Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 907: Taxation Dispute
It’s the end of April in a blink of an eye.

According to the rules set by Liu He, a grand court meeting will be held today.

Liu He wore court robes and accepted the worship of all officials.

In the past half month, the court's appeasement policy for the Xianbei and Qiang people has been fully implemented, and the effect has begun to show. Several Qiang tribes have experienced internal strife, and many tribal leaders and generals under Budugen have moved with their families into the mansions granted to them by Liu He, enjoying the court's titles and salaries, and living a very comfortable life as rich men.

Although Buyeo and Goguryeo had already broken away from these primitive tribal models, especially Goguryeo, whose political system was almost the same as that of the Han Dynasty, and the current monarch of Goguryeo was also a powerful ruler, this strategy did not have a significant effect in Youzhou.

But even so, Zhao Yun joined forces with Tian Yu and Tian Chou to fight against the enemy armies of the two countries and won every battle. Although he did not wipe out the main force of the enemy, he did not allow the rebels to capture a Han city.

Because of this, Liu He was in a very good mood, and his face was beaming with joy as he sat on the dragon throne.

"My dear ministers, I am very pleased with the frequent reports of victory from various places. I have decided to hold a banquet in Chongde Hall tonight to celebrate."

All the officials congratulated him in unison: "Your Majesty is blessed with great fortune, and the country, the people, and the world are blessed."

Liu He twisted his beard and said, "My dear ministers, do you have anything to say?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Qian, the Minister of Rites, stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."

Liu He looked at him. Originally, Wang Qian was not on the same side as him and often pretended to obey him but secretly disobeyed him. However, last time he won over Wang Yun and suppressed Du Ji, Zhao Rong and others, Wang Qian claimed to be a branch of the Taiyuan Wang family and had followed Wang Yun's lead for many years. Therefore, after that, he was considered to be loyal to him.

After that incident, many aristocratic families changed their previous practice of stopping recommending talents, and instead recommended their younger generations to the court. In order to fill the huge vacancies of officials and to balance the court, Liu He recruited most of these people as officials.

Wang Qian's two sons, three nephews, two sons-in-law, and four nephews are now all court officials, including his second son Wang Tong, who had a head-on conflict with Chen Lie and Liu He himself in Yunhai County. He was also sent to Jizhou to serve as a county magistrate at the beginning of the year.

In addition, his eldest son Wang Can, who was one of the "Seven Sages of the Jian'an Period" in history, was not only outstanding in poetry and prose, but also quite talented. He was highly valued by Liu He and had just been given the vacant position of county magistrate at the beginning of the year. As the saying goes, love the house and love the dog, Liu He naturally changed his opinion of Wang Qian.

"What do you want to report, Lord Wang?" Liu He asked with a warm smile.

Wang Qian said in an unusually decisive tone: "This old minister risks his life to advise you, Your Majesty, to cancel the tax system and reform it."

Liu He's smile froze on his face, but at this grand court meeting, he still suppressed the displeasure rising in his heart.

"Oh? Why do you say that, Lord Wang?"

Wang Qian said, "Your Majesty is kindhearted and wants to reduce taxes and extend his grace to all corners of the country. This is a great blessing for the country. However, the tax reductions in this reform are all for the common people, even for the lowly merchants, while for the nobles and wealthy families, the taxes have increased instead of being reduced. This is not the way of a saint. Please think twice."

Hearing this, Liu He's first reaction was to glance at Wang Yun. Seeing Wang Yun standing there, looking at his nose and his heart, as if it was none of his business, Liu He knew what was going on.

"This old thing, it is impossible for you to be on the same page with me. You didn't seize the last chance I gave you."

Liu He was neither anxious nor annoyed. He asked back in class: "Yes, I did increase taxes on those wealthy families. The court has been fighting against the traitor Cao Cao and has been defeated repeatedly. Even I almost died in Yuzhou. Shouldn't we reorganize the military, recruit new soldiers, and replenish the treasury?"

This question was obviously something Wang Qian had not expected beforehand. He was speechless for a moment and stood there in a daze.

