Fan Zhiheng stood in front of the Wu family's round fort, feeling a little nervous.
"When the Prime Minister was the Prime Minister before, didn't you also transfer to the Zhidusi Yamen?"
"I am only a first-class and fifth-class official. I was transferred to the Zhidusi Yamen, but I have never been qualified to talk to the Prime Minister."
Liu Rengui smiled and said, "You can answer me properly later."
Go through the many doors of the middle castle and arrive at the atrium.
Under the money willow, behind the long red sandalwood table, Wu Huaiyu stood up,
"The tea has just been brewed, sit down."
This was Fan Zhiheng's first time coming to the Wubao Center, and he felt that everything was strange.
Not only is this round earth building very novel, but also the furniture placed in the atrium is very different.
Different from the traditional sitting on the floor or on a couch, Mr. Wu had a set of tall furniture placed under the golden willow tree.
There are no couches with high screens, but there are long tables with high legs and chairs with high backs.
This set of furniture is tall, simple, with smooth lines, even a little slender, showing its agility.
Liu Rengui sat directly on a high-backed chair in front of the long table.
Sitting with your feet down is quite natural.
Fan Zhiheng, who was usually used to sitting on the floor and kneeling, was a little uncomfortable. Sitting there, he always felt unnatural, and he couldn't relax like Liu Rengui. He even leaned his burly body half on the back of the chair, and he only sat with half of his buttocks.
Sitting on the chair, he put his hands on his knees, leaned forward slightly, and faced Mr. Wu on the other side of the table, showing great respect and restraint.
"There is an old meritorious officer in Sanyuan County who has retired due to old age. He has taken an old official from Hu Cao to replace him. Now I will transfer you to be Hu Cao's assistant. Are you willing?"
"Thank you, Prime Minister Wu, for your appreciation and support. I am very grateful to you."
This is a good attitude.
"It's good that you took the initiative to report to your superiors that Mr. Li from Xiaoli Village sent you six thousand yuan." Huaiyu brought a cup of brewed green tea to the two of them.
"My subordinate refused and accepted it, but Yuanwai Li repeatedly refused, so I had no choice but to accept it first and then give it to Yuanwai Liu."
Wu Huaiyu asked Liu Rengui to go back and give Fan Zhiheng two thousand dollars.
"If you accept these two thousand dollars, it is a special reward for you. The remaining four thousand dollars will be put into the money account of the government office."
Fan Zhiheng did not dare to accept it,
"Take it. This is different from ordinary subordinates who accept gifts and bribes, and then divide it into 37 points. This is your reward, not a share of the spoils."
"Although Si Huzuo is not a local miscellaneous official, he is responsible for specific documents and handles more arduous tasks than county magistrates and magistrates. Sanyuan County merged with Chiyang in the first year of Zhenguan, and now it is a county with more than 10,000 households.
The county has a total of six Si Huzuo, eleven historians, and two account historians.
There are five officials in the county, and they have the most officials and the most affairs.
This time we are piloting a new law, the household registration land is the most critical. The new tax is collected based on the household Cao's task. You are very good at calculations. You will have to bear more burdens in the future."
"What issues did you find in the investigation of Xiaoli Village?"
Fan Zhiheng sat upright, "Basically all the land in Xiaoli Village belongs to Li's wife's family, and a small part of the land is in the names of his brothers and nephews. The other villagers are either tenants of his family, tenants of the next village, or
Working in Longqiao,
The actual facts reported by Li Yuanwai this time, including people, slaves, livestock, fields, property, residences, etc., were more or less concealed and falsified.
The acres of land are reduced, the fertile fields are irrigated with water and converted into dry fields and bad land, the wheat fields are converted into mulberry and jujube orchards, and the mature fields are converted into reclaimed wasteland.
In addition, his family has a mill, an oil mill, a residence store, a car shop in Longqiao, as well as a grain shop, a cloth shop, etc.
The Li family has always lent money and food, and they have many servants and tenants, but they can repay very little."
