Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 663 Pei Yuan's Method
During the Qing Dynasty, a similar land finance reform was implemented, namely the much-touted "equalization of land tax and poll tax" and "return of fire tax to the public."

The "fire loss" mentioned earlier refers to the gray income of local officials and a large number of clerks.

What does "the fire loss is returned to the public" mean?

The emperor discovered, "Wow, there's so much more that can be extracted!"

Therefore, all the gray income belonging to local officials was made legitimate and paid as regular taxes.

So how did the local governments solve their problems after the imperial court took the money?

They still have to collect it again.

The Ming Dynasty has not yet fully tapped into the true potential of its people; this is something the Qing Dynasty must address.

Pei Yuan certainly couldn't allow the carefully prepared new policies to turn into such a wicked law.

Pei Yuan looked at the triangle on the table, then wiped away the top part, which represented the court's profits, leaving only the larger bottom part.

"My idea is to leave the imperial court's part aside and try to take over the profits from below."

Wang Chang immediately realized what Pei Yuan had said earlier.

Isn't this just bypassing the bureaucratic class and then using the Luo religion rooted in the common people to replace the bureaucrats?
With this in mind, Wang Chang took the initiative to align the granularity for Bi Zhen.

He whispered again, "Master Luo."

Fortunately, Bi Zhen had already learned about Luo Jiao's matter when Chen Tou Tie was appointed as the Deputy Commander of the Shandong Provincial Military Command, so he quickly understood what the two meant.

Pei Yuan added, "The affairs of the imperial court in local areas are nothing more than tax collection, justice, and education."

"The governance of the people still relies on clan elders. Very few people are used for judicial and educational work in a county. Most of the yamen runners and hangers-on are used to pay the land tax twice a year."

“When the land tax begins to be collected in Ming Dynasty paper money, there will be no need to inspect the quality of the grain, no need for manpower to transport it, and no loss due to insects or rodents. Each household will only need a few paper money, so the county will not need to support so many yamen runners and hangers-on.”

"Without needing to maintain so many officials and servants, there's naturally no need to feed them so much benefit. The Luo Sect is now rooted in the countryside and has gained the emperor's recognition, so it can completely replace some of its functions."

"As for the local areas, since there are fewer people sharing the money, we don't need to treat them too badly."

As Pei Yuan spoke, he used his thumb to wipe away a small piece of the remaining material representing the interests of the officials.

This indicates that it is for the benefit of the local area.

As a corrupt scientist, Bi Zhen, seeing the large sum of money still on the table, immediately pointed out the flaw in Pei Yuan's logic.

"The common people grow grain and harvest grain, not the Ming Dynasty's precious paper money."

"What you've described is simple, but it still involves the process of exchanging grain for Ming Dynasty paper money. Even if the imperial court buys grain from the people at a stable official price, the exchange of grain for paper money is still indispensable in this process."

Bi Zhen pointed to the water stain left on the table and said, "In that case, it will inevitably require a large number of people to inspect the grain, transport it by manpower, and even bear the losses caused by insects and rodents."

"Since these problems exist, what's the difference between your reforms and just changing the name without changing the substance?"

"What's the difference between you using the people of the Luo sect and using officials from the imperial court?"

"What good would it do if we caused an earthquake in Shandong for no reason?"

Pei Yuan had already thought about this matter, and answered seriously, "Because I separated 'power' and 'profit'."

“Traditional officials mostly came from local powerful families, and they could easily use the ‘power’ given by the court to strengthen themselves. They had lived in the area for generations, and the benefits they gained could be accumulated continuously. On the other hand, officials sent by the court were easily controlled by them when their foundation was not stable. Even when they finally managed to establish a stable foundation, they would often be transferred to other places to take up their posts.”

“These powerful families used their power to seize land, evade taxes and corvée labor, and impose additional burdens on the people. When the families of ordinary people could no longer bear the burden, they took the opportunity to seize land again.”

"The source of the power of these powerful families lies in the flow of wealth during tax collection. They have turned the power given to them by the court into profit."

Seeing that the two were listening attentively, Pei Yuan continued.

"My idea is to target the grain-money exchange, which is the easiest part to erode interests. The Luo sect will replace the imperial court and exchange grain from the people with paper money. Then, through centralized transportation, the grain will be converted into cash, thus completing the circulation of goods."

"In this way, the tax collectors have power but no benefit; and the officials who exchange grain and paper money have benefit but no power."

"In this world, it's always right to separate power from profit."

