In a large house in the south of the city, the back garden was shrouded in formations. It was already a cold night with snow about to fall, but it was still as warm as spring, with green trees like jade and clusters of flowers.
There is a lake in the garden, with a pavilion flying over the lake. In the pavilion is a table of exquisite wine and food, and beside it are two couches of different heights and styles.
At this time, Princess Ningguo was wearing a thin skirt, leaning on a couch, and was reading a storybook. The material of her long skirt was extremely soft and fit, hanging on her body like a waterfall, like an undulating freehand landscape.
She was not wearing shoes or socks, and a pair of bare feet were exposed. They were white and pink, and looked slender, but each toe was round and no bones could be seen at all.
Occasionally when Hua Ben sees something critical, her whole body becomes a little tense and her little toes curl up, which tugs at the hearts of those around her.
A tree in the garden shook its branches and said, "Isn't it time yet?"
A fish came out of the pond, looked at the full moon in the sky, and said, "There's still a quarter of an hour left."
Another fish floated in the water and asked: "What big thing can happen to the barbarian? It has to be delayed for two hours and it has to be late?"
A rockery stone in the garden shook, and he said in an omniscient tone: "He has received some incredible rewards, which need time to be refined. These few days are the most critical time, so it is not surprising that he has to work hard. Besides, it is quiet at night,
It just covers up his weak nature."
"Jie Jie Jie..." A duck in the darkness in the corner laughed ferociously and said, "It's a pity that he never counted on us and we have already ambushed here in advance to bear witness to his three-shot reputation! He just wants to wrong the princess again."
Princess Ning Guo said lazily: "You guys, just pretend to be the background. Why can't you calm down before the time comes? Oh, by the way, you have to get the magic weapon first, so as not to forget to use it when you get it.
.”
She stretched out her fingers and flicked, and several gauze curtains fell out of thin air, covering the entire water pavilion. Only a pale pink flow could be seen on the curtains, and no matter how powerful you were, you couldn't see what was behind the curtains. The sound was.
Can be transmitted without any hindrance.
Everyone in the background fell silent, and after a while, the air of sorrow and anger spread in the back garden. They knew that Princess Ning Guo must have a magic weapon in her hand, but this treasure was too powerful, and the true king would not be able to see through it. Why is this so?
!
In the darkness, a group of knights galloped past and headed straight for the west gate.
The bodies of all the knights were flashing with rays of power, and their iron hooves fell to the ground silently, so the people in the houses on both sides of the road were completely unaware.
When the city gate guard saw a group of knights running towards him, he was so frightened that he lost all sleep and said hurriedly: "Stop! Who is rushing to the door late at night?"
A gorgeous sword was handed to the guarding officer, and the knight immediately shouted coldly: "This is the sword given by the king. Seeing the sword is like seeing the king! I am Wei Yuan, the governor of Dingxi. I have urgent military affairs and I have to leave the city. Open the door quickly!"
There is a unique magic mark in the sword. The officers guarding the royal city all know how to distinguish the authenticity. After inspecting the sword, they opened the city gate. Wei Yuan summoned the knights stationed in the acropolis and left the city under the cover of night.
At this time, the bright moon is hanging high, which is the time of Zi.
After running for more than ten miles, Wei Yuan just turned back. Yingcheng in the night looked like a monster entrenched on the earth, eating people without spitting out bones.
A full hour had passed since then. Princess Ning Guo couldn't bear it anymore and sent someone to the post house to look for Wei Yuan. Only then did she find that the post house was empty. After asking the night patrol soldiers and gatekeepers along the way, she found out that Wei Yuan was already there.
He left the city overnight and disappeared.
The princess was ashamed and annoyed, but there was nothing she could do.
So all the living creatures in the yard came out of the water and uprooted their roots. The duck almost forgot to change back into human form and wanted to fly away on the spot. Fortunately, it was photographed by a branch of the big tree next to it. This is the capital of Jin, and it flies around in the middle of the night.
Easily shot.
All the young masters have never suffered such a serious crime, and they have never experienced sentient beings in such a profound way.
After this day, "Ningguo is summoned, fleeing thousands of miles at night" has become a topic of conversation among Wei Manzi, and it will be mentioned after tea and drinks.
After leaving the capital of Jin, Wei Yuan no longer held back and led the cavalry to advance quickly. They traveled 20,000 miles in three days and arrived at Lai, a city in the western part of the Western Regions.
There are about 200,000 households in Laicheng, which is considered a big city in western Shanxi. The business roads here extend in all directions, and the surrounding fields are vast, making it a prosperous city. Wei Yuan set this place as one of the transit places, planning to rest here for a day and observe the Western Jin Dynasty.
of customs.
The knights went out and went through all the formalities first. Then the cavalry stationed outside the city. Wei Yuan entered the city in casual clothes and walked around casually to watch.
