Chapter 95 Taxation Storm Approaching

Life returned to normal, and soon it was time for the imperial court to collect land taxes.

The current dynasty adopts a two-tax system, with taxes paid twice a year, once in summer and once in autumn. In summer, a "conversion system" can be used, allowing the government to substitute grain with cash, cloth, silk, or straw of equivalent value. However, in autumn, the main tax is levied on grain, so the method of substituting goods for grain is not feasible.

The second branch of the Lin family only had two mu of land. According to the usual tax system of paying two dou of grain per mu, they only needed to pay four dou of grain in total.

When the autumn tax notice was posted this year, a crowd gathered under the old locust tree at the village entrance. When someone who could read read out the new regulations on land tax, the crowd erupted in a frenzy.

"One acre of land, one shi of tax?" Lin Cheng could hardly believe his eyes. He rubbed his eyes hard and leaned closer to the notice, looking at it word by word. Yes, it was written clearly in black and white.

He looked down again and saw the contents of the poll tax.

According to past customs, men were considered "male" at twenty and "old" at sixty. Males aged twenty to sixty were required to pay a "male tax," either in cash or one zhang of silk, to be paid along with the other two taxes. However, the proclamation now clearly states that, since its issuance, men are now considered "male" at fifteen, and the tax has increased to three zhang of silk, or the equivalent in currency.

Lin Cheng drove the donkey cart towards the village. As soon as he entered Linjia Village, he drove the cart directly to the outside of the village head's courtyard, pulled on the reins, and called out into the yard, "Grandpa Village Head, is Grandpa Village Head home?"

The village head was weaving bamboo baskets in the courtyard when he heard the sound. He put down the bamboo strips he was weaving and came out. When he saw that it was Lin Cheng, he asked with a smile, "Brother Cheng, you're back from town? How's the shop?" He thought that the Lin family restaurant was short of ingredients again, since Lin Yao and Lin Cheng had come to him several times to ask him to organize a trip up the mountain to pick ingredients.

Lin Cheng jumped out of the car and said with a serious expression, "Grandpa Village Head, the taxes have been changed this year."

Seeing his serious expression, the village headman suppressed his smile and quickly led him into the house: "Let's talk inside."

Pan and Lin Yougong were busy inside when they saw Lin Cheng come in with the village head, looking very serious, so they stopped what they were doing.

After sitting down, Lin Cheng took a sip of tea, composed himself, and said, "This year's land tax is one shi of grain per mu."

"What?!" Lin Yougong's voice rose sharply, his face filled with disbelief. "One acre per shi? How is that possible?"

Pan, standing nearby, was also incredulous: "Yishi! How are we supposed to live like this?"

The village head frowned, remained silent for a moment, and suddenly remembered the speculations Lin Yao had told him before. He sighed heavily, his face full of worry.

Seeing him sigh, Lin Cheng continued, "The poll tax has also been changed. Men are considered adults at fifteen, and the tax has increased to three zhang of silk, or the equivalent in currency."

The village head's family was completely stunned; the house was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

After a while, he came to his senses and said to his grandson sitting beside him, "Yougong, go and get the gong from home. Walk around the village and ring the gong to notify everyone to gather at the threshing ground. Tell them that there is something important to announce."

Although Lin Yougong was also shocked, he nodded and quickly ran to get the gong. Soon after, the sound of the gong rang out throughout the village.

The village headman watched as the threshing ground gradually filled with people, the once noisy courtyard slowly quieting down with his arrival. He cleared his throat: "Fellow villagers, I've called you all here today to announce some news." The village headman's voice carried an undisguised heaviness. He continued, "The imperial court has changed the autumn tax regulations this year; one mu of land will now require the payment of one shi of grain."

"One stone?!" A collective gasp immediately rose from the crowd, and the previously relaxed atmosphere became tense.

The village head ignored everyone's voices and announced the changes to the poll tax.

These words caused an uproar at the threshing ground.

"Fifteen years old and already an adult? My Sanlang just turned fifteen!"

"This isn't taxation, this is trying to kill us!"

