To be honest, Zhang Fei was very happy to see Cao Dongdong and the other two come back. In fact, he only had a few good friends in the Northern Song Dynasty with whom he could talk. The others were either business partners or political partners. Although they had a good relationship, the purpose of their interactions was still to put their own interests first.
However, this welcoming ceremony was fake. After drinking two glasses of wine, Zhang Fei started to inquire about the situation in Hezhong Prefecture.
It would have been fine if he hadn't asked. Once he did, Cao Dongdong and Ma Xiaoyi immediately rushed to talk.
When they went to Jingzhao Prefecture, they directly wiped out all the ruffians, young masters, thieves and robbers.
In fact, they had done similar things in Hezhong Prefecture, but those were all planned and pushed forward by Zhang Fei, and they did it in waves. Later, when Zhang Fei came back, no one cared about these three cobblers, and they went completely crazy and killed each other.
"Zhang San."
Cao Dongdong suddenly wiped his mouth and slapped Zhang Fei on the shoulder again, "I think Mr. Su has a rebellious heart and can't be trusted."
After hearing this, Fu Shichun immediately held his forehead with his hand.
Zhang Fei brushed aside his dirty hands and asked, "What do you mean, Young Master?"
Cao Dongdong said: "It is because of him that our police station has never been able to penetrate deep into the countryside. Now, whatever the government wants to do, it still has to go through those gentry instead of our royal police. Do you think he is a traitor?"
...
...
Fu Shichun said, "Yanei, don't talk nonsense. We have worked hard for three years in Hezhong Prefecture, but we can only wander around the edge of the countryside. It has only been about a year since we went to Jingzhao Prefecture, and many local villagers don't trust us. How can we govern without relying on the gentry?"
Cao Dongdong snorted, "How do you know it won't work if you don't do it? Now that we're back, it will be even more difficult for the Royal Police over there to enter the village again."
Fu Shichun rolled his eyes and was too lazy to argue with this guy.
Zhang Fei said, "Regarding the village affairs, didn't we already make a village agreement before I left?"
Fu Shichun said: "Therefore, they use this village agreement to become more conservative, and the charity estate that implements the village agreement is more closely connected with the government. After all, it is the government that allocates money to the charity estate, not the public security, procuratorate or courts.
Although they dare not openly oppose us, they still try their best to prevent the public security, procuratorate and courts from interfering in the affairs of the village. However, they dare not be as unscrupulous as before. "
Cao Dongdong said seriously: "They are just lying on straw and eating bitter food. Now we are strong and they are forced to avoid us. But if they have a chance, they will definitely deal with us. We have to strike first."
Ma Xiaoyi nodded and said, "I agree with my brother. They are not friendly to our Royal Police at all."
“Take your time!”
Zhang Fei nodded with a smile, "This kind of thing is hard to accomplish overnight."
In fact, he was very happy to see this situation. After all, he was not there. If the Royal Police were allowed to dominate, wouldn't there be problems?
Before he left, he left behind a village covenant and a charity cemetery, the purpose of which was to allow the two sides to check and balance each other.
After all, the Royal Police can also become evil police. He would never be naive enough to think that all the Royal Police are upright and kind people who will never do bad things in their lives.
Whether in the court or at the local level, Zhang Fei actually adopts a balancing strategy. He will not let anyone else dominate, but he will not let the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs dominate either.
Because he does not want to dominate the government and the country. To be honest, he does not have that ability. He only dares to guard the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems. His goal is to promote the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems. It is not in his interest for any one party to dominate.
Only when the situation is relatively balanced and it is difficult for both sides to determine the winner can the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems develop rapidly, because in this case, they can be forced to seek help from the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems to solve the problem.
Once a monopoly emerges, the first targets will definitely be the public security, procuratorate and courts. If Wang Anshi were to have the same power as in history, he would definitely kill the public security, procuratorate and courts, there is no doubt about it, including the public security, procuratorate and courts themselves. This is a feudal society after all.
In this move of the gentry, Zhang Fei has been wandering around outside the village, giving those gentry a sense of crisis. In fact, he is also using the gentry to supervise the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs.
