“This is bullshit!”
"We can't go on like this!"
"Your Majesty, have you been bewitched? If this continues, the Liu Dynasty will fall apart."
A group of royal family members gathered together, chattering.
"Your Majesty, this move is truly ruthless! If this continues, regardless of merit, nobility, or even royal family, anyone with land, even just one acre, will be subject to taxes. Is Your Majesty obsessed with money?"
"Throughout the dynasties, I've never heard of high-ranking officials having to pay taxes."
"I heard that the businesses under the Empress' name have been paying taxes since their inception."
"It seems that the property of the Grand Household has also been paying taxes since the second year of Your Majesty's accession to the throne."
"The Shaofu pays taxes? Hahahaha...it's nothing more than transferring from the left hand to the right hand. The Empress, huh, can she do the same?"
"That's not the case. The Emperor and Empress are paying taxes, so what right do we have to not pay taxes?"
"Ten percent tax is not expensive."
"Bullshit! Is this a matter of 10% tax? This is a matter of principle. From paying no taxes to paying taxes, let alone 10% tax, even if it's 20% tax, we must firmly oppose it."
"Yes, we can't open this loophole. This year's tax rate is 10%, and if we compromise, who knows what they will come up with next year."
"What's going on with those officials in the court? They actually compromised on such an important law. They're usually quite vocal, but why are they all so silent now?"
"Shh, don't say it, don't say it."
"What's there to be ashamed of? It's just that those officials are so soft-hearted and unwilling to repay. After receiving favors from His Majesty and the Empress, of course they have to control their mouths."
"Those officials in the court are all cowards."
The royal family members cursed with all their might, but they did not dare to curse the emperor and empress loudly. They only cursed the officials.
Some excited people brought a group of servants and threw feces on the official's door.
Official: “…”
MMP, is this his fault alone?
Such a big thing is not something he can decide alone.
He still felt aggrieved.
Throwing manure is nothing.
Some people have publicly criticized the court in newspapers, believing that court officials are messing around.
When some people criticize, others stand up to support.
Shanhe Academy firmly supports the new land law.
Despite this law, it also harms their interests.
In the past, as long as one passed the imperial examination, one could be exempted from taxes and labor service.
As long as you have money, you can buy any land. If others want to contribute, you can just take it.
If you are a little ruthless, you can accumulate a large fortune in less than ten or eight years.
Land is tax-free anyway.
Not now.
Even if you have achieved fame, you still have to pay taxes.
One-tenth of the tax is very little, but you still have to pay taxes.
If you buy more land, you will be taxed double.
Ultimately, the new laws harm the interests of scholars and the powerful.
Those who wrote articles in newspapers criticizing the court were basically scholars.
Some students of Shanhe Academy opposed it, while others supported it.
Surprisingly, the majority of people supported the new land law.
This group of people wrote articles in newspapers every day to cheer for the court and the emperor and empress, and they became the emperor and empress's little fans.
There was a fierce war of words in the newspapers, with both sides going back and forth.
The common people were happy.
So happy!
Rejoice!
This time, don’t worry about how the scholars, landlords and gentry try to fool them, they won’t be fooled.
They saw clearly the huge 10% tax.
Even if you can't read, there are guys at Sihai Meat and Vegetable Shop who will help you explain.
Throughout the dynasties, the land tax rate was basically 30% tax. During wartime, it could even be 40% tax.
If we add in the local levies, the burden will be even heavier.
This is the treatment of self-employed farmers.
Tenants had to pay taxes and rent, and in the end, they probably didn't even have 20% of the food they had.
Moreover, as land prices soar, land rents also tend to rise.
In some places, the rent has reached 50%, or even 60% or 70%.
If this spreads across the country, the tenants will have no life.
The new land law promulgated by the court only required one clause, one-tenth of the tax, to gain the strong support of the common people throughout the world.
Nowadays, when you meet vendors in the streets and alleys, they don’t ask if you have eaten, but instead ask if you know the 10% tax rate.
"I know, I know! I heard that it was His Majesty and the Empress who pressured the officials in the court to force the promulgation of this law."
"Your Majesty and the Empress are thinking of us common people."
"Long live His Majesty and the Empress."
"Those intellectuals are swearing in the newspapers every day, and why don't the Newspaper Department do anything about it?"
"Why would you care? Don't you see that those who are being scolded are the officials in the court and the Ministry of Internal Affairs..."
"What is the Ministry of Internal Affairs?"
"It should be considered the government office that takes the blame for the emperor and empress."
"Ah? Is there a government office specifically responsible for taking the blame?"
"No one is taking the blame. Do you think His Majesty and the Empress should bear the responsibility?"
"That can't be done. That can't be done."
"From now on, all those who study and become officials, like us common people, will have to pay taxes. I was so happy, haha, that I felt so happy for several days."
"If you have to pay taxes to study for the imperial examination, who would want to study for the imperial examination in the future?"
