My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 140: Seven hundred thousand taels of tax? Aren’t you trying to kill me?
Before Yang Laosan could think about it, the team had already arrived at the door of Yang's rice shop.

Yang Laosan finally saw the words on the wooden sign clearly. It was a big word "tax"!

Then, the leading Jinyiwei, who was wearing a Feiyu suit, asked:
"Who is the shopkeeper?"

The leader of the Jinyiwei was named Li Sanyang, who was originally the deputy captain of the Jinyiwei. He was temporarily appointed as the leader of this team, responsible for leading the team to collect business tax.

Hearing the question, Yang Lao San no longer had time to think about what the word "tax" meant. He quickly stepped forward, put on a smile, nodded, and said:

"Gentlemen, I am the shopkeeper here. I wonder what brings you to my shop?"

"The shop has always been run in an honest manner and has never violated any regulations."

As he spoke, he took out a silver note worth one hundred taels of silver from his sleeve and quietly put it into Li Sanyang's hand.

In his opinion, the reason these people came to cause trouble was simply for a little money.

Li Sanyang looked at the crumpled banknote in his hand, then stuffed it into Yang Laosan's arms and said coldly:
"Put aside your tricks. Today we are here to collect taxes. All you have to do is pay the taxes. We won't ask for a penny more!"

When Yang Laosan heard this, he was stunned!

Collect taxes?

What taxes are collected?

His shop has been open for so long, but he has never paid taxes!
Although according to the court's rules, shops should pay taxes, but in today's world, who will really follow the rules?
Besides, they did not fail to make arrangements. You know, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue was a good friend of his boss, and he would often send money to him as protection money.

There was a doctor from the Ministry of Revenue mediating this matter. His family had not paid taxes for many years, so why did they have to pay taxes now?

Something seems to be wrong with this situation.

Thinking of this, Yang Laosan came up to Li Sanyang and whispered:

"Sir, do you think there's some misunderstanding? The owner of this shop is a friend of Zhang Xianzhi, the doctor of the Ministry of Revenue. He even sent him rice yesterday!"

If the people who came today were just some low-ranking clerks, then these words would definitely scare them away. After all, the Langzhong of the Ministry of Revenue is an official of the fourth rank and is not someone that some petty clerks can offend.

But unfortunately, the people coming today are the Ming Dynasty tax troops!

What's more, today is the first day of their official formation. If they fail to complete the task, wouldn't it be a disgrace to the Ming Dynasty's tax army and the crown prince?

Therefore, Li Sanyang was not moved at all, and said with a cold expression:
"Don't mention anything about the Minister of Revenue or the Vice Minister to me. Even if the Minister of Revenue came today, he would still have to pay taxes. If you pay even a penny less, you can forget about keeping your shop open!"

Yang Laosan wanted to say something, but the soldiers didn't listen at all and strode into the store.

Seeing this scene, Yang Laosan was so anxious that he scratched his head and cheeks. Then he quickly pulled the waiter next to him and asked him to find Zhang Xianzhi for help.

Are you kidding? After all, they send money every month. This person can't just take the money and not do anything, right?

When the guy heard this, he didn't dare to hesitate and ran out directly.

Li Sanyang naturally saw this scene, but he didn't care.

Just like he said before, even if the Minister of Revenue came today, he would still have to pay taxes because this was the order of the Crown Prince.

At this moment, seeing that the man was about to walk towards the warehouse, Yang Laosan hurriedly looked at Li Sanyang and said:

"Sir, Sir, we have something to discuss! First, how much tax do we have to pay?"

When Li Sanyang heard this, he looked at Yang Laosan and said:

"According to the latest business tax set by the court, you must pay 10.2% of the cost price of the goods in your store. Once the tax is paid, you can continue your business as usual."

"From now on, every time you purchase goods, you must go to the newly established Daming Tax Bureau of the imperial court to pay the business tax before you can sell them."

"If you don't pay taxes, it will be considered tax evasion, and the court will fine you half the value of the goods. In serious cases, all the goods will be confiscated!"

When Yang Laosan heard this, he almost fainted.

You should know that he realized that a famine was about to hit the Ming Dynasty several months ago, so he began to store a large amount of food.

Adding the one million shi of grain he had purchased previously, he now had a total of 1.6 million shi of grain.

If we really pay according to the current business tax, we will have to pay more than 700,000 taels of business tax.

What the hell is the difference between this and robbing money?
In the past, he didn’t have to pay even a tael of silver, but now he has to pay 700,000 taels all at once. This is simply a threat to his life!
But looking at the group of aggressive soldiers in front of him, Yang Laosan didn't dare to say a word, because he knew that this group of people could not be reasoned with.

