The county magistrate has no authority to cancel taxes.
Gu Zhengchen knew this, but he also knew very well that these ordinary people would not be able to pay the taxes they asked them to pay. If he forced them to pay taxes, he could only force them to death!
"Master County, what do you mean?"
Wang Yu asked eagerly.
Gu Zhengchen did not make random remarks, but said solemnly: "I will report to the imperial court to classify you as an abnormal household."
Although the abnormal households were mainly widowers and lonely households who could not afford the errands, it stands to reason that the Wang family did not meet this standard, but in terms of being unable to afford the errands, they did meet the standard.
The abnormal households usually do not pay taxes. This is also the court's humanistic concern and a humane system.
Wang Kuangzi's eyes were hot and he almost shed tears.
You must know that my family has never mentioned entering a special household, but the county government directly refused. It also said that the family wanted to have a small family, and several people were still alive, which did not meet the regulations of orphans and widows at all.
It's fine now. The county magistrate has personally said that he will apply for our family. There is still hope for the future.
Gu Zhengchen visited other families. They had different sufferings and miseries, but they were still struggling on the edge of life and death.
dusk.
Gu Zhengchen appeared at the door of the house of the head of the village, Feng Zhong. Feng Baliang, who came back with a basket on his back, could hardly believe his eyes and quickly pulled his father Feng Zhong to ask if he could see anyone.
Feng Chong rolled his eyes at his stupid son and saluted forward: "I have met the county magistrate."
Gu Zhengchen entered Feng Zhong's home, and after chatting with his family for a few words, he asked Feng Baliang to call over Wang Zhi, the other chief of the village, and the old man Zhou Chang.
When Wang Zhi and Zhou Chang saw the county magistrate coming to Liulitian, they could not help but be surprised and saluted quickly.
Gu Zhengchen simply said a few polite words and then got down to the topic: "I have roughly looked at the situation of the people's families in Liulitian. Some families are really in trouble. There are also a few families who owe taxes for two years. The grain chief has moved away. They lost all their belongings, and if it hadn’t been for Feng Chongrenyi’s help, they might not have been able to survive long ago.”
Feng Zhong lamented: "We are all neighbors, so we should help as much as we can."
Gu Zhengchen glanced at Feng Zhong with admiration. He was a kind-hearted person. He was rare among many big families. He praised: "Your good deeds are seen by the county government and the people of Liuli Dian." It's all seen in my eyes. When I came, I bluntly said that you are a wicked person, and I almost got spat on..."
Feng Zhong burst into laughter and joked: "If someone scolds you, you can't blame us."
Wang Zhi and Zhou Chang saw that the atmosphere became more relaxed, and they were no longer as cautious as they were at the beginning.
Gu Zhengchen suppressed his smile and said seriously: "I am determined to solve the food problem of Jurong people. But when I walked among the people and visited every house, I found that except for those families with extreme difficulties, ordinary people's homes want to be completely It is still difficult to rely on acres of land to solve the food problem. Do you have any strategies to make the people more prosperous?"
The old man Zhou Zhang touched his long white beard and said: "Master County, the people have been here like this for thousands of years. God rewards you with face, and you can have two more meals throughout the year. If God does not reward you with face, and you encounter people who impose excessive taxes, Officials, you can only admit that you are unlucky, it is difficult to make the people prosperous."
Gu Zhengchen asked patiently: "It's difficult, but it doesn't mean it's impossible. Does Mr. Zhou have any ideas?"
Zhou Zhang thought for a while and nodded: "It can't be said that there is no way at all. Let's just say that Widow Zhao's family used to be very poor, but since the two girls went to the weaving compound, life is much better now. Not only do we no longer need to provide assistance, we have also started to provide assistance to other families.”
"It's just that the weaving compound is too far away, and many common people's women can't stay that far away. If the county magistrate can set up a weaving compound here in Liuli Dian, no, within five miles nearby, let the women go to work. , when you get your wages, your life will be easier..."
Gu Zhengchen frowned.
The Jurong Weaving and Tailoring Compound is the road to revitalizing the people through the cotton textile industry. Due to considerations such as safety and assembly line operation, it is only set up in Jurong County.
But Jurong County is quite large. It is not the Sanli county seat. Liuli Dian is a full 40 miles away from the county seat. For some ordinary people, if they want to work, they must live in the county seat. However, once you live in the county town, you will not be able to take care of your family. This is still difficult for many families to accept given the small-scale peasant economy and the general environment of a woman-headed household.
If it weren't for Gu Zhengchen's good reputation and attractive salary, the weaving and tailoring compound might not have been able to be established.
"Opening a branch factory outside the county town requires careful consideration by me. After all, I can ensure safety within the county town and ensure that everyone works according to the rules. However, if a safety accident occurs outside, it is not a trivial matter."
Gu Zhengchen did not agree directly, but left some room.
Safety issues are not an excuse. Gu Zhengchen is not allowed to use candles directly in Jurong weaving, tailoring, craftsmanship, academies, including county offices. He requires candles to be placed in specific containers, and oil lamps also need to be covered and placed The fixed position is not allowed to be moved at will, in order to avoid fire.
In order to set the rules and implement them, Gu Zhengchen put a lot of thought into it. People's inertia is strong, people's negligence is inadvertent, and people think that nothing will happen.
