The nobles of the Han Dynasty loved to seal off mountains and raid lakes to build large manors.
Guzhu Manor was a dowry prepared by Gongsun Zan for his youngest daughter.
Compared with Lingzhi Manor, which pays more attention to production, the buildings are more gorgeous and exquisite, and there are more places for recreation and entertainment.
However, the facilities in the manor are still very complete.
In addition to the main manor house, which is surrounded by mountains and rivers, there are also residences for slaves and servants, several military camps where tribes are located, and areas where families live in the shade.
According to specific areas, there are places that produce oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, clothing, needlework and other handicrafts, small horse farms, warehouses, and even prohibited wineries, ironworks, and salt boiling ponds.
According to Zhou Xing, there are meetings at the beginning, middle and end of each month.
Although the households in the manor are not considered wealthy and have to turn over their output, they are still better off than the people in the frontier fortress who are suffering from war outside the manor.
At three meetings every month, each family would gather to barter, exchanging some needles, thread, brains, beans, wheat, and eggs.
Gongsun Yan heard this interestingly. After looking curiously at the mountains in the distance again, he turned his attention to the steward Zhou Xing.
Seeing Gongsun Yan looking at him, Zhou Xing straightened his back subconsciously, his expression became solemn, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead unconsciously.
He wondered whether Gongsun Yan hated barbarians as much as his father Gongsun Zan did.
But he knew that he had been depressed for more than forty years and that this would be an important turning point.
It depends on whether you continue to be a banker manager or whether you can be appreciated by your master and get the opportunity to change your identity.
Gongsun Yan did not hide her observational gaze. She was indeed in urgent need of all kinds of available people now.
In this era, knowledge was monopolized by aristocratic families, and the ruling class adopted a policy of obscuring the people.
The vast majority of people only live in the small valley where they were born, looking up at the same sky for a short period of time, and their knowledge is really limited.
For people like Zhou Xing who are not from aristocratic families, she will definitely use it.
But to what extent it is used, one still needs to test one’s character.
"Manager Zhou, I wonder how much your monthly salary is. Why did you only wear Gebu clothes when I saw you twice?"
Zhou Xing has been in charge of Lingzhi Manor and Guzhu Manor for many years, and he planned them from scratch.
The two manors produced a lot of output, but Zhou Xing only wore ordinary Gebu clothes during the two meetings.
It's not that Gongsun Yan wants him to be corrupt, no matter how luxurious he wears silk and satin, but when he is in charge, no matter how clean and honest he is, he doesn't need to wear only Gebu.
No matter he is deliberately wearing Gebu, or he really can only afford to wear Gebu, or he personally likes Gebu clothes to be breathable.
The reason for this still needs to be clarified before we know where to place him.
Why are you only wearing Gebu clothes?
Gongsun Yan's question made Zhou Xing startled. After thinking for a long time, he realized that his purpose of finding Gebu's clothes was probably self-defeating. His expression suddenly changed: "Little lady, I..."
He has never been a scheming person, and this act of wearing Gebu clothes to show his integrity was a method thought up by the old wife at home. It was just to gain a chance to stand out in front of the newly arrived master.
Unexpectedly, he was seen through at a glance.
Zhou Xing's forehead was covered with sweat unconsciously. He stooped and stuttered: "I...I..."
Seeing the visible nervousness on his face, Gongsun Yan didn't expect him to be so helpless, so he quickly reassured him: "Manager Zhou, you don't have to think too much, just answer truthfully."
Only then did Zhou Xing accuse him one after another and tell the whole story.
Gongsun Yan looked at him while listening. Seeing that he didn't look like he was lying, he laughed and said, "Don't worry, Manager Zhou. The people at Guzhu Manor only look at their ability and character, not their background."
Zhou Xing was stunned. He took a careful look at Gongsun Yan's flower-like face, and felt a touch of emotion in his heart.
Only looking at ability and character without looking at family background, many people cannot wait for such a sentence in their lifetime.
He bowed his hands in gratitude.
