li Jing in Sanyuan for four years, and they got along pretty well, and they formed a good relationship. Although Li Jing later went to Yanmen, Lao Gongcao had always had contacts with the Li family.
He has been able to stay in the county government for fifty years. In addition to his family having been working here for generations, he is also an old meritor who is more skillful and has a wide range of connections.
He has assisted more than a dozen county magistrates, and he has basically gotten along well with them.
However, he also knew that his relationship with Li Jing was just like that, and it was not as popular as the people in the neighborhood said. Li Jing was now the right servant, and he was still just an old meritorious official in the county government. How could he compare.
A good relationship with Lijiazhuang is just that, no matter how good it is, it can't be better than the teacher-student relationship between Li Jing and Wu Huaiyu. They are both prime ministers, and both families are now the largest nobles in Sanyuan.
Lao Gongcao has a sensitive intuition,
He felt that this time the storm was coming and something was not right, so he thought about it and simply backed away. Now that he is old, there is no need to wade into this muddy water again.
As a veteran, he really didn't dare to mess with the prime minister.
Besides, this new law will definitely offend many powerful people. Wu Huaiyu is a young prime minister, so they are not afraid of him, but he is a subordinate official and cannot afford to offend him.
The old man packed up his things, mounted his mule and took his entourage with him, and left quietly without even disturbing the others. He didn't want to make too much noise at this time.
In front of Mr. Wu, what senior qualifications do you have?
The more quietly you walk, the better.
After leaving the yamen, he turned to look at the county yamen that he had just moved in. The old man sighed,
Changing out of his Jianggong uniform and wearing an ordinary brown cloth, he rode a mule and strolled slowly along Longqiao Street.
Facing the bustling street market, he even felt a little strange.
What a lively Longqiao. He has been an official here for fifty years. This place has been divided and merged. He used to pass by Longqiao often, but it has been ordinary for decades. Even when the Emperor Kaihuang was prosperous,
Just on the river slopes of the two bridges of Longqiao, some simple wooden houses and cave dwellings were built for business.
In a few years, this place has become the most lively place in Sanyuan County.
Especially on the north bank, the five tall round castles are large and round, as well as the tall windmills not far away.
It's really a novel thing, much better than the Nianya Ke built on Qinghe River.
In the eyes of the old hero, the five-ringed fort is a symbol of power, and the windmill is a symbol of wealth.
Lao Gongcao has been in the county government for fifty years and has gone through several dynasties, but he has also accumulated a large family fortune.
Looking at the lively Longqiao, the old hero planned to buy a piece of land in this new county town, build a compound, and buy a few shops, so as to get a share of the market share.
"go home!"
Lao Gongcao left the Yamen and went straight back to his home in the countryside without going to Lijiazhuang or Wujiabao. He planned to ignore the turmoil outside for the time being in the name of recuperation, and wait for half a year to see the changes.
Riding a mule all the way back to the countryside,
The old Gongcao is also surnamed Li. His home is on the south bank of Qinghe River, and the village where he lives is also called Lijiazhuang, because there are two Lijiazhuangs on the north bank.
Li Jing's family is the most famous, so the village of Li Jing's family is called East Lizhuang, the one to the west is called West Lizhuang, and the old Gongcao's side is called Nanli Village.
There is also Xiaoli Village near Longqiao.
Most of the people in Nanli Village are ordinary people. The old Cao family has been officials for generations and has annexed a lot of land. They are the largest landowners in the village.
More than half of the land in the village belongs to his family.
It is not easy to save this family property. The family has been a county official for generations. In the past, they used to seek the position of money catcher for their children. They used private money to lend as the capital of the public house and borrowed the power of the county government to collect it.
The Gong Cao family in Nanli Village actually made their fortune mainly by lending money at high interest rates. Being a subordinate official can also get the right to be exempted from class service, guarantee interest collection from lending, make friends with powerful people, and protect the industry.
Several generations of management have made great fortunes through dynasty changes, wars and natural disasters.
However, in the generation of Lao Gongcao, perhaps it is because wealth has been accumulated to a certain extent, or perhaps because this Lao Gongcao is old and prefers stability, and his current methods of doing things are not as aggressive and aggressive as those of previous generations.
Even in the past few years, they have liked to do some benevolent things, such as building bridges and paving roads, or providing relief to their neighbors. It took twenty years for the Nanli Li family to gain a reputation as a benevolent person.
The old Gong Cao also had a grandson who was studying at the Yongzhou Official School in Chang'an. He also took the trouble to send his son to Chang'an to work as an official. He also had a son who was doing business abroad and a son who was taking care of things at home.
Each of them had their own division of labor, and they also broadened the network of connections by marrying their daughters to county officials, Hao Qiang, Yuan Cong, etc.
After the summer harvest, the countryside is very peaceful and lively.
The villagers are all discussing the new tax, talking about customers and owners, discussing about nine grades of Dingfen, tax reduction and exemption, etc.
Lao Gongcao came back suddenly without saying hello, which surprised the family.
"Call Dalang."