Cao Dongdong and his friends just had an appetizer here and then left in a hurry. It was obvious that they must have gone to Baifan Tower to find their friends and brag. After all, they returned triumphantly, which was extremely rare in the Yanei world.
Zhang Fei was too lazy to entertain Chen Maoqian and the others. They were now focused on the tax bill. As long as he went there, Chen Maoqian and the others would definitely try every means to dig some information out of him.
So he returned to the backyard and saw Xu Zun sitting inside and chatting with many colleagues, but there was no sign of Wang Anshi and Sima Guang. He probably had already left, as neither of them liked this kind of occasion.
It goes without saying that these officials are also here to sound out the procuratorate's attitude, because the Tax Commissioner is currently still a solid block and officials cannot infiltrate it for the time being. The only ones who can check and balance the Tax Commissioner are the public security, procuratorate and courts. Now that they have such a good excuse, of course they have to come and test the waters.
Would Wang Anshi and Sima Guang like this kind of occasion? Even though they would argue with each other to the death whenever they met, they had very similar views on many things.
Zhang Fei did not join in the fun and sneaked back to his own courtyard.
"lady!"
Zhang Fei first came to Gao Wenyin's house.
"Shh!"
As soon as he entered the room, Gao Wenyin quickly raised her hand to stop him. Her frightened expression scared Zhang Fei so much that he held his breath.
What's going on?
Gao Wenyin pointed to the baby sleeping beside her, indicating that her son had just fallen asleep.
Zhang Fei nodded at people like a robot, then walked over with cat steps and tiptoes.
Suddenly, Gao Wenyin raised her hand again to stop him.
Zhang Fei looked at him in confusion.
Gao Wenyin raised her hand to cover her lips and nose, her eyebrows slightly furrowed.
Zhang Fei blinked, then raised his sleeves and sniffed. Then he realized that he was being drunk. He pointed outside the door with tears in his eyes, then tiptoed out.
As soon as the door closed, he sighed, "I knew it, I knew it, as long as Wen Yin gave birth to a child, I would definitely be ranked second, but I didn't expect it to be so exaggerated. Forget it, let's go find Zhi Qian."
Xu Zhiqian is completely opposite to Gao Wenyin. Ever since she gave birth to her son, the happiness on Gao Wenyin's face has become more and more intense. Her son has almost always been by her side. She takes good care of him and feeds him herself. The old nanny who is serving beside her can't help.
Xu Zhiqian had a look of relief on her face, as she had finally made it through. As for her son, he was usually left to the care of a wet nurse. In fact, Xu Zun and Zhang Fei were not confident in her taking care of him.
At work, Xu Zhiqian is very meticulous, but in life, Xu Zhiqian has always been careless.
Seeing Zhang Fei, Xu Zhiqian was very happy. She quickly waved her hand and motioned him to sit on the bed. "I heard that the tax bureau has started issuing tax bills today."
Zhang Fei nodded, and asked with a smile: "Why are you so excited?"
Xu Zhiqian asked anxiously: "Then do you think they will pay taxes truthfully?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "Of course it's impossible. There will always be people who find ways to evade taxes, and the richer the people, the more likely they are to evade taxes."
Xu Zhiqian asked, "Is it because they pay a lot?"
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "According to the tax law, if you earn 30 guan a year, you only have to pay a little over 1 guan. But if you earn 1,000 guan a year, you have to pay around 200 guan. That's a world of difference!"
Xu Zhiqian's eyes turned and she said, "So by this calculation, I would have already left the confinement period when the tax was checked."
Zhang Fei finally reacted and laughed, "Don't worry, I will do what I promised you. Take good care of yourself and come to the procuratorate to work with me. You may not be able to be an official, but you will definitely have no problem being a clerk."
Xu Zhiqian immediately smiled.
She actually didn't think about becoming an official, she just really enjoyed her work.
During her pregnancy, she was involved in one big case after another, which made her very anxious. Now she is finally able to return to the workplace.
As long as taxation exists, tax evasion and tax avoidance will never become obsolete.
No matter how harsh and ruthless the tax commissioner is, there is no need to worry that the tax police will have nothing to do.
Moreover, the tax commissioner works under the public security, procuratorate and courts, which impose constraints on them. It is not like the past when they collected taxes from the people and they could just say how much they would be charged and they would be given a trial if they didn’t.
