Chapter 506 Concubine Tax!
Shen Lanxi angrily slammed her hand on the table, breaking it in two.
All the officials trembled in unison.
"He can afford to keep concubines and mistresses, but he can't afford to pay taxes. Doesn't he want to avoid paying taxes? I'll make him pay more."
"The Ministry of Rites drafts the law, the Ministry of Revenue supervises it, and the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review approve it. Today, I, the King, will add a new article to the laws of my Great Zhou Dynasty."
The officials were dumbfounded!
Wasn't it about a cloth dyeing workshop? Wasn't it about reducing taxes? How did it end up about revising the Great Zhou Code?
Shen Lanxi said angrily, "Didn't the Vice Minister of War just say where the money to support my Great Zhou army comes from? Now listen carefully."
“If a family can afford to keep concubines and mistresses and have children born out of wedlock, they must be financially secure. So let’s start levying a tax on concubines, including mistresses and concubines, as well as children born out of wedlock.”
"For each concubine, the annual payment shall be ten taels of silver to the Ministry of Revenue of the Great Zhou Dynasty. For each child born to the concubine, the payment shall be five taels. And for each child born to the concubine, the payment shall be five taels."
"If a second concubine is taken, a tax of twenty taels of silver shall be paid, and for her children, a tax of ten taels shall be paid."
"The third-place winner pays thirty taels, their children pay fifteen taels, and so on, with no upper limit..."
The court officials were stunned, as if struck by lightning, their heads buzzing.
Shen Lanxi laughed and said, "In my Great Zhou, there are countless people who take concubines and keep mistresses. Those who can afford to keep concubines are mostly wealthy families. The increase in the concubine tax will definitely fill the gap in my Great Zhou's military funds."
Leaving aside others, among the officials, those who did not take concubines were extremely rare.
That's a terrible idea!
It must have been planned between the Ministry of Revenue and the Regent!
The Minister of Revenue should be executed!
In an instant, all the court officials glared at the Ministry of Revenue with eyes burning with rage, their gazes filled with a desire to tear them apart.
Shen Lanxi: "As for the Ministry of Revenue's suggestion to restore the tax rates of ten years ago, I think it's feasible!"
"Afterwards, the Ministry of Revenue, together with the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, will jointly negotiate a suitable tax rate and report it to me within ten days!"
She said I glanced at Wang Bao.
The latter said, "If you have something to report, do so now; otherwise, the court is adjourned!"
Shen Lanxi turned her heel and slipped away.
Three breaths later, the imperial court was in an uproar.
"Ministry of Revenue, you are simply a scourge upon all my officials..."
"Ministry of Revenue, you are all sycophants..."
"The Minister of Revenue should be executed..."
"The Ministry of Revenue offers a sacrifice to Heaven..."
"Ministry of Revenue, don't you dare run away..."
...
"Your Highness's sword dance, like Xiang Zhuang's, was aimed at Liu Bang. Brilliant, truly brilliant!" Che Mingyuan exclaimed.
Shen Lanxi disagreed: "What I'm doing is called throwing out a brick to attract jade, using someone else to do the dirty work!"
It's incredibly satisfying to achieve what she wants by using others, especially her political enemies!
Che Mingyuan and the others jogged to catch up with Shen Lanxi.
The first bulletin was arranged and finalized by Lords Mei and Liu. The first bulletin was divided into three parts: recruitment, entertainment, family matters, and government policy announcements.
The most prominent position was given to the government's political strategies, followed by the people's livelihood, entertainment, and everyday family matters.
After the first bulletin came out, it was sent to Shen Lanxi first.
"The concubine's tax payment is listed first, which is indeed eye-catching. If I saw it on the street, I would definitely buy a copy too," Shen Lanxi praised generously.
Che Mingyuan: "It is clear that Lords Mei and Liu are not pedantic people."
Shen Lanxi nodded and continued reading.
