Master Kong Zhongni

Chapter 148 Qi Girl Is Too Unrestrained (4000 words)
"One out of a hundred?"

Fan Li couldn't help being surprised when he heard the words: "When did your country's tariffs drop to such a low level? I remember that the lowest was [-]% off in the past!"

Fan Li lived in Yue for a long time, so he didn't have a timely grasp of the tax rates of the countries in the Central Plains.

But Zi Gong knew the tax rates of the neighboring countries of Lu State very well, so seeing Fan Li puzzled, he explained to him with a smile.

"Actually, Qi State's tax rate has been [-] out of [-] tariffs and [-] out of [-] city taxes since a long time ago. This is the rule set by Guan Yiwu back then, and it is also the normal state of Qi's customs and market taxes.

On the contrary, the high tax rate in Qi State in recent years is abnormal.It is normal to be able to return to this tax rate! "

However, the customs and market tax rate in Qi State is so low, of course, it is not due to the kindness of Duke Huan and Guan Zhong in the past.

Because after the Qi State promulgated the new customs and city tax law, Duke Huan repeatedly emphasized this collection principle to the princes who came to the meeting at the princes alliance meeting the following year.

Emphasis is not enough, Huan Gong still has to make an oath with the princes to force everyone to collect taxes according to this principle.

For Qi people's behavior of "opening the door and free trade" in the Spring and Autumn Edition, the princes, under the pressure of Qi, had to collect the customs tax at this rate.

After all, Duke Huan of Qi can say that if anyone disagrees, he will destroy the unity of the Xia and have ulterior motives. In the future, if you are invaded by the barbarians, don’t ask me to help you make peace. I am no longer your dear big brother. You are not my filial brother anymore.

This kind of two-faced method of benevolence, righteousness and morality in the mouth, and pulling and kicking behind the scenes, the princes had no choice but to submit.

But other countries collect taxes in this way, but the Qi people themselves have not honestly implemented this tax law.

Because Qi's customs and city taxes are basically used for military expenses, whenever Huan Gong wants to use troops abroad, Qi's customs and city taxes will be increased.

And every time of disaster, customs and market taxes are simply canceled to reduce domestic prices, and at the same time attract foreign merchants to bring grain and other goods to Qi for sale.

But no matter how it is adjusted, the sum of customs duty and city tax will not exceed one-tenth of the value of the goods.

And one tenth of the customs and city tax is a very delicate figure for most merchants.

When Zigong discussed with Fan Li earlier, the profit rate they could accept was exactly one-tenth.

Because once the tax exceeds this amount, most of the goods will lose money, and merchants are naturally unwilling to do loss-making business.

And if the tax is less than one-tenth, even if the profit is thin, at least it can be made up by small profits but quick turnover. After all, Qi's population is so large that no one is willing to easily give up the consumer market of this big country in the East China Sea.

One tenth has always been the red line of customs and city taxes in Qi State, and it is the ancestral law that has not changed for thousands of years.

Fan Li recalled the contents of "Guanzi", and quickly figured out the cause and effect.

He turned to ask again: "But after all, that is the tax law set by Guan Zi in the past. I heard that the current Marquis of Qi...uh..."

Having said this, Fan Li quickly stopped talking, and turned to look at the Qi soldiers below.

But Zaiyu and Zigong also understood what Fan Li meant.

Everyone in the world knows that the current Marquis of Qi has always regarded his ancestor Huan Gong as an idol, and his character is indeed very similar to Huan Gong.

Both love extravagance, are extremely addicted to pleasure, and keep a gang of jesters for their amusement.

But at the same time, the two also promoted a group of extremely capable courtiers to assist them. Duke Huan has Guan Zhong and Bao Shuya, and today's Marquis of Qi has Yanzi and Tian Rangju.

But in terms of ability, the current Marquis of Qi cannot reach the height of Duke Huan after all.

Although Yanzi is equally talented, he is still inferior to Guan Zhong.

As the overlord, Duke Huan sucked the money for his enjoyment from the blood of all Xia countries.

But today's Qi State is no longer as powerful as it used to be, so most of the current Qihou enjoyment can only suck the blood of his own country.

For this reason, if the monarch wants to suck blood, he must use his brains on taxes.

This is also an important reason why the customs and city tax rate in Qi State has remained high in the past few years.

When the soldiers of the Qi State heard Fan Li complaining about the Marquis of Qi, not only did no one object, but a few of them followed suit.

They said with a smile: "The tax rate in the customs city has been lowered. Instead of thanking the monarch, you merchants should thank the Yanzi and ghosts of our country!"

Zaiyu knew that the people of Qi State supported Yanzi, but he did not expect that they loved Yanzi to such an extent.