There is a lot of room for negotiation here, and it depends on who has more sophisticated means.
Of course, this is also a key reason why those powerful people are temporarily unable to refute.
Their tax-free privileges have not been reduced, and they only have to pay 3% of their salary. Even if the total tax is levied, this will not change. It is just that any property other than theirs will be levied according to the total tax rate.
Even so, the new tax bill still caused a lot of discussion.
From high-ranking officials to peddlers, everyone was talking about it.
It also triggered many strange phenomena, including an increase in the price of abacus and a doubling of the number of applicants to the School of Mathematics and the School of Law.
Because the tax bill was so detailed, many large landowners were confused. They did not want to find an office as their wealth should not be exposed, and the tax commissioner was omnipresent. They only trusted their relatives, so they sent their sons to study mathematics. If this continued, there must be someone in the family who was good at accounting.
Needless to say, if you want to avoid taxes, you must be proficient in tax laws, and the Law School is naturally the first choice.
Not only that, there was also a lot of discussion within the royal family.
Because Zhao Xu asked King Chang and the rest of the royal family to return all the land under their names to avoid being caught.
This is the first time ever.
"Don't blame me, Madam!"
Zhao Xu supported Queen Mother Cao and explained, "In fact, I don't want to force my second brother to return the land, but I have to think about the overall situation. The country's finances are in jeopardy, and the tax department is working hard to collect taxes for the country, so I have no choice but to do this."
Empress Dowager Cao showed a benevolent smile on her face and gently patted the back of Zhao Xu's hand, "Your Majesty, there is no need to explain. I understand very well and I think what you did is right. Yesterday, your mother and I taught Hao'er a lesson."
At this point, she suddenly changed the subject and said, "But sir, you must also remember that this grace from heaven is also a grace beyond the law."
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "Grandson will definitely remember the teachings of the great lady in his heart."
In fact, Empress Dowager Cao's meaning is very clear. You set an example and help the country restore its finances. Of course, it is okay, and the people in the royal family should cooperate with you. But you can't take it for granted. If everything is done according to the law, why are those ministers loyal to you?
It is precisely because you have the power to show mercy beyond the law that people are loyal to you.
Zhao Xu had not forgotten this point. He kept both Cheng Fang and Liu Renzan. His purpose was to ensure that the imperial power was above the law.
The royal family was dissatisfied with this, and the court was even more so, especially Zeng Gongliang, who was very dissatisfied with this.
At a regular meeting, Zeng Gongliang said very bluntly: "Your Majesty's reward to the ministers is a grace from heaven, but the tax commissioner is collecting another tax on top of this grace from heaven. This is tantamount to offending the grace from heaven!"
Sima Guang, Wen Yanbo and others couldn't help laughing.
It is no secret that Zeng Gongliang is stingy and loves money, everyone knows it.
It's understandable that he got angry.
Although Sima Guang, Fu Bi and others were somewhat ashamed of this, they would not offend Zeng Gongliang because of it.
Although Zeng Gongliang supported many of Wang Anshi's policies, especially in the military field, his ideas on some policies were closer to those of the conservatives.
Neither side will offend him for this matter.
Zhao Xu frowned, "Is this true?"
He really didn't know. It was too detailed and he didn't pay attention to it.
Wang Anshi immediately stepped forward and said, "According to the new tax law of the tax commissioner, it is indeed written that rewards from the court and employers must be included in the tax, but it does not specify whether it includes rewards from your majesty to your subjects."
Zhao Xu asked, "Does Wang Xue Shi know the reason?"
Wang Anshi immediately said, "I don't know."
Zhao Xu looked at the others again.
Sima Guang and the others all shook their heads.
Zeng Gongliang originally thought that the emperor knew about this, but seeing this situation, it seemed that the emperor really didn't know about it. He couldn't help but wonder, how could the tax commissioner be so bold as to make a decision in private?
Zhao Xu was really confused and could only call Xing Gong, the new tax collector who had just taken office.
"I pay my respects to your Majesty."
Compared with the previous tax collector Li He, Xing Gong is tall and strong, and does not have the shrewdness and capability that Li He had.
"Tax collector."
