Yu Shiming said, “But this way, the pressure on the Provincial Governor’s Office and the common people will be great. She needs to support so many troops, the government offices also need expenditures, and she wants to take in refugees—where will all this money and grain come from?” He continued, “She has already offended quite a few high officials and noble families. Can a teenage girl bring herself to humble herself and seek reconciliation with them?”
Zhao Ming looked up at him and said, “Why would she need to beg?”
Moreover, who said Zhao Hanzhang didn’t have that kind of face? Her skin was quite thick. As long as the benefits were substantial enough, what couldn’t she do?
But if Zhao Hanzhang softened now, to gain the support of those high officials and noble families again and obtain money and people from them, the price she would have to pay would be much greater.
The marriage arrangement between the Zhao and Fu families might face complications.
Yu Shiming also thought of this point, but while Zhao Ming could say certain things, it wasn’t appropriate for him to speak up. So the words circled around his lips before he said nothing at all.
Zhao Ming hurried to Luoyang to see Zhao Hanzhang.
However, the first people he met were not Zhao Hanzhang, but Ji Yuan and Ming Yu.
As Zhao Hanzhang’s two chief advisors, they had many things to do, and they looked ten steps ahead with each move. The two men were not unaware that there were flaws in the tax laws Zhao Hanzhang had newly promulgated, but it was not advisable to revise them immediately.
Just as Zhao Ming had said, revising the laws at this time would do more harm than good.
Ji Yuan invited Zhao Ming to sit down and talk. Outside the door came the lively voices of Zhao Song and Zhao Hu in conversation. “When I entered the city today, I saw there were many more people on the streets than when I came last time. Clearly Luoyang is improving. Things are going well—why would she want to change the tax system?”
But Zhao Hu said, “Changing it would be great. It would be best if she changed it back to the original. Hanzhang is so stingy. I used to have farmland registered under elder brother’s name to avoid taxes, but now that she’s become the provincial governor and been enfeoffed as a duke with even more tax-exempt land, she’s taken back my tax exemption.”
Zhao Hu wished Zhao Hanzhang would change even more, until all his farmland was tax-exempt.
The two old brothers talked animatedly as they headed toward the back courtyard. Only when Zhao Ming could no longer hear their conversation did he turn to Ji Yuan and ask, “Mister Ji, why does Hanzhang want to revise the taxes again?”
Ji Yuan said, “Not long ago, two noble families in Luoyang fled because the taxes were too heavy for them to bear. The young lady felt distressed when she saw this, so she wants to revise some regulations.”
Ji Yuan looked toward Ming Yu, who said, “It will still be the case that everyone, regardless of rank, must pay taxes. However, considering that many noble families have also suffered disasters, the regulation of paying taxes based on registered farmland will be changed to paying taxes based on actually cultivated farmland. Their registered land will not be changed for five years, but if it remains uncultivated for five consecutive years, it will be reclaimed as state property.”
For example, the Chen family previously had one hundred acres of registered land, but actually cultivated only twenty acres. Zhao Hanzhang reduced the tax burden, collecting only one-third of the taxes that should be paid.
This year, refugees in Luoyang who were allotted land received six acres and cultivated six acres, but only needed to pay taxes on two acres.
As for families like the Chen’s, they had to pay one-third of the taxes on one hundred acres, equivalent to paying grain taxes on thirty-three acres. This was a very heavy burden for noble families like the Chen’s.
With Zhao Hanzhang’s revision, the Chen family would only need to pay one-third of the taxes on twenty acres, greatly reducing the pressure.
And in Yuzhou and Luoyang, there were quite a few noble families similar to the Chen’s.
Zhao Ming pressed his lips together and asked, “Where is Hanzhang now?”
“She went to inspect the soldiers’ agricultural settlements.”
Zhao Ming snorted and said, “The soldiers still need to train and fight. Now Zhao Han and the Xianbei are eyeing the northern lands covetously. How much grain can be gathered just from soldiers farming?”
