The Fourth Prince remained silent, offering no opinion, and listened quietly to the discussions in the court with a sullen face.
The Fourth Prince's faction strongly advocated for the implementation of the "equalization of land tax and poll tax" policy, prioritizing people's livelihood and listing the benefits of its promulgation. However, the Eighth Prince and the Nian family's faction firmly disagreed, ostensibly for the sake of the court, but in reality, they were worried about their own interests being harmed.
Longdoko pondered for a long time before stepping forward. The Fourth Prince looked up at him, staring at him for a while before nodding to signal him to speak. Longdoko bowed and said to the Fourth Prince, "Your Majesty, I believe you cannot only look at the present. Once the policy is implemented, the burden on the people will not only not be reduced, but will actually increase, and the situation of fleeing to other places to evade taxes will become more and more serious. Your Majesty only sees the superficial benefits, but has not thought deeply about the drawbacks. The reason why the 'equalization of land tax and poll tax' policy is ineffective is because it cannot maintain a fixed amount of tax collection, thereby preventing tax evasion."
Longduo's words emboldened the opponents, who stood up to him with a cold laugh. The Thirteenth Prince, unable to bear it any longer, stepped forward and said, "Everyone is only thinking about protecting their own interests, but I believe this policy is very beneficial to the people. As for the minor issues you're worried about, they can all be resolved. The wealthy have large tracts of land and a large population; taxes should be collected according to regulations. What's the point of appealing? These are bad habits ingrained over thousands of years. As for the tax evasion you mentioned, these are only minor issues arising from a lack of coordination. If Your Majesty refines these policies and adds legal provisions, proper management can prevent them all. Therefore, Your Majesty should prioritize the well-being of the people..."
The Fourth Prince smiled, but quickly withdrew his smile. The Thirteenth Prince's words did not quell the argument, but only intensified the conflict. The Fourth Prince had never intended to smoothly promulgate the new policy, so he let them speak freely.
One voice after another, those in favor and those against argued heatedly until their faces were red.
The Fourth Prince slowly opened his mouth: "Since my ministers have differing opinions on this matter, why not have a court debate to determine the advantages and disadvantages of the new policy, and then I will make a decision?"
Although they didn't know what the Fourth Prince was thinking, everyone argued their points for their own interests. The Fourth Prince spent the entire morning in heated debate, his ears filled with chatter. He finally finished court, but the matter still hadn't been resolved.
The Fourth Prince returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, exhausted. Su Peisheng quickly served tea and summoned servants to attend to him.
Fourth Master rubbed his temples, sat down and took a sip of tea, when he suddenly remembered what Su Peisheng had said that morning.
"By the way, what happened to Xin Zhe Ku last night?"
Su Peisheng kept his head down and answered in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty was not here last night, and for some reason, the Imperial Laundry ran aground in the middle of the night. This servant dared not reveal Your Majesty's whereabouts, so I had to make up an excuse that Your Majesty was tired..."
Fourth Master waved his hand and said to Su Peisheng, "Alright, go and fetch the eunuch in charge..."
Su Peisheng looked up and said calmly, "This servant knew that His Majesty would inquire about this matter after court, so I specially summoned Duo Defeng and have him waiting outside. I will go and have him come in to report..."
The eunuch knelt respectfully before the Fourth Master and reported in detail: "The Xin Zhe Ku caught fire last night. The wind was strong at night, and the fire spread rapidly. By the time the fire was put out, the Xin Zhe Ku was already on fire, so..." The head eunuch hesitated and did not continue.
Fourth Master frowned and asked in a heavy voice, "How many people died?"
The head eunuch glanced at Su Peisheng, who nodded slightly. Only then did he reply, "Your Majesty, one hundred and eight people died, and more than forty were injured..."
Fourth Master was startled, straightened up, and angrily demanded, "How could there be so many casualties? Who handled this yesterday?"
Startled, Eunuch Duo replied in a terrified voice, "The Imperial Concubine... it was Imperial Concubine Nian who was in charge of the situation. The fire was indeed out of control, and it happened in the middle of the night, so no one had time to escape..."
Just as the Fourth Prince was about to erupt in anger, a voice came from outside: "The Imperial Concubine requests an audience..."
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