Zhao Xu asked, "I heard that your tax bureau also wants to collect taxes on the rewards I give to my subjects."
Mr. Xing hesitated for a moment, then replied, "Your Majesty, the tax commissioner is not targeting your Majesty's rewards to ministers, but all rewards."
Zeng Gongliang immediately glared at him angrily.
Arrogant!
How arrogant.
Zhao Xu looked unhappy and asked, "Why is that?"
Xing Gong said: "Your Majesty, please forgive me. We, the tax department, are also following the criminal law. According to the tax law, if A gives money to B as a reward, and the two are not related, the tax department must levy taxes on this."
Why do we emphasize that there is no relationship or friendship? Because the target of the tax commissioner is not a single person, but a household. As long as you do not split up the family, the tax commissioner will calculate the total income of this household. A father does not need to pay taxes when he gives money to his son, but you have to pay taxes when you give it to others.
Based on this, there is no talk of inheritance tax for the time being.
Only by emphasizing personal wealth can inheritance tax be levied.
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "This is what we should do. Otherwise, others will use this method to evade taxes."
If an employer changes all wages into bonuses, then they don’t have to pay taxes.
Zeng Gongliang asked aggressively: "Does this have to be counted as a gift from your majesty to your subjects?"
Mr. Xing said nothing.
Zhao Xu asked: "Why don't you speak?"
Xing Gong then said: "If it weren't for your majesty's favor to your subjects, many tax laws would be difficult to enforce."
Zhao Xu asked, "What do you mean?"
Xing Gong said: "Suppose Your Majesty rewards me with a piece of land, do I need to pay taxes on the grain grown on this land? Suppose Your Majesty rewards me with a house, do I need to pay deed tax on future transactions of this house? Suppose Your Majesty rewards me with a fine horse, do I need to pay license plate tax on this horse?
Our tax department's explanations on tax bills are all written in accordance with tax laws, unless the tax laws are changed, but this is not something our tax department can decide."
Although this guy looks rough, he speaks very strictly, just like Li He.
The Tax Commissioner does not have legislative power but is an enforcement agency. The instructions on the tax bill are only to help people better understand the tax law, rather than creating their own tax law.
The tax-free privileges were clearly written down, and it was clearly stated how much land tax was exempted for each minister of a certain rank, but it did not state that the land rewarded by the emperor was tax-free.
Zhao Xu thought of Empress Dowager Cao's words again in his mind, and couldn't help but glance at Fu Bi, hinting to him that he should change it.
Fu Bi was in a dilemma about this. He did not want to come into conflict with Zeng Gongliang, but he also felt that what was the harm in paying some taxes? It would be disrespectful to the Legislative Council to amend the law just for such a small issue.
The key point is, what Mr. Xing said is very right, a reward will affect all aspects, if it is implemented, you must be very cautious, otherwise everyone will use this to evade taxes.
Zeng Gongliang glanced at Fu Bi and felt that he had gone too far. The key point was that his complaint did not arouse the sympathy of Sima Guang and others. It would not sound good to amend the law just for himself. He hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I just don't understand the reason. I don't want to amend the law. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."
Zhao Xu also knew Zeng Gongliang and liked this one better, so he said, "Don't tell me that you are very righteous? How about this, I will reward you, my loyal ministers, more this year."
Zeng Gongliang hurriedly said, "I am ashamed to accept this."
“That’s what should be done.”
Zhao Xu smiled and nodded, "It's settled."
After saying this, he sent Xing Gong away.
As soon as Mr. Xing left, Wen Yanbo suddenly stood up and said, "Your Majesty, we at the Censorate have received news that a merchant group from Jiangxi was detained by the Xuzhou Shipping Department when passing through Xuzhou."
After these words were spoken, everyone present looked surprised.
Zhao Xu asked curiously, "Why?"
Wen Yanbo said: "Because this group of merchants is made up of people from the six southeastern routes in disguise, and their real purpose is to go to the capital to file a complaint."
Zhao Xu asked again: "What is the complaint?"
Wen Yanbo glanced at Wang Anshi and said, "It is to sue the Shipping Department and the Changping Department for using the Junshu Law and Qingmiao Law to exploit the people in the six southeastern routes and accumulate wealth, so that the people in the six southeastern routes are living in misery."
