Zhu Yunxuan looked at him lightly and said nothing.
As the prefect of Suzhou, Liu Hanmo asked for orders for the people of Suzhou, which was only natural and right.
But he is the emperor's grandson of the Ming Dynasty and the superintendent of the country.
There is more than just Suzhou to consider.
Suzhou's taxation involves the national policy of the Ming Dynasty. How can it be changed casually?
anyway.
It’s not like Zhu Yunxuan never thought about changing the current tax system of the Ming Dynasty.
For example, the one-whip method promoted by Zhang Juzheng, and even the tax system of Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty; the gentry working as errands and paying grain as one, etc., are all better than the current tax system of the Ming Dynasty.
But he also knows better that nothing can be taken for granted.
Just the increase in business tax has caused such an uproar.
From the struggle in the court to the Japanese pirates occupying Songjiang Mansion, it can be said that it all started from this.
Although the Japanese rebellion has been suppressed now, many people in Songjiang have lost their lives and their families and families as a result.
If we really want to reform local taxation, we can imagine how strong the resistance will be.
Zhang Juzheng's tomb was dug up after his death, and although the system of sharing the land between the gentry and the gentry was still enforced, it was abolished during the Qianlong period.
If he has succeeded to the throne, he has nothing to fear and can carry out drastic reforms.
No matter how great the resistance is, Zhu Yunzhen can face it with confidence.
But he is still the crown prince now. Can Lao Zhu agree to this?
Obstacles from vested interests are a very real problem.
Even in the era of modern civilization before he traveled through time, any reform that touched those with vested interests would face difficulties.
Looking at Liu Hanmo kneeling on the ground, Zhu Yunxi sighed and said, "How much tax and grain has Lan Yu recovered during this period?"
Liu Hanmo said hurriedly: "The estimated grain is 3,268,521 shi and the silver is 1,237,612 taels."
You don’t even need to search the books, can you remember it so clearly?
Zhu Yunzhen was slightly surprised.
I have a good impression of Liu Hanmo, the prefect of Suzhou in front of me.
As for Suzhou’s dilemma.
He remembered what happened in Songjiang Magic City and had an idea in his mind.
"Taxes that have been recovered cannot be refunded."
The imperial court collects taxes as a matter of course, and it cannot be said that Lan Yu is wrong in pursuing the tax arrears.
Suzhou’s taxes cannot be owed forever.
However, Lan Yu chased him too quickly.
How can the people afford to collect all the taxes owed over the years in a short period of time?
When Liu Hanmo heard this, he suddenly looked disappointed.
What he wanted in this request was that Zhu Yunxun could return the collected grain and money to the people.
After all, the reason why Lan Yu vigorously pursues taxes is to collect food for the army to fight.
Now that the Japanese rebellion in Songjiang has been settled, there is no need for the army to come.
Then these grains will no longer be used and can be returned to the people.
Unexpectedly, His Highness Taisun vetoed this item when he opened his mouth.
He was dejected and unwilling.
"Your Majesty, the people of Suzhou have gone bankrupt in order to pay back taxes and grain arrears, and there is no more food left in their homes. If they are not refunded and rescued, they may starve to death!"
"Don't worry, I won't let people starve to death in Suzhou." Zhu Yunzhen changed the topic and said: "There is no need to escort this money and food to the court."
Liu Hanmo looked up, confused.
Zhu Yunxuan smiled and said: "All the grain and money collected will be sent to Songjiang Mansion for the construction of the new city."
The construction of a new city is a very huge expense.
He was worrying about where to raise money.
The money and food collected from Suzhou can be used just right.
As for relieving the people of Suzhou?
"Prefect Liu, please post a notice and tell the people of Suzhou that if you have no food at home and want to survive, you can go to Songjiang Prefecture to work and participate in the construction of the new city."
He paused and then said: "If there are people who are imprisoned by the government for urging them to pay taxes, money and food, they will be released. They will also be allowed to go to Songjiang to work in exchange for taxes and money and food."
"If you have idle labor at home, you can also work in Songjiang Prefecture to earn money and food."
"Those who have accumulated tax, money and food arrears are also allowed to use this method to convert their wages based on daily work and offset the arrears of taxes, money and food."
