Chapter 345 Finale
However, Fang Ningmo said, "But Your Majesty, what if there are orphans and widows who are short of staff at home and really need help to take care of them? Well, for example, in my family, almost everyone is out working, and there are only my grandparents at home. If we don't leave one or two loyal servants to take care of them... we will be worried..."
Feng Er laughed at her, "Could it be that your Second Miss Fang can't afford the two taels of silver for the slave tax?"
"It's not two taels of silver. I'm just explaining my situation. I think since there's no one-size-fits-all approach, we have to analyze each case individually. My family has many people working, so we don't have to worry about the slave tax. But what about families with heavier burdens, where only one person works away from home, and the family is full of elderly and infirm people who need slaves to care for them?"
This sentence made everyone look thoughtful.
Xu Zhenying smiled and said, "That's simple. We're just abolishing the human trafficking, not really prohibiting ordinary people from hiring helpers. You can just destroy the indenture and sign a labor contract. It's like a restaurant or inn, where you don't sell your body, you only sell your labor. It's a two-way choice for both the buyer and the seller."
Everyone's eyes lit up.
Feng Er praised sincerely, "Your Highness is truly resourceful. This way, the slaves can be freed without affecting those who truly need help."
Everyone praised for a while.
Xu Zhenying raised his hand. "Alright, stop the flattery. The maid issue is relatively simple. The difficult part is how to eliminate the three types of human trafficking: prostitutes in brothels, concubines, and child brides."
Xu Yinxi said, "Your Majesty, couldn't you also raise taxes on brothels the same way you raised taxes on slaves? If the taxes are higher, the madams will make less money, and the prostitution business will naturally falter."
The woman's face paled slightly, and she immediately stood up to protest, "No way. When taxes are high, the prostitutes are the ones who suffer. The madams won't lose a penny, they'll just exploit the girls to pay the taxes. They might even entertain dignitaries during the day and send them to low-class brothels at night. They'll take on any kind of business, from dock laborers to butchers in the market to sailors, until the girls are completely depleted of all their income."
The woman's words made the girls in the room's expressions change slightly.
Especially Xu Yinxi.
She made another fatal mistake.
A policymaker did not even fully understand the situation of the policy beneficiaries, but adopted the most brutal and direct approach and made a policy on the spur of the moment.
If this decree is implemented, how many girls who are already struggling to survive will be harmed by Xu Yinxi.
She was so self-righteous, so high and mighty, so detached from the masses—
Xu Yinxi's face turned red, she was embarrassed and ashamed.
The other girls looked reluctant.
Feng Er said, "In the past, the trend of visiting brothels was rampant. It simply started among the educated class, who regarded it as a romantic affair. In the past, it was a patriarchal society, so they naturally didn't pay attention to the suffering of prostitutes. Many people even thought it was a way out, at least the prostitutes didn't die of cold or starvation. But we are now a new dynasty, and we absolutely cannot allow such exploitation to exist! Even if we don't use the method of collecting taxes, we can think of other ways!"
The other girls also nodded, "Since it has become a common practice before, let's put an end to it now."
Qian Zhenniang pondered for a moment. "Instead of imposing heavy taxes...we can also use soft tactics. For example, we can restrict our officials from visiting brothels. Anyone who visits a brothel will be seen as a prime example of dishonesty. We can then restrict their performance during their assessments."
Xu Yinxi said, "That's one way, but it's bound to cause opposition from male officials. His Majesty once said that if the opposition is in the majority, then it won't be easy to implement. It will encounter all kinds of obstacles along the way, especially at the local level."
"That's right. The quality of a government decree isn't determined by its original intention, but by whether it can be implemented through layers of scrutiny and achieve satisfactory results. Including an official's personal life in the assessment will likely encounter considerable resistance. Why not turn the assessment into a proposal? We could draft a proposal, drawing on the military's previous prohibitions of 'no drinking, no visiting prostitutes, and no gambling,' and further refine it to apply to the entire officialdom."
Someone immediately interjected: "For example, don't accept invitations to dinner from interested parties!"
"One husband and one wife, no concubines."
"What if it is violated?"
"I won't hold you up in the assessment, but there's no hope for promotion. Over time, someone will naturally come to their senses. As the saying goes, if the superiors like something, the subordinates will follow. If you still can't figure out the court's direction at this point, there's no point in promoting you."
"But if that's the case, Your Majesty, wouldn't it take more than a decade to abolish slavery and achieve true gender equality?"
Xu Zhenying laughed, "Do you really want to achieve everything in one go? The people's ideas are deeply ingrained and can't be changed overnight. We can only work on it gradually."
Xu Yinxi also laughed, "If officials and scholars stop visiting brothels, then we can truly put an end to the brothel business."
