Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 263 Private Visit on Weibo
Tai'an City, Imperial Palace, Imperial Study.

A eunuch hurried over and handed over a wooden box. "Your Majesty, this is the letter that the Princess sent back urgently."

"Ok?"

An Taixuan raised his head slightly and asked, "Today is Mid-Autumn Festival. She is out and hasn't come back yet?"

"It's a letter from Hongzhou. I haven't received any news about the princess's return." The eunuch replied.

"I went to Hongzhou again..."

An Taixuan recalled the various things that had been reported recently, and curiously opened the wooden box, which contained a thick stack of letters.

The letter sent by An Jing contained not only the government decrees currently being implemented in Kaiyang County, but also some important conversations with Lu Zheng.

An Taixuan read half a page, then sat up straight and began to read the pages carefully and slowly.

It was not until two hours later that he finished reading the letter, and he didn't even have time to deal with the memorials next to it.

"This Lu Zheng, it seems like he's really talented!"

An Taixuan couldn't help but say that he only thought Lu Zheng was indeed excellent before, but it was not good enough for him to look at him differently.

Now seeing Lu Zheng’s many ideas and insights, I can’t help but feel that even some officials in the court are not as good as such a young man.

An Taixuan looked at An Jing's passing words again, "You don't ask for anything? Others want such an opportunity, but they can't get it."

"Thinking about the people of the world? I am the emperor of the country, but I am not the emperor of the whole world."

An Taixuan recalled some of Lu Zheng's remarks. "Whether a country prospers or perishes, the people suffer. Why can't I care about the people of other countries? If I win the hearts of the people, I can win the world..."

"You don't want my reward? Then I can't just do nothing."

An Taixuan thought for a moment and said loudly, "Come here, draft an order!"

A Hanlin came quickly from the side hall, ready to draft the imperial edict.

An Taixuan said leisurely, "Now that the national treasury is full, in the next two years, the land tax that ordinary people in all counties and prefectures will be exempted from paying into the national treasury. Each county and prefecture will only need to collect the tax that is used for local finances. I will notify the people of all counties and prefectures from today. If any officials use this to extort money from the people and increase taxes in other areas, they will be executed without mercy!"

Some places are short of finances, so it is not easy for him to exempt all of them, otherwise some local governments may find it difficult to survive.

Hanlin was stunned when he picked up the pen. This involved the taxation of the entire country, which was no trivial matter.

I didn't hear Your Majesty mention this matter when I went to court before.

He couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. We should summon all officials to discuss it..."

An Taixuan's eyes slanted, "I have reduced taxes for the people for two years. Is there still any problem?"

Hanlin said: "If we reduce or exempt the land tax for ordinary people, then what about the landlords and gentry..."

"What do you think?" An Taixuan said coldly, "Can't you tell the difference between ordinary people and landlords and gentry? Effective immediately, anyone who attempts to change their nationality to reduce or exempt taxes will be disqualified. If they can't even do something like this, then some of the people in the court should be replaced."

An Taixuan paused, then added, "If you feel the need for discussion arises, go and discuss it with them. I only want to see the imperial edict."

Hanlin dared not say much. If he wanted to discuss something, he had to draft an edict first and then go to see those officials.

If he really went to discuss it with someone now, he would definitely have to pack up and go home.

Hanlin pondered for a while before he began to write with trepidation. He finally drafted an imperial edict and presented it to An Taixuan for review.

An Taixuan took a look and saw that there was no problem, so he stamped the seal directly.

"Go down and pass on the order..." An Taixuan said lightly.

Hanlin hurriedly took the imperial edict and left.

An Taixuan couldn't help but snort coldly, "I want to see how many monsters and demons will show up this time."

This imperial edict was not only an alternative reward for Lu Zheng, but also a test before changing certain national policies.

He estimated that it wouldn't be long before someone would come and object to this matter.

An Taixuan glanced at the eunuch beside him and said, "Let the Queen preside over tonight's Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. I'm tired and don't want to see anyone today, especially the officials."

After saying that, An Taixuan put away the wooden box, stood up and left the study.

The eunuchs did not dare to follow and could only watch An Taixuan walk away. Then they looked at each other, not knowing what was going on.

Every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the palace would not only entertain some royal family members, but also invite all officials and their relatives to celebrate the festival together.

There had never been a case before where the emperor did not attend a banquet.

Everyone was puzzled, but did not dare to ask, and felt anxious and uneasy.

"I will report to the Queen, and you all..."

A eunuch quickly gave orders.

Everyone quickly left the Censor's room and dispersed.

An Taixuan came to a hall in the deep palace.

Inside the palace, there was a golden light, and the aura of heaven and earth as thick as fog filled the air, constantly changing into various forms.

In the center of the hall, there is a huge piece of jade carved with a picture of the country and the people. It is shining and exudes an extremely mysterious aura.

An Taixuan glanced at a certain spot on the map and muttered, "Hongzhou..."