"The Guhui wrote to Zheng He that Songjiang would charge as many people as they went to Suzhou. In addition to taking care of food and housing, they would also calculate wages on a daily basis."
Work-for-relief.
This is Zhu Yunxuan's solution.
The construction of the Magic City requires a large amount of money and manpower.
The people in Suzhou have no food and no food to eat, so they all go to build a magical city.
Not only can you have a full stomach, but you can also settle the taxes, money and food owed over the years.
For him, it solved the urgent funding problem for the construction of the Magic City.
He generally knows the income and expenditure of the Ming Dynasty Household Department.
There is really not much money that can be squeezed out of the treasury.
The war in the north required money. He set up the new army, set up a shipyard, set up a technical research and manufacturing bureau, and even compiled the Hongwu Grand Ceremony...all needed money!
Although the increase in commercial taxes slightly improved Ming Dynasty Yan's income.
But the expenditure has also expanded a lot!
Everything he wants to do is a bottomless gold-swallowing cave.
There were many types of taxes in the Ming Dynasty.
In addition to the grain tax to be paid, there is also a very important item, which is corvee.
That is to say, the people were recruited to work, but the wages were not paid, and even the food had to be provided by the people themselves.
In the Ming Dynasty, taxes were not too heavy, but corvees were heavy, and the people were overwhelmed.
When building a new city in the Demon City, it would be a huge tragedy if the people were recruited on a large scale and their corvee work was increased.
Similar examples are common in many major construction projects in history.
Such as the Grand Canal, the Great Wall... and even the construction of the Yellow River embankment at the end of the Yuan Dynasty...
But Zhu Yunxuan had long been determined to get rid of this shortcoming.
The construction of the new city in the Magic City was all based on hiring labor, providing food and paying wages.
This also lays the foundation for the future commodity economy of the Magic City.
Set an example for future development.
Suzhou's tax arrears played into his hands.
Anyway, the tax was already in arrears. If it is confiscated, the Ministry of Revenue will not lose anything.
It is used to build the new city of Magic City, which is considered to be the best use.
Not only the silver and grain collected, but also the accumulated debts over the years.
Those are just numbers on the government's account books, but they can't actually be collected.
Lan Yu's aggressive pursuit in Suzhou only recovered part of it.
The rest is basically hopeless.
But asking them to work instead of paying taxes is useless.
This is different from the nature of corvee service. They don't need to bring their own food, and they don't have to worry about running out of food. Instead, they can get paid for their work.
Although this money was used to offset taxes owed to the court.
But most people still hope to pay it back.
This also prevents the government from calling for payment every year, or even coming to arrest people at every turn.
In this way, the people of Suzhou were able to survive, and the problem of funds and manpower needed for the construction of the magic city was also solved.
The best of both worlds.
Liu Hanmo was overjoyed: "On behalf of the millions of people in Suzhou, I would like to thank His Highness Taisun for your kindness."
Zhu Yunxuan smiled lightly and said: "The people of Suzhou are also the people of the Ming Dynasty. As a prince alone, you should love the people like your sons."
"What you said today about Suzhou's heavy tax burden is something I have my own concerns about. It's just that the time is not yet ripe."
"However, I can grant you a temporary solution."
When Liu Hanmo heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up.
Although Zhu Yunzhen solved Suzhou's temporary difficulties by using work-for-relief methods.
However, the taxation problem is still unclear, and Suzhou's future is still worrying.
"Please express it clearly to His Majesty the Grand Sun." Liu Hanmo bowed his hands.
Zhu Yunzhen stood up, paced, and said: "The imperial court collects taxes from Suzhou every year, and the total amount cannot be reduced."
"Gu decided to impose a sea ban, set up tax certificates, and allow people to do business without being restricted by household registration, all in order to stimulate business development."
"Suzhou is the commercial center of the southeast, and has always had a strong business culture."
"I can promise you that as long as you can make Suzhou's trade more prosperous and the taxes collected from trade can be greatly increased, then Suzhou's land tax can be reduced accordingly."
"If the commercial tax levied in Suzhou can exceed the land tax, then all the fields in Suzhou will be tax-free."
Zhu Yunzhen's voice fell.
Liu Hanmo raised his head, his eyes filled with disbelief.
(End of chapter)
