Chapter 59 First Meeting
Yan Xing ignored his sarcasm, knowing he was just venting his frustration. He said, "You've spent most of the money in the treasury, haven't you? Are you still going to build the canal? And didn't you promise Wang Zhong to build the road? Didn't you say you'd also have to pay for corvée labor? Where's the money coming from? Of course, if you're willing to go all out, you could just confiscate the Shen family. But, according to the law, the entire Shen family shouldn't be confiscated, right?"
If we follow the law, perhaps the Shen family can send a manager to take the blame.
Lu Chenyang's face was filled with resentment. He muttered, "I want to kill him. If this sets a precedent, won't everyone have to pay money to atone for their sins in the future?"
Yan Xing said, "Not many people can afford to pay as much money as the Shen family. Chen Yang, you have to think about the people."
Lu Chenyang felt heavy in his heart because he didn't have enough money and Yanquan County was not strong enough, so in the face of greater interests he could only choose to compromise.
Lu Chenyang was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned and left with resentment.
But Yan Xing knew that Lu Chenyang had figured it out, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
Lu Chenyang strode back to the main hall. Shen Shiqian and Shen An were still kneeling obediently on the ground. He walked up to them and looked down at them.
Lu Chenyang gritted his teeth and said, "Chen An used fake seeds to delay spring plowing, affecting the livelihood of the people. He is sentenced to 60 days of corvée labor every year for ten years and is not allowed to hire others to do the work for him!"
Shen An felt his vision go dark again. How could he do that corvée labor? However, he pouted and could not speak.
Shen Shiqian was overjoyed: "Thank you, Lord Lu, for showing some mercy."
Shen Shiqian also knew what was going on and immediately handed over the silver note he had prepared long ago.
The silver is not enough, there are also some land deeds and house deeds, Shen Shiqian will not play tricks on them.
Li Dajun on the side immediately stepped forward to take it, and Lu Chenyang left in a huff.
He loved money so much, but the silver he got this time made him feel so depressed.
Shen Shiqian sat on the ground, but he breathed a sigh of relief.
I finally passed this level, right?
He pulled Shen An up and they went home together.
When they saw the two of them coming back, everyone knew what had happened.
Old Mrs. Shen hugged him and said, "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back."
But Shen An pushed her away and angrily questioned Shen Shiqian: "You just want to kill me, how can I bear to do sixty days of corvée!"
Shen Shiqian gave him a cold look, and Shen An shrank inexplicably.
Shen Baicheng was helped out by someone, and when he heard his words, he said angrily: “Go back to your room, if you make trouble again, I will kick you out of the house!”
Shen An immediately became obedient.
After getting the money, Lu Chenyang went to find Wang Zhong, hoping that he could mobilize other businessmen to come to Yanquan County again.
Wang Zhong couldn't help but sigh, "Lord Lu is truly exceptionally capable. I'm truly honored to be able to offer my humble assistance to you." He hesitated, "But Lord Lu also knows that Lingnan is incredibly remote. My influence is insignificant, and without charisma, it would be difficult for me to find someone."
Lu Chenyang said, "I'm planning to open a new market in Yanquan County, and all the shops will give it away for free."
Wang Zhong was shocked. "Is what Lord Lu said true?"
Lu Chenyang nodded: "This is the document I drafted, take a look."
Wang Zhong quickly picked it up and took a look. The document stated that all shops were rent-free for ten years, and the rent after ten years would not exceed a set amount. This amount was clearly stipulated based on the geographical location and size. This amount did not seem too expensive at the moment and was reasonable.
Of course, Wang Zhong didn't care about what would happen ten years from now. Who knew what the situation would be like? For now, however, the ten years of free rent were a tangible benefit.
Lu Chenyang said, "However, the number of shops is limited. I will only deliver to twenty, and it's first come, first served. Food, cloth, seeds, etc. will have priority, and I have also stated this in the documents."
Lu Chenyang is worthy of being the top scorer in the imperial examination. The writing of this document is clear at a glance, without a single word of nonsense. Wang Zhong couldn't help but admire his meticulousness.
Lu Chenyang added, "I also know that many people are worried about safety. When the time comes, Yanquan County will establish a Yanquan Escort Agency to escort merchants. This escort agency is affiliated with the government, and the prices are fair. Besides, I don't believe anyone would dare to go against the county government."
Wang Zhong's eyes shone brightly, "Master Lu is truly a man of great talent! With this, I will definitely live up to your trust!"
Wang Zhong quickly left Yanquan County, but after he left, the captain in charge of public security in Xishi told Lu Chenyang: "Before leaving, Wang Zhong went to the bookstore in Xishi to listen to the book."
Lu Chenyang raised his eyebrows. This Wang Zhong was originally introduced to him by Yan Xing, so it was normal for them to know each other.
Lu Chenyang didn't care what secrets or plans there were between the two. Now they were in the same boat, and Yan Xing would not do anything to harm his interests, and that was enough.
The Shen family gave a lot of silver, but how to get the silver into the hands of the people was a problem.
Lu Chenyang decided to recruit workers from the entire county. Road construction and water conservancy construction required people to work. He didn't want to exploit the people's labor, so he paid everyone who came.
Not only did they give money but they also provided meals. This time the Shen family paid the lion's share, so Lu Chenyang didn't hesitate.
When Lu Chenyang wanted to issue the notice, he was opposed by Xu Zhenghui. He weakly suggested, "Sir, there is no precedent for this. We can just issue the conscription notice normally. It won't cost any money. If you sympathize with the people, you can wait until winter to issue the disaster relief notice."
Lu Chenyang shook his head: "I want them to have enough food and clothes. Now that the weather is good, it's a good time to work and save more money."
By the time of autumn harvest, many people would definitely not have enough food. He did not plan to distribute grain as disaster relief, but instead decided to sell grain at a cheap price so that people could have money to buy cheap grain.
He paid the people to have silver in their hands, and then they spent money to buy his rated grain, instead of giving the grain directly to them.
Xu Zhenghui thinks, isn't it all the same?
Lu Chenyang patiently explained to them, "This is different. In the past, many people would slack off while doing corvée labor, and the progress was very slow because they felt they were working for nothing. Now I give them silver, and if they slack off, I'll deduct the silver, which naturally improves efficiency. They can use the silver to buy food and cloth, which will help the merchants Wang Zhong brings back to the country to do business. Only when they have business will they pay taxes."
What he wanted was for silver to circulate.
Xu Zhenghui was stunned for a moment and lowered his head: "Your Excellency has thought it through very carefully. It is I who have not considered it carefully enough."
Xu Zhenghui had an old idea. He thought that if the people could be made to work through corvee labor, money could be saved to do more things.
Lu Chenyang waved his hand: "It's okay, go ahead and distribute it."
Xu Zhenghui responded respectfully and turned to post the notice.
As soon as this notice came out, the entire Yanquan County was in an uproar.
In all my years, this is the first time I've heard of anyone being paid for labor service.
They actually saw it.
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