Besides, the one million grains purchased before were purchased secretly and stored in batches in various places in the capital. The group of people in front of us should not know about it.

Even the original 600,000 dan of grain were stored in batches in various places, and no one knew about it except him and some of his confidants.

The total amount of grain stored in the store’s warehouse is only 3,000 shi.

Even if you really have to pay, it won’t be much.

What's more, this place is not far from Zhang Xianzhi's home, so he will probably be able to come and help soon.

Even if I can't come in person, sending a housekeeper should be fine.

Thinking of this, Yang Laosan felt a little relieved.

At this moment, Li Sanyang had already led his men towards the warehouse.

Seeing this, Yang Laosan hurriedly followed him in.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

The guy who had gone to find someone for help had already arrived at a house's door.

This family was the residence of Zhang Xianzhi, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue, who acted as a protective umbrella for them.

A fourth-rank official was considered a person of certain status in the capital, and there were servants guarding the door of his mansion.

The waiter stepped forward, bowed and said:

"Young man, please inform Mr. Zhang that there is a disturbance at Yang's Rice Shop. The shopkeeper has sent me to ask Mr. Zhang to come over and take a look."

The servant at the door naturally knew the relationship between his master and Yang's Rice Shop, so he did not dare to slack off and immediately led the waiter in.

However, for some reason, the waiter did not see Zhang Xianzhi, but met Zhang Xianzhi's housekeeper.

The waiter knew the butler, so he quickly told him in detail what had just happened.

After hearing this, the butler's expression changed slightly. After all, as the butler of a fourth-rank official's family, his knowledge was naturally extraordinary.

He keenly sensed that something was wrong, but quickly regained his composure and then simply said:
"Please wait outside the door. I'll be right there after I'm ready."

The guy didn't dare to say anything more and could only go back outside.

However, just after the waiter left, a man came out from behind a screen not far away, sweating profusely.

This person was none other than Zhang Xianzhi, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue.

The housekeeper was a little worried when he saw his master like this, and then he asked:
"Master, did you hear what I just said?"

Zhang Xianzhi wiped the sweat from his forehead and nodded in panic.

At this moment, Zhang Xianzhi was really panicked, because he knew that this matter was no trivial matter. There were both Jinyiwei and soldiers in armor, and it was obvious that something big had happened.

Considering what Chongzhen had said during the court session, he guessed that this team should be the newly formed army of the court responsible for collecting commercial taxes.

In other words, this team was acting on the emperor's orders.

If he dared to step forward to stop it, he would be disobeying the imperial decree and would be punished and beheaded.

But it would be inappropriate to do nothing. After all, the fact that the guy came to their door meant that they had already revealed his identity to the team.

It won’t be long before this matter reaches the ears of Chongzhen or the prince.

After all, there are Jinyiwei in this team, and Jinyiwei is the emperor's personal army, specifically responsible for intelligence work.

If that time really comes, I'm afraid what awaits him will be imprisonment.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhi suddenly became anxious, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, as if the Jinyiwei would break in at the next moment and take him to the imperial prison.

He absolutely did not want to go to the imperial prison. Once in there, he would be in danger of death.

The butler standing by saw his master so anxious and understood the reason.

He thought for a moment and stepped forward and said:

"Master, I may have a way to solve your current predicament."

Zhang Xianzhi heard this, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw, and asked hurriedly:

"Tell me quickly, what can you do? If you can really help me solve this problem, you will be my great benefactor."

The butler said solemnly:
"In my humble opinion, it's impossible to conceal this matter. There are Jinyiwei in that team. They will definitely report today's events to the emperor or the prince. Therefore, concealing this matter is not feasible."

"In that case, we might as well take the initiative."

Zhang Xianzhi looked confused and didn't understand what the housekeeper meant by taking the initiative.
The butler continued to explain:
"Master, please submit a letter of apology and hand over some silver. Don't claim you were ignorant of the matter. This will make the Emperor or the Crown Prince think you are making excuses."

"Besides, there's no way to hide this kind of thing. Why don't you just admit it openly? Say you were bewitched and made these mistakes. Now you're willing to donate all the money you took to the court to help the victims."

When Zhang Xianzhi heard this, he became even more anxious and said:

"What's your idea? If you do that, I'll be dead."

In his opinion, voluntarily admitting to helping merchants evade taxes was simply courting death. Perhaps he would not even have to go to the imperial prison, but would be beheaded on the spot by the emperor or the prince.

The butler analyzed slowly:

"Master, think about it, are you the only one who has done this kind of thing over the years?"

"It's no exaggeration to say that at least half of the officials in Beijing have engaged in such behavior."

"Let's not talk about those far away. Just look at your colleagues. Which one of them has ever confiscated money from those merchants and helped them evade taxes?"

