"Dig a well? And it's a deep well... Is this necessary?" Lu Su frowned and looked at Bai Tu's plan.
That's right, in addition to strategic material reserves, another short-term task of the Ministry of Civil Affairs is to train grassroots officials to use new well-digging tools, and then organize people from Danyang and Wu counties to perform additional corvee work during the slack season.
——Dig a well!
As extra corvee, Baitu planned to use "relief grain" to replace the wages that needed to be paid.
The so-called relief food is a kind of food mixed with grain bran, bran, wild vegetables, a small amount of eggs... In coastal areas, dried fish is also mixed in. It tastes like chewing sand and does not taste very good.
"Grain and grass" - only those that have been processed by Cheng Ji are called grain and grass!
At the same time, after Cheng Ji's treatment, the taste of the food will further deteriorate, but the shape is suitable for storage and transportation.
It looks like a brick, but tastes more like a brick. It doesn’t taste good, but it’s enough to keep you healthy.
Two stones of grain, plus those messy things, can be "exchanged" for three stones of relief grain!
In addition, there are "growing foods" with higher nutritional content and a smaller proportion of bran and wheat bran, which can be supplied to children and soldiers who need training and fighting.
As for the ones that are completely free of wheat bran and bran and have a high meat-to-egg ratio, they are prepared for a small number of elite soldiers who need high-intensity training - this is the product of Bai Tu's nutritional balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
"This 'relief grain' is quite good. It can not only increase grain taxes in disguise, but also reduce some people's resentment. In addition, the lord later made public the 'Baigong Plow' and the 'Baigong Huan''s achievements and reputation. People in Jiangdong should still support it.
" Lu Su said.
Lu Su was very supportive of the food relief policy.
During the Three Kingdoms period, people were taxed very heavily. In the Han Dynasty, it was usually one out of ten taxes, which meant that one-tenth of the grain production had to be turned over. During the Wen and Jing Dynasty, people advocated governance by doing nothing to hide wealth from the people, and taxes were as low as thirty taxes.
First, when it comes to the real Three Kingdoms period, those who use official oxen in the Wei State will have six officials and four civilians, and those who do not use official oxen will have five to five points.
Although the Shu Han Dynasty had Shu brocade, Yunnan horses, and gold and silver produced in Nanzhong, in order to maintain a large army, the tax revenue was always close to half...
It can be said that during this period, the aristocratic families were transitioning into powerful families one after another, but the people were very miserable.
Even now, the princes of all parties have generally increased the poll tax significantly, and the land tax has also reached one of five taxes, and one of three taxes, to balance the huge military expenditure.
In comparison, Jiangdong's original garrison force in various places now totals more than 50,000 people. Bai Tu's planned recruitment of new soldiers in the four counties will not exceed 30,000. Compared with Jiangdong's population of three million, it is not
many.
Just because he foresaw that a drought would start next winter, Bai Tu had to start preparing food, so he had no choice but to choose five taxes and one tax.
At this time, even if rice and wheat were planted in rotation and two crops were harvested a year, the average yield per mu in Jiangdong was only one stone.
Taking a household with a 100-acre farm as an example, Baitu had to collect 20 shi of grain, and he was also "crazy" and forced to use 60 shi of relief grain in exchange for 60 shi of ordinary rice grain.
This is equivalent to one hundred shi of grain per 100 acres of real estate. Bai Tu wants to collect 80 shi, and after turning it into 120 shi of relief grain, he will give back another 60 shi!
There is another advantage, that is, the sale of ordinary rice grains cannot be restricted across the board, but the relief grains produced by Cheng Ji can.
By then Bai Tu will issue an order that those who buy and sell relief grain without permission will be punished as smugglers of salt and iron, which will put an end to a large number of open reselling and prevent people from hoarding grain in disaster years.
"If this is the case for a long time, both the military and the people's morale will be in turmoil. It would be better to tax three out of ten, two out of five, or increase the calculated tax." Lu Su suggested.
The so-called "tax calculation" is actually a poll tax, a tax paid by all farmers, merchants and handicraftsmen. Generally, farmers use silk, flax, meat and eggs to offset the tax.
"Of course it's not a long-term solution, but... I have a hunch that there will be a severe drought in Huainan next winter. The year after next will be a good time to conquer Huainan. However, a large amount of relief food is needed, and the drought may spread to Jiangdong. We also
Be prepared." Bai Tu said.
Lu Su became a little serious after hearing this, and said solemnly: "My lord, you must not mess with the administrative orders regarding prophecy!" After saying this, he glanced at Tai Shi Ci, as if he wanted to ask something.
When Bai Tu saw this, he understood that Lu Su thought he had been deceived by some fortune teller, and wanted Tai Shi Ci to reveal something.
"It's not a prophecy, it's me...it's me, the divine being, who is dreaming!" Bai Tu said bravely.
"I think about it every day and dream about it at night. My lord has a headache from Huainan Yuan Shu, so that's why he has this dream, right?" Lu Su retorted.
In Lu Su’s view, it is not impossible for “gods and men to dream”, but it should be a means and an excuse, not the source of motivation!
Bai Tu knew that he couldn't explain it, so he could only say: "Since there is such a dream, why shouldn't we be more careful?"
When Lu Su heard this, he said helplessly: "But Su can guarantee that there will be no major disasters in Huainan in recent years."
"How can you guarantee this?" Bai Tu couldn't help but wonder when he heard this.
"Actually... Su has a lot of research on Feng Shui, and he can see the world's atmosphere..."
Hearing Lu Su's words, Bai Tu stared at him with an expression of contempt - who just said that the "prophecy thing" was not credible?
Of the co-authors, only my "gods and gods entering dreams" fall into the category of prophecy, but your "feng shui and earth qi" are very scientific?
Lu Su saw Bai Tu's eyes and said excitedly: "My method of observing Feng Shui and observing the earth's energy is recorded in the Book of Heaven!"
"Oh, how much does the Book of Heaven cost?" Bai Tu was already convinced that Lu Su had been deceived into lameness.
"Priceless treasure...wait a minute! Lord, I was not deceived, this is the real heavenly book! One of the ten volumes of the heavenly book..." Lu Su said quickly.
"Ten volumes? One? When that person comes to sell you the other nine volumes, please inform me." Bai Tu looked like he wanted to seek justice for Lu Su.
Lu Su went crazy and struggled to explain to Bai Tu that the Heavenly Book was free of charge, and it was not something beggars on the street would sell if they looked at someone's skeleton, but it was a gift from heaven...
Originally, Lu Su thought that Bai Tu might also have a certain heavenly book, but now it seems that this is not the case.
But Bai Tu was still doubtful. After all, we often see examples of scammers tricking smart people.
But then Taishi Ci interrupted: "My lord, Ci has also heard of the legend of the Ten Volumes of the Heavenly Book..."
Bai Tu was now convinced that there were even Cheng Ji in this world, and in comparison, the Book of Heaven was nothing unusual.
But now Bai Tu is very doubtful whether Lu Su's Heavenly Book is a parallel import or whether he is not perfect in his studies. Comparing the current world with Bai Tu's understanding of the direction of major events, next winter's severe drought should not happen.
There are mistakes, but why did Lu Su come to the opposite conclusion when he "observed the earth's energy"?
On the other hand, what Lu Su said later made Bai Tu believe some of the claims about the "Book of Heaven"...