Although only the first signs of the Guanzhong drought had appeared, the county yamen of Lantian County still had not come up with a response policy. This made Li Zexuan somewhat dissatisfied. No matter what was said, the officials of the county yamen were definitely lazy in their work!
Li Zexuan had personally come to the Lantian County yamen today with the intention of denouncing them. However, when he heard County Magistrate He say that the yamen was already preparing for the drought, his expression softened.
"Building the canals and opening up the reservoirs is a must! It's best for the yamen to start recruiting workers in the next two days and use cement to refurbish all the main canals in the county. As for the branch canals, they only need to be cleared! The wages paid to the commoners will be allocated by the county government, and the cement required will be distributed by the workshop of the Strange Interest Pavilion! "
"Using cement to refurbish the canals?"
County Magistrate He was shocked when he heard this. He asked doubtfully, "Marquis, isn't this a little too extravagant? Also, there's no need for this! "
Li Zexuan frowned and said, "Why is there no need for this? Now that there's a shortage of water, the cement canals can reduce the loss of water during the flow of water. Also, it'll be easier to clean them up every year! Don't tell me you want to mobilize the workers to clean the canals every year? "
County Magistrate He swallowed his saliva and said, "No, no, no, I don't want to. Marquis is wise!"
Although he understood that Li Zexuan was speaking the truth, he still couldn't accept such an extravagant matter from the bottom of his heart!
After all, the cement produced by the workshop was still a priceless item. Merchants outside couldn't buy it even if they wanted to.
Li Zexuan seemed to have seen through County Magistrate He's thoughts.
He said, "The cement produced by the workshop hasn't been sold, so we've accumulated a lot of stock in the past half a year. County Magistrate He, you don't have to worry about the problem of insufficient cement. After the drought is resolved, the yamen can organize people to refurbish the roads in Lantian County. Since we plan to make Lantian County a commercial city second only to Chang 'an City, we can't lose our dignity!
Right now, we are only repairing the roads. In the future, when the number of people in the city increases, we will have to expand this county! But that's all for later. The most important thing now is to repair the cement ditch as soon as possible! "
The roads in Lantian County were all bluestone roads. However, even though they were both bluestone roads, the roads in Lantian County were not as smooth as the roads in Chang 'an City. Li Zexuan had been dissatisfied with this for a long time. As the saying goes, if you want to be rich, you have to first fix the roads. He was able to fix the cement road from Yunshan to Chang' an City. Of course, he had to fix the roads in Lantian County!
County Magistrate He was shocked by Li Zexuan's plans to repair roads and expand the city. But at the same time, he was also fascinated. If he could really turn Lantian County into a commercial city second only to Chang 'an, then he, the county magistrate, would be famous all over the world!
How could he be an exception to this rule?
"Gulp!"
County Magistrate He swallowed his saliva and said, "Marquis is right. I will do my best to assist Marquis!"
Li Zexuan smiled and nodded. He asked again, "How is the scale of business in our city compared to the past?"
Speaking of this, County Magistrate He was suddenly energized. He said excitedly,
"It's flourishing. Marquis, the business in Lantian County is flourishing! Where there are people, there are business opportunities. In these few months, the football league not only attracted a large number of spectators, it also attracted a large number of businessmen to open shops, teahouses, inns, and pubs in Lantian County. The number of shops and pubs is three times more than before. The business tax collected by the county government every month is almost five to ten times of the previous years! In the long run, the business tax in our county will exceed the land tax. That's just around the corner! "
"Mm! These are all within expectations. What I want to ask is, the business in Lantian County is developing so rapidly. Are there any new problems in the middle? "
Li Zexuan nodded and asked.
Football was one of the most charming sports. Lantian County was hosting a portion of the football league this time. To be able to attract so many businessmen was within Li Zexuan's expectations. However, this method could be described as pulling up seedlings to help them grow. It was inevitable that there would be hidden dangers in the middle!
"Uh …"
Hearing Li Zexuan's question, County Magistrate He's face showed a hint of difficulty. After hesitating for a while, he opened his mouth and said,
"Marquis, if you want to talk about problems, it's not that there aren't any. The most prominent problem is that as the number of shops in our county increases, there are more and more hooligans who seek protection fees from the businessmen! Many merchants would report to the county yamen after being blackmailed. The yamen's constables would arrest the ruffians, but the merchants who reported to the yamen would often be retaliated against. The most serious case was a silk shop that suddenly caught fire one night! After this matter spread, very few of the merchants came to report it to the authorities! "
Li Zexuan heard this and his face turned cold. He said sternly, "There was such a thing? Why didn't you tell me before? "
"This …"
County Magistrate He opened his mouth to say something, but in the end, he lowered his head and didn't say anything.
