Chapter 101 Extra Chapter 2

After retiring, he spent the first half of the month indulging in a life of pleasure and dissipation, but he still couldn't let go of some worries.

Accustomed to being busy, he now has all his time free and even sends people to investigate whether any major events have occurred in the court recently.

With the new emperor's ascension to the throne, several princes were promoted one rank: from Prince of the Second Rank to Prince of the First Rank, from Beile to Prince of the First Rank... As for those who came after, it would depend on their meritorious service.

However, what annoyed Kangxi was that the court officials would always come to pay their respects to him, occasionally saying random things, all in an attempt to get him to keep Yinreng in check.

That won't do.

Emperor Kangxi was aware of his own minor flaws, but he was always worried and concerned that the Qing Dynasty might fall into trouble under Bao Cheng's rule.

Finally, after spending more than half a month indulging in a life of pleasure with his concubines, Emperor Kangxi decided to go out and travel incognito.

As Yinreng said, he had been on the throne for thirty or forty years, and his southern tour was merely following a pre-arranged route. He also cleared out a group of people along the way to ensure a safe route before setting off.

What we see of the Qing Dynasty is just the tip of the iceberg.

I should personally visit and see the beautiful rivers and mountains of the Qing Dynasty.

However, if he were not present at the New Year's Eve banquet in the first year of Bao Cheng's reign, it would be another blow to Bao Cheng's reputation.

He also had to help suppress those demons and monsters. Looking at the familiar ministers below, Kangxi was no longer sitting in the main seat this time.

Sitting next to him, looking at the much more mature Yinreng, he nodded with great satisfaction.

I tried hard to suppress the disappointment in my heart. Bao Cheng has grown up very well, and it's time for me to let go and let the eagle soar on its own.

So, not long after the New Year, Kangxi secretly set off on his journey, accompanied by his guards and Liang Jiugong.

As for women... women will only affect my speed and reveal my coordinates.

When it comes to arranging trivial matters, Liang Jiugong can indeed be called an all-around secretary.

When Yinreng learned that Kangxi had actually traveled out of the capital incognito, half a month had already passed. Since his ascension to the throne, he had been responsible for handling many matters.

Perhaps because he was young, or perhaps because they were dissatisfied with Kangxi abdicating in his favor, the clansmen, relying on their status as elders and seniors, kept stirring up trouble.

Back then, the Emperor might have indulged them, but Yinreng wouldn't.

Not long after he ascended the throne, the fourth prince brought his reforms, namely "equalizing land tax and poll tax" and "returning the tax on taxes to the public." In fact, he also had an idea of ​​"officials and gentry paying taxes together," but he was not too bold to bring it all out.

After all, the crown prince has only just ascended the throne, and his position is not yet very stable.

The so-called "equalization of land tax and poll tax" meant that the Qing Dynasty's tax revenue was mainly based on poll tax. As soon as someone was born, they had to pay taxes. This led to many aristocratic families hiding their populations, and ordinary people who could not afford to pay taxes became tenant farmers in order to survive. This greatly affected the Qing Dynasty's tax revenue.

The "equalization of land tax and poll tax" meant that taxes were levied on land rather than population; the more land a family owned, the more taxes they paid. This was a major measure to suppress powerful families and alleviate land annexation.

The practice of "fire loss" (or "loss of grain") is a system where local officials, when collecting taxes, would use the excuse of "loss" to remit any excess money collected to the imperial court. For example, if rice transported to the capital was stolen and damaged by sparrows and rats, an additional two dou (a unit of dry measure) of grain would be added to the tax payment for every shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain, meaning a tax of one shi and two dou would be levied. (Source: Baidu)

Now, after the reform, the waste tax has been converted into a statutory tax, reducing the extra burden on the people.

On the other hand, Lao Ba proposed increasing officials' salaries, since the salaries were too low to support their families, and that those who should not be corrupt would have to resort to embezzlement and bribery to support their families.

Yinreng actively considered and accepted this, and convened many princes and important officials to discuss the matter. It has to be said that the fourth prince is quite useful. No wonder his father chose him as his successor back then.

From his words, one could also hear the idea of ​​a system where officials and gentry paid taxes equally, meaning that officials and gentry would perform corvée labor and pay taxes just like ordinary people, directly breaking down their privileges. (Contact Baidu)

However, this can only be done after the regime has stabilized.

The land tax reform was quite good. If it could suppress corrupt officials and gentry and redistribute the land they had seized to the people, then the high-yield grain from before would be in the hands of the people.

Furthermore, with the lifting of the maritime ban, the local gentry could now set their sights overseas, rather than just focusing on the land held by ordinary people.

Yinreng felt that the matter of merging the poll tax into the land tax was quite important and would cause great turmoil. His brothers... should also take action and stop thinking about going to the Western Ocean all the time.

Yinreng: If I cannot go, then you cannot escape either.

"This concerns the future of the Qing Dynasty and the hopes of the people. You all must not be careless, understand?" Yinreng still had great faith in his father's education. The children he had personally educated must have quite a bit of affection for the Qing Dynasty, right?

