Before long, news of Pei Yanzhi's plan to reform the land tax spread throughout the capital.

The reform policy, similar to the "equalization of land tax and poll tax," struck a nerve with the entire privileged class and aristocratic families.

Generally speaking, the economic sources of aristocratic families are roughly two.

One is income from business.

The other is farmland.

The previous one suffered great losses due to the new commercial tax law, losing one of his two arms. Unexpectedly, Pei Yanzhi has now turned his attention to Tianxia.

Most prominent families and local magnates owned vast tracts of land and manors.

For some unspeakable reasons, they rarely pay taxes, or even none at all, especially those with higher official positions and status.

It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to evade personal income tax. In addition to various land taxes and levies, there are also various local taxes.

Many common people, unable to make a living, would transfer their land to nobles, and the common people would pay a portion of the tax.

In recent years, due to poor harvests, many people have done this.

Therefore, the national treasury's land tax revenue has been decreasing year by year, while local powerful families have become increasingly wealthy.

In a sense, farmland was the lifeblood of a powerful family.

Commercial taxes can be adjusted, but land taxes cannot.

As one of the prominent families personally promoted by the old emperor, the Marquis's mansion also owned a large amount of land.

So when rumors of Pei Yanzhi reforming the land tax spread, the first to be stunned was the Marquis's mansion.

"I've never seen someone stab themselves with a knife!"

That very day, the old Marquis summoned Pei Yanzhi for questioning, and even the old lady sent someone to inquire about the reason.

In the end, no one knows how Pei Yanzhi managed it, but there were no more dissenting voices from the Marquis's residence.

There are more opposition parties in power.

Moreover, this time it wasn't just high-ranking officials and powerful families; even the Li imperial family joined forces in opposition.

After all, Pei Yanzhi's land reform policy did not discriminate based on status; whether you were a prime minister or a member of the royal family, everyone was treated equally.

The voices of opposition in the imperial court grew louder and louder.

Jiang Shuwan was also affected.

Previously, when she was granted the title of County Princess, the entire elite circle of Dajing, from top to bottom, treated her with some respect, especially the royal family members, who were practically like family to her.

For example, when the Prince of Zhongyong, who had been stripped of his title, was being tried in the Ministry of Justice, he completely ignored Pei Yanzhi, who was in charge of the trial, but he did give Jiang Shuwan a few smiles.

Now things have gotten really bad. The Li royal family has also come to hate Jiang Shuwan, and suddenly Jiang Shuwan's house is deserted. All the invitations that used to line up to invite her to eat ice cream and listen to operas have disappeared.

Some people secretly passed on messages, hoping that she, as the county princess, would persuade her "husband".

After all, she owns quite a bit of land, especially over a dozen hills in the north, which are all land...

Furthermore, Jiang's father also sent someone to tell her and Pei Yanzhi to return to her parents' home.

Jiang Shuwan knew that her father's thoughts were similar to others; he simply wanted her to "persuade" Pei Yanzhi.

However, this is not a question of whether or not to persuade them.

In his previous life, Pei Yanzhi also changed the land tax, but not at this time.

Looking back, the commercial tax was also implemented several years ahead of schedule.

Do such geniuses really exist in this world?

Jiang Shuwan fell silent and didn't eat anything all day.

That evening, she secretly summoned Qingxing and asked her to investigate the grooms that Song had previously bribed.

"Wasn't that groom caught by the prince after running away for several months? Now he's locked up on the estate doing hard labor?"

"Miss, why are we investigating him?"

Qingxing was full of questions, but she still obeyed the order and went to arrange the manpower.

Inside the room, Jiang Shuwan grabbed a plate of melon seeds and started cracking them open.

There were some things she dared not think about deeply.

But I can't help but think about it.

About a week later, the investigation results from Qingxing came out.

“Miss, I asked many people on the estate, and they all said that the coachman was captured by the young master, and the time was the same as what the young master said.”

As she spoke, Qingxing lowered her voice and paused for a moment.

"However, as Miss instructed, I asked the peddler in the neighborhood. The peddler goes to the village three or four times a month, and many people in the village buy things from him. The coachman has also bought things from him, but he has never bought wine."

"That coachman used to be a heavy drinker and a gambler, but now he's like a completely different person."

Qingxing said in utter astonishment, grabbing Jiang Shuwan's sleeve and staring wide-eyed in horror.

"Miss, could it be that the coachman has been replaced a long time ago...?"

"But why did the prince lie to us..."

"..."

Jiang Shuwan patted Qingxing's hand and comforted her, telling her to keep the matter to herself.

But as I said before, there are some things she dares not think about too deeply.

But as soon as Jiang Shuwan saw Pei Yanzhi, all sorts of images rushed into her mind.

She suddenly remembered the day when Jiang Yao plotted against Xiangguo Temple. She bumped into his arms and was seen by his classmate. Pei Yanzhi was completely bewildered and innocent.

After their marriage, Pei Yanzhi continued to test and guard against her in various ways, even sleeping under separate blankets.

Later, he went to the Fourth Prince's residence to rescue her.

He had placed guards around her, so it's not surprising that they were the first to receive the news and come to her rescue.

Strangely, the robbery and murder occurred at Shili Slope.

If Pei Yanzhi hadn't come, and Elder Yun and the rest of the Yun family were gone, then Li Chengyun would have sent someone to impersonate him, and after some time, they would have said that Elder Yun had passed away due to illness—this would have perfectly matched the events of the previous life.

But when Pei Yanzhi arrived, he even sent people to escort Lord Yun safely home. According to his previous letter, the old man was in good health and would live for another five years without any problem.

She had always found this a bit strange, but hadn't thought about it too much.

After all, the day before the results of the imperial examinations were announced, she had deliberately reminded Pei Yanzhi that the old man was getting on in years and couldn't withstand the strain.

Perhaps it was because of her words that Pei Yan's people remembered to see the old man off.

Or perhaps Pei Yanzhi was more meticulous because he entered officialdom earlier than in his previous life.

It couldn't possibly be what she thought...

Now, she's not sure anymore.

The day of the old lady's death in my previous life flashed through my mind again.

The rain was torrential, the dark clouds were rolling and the wind was howling. In such heavy rain, half of her clothes were soaked in the short time it took to get into the carriage. Pei Yanzhi, on the other hand, did not even bring an umbrella. He stood pitifully on the bluestone road, holding a lamp in his hand, waiting for her to pass by.

That was definitely the most embarrassing moment in Pei Yan's past and present lives.

She was completely unprepared when she sent in the lamp that had burned down the entire Pei family ancestral hall.

Finally, that disheveled figure transformed into a powerful and unparalleled minister of the Great Jing Dynasty, whose influence swelled across the land.

Sometimes, a person's ability to climb the ladder of success does not depend on how capable they are.

Sometimes, those in positions of power value loyalty more than ability.

In his previous life, was Pei Yanzhi able to rise from a minor official of the Ministry of Justice to the Grand Secretary of the court simply because he, like the old Marquis, was a loyal subject of His Majesty?

A new emperor brings a new court; whether in the past or present, the old emperor's power has visibly slipped away.