Gu Yu suppressed his hatred and said: "My skills are inferior to those of others, so I should not be praised by the Holy One."
The Holy Master took Gu Yu away from the school grounds, not wanting Gu Yu to be resentful towards Shao Wuji. Both of them were both civil and military, whom he valued very much.
He said to Gu Yu: "Lieutenant Shao has such a bad temper. When he lost to your father, it has always been a regret in his heart. He has no ill intentions towards you."
Gu Yu understood that the reason why Shao Wuji had no ill intentions towards her was because she was too weak now and not worthy of his attention.
This also intensified her desire to become stronger as soon as possible.
Whether it's in terms of force or status.
Gu Yudao: "I understand that literature is not first, military is not second, and it is the nature of a military commander to be competitive. Unfortunately, I am too different from my father, so I can't have a hearty fight with Captain Shao, and I don't know who can rival him in the world.
Lieutenant Shao, let me have a wonderful competition and feast your eyes on it."
The Holy Master said: "If you say so, there is indeed no military commander in the entire dynasty who can rival Shao Wuji."
The Holy Spirit said this in a calm tone, as if he was just stating a fact.
Gu Yu was also stating the fact that the Holy Emperor's trust in Shao Wuji was too much and could not be shaken by a single word.
She could only figure it out slowly.
Returning to the Qinzheng Hall, Gu Yu glanced at the several Wenhansi bachelors in the side hall.
After they handed over the memorials they were dealing with today to the Holy One, the Holy One picked out a few difficult matters to discuss with them.
Officials from aristocratic families came to Qinzheng Hall less and less frequently, and it was precisely for this reason.
This group of Wenhan scholars are very good at talking. They are not like the courtiers who only know how to talk. Even when they refute His Majesty's views, they always put him first, which makes His Majesty feel much better.
Just like Gu Yu said, "The courtiers are the officials of the Yu Dynasty, and the bachelor Wenhan is just the official of the Holy Emperor."
When the discussion was about to end, Gu Yu glanced at Ding Xiaoji. Ding Xiaoji took a step forward and said: "Your Majesty, there is something I don't know whether to say or not."
The Holy One asked: "What's the matter?"
Ding Xiaoji said: "This year the drought in the north is severe, and the Holy Father once again ordered a 10% reduction in taxes in the south of the Yangtze River. However, the accounts submitted by the Ministry of Revenue are a full 30% less than in previous years. Coupled with the war in the south of the Yangtze River last year, the national treasury was in serious deficit and could not make ends meet. If
If we encounter another natural or man-made disaster in the coming year, our finances will be in danger."
The Holy Master's expression changed, and he took the book from the household department and looked through it.
Ding Xiaoji and Gu Yu learned how to use forms to handle accounts. When comparing the two, the gap was immediately apparent.
The Holy Master's expression became serious and he spun the eighteen pieces in his hand making a crackling sound.
The Holy Master said: "Gu Aiqing, from what you see, why does the Ministry of Revenue dare to submit such a bad account?"
Some time ago, the ministers opposed Wen Hansi, and the Minister of Hubu was the first to bear the brunt. This had to make the emperor feel that it was the Hubu who was giving him power.
There is indeed a drought in the north this year, but according to reports from various places, it is not so severe that tax revenue will be reduced sharply, leaving the national treasury empty.
Gu Yudao: "Going back to your Majesty, as I see it, the shortage of the treasury is a major event that endangers the country and the country. The Ministry of Revenue does not dare to make bad debts to deal with the Holy Majesty."
The Holy Master frowned and was very dissatisfied with Gu Yu's behavior of speaking for the household department, and said: "The accounts have been submitted, why don't you dare?"
Gu Yudao: "It is actually a natural disaster and a man-made disaster, which has left the people with no means of livelihood, no land to cultivate, and difficulty in ensuring food and clothing, let alone paying taxes."
A sudden anger arose in the heart of the Holy Emperor. Nowadays, the Yu Dynasty did not say that the country was rich and the people were strong, and the people could live and work in peace and contentment, but Gu Yu actually said that the people had no life and no land to cultivate.
