Zhou Yi'an knew that his uncle would send many things to the mansion every year, including gold and silver jewelry, silks and satins, and all kinds of rare and exotic treasures. He had also sent him many rare inkstones, purple jade, and ancient books and paintings. He had never thought about how his uncle obtained these things.
Having grown up in luxury, he assumed that his family should be wealthy and that all the good things should be provided for them.
He had never even used copper coins, nor did he know the price of rice.
He couldn't understand why the people were so happy that Han Zhongyu had reduced their taxes by 20%.
The accountant said that this tax reduction would save each family about three to five hundred copper coins, and some might even save a tael of silver. He initially scoffed, thinking, what can three to five hundred copper coins do?
But seeing the enthusiasm of the people and the chickens and ducks in the courtyard of the government office, he learned that three hundred copper coins could buy a shi of corn, and that a shi of corn was enough to feed a child for a year!
After being scolded by Qu Xiaodie, he angrily looked through Tai'an Prefecture's account books from the previous year and learned that one stalk of corn could feed a family of five for more than two months, from August to October. During those two months, potatoes, cabbages, and radishes were ready to grow, allowing countless families to survive the famine.
He only realized after looking through the account books that when his uncle was in office, the poll tax for a person was ten copper coins, the toll tax was five copper coins, the bridge toll tax was five copper coins, and the city entry tax was another five copper coins.
A pound of corn only cost three copper coins, and a mu (unit of land area) could only produce a maximum of three hundred pounds of grain.
The local tax rate actually increased by 10% the year before last!
The tax on one mu of land is 120 jin of grain, and the rest is not even enough to feed an adult.
He couldn't imagine how the people struggled to survive under so many exorbitant taxes and levies.
When Zhou Yi'an came across the case file of his uncle's embezzlement, he saw that his cousin had actually resold hundreds of thousands of bushels of relief grain to the area outside the Great Wall, and hundreds of thousands of taels of gold and silver were seized. For the first time, Zhou Yi'an felt a sense of fear.
He couldn't imagine how many people would starve to death because so much relief food was embezzled and resold!
The more Zhou Yi'an looked, the more alarmed he became. Finally, unable to bear the inner torment, he dropped the file, ran home, and found all his cherished precious inkstones, writing brushes, and several rare pieces of jade. He stared at these things in a daze.
Through these things, he seemed to see many people, emaciated and ragged, with corpses of the starving everywhere and cries of resentment.
So this is how I obtained everything I enjoy?
No wonder Xie Yushu never gave him a second glance. How could someone as proud and noble as her possibly look up to a fool like him who so comfortably enjoys ill-gotten gains?
Zhou Yi'an gave a wry smile, picked up her pen and quickly wrote a letter, which she sent to the capital. Then she packed up the things on the table and took them to the pawnshop.
Along the way, images of his uncle exploiting the people kept replaying in his mind. The thought that everything he ate, wore, and used was stained with the blood and sweat of countless people made him uneasy.
Although not all the wealth of his Grand Tutor's mansion came from his uncle, his mother was close to his uncle, and most of the things he used were sent by his uncle.
So he decided to sell everything his uncle had given him over the years and set up an orphanage in Tai'an Prefecture to take in orphans or abandoned elderly people and children. He would use the hard-earned money to benefit the people of Tai'an Prefecture, to atone for his uncle's sins, and also for his own.
Each of his possessions costs several hundred taels of silver, and some of his fine jade pieces can even fetch tens of thousands of taels. Even his father doesn't have any of these things, simply because he is his father's only son, and all the good things were given to him.
He bought all these things, which amounted to over 100,000 taels of silver. This silver was used solely to help orphans and elderly people in need, and it would last for decades!
I wonder if he can repay the blood debt of Tai'an Prefecture with the rest of his life!
Zhou Yi'an rushed to the pawnshop, sold the property for seven or eight thousand taels of silver, and went straight back to the government office to spend two thousand taels of silver to buy his uncle's old mansion.
Then he went to Han Zhongyu to resign.
Han Zhongyu was completely bewildered, unable to figure out what he was up to. Everyone knew perfectly well why he had come here; was he planning to abandon the project halfway through?
Looking at the resignation letter on the table, and then at Zhou Yi'an standing below, this guy, relying on being the only son of the Grand Tutor's mansion, had an innate sense of superiority. In addition, he himself was quite capable, and he was always full of pride and confidence. But now, it was as if his spine had been pulled out, and his whole person had changed.
Han Zhongyu was surprised by how much he had changed in just one day. Although he knew that Han Zhongyu had ulterior motives for coming here, considering that Han Zhongyu had been quite responsible at work and hadn't caused him any trouble so far, he still asked him a question.
"Where did we run into a wall? Or is the Grand Tutor's mansion doomed?"
This doesn't seem like you, Young Master Zhou!"
Zhou Yi'an only heard Han Zhongyu's mockery and snorted.
"Han Zhongyu, you don't need to be sarcastic. You have your way of dealing with people, and I have my own way of doing things. Don't think that you're the only gentleman in the world."
I'm giving up this sixth-rank prefect position, not Xie Yushu. I will atone for my uncle's crimes in my own way; as for the rest, we'll each see how we handle things!
After Zhou Yi'an finished speaking, she turned around and strode away, not giving Han Zhongyu a chance to speak at all.
Han Zhongyu didn't care about this verbal dispute, but instead ordered Lanting to investigate what Zhou Yi'an was up to.
When Lanting returned and reported that Zhou Yi'an had gone to the pawnshop and bought Zhang Zhidao's mansion, they couldn't guess what he was up to. But considering that he had already resigned from his post, they didn't bother to care. Anyway, he was under their noses, so they didn't believe he could cause any trouble.
Meanwhile, back in the capital, Aunt Zhang was completely bewildered upon receiving the letter. She didn't understand why her son wanted to transport all the things his uncle had given him there. However, he was her only precious son, and if he wanted the stars, she wouldn't pluck the moon from his back. That very day, she packed up the things, loaded them into several large carriages, and sent them to her son.
At the same time, the Third Prince also heard that the medicines and wines from Yuquan Manor were extremely profitable, and urged Zhou Yi'an to get his hands on these two items so that at least they could get a share of the profits.
The Third Prince's original words were that Xie Yushu should supply him with goods for free, or give him a percentage of the profits directly. He was currently trying to win over officials and was spending a lot of money.
Zhou Yi'an, who was once caught up in it all, is now standing in the middle and can't help but praise the Third Prince.
"How shameless!"
They don't offer any benefits, not even a promise, and just demand this and that. Isn't that blatant robbery?
Zhou Yi'an couldn't help but wonder, could someone who takes advantage of others without any moral bottom line be a good emperor?
If a mere prefect can influence the life and death of the people in a region, how much more so the emperor of a country?
After coming here, he truly realized how important a wise ruler and a good official are to the people!
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