Someone asked tentatively.
"good."
"But what if the court blames us?"
"Didn't I just tell you? Hand over the person and pay compensation!"
"But I always felt that the court wanted an excuse, and now it has that excuse."
“.”
Gong Xu was silent.
This is what he is most worried about.
But after a moment, Pan Shi said, "Don't worry, everyone. As the saying goes, the law does not punish the masses. There are so many of us, and there is no law. Could it be that the court will really massacre us all?"
"Alas, that's all I can think of. Now we're stuck in a dilemma. If we don't fight, our wealth will slowly vanish. If we fight, we'll be terrified."
"So what? I heard that many people have been forced to follow the path set by the court. Some have even sold their land to the government at a low price, and are now organizing fleets to go out to sea."
"Haha, a fleet goes out to sea, and risks every inch of its life. Even though those ocean-going fleets bring back so much gold and silver, people never see how many people go out and how many return."
"I'm a coward, so I won't get involved. Alas, who could have imagined that this family business, painstakingly built up over generations, would be destroyed by my hands?"
Some people sighed, some acquiesced, and a very small number of people finally decided to withdraw, leaving Hangzhou with their own people and returning to their hometowns.
Firstly, the matter was too big, and they were afraid that something might go wrong.
Secondly, they felt powerless. Even though the matter had become so serious, the court still did not give in, which also made people feel how determined the court was.
So in the end, a few people left.
There were only two possible outcomes for them: either the imperial court would gradually confiscate their tenants, and then they would be burdened with high taxes, ultimately leading to bankruptcy. Or they could make a decision early on, sell their land, and enter the business world.
This obviously requires great courage.
After all, with their accumulated family wealth, a lean camel is bigger than a horse. Even if they sell the land and eat up all the wealth, as long as the head of the family does not gamble, basically several generations will not have to worry about food and drink.
But doing business is too risky, especially going overseas.
Don’t underestimate the fact that Chen Haizhong, an official of the ocean-going fleet, was promoted from the eighth rank to the third rank Director of the Maritime Customs in just seven or eight years.
But the price paid is unimaginable.
Others may not know, but those people from Jiangsu and Zhejiang all know it. After all, Chen Haizhong always comes here when he goes out to sea and returns.
During his two voyages alone, he lost thousands of men due to disease, waves, wind and rain, disappearances, etc., not to mention the many shipwrecks and deaths.
In addition, there were also many people from Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions who went to Japan and Goryeo to do business, and these people also suffered heavy casualties.
Therefore, compared to farming peacefully and steadily with this stable iron rice bowl income, who would want to sell all their land, run out to live in the open, or even risk the ship being destroyed and people dying to run a business?
But now..
Those who left shook their heads and sighed, and could only hope that the remaining people would win in the end and force the court to give up the land tax and conscript their tenants.
After these people left, more than 30 big landlords remained in the field. They finally decided to go all out and give Gong Xu and the others another try.
So in the next few days, they began to organize protest teams again and marched around the city, but without the momentum of the previous few days, and were relatively low-key.
But by early April, everything changed.
On April 6, Xia Song, who had sailed more than a thousand kilometers on a passenger ship that sped day and night, changing boatmen but not boats, finally entered Hangzhou City with a slightly tired body.
After entering the city, he quickly inspected the area. He only brought a few servants with him and saw that order in the city had been barely restored.
But there were still thousands of people scattered across the city marching and demonstrating, which made him frown.
The most important thing was that he saw some shops that had been smashed and looted had not been repaired yet, and the ruins of burned houses were still swaying in the wind, which showed how chaotic the market was at that time.
At noon, Xia Song finally walked into the Transfer Office.
When Du Qi, Ren Maocheng and others in the government office heard that Xia Song was coming, they hurried out to greet him and invited him into the back hall.
"I have met Prime Minister Ji."
In the back hall of the Liangzhe Road Transport Commissioner, the Transport Commissioner, Deputy Transport Commissioner, Tongpan, Duzhi Judge and other officials saluted him.
Although the Ministry of Finance is no longer one of the three departments, it is still nominally the first department under the Constitutional Court. Therefore, people still follow the previous custom and call the Minister of Finance the Prime Minister.
"snort."
Xia Song snorted coldly, put his hands behind his back, sat down in the main seat, and then said in a deep voice: "Don't you have any feelings about the situation outside now?"
Du Qi was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said, "Prime Minister Ji, this matter is not due to the inaction of the lower officials and others, but the...
"Forehead"
Xia Song slapped his head and thought he was confused. Zhao Jun had told him about this before he came.
The reason why the landlords in Liangzhe Road caused such a big commotion was basically because he allowed it.
But because he was tired from the journey, and seeing the city in this state, and because he was sixty years old, he forgot about it for a moment.
Then he turned around and said, "The instructions of the Magistrate are certainly correct, but we still need to prevent them from running too rampant, lest they affect the people of Hangzhou."
"Minister Ji is right. It was my negligence."
Du Qi said quickly.
This matter could be a big deal or a small one, it all depends on whether Shangguan will just let it go.
Obviously, it has the endorsement of the Institute, so there is no big problem.
"Well, tell me about the current situation."
"yes."
Everyone briefly explained the situation.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