“Once they go to war, the military farmland will have no one to cultivate and manage it. When that time comes, won’t the grain and provisions still have to be collected from the common people?” Zhao Ming rubbed his forehead and said, “Since she took over Yuzhou, she has been very tough with the noble families. But in the short term, those who can raise large amounts of money and grain are also them. For three years now, everyone has gotten used to her toughness. With our Zhao clan mediating on the side, even though they are quite dissatisfied, they can only endure.”
“If she revises the policies now, her authority will be greatly damaged. When that time comes, how many people will still tolerate her dominance?” Zhao Ming asked, “What kind of tax policy does she actually want? What kind of… world does she want?”
Ji Yuan and Ming Yu both looked up at him simultaneously, surprise in their eyes. Ji Yuan even raised his eyebrows slightly. He straightened his back a bit and said with a smile, “Zinian might ask the young lady in person.”
Zhao Ming looked up at him. “You agree with her revising the policies?”
Ji Yuan said, “As long as it’s handled properly, the disadvantages brought by revising the policies can be avoided. It’s just that Zinian will have to suffer some hardship, and the Zhao clan will have to endure some grievances.”
Ji Yuan didn’t even need to explain what method he meant—Zhao Ming almost immediately understood his solution.
Zhao Ming: …
After all this commotion, he was the biggest fool.
Did this count as delivering himself to his doom?
Zhao Ming pressed his lips together and said, “Call her back. I want to talk to her face to face. If she can convince me, never mind kneeling before her for one day—kneeling for three days would be fine.”
Ji Yuan immediately agreed, then had someone go fetch Zhao Hanzhang. At the same time, he quietly called someone and said, “Also go to the workshop and invite Young Master Fu. Make sure he returns before sunset.”
“Yes.”
Hearing that Zhao Song and Zhao Ming had both come to Luoyang together, Zhao Hanzhang immediately hurried back. She encountered Fu Tinghan, who was also rushing back, at the main gate.
One of them wore a short upper garment with trousers below, with dirt on her body and dust all over, looking just like a farm girl.
The other had the same attire, except his upper body was covered with mud spots, and his trousers were wet all the way up to the knees—the appearance of a country laborer.
Both were busy with work. Fu Tinghan hadn’t seen her for five or six days. Seeing her now, he couldn’t help but show a smile and asked, “Did Lady Zhao just return from the fields?”
“Yes. Did Young Master Fu just come up from the river?”
Fu Tinghan nodded. “I even caught a fish today, but I was in such a hurry to return that I didn’t bring it. Otherwise I could have invited you to eat fish.”
Fu’an, who had been following several steps behind Fu Tinghan, jumped down from his horse. Hearing this, he immediately untied something strung with straw from the other side of the horse’s back and called out loudly, “Young master, I brought it back.”
Then he held up the fish in his hand to show them.
Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan both turned around. Seeing the palm-sized fish, they burst out laughing. She said with great amusement, “Is this fish even enough to pick your teeth with? Tomorrow when I go to the military farmland, I’ll go down to the river and catch two fish for you. The fish I catch are much bigger. Let me tell you…”
Zhao Hanzhang talked as she entered the gate with Fu Tinghan. By the time they reached the front courtyard, Fu Tinghan had already suggested, “Next year, we can have people raise fish in the irrigation ditches to enrich the diet and better supplement protein. Right now Luoyang doesn’t have enough stored meat.”
Zhao Hanzhang said, “Didn’t we promote pig raising? The castration technique has also spread.”
Fu Tinghan said, “Only the army and workshops have raised pigs according to the assigned tasks. Common folk who raise pigs are still few. Most still raise sheep and chickens.”
By the time they walked into the main hall, the two were already discussing methods to promote pig farming. Zhao Ming, sitting in the room, felt his forehead twitching. He couldn’t help but call out, “Governor Zhao!”
Zhao Hanzhang immediately stopped talking. She first looked down at the clothes on her body, then squeezed out a smile and entered the room, cupping her hands and bowing repeatedly. “Uncle, you must be exhausted from your long journey. Thank you for your hard work.”