"Officials, faced with a few dry banknotes, simply cannot create any room for their power to overflow. The Luo sect has official price limits, but no power granted by the court to bully the people. Even if they could profit from it, the gains would not be very high."

"Unlike these strongmen who are rooted in the local area, the Luo sect is nothing but a floating duckweed. They come when they are needed and leave when they are not."

As he spoke, Pei Yuan added, "The Luo Cult previously organized young men to collect and transport soybeans throughout Shandong. With proper preparation, they are more than capable of handling this task."

Wang Chang and Bi Zhen were both astonished by how clearly Pei Yuan had explained it.

Pei Yuan glanced at the remaining wine stains on the table and wiped away another patch with his finger.

"I need to support people, and the Luo sect also needs to make some money."

Then, Pei Yuan looked at the remaining profits, wiped them all dry with his hands, and calmly looked at the three of them, saying, "Let the people take the rest and live in peace and prosperity."

Bi Zhen scratched his head and didn't say anything.

If the new law is implemented, he will undoubtedly be the one who indirectly suffers losses.

Moreover, it's not just him; a whole host of people who profit from the common people will also suffer.

As an old bureaucrat, Wang Chang still had some ambition to govern the country and bring peace to the world. He was so moved by Pei Yuan's words that he immediately asked for more details.

"Although the Luo sect has gained the emperor's private approval, it is ultimately not something that can be openly discussed. Is it appropriate to intervene in the reform under such a pretext?"

"Moreover, the Luo Sect is currently in a very chaotic state of management. Apart from the headquarters near Tai'an Prefecture, they are basically all doing their own thing, and Chen Tou Tie cannot control them."

Pei Yuan said, "The reason I mentioned the Luo Sect is because we already have such a framework in Shandong, which can be used directly and has an immediate effect."

“The paper money does not have the scarcity of silver and copper coins, and there is no arbitrage opportunity arising from changes in supply and demand. When the reforms are truly implemented, anyone can buy and sell grain at the official prices set by the court. Even itinerant merchants in the local area can do so without any restrictions.”

"All we need to do is avoid unreasonable price suppression due to a shortage of silver and copper coins during the centralized tax collection period."

"The Luo sect should be seen not so much as a profit-sharing entity, but as a safety net. As long as we control a large portion of the grain, we can control the exchange of money and grain."

"As for the chaos within the Luo Sect, I can take advantage of the imperial court's reforms and use its power to break the deadlock and thoroughly straighten out affairs in various regions." Wang Chang, who knew the inside story, was speechless after hearing this.

When the Luo Sect was first established, it relied on the Ming Dynasty court to promote it. Even during its rapid development, the Luo Sect still relied on the Ming Dynasty court for support.

Now that the Luo sect has passed its period of rapid expansion, it's time for it to rectify its practices and seize power. The one who should step up and give it a push is still the Ming Dynasty.

Did the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty owe you a Luo sect?
At this moment, Xiao Ying, who had been observing from the sidelines, asked the most crucial question.

"Commander, is His Majesty aware of these plans you've made?"

Pei Yuan said confidently, "Not yet, but he has no reason to refuse."

Hearing Pei Yuan say that he hadn't yet revealed the plan to Zhu Houzhao, Bi Zhen visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

He earnestly advised, "Although you have the best intentions, please forgive my bluntness, but the interests involved in your method are no less than those of Liu Jin's reforms back then."

"We want to promote this..."

Bi Zhen thought about the long list of names and said, "This, this strategy, I'm afraid it will turn Shandong upside down."

Pei Yuan pointed out, "It is the strategy of the mutual transformation of Yin and Yang, emptiness and reality, positive and negative, and the generation and dissipation of light and shadow, illusion and truth."

Bi Zhen looked at Pei Yuan speechlessly, even his own thoughts of trying to stop him were a bit confused. "Is this the time for you to talk about the name of this strategy?"
Pei Yuan, as if guessing Bi Zhen's thoughts, said, "It is precisely because you cannot remember this name that you cannot grasp its subtleties."

Then Pei Yuan said to the three of them, "Let me ask you this: if I had a method that would benefit the country and its people, but would affect your personal interests, would you support me?"

Wang Chang and Xiao Ying both looked at Bi Zhen, waiting for him to speak.

Bi Zhen glanced at the two men with disdain and said seriously, "What's wrong with not supporting this? I don't care about the benefits to the country and the people. Commander Qian killed Zhang Yong, which fulfilled my lifelong regret. Whatever Commander Qian wants to do, I will support him!"

Pei Yuan immediately gave Wang Chang and Xiao Ying a look.