Feng Er said, "Not only that, we also need to tighten control over brothels and other places prone to trouble. For example, we should focus on checking accounts and patrolling. I don't believe they can still do it with such a blunt knife!"
"Indeed, we should also encourage brothels to transform themselves. If they can't do the prostitution business, wouldn't it be great to run a restaurant or an inn? If there's any sober madam willing to cooperate with the court and transform the brothel and help the prostitutes become good women, we'll publicize it in the newspapers and let other brothel owners know that the tide has turned and they should actively pursue progress and align themselves with the court."
"That's one way. But what if there's someone stubborn enough to refuse to change?"
"Then let's follow the same method we just mentioned. We'll conduct tax inspections every month, and have soldiers patrol brothels every month. Over time, which brothel can withstand such a torment? We are the imperial court, so we must be tough. Otherwise, those who exploit loopholes will only do more evil and make a fortune. Those kind and unfortunate people who follow the rules will suffer a bad fate."
The woman interjected, "That's right. Although we don't advocate fighting violence with violence, sometimes violence is a shortcut to achieving one's goals and can save a lot of administrative costs."
Xu Zhenying raised his eyebrows and couldn't help but look at the woman. Zhou Houfang beside him observed her expression and immediately said, "This person's name is Du Yuehua. She was born in Yangzhou and was admitted to the Jinzhou Prefecture official system two years ago. She looks gentle, but she speaks and acts with a strong attitude. In just two years, she has become the head of the department. It is said that her subordinates are very convinced of her."
"Born as a skinny guy?" Xu Zhenying raised his eyebrows slightly, but he understood in his heart. No wonder when the matter of rectifying the brothel was mentioned just now, this Lord Du seemed a little emotional and his methods seemed a little extreme.
It turns out that birds of a feather flock together.
Xu Zhenying was also very pleased.
There are prostitutes among the Chinese officialdom, which fully demonstrates the open atmosphere in the officialdom.
But it also shows that this Lord Du is definitely an extraordinary person.
As a former prostitute who became a female official one day, this story must be full of thrills and humiliation.
Xu Zhenying couldn't help but look up to Du Yuehua.
"Alright, let Lord Du handle the banning of brothels. You can test the waters for now, but don't be too forceful. Remember, strong will break easily. We're here to save those prostitutes, not to create enemies. We'll strive to gradually eliminate the practice of prostitution within five years, and don't forget to follow up when legislation is passed next year or the year after. We must protect the rights of these unfortunate women."
Xu Zhenying made the decision at the exchange meeting. Du Yuehua was very surprised and immediately expressed her gratitude.
"There's one last thorny issue, and that's concubinage. This practice has persisted for nearly a thousand years, and not only has it become commonplace for men, but women also see it as a way out. To achieve true gender equality, monogamy must be implemented, but the resistance to this will be unprecedentedly great."
Someone asked in confusion: "Why?"
Xu Yinxi smiled and explained for Xu Zhenying: "Because we need to be mentally prepared. It's not just men who oppose monogamy, there will be many women as well. Especially those who have become concubines."
Feng Er said, "That's right. According to the latest demographic report from the Ministry of Statistics, of our population of tens of millions, women account for 58.7%. Of course, under natural conditions, the gender ratio should be close to 50-50. However, during the years of war during the Great Zhou Dynasty, many men died in the flames of war, so the number of women increased. Among them, millions were forced to become concubines to make a living. We have to consider the rights and interests of these people."
Some people below don’t understand.
How many women in this world truly want to be concubines? Which one isn't forced to do so to make a living?
Now that they are able to stand up and live uprightly, why are there still people who oppose it?
But on second thought, it made sense.
They have already become concubines, and their fate cannot be changed. If monogamy is rashly implemented, what will happen to these concubines?
But when it comes to monogamy, the girls in the room naturally agree wholeheartedly.
Because the people in this conference room are either unmarried girls or married women.
Girls naturally don’t want their husbands to have three or four wives, not to mention that they are the “new women” mentioned in newspapers today, that is, women who can go out to work and have a career to support themselves.
They thought that they had the ability to support themselves and they were officials, so why should they force themselves to share a husband with other women?
The women were even more in favor. After all, who wants to have another person in the family?
When these women became officials, their status naturally rose in both their natal and in-laws' families, and they naturally acted and spoke more assertively.
If their husbands dare to take concubines, she will divorce them!
Anyway, she is an official of the imperial court. When she is old, the imperial court will take care of her. Why should she put herself in such a difficult position?
Someone else asked: "Isn't it possible to directly legislate the implementation of 'monogamy'?"