Li Zexuan said angrily, "This is County Magistrate He's dereliction of duty! Those hooligans want to use these little tricks to instill fear in the hearts of the businessmen, so as to achieve their goal of extorting protection fees! If the county government doesn't do anything, won't it encourage those hooligans' arrogance?
In the long run, our Lantian County's business environment will get worse and worse, and our reputation will even spread far and wide! Now there is the football league to help us attract businessmen, but what about after the football league ends? What do you plan to use to keep them? "
This was the first time County Magistrate He saw Li Zexuan lose his temper. His face couldn't help but turn pale. After Li Zexuan finished speaking, he hurriedly cupped his hands and said,
"Marquis is right. I will do my best to clean up this bunch of hooligans in the city in the future. However, those people will run away as soon as they see the wind blowing and the grass blowing. If we want to catch them, we will need a lot of manpower! Our county government's three groups of bailiffs only add up to about fifty people … "
"If you don't have enough manpower, then go and recruit more! Lantian County is no longer the small county it used to be. County Magistrate He, you have to broaden your horizons. The three groups of bailiffs in the county government must have at least a hundred people! You must ensure the safety of the city, and resolutely protect the safety of the people and the businessmen! "
Li Zexuan mercilessly interrupted County Magistrate He and said.
The bailiffs were different from the army. If Li Zexuan wanted to recruit more people, he could do so. He didn't have to worry about anyone impeaching him!
"Yes, yes, yes! I will do as you say in a moment! "
County Magistrate He hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Yes."
Li Zexuan turned around and clasped his hands behind his back and said,
"In addition, this marquis also intends to set up a Department of Commerce in the county government. It will specialize in dealing with the tax collection of the businessmen and ordinary disputes. This marquis' purpose in setting up the Department of Commerce is to tell those businessmen that they can enjoy the same treatment as ordinary people in Lantian County. They will not be discriminated against!
From now on, Lantian County would only be divided into the ranks of soldiers and commoners! Although the children of businessmen can't participate in the imperial examinations, they can still attend the county school in the county. In the future, they can even enter Yanhuang College! "
Before this, the businessmen of Lantian County were helplessly bullied by the local ruffians. However, County Magistrate He didn't do his best to help. The reason for this was because of the low status of the businessmen in this era.
The reason why the businessmen didn't dare to report to the officials, other than being afraid of being retaliated by the local ruffians, another important reason was that they felt that even if they reported to the officials, the officials wouldn't take their matter to heart. They might as well spend money to avoid disaster!
Li Zexuan wanted to change this situation. However, he didn't radically raise the status of the businessmen to a very high level. At least, it wasn't as high as it was in the modern era. He only wanted to divide the businessmen into commoners. This way, the opposition he received would be much smaller!
County Magistrate He's eyes widened when he heard this. He couldn't help but say, "Marquis, you can't do this. I'm afraid this is very inappropriate!"
"What's inappropriate about it? This marquis respects the rights of the scholars and didn't give any special treatment to the businessmen. I only unified the businessmen and craftsmen in Lantian County into commoners. Who would object? This Department of Commerce, you first send someone to take care of it. If your people don't do a good job, then this marquis will personally send someone to take care of it. However, when the time comes, this Department of Commerce won't listen to you! "
Li Zexuan said very unyieldingly.
If a superior always treated his subordinates with a pleasant countenance, then it would cause the subordinates to lose respect and slack off on their own work. County Magistrate He was like this now. Li Zexuan wanted to take this opportunity to give him a good beating!
Seeing Li Zexuan being so firm and decisive, County Magistrate He couldn't refute. He could only cup his hands and say, "This official obeys and will do my best to help Marquis manage this Department of Commerce!"
Li Zexuan's expression cleared up a little. He nodded and said, "In this world, there are gains and losses. The businessmen have a good and stable business environment, so they have to pay the corresponding taxes to the officials. In the past, the business tax ratio of 1 out of 30 was not acceptable. After the Department of Commerce is established, all the shops in Lantian County must report their profits every month to the Department of Commerce. They will pay 1 out of 6 of the profits for the month! The Department of Commerce will regularly check the projects of the shops in the city. Those who falsify accounts, under-report tax, or even evade taxes will be severely punished! "
Li Zexuan felt more than once that the business tax ratio in the ancient times was too low. 1 out of 30. In the modern times, the business tax would be at least 17%, right? No matter what, the agricultural tax was higher than the business tax. This was definitely an abnormal phenomenon! Why did those poor farmers have to pay more taxes than the rich merchants? This was not fair!
