Tokyo Bianliang!

The Imperial Palace.

Zhao Xu put down the letter and thought for a long time. Suddenly he looked up and said to a man in imperial uniform standing in front of him, "Go and inform Li Bao to arrange a hundred merchants in Jingdong East Road and distribute them to various counties. I may allocate 200,000 strings of cash to them. As for where to use them, Zhang San will tell him."

"As you command."

The man clasped his fists.

Zhao Xu nodded, but his face was hesitant. After a while, he waved his hand and said, "You go down first."

"I'll take my leave."

After the man left, Zhao Xu tilted his head slightly. The eunuch beside him understood what he meant and immediately stepped forward, "Your servant is here."

Zhao Xu said, "You go to the inner treasury now and have someone take out 50,000 strings of cash. Remember, do not let the news leak out."

The eunuch was stunned for a moment, "Isn't it two hundred thousand strings of cash?"

...

...

Zhao Xu said angrily: "If two hundred thousand strings of cash were embezzled at once, how could it be hidden? There are many people in the outer court who are eyeing the inner treasury now."

"I am a stupid servant, I obey your command."

"Alright! Go ahead."

"I'll take my leave."

After the eunuch went out and closed the door, Zhao Xu pounded the table with his fist and said, "This Zhang San is really unreasonable. I asked you to make new laws to improve finances and increase treasury revenue. Now he wants me to spend money to make up for it. Isn't this trying to make money from me?"

But after complaining, Zhao Xu smiled and said, "But then again, among these three people, almost everyone's plan had problems, but his Qianlongwuyong was the only one that never went wrong."

Hezhong Prefecture.

Almost all the local self-cultivating farmers had paid their taxes in advance, and due to the crowd effect, the rest of the people also began to get anxious. They were also wondering whether the government would restrict the payment of taxes with salt notes because too many people were using them.

The credibility of the government is really worrying!

Among them, the merchants are definitely the most anxious, as they have unknowingly held a large amount of salt banknotes in their hands.

Lee's Bookstore.

"Mr. Yang, your tax bill has been calculated. If there is nothing missing, you will have to pay 123,654 coins this year."

Li Min handed a calculated tax bill back to the pot-bellied middle-aged man in front of him.

“Nothing will be missed.”

Mr. Yang waved his hands repeatedly and lamented, "I even included the money I made from reselling salt notes at the beginning of the year."

Li Min smiled and said, "It's rare for me to meet a client as thoughtful as Mr. Yang!"

Yang Yuanwai glanced at him and said, "One hundred and twenty thousand coins, more than one hundred strings of cash. If you say you don't feel bad, that's definitely a lie. It's not easy for us to make money, but if we lose money, the court won't help us. But from the current point of view, this business is getting better and better. I'm afraid that if I save this little money, I will be sued by the tax department and the public security, procuratorate and court. It's a small loss for a big loss."

Li Min nodded and said, "Mr. Yuan has thought it through very thoroughly. No wonder he can make so much money in a year."

Yang Yuanwai glanced at Li Min again and whispered, "Hasn't anyone come to ask you how to pay less tax?"

Li Min nodded and said, "That's true, but I can only provide assistance under the tax law and help them calculate taxes reasonably. In other aspects, I can't help at all."

Mr. Yang nodded and clapped his hands on his thighs, "Okay, I'll leave this matter to you. I'll go back first."

Li Min cupped his hands and said, "Master, don't worry."

Just after seeing off Mr. Yang, Li Min saw Zhang Fei coming from the Law School. Li Min hurried forward and said, "Li Min greets the Grand Judge. Please come in."

Arriving at the store, Zhang Fei sat down and asked, "How is business recently?"

Li Min answered truthfully: "Although there are fewer lawsuits, there are more transactions in tax returns. Now many people are in a hurry to pay taxes."

"Yeah?"

Zhang Fei said.

Li Min nodded and glanced outside. "It's mainly because many businessmen come to our shop and ask me to help them file their taxes."