"Don't be fooled by those scholars' outcry. Those who need to study for the imperial examinations still need to study for the examinations. It's just a small tax, one-tenth of it, how much can it be? If you don't study, you can only own 100 mu of land. If you exceed 100 mu, you have to pay a tax of 5% or even 6%..."
"The highest tax is nine out of ten!"
"That's right! One hundred mu limits people. Only by studying and taking the imperial examinations, or serving in the army and earning merit, can one break through the one hundred mu limit."
"If you pass the imperial examination, you can own ten hectares of land with a tax rate of one tenth, and you can also raise ten children. With such a good thing, do you think those scholars can refuse the imperial examination?"
"In the future, the number of people taking the imperial examinations will only increase, not decrease."
"That's true. Anyone with a little money will send their children to school."
"Why is that?"
"Because if you are rich but don't have any official title, you can only have 100 mu of land like the common people like me. For a wealthy master, this amount of land is not enough. If you want to get land with a 10% tax rate, you have to encourage your children to study. Even if you only have the title of scholar, you can get an extra 200 mu of land with a 10% tax rate."
"That makes sense, that makes sense. You have to study hard in the future!"
"If you don't study, you'll be stuck with your 100 acres of land. Any more than one acre will be heavily taxed."
"In this case, we can't open up wasteland at will."
"Haven't you read the law? Newly reclaimed land can be sold to the government, and the government will buy it at a 20% premium over the market price. The 20% premium is considered labor compensation."
"That's more like it."
"No matter how those scholars make a fuss, the new laws will truly benefit the people and are truly for the benefit of ordinary people like us."
"That's right."
"A ten-to-one tax rate can save many lives."
“When there’s a reduction in production, there’s no need to sell off children or land.”
"Yes! The warehouse at home will be full one day."
"Your family also has a warehouse? You must be rich!"
"I'm thinking that with a 10% tax rate, we can save a lot of food. In the past, we had nothing to eat during the lean months. But with a 10% tax rate, we'll definitely have something to eat during the lean months."
"That makes sense."
“We’ll know if there’s any food left by the beginning of next spring.”
"The law will be implemented starting on the first day of August. The court is taking the autumn harvest into consideration. With the autumn harvest, everyone's burden will be greatly reduced this year."
"Some officials want to collect the autumn crops before the first day of August and make a fortune. Don't be fooled."
“Thanks for the reminder!”
…
Wang Xuecheng went to find Yan Ci with some wine.
"Brother Yan is indeed far-sighted. Back then, you said you didn't want to accept land donations from the villagers, and I thought you were worrying too much. Now I see that Brother Yan is indeed very thoughtful."
Yan Ci touched his head with sparse hair and felt a little worried.
"Brother Wang, please stop praising me. I'm really worried right now."
"Why are you worried?"
"Although I didn't accept the land donated by the villagers, my family has used the money to buy a lot of land over the years, which has exceeded the ten-tenths-per-acre tax stipulated by the court."
Wang Xuecheng was stunned for a moment. "Brother Yan has the title of Juren (a juren scholar), so he owns five hectares of land with a tax rate of one tenth, and he can even repay a few people. Has your family already owned more land than that?"
Wang Xuecheng was surprised.
Yan Ci smiled wryly and nodded, "I went home a few days ago and looked through the deeds to our family's land. I realized that over the years, my family has used their money to buy around 80 hectares of land, nearly exceeding the original land quota by more than double."
Wow!
Eighty hectares is eight thousand acres. Just purchasing the land would cost tens of thousands of taels of silver.
"Brother Yan is indeed rich."
"Brother Wang, please stop making fun of me. I'm just worried about what to do with the extra land."
"Why worry? The law stipulates that there is a three-year moratorium on land sales in the past. During those three years, your land will remain as it was."
"Brother Wang, you are indeed mocking me. The law stipulates that in cases like ours, the portion of land that is taxed at one-tenth of the tax rate will remain tax-free for three years. The land exceeding this rate must be taxed at the same rate of one-tenth. At the end of the three years, the land exceeding this rate will be subject to a heavy tax."
"Ten percent tax, such a small amount shouldn't be a burden for Brother Yan."
Yan Ci wiped his face and said, "Brother Wang, these lands were tax-free before."
Wang Xuecheng was speechless, then came to his senses and patted his head. "I was confused! The autumn harvest season is almost here. What are you going to do, Brother Yan?"
“You definitely can’t sell the land at this time.”
"That's right. If you buy land at this time, there will definitely be people who take advantage of the opportunity to lower the price. There will always be someone who can buy up a large amount of land."
Yan Ci shook his head. "My brother still doesn't see the true purpose behind this. The promulgation of this law will ultimately mean that the government, or rather, the Shaofu, will become the largest landowner in the world. Just wait and see, over the next few years, a large amount of land will fall into the hands of the Shaofu."
Wang Xuecheng was a little confused. He was not smart to begin with, and he really couldn't understand the twists and turns here.
He asked without hesitation, "Is this good or bad?"
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