If a fire breaks out in this collective workshop and dozens of people are killed or injured in one fell swoop, the entire Jurong industry will suffer a devastating blow. This is a risk that Gu Zhengchen does not dare to take easily.
Wang Zhi, the head of the village, saw Gu Zhengchen looking over and said quickly: "Let's reclaim the wasteland. With more land planted and more grain harvested, life will naturally become easier."
"How many acres of land have been newly reclaimed in Liulitian this year?"
Gu Zhengchen asked.
Wang Zhi was stunned for a moment, hesitating and unable to speak.
Feng Zhong took it over: "This year, there are only about 200 acres of reclaimed land. On average, each household only has one more acre of land."
Gu Zhengchen turned his attention to Feng Zhong: "Reclamation is not feasible, right?"
Feng Zhong nodded slightly.
Reclaiming wasteland requires a lot of effort. After clearing wasteland, the land does not adapt to crops in one year. It takes two or three years to mature the raw land and produce four or five crops.
Besides, there are only so many people in Liuli Dian, so we need people who can cultivate and take care of the wasteland.
It is impossible to take care of these fields. It is exhausting and exhausting. Even if you cultivate the land, one family can cultivate fifty acres or one hundred acres. Not to mention one Dingkou, even three Dingkou cannot be cultivated. ah.
The land that no one has cultivated is a wasteland. The crops in the wasteland are overgrown with weeds, and the annual harvest may not be more than the grain grown.
Feng Zhong thought of something and said quickly: "Master County, I heard some news. It may be a way to enrich the people."
"Oh, tell me."
Gu Zhengchen had high hopes for Feng Zhong's words.
Feng Zhong cleared his throat and said seriously: "In the village next door, there is a bachelor named Xu Tou. Because of his pockmarked face, ugly life, and poor family background, no matchmaker comes to visit. But in February, Xu Tou Got married."
Gu Zhengchen frowned.
I ask you to talk about how to increase people's income, not just gossip.
Feng Zhong saw Gu Zhengchen's doubts and said quickly: "I heard that the reason why Xu Tou was able to get married was because his family became wealthy and had money."
"Oh, where did he get the money?"
Gu Zhengchen asked.
Feng Zhong grinned: "Raise pigs."
"Raising pigs?"
"That's right, it's about raising pigs. He raises five pigs at home. It's these five pigs that make his family rich. It's said that he also benefited from the county magistrate."
"What does this have to do with me?"
"County Master, there are many people in Jurong County. The butcher's shop is short of pigs, so they have to send people around to collect pigs. Fortunately, Xu Tou's family has many pigs and fat, so the butcher's shop is willing to give money. Five pigs, no matter what, After giving Qiguan money, I heard that Xu Tou started raising pigs again..."
Gu Zhengchen finally understood and understood a way to get rich.
You can’t blame yourself for not thinking about getting rich through breeding. All these things were harmed by the experts of later generations. They said raising pigs pollutes the environment, and then banned common people from raising pigs. They said raising ducks pollutes ponds, and then banned raising ducks. It is said that raising poultry is prone to diseases, so...
A group of experts sit in high-rise buildings and direct things in the countryside. Damn it, they haven’t eaten New Year pigs or home-raised poultry in so many years that they have even traveled through time and even ordinary people’s families have developed sideline businesses in breeding. All kinds of things have been forgotten!
When I was in the Ming Dynasty, I asked the people to raise pigs. If anyone dared to say anything about polluting the environment or raising ducks to pollute the pond, Zhang Pei would definitely kill him without knowing it.
If you don’t understand, don’t open your mouth. Since ancient times, the common people have been responsible for all industries. All crafts and industries are created by the common people! How many pigs do ordinary people raise at home? Are they surnamed She or Zi? Do they eat your family’s food or your family’s food?
We are now the county magistrate, and we don’t have access to any experts. We have the final say ourselves.
Based on agriculture, with cotton textiles as the forerunner, and poultry, fruits, and vegetables as the supplement, I don’t believe that I can’t bring prosperity to the people of Jurong, and I don’t believe that I can’t solve the food problem of the people of Jurong!
Feng Zhong looked at Gu Zhengchen, who had a ferocious look on his face, and took two steps back cautiously. The old man Zhou Zhang also cherished his life, so he came to the door trembling. Wang Zhi didn't know what the county magistrate was doing, how many pigs did he raise? If you have money, you won't have such deep hatred, right?
Gu Zhengchen raised his head and saw that several people had stood up and were not in front of him. He couldn't help but froze for a moment and said sternly: "What are you doing? Sit over here!"
Feng Zhong was cautious and said softly: "County Master, you were a little scary just now. You won't hit us, right?"
Gu Zhengchen rolled his eyes at Feng Zhong, gritted his teeth and said, "I want to fight the experts, not you."
"Expert? There is no one with the surname Expert in Liulitian. Is there such a surname?"
Feng Zhong was a little uneasy.
Gu Zhengchen snorted, stood up and said, "You said it very well and solved my confusion. Breeding livestock is a good way, so let's settle on it."
Feng Zhong looked at Gu Zhengchen and said quickly: "Master, raising livestock may not be suitable for every household. What's more, some ordinary families don't even have the money and food to buy piglets..."
"I wish you all a happy Mid-Autumn Festival and a happy family. I wish you all the best and your family is healthy."