Wang Anshi's face darkened after hearing this, and he immediately stood up and said, "The people are already living in misery, but the court has not received any news. Are the censors in your Censorate all traveling around?"
Wen Yanbo said, "I don't know much about this, but I think that so many people want to go to the capital to file a complaint, it must not be groundless. Why not let them come to the capital and ask what is going on."
Wang Anshi said: "Your Majesty, how could a group of people disguise themselves and go through so many obstacles until they were discovered in Xuzhou? It is obvious that someone instigated the people to do evil in order to slander the new law."
Sima Guang said: "Whether this is black or white, we will know it after one trial. Why is Mr. Wang so excited?"
Wang Anshi said angrily: "I am upset because some people are always trying to slander the new policies and hinder them. It never ends. Why don't we just set up the two government regulations office to live in the imperial court from now on and do nothing else."
Seeing that Wang Anshi was really angry, Zhao Xu hurriedly said, "You two both have a point. We will know whether it is right or wrong after one trial. But we can't let them go to the capital to file complaints at every turn. Let's send those people back first, and then I will send someone to investigate."
Wen Yanbo knew the emperor's thoughts. If he sent them back, would you still send someone to investigate? He immediately said, "Your Majesty, they have already arrived in Xuzhou, which is only ten days away from the capital. The six southeastern routes are related to the financial lifeline of our dynasty. So many people have come to the capital to complain. It must be no small matter. Your Majesty should deal with it carefully!"
Sima Guang said: "If the local government can redress their grievances, they won't have to come to the capital."
Zhao Xu was about to say something else when Wang Anshi suddenly said, "Your Majesty, since Duke Wen and Scholar Sima have said so, I also support letting them go to the capital. This is justice in the hearts of the people, and I have no fear."
Zhao Xu couldn't help but look at Wang Anshi in surprise. What on earth do you want to do?
Wang Anshi thought that either there should be no trial and those people should be severely punished. If there is to be a trial, it should be held in the capital. If there is to be a trial in Yangzhou, the people sent there will definitely include Sima Guang and his men. This is really too dangerous. At least Zhang Fei is in the capital.
Zhao Xu also reacted, so he nodded and said, "Okay! Order Xuzhou to release the people."
Wen Yanbo immediately bowed and said, "I obey your command."
After the meeting, Wang Anshi snorted angrily and left angrily.
Fu Bi and the others were all very confused. Compared with the previous answers, this was not a big deal. Do you have to give us a cold shoulder?
After leaving the imperial city, Wang Anshi went straight to Zhang's house.
At present, the Zhang family is having one happy event after another. The day before yesterday, Mu Zhen gave birth to the eldest grandson for the Xu family. In less than half a month, the family has added three new members.
Xu Zun was so happy that he woke up laughing in his dreams. He also followed Zhang Fei's example and chose to take a vacation. He was in no mood to work and just wanted to enjoy family happiness at home.
When Wang Anshi arrived at Zhang's house, he met many people coming to congratulate him, which made him a little embarrassed.
Seeing that he looked strange, Zhang Fei quickly invited him to the study.
Arriving at the study, Wang Anshi immediately started cursing: "These villains are trying to trip me up in secret. I won't let them off."
Zhang Fei asked, "Master Wang, what happened?"
Wang Anshi immediately told them the general story of the complaint.
Zhang Fei couldn't help but frown after hearing this. "Master Wang, what's the problem here?"
"If something serious happened, I wouldn't know about it?"
Wang Anshi said: "During the implementation of this new policy, there will definitely be some minor problems, but some people are just trying to take advantage of them."
Zhang Fei didn't quite believe it: "If it was just a small problem, would Master Wang be so angry?"
"You don't understand."
Wang Anshi said: "They are Xiang Zhuang dancing with a sword, aiming at Pei Gong."
Zhang Fei was confused and said, "I really don't understand."
Wang Anshi said, "Today, the Political Affairs Hall is going to rotate positions. I was planning to recommend the Shipping Commissioner Xue Xiang to be the Third Commissioner, but they are making a scene at this critical moment, clearly intending to prevent Xue Xiang from being appointed as the Third Commissioner."
(End of this chapter)
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