"And the shops owned by the nobles on the street next to our house, which of them pay taxes? Aren't they all evading taxes?"

"Will the Emperor and the Crown Prince really punish everyone?"

"If this is true, the people of the capital will surely be in a state of panic." "Furthermore, the commercial tax reform was only implemented recently, so the court shouldn't be pursuing matters from the past."

"So in my humble opinion, as long as you admit your mistake and hand over some money, this matter will probably be settled. At most, you will receive a scolding."

"It's better than losing your job, right?"

After listening to the housekeeper's analysis, Zhang Xianzhi suddenly calmed down.

Because I have to say, what the butler said does make sense.

You have to know that helping merchants evade taxes was a common practice in the Ming Dynasty. He knew of at least a dozen officials in the Ministry of Revenue who did this.

As for the nobles in the capital, it goes without saying that they have not paid taxes for almost two hundred years.

If the imperial court really wanted to investigate the tax evasion cases in the past, it would probably implicate thousands of officials and nobles.

He guessed that the court would not want to make a big deal out of this matter. After all, the subsequent commercial tax reform would still require the cooperation of the ministers in the court to promote it.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

But he simply didn't have the courage to go and meet the prince directly right now.

Moreover, the prince might not necessarily meet him, after all, he was just a fourth-rank official.

As for Chongzhen, there is no need to think about it.
So, he planned to first visit his boss, the Minister of Revenue Ni Yuanlu, and ask him to help plead for mercy.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhi hurriedly prepared to go back to his study to write a letter of apology.

Before leaving, he thought of something and instructed the housekeeper:

"By the way, go and get rid of that guy at the door."

The butler quickly responded:

"Don't worry, sir. I know what to do."

Afterwards, Zhang Xianzhi hurried back to his study and began to write a letter of apology.

Of course, this letter of apology alone was not enough. He had to return some of the money he had received over the years.

It is impossible to hand over all of it. After all, the normal salary is not enough to cover the expenses, and he has already spent a lot of this money.

Now he can only come up with two thousand taels of silver at most. If it is not enough, then he can do nothing.

At the same time, the butler had already arrived at the door, and said coldly to the waiter waiting outside:

"Go away! Don't come here again!"

? ? ? ? ? ?
When the guy heard this, he was stunned.

etc.
What does this incomprehensible statement mean?
Didn't we just agree to let him wait at the door? Why are you suddenly sending him away?
And isn't the matter still unresolved?
But before he could ask, the butler turned around and left, and asked the servant to close the door.

Looking at the closed door in front of him, the guy was confused and helpless, and could only turn around and leave.

When the waiter returned to the store, he pulled Yang Laosan aside and told him in detail what had happened before.

After hearing this, Yang Laosan thought to himself that something was wrong.

This is obviously an attempt to distance oneself from them!
It seems that I really have to pay taxes this time!
Although he felt a little distressed about having to pay a 10% business tax, looking at the situation today, he had no choice but to pay the tax.

Fortunately, there were only 3,000 dan of grain stored in the warehouse, so if anything had to be delivered, it would only be these 3,000 dan.

Moreover, these three thousand shi were previously collected at a price of more than one tael of silver per shi, and this was also recorded in the account book. If you calculate it this way, the maximum tax you have to pay is six hundred taels of silver.

Thinking of this, Yang Laosan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

At this moment, he still believed that the court was unaware of their previous large-scale stockpiling of grain.

But it was obvious that he was about to cry.

On the other side, Li Sanyang was leading people to check the grain in the warehouse.

Due to the large amount of grain, it was impossible to weigh each basket individually, so they could only roughly estimate the weight.

Moreover, these grains are not the main target of their inventory this time, so a rough estimate is enough. The real focus is still to come.

After a while of hard work, the group finally came to a conclusion:
That means there are about 3,000 shi of grain in this warehouse.

At this moment, Yang Lao San came over again and said in a flattering manner:

"Sir, don't worry. Although I don't know why the court suddenly changed the commercial tax, we are doing business seriously, so we must pay this tax."

"There are about 3,000 dan of grain here, all of which we bought earlier at one tael of silver per dan. According to the court's 10% tax rate, that would be 600 taels of silver."

"I'll get it to you right away!"

After saying this, Yang Laosan turned around and went into the house to get the banknotes.

At this moment, he just wanted to get rid of these plague gods as soon as possible.

Looking at Yang Laosan's leaving figure, Li Sanyang did not stop him. He just showed a sneer at the corner of his mouth and then led his men out of the granary.

A moment later, Yang Laosan came out with a few silver bills, and then respectfully handed the bills to Li Sanyang.

When he handed over the money, his heart ached as if it were being cut by a knife.

After all, I have never paid taxes before, and now I suddenly have to pay so much, I must feel distressed!