"Businessmen?" Zhang Fei hesitated for a moment and said, "The business environment is booming now. They must be worried about getting into lawsuits and losing more than they gain."

Li Min said, "The chief judge is really good at predicting things. That's right. Recently, almost all businessmen, big and small, have made a lot of money, and they expect their business to be even better next year. Of course, they don't want to pay so much tax, but they are more afraid that it will delay their business. After all, they are not very familiar with self-declaration and are worried that the government will use it to make things difficult for them. So these people think more carefully than we do and include all income in the calculation."

Zhang Fei nodded and asked, "Who is the real rich man in Hezhong Prefecture?"

Li Min hesitated for a moment. "They just came to consult, but it seems they haven't officially started filing taxes yet. But I thought they would definitely wait until the last month to start paying taxes."

"not necessarily."

"What do you mean, Judge Zhang?"

"Because paying it in the last month is like gambling on the size of the money, there is no room for maneuver. They are all very smart and will not let us be in a desperate situation." Zhang Fei said with a smile.

Li Min just nodded without commenting.

Zhang Fei saw that he was a little uncomfortable. "I'm just asking casually. You don't have to feel constrained or report the truth. If you can't say it, don't say it. As an Erbi, you still have to keep secrets for your clients."

Why are you asking? Li Min secretly complained in her heart, and then nodded awkwardly.

Except for Zhang Fei, almost everyone believed that the big landowners would wait until the last month to pay taxes. However, they were all wrong.

After this wave of small merchants paying taxes was over, the real wealthy people in Hezhong Prefecture came to the headquarters of the Taxation Bureau to pay taxes. They did not hire Erbi, after all, they had no shortage of accountants.

The original tax payment deadline set by the Tax Commissioner was December 15th, but by early November, most of the tax was paid.

This also directly broke the record of the fastest tax collection in the Song Dynasty.

Because everyone paid taxes with salt notes.

But this record is not that important. Being fast is useless. The key still depends on how much tax is collected.

Cai Yanqing, Yuan Jiang and others also immediately rushed to the Taxation Commissioner to inquire about the details.

The tax commissioner certainly cannot hide any tax information from them and must hand over the tax accounts to them truthfully.

"This is already 70,000 guan more than last year's total tax."

Cai Yanqing was shocked.

Although 70,000 strings of cash is not a lot, you have to know that this was collected without exploiting the self-cultivating farmers, and there was an increase in taxes last autumn, which is quite remarkable. Before coming here, Cai Yanqing estimated that even if he collected two-thirds of it, it would be remarkable.

When the officials present heard the number, they were all shocked, including Yuan Jiang.

Although Yuan Jiang had seen this voluntary declaration, when he was in the capital, the tax was collected later. That is, the tax amount doubled after the tax commissioner used force. Initially, only a few thousand or tens of thousands of strings of cash were collected.

But in Hezhong Prefecture, the tax collection period has not yet ended, and it has already exceeded last year.

Of course, when the exemption tax was collected in Bian Jing, the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems had not yet been formed. In addition, the capital was full of bigwigs, so it failed to intimidate too many people. But in Hezhong Prefecture, the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems had already taken a complete form, and their deterrent power was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.

Another point is that those who have hidden their registered residence have all come out to pay taxes. Although their taxes are not much, there are too many of them, more than one-third of the people at once, plus the big landowners who pay more than in previous years, so of course the tax revenue will increase.

There is no need to say more about other officials. We have tried our best in the past, but still cannot compare to your voluntary declaration. Is that unreasonable?

Those guys are really cheap.

Wei Yingfang said with a smile: "The tax commissioner really lives up to his reputation. He collected all the taxes without any effort. I have learned a lesson. I admire him! I admire him!"

He actually praised the Commissioner of Taxation. Is the sun rising from the west?

But after a while, the other officials also reacted and congratulated Chen Ming.

That's really amazing.