However, to prevent them from being lazy and perfunctory, remembering the measures taken when those纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy families) in the capital were put in charge of road construction, it is still necessary to have two people with only a casual relationship supervise each other.

Besides this matter, there are many other government affairs to handle. After a while, I find... where is Father Emperor??

Only then did I realize that Father Emperor... had gone on an incognito trip, but he didn't know which direction he had set off from!

Damn it, how can someone so grown up still be so willful?

In the past, we always headed south, but now we plan to head west.

Starting from the capital, I must say that the Crown Prince did a pretty good job building roads back then. Later, he even invented cement from the West. Look at this road, tsk tsk tsk, it's like a long and big stone, very stable.

The first region we passed through was Hebei Province, which is closest to the capital. In the third month of the lunar calendar, the ice had already begun to melt, and the preparations for spring plowing had begun.

The family was in the field, with some people responsible for plowing and others responsible for digging ditches with hoes.

Seeing the busy family working hard in the fields, Emperor Kangxi was moved. As an emperor, he was not the kind of person who would say "Why don't they eat meat porridge?" He had even held a plowing ceremony and personally worked in the fields.

The carriage stopped; he was going to visit the people of the Qing Dynasty.

The villagers who had set off early to plow the fields saw a magnificent carriage (to them, a few extra gold and silver ornaments were enough to make it magnificent) parked by the roadside, and a middle-aged man who looked very dignified stepped down from the carriage.

Standing there watching them, the simple old farmer family wondered if they had done something wrong and unintentionally offended the nobleman, or if he was about to forcibly buy their land.

Especially the old farmer, as the head of the family, should have bravely stepped forward at this time. His somewhat hunched figure slowly walked over.

As he approached, the people around Kangxi watched the old farmer warily, especially the guard with a sword, whose hand was already on the hilt of his blade.

If he dares to do anything reckless, this knife will be slashed at him immediately.

"Sir, is there anything you need from standing by the field looking at us?" The old farmer knew that in the eyes of these noble lords, he was of lowly status and not worthy of being touched, so he bowed and asked from a distance.

He was afraid that the nobleman would feel ignored and be displeased.

To be honest, there really are noblemen like that who get upset over such trivial matters. Having lived for so many years, he has some survival wisdom. "Are you preparing to start plowing?" Kangxi's attitude was very gentle. Liang Jiugong, who was next to him, even brought him a small stool to sit on, and a small table was also set up.

It is clear that Emperor Kangxi wanted to sit here and enjoy the pastoral scenery, and also to sympathize with the hardships of the people... Oh, no, I mean to show concern.

“Yes,” the old farmer explained, “If we don’t start preparing now, we’ll miss the rainy season. Besides, the grain that the imperial court is distributing now is more resistant to cold, so we can plant it now.”

The old farmer was full of gratitude whenever the topic of the new crops discovered by the imperial court came up, and he couldn't stop talking about it. "We really have to thank the imperial court. The yield of these potatoes and sweet potatoes is indeed very high, and so is the corn. Now, after a year of hard work, we can fill our stomachs and even have some surplus grain."

“That is indeed good,” Kangxi nodded, recalling that the Crown Prince had planted some hybrid rice in the imperial estate. “I heard that the court is researching new crops, and the yield of hybrid rice per mu has reached more than 400 to 500 jin.”

"Really? I've never heard of that. But the imperial court should be promoting it soon, right?" The word "promote" was something that the previous imperial prince had used, hoping that all the people of the Qing Dynasty would have enough to eat and wear.

They also planted cotton, built factories, and installed textile machines, making clothes much cheaper, and workers were able to earn money.

"Yes, the court will not forget you, but it's still in the trial stage. We'll have to wait a year or two, right? Life is getting better and better now." Kangxi smiled gently as he chatted with the old man, making small talk in a very friendly manner.

"Yes, life is getting better and better now. When the imperial envoy was distributing grain seeds to us, he also took the opportunity to investigate and confiscate the property of corrupt officials and repair roads for us. In the past, we had to do corvée labor, but the imperial envoy was so kind. He paid us to repair roads. My son even got married by earning money from road repairs. My wife also cooks for people. But it's a pity that after the road repairs were completed, we stopped earning this income."

The old farmer spoke of this with a face full of emotion, and finally pointed out the last sentence: "My family has no surplus grain, and you can't try to empty my family's coffers, they're all gone."

"Haha, life will get better day by day." Kangxi could tell that the old man was praising the court, perhaps intentionally saying nice things to him, but what did it matter? The court was indeed doing a good job.

"Yes, yes." The old farmer didn't know what the old man wanted to do, but he just had to go along with him.

Before leaving, Emperor Kangxi left a bag of pastries as an apology for delaying the old farmer's work. These pastries, made by the imperial chef, were exquisite in appearance and had a rich aroma.

The old farmer was initially hesitant to accept the offer, bowing respectfully in refusal, but there was nothing he could do; Kangxi simply ignored him.

After boarding the carriage, we headed towards the main road and then went to the county town to stay overnight.

