Chapter 138 These People's Money Is Too Easy to Make
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“Are you planning to earn money yourself to support the consorts in your harem?” Shen Fuyu asked with solemn sincerity.
“No.” Qin Zhiyi’s expression darkened. Support them? At present, he did not want a single one! Suppressing his temper, he said, “The national treasury is empty.”
“Then you could have just said so.” Shen Fuyu looked displeased. “I thought you had some strange idea in mind!”
Tsk!
“So, do you have any good suggestions?” Qin Zhiyi asked after calming himself. Though Shen Fuyu’s ideas were often unconventional, she always managed to point him toward a unique solution. Gradually, whenever he encountered something he could not decide, he found himself wanting to consult her.
“How do you view the present situation, Your Majesty?” Shen Fuyu became serious. Her child was about to embark on a great undertaking, and naturally she had to offer him some support.
Qin Zhiyi pondered briefly before saying, “At present, the national treasury relies entirely on taxes. Yet after they are collected layer upon layer, very little actually reaches the treasury. I have no wish to increase the burden on ordinary people, while the aristocratic families, who could easily bear such taxes, continue to enjoy exemptions and reductions.”
“Exactly.” Shen Fuyu nodded. “Why not reform the system? To be honest, I do not approve of granting tax exemptions to the aristocratic families.”
“Especially since many of them live off the achievements earned by their ancestors. They are merely taking shelter beneath a great tree. Taxes support the operation of the state, so naturally, everyone in the country should contribute.”
Shen Fuyu spoke at length. “Besides, if you think about it carefully and compare the aristocrats with the common people, the nobles pay no taxes, yet possess abundant resources with which to make money and generate more money. Ordinary people, on the other hand, enjoy neither tax exemptions nor the capital needed to earn anything.”
The common people remained poor from generation to generation, while the great families could squander their wealth for centuries without ever reaching the point of having nothing left to eat.
Those among the common people capable of changing their circumstances were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
“This cannot be accomplished overnight.” Qin Zhiyi listened and felt only that the matter was exceedingly difficult. For a moment, he did not know where to begin. “Even if I draw up a plan, it will probably take a year or two before it can be implemented.”
The current predicament would still be difficult to resolve.
By the time he completed his reform of the tax system, the western provinces might already have been lost.
“It is enough that you understand the situation.” Shen Fuyu pressed her lips together. In truth, it would take far longer than a year or two. Sweeping reform meant cutting straight into the vital interests of the aristocratic families. By then, every one of them would surely unite in resistance. That would be the truly difficult part.
“As for the immediate problem, you could do this.”
“Stir up their competitive instincts. Let them willingly hand over their money for the sake of reputation, prestige, or whatever other reason. Then take that money directly and buy grain and supplies to send to the disaster-stricken regions.”
It was a little underhanded, perhaps, but who would dare say anything?
Qin Zhiyi understood, even though Shen Fuyu had given him nothing more than a vague direction.
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Afterward, Qin Zhiyi went to speak with the State Preceptor in secret for some time. Once he heard Qin Zhiyi’s plan, the State Preceptor expressed his complete approval and took upon himself the task of arousing the aristocrats’ competitive instincts.
By the time Shen Fuyu learned of Qin Zhiyi’s plan, three days had already passed. Rong Xuan returned, dusty from his journey, with an assistant in tow.
“Holy crap! A bald monk!” Shen Fuyu’s eyes lit up.
“Amitabha.” The monk, whose beard was already streaked with white, pressed his palms together and intoned the Buddha’s name.
“You have absolutely no manners!” Qin Zhiyi said incredulously. “This is Master Moyuan, a venerable monk of the State-Protecting Temple.”
“I have not seen such a lively person in many years. It is of no consequence.” Master Moyuan bowed. “I presume this is Consort Xian.”
Shen Fuyu glanced at him, then at Rong Xuan, wondering where Rong Xuan had found this monk. Like himself, the man apparently did not know how to get angry.
How dull.
“Master Moyuan is also my senior brother in Buddhist studies,” Rong Xuan said with a faint smile. “There could be no more suitable person to step forward.”
“Allow me to take a few days’ leave as well.” He had not seen his senior brother and closest friend in many years, and there was still much he wished to say. Rong Xuan decided he might as well remain outside the palace for a few days.
A high monk had dreamed of a divine revelation. Master Moyuan’s name was known throughout the land, and if he personally used the dream as the basis for soliciting charitable donations for the four disaster-stricken commanderies in the west, the appeal would possess tremendous credibility. Everyone would believe that donating to those western commanderies would earn merit for themselves and their families.
Shen Fuyu casually wrote a letter and had a young eunuch carry it out of the palace to Shen Shucheng.
Since she herself had no money, she might as well help Qin Zhiyi open the Shen family’s coffers. Shen Fuyu showed no mercy in the letter, bluntly stating that Qin Zhiyi revered Master Moyuan, and that performing a charitable deed would win merit for the Shen family. Whether they wanted the fame and prestige was up to them.
The Shen family cared most about its reputation.
Shen Shucheng immediately endured the pain of parting with the money and produced one hundred thousand taels of silver. This included a contribution from Old Madam Shen, who was devoted to vegetarianism and Buddhism.
Qin Zhiyi then turned around and praised the Shen family before the assembled court officials. On the spot, he bestowed several beautiful and precious imperial gifts that looked impressive but could not be converted into cash.
To people of ancient times, an imperial gift represented the highest possible honor. Even a single item would be enshrined as a family heirloom, a symbol of the imperial family’s esteem.
Of course, all those dazzling objects had been mass-produced in Shen Fuyu’s spatial realm, because Qin Zhiyi’s private treasury was actually rather poor.
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“Just what kind of person is your master? Where did he get so many treasures for you?” Qin Zhiyi asked as he watched Shen Fuyu carry over a heap of objects as though they were rubbish. Every one of them was worth a fortune.
“Well… he might be a giant dragon.” Shen Fuyu scratched her head. “But it does not matter. Since they were given to me, they are mine. We are all on the same side, so use them however you like.”
The main issue was that her spatial realm contained far too many things. Only recently had she discovered that whenever she took some of those objects out and used them, new ones would be produced to replace them.
They were taking up space!
The Shen family was overjoyed by these rewards. Their ties with the imperial family had grown even closer, and they flaunted their treasures with great delight. The other families could no longer sit still.
The Lin and Sun families each followed with one hundred thousand taels. The Cui family went even further, producing one hundred and fifty thousand. The imperial clansmen could not simply stand by and watch, either, and for the sake of appearances, they all contributed—some two thousand taels, some three thousand.
Master Moyuan announced that he needed a large basin to hold the banknotes.
“These idiots’ money is so easy to swindle.” In the Golden Hall, Shen Fuyu sat counting the money with great interest.
Qin Zhiyi: …
Her father was among those idiots.
“All done!” Shen Fuyu stacked the banknotes into a small pile. “Altogether, there are one million three hundred and seventy thousand taels of silver.”
Qin Zhiyi fell silent. “These people are richer than the national treasury.”
“That is precisely the problem. If all the money goes into their pockets, how could the treasury possibly have any?” Shen Fuyu shrugged. People in ancient times always equated power with rank and status. In truth, power should be paired with responsibility. Only then could everyone fulfill the duties of their position.
So, if they wanted the country to prosper, reform was indispensable.
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