Cai Yanqing and Yuan Jiang saw it all, so how could they not understand it? In fact, it was a hint that exceeding the task target would be the finale, so they should stop making trouble. Face is mutual, and everyone is giving you so much face, so you should stop while you are ahead.

But Chen Ming still had that expressionless face, and he cupped his hands and said, "Our duty as the tax commissioner is not to care about the increase or decrease of taxes. That is your duty. Our duty is to collect taxes according to the law."

Wei Yingfang's eyes flashed with displeasure, and he pretended to be puzzled and asked, "What's the difference?"

Chen Mingdao: "Our goal is to ensure that no one evades taxes. Next year, we will start tax inspections."

Yuan Jiang coughed lightly and said, "It's already so much more than that. No one should be evading taxes."

Wei Yingfang nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, yes, yes."

Chen Ming said: "We have to check it out to find out."

".!"

The smiles on the faces of the officials gradually disappeared, and they looked at Chen Ming with hostility again. You are shameless, but they were directly absorbed by that expressionless face.

And Chen Ming was really not joking with them. After seeing them off, Chen Ming came to the back hall, where he saw all kinds of people sitting.

Chen Ming said: "You have all been investigating for a whole year, I believe you should have gained something. Whether you will sleep on the street or in a brothel next year depends on the next three months."

The words were crude but the truth was there, and all these people from all walks of life showed excitement on their faces.

As soon as Chen Ming finished speaking, several people immediately handed them copies of the accounts.

How to investigate tax evasion? First, we need to know how much tax they have paid. Before, they have been investigating the transactions and land information of those wealthy people. Now they have to give them the accounts to compare with their information.

Chen Ming added: "Remember! You must be careful at this time, because the tax collection period ends on December 15th. Even if you find out, it is best not to disclose it. Otherwise, if the other party makes up the payment, then your bonus will be gone. During this period, you only need to prepare all the evidence and start the lawsuit next year."

"Thank you for the reminder, Director of Taxation. We will keep it in mind."

"Um."

As the weather turned colder, the river, which had been busy day and night for more than half a year, finally became deserted.

A lone sail slowly approached, and two people were sitting cross-legged in the cabin, one was dressed as a fisherman, and the other was dressed as an old man.

"Look!"

The fisherman placed a tax bill on the low table. "Is it your master's tax bill?"

The old man took it and looked at it carefully, then nodded and said, "Yes, this is exactly my master's tax bill, exactly the same. Where did you get it from?"

The fisherman said, "It was issued to us by the tax collector. If we don't give us the tax bill, how can we investigate tax evasion?"

The old man asked, "Did you just give my master the tax bill?"

The fisherman said, "That's not the case." Then he chuckled and said, "But the rest has nothing to do with your master."

The old man's eyes flashed with displeasure. It looked like he had eaten at several restaurants, but it was only a flash of displeasure. He nodded, "You're right. Are you sure there won't be any problems?"

"No! I asked other people, and everyone only got a portion of the tax bill. They don't have your master's tax bill."

"very good!"

The old man nodded and said, "Let's proceed according to the plan. After the matter is completed, I will give you the remaining money."

"Don't worry."

The reason why these rich people don't wait until the last minute to pay the taxes is very simple. They have to test the actions of the tax commissioner. If they wait until the last minute, once the plan changes, they won't even have the chance to make up the payment.

But for now, at least everything is still under their control.

The key to this voluntary declaration lies in the ears and eyes. As long as we use money to block these ears and eyes, the tax commissioner will be deaf and blind. This is even easier than bribing officials. After all, those are just small scoundrels.

Pay taxes?

It is impossible to pay taxes.

This kind of situation has happened before, but they will keep attacking until they find a loophole. This is human nature.

Transport Department.

"Oh! This salt note is really a treasure, indescribable! Indescribable!"

Yuan Jiang looked at the accounts without any scruples, grinning, and then looked at Cai Yanqing, "Zhongyuan, in the past, to collect taxes, we had to run to the warehouse every day, which was really tiring. Now we only need to make a few entries in the accounts. It's incredible."

