The Descendants of My Mentor

Author: Soy Sauce Xuanzhu

The Descendants of My Mentor

"What?" Cui Fuyin looked confused.

What is paid corvee?

The tax system in Dachu is similar to that of the Han Dynasty that Li Yewu knew. The people here have to pay two kinds of taxes every year: one is the land tax, which is the field rent, and the other is the head tax.

As mentioned before, land rent is generally collected by the government or the landlord, it all depends on who the land belongs to.

The head tax is levied by the Yamen, and is 2 taels per year for children and 12 taels for adults.

Thirty percent of the collected money goes to the local county, and the other 70% is sent to the national treasury.

In addition, Dachu people also have three months of voluntary labor every year, and each household has to participate in it, such as helping to build canals, strengthening dams, building the Great Wall, etc., as the name suggests, doing corvee labor.

The corvées had no money. Not only were they not paid, they also had to provide their own food, clothing, and working tools.

However, families serving corvees can be exempted from part of the head tax.

At this time, Li Yewu proposed paid corvee service: 200 yuan a day, food and drink, and a temporary camp to stay in.

This is not a corvee service, it is clearly a fat job and a beautiful job.

Cui Fuyin once again felt that the official uniform he was wearing was getting in the way. If it weren't for the official uniform, he would have just done the corvee!

Speaking of which, this couple is not a family that doesn’t live in the same house!

Xiao Jiuxi set up a refugee camp and distributed welfare every day.

The little lady who comes after her is the one who gets the upper hand and gets a paid corvee service.

Forget about giving out welfare, once paid corvee comes out, how can he promote other corvée in the future?

Cui Fuyin shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, since ancient times, corvees have not been paid. Once this precedent is set, it will be difficult to take it back in the future."

"Working for free is unreasonable in the first place. What's wrong with getting rid of this bad habit?" Li Yewu answered simply.

Cui Fuyin gasped and was about to cry: "Auntie, looking at the entire Chu, there is no place where the corvee is as good as yours. We must obey the court and cannot act randomly."

"Cui Fuyin, you are so narrow-minded."

In response to this problem, Li Yewu has already studied thoroughly. There are ten counties and three states in Dachu, among which ten counties are directly under the jurisdiction of Emperor Wuhou. The other three states are Shanhu, Tingliang, and Taihe, which became three states.

The fiefdoms of adult princes are autonomous by themselves.

"Autonomy, as the name implies, means laws, systems, and management. As long as it does not violate the imperial court's restrictions on fiefdoms, you can set your own rules.

As far as I know, the imperial court's restrictions on fiefdoms are limited to: they cannot hoard more than 50,000 private soldiers; they cannot operate the salt and iron business; they cannot privately manufacture weapons and armor; and they cannot pay regular tributes of money, grain, tax, and silver.

Apart from that, there are no other restrictions, right?"

"It's true...it's true...but..."

"There is nothing good about it. The common people have been lying down and receiving benefits for five years. How can it be justified to let them work without any compensation now? And I follow a principle: there will be brave men under heavy rewards, and if rewards and punishments are clearly planned, they will succeed.

Oppression will only make people resist, while providing benefits will not only bring long-term peace, but also allow people to find their own value."

"Looking for value?" Cui Fuyin was stunned, and vaguely seemed to see his teacher again.

"Everyone has the value of living. Some people are seeking fame, and some are seeking profit. Ordinary people just want to support their families. Being able to support their parents, wives and children so that they can study and live a good life is the value of the head of the family. Making money will feed back the family.

Parents are the value of their children.

Only when people continue to create value and realize value can society prosper."

To put it bluntly, in fact, the government recruiting people to do corvee work is similar to building high-speed railways and building bridges in modern times. However, in modern society, everyone is equal, and if you want people to work, you have to pay accordingly. In ancient times, it was a feudal monarchy, and everyone had to serve the gods.

If you serve the family, you will be killed without mercy.

But often because of this, it will eventually be overturned by the accumulation of public resentment and indignation.

The fact that ancient people couldn't see clearly this endless cycle doesn't mean that Li Yewu couldn't see clearly.

As an infrastructure engineer, she understands the key to making society work properly.

Peace of mind is the top priority for social stability and prosperity.

Although Xiao Jiuxi's starting point is right, his method is wrong. His welfare policy will allow the people to indulge in a honey pot of delicious food and laziness.

To put it bluntly, developed countries can provide generous welfare because they have completed primitive accumulation long ago and their overall level is at the leading level in the world. Therefore, they have the capital and the ability to implement high welfare policies.

What about Taihe City?

The agriculture is underdeveloped, the economy is underdeveloped, and there is no breakthrough in science and technology. How can Xiao Jiuxi pull the plane alone?

To improve people's livelihood, we must first increase the employment rate, then increase people's income levels, and only then can we talk about welfare policies.

When people realize their self-worth through work, their sense of happiness will naturally increase. Only when they are full of hope for the future will they become more and more motivated.

Cui Fuyin's eyes trembled, and the shadow of his mentor became increasingly clear on Li Yewu.

The people's hearts and minds and their homes will be peaceful, which are the words that the old man often talks about.

In the blink of an eye, thirty years have passed...

"I wonder where Madam got this opinion."

"Uh... the elders in the family have served as officials in the court, so most of them have been influenced by what they heard and saw." Li Yewu made nonsense.

Anyway, the grandfather of the original owner did serve as a cabinet bachelor. Although he was dismissed from his post thirty years ago due to political disagreements with Emperor Wuhou and died of illness soon after, it is an indisputable fact that he has this family background.

She only needs to blame these shocking insights on her grandfather and father. This is the benefit of being an orphan. There is no proof of anything, and it all depends on what she likes to say.

Cui Fuyin somehow had an idea in his mind, and asked a question out of nowhere.

"I don't know the names of the elders in your family."

"Li Deqing."

"!" Cui Fuyin immediately changed his attitude and looked excited.

really!

He asked why he saw the shadow of his mentor in Li Yewu many times. It turned out that he was really the descendant of his mentor!

Cui Fuyin bowed with trembling hands: "Madam is originally a descendant of my mentor. God opened my eyes and gave me the opportunity to meet my mentor again. I have not waited in vain all these years!"

"?" Li Yewu was confused.

"I am Mr. Li Ge's student!" Mr. Cui Fu Yin burst into tears: "But it's normal that Madam doesn't know me. Back then, Mr. Li Ge was dismissed from office, and his students were dismissed or transferred away from the capital. I have been wandering on the edge of the wilderness.

, was transferred to Taihe City only five years ago.

Thirty years have passed since I was in command, and I never imagined that the sons of the ancients would already be so old.

It turns out that your father was only twenty years old when I left the capital, and now he is old enough to know his destiny. How is he?"

Li Yewu didn't expect Cui Fuyin to have such a connection with his family.

It was just the first time he was bragging and he met an acquaintance. What a blessing... Li Yewu, who had just been secretly happy that everything was unconfirmed, was torn apart at this moment.

However, judging from Cui Fuyin's attitude and reaction, I guess he agreed with what he said. Maybe the original owner's grandfather also said similar things.
Chapter completed!