"Brother, it's not that we don't allow them to enter the city or we don't care about them. I'm worried that some people will instigate some civilians to enter the county and start killing and looting. Then the people of Qingshan County will become their victims." Li Yun told Ma Youcai about the dangers that would occur if refugees entered the city.
That's right! If a murder occurred in the county under his jurisdiction and he didn't handle it properly, the emperor would be furious, and his family would be implicated, and his own official position would be in jeopardy. Thinking of this, Ma Youcai was grateful for his sister's reminder.
"Sister, you are right. After we settle those refugees outside the city, what should we do next?" Ma Youcai felt that his sister might be able to help him this time.
"After settling the refugees, I want to see their character. If they are good, I want to hire them to work in the form of 'work-for-relief'. If they are willing to stay here, we can also establish a new rural village and move their households into the new village. From then on, they will be the citizens of Qingshan County. Do you agree with this idea, big brother?" Li Yun wanted to plant some fruit trees and flowers in Daqingshan, so he needed a lot of people.
She originally planned to hire villagers from Qingshan Village to slowly reclaim the wasteland. Since God had sent refugees here, she would not be polite. She could both reclaim the wasteland and help the refugees settle down and work. She believed they would agree.
"Sister, your idea is good. Big brother agrees. If there are so many people, where will you place them? Qingshan Village? But Qingshan Village can't accommodate many people?" He agreed with his sister's idea, but he was a little worried about where the refugees would live.
"Qingshan Village is definitely not an option. I want to settle them at the foot of Daqing Mountain and let them reclaim the land on Daqing Mountain. I want to plant some fruit trees and flowers on Daqing Mountain. Big brother, please sell them to your sister at a lower price." Li Yun told Ma Youcai about his plan.
"That's no problem. Big brother can give it to you." I heard that they were going to resettle refugees at the foot of Daqing Mountain, and they were also going to reclaim land in Daqing Mountain. If they had work to do, those refugees would not commit crimes.
"No need for that. I have money." Li Yun didn't care about buying a small hill. The money she earned from business was enough to support the people of a county. What about the ill-gotten gains she had made before?
"Okay, big brother, go back and have someone measure it and sell it to your sister at one tael per acre, is that okay?" Ma Youcai said to Li Yun.
"Thank you, brother. I appreciate it." If you don't want a good deal, you are a bastard.
Li Yun accepted Ma Youcai's buy-one-get-one-free offer with peace of mind, saving money for his own wallet.
"But, brother, don't rush back. I have another thing I want to remind you of." Li Yun saw in a costume TV drama that after a drought, a large number of locusts appeared, and when the locusts passed through the area, no land would grow.
"What's the matter that makes my sister so worried?" Ma Youcai saw that his sister had just talked to him about resettling the refugees with a relaxed and confident look, but why did she become serious now?
"Brother, have you ever heard that there will be a locust plague after a drought?" Li Yun asked Ma Youcai.
"Locust plague? My sister is talking about locusts that can eat people, and there are so many of them?" Ma Youcai suddenly remembered the scene of seeing locusts five years ago, and he was horrified now.
"They don't eat people, but they are so numerous and have such a big appetite that they can eat up all the crops wherever they go. Later, people said that 'when locusts pass through, no land will grow.'" Li Yun thought Ma Youcai's words were a bit exaggerated when he heard them.
"No, sister, what big brother said is true. Big brother saw with his own eyes that the locusts had eaten half of a little boy's hair. Fortunately, his parents pulled him back into the house in time to save him from being eaten." Ma Youcai told Li Yun what he saw at that time.
When Li Yun heard that they were eating hair, he didn't find it strange. Those locusts thought that hair was a plant and could be eaten, so they ate it.
However, hair is not easy to digest. I believe that locusts that have eaten hair will never eat hair again.
"Sister, have you thought of a way to prevent locusts?" Ma Youcai asked Li Yun nervously.
“Brother, the crops that the people have planted are almost ready to be harvested. Why not let them harvest them now, dry them, and store them in the house until the locusts come? They won’t lose much food.
If we don't harvest, once the locusts come, I'm afraid there won't be a single grain left." Li Yun thought of the ancient people who only planted rice and could harvest it in August. She went to check yesterday and saw that 50% of the crops were already harvested. If she didn't harvest now, she might not even have 50% left.
"If we harvest now, there will be much less food, and the people will not agree." Food is the lifeblood of the people, and they will not agree to have so much less food.
If they harvest now, they will really starve to death in addition to paying taxes.
"Brother, there's nothing we can do about this. It's a natural disaster, a man-made disaster. No one wants it to happen, and no one can stop it.
If we harvest now, the people still have half the food to survive. After the locusts pass, not even a grain will be left. That would be starvation." Li Yun also understood the people's suffering, but natural and man-made disasters have existed in every dynasty and are unstoppable. Even in the past, with advanced technology, there was no way to prevent natural and man-made disasters. They could only be prevented and minimized. How much more so in the backward ancient times?
"The harvest now is not enough to pay taxes to the state. What should the people do?" Ma Youcai got a headache when he thought of the 60% tax. In the county under his jurisdiction, many people who could not afford to pay taxes sold their children every year. He felt sad when he saw it, but he was powerless. His monthly salary could not help so many people at all.
"What? Still have to pay taxes? 60% at that? No, big brother, you need to report the disaster to the emperor and ask him to exempt the people from taxes for a year and arrange for disaster relief." Li Yun was shocked by Ma Youcai's words. How could the ancient people's taxes be so heavy? 60% tax, only one crop of rice is grown in a year, and the yield per acre is about 150 to 200 kilograms. With 60% tax, only 60 to 80 kilograms of grain are left.
Some wealthy people could buy five or six acres of land, which would give them three or four hundred kilograms of grain. If there were many people, it would not be enough to eat, especially when faced with natural disasters.
"Sister, the emperor will not agree. If we don't pay the public grain, there will be no food in the treasury. What will the officials eat?" Although Ma Youcai agreed with his sister's opinion, if the tax is exempted for one year, what will these officials eat? The emperor will not agree.
"Brother, the national treasury shouldn't be supported by the people. It should be expanded by taxes on merchants and wealthy families. The most important income for the national treasury should be the gold and silver seized from investigating corrupt officials.
Think about it, if the people only produced a few hundred kilograms of grain each year and handed it all over to the treasury, what good would that do? A kilogram of rice only cost twenty wen, so how much silver could the people's grain fetch, and how much would it help the treasury? To ensure a sufficient treasury, corrupt officials could be arrested and their homes raided. Only then would the treasury be filled with the money they collected. Besides, officials undoubtedly own many farms and businesses, all of which should be taxed.
When a person becomes an official, the court should support him alone, not his entire family. This is the root cause of depleting the national treasury.
Brother, if you don't dare to report it, I will go find Shangguan Feiyun. He is a prince and the emperor's son. He should dare to argue with the old man.
Besides, the saying "water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it" is something I believe Shangguan Feiyun understands. As long as the people live and work in peace and contentment, there won't be any uprisings in the court. As long as the people are well settled, the court will be able to rest easy." Li Yun expressed his views.
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