In the past, Li Zexuan wasn't in his position and didn't meddle in politics. Now that he was given a county, he naturally had the ability and the obligation to meddle in this matter!
When County Magistrate He heard '1 out of 6', he instantly lost his calm! This was equivalent to raising the business tax by five times. How could this be tolerated? He quickly said, "Marquis, you must not! With such a heavy business tax, how would those merchants be willing to do business in Lantian County? "
Li Zexuan said decisively, "This hasn't been tried yet. How do you know that the merchants won't be willing, County Magistrate He? The protection fees they pay to the local ruffians every month is definitely much higher than this amount. As long as the county can help them get rid of these local ruffians and ensure that they have a stable business environment, they will definitely be willing to accept this business tax ratio!
All in all, if they do business in Lantian County, not only will they be treated like normal people, they will also not be harassed by the local ruffians. Moreover, their children will be able to receive good education from the county's schools. These benefits are definitely not something they can enjoy in other counties, right?
Apart from that, the Yan Huang Chamber of Commerce's goods will be given priority to the merchants in Lantian County. As such, I don't believe that there will be merchants who won't be willing to accept this tax ratio! "
Hearing Li Zexuan's analysis, County Magistrate He couldn't help but feel a little moved. In all fairness, if he was a merchant himself, he might also be willing to do business in Lantian County. It couldn't be said that the business tax was high, but it could only be said that the business tax in the past was too low. Even if it was increased by five times, it still wasn't much! Compared to the many benefits he would receive, it was completely worth it!
"Marquis's words are reasonable. Then this official will quickly recruit the citizens to repair the canals and establish a Department of Commerce. We will also severely punish the local ruffians in the city and create a good business environment for the merchants!"
After thinking for a moment, County Magistrate He cupped his hands and said.
Li Zexuan nodded and said, "Mm! The matter of repairing the canals must be done quickly. It would be best if it can be started within the next two days. After the canals are completed, the dam will be opened to release the water. As for the village in the north of Lantian County, this Marquis will think of a way to move the water there! "
"Yes! Marquis! "
Although County Magistrate He didn't know how Li Zexuan would move the water to the north, but since Li Zexuan didn't say anything, he didn't dare to take the initiative to ask. He could only bow his hands and say yes!
When Li Zexuan saw that he had explained everything, he turned around and was about to leave. Before he left, he lightly instructed, "The local ruffians in the city are the cancer of Lantian County. You must be merciless when dealing with them. If there are any ruffians who openly resist the authorities, you just need to send someone to inform me. This Marquis will bring people to destroy them!"
Although it was a light sentence, it was full of murderous intent. County Magistrate He's heart trembled. Only then did he remember that this fair-skinned, scholarly young man in front of him was a ruthless person who started a massacre at Snake Spirit Mountain. He couldn't help but silently mourn for the ruffians in the city. He thought to himself, "You'd better obediently surrender. Otherwise, what awaits you is complete destruction!"
…
After leaving the county office, Li Zexuan directly went to the new Marquis' Mansion in the east.
The Marquis' Mansion and the county office were not far apart. They were only separated by a square, so Li Zexuan quickly arrived at the Marquis' Mansion.
"Oh! That's right! What's the name of the square where the Marquis' Mansion is located? "
Walking to the door, Li Zexuan suddenly had a question in his heart and couldn't help but ask.
Since he was going to move back in the future, he should at least know his home address, right?
He naturally asked the two brothers behind him, Liu Feng and Liu Yun!
Hearing this, Liu Feng couldn't help but laugh.
"Haha! Marquis, this square was originally called Yunfu Square, but I heard that County Magistrate He changed the name of this square a month ago. It should be called Yong 'an Square now! "
"Oh? There's such a thing? "
Li Zexuan couldn't help but be slightly surprised. Although he didn't like his subordinates to flatter him, he had to say that County Magistrate He's flattery was good! It was simply a slap to his heart!
"This name was changed well! Yunfu Square, Maternity Square, haha! Yong 'an Square sounds better than Yunfu Square! "
Li Zexuan smiled and then walked towards the Marquis' Mansion.
…
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