Xu Zhenying said, "Legislation can only lag behind. The fundamental reason for this is that most women lack the ability to support themselves, and therefore rely on men for their livelihoods. Furthermore, women used to have a low status, and families short of money and food often had no choice but to sell their daughters. As long as poverty isn't eradicated, as long as women aren't educated, and as long as they aren't given the skills to succeed in life, hastily legislating monogamy will only force girls onto another path of despair."
The women in the room naturally felt deeply touched.
"Your Majesty is kind-hearted and considerate. The past cannot be reversed; we can only find ways to avoid it later."
"Exactly. That's what I thought."
Xu Zhenying never used words like "I" or "I" when speaking, and always addressed his subordinates as "you and I" in meetings. He also did not allow his subordinates to belittle themselves, and would always address them as "your humble servant" or "your subordinate". At first, people were not used to this kind of address, but gradually, under the forceful implementation of this method, they seemed to gradually notice the subtle changes in the relationship between the monarch and his subjects.
"What I think is that we should naturally open women's colleges first to give women the skills to make a living. We should also vigorously create an atmosphere for women to go out and work, whether it is software or hardware..."
Everyone here looked at Xu Zhenying in confusion.
Even veterans like Xu Yinxi and Qian Zhenniang don't understand the words "hardware" and "software".
Xu Zhenying had no choice but to say, "It's about creating an atmosphere where women can stand up on their own, and policymakers must create a legal and moral environment conducive to their independence. Otherwise, if we just shout slogans without institutional support, no policy will be implemented."
Xu Yinxi nodded. "That is to say, we need to further relax the morale and gradually improve the laws so that girls can go out, be independent, and become strong. For example, in Jinzhou Prefecture, the girls didn't dare to go out at first, but then they caught a few hooligans and punished them severely. In addition, the patrols were constantly moving around, so the girls dared to go out anytime, anywhere."
"Let's talk about concubines. I think we should carve out a path. Those born before this year can use the old rules. However, the rights of illegitimate children will not be protected. How much of the family property an illegitimate child gets is entirely decided by the couple. After this year, no rights will be recognized for illegitimate children. In other words, it will be clearly stipulated that if they are not born by the legitimate mother, they will not get a penny. Most concubines only hope to give birth to a child to consolidate their favor or to provide for their old age. Now that this last path has been cut off by us, I am sure no girl would be willing to be a concubine."
Feng Er laughed and said, "Your Majesty's move is like removing the firewood from under the cauldron. Now, even if there are girls who are willing to degenerate or are naturally lazy, they will be forced to do things on their own."
"Girls like this are a minority after all. We just can't let a few bad apples spoil the whole pot of soup. We can't let these people drag down those girls who really want to stand up on their own."
"Your Majesty is right."
Therefore, in the fourth month after Xu Zhenying took control of Bianliang City, he launched a massive rectification movement.
The six "no's" initiative she issued, "no gambling, no visiting prostitutes, no drinking, no accepting invitations to banquets from interested parties, no doing business, and no competing with the common people for profits," was circulated across the country, drawing cheers from women.
Especially for the female officials, gambling, visiting prostitutes and drinking had little to do with them. In fact, as female officials, they were already in a weak position in official circles. Especially when they met the superiors who came to receive them, they were always persuaded to drink.
But how could a woman be so drunk? Even if they were officials, a drunk woman would always attract attention and lead to bad speculation.
The reason they took the civil service exam was, firstly, to look good, and secondly, they really wanted to make a career.
It’s not to drink with Shangfeng!
If they run into a crooked superior who reveals his true colors after a few drinks, they will be unable to express their grievances in silence.
And how could the female clerks accompany those who liked to hang out at brothels after drinking? Even if they had done their job well, they would inevitably be taken advantage of by their male colleagues.
Male colleagues accompanied their superiors for a few more drinks and then visited a brothel. What couldn't be said? What couldn't be done? What connections couldn't be established?
This is also the reason why male colleagues are always promoted faster than female colleagues at the grassroots level.
Your Majesty's move can be said to have helped many female officials at the grassroots level to relieve their burdens.
The female clerks at the grassroots level rushed to tell each other, wishing they could tell more people the good news immediately, while at the same time silently praising His Majesty's wisdom.
This sudden bolt of lightning not only shocked the officials but also the entire officialdom.
This is even more true among the people.
Because Your Majesty implemented a "slave tax", the people were in an uproar.
Nowadays, the people of Bianjing City have gradually developed the habit of visiting the dozens of bulletin boards under the imperial city every day to see if there is any new news.
Those who know how to read policies can often find many business opportunities in them.
However, this time the "slave tax" still caused an uproar.
Early this morning, the bulletin boards were crowded with people.
