Adults were living people who could run, could hide. Those with power and ability hid population. Since population tax was the court’s main tax revenue, if the court couldn’t collect taxes, with fiscal deficits, they could only levy more taxes from powerless, unable-to-evade ordinary common people.
In the long run, commoners couldn’t survive and could only seek ways to live.
They had only one method—rebel, kill all the current vested interest holders, terrorize them, smash the cover of interests. Only then could they seek living space.
Mother said, don’t stand on the opposite side of all people in the realm. The imperial family is supported by all people, so they must protect all people. We and all people should be a complementary relationship, not enemies.
Mother also said, the barefoot don’t fear the shod. Back then the Zhao family army was a group of barefoot people with only one life to risk, so they weren’t afraid of failure.
“Never compete for commoners’ survival capital. When they lose everything, they will fear nothing. Never place yourself in opposition to commoners.”
The new tax system was one measure of the imperial family and court showing grace to the common people.
Tax had always been linked with corvée. Corvée was divided into regular corvée and miscellaneous corvée. Zhao Hanzhang had already eliminated miscellaneous corvée. Currently only some major regular corvées remained.
Zhao Mingming said, “Now, wheat yield per acre can reach six stones. Rice is even higher, reaching seven and a half stones. In the Jiangnan and Jingchu regions, average yield per acre is as high as eight stones.”
“Our county is a poor county. From the previously surveyed data, every household has iron agricultural tools. Every year people from the Ministry of Agriculture come to the countryside to explain new cultivation methods and new cultivation techniques. There are also many innovations in the countryside. Ownership of oxen has reached two-thirds, meaning now one laborer can produce about three times the grain of before.”
“So what do the extra laborers do?” Zhao Mingming said, “Handicraft industry, commerce. Just in our county, in the past three years, thirty-six workshops have been established—the total from the twenty-five years before the founding.”
“And our county is still a poor county. In places with more developed transportation, on broader plains, in places with large amounts of mineral and other resources, the number of established workshops is only more, not less. Their economy is faster and more developed.”
Zhao Mingming looked at Fan Lianyin and Zu Daozhong with shining eyes. “And these are all money!”
Fan Lianyin and Zu Daozhong’s eyes also grew brighter. “Will the court collect taxes from these places?”
“Exactly. These workshops and merchant caravans will be more profitable. Craftsmen and merchants will also have more money. They use the state’s resources and the state’s population, so naturally they should pay taxes to the state. Therefore, in the future, more of the state’s finances will need to be collected from these people.”
“When the state and local yamens have money, they can spend money to hire people to build bridges, pave roads, clear rivers, and repair water conservancy projects.”
Zu Daozhong’s heart trembled. He already had a guess and asked with a trembling voice, “So?”
“So the court wants to eliminate regular corvée!” Zhao Mingming’s eyes shone. “Just like miscellaneous corvée, completely eliminate it!”
Zu Daozhong and Fan Lianyin opened their mouths wide. “Now?”
“Of course not now,” Zhao Mingming looked at them seriously. “But after I come to power. Because now the state’s tax focus hasn’t shifted yet, so regular corvée still must exist.”
“Mother’s generation will be harder than ours, and our generation won’t be easy either. But it doesn’t matter. If we suffer more hardship now, our descendants in the future can enjoy more blessings.”
Fan Lianyin pondered. “So we need to find ways to let common people also earn money from places other than land, and it has to be considerable money.”
Zu Daozhong was somewhat worried. “Wouldn’t this delay agriculture?”
Farming was very hard work. Zu Daozhong would call it the hardest labor in this world. He had participated in spring planting and autumn harvest. He truly felt it was harder than practicing martial arts and knife skills, harder than going to the battlefield.
He was willing to risk going to the battlefield to fight rather than farm.
If not relying on land, by commerce and handicraft industry one could earn higher income than farming, how many people throughout the realm would still be willing to farm?
He felt they must prepare two-handed. “If people throughout the realm are unwilling to cultivate, how will the court ensure food security?”
