Chapter 166 A Wake-up Call
Worse than shit...
In the private room, Han Zhou's expression froze.
At this moment, even with his "gentlemanly demeanor", he could hardly suppress the anger that suddenly surged in his heart.
No one could accept that the "Ten Strategies" that he had painstakingly worked on for several years and compiled for several months, and which were praised by the Grand Tutor of the time, were denigrated to this extent by a military man.
"Lord Zhao, may I ask why Han's plan is so unacceptable to you?" said Wang Anshi of Dayu.
Zhao Duan looked at his reaction with great interest and said calmly:
"You think my evaluation is too low? It's unacceptable. If that's the case, then don't come out and ask for a review."
Han Zhou took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and said seriously:
"Han has lost his composure. It's not that I can't stand bad comments, it's really..."
"First," Zhao Duan didn't bother to listen to his explanation and went straight to the point:
“Governance should be based on local conditions, and any strategy should be tailored to the current situation.
There is no policy that will last forever. Otherwise, there would be no need for Your Majesty to plan new policies. You must understand this simple truth.
Then I would like to ask, what do you think of the current situation of the Great Yu Dynasty? Is its foundation solid?
Imperial power is dispersed, with numerous clans and factions. Internal factional struggles are ongoing, the opposition Second Prince's faction is resurrected, and the Eighth Prince is eyeing them covetously...
Although there have been significant improvements in the two years since Your Majesty ascended the throne, time is still too short, and outside the capital, people still have constant doubts...
In this situation, how can we withstand drastic reforms? Your ten strategies are too radical."
Han Zhou was not surprised to hear this.
Because this point is also what the other scholars in Xiuwenguan are worried about and question.
Too radical.
Zhao Duan's questioning was completely within his expectations.
He immediately said sincerely:
"What the envoy is worried about is indeed a drawback. However, in an emergency, you have to act swiftly. You are working in the imperial court and don't know the local area well.
In reality, the imperial court's finances were already in dire straits. The capital, the most affluent of the Great Yu, might appear magnificent at first glance, but outside the capital, the economy was crumbling, the treasury empty, and the court's annual expenditures were enormous...
My Lord, this matter is urgent. There are indeed softer strategies, but how can we afford to wait?
You said that the current emperor has only been on the throne for a short time and his foundation is not yet stable. This is the truth.
But on the other hand...haha, I'm going to risk my life to say something disrespectful today, how can you be sure that if you continue to allow the financial corruption to continue, things will get better in a few years?
By the time the imperial court is unable to pay salaries and food wages, it will be too late!
Now, Your Majesty, with the momentum of ascending the throne, may be able to push through the new policies. But once the disease becomes truly terminal, even surgery won't be possible."
As he spoke, Han Zhou's tone became a little excited.
He took another breath, stared at Zhao Duan, and said sincerely:
"Lord, everything has a price. I know the ten policies are radical, but between two evils, we should choose the lesser of two evils... Besides, I've also said that the implementation of the new policy will not be radical. Instead, it will be radical in strategy, but gentle in means..."
Zhao Duan sneered and shook his head:
"The strategy is radical, but the means are gentle... The scholar is taking things for granted. I'm afraid he's been in the Hanlin Academy for too long and has lost sight of the suffering of those below."
Han Zhou said excitedly: "I am not from a noble family, and I have also been poor..."
"But you aren't now,"
Zhao Duan interrupted him, holding the wine cup, and pointed to the elegant private room:
"This kind of restaurant."
He pointed to the food and drinks on the table:
"These kinds of dishes are not something that ordinary people can afford.
Although you have suffered a lot in your life, I also believe that you have the ambition and courage to stand for the world.
But I still say that the bachelor has been in the noble position of Hanlin for too long. Even if he visits the local areas, what he sees is not the real grassroots people.
In this way, your vision has long since transcended the mundane world."
Zhao Duan sneered:
"Soft means? Ha, you can control this degree, and some of the people you are looking for may also be able to control this degree, but... how many people can they?
The implementation of the new policy will inevitably require the involvement of countless low-level officials and even clerks from the nine provinces and eighteen prefectures! To carry it out!
Do you think they can still hold this line?
I dare to make a statement that the moment the new policy left Xiuwenguan, it had already changed!
The further down you go, the more pressure will mount. A grain of sand you throw from the capital will become a mountain by the time it hits the people!"
Han Zhou blushed and tried to defend himself:
"We can introduce supervision. Each local government office will have supervisory officials, and we can also send imperial censors to patrol..."
Zhao Duan sneered:
"Supervision? How to supervise? Well, even if you can find enough obedient supervisory officials and send them out to ensure that the new policies are passed on to local government offices without any changes, what then?
Do you believe it or not, the people below have ten thousand ways to turn the New Deal into a profit-making method?"
He held the chopsticks and pointed to a plate of stir-fried green sprouts on the table and said:
"Let's take the first of your ten strategies, the Qing... the so-called Spring and Autumn Tax System, as an example. You said that whenever there's a lean season, the court will borrow money from the people to purchase grain..."
Han Zhou was also provoked and raised his head and said:
"Yes. I've visited the people and found that during lean times, people, in order to survive, had no choice but to borrow from wealthy landlords or merchants. After a year of hard work, they paid back the money and had only enough left to feed themselves.
If there is a disaster, they will not be able to repay the money, simply because of the high interest rates charged by ordinary people! However, if we borrow money from the court, we can lower the interest rate and prevent traitors from exploiting the people. Isn't this beneficial to both the country and the people?
He spoke with confidence and passion.