Cai Yanqing said with a smile: "Brother Yuan, please don't mark it yet. The taxes have not been fully collected yet."

"But I think that's about right. How much can they evade?" Yuan Jiang frowned and asked, "Why? Do you think they evaded a lot of taxes?"

Cai Yanqing said: "I don't know either, because those people have never really paid taxes, and no one knows how much money they have."

Yuan Jiang nodded: "Hearing you put it that way, it's worth looking forward to."

Cai Yanqing said: "It depends on whether the tax commissioner is really capable."

Royal Court.

Cai Bian, Shangguan Jun and Cai Jing, who had been away for half a year, returned to Hezhong Prefecture today.

"I have read the court records you sent me. We have tried quite a few cases, three times as many as the entire year of Hezhong Prefecture this year. Very good."

Zhang Fei smiled with relief.

When the three of them heard this, they felt very happy. It was a rare occasion for them to receive praise from the teacher.

Xu Zhiqian suddenly asked curiously, "Are these places so messy?"

Cai Bian said hurriedly, "Master Xu, you don't know that those places are actually similar to Hezhong Prefecture. It's just that the people knew that the public security, procuratorate and court would go there this year, so they waited until we went there before filing a lawsuit. This is the dispute between last year and this year combined."

Xu Zhiqian nodded: "I see."

Shangguan Jun added: "In addition, Pinglu County is a transportation hub, and Jiezhou is where the salt pond is located, so there are many disputes over trade."

Zhang Fei smiled and nodded: "But you all handled it very well, just a little conservative in the fine, but this is a good thing, it proves that you are very careful and cautious. Don't be impatient. When you have enough experience, your confidence will naturally increase, and then the penalty will be more accurate."

"The teacher's earnest teachings are remembered by the students."

"But next year your task will be even heavier."

Zhang Fei said: "You will stay in Hezhong Prefecture for the New Year and have a good rest. This year is the first year of voluntary declaration. There will definitely be related lawsuits next year. We will take you to the trial for a month. After a month, you will return to Pinglu County and Jiezhou to take those students to try local tax lawsuits. During this period, Ye Zuqia will return to Hezhong Prefecture.

If nothing unexpected happens, you will have to go to Jingzhao Prefecture in the middle of the year, and then you will be truly promoted to court president. Your students will continue to stay in Hezhong Prefecture to hear cases, and I will re-arrange students to go to Jingzhao Prefecture with you."

The three of them were all overjoyed. "Thank you for your cultivation, teacher. We will work harder and will never let you down."

"Don't let your efforts and persistence go to waste."

Zhang Fei smiled and said, "Starting from next year, you must stop relying on your teachers and fight on your own."

In the entire public security, procuratorial and judicial system, only the imperial court is very short of talent. The procuratorate and the police station are okay, but there is no time for me at this time. Zhang Fei can only use this teacher-apprentice method, one gives birth to two, two gives birth to three, and three gives birth to all things.

Speaking of this, Zhang Fei really hated Sima Guang to death. At the beginning of the year, he received a letter saying that he would send a group of young talents to study with him and lay the foundation for the future expansion of the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs. As a result, a year passed and these young talents were nowhere to be seen.

It's really outrageous!

Too slow.

It goes without saying that Sima Guang must have gone through many tests, including knowledge, character, etc.

Although Zhang Fei said that they should have a good rest, due to the tight schedule, Cai Bian and the others did not have much chance to breathe. After the winter came, Zhang Fei discussed some details of the cases they tried in Pinglu County and Jiezhou with them every day.

But at this moment, Sima Guang had no mood to pay attention to talents. A memorial from Fan Chunren was sent to the capital, which made him so angry that he felt dizzy.

Jingdong East Road had already completed its first Qingmiao money loan, which was a great success with remarkable results, but the results that Fan Chunren mentioned were purely referring to fiscal revenue.