Li Dalang is the eldest son of the old man. He knew his destiny at the age of fifty. He married a girl named Hucao Zuozhi just after he entered the county government. This eldest son was too honest, could not read well, and was not tactful enough.
Unable to do so, he finally arranged to stay at home and take care of the fields and other matters.
"Aye, why did you come back suddenly?"
"I resigned from my position as Si Gongzuo and retired."
"Aye?"
"Don't worry, nothing happened. I have to retreat on my own,"
Lao Li asked his son some things about his family. This son was dull and introverted. He usually couldn't beat him with three sticks, but he was willing to manage the household affairs and deal with the villagers. He was pretty good.
The old man doesn't like this son very much and thinks he has no future. He prefers his second son who works as a subordinate in Taifu Temple in Chang'an. The third and fourth sons are responsible for doing business and lending outside, and they are all better than the eldest son. Of course, Lao Li values the most.
The eldest grandson is still the eldest grandson. The eldest grandson is studying in Yongzhou Prefecture and his grades are not bad. Lao Li hopes that the eldest grandson can pass the Ming Jing exam in the future. Even if he passes the Ming Shu Ming Su Ming Law exam, it will at least help Lao Li's family to a higher level.
.
"Have you harvested all the summer grain in the fields?"
"We've finished harvesting. This year's harvest is pretty good. Our family can earn more than two dan per acre of land."
"Has the rent been collected?"
"I have sent freshly brewed float wine to the tenants and invited them to come and drink in a few days,"
Sending wine and inviting wine is what the countryside means by reminding people to pay rent.
Lao Li nodded, "In the past few days, people from the Yamen will come to re-register the registered persons, land, acres, etc. You must declare truthfully one by one, not only the number of persons, but also the acres of land, how many slaves, how many cattle and horses, and how many houses there are in the family.
I have to repay it too,
But you don’t have to repay the money and silk truthfully, just two to three hundred guan, or a hundred pieces of silk cloth,”
"Remember to report everything like shops and workshops."
"Aye, didn't we already get this done last time? Why should we report it truthfully?" The boss is a miser. He treats slaves and long-term workers very harshly. He has to get up early every day to go to the fields. He also deducts oil and water from meals and pays little attention when borrowing food.
When harvesting grain, a big bucket should be brought in.
If it weren't for him, the reputation of the Li family in Nanli Village would be even better.
"Don't worry so much. After the report is completed truthfully, we will take the initiative to send this year's corresponding rent transfer to Longqiao Yamen for storage according to the reported household, property, land, etc. Remember to get the receipt, check the quantity and stamp
chapter."
Li Dalang was puzzled.
"The Li Pushe family in Dongli Village and the Wu Xiang Gong family in Wujiabao are taking the lead in reporting and paying. Why don't we learn from it?"
"But didn't the imperial court say that this year we will still pay the rent according to the old rules, and only those with insufficient land will be exempted accordingly? Besides, our family is still exempt from school service..."
"Take a long-term view, don't just stare at the one-third of an acre in front of you every day, but also look outside," the old man scolded his son. Although his son was right, he should take the initiative to pay it in advance and pay it in advance. Although he paid a little more, there are still benefits.
There are also many.
Not only can it satisfy Prime Minister Wu, it may even reach Tianting directly. After all, the Sanyuan pilot project is now being watched by both the government and the public.
Besides, Lao Li also knows how many bad debts he has incurred as a subordinate for many years and how much money he has made. If someone insists on digging up old debts, these things cannot withstand the investigation.
If you behave well now, you also hope to satisfy Mr. Wu and not settle old scores again.
"Aye, can't we pay it again next year? If we pay it for one more year now, that's a lot of money and food. If we pay two or three liters more for one acre of land, it's two or three stones for one hundred acres, and..."
"Shut up!" Lao Li looked at his son who was still counting on his fingers how many more stones of grain he would have to pay, and how much he could earn back if the grain was loaned out. What if you borrow one in the spring and pay back in the autumn, borrow one and pay back two...
He has no idea what active and passive means.
If he is allowed to take charge, it is estimated that even next year, he may be like many stupid guys, thinking of various means to default on payment, or even refuse to pay.
The small and powerful landlords in the countryside really think they are capable?
If those powerful families don't take the lead, what will you do?
Even though Lao Li is opposed to the new tax law in his heart, Lao Li will never be the first to do so. On the contrary, he wants his son to pay everything in advance according to the new law one year in advance this year.
If you want to rush and let others rush, run backward first, wait until the front is finished, and then decide based on the situation.
Only fools rush ahead,
And it is this kind of fool who dies the most.
To be able to work in the yamen for fifty years without failing is because of the tact and tact of an old subordinate official.
The fact that he is so proactive in filing tax returns does not mean that he really agrees with the new law. On the contrary, he is extremely opposed to it in his heart.
But he will not stand up and take the lead in opposing and rushing forward.
"You have recently sent people to the countryside to inquire more, and when the county working group comes down to check the household registration, property, land, etc. again, if the big landlords nearby dare to commit fraud, you will report them secretly," Lao Li said with a gloomy look.
