Chapter 2606 Mutual Benefit
Tang He glanced at Bai Shanhou before saying, "The notice has been posted, and we've met with the county magistrates of each county. We've temporarily appeased the tenants who were causing trouble, but in reality, we've only touched half of the fields and tenants..."
Tang He briefly summarized the work done during this period and said, "We have already redeemed over 18 hectares of land. Oh, this does not include the 10 hectares from the Zheng family. The remaining land has not been redeemed because the tenants are still a little emotional."
Governor Yu frowned, "Master Tang, is there no solution?"
Lord Tang laughed and said, "There are some. The excuse they give is just maintaining stability. So as long as we appease the tenants and they don't cause trouble, these people will have no excuse to delay any further. If they delay any further, the court will have an excuse to arrest them directly."
He said, "We have now appeased many of the tenant farmers and have control over the 23 hectares of land involved. However, we have not yet signed the redemption contract because we are waiting for Governor Yu to take office."
Governor Yu: "Wait for me?"
He looked at Lord Tang with some doubt. "Wasn't the Ministry of Revenue directly funding the redemption? Lord Tang is also an inspector, so he should be able to make the decision directly on this matter, right?"
"Yes, but firstly, this is Qizhou after all, and it will be Governor Yu who will govern this land in the future; secondly..."
Tang He turned to look at Bai Shan who was sitting beside him, and said helplessly, "It's all my fault. He was young and ignorant, and too soft-hearted and kind. I made a promise that I shouldn't have made when I wasn't paying attention."
Governor Yu frowned slightly and looked at Bai Shan. He saw that Bai Shan had a fair and handsome face and sat there straight as a bamboo, but his temperament was gentle and elegant. He had the demeanor of a young man from an aristocratic family. So he raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "Master Tang should know that I only killed three people. Those three people are all local nobles from Qizhou. I will be in charge of this area in the future, and I cannot let anyone bully me. If I give in to them, Master Tang will not have to ask for anything."
"Inspector Yu has misunderstood," Tang He said quickly, "He didn't make any promises to those nobles."
He glanced at Bai Shan again, who lowered his head in shame. He then sighed heavily and said, "When he was trying to appease the tenants, he saw their ragged clothes and how frightened they were, so he couldn't help but make a promise to them."
Tang He turned around and said, "Why don't you apologize to Governor Yu quickly?"
Bai Shan quickly stood up and bowed to Governor Yu, saying with a face full of shame, "I am sorry to have caused trouble to you, my lords."
When Governor Yu heard that it wasn't the nobles or local clans, but tenant farmers, he put one foot on the footstool and asked in a relaxed tone, "Oh? What promises were made?"
Master Tang said, "My junior fellow student has promised the tenant farmers that even after we redeem the land, we will continue to rent it to them. We can sign the lease agreement for next year right now, and the rent we collect will never exceed 40%."
Governor Yu twitched his lips and asked, "You didn't make this promise to every tenant in every village, did you?"
"No, no, no," Lord Tang said quickly, "We only did it with one village, Da'an Village. He just came back today, and the promise was made today."
He explained, "You may not know, Governor Yu, but Da'an Village is the largest of the villages we've visited these days, with 167 households and 978 people."
Governor Yu was surprised. "So many people, nearly two miles long, they could almost form a village."
Tang He shook his head and said, "It's a pity that there are no villages around it. This village was not formed naturally, but was relocated and formed a few years ago to facilitate the cultivation of these fields. Therefore, it cannot be considered a township."
Ten miles form a township. Most villages are small. For example, Qili Village is not even a li, but is combined with some households in Dali Village to form a li. The head of the li is from Dali Village.
A village that is more than one mile in size is considered a very large village.
For example, in Dali Village, there is not only a big market, but also a Taoist temple, a doctor, a meat stall, and families who specialize in buying and selling grain.
The villagers in their area never go to Baimaquan Town to buy and sell things. They go to Dali Village for convenience, and go to the county town for diversity.
Because the distance to the county town and Baimaquan Town is about the same, or even closer than the town.
When Bai Shan saw the geographical location of Da'an Village, he knew that it was a place deliberately chosen by someone so that they could be isolated from the world and have less contact with others.
Generally, such large villages are wealthier than other villages, but Da'an Village is so poor that not even a trace of oil can be smelled. From the elderly to children, everyone wears clothes with patches upon patches. Some young and middle-aged people even wear short jackets. This is because Da'an Village is the only one in that place, and they can't do anything except farming.
Tang He, having been a local official, naturally saw the key point immediately. Therefore, he couldn't help but hint at a warning to Governor Yu, saying with a smile, "My junior is young and has become a bit foolish from studying. Seeing them starving and poorly clothed, even though we assured them that they would continue to farm the land in the future, they remained terrified. He couldn't help but make such a promise in public, even foolishly handing over his own business card."
Yu Cishi looked at Bai Shan seriously, and after a moment, he smiled and said, "Master Bai is kind-hearted, so it is understandable."
Tang He sighed and said, "But these fields are, after all, public lands of Qizhou. We are only responsible for redeeming them. How can we interfere in setting the rent for them? Therefore, we have to ask Governor Yu for help."
Yu Zhishi smiled and said, "Okay, okay. How about this, tomorrow I go to the countryside with Master Tang?"
He smiled and said, "As long as Lord Tang doesn't mind me getting in the way, we can go to the countryside together to deal with this matter. This way it will be quick and convenient, and will also appease people the fastest. How about it?"
Mr. Tang smiled broadly, "That's exactly what I'm looking for."
"Then it's settled. We'll go to the countryside together tomorrow."
"Okay, I'll be waiting at the Governor's residence tomorrow, and we'll go to the countryside together." Tang He glanced at the deputy general behind Governor Yu, stood up, and said with a smile, "Since it's settled, I won't bother Governor Yu any longer while he washes up."
Governor Yu also stood up to see him off. After escorting him to the door, he said, "Master Tang, please relax in the backyard. Wait a moment. I will change my clothes and come to invite you to the banquet."
Tang He smiled and nodded, then left with Bai Shan.
After leaving the main courtyard, the smile on Tang He's face faded, but Bai Shan's eyes were full of laughter. "Brother Tang, this new governor is a wonderful man. He is rough but also meticulous. It seems that he is very confident that he can control the situation after this killing."
See you at 6pm
(End of this chapter)
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