How did the fiscal and tax system reform take place in the sixteenth year of the Jingkang era?

The central government and local governments separated their fiscal and tax revenue management, which is the tax-sharing system of later generations.

First, taxes collected by the imperial court, such as consumption tax, bank tax, customs tax, commercial tax of state-owned enterprises of the Song Dynasty, urban building maintenance tax, etc.

Second, local governments can begin to collect road taxes, land reclamation taxes, commercial taxes of private businesses in various regions, resource taxes, and so on.

Why did Zhao Huan separate the taxes of the imperial court and the local governments at this time?

First, the country's territory has reached an unprecedented scale. Although development has been rapid in recent years, a large number of policy loopholes have emerged, and there is too much tax evasion. Tax collection is limited to Tokyo, and the Ministry of Revenue officials have to travel all over the country, which makes it impossible to reach all areas. Therefore, taxes cannot be collected in many places.

Secondly, we should encourage diverse local development, rather than restricting it to a single set of standards set by the capital.

As soon as the new tax policy was introduced, local governments were immediately energized.

I've finally gained some control over the finances!

Immediately afterwards, the imperial court set highways and railways as key targets for assessment over the next ten years.

Furthermore, it also includes water conservancy projects in many parts of the south in a categorized manner.

The new policies of the fifteenth year of the Jingkang era set a template for local governments, and everyone knew which direction to take.

The court became noticeably more relaxed after that.

Zhao Huan also detached himself from specific things.

What is he doing?

To plan for a larger and more expansive territory.

In February of the sixteenth year of the Jingkang era, Zhao Huan began his unprecedented immigration policy.

One million people were transferred westward from the south and the Central Plains.

Where to go?

Yili!

Ili is located in the heart of the Seven Rivers region and was later known as the "Jiangnan beyond the Great Wall." It has abundant river resources, fertile land, and is also the heart of the Asian continent.

By developing Yili within five years, Zhao Huan will eliminate the hidden dangers of an overly long western expeditionary front.

Furthermore, they established a trade route connecting the Transoxiana region in Ili, preparing for the complete defeat of the Turks.

Once Ili develops, and the westward expansion extends to Suyab, opening up the economy of this area and establishing Han Chinese cities and military strongholds, the Song Dynasty's cavalry could roam freely across the Mediterranean and even reach Jerusalem.

In terms of administrative divisions, Yili was assigned to Gaochang and placed under the jurisdiction of Li Guang.

With a stroke of his pen, Zhao Huan allocated 200 million guan (24 billion yuan) to the Hetao Road, and built three railway lines and five highway lines along the Hetao Road from Xingqing Prefecture to Gaochang.

These transportation routes will become vital arteries for supplying the Central Plains to the Western Regions in the near future. Only in this way can the construction of the Yili urban cluster generate a continuous source of momentum.

Zhao Huan then wrote another generous stroke of his pen, allocating 300 million strings of cash (36 billion yuan) to Gaochang.

The funds were used for three main purposes: First, 100 million strings of cash were allocated to expand Gaochang City, with a target population of two million within five years. Second, 150 million strings of cash were allocated to establish the Ili urban cluster, with nine cities to be built within five years. Third, another 50 million strings of cash were allocated to the construction and expansion of Suyab City.

The military expenses for the campaign against the Western Regions will be calculated separately.

In the first three months of the sixteenth year of the Jingkang era, not a single official in the capital city of Kaifeng slept well.

Because even the emperor didn't get a good night's sleep, everyone was working overtime.

The Council of State Affairs, together with the three ministries (the Ministry of Revenue), put forward a complete construction plan from Hetao and Gaochang to Suyab, including the transfer of population, the length of railway and highway construction, and the budget.

Everything, big or small, was written down in great detail; the documents alone filled half a palace.

Within three months, the Hanlin Academy also issued six consecutive imperial edicts to the Central Plains and the South, urging scholars to join the great development of the Western Regions.

Furthermore, the Hanlin Academy promised to provide them with a pre-appointment official position and comprehensive benefits.

The talent pool accumulated over fifteen years of reforms in the Song Dynasty provided a continuous supply of personnel for this westward expansion.

Young people who grew up under the new policies were full of adventurous spirit. They not only searched for routes to the West in major coastal ports, but also kept going west to seek new opportunities for wealth.

I heard that Wang Jun has pushed the battle line west of Suyab, and a large number of opportunities have emerged in the Gaochang area, with more merchants and scholars voluntarily going there.

They left the hometown that their ancestors had protected to seek a new life.

Never before has there been such a large-scale population migration.

While the Council of State Affairs and the Ministry of Revenue were making plans for people's livelihood, the Privy Council and the Military Governor's Office also gave their strategic objectives for operations in the Western Regions over the next ten years.

This will be an unprecedented westward expedition, involving military strikes, the establishment of economic zones, the circulation of currency, and the spread of culture.

Only the Song Dynasty, with its extremely high administrative efficiency, could have accomplished this.

Throughout March, the imperial court issued several decrees concerning the large-scale development of the Western Regions.

It provides a vision for the future from three perspectives: military, economic, and cultural.

In the blink of an eye, half a year has passed.

Battle reports arrived from the Western Regions, revealing a dramatic shift in the war situation: Wu Jie had captured Mulu City, and Yue Fei had defeated the remaining forces of Yelü Dashi.

The shocking news was that Sanjar of the Seljuk Empire had mobilized 300,000 troops and marched eastward, intending to take advantage of the Song and Liao armies' mutual exhaustion to reclaim lost territory.

Because the battlefield was too long, Zhao Huan was unable to command it, nor could he write a letter to Yue Fei, Wu Jie, and Han Shizhong to tell them how to fight.

The imperial court can only do two things now: first, provide a continuous supply of grain and fodder; second, immediately take over the territory from Gaochang to Suyab, salvage the infrastructure, and transport people there.

The rest is up to the three commanders.

Around August of the sixteenth year of the Jingkang era, another piece of good news reached Tokyo: Roujia had returned.

Zhao Huan was overjoyed when his daughter, whom he hadn't seen for several years, suddenly returned.

Roujia got a tan, but became more resilient. The hardships she had endured overseas had erased her former delicate and fragile nature.

Zhao Huan felt sorry for her and planned to keep her by his side, so that she wouldn't go overseas again. He also planned to transfer Li Bao back after Li Bao had been stationed in Zhulian for a while.

Starting in the sixteenth year of the Jingkang era, the Song Dynasty entered a period of peace.

Another event occurred that year: the Guangzhou Shipyard built the first steamship, which officially set sail and entered Southeast Asia from Guangzhou, before returning from Southeast Asia a few months later.

Coincidentally, Qin Hui, the Pacification Commissioner of the Southern Seas, returned on this very ship.

After spending several years in Southeast Asia, Qin Hui once again set foot on Chinese soil, traveling north until he was summoned to the palace for an audience with the emperor.

Just after the first month of the seventeenth year of the Jingkang era, Qin Hui was appointed as the Military Commissioner of the Seven Rivers and sent to Suyab to manage the Seven Rivers region.