Fan Zhiheng has been in Xiaoli Village these days and has already mastered many problems of Mr. Li's family. Perhaps the Li family felt that Fan Zhiheng had already charged them 6,000 yuan and was eating and drinking at their house every day, so they relaxed their vigilance. Fan Zhiheng's
After careful investigation, I found out a lot of things.
"Li Houwen, who lives in Xili, Qinghe Township, is Yuanwai Li's nephew. He also deliberately concealed it. The head of Xiaoli Village is Yuanwai Li's son."
"Have you recorded all the things you found? Can you verify them?"
“Basically everything has been verified,”
"This Li Jing'an also served as a county captain for ten thousand years and became an official, but he is so obedient and uncompromising without any awareness."
"Ms. sir, I suggest you use this Li Jing'an to scare the monkeys. This Li Jing'an is not as good as Li Changgui, the old meritor who retired voluntarily before. Not only did he abdicate in favor of a worthy man, but he also immediately took the initiative to take care of his family, slaves, maids, livestock, acres of property after returning home.
I reported it and voluntarily paid this year’s rent adjustment per mu,”
Wu Huaiyu also knew that Li Changgui, an old meritorious official who had worked in the Sanyuan County Yamen for fifty years, was a legend in the village and the founder of the Yamen.
In contrast, Lao Gong Cao and Lao Yuan Wai both had the surname Li, and both had been in the yamen for many years, but Li Yuan Wai was indeed not as smart and knowledgeable as Li Gong Cao.
"Lao Fan, help me make an appointment with Mr. Li to come out, and I'll talk to him."
"My lord, if you have anything to talk about, you have to set an example, otherwise you won't be honest."
"What I want now is a united and stable situation, not a mess everywhere. Forget it, I'll go visit Mr. Li tomorrow. After all, we are neighbors only eight miles apart." Wu Huaiyu smiled.
.
Fan Zhiheng is not used to drinking fried loose green tea, drinking tea cakes, especially sencha with salt and various seasonings. He is really not used to drinking this kind of brewed tea, and he doesn't have any taste, but when we meet today
, Xianggong Wu seemed to have a good impression of him.
After the conversation, Wu Huaiyu specially stayed with Fan Zhiheng and Liu Rengui to have dinner together.
The meal is ready and served,
The admonishment official Wu Junya and the county magistrate Zhao Renben also came, and they also brought Zhao Lichun, the official in charge.
The county magistrate and the two county lieutenants did not come, but Zhao Lichun, who recorded the affairs, came. It was obvious that this person was something special. Fan Zhiheng stood up and greeted them.
Huaiyu also introduced him to Zhao Renben and Zhao Renben again, "Lao Fan, Fan Zhiheng, the Lingshi of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the fifth grade of Liuwai, I asked him to go to Sanyuan County first to be a sihuzuo, Lao Zhao, please take care of him more in the future.
."
On the table are home-cooked stir-fries.
Shredded potatoes in vinegar, scrambled eggs with green pepper, tomatoes mixed with sugar, pan-fried river fish, sweet potato vermicelli with minced meat, pumpkin vine tofu soup,
There was no big fish or meat, nor bird's nests or shark's fins, but the home-cooked side dishes were very tasty, especially in the summer when I didn't have much of an appetite, but it was very cool under the shade of the trees in the atrium of the Wujia Tulou, and the dishes were very appetizing, and some millet porridge was very good.
While eating, a few people also exchanged views on the current work progress.
Generally speaking, it is good, but basically the powerful landowners have something to hide. Most of them still report a lot more than before, but there are still some hidden things. For example, only a very small amount of property such as money, silk and food is reported.
Even those who are hard to hide, such as landowners and servants, more or less conceal and underreport, or generally report good land as poor land, and report large acres as small acres.
Wu Huaiyu's name is still useful, and many people took the initiative to report it, but due to human nature, they are still not so honest.
"The announcements will begin next, and this is where the real tough battle begins."
after a few days,
Wu Huaiyu personally visited Mr. Li. Originally, he didn't want to draw his sword now, but some people are really unscrupulous and do not know whether to live or die.
