Chu Fan said softly with a hint of apology: "This is really beyond my expectation. I really didn't consider this. But why didn't you bring someone to find me?"
Chu Fan's tone then became very serious, and he sternly said to Minister Qian: "Minister Qian, as a high-ranking official in the imperial court, how can you retreat because of fear of power?
Even though the Censorate directly serves the Emperor, you should remain steadfast in your position and unwavering. You must resolutely enforce the taxes that must be levied. While the other party's backer may be the Emperor, your backer is also the Emperor, and you are also working for the Emperor. What exactly are you afraid of?
Qian Dai was speechless at Chu Fan's words. Deep down, he himself longed to resist the tyranny of power. But even if Your Majesty could ignore these things, Your Majesty's two future fathers-in-law were both powerful figures in the military. How could he dare to oppose you so easily?
Chu Fan continued to elaborate on his point: "In future tax policies, we should not only focus on the meager income of farmers, but also consider reducing or even exempting farmers from taxes. After all, farmers' income is relatively small, but their contribution to the country is crucial. We should turn our attention more to the business class.
As far as I know, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue have obtained the distribution rights of refined salt in a certain city from the Censorate, right? You should also be able to clearly see that the wealth earned by merchants through trade and commercial activities is hundreds or thousands of times that of farmers.
However, our current tax policy for merchants is relatively lenient, at only 1% of their income, which is clearly disproportionate to the enormous profits they earn. Therefore, I propose adjusting the tax rate for merchants to 1% of their income to ensure a more balanced national revenue. For those who dare to evade taxes, we must take strict measures and impose severe penalties to deter and punish them.
As for the Censorate and the ministers in the imperial court, they also made considerable profits from the refined salt trade. Although the original intention of the refined salt distribution was to supplement their household expenses, when they made a profit, they were also required to pay the corresponding taxes according to regulations to enrich the state's fiscal reserves.
Chu Fan actually didn't want to see the Ministry of Revenue have money, but many things related to the people in Wei State required money, and it was all paid by the Ministry of Revenue. If the Ministry of Revenue was always short of money, many livelihood projects would not be improved, such as the construction of river embankments. Otherwise, it is very likely that there will be a major disaster in the next year.
Qian Dai witnessed His Majesty's resolute expression and could not help but feel a deep respect for Chu Fan. He knew that if His Majesty's plan was really implemented, His Majesty's personal interests would be the first to be affected.
After all, in the refined salt business, His Majesty controls the majority of all profits. Yet, His Majesty's initiative to pay the refined salt tax undoubtedly means he will be using a large sum of money from his own treasury to subsidize the state's treasury. This selfless act undoubtedly demonstrates His Majesty Chu Fan's noble character and deep concern for the country.
Qian Dai deeply felt the emperor's unwavering resolve and understood his next course of action. He immediately knelt on the ground and respectfully replied, "I will do my utmost to live up to your expectations."
Chu Fan had no further instructions for the Ministry of Revenue. His main purpose in calling Qian Dai was to inquire about the shortage of silver in the treasury. Now that he understood the specific reasons for the Ministry's lack of funds and had proposed a preliminary solution, Chu Fan felt there was no need for Qian Dai to remain.
So Chu Fan said calmly: "You go down."
Chu Fan continued to sit at the table, his eyes intently examining the memorials one after another. Most of these memorials contained trivial matters, yet the officials wrote thousands of words of lengthy expositions with great enthusiasm.
Ironically, the lower the official's rank, the more lengthy his memorials seemed to be, filled with quotations from classics and expositions of Confucian doctrines, as if this alone were insufficient to demonstrate his profound knowledge.
However, after reading it for a long time, Chu Fan found that there was very little of real value in it. One memorial was thousands of words long, but in the end it described nothing more than a fight between two farmers caused by a chicken.
By the time Chu Fan finally finished reviewing all the memorials, night had fallen. Despite being exhausted, Chu Fan knew he would need to wake up early the next morning to attend the court. Reluctantly, he put down his pen, returned to his chambers, collapsed onto his bed, and fell into a deep sleep almost as soon as he touched the pillow.
At this time, Chu Fan was thinking that he must make other people in the royal family suffer the same punishment in the future. Why should he be the emperor and suffer this punishment while other royal family members can be a free and easy prince?
The next morning, before daybreak, Chu Fan was gently awakened by two palace maids. They stood respectfully beside his bed, softly reminding him that it was time to get up. Chu Fan rubbed his sleepy eyes and slowly sat up from the bed, feeling a little sleepy.
He stretched and yawned, then put on the gorgeous dragon robe with the help of the palace maids.
After getting dressed, Chu Fan, accompanied by Eunuch Li, stumbled towards Chengtian Hall. The hall was brightly lit and magnificent, and the air was filled with a solemn atmosphere.
After Chu Fan sat on the dragon throne, Eunuch Li stood in the center of the hall and loudly announced: "Your Majesty has arrived and is officially attending court!"
As Eunuch Li's voice fell, all the civil and military officials bowed their heads and saluted, and the entire hall suddenly became silent.
Chu Fan sat on the dragon throne and rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. Although he was still a little tired, he knew that a new day had begun, and since he had made a decision, he had to do it well.
After all the officials had taken their places and lined up neatly, the Minister of War, Sun Dechong, stepped out and respectfully reported to Chu Fan, "Your Majesty, the three citadels outside Kaifeng are nearly complete. I beg Your Majesty to give them names."
Chu Fan suddenly remembered that the three Acropolises he had ordered his eldest grandson Dechong to build with cement were now almost completed. Chu Fan fell into a brief contemplation, thinking about what would be the most appropriate names for these three cities.
After some careful consideration, Chu Fan finally spoke with a firm tone, "These three Acropolis will be named Five Stars, Glory, and China."
When the ministers heard the name of the city from Chu Fan's mouth, they were filled with doubts and confusion. They couldn't understand why there was a city name with only one character, and the name "Yaocheng" always sounded a bit strange and unusual.
However, since this was a name chosen by His Majesty himself, they would not raise any objections or questions. As the ruler of a country, His Majesty's decisions and choices naturally have their own profound meaning and considerations, and the ministers only need to respectfully accept and implement them.
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