“The taxes paid by Beiping County this year are 50% higher than in previous years. Doesn’t that tell the whole story?” Cao Jin retorted.
The tax on Ōyuki land was one-thirtieth, so when the yield per mu increased, the taxes paid by the people would also increase.
Of course, this kind of improvement is something everyone welcomes.
"What if it's a local official in Beiping forcibly collecting taxes—"
“Lord Liu, are you aware that land taxes in Jizhou have been gradually increasing since three years ago, and this year they have more than doubled! In addition, the same is true for Anle County, Fufeng County, and Shang County. Could it be that the local officials of these counties have all agreed to forcibly collect taxes together?” Cao Jin interrupted Imperial Censor Liu and pressed him for an answer.
Imperial Censor Liu: ......
Seeing that Cao Jin had rendered the censor speechless, the emperor sneered and said, "Cao Jin, according to you, you discovered that these prefectures and counties were unusual long ago, so why didn't you report it to me?!"
Cao Jin: !
Before Cao Jin could even begin to feel smug, he was rendered speechless and trembling with fear by a single question posed by the emperor.
In fact, Fan Tong discovered these unusual occurrences and informed him of them.
He came from a noble family and had never farmed in his life, so how would he know what the normal yield of rice per mu should be?
Moreover, the reports from various prefectures and counties were all too calm, barely mentioning the increase in grain production, which is illogical. If it were him, and such achievements were made under his rule, wouldn't he be overjoyed and submit a report to claim credit for himself?
So even though he knew something was unusual, he didn't report it immediately, but instead planned to investigate it thoroughly before reporting it.
Otherwise, if His Majesty asks and he knows nothing, not only will he not get any credit, but he may also anger His Majesty.
Before he could even investigate, His Majesty discovered the problem, and he was doomed!
"Your Majesty, I...I only discovered this recently. I plan to report it to Your Majesty after I have investigated it thoroughly!" Cao Jin replied tremblingly.
"Useless trash!" the emperor cursed without any politeness.
If Cao Jin had discovered this matter sooner, or reported it sooner, he wouldn't have been kept in the dark by his rebellious son for so long!
So, it's all the fault of that bunch of incompetent officials in the Ministry of Revenue!
Cao Jin shrank back, not daring to defend himself, nor having any way to defend himself.
"My dear ministers, do you know the reason for the increased grain yield?" the emperor asked after scolding Cao Jin.
No one spoke.
Most of those who could stand on the throne were from aristocratic families and had never farmed. Even those from humble backgrounds rarely had the opportunity to farm themselves when they were in their infancy. Even if they had some guesses, they dared not answer rashly.
The emperor's expression gradually turned ugly.
He was upset that he had been deceived and fooled, but he felt even more ashamed that none of the officials in the court could answer the question.
As it turns out, his civil and military officials were truly no match for his children!
"It's grain seeds."
Just as the emperor was about to lose control of his anger and lash out, someone finally stepped forward to answer the question.
It is Yan Xu.
He knew that the Eastern Palace had half an acre of rice paddies, and he also knew that the rice grown in the Eastern Palace's rice paddies was more fragrant and had a higher yield per acre than ordinary rice. He had also heard the Crown Prince mention the grain varieties.
So he guessed that the key was the type of grain.
"As expected of a renowned scholar throughout the land, Minister Yan is truly learned and talented!" the emperor praised.
"I have heard His Highness the Crown Prince mention it," Yan Xu said expressionlessly.
emperor:......
Treason!
Even Yan Xu was told, but not him!
"Could it be that a grain variety with an even higher yield per mu has appeared in our Great Yuan?!" Cao Jin exclaimed in surprise.
When Cao Jin was investigating, he didn't dare to think in this direction!
"My dear ministers, you may not know this, but the Crown Prince and all the princes and princesses planted half an acre of rice in the Eastern Palace. By a twist of fate, they obtained an optimized grain variety with a higher yield per acre." The Emperor said this in a calm and collected tone.
But his expression—
Ye Jingchen raised his hand to block his view.
It's truly unbearable to look at!
His dad practically had the word 'show off' written all over his face!
In fact, the optimized grain varieties were not created by them at all. The real heroes were the experienced farmers they kept outside the capital.
He only knew some principles, explained them to them, and then those old farmers who had spent their whole lives working the land went through one experiment after another to obtain the optimized grain varieties.
Besides the seeds, there are many other things to pay attention to in the processes of seedling cultivation, transplanting, disease and pest control, etc. Only by combining these can we increase income.
However, he couldn't explain these experiments to the emperor, so at this moment he could only claim credit for their work.
"May Heaven bless Your Majesty!"
"May God bless my Great Abyss!"
The courtiers' enthusiastic cheers greatly satisfied the emperor's vanity.
"Your Majesty, now that we have improved our grain varieties, the most urgent task is to make them available throughout Dayuan before next spring, so that all prefectures and counties can use them!" After the shouts of encouragement, the Prime Minister stepped forward to offer his advice.
"The matter of breeding will be handled by the Ministry of Revenue! Cao Jin, if you fail to handle this matter properly, you will lose your position as Minister of Revenue!" the emperor said in a deep voice.
After the morning court session ended, Ye Jingchen immediately tried to slip away, but before he could run, he was stopped by Prime Minister Wang.
"Your Highness is so young yet you've already managed to optimize grain varieties. This old minister is truly impressed. I wonder if Your Highness has the time? This old minister would like to discuss with Your Highness how to cultivate grain varieties?" Prime Minister Wang blocked Ye Jingchen's path and asked with a smile.
"Let's do it another day, I have urgent business to attend to right now!" Ye Jingchen said, trying to bypass the Prime Minister.
"Your Highness, His Majesty requests your presence!"
Before the person could even move, the death knell sounded.
Ye Jingchen's body stiffened.
"Since His Majesty has invited me, then this old minister will not disturb Your Highness any longer!" Prime Minister Wang waved his hand and left with a smile.
Ye Jingchen glared hatefully at Wang Xiang's back, suspecting that he had deliberately blocked his way earlier!
"Your Highness, please!" Zhang Shunde said to Ye Jingchen with a smile.
He hates smiling!
"Father, I didn't mean to fool you. I just wanted to give you a surprise!" In Chengqian Palace, Ye Jingchen said hurriedly before the emperor could speak.
"Is that so?" The emperor glanced at him sideways and asked with a cold smile.
"As you know, rice yield is closely related to soil and climate. I am not sure if the rice seed I accidentally obtained can really increase the yield, so I can only conduct experiments in different environments first!"
"The reason I kept it a secret from Father Emperor was because I was worried that the experiment would fail and disappoint you! This year, even in such a harsh environment as the Northern Frontier, it was successful, so I was certain that the seeds could really increase production. That's why I told Father Emperor right away!" Ye Jingchen looked at the emperor with his big eyes to show his sincerity.
"Wasn't it only after Jingming mentioned this in his policy essay that I learned of it?" the emperor asked quietly. "What does it have to do with you?"
Ye Jingchen: !
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