"This... This old minister has absolutely no such intention, but..."

"Since you agree that the national treasury should increase its revenue, why don't you support raising taxes? Could it be that the Minister of State has another good plan that can enrich the national treasury and double the annual revenue? If so, I am all ears."

"This...this...this old minister...this old minister has no way..." Wang Qian became a little embarrassed.

Liu He then calmed down and said, "My dear minister, you agree to reorganize the military, but you don't agree to increase taxes. Why? Do you think that this tax reform will make your Wang family pay a lot more land tax every year for the 8,600 acres of land, so you feel bad?"

The tone of his words became colder and colder. When Wang Qian heard the last sentence, he was terrified. His legs went weak and he knelt down.

"How dare your old minister put personal interests above public interests? Your old minister has absolutely no such intention, absolutely no such intention..."

Liu He sneered: "Whether you have such intention or not, I will find out. What else do you want to say? If not, why don't you leave?"

Wang Qian was so frightened by the shout that he trembled and stood up tremblingly, then bowed and retreated back to his seat.

All the officials looked at each other, and everyone's eyes and faces were different. Some looked at Wang Qian with sarcasm, some with sympathy, some secretly glanced at Liu He, many with awe, and many more with complicated and inexplicable expressions.

Liu He glanced around and saw that no one else stood up to oppose the reform, so he said, "Since..."

The word "since" was just on the tip of his tongue, and before he could finish uttering it, another person stood up.

"Your Majesty, I, an old minister, also have something to say."

Liu He looked over. The man had a strong face and a full beard. He looked quite majestic and powerful, but he was a little thin and wore a Jinxian crown on his head. He was obviously a civil servant, the newly appointed Grand Coachman Cui Yan.

Cui Yan was a famous scholar in Jizhou. His prestige among scholars was even higher than that of the Bo Ling Cui family, to which the Minister of Works Cui Lie belonged. After Liu He defeated Yuan Shao, he recruited him as a member of his entourage and appointed him as the Deputy Governor of Bingzhou. After the incident with the Minister of Agriculture Feng Fang, he was transferred back to the central government and appointed as the Grand Coachman, one of the Nine Ministers.

Cui Yan was a noble man, a well-educated scholar. All he spoke was the teachings of a sage. He was also very aloof and did not like to socialize with others. He never formed cliques in the court, nor did he flatter others. Although he came from a noble family, he was a lone minister. This was one of the reasons why Liu He valued and trusted him.

Liu He was surprised to see that he was the one who stood up. "Why? Could it be that the Imperial Household is also against the tax reform?"

Cui Yan shook his head slightly: "I completely agree with what Your Majesty said just now. Now the country is divided and the four directions are in turmoil. There are rebels creating chaos inside and barbarians invading outside. Reorganizing the army and training martial arts is related to the unification of the country and the peace of the country. It is urgent and must be done. Reorganizing the army requires a large amount of money and food. The court now supports more than 700,000 troops. Your Majesty is kind and allocates several times more money and food than the previous dynasty every time there is a disaster for disaster relief and reconstruction. Therefore, although the national treasury is not empty, it is difficult to support the needs of reorganizing the army."

"Moreover, since Your Majesty ascended the throne, you have repeatedly reduced taxes and shared the wealth with the people. Now that the country needs you, the people of the world should serve you. How can you only care about your own interests and ignore national affairs?"

Liu He was somewhat surprised by his answer: "My dear minister, you are very wise and righteous. You are indeed a pillar of the country and a famous person in the world."

As soon as Liu He finished praising, Cui Yan immediately changed the subject: "However, I think that the world is not troubled by poverty but by inequality. Your Majesty reduced taxes for the common people, merchants, and craftsmen, but only increased taxes on the nobles, wealthy families, and local big households. Forgive me for speaking frankly, but this move is greatly inappropriate."

Liu He frowned a little: "Why is it inappropriate?"

