Chapter 220 Prefect Du
Du Min was speechless. That was indeed the case. Once a big merchant was removed from the merchant register, he would transform into a large landowner. Within twenty years, the situation of land annexation would become even more serious.
“Your Majesty is wise; the method I proposed is indeed only a temporary solution.” He admitted.
"This is hardly a cure; the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages, and it's not feasible." The female sage decided to abandon the idea and not adopt it.
"Your Majesty, regarding the method of having merchants pay out of their own pockets to buy land and offer it to the court, do you think it is feasible?" Meng Qing still wanted to salvage the situation. "If you think this method is feasible, but are worried about the potential risks, we can find a way to resolve these risks and make the benefits outweigh the drawbacks."
The female saint was silent for a while, then said, "This is indeed a good approach. Redeeming the land held by bureaucrats and landlords through merchants will not provoke strong protests from them."
However, this protest was unavoidable. If this decree were implemented, merchants from all over the country would respond, and their status would rise accordingly, inevitably attracting suppression from bureaucratic families.
"Tell me first, what methods are there to avoid this?" the female saint said.
"I, your humble servant, came from a merchant family and understand best the desires of merchants. Once they have surplus money, they will have an extreme pursuit of privileges they lack, even to the point of obsession. Compared to farmers, merchants are not qualified to study for officialdom or to acquire land; compared to the gentry, merchants are not qualified to wear silk and ride in carriages. My idea is that rewards should not fall on the merchants, but on their children and grandchildren. For example, granting them a place to study at the Imperial Academy. Whether they can enter officialdom is up to them to earn. If they have the ability to enter the court, it will be a good thing for the court, as it will have recruited a talented person," Meng Qing explained.
“That’s feasible. Boys can enter the Imperial Academy at the age of fourteen and graduate at twenty, with a six-year transition period. If we add another condition, this spot can only be awarded to boys under five years old, giving them another nine-year transition period.” Du Min realized this and added, “This is equivalent to giving the farmers who are allocated land fifteen or sixteen years to establish themselves. In more than ten years, they will have enough money to live a stable life and will not be forced to sell their land to survive. If, after fifteen or sixteen years, the descendants of wealthy merchants can still buy land from these people, apart from a few who sell their land to save their lives due to serious illness or disaster, the rest will inevitably be spendthrift sons. Let these people starve to death or become beggars and vagrants; their fate is not worth the court’s further efforts to save them.”
"Summon Scholar Beimen here," the female saint ordered.
Upon hearing the noise, the eunuch withdrew from the main hall.
"How much of a merchant's fortune is worth for a school place that is delayed by nine to fourteen years?" the female saint asked. "You two ministers should consider this carefully. We will discuss it further when Scholar Beimen arrives."
Meng Qing and Du Min should be.
The female saint instructed the female officials to serve them tea, and then got up and left.
Du Min moved forward a couple of steps and leaned closer to ask, "Second Sister-in-law, if this plan is implemented, will we no longer need to relocate the people?"
"That's how it should be, but it also depends on how much land the local merchants can get from the gentry and landlords," Meng Qing said.
Du Min pondered the matter. For him, not relocating the people would be more advantageous. If the farmers moved away, Huai Prefecture would be downgraded from a superior prefecture to a middling prefecture, and the governor's rank would also drop. However, if the gentry and landlords were unwilling to cede land, and the land redeemed by the merchants was insufficient to distribute, then relocation would still be necessary.
"How can we get the gentry, landlords, and bureaucratic families to compete to sell their land?" Du Min muttered to himself. He had an idea. "If we levy taxes based on acreage instead of per capita, wouldn't the gentry and landlords be more inclined to convert their land into cash?"
“The powerful officials will definitely not agree,” Meng Qing warned. Reforming the grain tax would also put them at odds with the powerful families and landlords. If this plan were to be exposed, Du Min would likely become a cruel official, risking his life to investigate the hidden land holdings of the powerful families.
Footsteps sounded outside the hall. It was the arrival of the Northern Gate Scholar, whom the female saint relied on. Meng Qing and Du Min stopped talking and looked over.
"Please wait a moment, everyone, and have a cup of tea," the female official said.
Half an incense stick later, footsteps were heard inside the hall, and soon after, the two sages arrived together.
After the worship, the female saint spoke: "Minister Du, please repeat the matter of the merchant redeeming the land again."
"Yes." Du Min had sorted out his thoughts. He briefly recounted the migration of people, the merchants redeeming the land and distributing it to the displaced farmers, and the bargaining chips used in the transactions with the merchants.
"What do you all think?" the female sage asked the scholar from the North Gate.
"May I ask you, Lord Du, how can you guarantee that the gentry and landlords will be willing to sell their land? Will you allow merchants to redeem it at a high price? Wouldn't that indirectly drive up land prices? Won't this lead to farmers selling their land en masse?" an official asked.
"How many acres of farmland would be appropriate to exchange for one place in the Imperial Academy?" another person asked.
“Let me answer this colleague’s question first.” Du Min looked at the first official who asked the question and said, “The imperial court has ordered that, starting this year, grain tax will no longer be levied per capita, but per mu (unit of land area). Furthermore, the provincial governors will be dispatched to inspect various prefectures and counties to check the number of able-bodied men and the amount of land under each household's name. Those whose mu exceed the required amount will have to pay back the grain tax for the previous ten years and will be sentenced to three years of imprisonment.”
Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent instantly, and everyone present, including the two saints, looked at this fearless warrior.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Du Min calmly said, "The government decrees are only issued but not implemented, serving as a smokescreen to scare the gentry and landlords into selling their land."
Meng Qing breathed a sigh of relief; she had almost thought that Du Min was risking his life for a promotion.
The rest of the officials relaxed, and after a brief discussion, the leader said, "Your Majesty, we believe that Lord Du's proposal is feasible."
"What does Your Majesty think?" the female saint asked.
"It's worth a try," the Emperor approved.
“Your Majesty and I agree,” the female saint said. “The general direction has been set; let’s discuss the details.”
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I have something to say," Meng Qing said at the opportune moment. "I have a younger brother who is a merchant in Jiangnan. He owns countless paper horse shops and is also involved in the paper mill business, accumulating considerable wealth. I am willing to persuade him to donate all his wealth to redeem his land, making him the first person to respond to the government's decree."
"I request that Huai Prefecture be the first prefecture to implement your decrees," Du Min said.
"Granted," the female saint agreed.
Meng Qing looked up at the female saint and said, "Your Majesty, I have another matter to report. Should merchants who donate their wealth be granted the privilege of wearing silk and riding in carriages? Merchants have a lot of surplus wealth and are willing to spend money. If they are granted the privilege of wearing silk and riding in carriages, they will spend money extravagantly, and the money and silk accumulated in the merchants' granaries will flow into the market and return to the people."
“No, only officials and scholars are allowed to wear silk and ride in carriages.” An official opposite objected, “It is already a great blessing to enable the sons and grandsons of merchants to study and enter officialdom. If they want to wear silk and ride in carriages, let them study hard to pass the imperial examinations.”
“Passing the imperial examinations is something that will happen one or two decades later. This belated bait is something that merchants can see but not touch, they can't even smell the aroma of. How can it entice them to part with most of their wealth? You should at least offer some tangible benefits so that they can taste the sweetness after spending their money and won't regret it,” Meng Qing retorted.
“Madam, you come from a merchant family, don’t you?” an official said with a sarcastic expression. “No wonder you’re so considerate of merchants.”
"My lord, you must come from a humble background, right?" Meng Qing retorted. "If we're going to trace your stance based on your birth, why are you biased towards the aristocratic families? Who set the rule that farmers, artisans, and merchants cannot wear silk or ride in carriages? You became a scholar and immediately forgot about your humble origins? When it comes to forgetting your roots, you are indeed far superior to me, a merchant's daughter."
"you!"
“Zhang Qing.” The female saint glanced over.
Upon hearing this, the official surnamed Zhang immediately came to his senses. He suddenly remembered that the female saint's father had also been a merchant.
"Your Majesty, why not set a threshold? Those who redeem 400 hectares of land will have their descendants receive a place in the Imperial Academy; those who redeem 500 hectares can wear silk; and those who redeem 600 hectares can wear silk and ride in a horse-drawn carriage." Du Min offered a detailed plan.
Meng Qing frowned slightly. Six hundred qing is sixty thousand mu. Each mu costs at least five guan, so it would cost at least three hundred thousand guan. Meng Chun probably didn't earn that much money.
"Do any of you have any objections?" the female saint asked.
"none."
"As Du Qing decrees," the female saint agreed. She looked at Meng Qing and said, "As the first merchant to respond to the decree, I will give you an extra reward: you may wear silk and ride in a carriage."
Meng Qing's eyes lit up, and she bowed deeply in gratitude: "Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace."
The female saint raised her hand, indicating that one should rise and not stand at the table. She instructed, "The matter of levying taxes by acreage must not be revealed. Everyone present here today knows it is a ruse. Once you leave this door, treat it as a real matter."
"Your Majesty, we obey!" the officials shouted in unison.
"Your Majesty is tired, all of you may leave," said the female saint.
Du Min's heart skipped a beat. What happened? Had they forgotten to promote him?
One by one, the officials in the palace left, and Du Min and Meng Qing had no choice but to leave the palace as well. As soon as they left the palace, Du Min's face fell.
"Lord Du, wait a minute." The female official chased after him. "I wish to congratulate you on your promotion. This is your memorial regarding your promotion, which has already been approved by the Empress."
Du Min instantly perked up. Without any hesitation, he opened the memorial on the spot, and the words "Prefect of Huai Prefecture" quickly caught his eye.
"Your subject Du Min thanks Your Majesty for your promotion." Du Min lifted his robe, knelt down, and bowed devoutly to the palace.
"Please rise, my lord." The female official reached out to help him up.
Du Min stood up cheerfully and nodded to the female official, "Shanggong, we won't bother you any longer, we'll leave the palace now."
"This concubine will escort Governor Du and Lady Wu out of the palace." The female official led the way.
Before leaving the palace, Du Min said to the female official, "Second sister-in-law, you should go back to the post station with my second brother. I need to visit Prime Minister Zheng. Collecting grain taxes by the acre is too offensive. I need to ask him to protect me for a while."
Meng Qing realized that he was trying to drag Prime Minister Zheng into the mess.
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Author's Note: There will be another update tonight.
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