With the deepening and expansion of the land reform in the three provinces in the southeast, Jiangxi and Huguang were also affected.
The land reform team became braver and more skillful. With the cooperation of the army, the gentry were beheaded one after another. They were no match for them at all. People constantly formed peasant associations to seize land and pledge allegiance to the central government, breaking away from the rule of the local gentry.
They finally realized the power of the people's war and the power of the people that they had never understood before.
At the same time, it allowed the scholars of the land reform working group to refresh their worldview over and over again, cleanse their souls, and then devote themselves to the next round of work with extremely high spirits, continuing this great reform that had not been seen in a thousand years.
The autonomy of the gentry in the richest and most prosperous area in the south of the Yangtze River was gone. The power of the central government completely replaced the gentry and became the real master of the three provinces in the southeast.
Half a month after Xiao Ruxun became emperor, the first round of land reform in Yangzhou ended, announcing the end of the first round of land reform in the three provinces in the southeast. Then Xie He organized the work team to gradually go westward and began to march toward Huguang and Jiangxi.
The three provinces in the southeast began the spring plowing work, and the people got the first wave of benefits from the establishment of Daqin.
Although the whip law was continued, the taxes collected by Daqin were 30% lower than those collected by Daming in previous years. In order to avoid some of the previous abuses, Xiao Ruxun stipulated that the taxes would be organized by peasant associations and collected under the leadership of the land reform officials. The government set the price of grain, and grain merchants were not allowed to control it.
More importantly, Xiao Ruxun abolished the collection of silver for fire consumption. Only a fixed amount of silver was collected, and no more silver was collected. He asked Blackwater to supervise on his behalf.
Anyone who dared to cheat or tamper with his intention would be beheaded on the spot without mercy.
Under the stimulation of such a favorable policy, the situation in the three provinces in the southeast was soon stabilized. People quickly threw themselves into the spring plowing work with great enthusiasm. The land reform came to an end, and people turned their energy to food production. Everything began to return to daily life.
However, the end of the land reform in the three provinces in the southeast did not mean the end of the work in other places. To be exact, the work in other places had just begun.
For this reason, Xie He specially made a trip to the capital to ask Emperor Xiao Ruxun for instructions on the next stage of work. Then, she also wanted to reminisce about old times and get a better position.
Although he now had the power to decide the life and death of many people, he didn't have an official position. At the beginning of the establishment of the Daqin, he wanted to get something that would make him feel at ease.
Although Xiao Ruxun had given him a house and land, it was still not a good feeling to not have an official position.
After all, the outstanding land reform officials under him had been promoted to village heads or even county magistrates. They had set up the government agencies of the three southeastern provinces. Now, he was the only one left without an official position. He also felt a little embarrassed.
He wanted to see if he could get a central official to do it.
After all, he was someone who had political achievements and had led many people to do things.
Therefore, when Xiao Ruxun summoned Xiao Ruzhi and Chen Lin back to the capital to report on their work, he followed them.
To his relief, Xiao Ruxun attached great importance to him. He personally met him and asked him about the progress of the land reform.
"The land reform in the three southeastern provinces has basically ended. According to His Majesty's request, those gentry families who were lucky enough to survive are strictly monitored. Those who are officials in the court will be organized and sent to the capital for resettlement. Those who are not officials in the court will wait for His Majesty's arrangement."
Xie He reported.
"Well done, you have done a good job. These people must be monitored and can't be allowed to stay in these places. They must be sent to the capital together. The abolition of the mausoleum system in the early Han Dynasty is a good system. It is used to suppress the tyrants. I want to keep the biggest threat by my side and control it closely. I can't let them hurt the people."
Xie He hurriedly said, "Heaven and earth can bear witness to His Majesty's benevolence. The people of Daqin are very fortunate! When His Majesty's imperial edict to reduce taxes by 30% and abolish the use of fire and silver was sent to the three southeastern provinces, the people of the three southeastern provinces all shouted 'Long live His Majesty'. This shows how much the people support His Majesty and our Daqin. "
Xiao Ruxun smiled.
"This is what an Emperor should do. It's not worth mentioning. Tell me more about Hu Guang and Jiangxi."
"Yes."
Xie He said, "Hu Guang and Jiangxi are also places where the gentry is relatively strong. But compared to the fierce resistance in the three southeastern provinces, Hu Guang and Jiangxi have much less resistance. The further west we go, the more villages there are without gentry, but there are tyrants who run amok in the villages. They have no respect for the law and evade taxes. It's very hateful!"
"We can't let these people stay. They are not even allowed to donate land. We have to confiscate their properties. Do you understand?"
"Yes, I understand!"
Xie He continued, "The problem in Hu Guang and Jiangxi is quite similar to the three southeastern provinces. It's not a big problem. But if we go further west, there will be a large number of chieftains in Guizhou and Sichuan, as well as Guangdong and Yunnan in the south. How should we deal with them?"
"You don't have to worry about this. I have my own ways. I have already sent a large number of Black Water agents to infiltrate Guizhou and Yunnan to learn the local dialect. You should also select a group of people. I will let Zhang Wu contact you and arrange for these people to learn the local dialect and understand the local customs. After Hu Guang and Jiangxi are dealt with, we will start to deal with the chieftains in Guizhou and Yunnan."
Hearing Xiao Ruxun's words, Xie He said in surprise, "Does His Majesty want to carry it out in the chieftain's territory …"
"Yes."
Xiao Ruxun nodded, "The chieftains are also Daqin's territory. As long as it's Daqin's territory, I will not allow any power that doesn't belong to the central government to exist. The chieftains must be uprooted. The method is the same as what I taught you. There are also poor people among the chieftains. There will only be more, not less."
"But the chieftains are all foreigners. If we do this, they will be very disgusted. We will also be in great danger. We may not even be able to gain their trust."
Xiao Ruxun walked to Xie He's side and said in a low voice, "Qingquan, all the poor people in the world are the same. No matter if they are of our own race or foreigners, they are all the same. Seize what they care about the most, provoke their anger, and incite them to riot.
Join hands with them and let them kill their own chieftains. It's the same as us letting our people kill the gentry and tyrants. They can also be used by us. Then, we can use the Taoism of the king to change the land. It won't take long before Guizhou and Yunnan will truly be Daqin's Guizhou and Yunnan. "
Xie He took a deep breath and nodded, "I understand. I know what His Majesty means. I will definitely do my best."
"Don't let me down, Qingquan."
Xiao Ruxun continued, "If you can do this well, in the future, we can use this method to deal with Guangdong and Guangxi, Sichuan, and the Northern Barbarians and Jurchens. Many things need the army to intimidate, but it doesn't necessarily need the army to do it themselves. Do you understand?"
Xie He was deeply shocked.
Could it be that His Majesty still wanted to carry out land reform for the Northern Barbarians?
But weren't the Northern Barbarians herding cattle?
They could also carry out land reform?
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