Cui Yan said: "The country is not the country of the aristocracy; the country is not the country of the aristocracy. Your Majesty is blessed by heaven and has inherited the throne. You are a role model for the people of the Han Dynasty. How can you favor one over the other? Now that the country is in trouble, why do you only increase taxes on the aristocracy, but reduce taxes on farmers, businessmen, and industrialists? Such actions may cause instability in people's hearts and will not benefit the country."

His words were powerful and reasonable, causing many officials to nod in agreement.

"I agree with the words of the Grand Master. The peace of the Han Dynasty requires the unity of all people. I implore Your Majesty to increase taxes on all people without discrimination. In this way, the people's hearts will be stable, the army's hearts will be stable, and the country will also be stable."

Dozens of ministers stood up.

Liu He looked at them and thought, "Yes, it is less than I expected. I just don't know if those who didn't say anything are really willing to sacrifice their own families for the sake of everyone, or if they want these people to take the lead for them so that they can hide behind the scenes and reap the benefits."

However, the truth they stated was flawless from any perspective, and Liu He seemed unable to refute it.

"Well... my dear ministers, what you said makes sense. We are all doing this for the sake of the country, so everyone should be equal. It seems that I have not considered this matter enough." Liu He listened to the advice so quickly that the other ministers were caught off guard. Only Cui Yan knelt on the ground and prostrated himself.

"Your Majesty is wise and unrivaled, truly a wise ruler of all ages."

The other ministers also hurriedly followed suit and shouted: "Your Majesty is truly a wise ruler throughout history."

"Your Majesty, fellow ministers, I also have something to say." A voice interrupted them. It was Qian Li.

He walked up to Cui Yan and saluted respectfully. Cui Yan said he dared not, "The Inspector of the Imperial Guards is an important official of the country. How dare I accept your courtesy in front of Your Majesty?"

Qian Li said respectfully: "I am bowing to show my respect to the imperial servant as a senior, not because of my official position."

Liu He also chimed in, "Daozhun has always been very polite, so there is no need for the Imperial Household to be modest."

Cui Yan then accepted it and returned the greeting to Qian Li.

Seeing Qian Li's actions, everyone thought that he was here to help persuade the emperor. They thought that since he was a close minister of the emperor, it would be great to have him speak with them.

However, what Qian Li said next not only shocked all the ministers, but also made Cui Yan so angry that he almost fumed.

Qian Li turned to Liu He and said respectfully, "I think that what the Grand Coachman just said is simply confusing right and wrong. He is neither a gentleman nor a minister. He is not worthy of the teachings of the saints and the grace of His Majesty. He is not worthy of the people. The officers and soldiers of the three armies seem to be confident, but in fact they are only concerned about themselves. They act like this, but they keep saying that they care about the country and the people. It is simply shameless."

"How dare you!" Many ministers directly refuted: "Mr. Cui is a famous scholar of today, with a noble character. What he said just now is pearls, and even His Majesty agrees with it. How dare you speak so rudely?"

Although Cui Yan did not say anything, he was so angry that his face turned blue and purple, and his eyes were fixed on Qian Li.

Wang Yun looked at this sudden scene, frowned slightly, and seemed a little confused.

Liu He pretended to be displeased and shouted, "Siliwei, you should not be so rude in the court. Why don't you apologize to the Grand Coachman?"

"Your Majesty, I cannot pay for this crime."

Qian Li's words angered Liu He even more. He slammed the table and shouted, "Bold Qian Li, do you think that just because you are my fellow countryman and childhood playmate, you dare to be so presumptuous in the court? Do you really think that I dare not kill you? Who is Cui Aiqing? All the officials have seen it with their own eyes and all say the same thing. If he said so, he must have a reason. The name of the Qinghe Cui family is so prominent, how could they do such a shameless thing that harms the country and benefits themselves? Come, drag the Sili Xiaowei out, give him 20 strokes of the cane, and then bring him to the palace for a medical examination."

When Cui Yan and other ministers saw that Liu He treated Qian Li in such a way, they felt relieved.