However, Li Sanyang did not take the banknotes he brought. Instead, he stared at him with a mocking look, which made Yang Laosan a little at a loss.

After a moment, Yang Lao San could only bite the bullet and ask:

"Sir, didn't you ask me to pay the tax? Why are you refusing to collect it now?"

Li Sanyang was too lazy to pay attention to Yang Laosan. Instead, he took out a small booklet from his arms and said coldly while flipping through it:

"That's not right. According to the Jinyiwei's previous investigation, you originally had 600,000 dan of grain, and you just bought 1 million dan of grain not long ago, all at three taels of silver per dan."

"So according to this calculation, the business tax you have to pay should be at least 700,000 taels of silver."

"As a result, you only took out 600 taels now. Isn't that too far away?"

what?
Seven hundred thousand taels of silver?

When Yang Laosan heard this, his vision went dark and he almost fainted.

He never expected that these people in front of him not only knew that they had hoarded grain before, but also knew that they had secretly bought one million shi of grain.

You have to know that he has always done these things in a very secretive manner, and he transported them secretly at night when no one was around, and the granary was not in the inner city. How did the Jinyiwei know about it?
And he was asked to pay 700,000 silver dollars in business tax all at once. Isn't this going to cost him his life?
If he really paid this money, the boss behind him would definitely kill him!
Thinking of this, Yang Lao San said with a sad face:

"Sir, where did you hear this? It's pure nonsense!"

"How could I possibly have so much food? Someone must be slandering me!"

Li Sanyang didn't want to talk to him, and said coldly:
"Don't try to play tricks on me. Either you pay the tax of 700,000 taels of silver quickly, or we will move the grain from your warehouses ourselves."

"But I have to remind you, if we find out you really have so much grain, you will be evading taxes."

"According to the court's regulations, half of the grain must be confiscated. By then, it won't be just a matter of 700,000 taels of silver."

When Yang Laosan heard this, he immediately stopped looking sad and his face turned red with anxiety.

Because he knew that it would be impossible to play tricks in front of the Jinyiwei, but it was also impossible for him to pay 700,000 taels of silver as tax now.

Firstly, he didn't have that much silver because it had all been used to store food.

Secondly, he had no say in the matter. If he really paid the tax of 700,000 taels of silver, he would surely die!

But then again, this group of people are eyeing us covetously. If we don't hand it over today, they might really go and move the food ourselves. Then the loss will not just be 700,000 taels.

What to do? What to do? What to do?
For a moment, Yang Laosan was in a state of confusion and his brain was working rapidly.

Suddenly at this moment, he suddenly thought of something and looked outside the store.

At this moment, a large group of people who came to buy rice had surrounded the store entrance, looking inside curiously, as if trying to figure out what was going on.

There were even some passers-by and businessmen looking into the store with curious looks on their faces.

When seeing this scene, Yang Laosan instantly had an idea in his mind!
The next second, Yang Lao San suddenly rushed to the door of the shop, sat down on the ground, and howled at the top of his lungs:
"Everyone, come and see! The government is coming to seize my grain! They're charging me 700,000 taels of silver in sales tax for a small shop like mine, and if I don't pay, they're going to take my grain. Is this even fair?"

"In this day and age, I finally managed to run a small business, but the government is still trying to make things difficult for me. I really can't survive!"

"Can't I just close this shop? I feel bad for you common people. I'm afraid you'll have to buy food somewhere else!"

When the uninformed people saw this scene, they began to talk about it.

"Oh my god! What on earth is the imperial court trying to do? Such a small shop is actually collecting 700,000 taels of sales tax. Do they want us to survive?"

"I heard the court reformed the commercial tax, but it seems they only collected 20% of the tax. How could it be so much?"

"I'm afraid the imperial court is out of money, so they want to get money from these merchants?"

"But we can't have that much! Also, what if this rice shop really closes? I heard that many rice shops are only selling a few hundred kilograms of rice a day lately, and once they sell out, there's nothing left."

"Isn't it? My family doesn't even have any food left. If I can't buy rice, won't this be the end of me?"

"The imperial court is not only trying to kill the merchants, I'm afraid they're going to kill us too!"

As the people were talking, they suddenly became filled with righteous indignation. Although they did not dare to curse Li Sanyang and others directly, they looked at them with hatred.

When seeing this scene, a barely perceptible smile suddenly appeared on the corner of Yang Laosan's mouth.

He wanted to make a big deal out of this matter and let everyone know that the court was forcing him to pay high business taxes.

We must make it impossible for him to continue his business and make it impossible for ordinary people like him to buy food.

By then, these tax collectors will definitely be scared away!
After all, this is the capital. If there is a civil uprising, even the Jinyiwei cannot bear the responsibility.

(End of this chapter)