"I knew it! I knew it!"

Sima Guang slammed the memorial on the table. "How can his Qingmiao Law benefit the country and the people? It is purely to collect money for the country. The poor cannot borrow money, and the rich do not want to borrow, but are forced to borrow. This is simply draining the pond to catch fish. Such an exploitative policy has never been seen in history. No, I have to go to Wang Jiefu to argue with him and see what excuses he has."

Wen Yanbo raised his hand and said, "Junshi, don't get excited. There are only five or six memorials impeaching the Qingmiao Law, but there are more than thirty memorials praising the Qingmiao Law."

Sima Guang said: "Now those officials are afraid of the public security, the procuratorate and the court, so they are in collusion with Wang Jiefu. Can we say that this is not good?"

Wen Yanbo asked, "But why didn't the emperor believe the other thirty or so memorials, but only yours?"

"That's right!" Sima Guang couldn't help but sigh, "It's exactly what I expected."

Fu Bi slowly opened his eyes and yawned, "Since you are exactly as I expected, why are you so anxious?"

Sima Guang was startled and looked at Fu Bi, "What do you mean by that, Mr. Fu?"

Fu Bi said, "You just said that the Qingmiao Law is nothing but draining the pond to catch fish. If that's the case, problems will arise sooner or later. This method of making money can't be maintained for long. Problems will definitely arise in the future. We just need to wait patiently."

Sima Guang hesitated and said, "But if it can be avoided, it is better not to happen."

Wen Yanbo said: "But we have already stopped it."

Sima Guang had excellent insights, ideas and thoughts. He used history as a mirror to understand the rise and fall of nations. As soon as he saw the Qingmiao Law, he knew what kind of disaster it would cause.

But in terms of means, he is actually far inferior to Fu Bi. Although Fu Bi has been keeping to himself and not involved in state affairs recently, he has fought in the New Policies of the Qingli Period and later competed with Han Qi. He had already seen the weaknesses of the new policies and only needed to wait for the opportunity to give them a kick.

Fu Bi suddenly asked, "By the way, didn't you say you would arrange for someone to go to Hezhong Prefecture to study with Zhang Fei? Has this person gone?"

"Ah?" Sima Guang was slightly stunned, then said: "I have been selecting, but this judge is the core of the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs, and must be morally flawless, so that people can rest assured."

Fu Bi rubbed his forehead with a headache and said tactfully, "Zhang San's morality is not perfect either."

Sima Guang said, "But who can learn from Zhang San? Don't worry, Mr. Fu. I have carefully considered this matter. No matter how many tricks Zhang San has, he is not a supernatural being. He cannot take care of everything. If we send people with good moral character, even if Zhang San cannot take care of everything, it will be enough to reassure people and it will be faster.

If we send some people with bad intentions, even if they are gifted, once they are out of Zhang San's supervision, they may cause a bad impact on the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs. We must guard against this!"

Fu Bi looked at Wen Yanbo, who stroked his beard without saying anything. Fu Bi could only nod and say, "You have to hurry up. If Wang Jiefu is not able to do it, and you have no one here, you might miss the opportunity."

Sima Guang nodded and said, "Of course I know that, but if we rush into this kind of thing, there might be more problems than Wang Jiefu's. You can't let me compete with Wang Jiefu to see who is worse."

Fu Bi smiled and nodded, "That makes sense!"

But I thought to myself that this man was just as hopeless as Wang Jiefu.

I can't persuade him at all!

Establish regulations offices in the two prefectures.

"Do you know that Fan Chunren sent a memorial that was entirely about impeaching the Qingmiao Law?"

Wang Anshi said to Lu Huiqing who had just returned.

Lu Huiqing nodded and said, "The student knows, but the teacher should know that this person only talks about the morality of others, but does not understand the difficulty of enforcing the law."