He couldn't help asking curiously: "How do you say this?"

The soldiers looked at each other, laughed loudly and said: "A few years ago, the monarch had scabies, and he had scabies every two days, and then it deteriorated to a daily attack.

No matter how the king treats him, he can't be cured. It must be the ghosts and gods who have condemned him.

Therefore, the monarch thought that Zhu and Shi who were in charge of the sacrifice were not thoughtful enough, and planned to kill them to apologize to the ghosts and gods.

After Yanzi knew about this, he went to the king and said: It is not their fault.

The monarch asked: Why do you say that?
Yan Zi said: If you are a virtuous monarch, the government affairs will not be neglected, there will be no resentment from top to bottom, and there will be no violation of etiquette in your actions.Then his Zhu and Shi will report the actual situation to ghosts and gods, and they will not feel ashamed.

Therefore, the ghosts and gods enjoy the sacrifices with peace of mind, and the country receives blessings from the ghosts and gods.

However, if Zhu and Shi happen to meet an indulgent monarch, the whole country will be resentful and jealous, behave unreasonably and unreasonably, indulge their desires, satisfy their selfishness, and plunder the people's savings, causing anger and resentment, and they will not repent.

If Zhu and Shi state the actual situation when offering sacrifices, this is reporting the crimes of the monarch.

If they cover up their faults and only talk about good things, it is falsehood and deceit.

If you can't tell the truth, but you have to say irrelevant empty words to please the ghosts and gods, then the ghosts and gods will not enjoy the sacrifices of their country, and they will cause disasters.

So, if bad things happen, how can you blame Zhu and Shi for not working hard?

What's more, in the country, only Zhu and Shi are praying for the monarch, but the people are cursing with resentment. How can the blessings of the two be worth the curse of the whole country?

The monarch was very happy to hear Yan Zi's words, so he relaxed the government orders, abolished the ban, reduced taxes, and exempted the people from the government's debts.

After a while, the monarch's scabies really healed.

So, how can you not thank Yanzi and the kindness of ghosts and gods? "

After saying this, the soldiers of Qi State all laughed.

When Zaiyu and Zigong saw this situation, they could only call it amazing.

It is definitely impossible to slander the monarch in public like this in the state of Lu.

I don't know whether it should be said that the folk customs of Qidi are unrestrained, or whether the Marquis of Qi was too inappropriate in the past.

After the soldiers satirized the monarch, they seemed to be in a better mood. After counting the goods in the ship and taking the part that should be handed over, they all hummed a little song and left.

Fan Li looked at the hands who were carrying the goods, and estimated that it would take some time to finish with so many goods.

Gongshuban and Zhao Wuxie were lying on the fence beside the boat, watching the laborers coming and going on the shore of the pier carrying goods.

The two ran to Jai Yu's side and begged, "Master! Take us out to play!"

Zai Yu also knew that these two boys must be suffocated on the boat recently, so he said to Fan Li beside him.

"Uncle Shao, I'll go to the city to book a hotel first, and take them around by the way. I'll go back to the ferry to meet you in the afternoon."

Zigong also said: "I haven't been here in Zizi for a long time, so I can take advantage of this time to check the prices of local commodities."

Hearing this, Fan Li got up and saluted and said, "Then see you in the afternoon."

After Zaiyu and Zigong returned the gift, they got off the boat with the two cubs.

Linzi's ferry was located not far from the big city, and the four of them wandered along the road, and it didn't take long before they came to Linzi's city gate.

Zaiyu looked up at the city wall of Linzi which was three or four times higher than the city wall of Tuqiu, looked at the vast Zhou road paved with stone bricks, as well as the countless hotels and caravans, and had to sigh the prosperity of Linzi.

There are several main roads running through the whole city in Linzi City. They walked along the road all the way, and there was a lot of people on the road. They really experienced what it means to be shoulder to shoulder and sweat like rain.

Because there were too many pedestrians and the children were very playful, Zaiyu had to hold Zhao Wuxie with his left hand and Gongshuban with his right to prevent the two boys from being dispersed by the flow of people.

As for Zigong, he never stopped from the beginning to the end.

As soon as he entered Linzi's West Market, no matter what kind of sellers he came across, he would go up and ask.

After asking, I still have to whisper in Zaiyu's ear.

"My son, this is cheap! The millet and wheat in Qufu are [-] to [-]% more expensive than Linzi."

"The selling price of cloth is so cheap? Can you still make money? Oh, it turns out that it is Tian's business, so it's no wonder."

"As expected of the giant city of Zishui, the price of fish can be kept so low?"

"That is to say, we can make money selling books and raw materials. This market is regulated, and the products that can sell at a high price are basically controlled by the people of Qi."

