Chapter 236: The Autumn Levy (Part 1)

“It would be better for you to take a look first, sir,” Wu De said with a smile. “Otherwise, if you destroy it upon returning home, you might regret it when it’s too late.”

Wang Zhaomin’s face flushed red, extremely embarrassed at having his thoughts seen through. After being told this, he had no choice but to open the envelope. Inside was a piece of paper.

It was a thick sheet of paper made in the Australians’ paper mill, very crisp, with a faint floral pattern on a slightly yellowed background. It felt very comfortable to the touch. Wang Zhaomin’s heart stirred. He pulled it out for a closer look and saw that it was a Delong Bank provincial bank draft, with a face value of one hundred taels.

Because he was taking restorative medicines, Wang Zhaomin had very close dealings with Runshitang and had heard from Yang Shixiang that the Australians were now issuing a type of bank draft. It could be exchanged for silver cash at designated businesses throughout Guangdong province. Large sums of silver no longer needed to be carried on one’s person or entrusted to escort agencies for transport. One only needed to deposit the silver at the counter, pay a “remittance fee” based on the amount, and receive a draft that could be exchanged elsewhere. It was extremely convenient.

Carrying this draft was much more convenient than a large sum of silver. A hundred taels of silver, even wrapped in a package, would be a large bundle—too conspicuous. One could also add secret marks and seals to the draft, so it couldn’t be fraudulently claimed if lost.

Wang Zhaomin knew this was his “private fee” from the tax collection being given to him in advance, a request for his help during the process. He had never encountered such a straightforward master before. He felt a great sense of satisfaction and cupped his hands, saying, “If there is any way I can be of use, I will certainly do my best.”

With these words, they had reached a mutual understanding. The night was long, and the conversation was lively. Wu De had another important matter to ask him, but the time hadn’t been right earlier. Now, it was.

He lowered his voice, “This Chen Minggang, how should we deal with him?”

“If you try to be superficially compliant,” Wang Zhaomin said, closing his eyes, “you may not be a match for that old fox…”

Wu De understood. It was just as he had thought.

“I’ve learned a lesson.”

The two men’s furtive conversation continued until the early hours of the morning. Wu De returned to his office under the cover of night. The room was brightly lit. The members of the County Yamen Leadership Work Group were still awake, gathered in the meeting room discussing issues.

Here was a group of professionals seconded from various departments specifically for the land tax issue. They were mainly financial talents, along with an army combat engineer named Pan Da—he had been transferred because he had worked for the tax bureau and was very familiar with the tax collection system.

Of course, there was also Xiong Buyou, responsible for external relations, and even Dong Weiwei, the amateur Ming history enthusiast in charge of surveying and mapping, was present. She was not there for her knowledge of Ming history, but because she had been conducting social surveys in the countryside for several months and had first-hand materials.

There was also a group of liaisons responsible for coordinating with various committees, people like Sun Xiao from the Planning Committee and Zhou Botao from the Political Security Directorate.

Wu De had someone brew strong tea and relayed the contents of his conversation with Wang Zhaomin. Everyone was very interested in this intelligence. However, the biggest point of contention within the leadership group was how to handle Chen Minggang.

The cunning clerk himself was worthless, but the Fish-Scale Register in his possession was a crucial item. The exact amount of taxable land in the entire county was all recorded in this register.

The transmigrators’ social census of the county was only half complete. The issue of land property rights was even more complex, requiring large-scale land measurement and property verification, which could not be done in a short time. The transmigrators had only just established their authority at the grassroots level in Lingao, and their reach had not yet fully extended.

Therefore, a dispute arose within the leadership group on how to handle Chen Minggang. One faction believed he should be immediately arrested, publicly tried, and then executed. Another faction believed he should be used for a period first. Of course, no one disagreed with the final outcome of executing him.

“Alright, let’s summarize the problems at hand,” Wu De said.

The purpose of the transmigrator group taking over tax collection was primarily to use this opportunity to infiltrate and control the county yamen. Secondly, it was to establish a fair and effective new tax system, reduce the burden on the common people, and increase revenue.

To achieve these two goals, they had to have a complete understanding of the county’s land quantity, fertility, and property rights. Otherwise, they couldn’t begin.

The social survey work, which began after the Spring Festival, had gone through a series of tasks including bandit suppression and grassroots organization building. It was now showing initial results, but they were still far from having a firm grasp of the entire county’s social situation.

Regarding the total amount of farmland, they had gathered some preliminary data through the work teams’ investigations. Someone had even proposed using model airplanes for remote sensing and mapping to obtain precise data on the quantity, nature, and location of all farmland in the county. However, the issue of land property rights could not be clarified by simple surveying.

To investigate property rights, one had to measure the land. Re-registering and re-surveying was not only extremely laborious and time-consuming but also met with immense resistance. In a feudal society, whenever land was to be measured, it was only easy to do at the beginning of a new dynasty, during a period of reform. Subsequent attempts always provoked strong backlash from the gentry class and often ended in failure.