"It seems that Your Majesty was deceived by someone and decided on this reform plan. It must be Qian Li. He has always been in charge of the national treasury for the court. Such a strategy can only come from him. Fortunately, Your Majesty is very perceptive."

Among all the officials, only Wang Yun, as he looked at the scene, did not relax his brows, but instead they became even more tightly furrowed.

Qian Li broke free from the two imperial guards who were about to arrest him and beat him with a stick, and kowtowed to Liu He, saying, "Your Majesty, after I have finished speaking, if Your Majesty and the other officials still think that I am talking nonsense and slandering you, then let alone apologizing, even if the Imperial Household wants my head, I will give it to him."

Liu He's anger subsided a little, and he waved his hand: "Humph, I don't believe you can come up with anything else. Tell me quickly, if I find out that you are framing me, I will definitely punish you severely!"

"The minister obeys the order."

Qian Li bowed, then turned around and looked at Cui Yan, who was already very angry with him. However, this time, he no longer had the respectful look he had just had. Instead, there was an aggressive look in his eyes.

"You and I are both ministers in the same palace. Now I have something to ask you by order of the emperor. The imperial steward must tell you the truth."

Cui Yan's face turned pale, he gritted his teeth and said, "Just ask me, although I am not talented, I know that loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and righteousness are the most important virtues of a person. This is related to the important affairs of the court, and in front of Your Majesty, I will never lie."

Qian Li's eyes were fixed on his, which made Cui Yan feel a little uncomfortable.

"What the Imperial Household Minister just said is that the world's problems are not poverty but inequality. The country and the people are not owned by one person or one family. We should uphold fairness and everyone should contribute. Is this true?"

Cui Yan couldn't guess what he wanted to say, but he nodded and said, "Yes, Cui is indeed thinking so."

"Okay, as long as the imperial servant admits it."

Qian Li then walked half a circle in the hall and suddenly shouted, "Do you know what is fairness? What is inequality?"

All the officials were confused by his question. Wang Qian said, "Why does the Inspector General of the Capital ask this question? It is said in Guanzi: Heaven is fair and impartial, so it covers all things, good and evil; Earth is fair and impartial, so it carries all things, big and small. The so-called fairness is that everyone is equal and makes selfless contributions to the country. From the royal family to the common people, everyone does their best. This is fairness. Otherwise, it is inequality."

"Good, Taichang is studious." Qian Li praised.

"In that case, I would like to ask you, do you think the current tax system of the court is fair?"

After hearing his question, everyone became even more confused.

Cui Yan asked in return: "Your Majesty has been in power for many years, with light taxes and levies, and the people from all over the country are loyal to you. How can this be an unfair policy?"

Qian Li shook his head: "Light taxes and levies may not necessarily be fair. The loyalty of the four directions may not be equal."

"presumptuous!"

"Be bold!"

"The lieutenant of the imperial court openly accused the emperor of treason in the imperial court. We ask Your Majesty to punish him severely."

Liu He did not agree to this request: "Although Qian Li is outrageous, I am also indignant, but since I have allowed him to finish speaking, I must keep my promise. I am the emperor, how can I break my promise and gain wealth?"

Qian Li kowtowed again: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Then he started again: "I would like to ask the Imperial Household Manager again, in the prefectures and counties under Your Majesty's jurisdiction, how many households have less than 100 mu of land? How many households have more than 500 mu of land? How many households have more than 1,000 mu or 10,000 mu of land?"

Cui Yan looked embarrassed: "This... I am ignorant and would like to hear your opinions."

Qian Li smiled and said, "If that's the case, I'll tell you."

After he finished speaking, he looked at the officials and said, "Now, under my jurisdiction, there are eight states, namely You, Ji, Qing, Xu, Bing, Yan, Si, and Liang, with more than 5.6 million households. Among them, there are more than 4.2 million households with less than 100 mu of land. There are less than 500,000 households with more than 500 mu of land, accounting for less than 10% of the total households."

Cui Yan frowned and said, "So what?"

"How?" Qian Li sneered, "Do you know how much farmland these less than 500,000 households occupy in total?"

(End of this chapter)