Upon entering the city, the first thing to do is find an inn to stay at.

They were incredibly wealthy, having booked an entire inn. Emperor Kangxi even referred to himself as "Master" when he went out, indicating they were a powerful merchant.

As soon as he stepped outside, perhaps because of its proximity to the capital, the place was cleaned up again. Yinreng still took corrupt officials very seriously, to the point that he wanted to confiscate their property and exterminate their families. As a city close to the capital, the officials were still very dutiful.

Emperor Kangxi greatly admired the county magistrate of this county. After taking a tour, he continued westward.

However, the further west he went, the more impoverished the regions became and the more corrupt the politics grew. The angrier he became, and he even became an imperial envoy, specifically responsible for arresting corrupt officials and local bullies.

Every time Emperor Kangxi punished corrupt officials, the people would kneel and shout "Your Majesty, the Emperor is a just and upright ruler!" Especially after the farmland that had been seized was returned, the people's emotional cries and shouts filled Emperor Kangxi with mixed feelings.

At first, I didn't think I had done anything remarkable, but after doing more, after being thanked more, and after being called a great and just official, I found... actually, it was quite enjoyable?

Especially when I see those elderly people who are crying bitterly after their children have been taken away, and children who are starving and emaciated after their fields and grain have been taken away, I wish that there were no such corrupt officials, tyrants and gentry anywhere in the world.

I'm increasingly finding my current 'job' particularly meaningful, more meaningful than having officials kneel and shout 'Your Majesty is wise, long live the Emperor!'

"We cannot let those bastards harm the Qing Dynasty. The people of the Qing Dynasty still need me!" Kangxi led his large army, step by step, clearing away obstacles to bring a bright future to this land.

At this moment, Yinreng's men also found out about this place. Regarding what his father had done, Yinreng said: Um... Father, whatever you like.

The other princes... well, they're no longer princes, but have become princes, dukes, and beile, like Yinti, were sent out by Yinreng to 'integrate the poll tax into the land tax' and measure the land.

Batch after batch of soldiers from the Western Camp followed the two imperial princes to the most dangerous place in Jiangnan. The three princes, Yinzhen, Yinsi, and Yinzhen, went together, along with two pillars of the Hesheli family and the Niohuru family.

As a major grain-producing region, Jiangnan has many wealthy merchants, and only those with power and influence can keep them in check.

As prominent Manchu families, Niohuru and Hesheli's actions represented Yinreng's granting them trust and power.

The eldest brother, along with the thirteenth, the third and tenth brothers, the fifth and twelfth brothers, and the seventh and ninth brothers, traveled to various places including Sichuan, Guangdong and Guangxi, and Shengjing, each bringing along a large number of people.

On their way to Sichuan, the eldest and thirteenth princes were shocked to see their father's guards. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Father, what are you doing here?"

Yinqi almost let slip what he was about to say, but stopped abruptly under Kangxi's indifferent gaze. He stepped forward urgently, "Father, no wonder I haven't seen you for so long. I thought something had happened to you. Why did you come out?"

He grabbed Kangxi's hand anxiously, his voice filled with worry. "Father Emperor is such a worry!"

"Then what are you doing here again?" Kangxi hadn't expected to see his eldest son and thirteenth son here again. What were they doing? Had they been exiled?

"Father, we're going to the Shu region. Do you want to come with us?" Yinti didn't discuss this in front of everyone. His father was heading in this direction from the capital, so his journey was probably similar to his own.

"Since you have something to do, hurry up and don't waste time." I'm not going to go with you. You're rushing around, but I don't need that.

Hearing his father's words, Yinti frowned hesitantly, "Father, what are you doing?"

"Mind your own business? Get out of here." Kangxi would never tell Yinti that he was engrossed in the game of "The Upright Official," lest his two sons get in his way.

The eldest and thirteenth sons had no choice; they couldn't stay here with their father, and their father refused to leave with them.

However, you should send the letter back to Yinreng. As the emperor, how can you let the retired emperor run around like this?

After the eldest and thirteenth princes left, Kangxi ordered Liang Jiugong to investigate what they had done.

It was only then that he learned that as soon as Yinreng ascended the throne, he launched a series of reforms, which infuriated Kangxi. He hadn't even secured his position yet, and he wasn't afraid of being overthrown.

But after all, he is still his son. Yinreng is immature, and his father still has to help him.

The sweeping reforms were seen as utterly detestable by the gentry, wealthy merchants, and officials. Unfortunately, the Qing dynasty's iron cavalry, having entered the pass many years ago and having been tempered by Kangxi's suppression of the Three Feudatories and his personal campaign against Galdan, was still quite formidable.

Who can compare the hardness of a steel knife to their neck?

Therefore, the grand and exciting development proceeded quite smoothly. There were a few assassinations, but... no one stopped because of them.

On the contrary, many members of the White Lotus sect were arrested. After all, people were able to eat and dress well, so they dared not do those rebellious things that risked their lives.

There's also a reward! Hehehe!

Emperor Kangxi was very proud of this, believing that it was all thanks to him.

(End of this chapter)