"My family only has three mu of land, and we have to pay three shi of grain this time. I'm afraid our stored grain won't be enough!"

"The little money I've earned in the last six months or so, I'm afraid it will all have to go into the bank, and it still might not be enough!"

For the past six months or so, the people of Linjia Village have been following Lin Yao in gathering mountain produce and making pickled vegetables. Many families have earned some money and have some savings. Originally, they thought this year's taxes were nothing, and some even planned to buy some new items for their homes after paying the taxes. But now, upon hearing about the new tax regulations, everyone is dumbfounded.

Chaos reigned in the threshing ground. The people, who had been beaming with hope for the future, were now filled with worry because of the sudden new tax regulations.

Lin Yao stood at the edge of the crowd, quietly listening to the village head's announcement and the villagers' wails, her heart churning with turmoil.

One shi (石) is 120 jin (斤), while the land tax in previous years was only 25-40 jin (斤) per mu (亩). This is several times higher. Everyone present is a farmer, and they all know how much a mu of land can yield. Even in a good year with favorable weather, a mu of land can only yield a maximum of 200 jin (斤), and even with meticulous farming in the Jiangnan region, it's no more than 250 jin (斤). After paying the land tax of 120 jin (斤), the remaining grain will be barely enough to support a family until next autumn's harvest, let alone save seeds and cover various expenses.

Perhaps the emperor's orders weren't so harsh, but how many officials passed through the hands of the common people as they handed over grain to the local government, and then transported it to the capital? These officials were corrupt and exploitative at every level, so to ensure the rulers received a substantial amount of grain in the end, they naturally had to increase the amount collected from the outset. In this way, all the suffering ultimately fell on the shoulders of the most vulnerable people.

After more than a year of management, these land taxes and poll taxes were nothing to Lin Yao's family, but for the other people in Linjia Village, they were a heavy burden that could crush them.

After leaving the threshing ground, Lin Yao pulled Lin Cheng along and drove the donkey cart back to Qingquan Town.

The donkey cart stopped directly in front of the grain shop she frequented in town. Before she could even get off, Lin Yao was stunned to see a queue forming in front of the shop. Although the queue wasn't long, it was still much longer than the usual sparse number of people buying grain.

She told Lin Cheng to watch the donkey cart, then quickly walked to the shop and approached an elderly woman in line, asking, "Auntie, what's going on? Why are so many people buying grain?"

Seeing her young age, the old woman patiently explained, "Young lady, you don't know, do you? The taxes have suddenly increased significantly. Those who came to buy grain today are all people whose families don't have enough to pay the taxes. The shopkeeper just said that each person can only buy a maximum of one shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain, and the price has doubled!" She sighed, "Hopefully, after this, the land tax will be changed back. If it's like this every year, how are we supposed to survive?"

Most grain stores are backed by local bigwigs, and they always have better access to information. If it were just a temporary policy, there wouldn't be such strict purchase restrictions. Currently, each person is limited to one shi (a unit of dry measure) of each type of grain. Before long, the grain stores will probably close down completely to store the grain for unforeseen circumstances. She had originally planned to buy more grain, the more the better, but given the current situation, not only is buying more difficult, but even getting any at all has become a problem.

Lin Yao made a quick decision, turned back to the donkey cart, and said to Lin Cheng, "Brother, go to the workshop right now, find Zhang Ping, Zhang An, and Wan Chunsheng, and have them take all the money the workshop can mobilize, and lead the workshop's workers to go to all the grain shops in town to buy grain, no matter the price, buy as much as they can, and transport the grain directly back to the workshop's warehouse. Remember to be quick!"

Although Lin Cheng was surprised, he knew the matter was urgent and nodded heavily: "I'll go right away!"

Lin Yao thought for a moment and realized that the town's grain supply was probably insufficient, so she needed to go to the prefectural city to check. She stopped him and said seriously, "Brother, after you've settled things with the shopkeepers in town, take two quick-witted helpers and head to the prefectural city immediately. Once you get there, buy as much grain as you can, no matter how high the price, and transport it back as quickly as possible. Be careful on the road."