At this point, he paused for a moment and then explained, "Yes, the government did allocate some Qingmiao money to those big landlords, but that was because no one came to borrow after the people had borrowed all the money. And why didn't Fan Chunren tell us how much tax those big landlords evaded every year? They still made a lot of money by giving them 2% interest. Besides, they agreed to it themselves, and the government didn't force them."

Wang Anshi nodded slightly and asked, "I heard that some people also had heavy debts because of the Qingmiao Law. Is this true?"

Lu Huiqing nodded and said, "That's true, but it's only a minority. Those people who borrowed money just squandered it recklessly, and we can't control that! But there are also many people who borrowed money to make farm tools and buy good seeds. Most people can still pay it back."

Wang Anshi nodded and said, "Write another letter to Zhang Dun and ask him to tell his subordinates that whenever people come to borrow money, they must be warned not to squander it recklessly and to use the money wisely. After all, this money is a loan to them, not a gift."

Lu Huiqing nodded.

Wang Anshi added: "Also, if the Qingmiao Law is successful in Jingdong East Road, then we will implement the Qingmiao Law and the Exemption from Military Service Law in Jiangnan next year. You ask your subordinates to prepare, and I will write a letter to Xue Shizheng then."

Since the financial statements of the two places will not be released until next year, even if the two sides want to compete, they have to wait until the accounts of the two places are sent to the capital next year. Only with the evidence can they compare. Everyone spent this year in peace.

But whether it was the officials in the capital or the officials in Hezhong Prefecture, they were all living in great anxiety.

Just like students waiting for their college entrance examination results.

As winter goes and spring comes, the ice and snow melt, and the snow water drips from the eaves, making a dripping sound, as if urging people to go out.

After the Lantern Festival, various government offices opened one after another. Officials gathered together and naturally chatted with each other without any intention of doing anything. But this year everyone was talking about one topic, which was the Commissioner of Taxation.

The tax collection period had passed on the 15th of last month. Those who did not pay taxes would be considered tax evasion. However, after the 15th, everyone had a holiday, so it depends on this year.

The Tax Commissioner did not disappoint. Early in the morning, a team of fully armed tax police were seen escorting three large boxes, slowly heading southwest.

This immediately attracted everyone's attention.

Citizens came to the streets, watched the convoy pass by, and then started talking about it.

Royal Court.

On the first day of work, the three little golden boys came to Da Gou's restaurant to have breakfast. Just after they finished eating, Shangguan Jun came outside, stood under a big tree and stretched his waist, and suddenly said, "Come and see?"

"What are you looking at?"

The Cai brothers came forward and looked up. Cai Jing frowned and said, "It looks like someone from the Taxation Department."

Cai Bian laughed and said, "It seems like they are really desperate. They are here to sue on the first day of opening."

Shangguan Jun laughed and said, "This time we're going to have a good show."

The three were not surprised. The purpose of their staying here was to wait for the lawsuit, and they were actually looking forward to it.

After a long while, the convoy arrived at the gate of the imperial court.

Just as the three were about to go over, they suddenly saw a figure flash past them quickly.

"Tax Collector Chen, you are here."

It was Qiu Zhengwen.

Chen Ming cupped his hands and said, "I'll leave it to Brother Qiu from now on."

Qiu Zhengwen said: "Taking money from people and helping them get rid of disasters are what I should do."

"Zhengwen, are you the one who took on the lawsuit from the Commissioner of Taxation?" Cai Jing walked up and asked.

Qiu Zhengwen nodded shyly and asked, "Is the Imperial Court open yet?"

The three of them looked at each other, and Cai Jing nodded and said, "The door is open. What can I do for you?"

Qiu Zhengwen pulled out a complaint and said, "I will represent the tax commissioner to sue 132 people in Hezhong Prefecture for tax evasion."

Cai Jing took it and said with a smile: "It's just this little!"

Qiu Zhengwen said: "I am just employed by someone."

Cai Jing glanced at Chen Ming, then extended his hand and said, "Please come in."

(End of this chapter)