Gongsun Yan also smiled and said a few words of relief, telling him not to go back and blame his wife, and that there would be no changes to his work for the time being.
If you can conquer a person by just saying a few words, Gongsun Yan himself thinks that this is a story that only appears in myths.
In this troubled world, even though there are too many heroes and loyalties, there are even more people who have great ambitions, but their background is limited and they cannot realize their ambitions.
The bond between people is ultimately more stable if they are based on interests.
Benefits do not only refer to money, but also include emotional satisfaction.
Only by giving both material and spiritual peace of mind can people be closely united.
After uncovering that fact, Gongsun Yan asked some more questions.
The car drove past fields and ridges. The road was paved with loess, perhaps because the owner did not live in the village and did not bother to smooth and repair the road. There were ravines and ravines, and the road condition was much worse than the official road.
In order to prevent wear and tear, the wooden wheels are wrapped with a circle of iron sheets. The entire vehicle's shock absorption relies entirely on the thick mattresses in the compartment.
After walking for a while, Gongsun Yan took out his notebook and wrote the word "Building Road" in bold and bold words on it.
While the carriage was walking on the bumpy road, Gongsun Yan was writing and drawing in his notebook, and asking Zhou Xing a few questions from time to time.
Perhaps because his disguise was exposed and he no longer had to be cautious, Zhou Xing became much more fluent in the conversation with Gongsun Yan.
Looking at the fields on the side of the road, Gongsun Yan suddenly asked: "Since the village does not need to pay taxes, how many percent of the land rent will be charged to the farmers?"
Guzhu Manor is listed on the Liaoxi tax-free list, although it is only an invisible list with no clear text.
However, no Cao official dared to come to Guzhu Manor to check the number of acres of land and household registration, so there was no way to bring up the issue of taxes.
Every year, Guzhu Manor only needs to count the output and send 40% of it to Lingzhi Gongsun's family.
In this way, the taxes that should have been paid to the court were transferred to the treasury of the Gongsun family.
As time went by, the country became poorer and the family became richer. It almost became a sore on the body of the Han Dynasty, getting worse and worse.
The shadow households in Guzhu Manor do not need to bear the various complicated taxes such as rent, tax, levy, and transfer from the court.
However, they have no land of their own and rely entirely on renting the fields in Guzhu Manor for farming.
Every year, how much of the fruits of their hard work will be robbed by the manor owner depends on the weight of the manor owner's conscience.
Gongsun Yan's question made Zhou Xing hesitate for a moment.
In the end, he replied with some anxiety: "In previous years, the tithe was 50%. Last year it was extremely hot and cold, and the field production decreased, so I decided to reduce it by 10%."
Zhou Xing's words made Gongsun Yan frown, and he also lowered his head in fear.
The tithe was five. Gongsun Yan was secretly frightened by this figure.
Such ruthless exploitation.
It’s no wonder that when describing the word Tufu in ancient books, it is said that they are ‘working hard all their lives, but once they are older, they will be homeless, marry their wives and sell their children, and they will be worried about their bones when they die.’
Zhou Xing's move to reduce taxes in a year of severe drought was considered a conscientious move, but...
Gongsun Yan glanced at Zhou Xing, who was sweating profusely: "Reducing rent is a good thing, but Manager Zhou should not do anything without permission. This exceeds your authority."
Even if you are doing good deeds, you should go through the necessary procedures and get permission, and you should not make your own decisions.
Zhou Xing immediately got off his horse and knelt down to apologize.
Gongsun Yan stopped him, "It doesn't have to be like this."
Since Zhou Xing did it and told the truth, it shows that he is prepared to pay the price.
In these troubled times, conscience is rare, so it's not like she can't pay for this precious conscience and consciousness.
"Although you are doing good deeds, doing them without permission is definitely not a good thing. There is no such thing as this! I will fine you three months' salary this time. Can Manager Zhou be convinced?"
Zhou Xing was indeed ready to pay the price as Gongsun Yan said, but he was really moved by receiving such a light punishment.
