Looking at the aggressive Ouyang Zheng.
Ning Que was very fortunate.
Fortunately I met him in advance!
Ouyang Zheng definitely has the ability.
But if it is too hard, it will break easily!
Local governance cannot be idealistic.
Especially the border counties far away from Chang'an!
We need to use honest officials and corrupt officials too!
Why did the King of Qi return to his fiefdom in a hurry?
He just wants to destroy Linzi County!
Therefore, the county magistrate must have extremely strong abilities!
"I know you are anxious, but please don't be anxious."
"snort!"
Ouyang Zheng snorted heavily.
Don't expect him to be nice to Ning Que.
Even if it was Emperor Feng, he still dared to refute.
Even if Ning Que recommended him as the county magistrate, it would be useless.
He is proud and will not yield to anyone.
Unless it really makes sense and can convince him!
He has been an official for many years and is still a third-rank censor because he is not well-liked. In the court, he is a clean and unique person.
"Mr. Ouyang is about to go to Linzi County."
"I wonder how you intend to govern, sir?"
"I've been making preparations these past few days." Ouyang Zheng's expression was resolute. Seeing the nobles below scrambling for money, he frowned and said, "Your salaries and wages are the blood and sweat of the people. It's easy to abuse the people, but it's hard to deceive God. I plan to clarify the laws and warn the county officials. I'll also summon the local nobles and force them to give benefits to the people."
“…”
Ning Que held his forehead helplessly.
It has to be you!
No wonder Emperor Feng asked Ouyang Zheng to come and see him.
"Sir, you are wrong."
"What do you think, Your Majesty?"
"The King of Qi won't surrender Linzi easily." Ning Que smiled, pushing the teacup over. "He'll do everything he can to destroy Linzi. When you take over, you'll be faced with a terrible mess. There's not a single grain in the granary, and the craftsmen have all been taken away. Many prisoners are likely to be released early, endangering the local area. Have you ever considered this, sir?"
“…”
Ouyang Zheng was silent.
Seeing him like this, Ning Que took advantage of the situation and pressed on, "Sir, many of your ideas are actually not wrong, but they are not applicable at the moment. Sir, you feel that the officials in the court are wasting money just to shoot these things. However, Sir, do you know how much tax the Eight Treasures Trading Company has to pay today?"
Ouyang Zheng shook his head.
He really doesn't know any of this.
"There are two types of commercial taxes in Dafeng. The first is the customs duty. Merchants must pay taxes every time they pass through a customs check. The second is the market tax, which is paid based on the contract after the transaction. Together, they are the customs and market taxes. The Babao Trading Company held an auction this time, and the tax alone paid exceeded 100,000 taels, not counting the dividends from Tianshang Renjian."
"One... one hundred thousand taels?"
"certainly."
Ning Que smiled and nodded.
"Did you see them?"
“Most of Dafeng’s money is in their hands.”
"They have intertwined interests."
“Without promoting consumption, money is dead.”
"Hidden in the pigpen is as good as nothing."
"Sir, as the future prefect, you must be able to compel these powerful families to surrender their money. You have repeatedly urged Your Majesty to reform and reduce taxes and levies, but to this day, His Majesty has yet to agree. Consider this: if we can boost productivity and promote consumption, we could generate a significant amount of revenue from customs and market taxes, and then consider reducing farmers' land rents."
"Been taught a lesson!"
Ouyang Zheng stood up respectfully and bowed.
Such a novel concept really opened his eyes.
If you think about it carefully, this is indeed the case.
"People divide scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants into different classes, but they don't realize that these four classes are the foundation of a country. Therefore, those who are good at governing the people must strike a good balance among the four classes. Farmers are judged by their strength, scholars by their behavior, artisans by their skill, and merchants by their numbers."
Ning Que talked freely.
Linzi County is really too important.
No one is more suitable to be the county magistrate than Ouyang Zheng.
But his style of doing things is too old-fashioned.
So Ning Que was willing to talk to him.
"Let's get back to governing Linzi."
"Sir, you are now serving as the prefect, nominally the highest official in Linzi. But you must know that the King of Hell is easier said than done, but little devils are more difficult. You have no foundation in Linzi, and your decrees will be subject to restrictions. Your officials are fawning and timid in front of you, but behind your back they work without effort, and you have no way to deal with them."
“These bastards!”
"If you dare to do this, I will punish you!"
"What happens after the punishment? Will they all be dismissed?"
"Don't forget, Linzi has been the fief of the King of Qi since ancient times."
"Who would care about you if you don't have some tricks?"
"What should I do then?"
Ouyang Zheng suddenly felt under tremendous pressure.
Suddenly I understood why no one opposed him becoming the prefect of Linzi County.
The governors of the border counties were local emperors, with a high degree of autonomy. After all, they were too far from Chang'an, and it would take more than half a year for government orders to be passed back and forth. If they had to rely on asking for instructions to govern the local area, nothing would get done.
But now...
The Linzi County Magistrate is a hot potato!
"I can give you an idea."
“How it changes after implementation is up to you.”
"Kill the chicken to scare the monkeys, and beat the wealthy and powerful to divide their land."
"Win over the masses and force the rest to obey."
"Killing a chicken to scare the monkeys?"
Ning Que smiled and nodded. "That's what they call shooting the first bird to stick its head out. Whoever jumps the highest will be targeted. At the same time, win over the common people and show them favor. From what I know, there are many tenants in Linzi. They don't own their own land and can only work as long-term laborers for the wealthy families. What you need to do is win over their hearts, benefit the people, and completely bring Linzi under the control of Dafeng."
"I understand."
Ouyang Zheng nodded seriously.
Looking at Ning Que, he was also very emotional.
It is true that after three years of silence, one will make a big splash.
Plan strategies behind the scenes and win battles thousands of miles away!
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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