Author: Demonic Cangyue

Jingu Garden is located to the east outside Luoyang City, surrounded by mountains and rivers, and occupies a very large area.

The place where Yannu Miaohan landed was not far away. He rode a fast horse and arrived there in half an hour.

On the way, Wu Qi and other warriors talked about the laws of the Puppet Han Empire.

It can only be described in four words: exhausting and hard work.

Liu Yuan admired the Han Dynasty very much and once said: If I were born early and met Emperor Gaozu, I would like to be his Xiao He.

Therefore, the Han Dynasty system was imitated in all aspects, with extremely low taxes and strict laws.

But those are only superficial regulations. In fact, the corvee is so heavy that it is difficult to attach it. Every household has a rigid quota, enslaving the people like cattle and horses.

Wu Qi said: "I am from Yuzhou, and my family is in Yingchuan. My family is relatively well-off, so I have been practicing martial arts since I was a child."

"But when the barbarians came, they took away my family's land and gave it to the local nobles."

Yan Nu asked: "How can we survive?"

Wu Qi said bitterly: "You can still live. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the court stipulated that each household must cultivate a hundred acres of land."

"In addition, the imperial court also gave our family 600 mulberry trees, one cow, two pigs, four sheep, plus some chickens and ducks."

Yan Nu was stunned: "Hey, not bad."

The situation he saw was also the same, every household was very prosperous.

One hundred acres is enough to feed a large family, not to mention there are mulberry trees that can produce fabrics to supplement the household income.

Wu Qi shook his head and said: "But these are not ours. The farmland has to pay rent to the wealthy families."

"As for the mulberry trees, the imperial court forcibly divided them and required each household to hand over two bolts of silk every month. If there was any shortage, they would be whipped twenty times and sent to build mausoleums and palaces."

"We have to raise pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks, and the amount of meat grown every month is rationed. If the amount is insufficient, we will be fined grain coins to make up for it."

"If you raise one to death, you will have to pay a high price to buy another one."

Miaohan's face changed drastically: "What!"

She has been in power many times and knows people's livelihood very well. When she heard such a law, she immediately knew how harsh it was.

What is the concept of two bolts of silk a month? That is an efficiency that only the best weavers can achieve, but every household is required to do it, which will drive people crazy.

At the same time, they have to plow the fields, raise pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks, and have requirements for the amount of meat they can grow every month.

If you raise it well and hand it over, if you don't raise it well, you will have to pay compensation. This is simply treating everyone as a slave.

No wonder every household has plenty of food, drink, and adequate food and clothing, but everyone has a sad face and works hard.

Even if you are sick, you have to continue working and don't dare to waste any time.

All indicators are stuck at a subtle level. As long as the whole family works hard, most families can just about complete it and have enough food and clothing.

If you work harder, you can even live a better life... This temptation makes every household work hard.

"Such heavy labor will tire people to death." Miaohan said angrily.

She finally understood why people were so depleted and their life spans were drastically reduced even though they had enough to eat and drink.

It seems that every household is working hard, the products are extremely abundant, and the city is prosperous, but this is purely in exchange for life.

It’s no wonder that everything is peaceful and without any turmoil. It’s also because the people have no energy or mind to think about anything else.

"In addition to farmers, blacksmiths, carpenters, miners, and potters also have their own requirements..."

"The Emperor said that all the great Han people are like dragons."

After Wu Qi finished speaking, Miao Han shouted that it was ridiculous.

If this continues, the national treasury will be extremely full, and the wealthy families will be filled with money, but many people will die of exhaustion, illness, and if they can't stand it anymore, they will die of poverty.

"This is even more excessive than the corvée that Aweng and I had back then." Yan Nu roared.

He and Aweng used to work day and night, but the pressure was not great. If they wanted to take a break, they would only get two whippings, and they could be lazy when they got the chance.

But the people here are actually worse off than the serfs.

They are ostensibly free people and have a lot of supplies. If they want to live a better life, they just need to work harder.

So in order to live a better life, I will push myself. I am afraid of losing money, so I will work hard.

Working so hard internally is equivalent to being a slave who does not need an overseer.

Even if there are a few families who don't want to do it, most families have worked hard to complete it. The court can control the people with just a little reward and punishment.

Miao Han said coldly: "Which great sage has decided on the national policy? He knows very well that if you want to take something, you must give it first."

