In Deyang Palace, after more than ten days of hard work, the officials of the Imperial Secretariat finally made a detailed comparison and sorting of the revenue from various prefectures and counties of the Han Dynasty in the past few years.
"Your Majesty, this is the budget made by the Ministry of Works for this year's autumn harvest. The crops are growing well this year, and there have been no major natural disasters in various places. The income should increase by 20% compared to previous years."
"very good!"
After taking the report from Zhong Yao and glancing at it, Liu Hong nodded in satisfaction.
During Emperor Xiaohuan's reign, fiscal revenue, excluding military expenses and various expenditures, was almost negative every year. Now that the border is stable, it has not caused too much loss. If the output can meet expectations, it can not only make up for last year's various expenditures, but may even have a surplus.
This is a good omen, provided that no one causes trouble.
"The Imperial Censor and the Court of Justice are summoned to an audience!"
"promise!"
Before long, Yang Qiu and Xun Shuang arrived at Deyang Palace at the same time.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"
"No need for formalities. May I ask if the joint inspection team for the autumn harvest has been fully formed?"
Liu Hong looked at Xun Shuang and inquired about the inspection team's situation. Liu Hong clearly attached great importance to this autumn harvest and was paying close attention to the inspection team's progress.
Xun Shuang stood up and replied, "Your Majesty, the inspection team, led by the Court of Justice and assisted by the Sili Office, has been formed and is ready to depart for various prefectures and counties for inspection and supervision as soon as Your Majesty gives the order."
"good!"
Liu Hong nodded, then took out the reports from the Ministry of Personnel and handed them to the two men, saying, "Take a look!"
"Focus on those major grain-producing states. Have people secretly investigate and monitor them. If the money and grain they hand over differ significantly from the figures I have given them, they must be thoroughly investigated!"
Then Liu Hong looked at Yang Qiu and said, "Yang Qing, you will be in charge of this matter!"
"promise!"
Yang Qiu and Xun Shuang also understood the meaning behind the emperor's words. Now that the emperor knows the tax revenue of each prefecture and county like the back of his hand, he must also know the extent of the tax inflated figures.
The increase is only 30%, and they are left with 10%, which is already a generous provision. If they are still greedy, they will likely suffer a crushing defeat this time.
Yang Qiu's long-dormant heart stirred once more. It seemed like it had been a long time since he had killed anyone.
The next day, the core members of the joint inspection team led a large group of inspectors, including constables from the Court of Justice, officials from the Sili government office, and some members of the Imperial Guard and the Tiger Guard, and then dispersed to various prefectures and counties to begin their inspection work.
Yang Qiu also dispatched all the spies from the "Investigation Division," as well as all the secret agents lurking among powerful families.
When the officials and members of the powerful families in Luoyang saw this spectacle, they understood how much the emperor valued this autumn harvest. They wrote letters to their trusted local officials and clan members to warn them, lest they run into trouble and be implicated.
Julu, a group of three dressed in Taoist robes, walked between the ridges of the fields.
The leader had a prominent forehead, bright eyes, a kind face, and held a nine-section staff. Coupled with his Taoist robe, he certainly gave off the air of a hermit.
These three men were none other than the brothers Zhang Jiao, Zhang Liang, and Zhang Bao.
Due to the influence of their family environment, the three brothers believed in Taoist doctrines from a young age, especially the Huang-Lao school of thought.
Later, when Zhang Jiao grew up, he accidentally obtained a copy of the "Taiping Jing" (Scripture of Great Peace), which he treasured. He studied its meaning every day and found that many of its ideas coincided with his own.
So Zhang Jiao extracted the core elements and added them to his own Huang-Lao philosophy, creating his own unique Taoist doctrine. This is how Zhang Jiao conceived the idea of ​​promoting and developing his own doctrine.
His two younger brothers were also attracted by the doctrines he created and became his first followers.
Then the three brothers began to wander the streets, treating the poor and spreading their doctrines.
At this time, Zhang Jiao had not yet come up with the slogan "The Blue Heaven is dead, the Yellow Heaven shall rise." He simply wanted to promote his teachings.
Before Liu Hong ascended the throne, the three brothers had already begun traveling through the streets and towns of Julu, spreading their doctrines and providing free medical treatment to the poor, thus gaining considerable fame in the area.
Because their main purpose is to guide people to do good, no matter what people do, there are all kinds of ghosts and gods watching you, and they require people to do more good deeds to increase their lifespan, while doing evil deeds will be punished, and they also require people to respect heaven.
Since Taoism was a mainstream religion at the time, people did not reject it. On the contrary, they often helped the Zhang brothers to spread their teachings, which played a certain role in maintaining public order. Therefore, the local government did not pay much attention to or hinder their spread of Taoism. In fact, many wealthy and official families believed in their doctrines.
As Zhang Jiao walked along, he saw the golden crops in the fields, with people wandering among them to check on the ripening process, and the unique aroma of ripe fruit wafting in the air.
"The changes in Jizhou over the past six months have been truly remarkable!" Zhang Bao exclaimed from behind.
Zhang Liang nodded and agreed, "Yes! Last year, when I walked through the countryside, there was barren land everywhere and starving people all over the place. Now the fields are full of crops, and people's lives are much more stable."
"Speaking of this emperor, he's truly remarkable. He can bring about such a change in the Han Dynasty, and those corrupt officials have become much more obedient. Brother, do you think he's a reincarnation of a god? Such great abilities!" Zhang Bao couldn't help but click his tongue and ask.
"A reincarnation of a god?"
Upon hearing Zhang Bao's words, Zhang Jiao had a flash of inspiration, as if he had grasped a way to spread their doctrines. Compared to those ethereal gods, the people seemed more willing to believe in those who brought them tangible benefits.
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