The notice was written in the form of text and pinyin. This writing style was maintained in the city of Bianjing for a long time, so that more people could know the latest developments in the country.
Although universal education in Bianjing City was still in its infancy, many people had already learned pinyin in advance, so the number of people in Bianjing City who could read notices increased a lot compared to before.
"Oh my God, this slave has to pay two taels of silver in tax per year. Five taels per person per year for more than five people. Ten taels per person per year for more than ten people - this... this... who can afford to keep slaves..."
"That's right! Buying a slave only costs two or three taels of silver, and even if it's more expensive, it's only five or six taels of silver. Now, not only do we give them monthly wages, but they also have to pay taxes! And this tax is too heavy. Look, it says here that it's paid every year, right?"
"Yes, every year. Who can afford this now? Isn't it said that His Majesty is kind and benevolent? How could he impose such heavy taxes as soon as he came to power?"
"Oh, old man, don't you see? The grain tax is low this year, so we farmers can breathe a sigh of relief. If they don't collect our tax, then they have to collect it from others, right? I think it's good. After all, those who keep slaves and maids are all wealthy families, and they have plenty of money. I think Your Majesty is doing a good job. In the future, when collecting taxes, you have to look for those who are rich! We ordinary people have worked hard farming all our lives and have only a few copper coins. If the tax is too high, we won't be able to survive. These masters and mistresses who call slaves and maids and live a life of luxury should be made to pay more taxes!"
"That's right! They earn so much money, they should pay taxes!"
"Yes, anyway, our family can't afford to keep slaves. Those who can afford it are the wealthy families. We ordinary people don't need to worry about these wealthy families!"
"That's right. It's written here that human trafficking is not encouraged. People are not animals and can't be bought and sold at will. In the past, families sold their children because they were poor and couldn't make ends meet. Now, our China is not the Zhou Dynasty. No matter how poor you are, you can still go to the orphanage. If you are still selling your children now, they must be hoping to get rich, and they have no good intentions!"
An old woman immediately burst into tears, "Then...didn't the notice say what to do with the girls who have been sold? Can they still go home? My eldest daughter, at that time, was so poor that her family had to eat tree bark, and my younger brother was seriously ill. My eldest daughter was sensible and sold herself to a wealthy family as a maid. That's why my family didn't die out... Over the years, we've asked people everywhere, but we don't know where her family moved to. I have no other wish in this life, except to see my eldest daughter again—"
Someone sympathetically said, "Auntie, don't worry. Our emperor is a kindhearted man. Didn't he release all the maids and eunuchs in the palace before? I think the slave tax is so heavy that many families can't afford to support them. Maybe your daughter is one of them. You might as well go back and clean up your hometown. If your daughter is released, she will definitely come back to look for you."
"Hey, hey, hey, can we write a proposal to His Majesty? In the past, many people in the Great Zhou Dynasty sold their children. If we really collect taxes at this rate, I'm afraid many families' slaves will be released. Then, people from all over the country, whose hometowns have been relocated due to war, plague, etc., won't be able to find them when they return. We can suggest that His Majesty set up some service points to provide some guidance for those who are released back home, just like the palace maids were dismissed before. Form a team for those in the west and a team for those in the south. This way, they can go home together conveniently and safely."
The old woman was obviously a little scared. "I...I...I dare not go to see His Majesty..."
"Auntie, there's no need to see His Majesty. There's a reception office in the palace... oh no... over at the government hall. I think you can't read, so just tell the receptionist what you want and give him your fingerprint. His Majesty will know soon."
The old woman became even more frightened when she heard this. "How can I do this? If I give the emperor advice, I'll be beaten with a stick... or even dozens of sticks... I don't dare..."
"Oh, Auntie, that's not popular anymore! That's from the old dynasty. Our new dynasty is not like that! People go to the reception desk at the entrance of the palace every day to give their opinions. It's said that if their opinions are adopted, they will even give out rice!"
"Is this really true?"
"Really! His Majesty is encouraging us to give us advice, especially on corrupt officials. Anyone who provides clues will be rewarded when the corrupt officials' houses are raided in the future."
The old woman said in horror, "Then...then...aren't you afraid of retaliation?"
"What are you afraid of? Minister Zhao of the Inspectorate is very capable. If you're scared, just run to the Inspectorate's courtyard. After all, the Inspectorate is an independent department and reports directly to His Majesty. They wouldn't kill someone in broad daylight in the Inspectorate."
"Oh my God." The old woman covered her chest with her hands. Although she was worried about her eldest daughter, she still shook her head, thinking that the people in Bianjing City were crazy.
This is too bold.
Don’t these people know the principle of officials protecting each other?
You are living a good life now, why should you make things difficult for the officials?
However, this massive movement to liberate slaves still began——
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