One of the fundamental purposes of the Executive Committee launching a large-scale social survey was precisely to prepare for a comprehensive land measurement project. But now it seemed the progress was far too slow. According to Wu De’s statistics, through bandit suppression and the stationing of work teams, they had now roughly controlled a quarter of the county’s grassroots administration.

However, this administrative control was still very weak. It was impossible to rely on it to carry out land measurement and investigation.

Moreover, it was now the eighth lunar month, and tax collection was about to begin. According to Wang Zhaomin, the work had to be finished by the beginning of the eleventh month. That was only two months. To complete the land measurement of the entire county in these two short months was completely unrealistic.

“So, this Fish-Scale Register is very important to us, at least for now,” Wu De said. “Until we have a complete grasp of the land property rights of the entire county.”

Although the Fish-Scale Register was full of errors, it was the only proof of ownership before a new property registration ledger was created. No wonder the Household Office clerks could profit so handsomely from it; no matter how dynasties changed, their source of wealth would not be cut off.

“In that case, don’t we still have to cooperate with Chen Minggang?” Xiong Buyou said.

“It’s just a Fish-Scale Register. We just need to find a way to get our hands on it,” Zhou Dongtian said slowly. “I’m sure he’ll talk.”

“You’re so confident?”

“Of course,” Zhou Dongtian appeared full of confidence. “As long as you authorize it.”

Wu De knew what he planned to do, of course—but he had other plans.

“I have a plan. The land measurement work must be done, and the tax collection work must also be done,” Wu De said. “But this plan needs to be reported to the Executive Committee for approval, and it also requires deep cooperation with Wang Zhaomin. So let’s discuss it among ourselves first…”

The autumn grain had not yet been harvested, but the news that the Australians were preparing to take over the entire county’s autumn levy had already spread throughout the county. This news caused a sensation and also made the gentry and large households nervous. They sent people to the city to gather information, and for a time, the teahouses in front of the county yamen were packed.

The news that came out was not good. It was said that this time it was Master Wu of Bairen Village who was taking it on. Everyone knew that Master Wu of Bairen Village was a big chief among the Australians. For such a person to take on tax collection was clearly not with good intentions. Anyone who owned one or two hundred mu of land and was considered a grain-paying household felt uneasy, not knowing what the Australians were planning to do.

Neither Wang Zhaomin nor Chen Minggang would say anything about the specific methods the Australians would use for tax collection. Everyone was in the dark about what these two were planning.

The small commoner households, however, were calm. No matter who was emperor, they had to pay taxes. Paying taxes to the Australians would probably be about the same; it couldn’t get any worse. Fortunately, the weather had been cooperative this year, with favorable winds and rain, and the harvest was good. Many people had also earned a considerable income by working for the Australians, and they guessed that this year’s autumn tax would probably be easier to pay than last year’s.

A few days later, the county’s gentry collectively chose Zhang Youfu to negotiate terms with Wu De, hoping to find out from him how big the Australians’ appetite was this time.

Zhang Youfu made a trip to Wu De’s place, and after listening to Wu De’s instructions, he immediately returned home.

The living room was filled with a group of anxious landlords and country gentry waiting for news. Some who couldn’t come themselves had sent their trusted stewards.

“Chief Wu said that this year, everything will be as usual,” Zhang Youfu said.

A collective sigh of relief went through the crowd. If it was as usual, their interests would not be harmed. Although some of them had burdens that were heavy and unreasonable, they didn’t want any changes—after all, things were manageable for now. If there were to be changes, who knew what would happen. The Chinese people had known since ancient times that many things were already bad, but when the authorities said they were going to make things better, the result was often that things got worse.

“Chief Wu also said that taking on the tax collection this year was not originally their idea,” Zhang Youfu told the crowd. “It’s just that considering the ‘reasonable burden’ was a hassle for everyone, it would be better to collect it along with the autumn levy. That way, you all don’t have to come twice.”

That wasn’t unacceptable. But the reasonable burden was collected by village, while the grain tax was calculated by mu of land. Someone asked how it would be converted.

“The autumn grain is the autumn grain, and the reasonable burden is the reasonable burden,” Zhang Youfu said. “You just deliver them together at the time of payment.”

Zhang Youfu continued to announce that both the reasonable burden and the grain tax could be paid with grain circulation coupons. This news caused a stir among the landlords—they usually spent any coupons they received immediately. Now, hearing they could be used to pay taxes, many of them felt regret.

After Zhang Youfu had finished speaking, everyone was satisfied and dispersed. Liu Youren, who had been sitting at the back, got up and came over to ask Zhang Youfu:

“Old Zhang! Will Old Eighth still be handling the tax collection this year?”

“Of course! Without Old Eighth, and since the Australians don’t have the Fish-Scale Register, how would they collect the tax?” Zhang Youfu said, puzzled.