Chapter 212 Testing
In early May, Zhao Xing enjoyed more than a month of gentle comfort. The imperial palace continued to send gifts to the Eastern Palace, and he resumed his previous life.
During this period, Qi Heng and Sheng Changbai also got married.
Both of them are now county magistrates. They returned to Bian Jing a few days before their wedding. After returning home, they brought their new wives back to their respective posts.
In the study of the Eastern Palace, Zhao Xing met Wang Anshi, whom he hadn't seen for some time.
"Jiefu, thank you for your hard work during this period." Zhao Xing said to Wang Anshi, who had become much darker.
After the land inventory was completed last year, Zhao Xing asked Wang Anshi to be responsible for supervising the land leasing in various counties.
After this matter was completed, Zhao Xing ordered each county to conscript corvée labor and build water conservancy projects, and sent Wang Anshi to inspect and supervise everywhere.
The common people are quite resistant to performing corvee labor.
However, they were enthusiastic about the government's conscription of labor and construction of water conservancy projects.
After all, they are the ones who benefit from the development of water conservancy projects.
Starting from the first two months of last year until now, it has taken more than half a year to repair and dredge all the rivers and ditches in the entire Kaifeng Prefecture. In addition, some reservoirs have been built.
First, he rented a large amount of land to the people at a low price, and then he built water conservancy projects. For a time, Zhao Xing's prestige soared.
"This is what I should do."
Wang Anshi not only became much darker, but also lost a lot of weight.
But his eyes were very bright, and his whole body looked as if his spirit and energy had been sublimated.
Although he had been working in local positions before, he encountered too many constraints when doing things and could not do things as he wished.
Weighing the land and building water conservancy projects were part of the reforms he had originally planned, and he was very motivated.
"Your Highness, this time we have built water conservancy projects and dredged ditches and rivers, and have gained more than 10,000 acres of farmland. Within five years, as long as there is no severe drought with no rain for several months, all the farmland in Kaifeng Prefecture will hardly suffer a reduction in production due to lack of water!" Wang Anshi recounted the achievements of this period in detail.
The extra fields are all caused by the collapse of river channels and ditches, including flooded and abandoned fields.
"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded slightly and said, "Jiefu, you have worked hard these days. Go back and have a good rest for a few days."
"Your Highness, I don't need to rest. It's time to put the Qingmiao Law on the agenda." Wang Anshi said.
Zhao Xing tapped the table, pondered for a moment, and said, "Have you thought it through?"
Whether it was measuring the land, developing water conservancy projects, or the previous thorough investigation of the salt business, in essence, none of them could be considered reforms.
The so-called reform is to change the original laws and regulations, improve the original system, or introduce some new systems.
Hidden fields and corrupt salt administration can only be regarded as accumulated problems.
The imperial court wanted to investigate, and the officials involved in the profit wanted to stop it, but they had no reasonable excuse.
But the Qingmiao Law was different. It was a new law and encountered even greater resistance than the investigation of salt affairs and the measurement of farmland.
This is also the reason why Zhao Xing never implemented the policy of allocating land tax to each household.
To put it simply, the Qingmiao Law means that the government lends money to the people at low interest rates to buy seeds and farm tools.
When landlords and gentry annexed land, they rarely did so by force. In most cases, they used two methods.
One of them is that when natural disasters occur, they buy back the people’s land at extremely low prices.
In order to survive, the people had no choice but to sell.
The second way is to borrow money.
Even if the people have their own land, most of them can only barely make ends meet and it is difficult for them to save any money.
Once any problems occurred at home, they could only borrow money from the landlords and gentry.
However, the interest rates charged by landlords and gentry for lending money were very high, and with the interest compounded, it was difficult for ordinary people to pay off the debt. In the end, they could only sell their children and fields to pay off their debts.
If measuring the amount of land was to snatch food from the landlords and gentry, then the Qingmiao Law was to cut off their roots.
Although there is still a root, it is also difficult for the landlords and gentry who are used to exploiting the people to tolerate it. The most important thing is that the Qingmiao Law is a new law, which is equivalent to sending a signal of reform.
Regardless of whether their interests are affected or not, most officials will jump out to oppose it.
Otherwise, if we use the Qingmiao method this time, I don’t know what method we will use next time.
"I have been constantly improving it during this period and have thought it through!" Wang Anshi said firmly.
Zhao Xing was silent for a while, then asked, "Does the government still have money?"
Most of the taxes collected by local governments had to be handed over to the imperial court, and not much was left.
It is obvious that developing water conservancy projects can easily win the hearts of the people and achieve political achievements. If you look at the records of famous officials in history who served in local positions, you will find that almost all of them have done similar things.
But why didn’t their predecessors do it?
Few of those who can become officials are stupid. They may be greedy, but if they can achieve some political achievements at a small cost and gain reputation, even corrupt officials are willing to do it.
The reason why I don’t do it is because I have no money.
People can be conscripted for labor service, but the food, drink, and equipment for the labor service all cost money.
Those capable officials who managed the local areas well could raise enough money to build water conservancy projects, but those mediocre and corrupt officials found it troublesome.
This is why no one does it.
Zhao Xing did not spend the court's money to build water conservancy projects this time.
During the previous land survey, some families that did not cooperate were also searched and confiscated to serve as an example to others.
It has to be said that confiscating property does make money quickly. Among more than a dozen counties, only eight families were used as an example to scare the monkeys, but a large amount of money and food was confiscated.
Zhao Xing intercepted some of the money and grain, but no one said anything because he was the crown prince.
However, part of the money and grain was used to make some farm tools and lent to the people, and the rest was used to build water conservancy projects. Zhao Xing was not sure how much was left.
If the Qingmiao Law is to be implemented, it is unrealistic to ask for money from the imperial court.
Didn’t you see that the eldest master has set his sights on him?
The imperial court was already short of money, and the Qingmiao Law was a new law. With such a good reason, those who wanted to stop it would definitely not give up.
"The government still has some surplus, and the autumn harvest is not far away. This time, we have rented out millions of acres of land, and when the autumn harvest comes, the people will still need to pay rent. We take from the people and use it for the people, and we can use the rent to lend to the people. Moreover, this year should be a bumper year, and there will not be many people who need to borrow money, so it will be enough to cope with it." Wang Anshi said.
"Then let's implement it." Zhao Xing was silent for a while before making a decision: "Let's not launch it first, and there's no need to report it. We can just implement it when the time comes."
If a report is made or the news is revealed early on, it will give those who want to stop it time to prepare.
"But if this happens, Your Highness will certainly be under a lot of pressure," Wang Anshi said worriedly.
Zhao Xing was only the crown prince, not the emperor.
Even if you are an emperor, you have to consult with your ministers before doing anything.
"No problem!" Zhao Xing waved his hand and said, "I can handle these. You just need to do a good job of the Qingmiao Law. Remember, during the implementation process, you must review it thoroughly and no major mistakes can be made. But don't let this cause the review to take too long. If the people see such trouble and the approval rate is not high, I'm afraid they won't lend it."
The implementation of the Qingmiao Law was also a test. Zhao Xing would not think that the reform would be easy just because he encountered little resistance in measuring the land.
However, the Qingmiao system still has many drawbacks.
The first point is review. In ancient times, there was no big data or anything like that, so review could only be done by people.
This makes it easy for people to not be able to borrow what they want, but can borrow what they don't need.
This will cause the people to lose confidence in the Qingmiao Law.
However, it is necessary to review it, otherwise it will be troublesome if you cannot get back the money you lent.
In history, Wang Anshi encountered similar problems when he implemented the Qingmiao Law during his reform.
(End of this chapter)