"Okay, I understand!" Lin Cheng knew this matter was of great importance and dared not slack off in the slightest. He responded and hurriedly went to make arrangements.

After all the arrangements were made, the grain that Lin Yao and her group had finally purchased filled the workshop. Looking at the workshop full of grain, she finally felt a little more at ease.

In Linjia Village, Grandpa Zhang looked at the brood of men in his house and was so worried that he couldn't eat. He was fifty-four years old this year and had two sons. His eldest son was the father of Zhang Ping and Zhang An, and his second son also had two sons, the older one being fourteen years old and the younger one being twelve.

Although his two grandsons don't have to pay the poll tax this year, they'll have to in two years. He used to be proud of having the most male members in his family, but now, they're the household that pays the most poll tax in the village—ten zhang of silk this year, twelve zhang next year, and fourteen zhang the year after!

The atmosphere at the Zhang family's dinner table was extremely oppressive. The dishes on the table were clearly not as plentiful as in the previous days, and even the brown rice they usually ate had been replaced with soybean rice.

Zhang Sheng, the third grandson, rummaged through the soybeans in his bowl, hesitated for a moment, and said, "How about I go to town and find some work?" He had also gone to the threshing ground today to hear about the tax situation and knew that he would be considered a member of the working class starting next year. It wouldn't be good for him to stay at home and freeload. "I'll go ask Sister Ayao if her workshop is hiring. Maybe I can earn some money."

“I’ll go too!” Zhang Li, the grandson, chimed in. Although he was young, he knew the family’s difficulties. “I can help sweep the floor, carry water, and do any kind of work. I can earn some money to help support the family.”

Grandpa Zhang looked at his two sensible grandsons, a pang of sadness gripping his heart. He sighed heavily and nodded, "Well, that's all we can do. Go ask Ayao, if the workshop really needs people, then work hard and don't cause them any trouble."

Just then, familiar footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate, followed by the voices of Zhang Ping and Zhang An: "Grandpa, Father, Second Uncle, we're back!" Zhang Ping and Zhang An were carrying several heavy sacks on their shoulders, bulging and full, which looked like they were filled with grain.

"You've bought grain?" Grandpa Zhang's eyes widened as he looked at the large amount of grain.

Zhang Ping put down the sack on his shoulder, wiped the sweat from his face, and said, "Yes, I bought quite a lot."

Grandpa Zhang was even more surprised. "So much grain? You didn't spend all your monthly allowance for the past few months, did you?" The family was short of money, so why were they buying so much grain? Grandpa Zhang's face darkened, and he felt a little angry.

Zhang Ping noticed Grandpa Zhang's dissatisfaction and quickly explained, "Don't be angry. If you don't buy now, you might not be able to buy it later even if you have the money. You didn't see it, but the grain shops in town have started to limit purchases. Each person can only buy one shi (a unit of dry measure), and the price has more than doubled. Ayao also bought a lot, and it's piled up all over the workshop."

Zhang An chimed in, "Yes, A Yao said that with the tax increase so drastic, many families will definitely run out of food. Food might become even scarcer, and prices might rise even higher. If we buy more now, at least we can ensure that our families have enough to eat and won't have to worry about not having enough food to pay taxes."

Grandpa Zhang didn't really listen to what his eldest grandson was saying, but when he heard his second grandson mention that Ayao had also stockpiled a lot of grain, his expression softened considerably. Following Ayao's lead was definitely the right thing to do.

Seeing the change in his grandfather's expression, Zhang Ping gave Zhang An an approving look. It was A Yao who was truly persuasive.

The Zhang family had two grandsons who worked as managers in the Lin family's workshop, so they were relatively well-off. Although the financial strain was painful, they could still manage. However, other families in the village were not so lucky. Those who couldn't work for Lin Yao, or whose families had few able-bodied men, faced with the sudden doubling of land taxes and poll taxes, couldn't even scrape together a fraction of their grain and silk.

This is just the situation in Linjia Village. Looking across the country, there are probably countless families like this who cannot afford grain and silk.

From the day the new tax regulations were posted, the surface peace of the Great Yan Dynasty was destined to be torn open by these heavy taxes.

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