Zaiyu was very annoyed by Zigong, but Gongshuban and Zhao Wuxie did not let him live in peace.

Gongshuban couldn't walk when he saw food, and although Zhao Wuxie didn't say anything, Zaiyu couldn't stand the way he stood there and watched.

So not long after entering the market, Master Zai's pocket immediately began to bleed.

Zhao Wuxie and Gongshuban are holding a bunch of grilled fish in their left hand and two small pears in their right hand.

The small mouth was blocked, and there was a smile on his face.

The students stopped making noise, and Mr. Zai finally had time to visit Linzi's customs and customs.

Since he first entered West Market, he has discovered many differences between Qi people and Lu people.

People all over the world often say that Lu Feng likes Confucianism and prepares for etiquette, while Qi Feng is lenient and open-minded, and does not stick to etiquette. Now it seems that this is true.

Most of the people who came and went in the market were women from Qi State, and they were dressed in all kinds of gorgeous clothes. Zaiyu glanced around and felt that his eyes were dazzled.

Some Qi women found that Jai Yu was looking at her, not only not annoyed, but also pursed their lips and smiled at him, and some naughty ones even winked at him.

It was only after Zai Yu was teased by them that he realized that it was a violation of etiquette for him to do so.

He hurriedly recited in his heart the teaching of his master not to despise evil, and hastily looked away.

Unexpectedly, his reaction actually caused the girls to laugh again and again.

"Is this gentleman from the state of Lu?"

"Only men from the Lu country can be so reserved. It's embarrassing to look at him."

"I like the reserved and stable ones, how interesting."

"Men are not very courageous, how can they be called men? Our men in Qidi are more masculine."

Zaiyu knew that the folks in Qidi were unrestrained, but he really didn't expect to be so unrestrained.

He hasn't left yet, and these girls are discussing in front of him, isn't this equal to output by face riding?
But Zhao Wuji raised his head in dissatisfaction and grabbed Jai Yu's sleeve.

"Master! Didn't you agree to marry my sister? How can you look at other women?"

"I..." For the first time, Zaiyu felt that he couldn't explain it: "Wuxie, what you said is unfair."

Zigong quickly grabbed Zaiyu and walked out: "Shut up, I told you before not to mess with women in Qi, you must believe me.

Have you seen it now?Let's go now!Qi Nu is not as gentle as Lu Nu, if you offend them, they must point your nose and chase you all the way to scold. "

Seeing that they were about to leave, Qi Nu laughed again.

"Don't go, gentlemen."

"Is it so useless to see us? The gentlemen of the state of Lu are really shameless."

"According to the customs in your Lu land, do you have to marry a girl from another family after seeing her?"

"Hey, I'm not innocent anymore, the gentleman must be responsible for me!"

Seeing that this group of women started to stir up regional gangsters, Zaiyu and Zigong hastened to leave the battlefield.

When they first faced Ju Ren, neither of them felt so scary.

Qi Nu is enthusiastic and unrestrained, and Zai Yu felt it today.

They trotted all the way without looking sideways, and did not dare to slow down until they left the market.

The two of them bent over and supported their knees, panting heavily, feeling quite fortunate that they survived the catastrophe.

Zhao Wuxie still looked so angry, while Gongshuban was dissatisfied with the performance of the two masters running away, and yelled for Zaiyu to show them some color.

Zigong recovered his breath, and rolled his eyes at Zaiyu who was beside him.

"You said you too, it's okay to see what they do?"

Zai Yu's mouth was stiff: "There are so many people in the market, I don't look at them, where should I put my eyes?"

"Can't you just look at the man?"

Zaiyu said angrily: "Food and sex are also sex. The women's clothes are gorgeous, which is eye-catching, and there are so many of them. I don't look at the many men. I just stare at the few men. That won't be mine. Is there a problem with orientation?!"

Zi Gong wanted to refute, but after thinking about Jae Yu's words, the arguments were sufficient and clear, and it seemed that there was nothing to refute.

"It seems to be the case."

The two of them were arguing, when they suddenly saw a simple and poorly decorated carriage driving slowly in front of them.

The carriage stopped in front of a low courtyard, and a short old man got out of the carriage slowly with the support of the driver.

Zai Yu took a look at the old man's height, and blurted out, "Could it be that this height is Zigao's relative?"

Zi Gong thought about Gao Chai's family background, and replied: "I really can't say for certain, Zi Gao is a descendant of Jiang's Gao family. His ancestors are from Qi, and it is not unusual to have relatives in Qi."

　At the end of the story, even asking for tickets is extravagant.

　　——Excerpt from "Zaiyu's Diary"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)