Zhao Duan sneered and said quietly:
"That's a nice thought. If I were a local clerk, I could just wait for the peasants' children to borrow money from the government, then collude with the merchants and use gambling houses, wine shops, brothels... all kinds of tricks to lure them into spending the borrowed money.
A considerable number of children from farming families, having money in their hands, are simply unable to refuse or keep it.
This way, they neither violate the imperial laws nor divide up all the imperial funds. I ask you, can the censors monitor this?"
Han Zhou was speechless!
He was stunned for a moment, and wanted to say, how could all the officials in the imperial court be as bad as you...
But the words were not spoken.
Because he thought about the appearance of the country clerks he saw when he was poor... Well, those low-level officials were indeed capable of doing such things.
Zhao Duan continued:
"No, no, no, this method is not even clever enough.
As far as I know, alcohol is also part of the imperial court's livelihood, right? So, all we need to do is use the money we distribute to entice those young men to spend it on alcohol sold by the imperial court.
In this way, the money circulated around, and every level of officials in the middle could make some money. Even the officials in charge of selling alcohol could use this to make the account numbers look good and report to their superiors for credit..."
Han Zhou was speechless, shocked by this fancy operation that he had never imagined.
This was beyond his comprehension.
But Zhao Duan knew that these outrageous operations actually happened in history after the implementation of the Qingmiao Law.
There are even more extreme ones.
Zhao Duan hadn't finished yet, and he picked up his chopsticks and pointed to another dish of meat on the table, saying:
"Besides, your exemption law is even more ridiculous."
Han Zhou argued:
"The people suffer from corvée labor. Now, as long as those who were supposed to serve in the past pay a certain amount of immunity money, the government can use this money to hire additional people who did not serve in the past. In this way, wouldn't it be a win-win situation?"
Zhao Duan sneered:
"Everyone takes what they need? Let me ask you, what about the rent, labor service, and tax system?"
The so-called "zuyongdiao" is a general term for various taxes levied on the people by Dayu, and is a kind of tax regulation.
According to the history that Zhao Duan was familiar with, it was also practiced during the Sui and Tang dynasties.
Zhao Duan said:
"Your ten strategies only mentioned exemption from military service, but did not abolish Dayu's tax collection system. The 'yong' in the system of rent, labor and tax originally required the people to perform corvee labor.
On one hand, you are asking for payment to be exempted from military service, while on the other hand, the tax system remains unchanged.
In this way, wouldn't the people who are supposed to serve be taxed twice? They have to perform labor service and pay money to be exempted from it... It's ridiculous!"
Han Zhou broke out in a cold sweat when he heard this.
This was indeed an oversight on his part.
The tax law of Dayu was really a mess, with various taxes mixed together. Han Zhou had never worked in the Ministry of Revenue, so he had never thought of this.
Then, Zhao Duan mercilessly refuted the various shortcomings of his ten strategies one after another, leaving Han Zhou unable to respond.
Finally, Zhao Duan stared at him with a stern tone:
"However, what I said above is not the key point.
The real core problem is that your ten strategies, although seemingly for the country and the people, are actually nothing more than using various means to get everyone's money into the hands of the court, just like mosquitoes sucking blood!
What's this?
It's nothing more than four words: competing with the people for profit!"
Zhao Duan sighed. This was also the most touching thing when he looked through the history of feudal dynasties in his previous life.
Throughout the dynasties, it has always been a group of people who have been dividing up the limited wealth, with the strong becoming richer and the weak becoming poorer.
These ten strategies are nothing more than forcing the imperial court to take down the government, become the most ruthless in dividing up the spoils, and exploit everyone outside the imperial court.
This will achieve the goal of filling the treasury in the short term.
Wang Anshi's reforms were essentially a set of methods whose sole purpose was to make money.
Zhao Duan concluded:
"To compete with the people for profit is to push everyone into opposition to the court. Once the ten strategies are successfully implemented, the national treasury will certainly be quickly filled, but at the same time, everyone in the world will regard the court as an enemy and Your Majesty as a robber!
Not only will the country not be stable, but it will become more and more turbulent. At this time, as long as the rebel party of Kuangfushe publicizes this matter and makes the people hate Your Majesty, the Eighth Prince will take out some benefits and distribute them to the people under his rule to win over the hearts of the people.
"By then, who do you think the people of the world will agree with as the emperor of the Great Yu Dynasty? Your Majesty, who exploits them? Or the thief who buys people's hearts?"
Zhao Duan pressed his chopsticks heavily on the table, looked down at the number one talent in front of him, and said coldly:
"So, I say this is a policy that is detrimental to the country and worse than dog shit. Am I wrong?"
Is there anything wrong?!
At this moment, Zhao Duan's calm voice sounded like thunder in Han Zhou's ears.
The brain of this scholar who had been in the limelight in Xiuwenguan today and had the potential to become a prime minister in the future went blank, and his back was soaked with cold sweat!
An indescribable fear came over me.
In front of Han Zhou's eyes, he seemed to see that after the ten strategies were implemented, people all over the world were exploited and money flowed into the capital like a river.
Along with it, there were countless pairs of hateful eyes, raised flags, burning beacons and wolf smoke, and blood soaking the Hunhe River.
At this moment, he seemed to be hit by a bolt of lightning, and his face turned pale.
He suddenly woke up from his mysterious confidence and his body shook.
There was a long silence.
He suddenly picked up the wine cup in front of him, raised his head, and drank it all in one gulp.
Shit?
It seems...right.
Han Zhou closed his eyes painfully, then opened them again, exhaled a breath of alcohol, and said self-deprecatingly:
"Listening to your words is worth ten years of reading. You are so talented. I, Han...will learn from you!"
Thanks to godess-moon for the 1500-point reward!
(End of this chapter)
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