The Holy Sage said: "Since the founding of the Yu Dynasty, the land farming system of the previous dynasty has been changed to the land occupation system. Ding men occupy seventy acres of land, and Ding women occupy thirty acres of land. Everyone in the world can cultivate the land, so how can there be no land to cultivate?
"
Gu Yu glanced at Ding Xiaoji and said to him: "As for you."
Ding Xiaoji took a step forward and said: "Back to Your Majesty, I was born in a farmer's family, and my ancestors have been farming for generations. Unfortunately, after years of accumulation, when there is a natural disaster, the land has to be sold. The upper fields have long been occupied by wealthy families, leaving only the middle and lower fields.
Land reclamation.
Although there are seventy acres, there is very little fertile land, and the yield is not much, but the tax has to be paid on fifty acres. Although the saint is benevolent, the tax will be reduced in case of natural or man-made disasters.
But in the long run, as Mr. Gu said, there will be no land to cultivate. In other words, there will be no good land to cultivate, and the exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes will be the same."
Gu Yu nodded silently, agreed with Ding Xiaoji's statement, and looked at the Holy One. His face was indeed gloomy.
At the beginning of the Yu Dynasty, after a long period of war, the population was sparse. In order to promote agricultural development, the founding emperor changed the farmland system to the land occupation system and encouraged farmers to reclaim land.
As if on stimulants, the people rushed to seize high-quality land to allow the Yu Dynasty to recuperate in a short period of time.
Unfortunately, the land occupation system is both a stimulant and a poison.
As Ding Xiaoji said, although the common people can occupy a lot of land, the tax is fixed. If there is a famine year, even if the output of the 70 acres is only 40 acres, the tax will be paid according to the 50 acres.
Not to mention how can one person cultivate seventy acres?
If the people could not pay taxes, they would give up the land in their names and merge with their families.
Then the fertile land accumulated in the early years fell into the hands of noble families.
Even worse, they would simply give up all their land and become serfs of aristocratic families. All taxes would be paid by the aristocratic families. They could only farm for the aristocratic families and work hard for a meal.
The trend of aristocratic families annexing land has become more and more intense, and their status has become more stable. Farmers can only immerse themselves in farming and have no time to study.
The class gap is getting wider and wider, and the aristocratic families not only control the emperor, but also thousands of people.
If things continue like this, won't it mean that the people have no means of livelihood and no land to cultivate?
The Holy Sage said: "The land occupation system was originally for the benefit of thousands of people, but now it has become the source of disaster for the people."
Gu Yudao: "Your Majesty, the situation is not too bad now. It is just a natural disaster and the tax revenue has dropped sharply. But if it is allowed to develop, most of the land will be owned by the wealthy families, and the common people will have no choice but to give up the land and obey the orders of the wealthy families..."
Before Gu Yu could finish speaking, the Holy Emperor broke out in cold sweat and shouted loudly: "Shut up!"
Gu Yu and Bachelor Wenhan both knelt on the ground. Gu Yu said: "Your Majesty, please calm down. I just made a mistake."
The Holy Master gasped, knowing that Gu Yu was telling the truth, and said: "Is there any way to return the fields to the people?"
Gu Yu straightened up and said: "Instead of allowing the people to reclaim wasteland on their own, it is better to re-measure the land and calculate the land allocation. In addition to the land allocation, encourage the reclamation of wasteland. The tax collected from the wasteland will not be counted. This method can to a certain extent prevent the aristocratic family from reclaiming the wasteland."
Annexing the land also allows the people to have a fixed residence that can last for hundreds of years."
The Holy Sage said: "A plan to grant farmland by mouth?"
Gu Yudao: "Yes, not only do we need to re-measure the land, but we also need to check the population and complete the household registration. Even for aristocratic families, the land must be divided according to the population and servants..."
Gu Yu spoke in detail, and the Holy Father was very excited after hearing this. He even stood up and walked back and forth a few steps.
The Holy Master said to Gu Yu: "You go and perfect all the details, and then leave them to me."