His sudden arrival shocked Mr. Li.
It felt better when I saw Zhao Lushi and Fan Zhiheng coming over to say hello first, with smiles on their faces.
"Xianggong Wu wanted to go to the countryside for inspection, so he chose the home of his old neighbor Li Yuan as his first stop."
"That really makes the humble house look brighter," Yuan Li quickly called out the whole family to greet him.
Even though Li Yuanwai was involved in the circle of knights when he was young, and later became a bad person, and even became a bad handsome man for a time, and even took advantage of the change of dynasties to find a Yuanwai county captain and served as a county captain for two years, but in the end he was just an old Yuanwai who had reached an official position.
In front of a super upstart prime minister like Wu Huaiyu, whose holy family is in full swing and whose power is blazing, how dare he compete with the bright moon?
Even though the two families were close together, even before the Zhenguan Dynasty, Samurai Ke was just a brigade commander of the Yuan Cong Forbidden Army, which Li Yuanwai was not willing to offend easily.
Along the Baiqu line in Weibei, there is a total of 30,000 yuan from the imperial army. Although these people are not good at fighting, they bear the name of the emperor Yuan Cong and are called the father and son army. Who dares to provoke them easily?
Even though the rank of the brigade commander, Samurai Ke, was not high, he often visited Chang'an as a guard and had the opportunity to meet the emperor.
Moreover, the Forbidden Army is very united. For example, there are fifty households of the Forbidden Army in Longqiao Qian. They are the only ones who bully others. No one dares to bully them, not even local cowards. Unless they are powerful people like Li Jing of Dongli Fort, the Forbidden Army will not dare to provoke them.
In fact, Li Yuan's family used to have more land than it does now, but after the change of dynasties, the emperor resettled 30,000 of his old brothers in the seven counties of Baiqu in Weibei. Each forbidden army had at least 100 acres of land. Officers and recipients of the award also received additional land.
Plus, a lot of good land was granted to the Imperial Army.
Although it was nominally awarded to the extinct households by Baiqu in Weibei, there was not so much extinct land. In fact, although many of the lands were deserted during the Sui Dynasty, they still had owners.
For example, a lot of land in Xiaoli Village was annexed by Li Yuanwai at that time. However, in order to avoid being assessed taxes and levies, they only signed a white deed, which was a private deed, and did not go to the government to transfer the ownership.
As a result, the emperor had expropriated a lot of fertile land in Weibei with his original decree, and Li Yuanwai could only swallow his anger. After all, if his land was really investigated, all of it came from evil sources. He took advantage of the famine and loan sharks, or took advantage of the people.
Escape from famine, etc., take possession directly, and buy official land at a low price.
"Catch sheep and slaughter them, kill chickens and ducks, go to Longqiao to buy geese and fish..."
Mr. Li did not dare to neglect,
Although it is very close to Longqiao, Huaiyu also came to Xiaoli Village for the first time and met Mr. Li for the first time.
Wu Huaiyu just sat down.
Attendant Shi Shouxin came from outside and handed Wu Huaiyu a letter. After Wu Huaiyu read it, his face slowly sank, and Mr. Li's heart also sank.
"Commander Li, as soon as this was announced, someone reported you, veteran clerk, and said that you concealed the amount of property of slaves, slaves, and maids, and deliberately concealed the report of fields, houses, workshops, etc. Not only did you hide some properties, but you also described some fertile fields as dry land.
Turn the wheat fields into jujube orchards,
A large acre of land of 240 paces was converted into a small acre of 100 paces. Some even counted 360 paces as one acre.
Others reported that Mr. Li's family has been lending money at high interest rates over the years and repaying the interest at compound interest. If the borrowers cannot afford the repayments, they forcibly take possession of their cattle and horses. They even force people to pawn their wives and daughters, sell their houses and land, and even divide the land in areas where the imperial court prohibits buying and selling.
They dare to use it to pay debts,"
"Old man, these are too shocking. May I ask if this is the case?"
"Someone must have deliberately framed him, and I am willing to confront him in court." Yuan Li panicked.