Zhao Mingming frowned, obviously not having thought of this point.
Fan Lianyin said, “You’re thinking too much. If there really is such a day when people throughout the realm can earn more money in handicraft industry and commerce than from land, then the state doesn’t need to collect taxes from land anymore. Just collecting from handicraft industry and commerce would be enough for court expenses. At that time, exempting land rent and field tax would be fine. I don’t believe no one would farm.”
Zu Daozhong said, “You’re also fantasizing too much. How could land rent and field tax possibly be exempted?”
Now the emperor and Crown Princess were saying they would spread adult tax into land, no longer leaving the adult tax item—he already felt this was fantasy.
Zu Daozhong said, “New tax reform is still just Her Majesty’s and the Crown Princess’s conception. There’s not even a hint of it yet, and you’re already conceiving of eliminating land rent and field tax as well.”
“I’m just conceiving based on your hypothesis. Besides, before Her Majesty, what in the realm was impossible?” Fan Lianyin said, “Before Her Majesty appeared, could you have imagined that common people’s miscellaneous corvée could be exempted? Could you have imagined that children throughout the realm could all attend school, must attend school? Could you have imagined that military service would no longer be something everyone avoided, but something everyone competed to do?”
Zu Daozhong had nothing to say.
He was several years older than Fan Lianyin and Zhao Mingming. When he was born, the new dynasty hadn’t been established yet. Although he had no memories from that time, when he was young, his father often sighed with him about past events.
Moreover, childhood life was far less convenient and prosperous than now. Even though his father was Zu Ti, some things still didn’t exist.
He was a very perceptive person. Otherwise his father wouldn’t have sent him to the palace to accompany the Crown Princess, nor could he have stood out among many study companions to become one of Zhao Mingming’s best friends.
Thinking of this, Zu Daozhong glanced at the person who mindlessly worshiped Zhao Mingming. He secretly snorted in his heart, but his brain couldn’t help pondering her words.
Looking at historical records, new tax reform was very difficult to succeed, not to mention eliminating land rent and field tax.
Looking at reality, now the state’s fiscal revenue had seventy percent coming from farmers. Before this it was even more. In the previous dynasty, over ninety percent of state finances came from commoners’ adult tax, land tax, and various surcharges and miscellaneous taxes.
Commerce and handicraft industry weren’t as developed as imagined and were more difficult to define for taxation.
Wanting handicraft industry and commerce income to exceed agriculture was very difficult. Wanting to collect taxes from handicraft industry and commerce to offset the current seventy percent of adult tax, land rent, and various surcharges and donations was even more impossible.
But…
If it was Her Majesty, Zu Daozhong’s heart burned. “Perhaps possible.”
Though the voice was small, Fan Lianyin heard it. She proudly raised her head. “How about that? Even you can’t deny Her Majesty’s great talent, right?”
Zu Daozhong said, “But this absolutely cannot be accomplished by Her Majesty alone.”
Zhao Mingming said, “So there’s also me, and also you all.”
Her eyes shone. “Mother said this isn’t something one generation can complete. This requires two generations, three generations, even more generations’ efforts.”
So not only did she need to do well herself, she also had to cultivate descendants well, select a suitable heir to continue her and Mother’s policies.
Zhao Mingming’s ambition was already burning. “We’ll start researching and perfecting Her Majesty’s policies now. When I ascend the throne, I’ll begin implementing new policies. At that time you’ll be my right and left hands!”
Zu Daozhong was startled, instinctively looking left and right, whispering, “Crown Princess, be cautious with your words. Who knows if there are secret inspectors around here…”
Fan Lianyin already had shining eyes, nodding before him and pledging loyalty. “This subject pledges to serve the Crown Princess unto death!”
Zu Daozhong: …
Zhao Mingming also didn’t take Zu Daozhong’s reminder to heart. From childhood her mother had told her how to be a good emperor. She was the next emperor, so she and her mother never avoided this topic.