Laicheng is indeed prosperous, the city is crowded with people, and there is smoke and smoke everywhere. There are large houses with high walls and deep courtyards, and there are also stretches of shanties. It is somewhat similar to Quliu Town, but it is much richer than Quliu Town.
Some.
Wei Yuan walked through the streets and alleys of the city, not shying away from the fierce servants of the big families, nor hating the filthy excrement everywhere in the shanty towns. He just walked, looked, and occasionally chatted a few words, and the whole day passed.
At nightfall, Wei Yuan arrived at the county magistrate's house. The magistrate had already prepared a banquet for him.
The governor is thin and old. His name is Wang Duan. He was a Jinshi forty years ago. He is over seventy this year. He has been practicing Dharma for eleven years and has made no progress.
After three rounds of wine and pleasantries, we got down to business.
Wei Yuan said: "I have heard for a long time that Laicheng is rich and prosperous. Today I saw that it is indeed well-deserved. I am new to the place and there are many things I don't understand. I would like to ask Mr. Wang for advice."
"Speak everything you know, and speak everything you know."
Wei Yuan said: "I have two questions. One is that there seem to be many more people in the city than what is recorded in the household registration documents, and I don't know where they come from. Second, many facilities in the city are in disrepair. Since Lai City is rich, it should not be
It’s just that we can’t afford to repair it.”
Wang Duan chuckled and said: "Master Wei, he is taking the examination to be promoted to an official position. First of all, let's talk about people. There are currently 189,000 registered households in Laicheng. In fact, I am afraid it is more than double. But these extra people are not in the official position.
Not in the register, but in the private registers of various high-ranking families."
Wei Yuan thought thoughtfully: "Is it because of the household tax?"
"Exactly."
In the Western Jin Dynasty, there was a household tax, also known as the head tax, which was paid based on registered households. Therefore, since ancient times, there has been a saying that if the tax is sufficient, the tax will be sufficient.
Wei Yuan asked carefully all the way, and Wang Duan really told him everything he knew.
In order to avoid paying the household tax, many people in the city chose to sell themselves to wealthy families and became unregistered slaves. The wealthy households in the city were either named Xu or Lu, with these two surnames accounting for 80%, and more than 10% of the remaining households were Li.
, Xu, Bao, etc. The total number of large households other than wealthy families accounts for less than half.
At this time, when he was tipsy, Wang Duan spoke more deeply and said: "Master Wei, the two questions you just asked are actually the same question. Laicheng looks rich, but in fact the warehouse is empty. How can there be money to repair the streets?
Do you know how much of my annual income here comes from wealthy households?"
Wang Duan didn't need Wei Yuan to guess, he just stretched out a finger when he spoke.
Wei Yuan was greatly shocked and said: "10%?"
Wang Duan nodded: "Only 10%! And most of this 10% is collected from local wealthy people other than the seven surnames. The 180,000 registered households contributed 90% of the tax money."
"What if taxes are not calculated and only income is considered?"
Wang Duan smiled and said: "Master Wei is testing me again. This matter does not require detailed investigation by subordinates. A quick look can tell that in terms of income, the ratio has to be reversed. I'm afraid it's more than that."
"In other words, ordinary people use 10% of their income and pay 90% of taxes?"
"This is true all over the world."
Wei Yuan smiled and said: "I see that the blocks where several large houses are located are quite tidy and clean. Won't all the repair costs be spent there?"
"Master Wei is talking about the upper third district. It is true that all the expenses have been filled in, but it is still not enough. The big households have to pay some of their own money to get what it is today."
"That's it! Drink!" Wei Yuan raised his glass.
There is no need to ask the following questions. For example, why some small shops are obviously prosperous, but the shopkeepers are in rags and the interior is bare. Ninety percent tax is the answer.
Moreover, the big business owners in the upper three districts still need to spend their own money to repair the blocks. They must have put pressure on Wang Duan, asking him to collect more taxes.
After having enough wine and food, Wei Yuan took his leave.
Before leaving, Wei Yuan asked one last question: "Why not collect more taxes from the big households? To them, it's just a drop in the bucket."
Wang Duandao said: "Master Wei is in a high position. How could he not know that although there are many ways to collect money, each one is full of difficulties? From ancient times to the present, the easiest thing in the world is to collect taxes from the heads of ordinary people."
"If we collect too much, wouldn't it mean that the officials will force the people to rebel?"
Wang Duan chuckled and said, "Then I would rather kill a few more rebels."
Wei Yuan saluted and said, "Thank you, Mr. Wang, for your guidance. I'll take my leave."
Now that Wei Yuan's figure had disappeared, Wang Duan returned to his house and ordered the door to be closed. Then he shook his head and uttered two words: "Childish."
Chapter completed!