"This is an anonymous report, but there is nothing you can do about it if you confront it in court."
"It's all false accusations, so I'm hiding my head and my face. Mr. Wu must never believe it."
"Executives, don't panic. What is black cannot be whitened, and what is white cannot be blackened. Everything listed in this report letter is pointed out. Why not just check them one by one, and then the truth will be revealed. If it is a false accusation, you can immediately
I want to restore my innocence to all but the old man."
As soon as Wu Huaiyu finished speaking, Li Yuanwai fell to the ground with a plop.
After all, he was a man who had been a bad commander, and even served as a county captain for two years and ten thousand years. He was also an old fox who had become a spirit. After this conversation, he had woken up. No matter whether someone really reported him or not, but at this moment
What a coincidence here.
And the words of Mr. Wu made him completely panic.
Obviously, Mr. Wu didn't believe him, and even wanted to investigate him directly, but he couldn't stand the investigation. If he colluded with subordinates and deceived his subordinates, it would be fine.
But the prime minister personally sent people to investigate, who could hide it for him?
The secret is revealed immediately.
"Prime Minister Wu, I would never dare to hide half of this. However, in the past few years, I have been ill and have left my housekeeper to take care of my family affairs. I will send someone to find the housekeeper to ask if there is any deception."
Huaiyu looked at him and knew that the old guy was panicking and even wanted to find a way down the stairs and push him on the butler's head first, and then he might draw some blood.
Sure enough, the old man started acting next.
It was all the steward's fault. He didn't mean to hide it, but he was still willing to admit his mistakes and repent.
He admitted his mistake and accepted his punishment.
I am willing to make up for all the leaks, and I am also willing to immediately take the initiative to hand over this year's rent adjustment according to the real acre, and the same is true for Yicang Liang.
In addition, I am willing to donate another thousand stones of grain and five hundred bolts of silk to the county government.
real hemorrhaging,
He also hinted that he was willing to dedicate his family's grinding mill and oil mill to Wu Huaiyu, plus the four hundred acres of mulberry and jujube orchard.
In fact, the four hundred acres of mulberry and jujube orchard, calculated as one mu according to the 480 steps, is actually two acres as one mu. The so-called four hundred acres of mulberry and jujube orchard is actually one thousand acres. He not only counts two acres as one mu.
One acre, two hundred acres are still hidden.
This thousand acres of land is fertile land that can be irrigated by clear river water. Only 40 acres of mulberry and jujube trees are planted, and the rest is planted with wheat. The Li family keeps slaves for farming, and also hires several long-term workers. When the farming is busy,
Hire some part-time workers, Mike.
Outside of Sanyuan Qinghe Township, Li Yuan also has several villages in other townships, which together have a thousand acres of land. There are also thousands of acres of land in other counties outside Sanyuan County.
This old man's true net worth is much greater than it appears on the surface.
There are houses and shops in Chang'an, as well as in Jingyang, Sanyuan.
The family has been engaged in lending and grain trading for a long time.
Li Yuanwai was willing to bleed hard to pass the test, but unfortunately he was not honest. What he told Wu Huaiyu was only the real number of farm and house servants in Xiaoli Village, Xixiang, Sanyuan County, and he did not even explain the family property outside Xixiang and Li Village.
Not to mention the industries in other counties in Yongzhou.
"Is he really that kind of person?" Wu Huaiyu sneered disdainfully.
"My four hundred acres of mulberry and jujube orchards are all dedicated to my husband."
"Four hundred acres of mulberry and jujube orchard?"
"I'm confused again. That's a thousand acres of land. All of it is dedicated to my husband. I'll get the land deed."
Huaiyu still shook his head,
While the old man was still hesitating to draw more blood, Shi Shouxin came in again and handed over another letter.
Wu Huaiyu pretended to open it and read it, then said angrily, "Li Jing'an, you are so brave, how can you explain this?"
The letter was thrown in front of him, and Li Yuanwai quickly picked it up, took a look at it, and then screamed and fainted.
