Zhao Yuan came to Tang's house in the morning to complain to Tang Ning, saying that he was already studying "Zi Zhi Tong Jian". Each volume of the book was more than an inch thick, and there were thirty volumes in total. It would take him five years to finish it.
This is a good change. To some extent, Zizhi Tongjian is more than one grade higher than those enlightenment books. More importantly, in the Chen Kingdom, this book was a must-read for the emperor. As a prince,
, you need to understand the way of the emperor from this book.
Different people read the same book and have different perceptions.
Some people have figured out the way to strengthen the army, some have figured out the way to develop the economy, and some have figured out the art of balancing. This is a treasure. What you can get from it depends on your personal understanding.
On the road to seize the throne, Zhao Yuan was the last to get on the bus, but the speed was the fastest, especially when King Kang rolled over and King Duan broke down, he was the only one galloping towards the front.
Judging from the current situation, the Tang family has fallen into the dust and will never be able to stand up again. Zhao Yuan has actually declared victory in advance. With such huge resources, no one, including Chen Huang, can change the future pattern of Chen State.
The only difference is whether the process of Chen Huang stepping down and Zhao Yuan coming to power was peaceful or violent.
Tangning couldn't help him with his studies. He still had his own things to do.
When a monk strikes a bell, he has not left Chen State after all, but the next thing he will strike is not the bell, but the gentry and dignitaries of Gyeonggi.
These people are not easy to mess with. The essence of feudal society is exploitation. Everything serves the ruler and the so-called superior powerful. They are the ruling class that the law serves.
Where there is rule, there is exploitation. If the people are exploited too hard and their survival is threatened for a long time, they will rise up. This is how most dynasties changed in history.
Therefore, the court must prevent large-scale annexation of land and must consider the poor people. In this way, it will inevitably have to compete with the gentry and powerful people for profit, and these people often have great energy and will not allow the court to slaughter them or push them too hard.
The world will still be in chaos.
It is neither possible to advance nor retreat. This is embarrassing Tang Ning and Wang Huai.
Tang Ning looked at King Huai in the Secretariat of the Secretariat and asked, "Does your Highness have any good ideas?"
King Huai sat down, took a sip of tea, and said, "My father asked me to assist Master Tang. I listen to Master Tang."
One thing about King Huai is similar to Tang Ning, that is, he is lazy. He will never stand if he can sit, and he will never sit if he can lie down. If there was a more comfortable position than lying down, Tang Ning thought that he would not choose to lie down.
If someone could make a decision for him, he would not use his brain.
"Otherwise..." Tang Ning looked at him and said, "We might as well enforce the new tax law. If anyone dares to disobey, please Your Highness to bring someone to ransack their home. If one person doesn't comply, one will be confiscated, and if ten don't comply, they will be confiscated."
Ten, kill the chicken to scare the monkeys, kill one to scare the hundreds, what do you think, Your Highness?"
"Ahem..." King Huai coughed lightly, wiped the tea from the corner of his mouth, put down the teacup, and said, "Isn't this bad..."
Tang Ning said: "Why isn't this good? It's simple and straightforward, and it will bring in more money for the national treasury. Why not do it?"
"Violence is not the way to solve the problem. If we suppress it too hard, I am afraid it will cause a civil uprising. It will not be ended by then, and neither Mr. Tang nor I will be able to escape punishment." King Huai shook his head and said, "We should think of him elsewhere.
Law it."
Tangning looked at him and asked, "Then does your Highness have any clever methods?"
"Everyone takes a step back." King Huai knew that he could no longer ignore the matter. He thought for a while and said: "Cancel some unreasonable tax items and leave some. In this way, we have an explanation to the court and will not force anyone to do so.
Those squires and powerful people are too cruel..."
Tang Ning glanced at King Huai. His method was a compromise. If used properly, it would not cause too much backlash from the gentry and powerful people. If he had come up with it earlier, King Duan, who took over the matter, would not have been able to do so.
Then they won’t be impeached and turned into a sieve by the gentry and dignitaries who represent the interests of the landlords...
Tangning looked at him and asked, "When did Your Highness come up with this method?"
King Huai said: "I just had an idea and just thought of it."
Tangning did not expose him, but just shook her head and said, "Your Highness is taking too much for granted. What Your Majesty wants is a thorough tax reform, not peace and quiet. And Your Highness can be sure that those people will take a step back?"
King Huai smiled and said, "I am willing to listen to Mr. Tang's advice."
Tangning thought for a moment and asked, "Has Your Highness ever heard of such a sentence?"
King Huai said: "I would like to hear the details."
Tang Ning said: "A philosopher once said that people always like to make compromises. For example, if you say that this room is too dark and a window must be opened here, everyone will not allow it. But if you advocate removing the roof, they will
Come to reconcile and be willing to open the window..."
"What Master Tang means is..." King Huai's eyes flashed as he said, "First of all, set a condition that they will never accept, and let them compromise and achieve our goal..."
Tang Ning said: "Your Highness is really smart..."
King Huai smiled and said: "The smart one is Mr. Tang..."
He looked at Tang Ning and asked, "What conditions does Mr. Tang want to offer?"
Tang Ning said: "It's very simple. Cancel the head tax and levy taxes based on land..."
King Huai's expression froze, his face changed slightly, and he asked: "Master Tang, are you serious?"
Tangning nodded and said, "Of course."
In the Chen State, including all dynasties, taxation was based on the head. A household paid as much tax as there were people in it. A family of three with ten acres of land, and a powerful family with thousands of acres of fertile land, paid taxes on the land.
There is not much difference in tax rates.
The gentry and dignitaries who own large amounts of land do not need to pay taxes corresponding to their large amounts of land. In the long run, the tax revenue of the treasury will decrease sharply. Therefore, the court has been trying various methods to avoid land annexation, but with little success.
Taxing taxes not based on head but on land can completely solve this problem, but it will inevitably face great opposition from these beneficiaries. By then, the Chen Kingdom will be in chaos, and no one is willing to bear such consequences.
Tang Ning looked at King Huai and said, "Should we collect taxes based on land or streamline the tax system? I believe they will make the right choice. It's just that in this matter, one person needs to be a good person and the other a bad person..."
King Huai smiled and said, "I like to be famous."
Tang Ning sighed and said, "Unfortunately, I also like to be a red face."
He looked troubled and said: "What should we do? There is always someone who wants to play bad guy..."
King Huai looked at him and asked, "How about..."
Tangning looked at him and said, "Okay."
…
Household Department.
The Minister of the Ministry of Revenue was sitting in the Shangshu Yamen, sipping tea leisurely. It was originally the responsibility of the Ministry of Revenue to amend the tax law, but this matter would offend too many people. His Majesty was considerate of the Ministry of Revenue and handed over this difficult matter to Ding.
The Marquis of Guo and King Huai, the two most outstanding young men in the dynasty, greatly reduced his burden.
No one knows better than him how much resistance is needed to promote this matter. Marquis Dingguo and King Huai are still too young.
Qian Shuo shook his head and said with a smile: "What a newborn calf..."
He took a sip of tea, picked up a brochure on the table, and opened a page.
puff!
All the tea in Qian Shuo's mouth spurted out, his expression changed drastically, and after standing there for a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, "Two little foxes!"