"Yesterday, the students of Bailu Academy had a poetry contest. A young woman, who admired one of the students, secretly climbed through a dog hole to boldly express her love. She was chased away by the other students, and then she turned around and accused all the students of admiring her... Tsk tsk..."
Che Mingyuan said with a smile, "This version was written by a young official from the Ministry of Rites named Gao Run, who was a student from Dongchuan."
Shen Lanxi: "This is a talented person, so let's transfer him to write special reports."
"yes!"
Shen Lanxi: "We should also write more job postings. Once the people see the power of the bulletin, we should let the people in the Ministry of Revenue use their brains to make money from it."
Che Mingyuan asked in bewilderment, "Your Highness, haven't we already started selling the newspaper? How can we possibly make money from it?"
Shen Lanxi patiently instructed: "If restaurants, workshops, and various small shops want to become famous, it will probably take a long time to spread their fame through word of mouth, right?"
Che Mingyuan understood.
With the news bulletin, the news can be spread far and wide, thus helping them become famous in the shortest amount of time!
"Report back quickly."
Shen Lanxi closed the bulletin and said, "The bulletin is not the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is to revise the laws and tax rates to reduce the burden on the people."
Che Mingyuan nodded, his eyes filled with admiration.
The impact of the concubine tax did not fade away with Shen Lanxi's hasty departure from the court; on the contrary, it spread rapidly to various places due to the influence of the news reports.
Although the bulletin was only piloted in the capital, merchants from all over the country would smuggle some back with them, and in a short time, the bulletin was delivered to various places.
The concubines and their children sensed a crisis amid the men's impatient attitude.
Five days later, when the officials went to court, the Dengwen Drum was sounded.
Wang Bao shouted shrilly, "Quickly go and see who has sounded the petition drum!"
Soon the Imperial Guards sent word back.
"Your Majesty, it's not one person, it's many people."
Wang Bao frowned and asked in a shrill voice, "How many are there exactly?"
Imperial Guards: "There are about a hundred of them."
Shen Lanxi stood up: "Come on, everyone, let's go and see what's going on."
In the blink of an eye, Shen Lanxi led her officials to the palace gate, where she saw a sea of people kneeling on the ground.
Wang Bao's shrill voice rang out: "The Regent has arrived..."
After a brief chatter among the crowd, they quickly began to tell others.
"We are all concubines, illegitimate children, and the concubine tax imposed by the imperial court is simply leaving us no way to survive..."
"Concubines can be bought and sold. If the wife in the household doesn't want to pay for them, then we'll be sold!"
"Please, sirs, give us a way to live..."
"Implementing a concubinage tax again would be tantamount to forcing us to our deaths..."
These people didn't say a single word against Shen Lanxi, but every sentence they uttered accused her of pushing the concubine tax to their deaths.
Many of the officials looked at Shen Lanxi with accusatory eyes, while many others watched the spectacle with amusement.
Taking concubines has existed since ancient times and is in accordance with the natural order. What does Shen Lanxi, a woman, know? She comes here and wants to change the ancestral rules. Today, we must make her infamous for ten thousand years and never be able to get back to her senses!
Shen Lanxi stepped forward and began calling out names: "All the officials in charge of the Court of Judicial Review, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Justice, come out and speak!"
Those kneeling on the ground trembled in fear upon hearing Shen Lanxi's words.
Then, considering that there were so many of them here, Shen Lanxi couldn't possibly lock them all up.
"Your Highness."
The three heads of the department stepped forward and took their positions.
Shen Lanxi: "I am a person who understands etiquette and abides by the law. My actions are worthy of the hearts of heaven and the people!"
"You say that the concubine tax implemented by the imperial court is driving you to your deaths? That's a real injustice!"
The officials' hearts immediately jumped when they saw Shen Lanxi's reaction.
That shouldn't be the case! Shouldn't she be enraged and smash them to death like she's chopping a table?
Shen Lanxi: "I have said before that if there is any injustice, I will definitely seek justice!"
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