"Aren't you afraid that there will be fewer and fewer people?"

She saw the disadvantages of this at a glance. Let’s not talk about exhaustion and illness. Who has time to raise children after such hard work? The cost has soared sharply.

Yan Nu pulled out his spear: "Luoyang is just ahead!"

His fighting spirit is high and his fighting spirit has burst out.

But Miaohan pulled her back again: "Yannu, we are not here to fight."

"If you want to fight, wait until I give Zu Longqi to the beggar army, and you can fight whatever you want."

"But now, please bear with me."

Yan Nu wanted to say something else, Miao Han stared at her: "Do you believe me?"

After hearing this, Yan Nu smiled: "I believe you, because of my recklessness, I don't know how many troubles I caused."

"Don't worry, I'll listen to you this time. Xue'er, just don't forget that I am the sharpest gun in the world!"

Miaohan also smiled and looked ahead at the Jingu Garden, which was crowded with people and full of flowers.

"Then come with me."

On the way, she had already inquired about the current situation in Luoyang.

The puppet Han emperor Liu Yuan admired the Han Dynasty very much. He handed over all civil affairs to the four major families of Shi, Zhao, Tang and Yang and their disciples, and made many rigid requirements for them.

For example, if you want to build a palace, you must build it no matter what, otherwise you will kill people.

And because of the continuous wars with foreign countries, the demand for supplies is very high, and these are all left to the four major families like a shopkeeper.

He conquered these aristocratic families and gave them high power and respect, and naturally he would gain something.

The four major families are indeed very competitive and have created today's abundant products.

Therefore, Liu Yuan paid more attention to the gentry.

The nobles love to talk about mysteries, but in recent months, many masters and powerful people have come from the world of cultivation to the mortal world!

This further stimulated the atmosphere of scholars, who talked about mysteries and Taoism all day long, gave advice on the country, and took pride in making friends with those who cultivated immortality.

Every few days, Shilin will hold a gathering.

In the past, the protagonist of such gatherings was a certain celebrity, but since the large-scale appearance of immortal cultivators, gatherings in various parts of Kyushu have gradually become a social gathering with immortal cultivators as the core.

Whenever a cultivator comes randomly, local scholars will immediately flock to him and hold a gathering just to make friends with him.

Master Qu Yang of the Dragon and Tiger Sect came, and Shilin held an elegant gathering. Phosphorus from Zhongnan Mountain came, and Shilin held an elegant gathering.

Such a trend also affected Liu Yuan.

In order to get more nobles to join and help from cultivators, Liu Yuan issued a recruitment order.

He accepted scholars widely, even from poor families, and he was not stingy with rewards as long as he had talent.

Jinguyuan is Shi Chong's luxurious manor. Elegant gatherings are often held here, and now it has become a place to recruit talents.

Every once in a while, people from the four major families will gather here to make an assessment, recommend a few talents, and formulate some good strategies that will benefit the country.

"woman?"

The guard outside Jingu Garden looked at the visiting Miaohan and said nothing.

Although women cannot be officials, such elegant gatherings are often visited by celebrities, leaving behind some good stories and the reputation of talented women.

A middle-aged scribe came over. The two met and received Miaohan's invitation.

She is a typical daughter of an aristocratic family. Although the Anqiu Zhu family was destroyed, but she is still alive, then the family name is still there.

In terms of family status, the Zhu family is a sixth-grade family, belonging to the "middle-lower" grade.

"She turns out to be a young lady from the Zhu family in Anqiu. Can you recommend her?" The middle-aged scribe looked at Miaohan in surprise.

He was not surprised for anything else, but he was surprised that Miaohan came by horseback instead of by car.

Miao Han shook his head slightly: "My little girl is only here to visit Master Shi Chong Shi, nothing else."

With that said, he offered a piece of beautiful jade.

The quality of the jade is exquisite, and its vitality is faintly flowing like a phoenix. This is a piece of top-grade spiritual jade! Miaohan picked it up from the Lushan Immortal Sect's storehouse.

When the middle-aged scribe saw such a valuable gift, he understood it and asked her to wait while he went in holding the jade and reported it.

Not long after, he came out with a smile on his face and personally ushered Miaohan into the garden: "Miss Zhu, please."
To be continued...