As soon as he thought about it, his whole temperament and appearance changed, and then his clothes changed into black casual clothes.

An Taixuan raised his hand and tapped the map lightly, and ripples appeared on the map instantly.

An Taixuan took a big step, turned around and disappeared into the map. The next moment, a figure emerged from the Confucian Temple in Hongzhou City. It was An Taixuan.

With a flash, An Taixuan left the Confucian Temple.

Looking down at the scenery below, his eyes moved slightly, "Is this Hongzhou City? It's really lively."

He saw a platform built halfway up the mountain, and there were many people lined up in a long queue, motionless, and no one knew what they were doing.

An Taixuan couldn't help but walk down the mountain. He met some patrolling guards on the way, but no one paid any attention to him.

When they reached the line, An Taixuan asked one of them, "What are you doing queuing here?"

One person said with a smile: "There is a Mid-Autumn Festival play tonight. We are waiting in line to watch it."

An Taixuan looked at the sky and asked, "You guys are here to line up so early?"

"Come early and you'll get a seat. Otherwise, you'll have to stand on the side at night..." someone said, "Let's wait here. The officials are here to bring us water and food. It's okay to wait a little longer."

Another person next to him said, "Those seats in the middle are reserved. If you are a cultivator above the third realm, or if you pay ten thousand taels of silver, you can register for a seat. It's first come, first served."

An Taixuan took a look and found that the seat reserved in the middle was no different from the other seats. There was only a chair and not even a tea table. What was the difference?
"Is there any difference?" An Taixuan asked curiously.

"No," one person said, "but I heard that Master Lu and the governor will be sitting there. If we're close enough, we can share in the good cheer."

Someone chuckled and said, "If I had ten thousand taels of silver, I'd be willing to sit next to Master Lu! But since I don't have any, I can only queue up. It would be nice to be closer!"

The others were also very happy to hear this and expressed their agreement.

An Taixuan didn't expect that Lu Zheng's reputation was so good that even the state officials couldn't compare to him.

Seeing An Taixuan standing there, someone kindly reminded him, "Big brother, hurry up and get in line. There won't be any seats left later..."

An Taixuan nodded slightly and continued walking down.

Among the troops, there were many people who were reading the Hundred Character Essay to pass the time.

If you don’t know a word, you can ask others, even soldiers passing by.

An Taixuan was curious and found out what was going on after asking.

He also wanted to spend money to buy a copy from an ordinary citizen, but the other party refused to buy it.

A guard saw this and ran over to scold him, "Hongzhou prohibits the private sale of this book at a high price! If you want to buy the book, go to Ruyu Bookstore. You are not allowed to force me to buy it!"

Interesting... Seeing this, An Taixuan did not force it.

He looked at the guard and asked, "I am a cultivator, above the third realm. Can I have a seat?"

An Taixuan pointed to the seats in front of the stage.

The guard pointed to a spot and said calmly, "Go over there to register and see if there's any space left."

An Taixuan walked slowly to the location he pointed to. There were several officials sitting in a simple wooden shed.

He even saw An Dingyuan's Wolf Guards.

An Taixuan came to the outside of the wooden shed, took out an identity certificate, and showed off a little bit of his cultivation.

An official saw this and carefully registered everyone. He then brought out a cup of tea, two mooncakes, a bag of melon seeds and peanuts, and a small wooden sign. "You're here quite early. You can take any seat in the third row. This sign is not transferable."

An Taixuan didn't take the sign, but asked, "Can't I sit in the first row?"

"You?" The official looked An Taixuan over. "The first row is reserved for the two adults and Mr. Lu and his men. I'm afraid there's no place for you, even if you pay more. Unless you have some connection with them..."

An Taixuan thought about it, said no more, and waved his hand to take the things.

At this time, two figures came from below, a young man and a Taoist priest.

"Can't you use your connections for this kind of thing? You even need me to come here in person. Doesn't this delay my ability to make money?" Yun Xiao said softly.

"Without rules, there will be no order. Besides, it won't take long." Lu Zheng said with a smile.

The two of them went straight out of the shed.

Upon seeing this, the officials all stood up to greet him.

"Mr. Lu..."

"Master Lu..."

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Could you please register this Taoist priest and let him sit in the first row? There should be room left, right?"

"Yes, yes, please wait a moment," an official replied quickly.

After a while, the official handed the things to Yun Xiao.

Yun Xiao took it and looked towards the performance venue. He couldn't help but ask, "Isn't your first-row seat a bit too shabby?"

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Master, please make do with it. Too many things take up too much space. Keep it simple so that there is room for other people."

An Taixuan looked at Lu Zheng and asked, "Are you Lu Zheng?"

Lu Zheng turned his head. He always felt that the person next to him was looking at him.

But he had gotten used to this kind of look after so many times.

Lu Zheng couldn't help but smile back, "Exactly, big brother, is there anything I can help you with?"

An Taixuan said calmly, "I've come from afar. I wonder what qualifications I need to sit in the first row?"

(End of this chapter)