Both of them panicked.

Oh no, this isn't the time to ask for opinions anymore, it's time to ask for their stance.

Wang Chang couldn't sit still any longer and immediately said, "Commander, you know me. When I was working for you, you only had three officers by your side. How could I possibly turn back? Of course I would fully support you."

Xiao Ying patted his chest and said, "My uncle has handed over the team that his family has built up over generations in the palace to the commander. My son has also followed the commander through thick and thin, so I will definitely support the commander."

Pei Yuan waved his hand, his face amiable, and said, "Why take it so seriously? I was just saying, 'what if'."

Then Pei Yuan added, "I have another method. Although it will harm many people, these people have nothing to do with you. On the contrary, it will benefit you. Would you support it?"

The three of them began to calculate the formula in their minds.

He just said the opposite of what he meant. Now, should he say the opposite of what he meant, or should he support whatever plan Pei Qianhu proposes? Is Pei Qianhu trying to prove the distortion of human nature or the decline of morality?

Fortunately, Pei Yuan didn't continue to manipulate them this time. Instead, he said to himself, "It is human nature to seek advantage and avoid harm. How can one succeed if one goes against human nature?"

"The reason why reforms have always failed is because they go against human nature."

"Because everyone who implements reforms wants to make the new law in a way that is most advantageous to themselves."

"Therefore, this commander came up with this 'Mixed Yin and Yang, Interchange of Reality and Illusion, Harmony of Opposites and Genesis, Obscurity and Illusion, Truth and Illusion' strategy."

When Pei Yuan mentioned this infamous name again, everyone felt they couldn't remain vague any longer. So Wang Chang took the initiative to ask, "Could you please explain to us what the 'Hun Yuan Yin Yang, Void and Reality Mutual Transformation, Positive and Negative Harmony, Generation of Obscurity and Illusion, True and False Strategy' means?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Yuan poured some more wine from the wine pot onto the stone table and casually drew a Taoist yin-yang symbol.

The wine stain represents Yin, and the circled dry area represents Yang.

Moreover, Pei Yuan's painting was so meticulous that he even depicted the "yin within yang" and "yang within yin" in the yin-yang symbol's eyes.

Then, Pei Yuan looked at everyone and said, "As I just said, there is no hope of getting those who benefit from it to push for reforms that go against human nature. Therefore, I have split the reform plan into two parts."

"One is real, one is fake. One is beneficial, one is harmful."

Pei Yuan then pointed to the yin-yang fish eyes, "There is truth within falsehood, and falsehood within truth. The two complement each other, enabling my great undertaking."

Everyone quickly asked.

Pei Yuan then said, "If we want to implement reforms, we must rely on two major cornerstones. One is the stable Ming Dynasty paper money, and the other is to complete the reorganization of Shandong."

Pei Yuan said, “Currently, the circulation of the Ming Treasure Note is extremely poor, so its value has always been very low. But if my reform can really succeed, and the taxes of the people of Shandong are tied to the Ming Treasure Note, and the court gives the Ming Treasure Note a premium when setting the official tax payment price, what do you all think would happen?”

The three had just experienced the recent cryptocurrency speculation. The mere news that the Ministry of Finance had submitted a memorial to the throne, proposing to resume the collection of paper money at major customs offices, caused the price of Ming Dynasty paper money to skyrocket.

Even at current prices, it has increased several times compared to the bottom.

A thought struck everyone, and they all exclaimed, "The price of the Ming Dynasty banknotes is bound to skyrocket!"

Bi Zhen even said, "Shandong's land tax is so large that if there is a shortage of paper money during the peak land tax collection period, the price of paper money might be much higher than the official price announced by the court."

Pei Yuan then asked Bi Zhen, "So, do you think the court would prefer the price of the paper money to be higher or lower?"

Bi Zhen replied without hesitation, "Of course, a higher one is better."

The paper money was all printed by the imperial court and was an important means for the court to redeem salaries.

The price of the paper money has dropped so low that it's unbelievable, yet the imperial court is still shamelessly using it to reward the soldiers who quelled the rebellion in Bazhou.

The imperial court naturally hoped that the price of the paper money could be maintained.

Pei Yuan then asked, "What do you think the court officials think?"

Bi Zhen hesitated for a moment, "That's hard to say."

Theoretically speaking, the court officials certainly hoped that the price of paper money would rise, since their salaries were paid in paper money.

On the other hand, they also hoped that the paper money would be destroyed so that wages could be converted into silver.

(End of this chapter)