Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 72 Someone Above
"If I remember correctly, one mu of land in Zheng County is worth 2,000 coins, 30 mu is worth 60,000 coins, and 100 mu of good land is worth 200,000 coins. How much food and grass can 200,000 coins buy?"

Zhang Yu paced in the hall and said, "In good times, the price of grain is thirty coins per dan. Now that the northwest is in turmoil, it is better to calculate it at eighty coins. Then two hundred thousand coins are worth two thousand three hundred and fifty dan."

"Now that there are many refugees, why not recruit them and let them open up fields in the mountains. The cost of reclamation will be funded by the big families and powerful people in the county. After the fields in the mountains are reclaimed, the refugees will occupy part of the land, and the rest will be divided among the various families in the county. How can you say there is no profit?" Zhang Yu asked.

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, agricultural technology developed greatly and crop yields soared. During the reign of Emperor Xuan of Han, a stone of grain cost about five coins. In Guanzhong, the price of grain was usually around thirty coins. During the war with the rebels, the price of grain would soar to fifty coins, or double, or even eighty coins.

During the famine in Xuzhou, when people were eating each other, the price of grain soared to more than 300 coins. Unless there were repeated famines and a protracted war, the price of grain would rise to a terrifying 10,000 coins. Under normal circumstances, the price of grain would not be particularly outrageous.

Zhang Yu's current operation actually intends to use the government's credibility to make money out of nothing, and organize local big families to buy grain to help the refugees open up wasteland. After that, part of the land obtained from the reclamation will be allocated as private land for the people, and the rest will be divided up by the big families in Zheng County.

The common people worked hard to get the land, the nobles paid money to get the land, and Zhang Yu gained political achievements. This plan can be said to kill three birds with one stone. Only the refugees need to work harder and reclaim more mountain fields for the nobles to repay the food and grass they eat.

Moreover, Zhang Yu submitted a petition to reduce or exempt the taxes on refugees. Since these reclaimed mountain fields had a relief component, they could also enjoy preferential treatment of tax reduction or exemption.

When Liang Mi understood the plan Zhang Yu proposed, his eyes really lit up, and all his previous regrets disappeared. This was not just crazy talk, but clearly a true insight.

The county lord was indeed a descendant of a rich family, and the plan he came up with was so outstanding. This was the first time he had heard of such a plan to help refugees in his twenty-plus years as an official.

This governance policy with a strong "capital" color was ahead of many versions of the time and was obviously not a relief measure that should have been taken in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

But Liang Mi had lived in Zheng County for a long time and immediately discovered a problem. He asked, "What should we do if the land is occupied by powerful families or wealthy clans?"

"The forests are converted into farmland at market prices," said Zhang Yu.

After a pause, Zhang Yu walked to Liang Mi's side and said, "Liang Gongcao is the head of all officials and has great prestige in Zheng County. Now I am afraid I will have to trouble Mr. Liang to contact the big families in the county. After the mountain fields are reclaimed, Mr. Liang will have a share."

"It's not just that!"

Zhang Yu said in a tone full of bewitching words: "After the exiles are over, I will submit a memorial to Lord Chang to express my gratitude to Lord Liang for his hard work."

After saying this, Zhang Yu pretended to be mysterious and pointed to the top of the eaves.

"There's someone up there!"

Although he didn't say it, Liang Mi immediately understood from the blatant political hint that Zhang Yu was showing off that he had a big shot above him.

Jingzhao Yin Shouchang Gong?

Or is he a high-ranking official in Luoyang?

No matter what, being appointed as a county magistrate at a young age is basically impossible without a good background and identity.

Liang Mi was smart and said with a smile: "I still have some prestige in Zheng County. Please rest assured that I can contact the various families. But the specific matter of reclaiming the mountain fields may still require the County Lord to take care of it."

"good!"

Zhang Yu nodded slightly and said, "I will personally oversee the selection of sites and the number of acres to be reclaimed."

"promise!"

The land reclamation in the mountains attached great importance to the hillside area, and the specific number of acres of wasteland to be reclaimed needed to be estimated together with the reclamation time, and the money and grain spent before and after had to be calculated, and then the various families in Zheng County would be asked to share the cost evenly.

This matter is not difficult, and it should be easy for county-level officials to solve it. But for those who are new to budgeting and estimating construction periods, they would have no idea where to start. In order to seize the time and grasp the scale, Zhang Yu had to personally handle it before he could feel at ease.

The two were chatting about government affairs when Liang Mi suddenly remembered something and said, "My Lord, there is a tiger eating people in Nanshan now. I'm afraid you need to worry about it!"

"Nanshan Tiger?"

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and asked, "Didn't County Magistrate Yin lead his men into the mountains to surround and kill the tiger? Did he return without success?"

"That's how it should be!"

Liang Mi said: "When I came to visit the county lord, I happened to see County Lieutenant Yin returning empty-handed. County Lieutenant Yin needs to report the details to the county lord."

"good!"

"My lord, the county lieutenant Yin Huai is outside asking to see you!" Hao Zhao stepped inside and reported.

Liang Mi stood up subconsciously and said, "The county magistrate Yin is here to pay me a visit, so I will go back to my office first."

"Not urgent!"

In order to show his trust in Liang Mi, Zhang Yu deliberately kept Liang Mi and said, "Please invite the county lieutenant into the hall!"

"promise!"

After a while, the burly Yin Huai stepped into the hall and bowed to Zhang Yu and Liang Mi respectively.
"I went up the mountain to hunt tigers. I am deeply sorry that I couldn't welcome the county lady yesterday!" Yin Huai said in a low voice.

"Mr. Yin, you have worked hard. I wonder how the tiger hunting trip went?" Zhang Yu asked.

Yin Huai sighed and said in frustration: "The beast is cunning by nature. This time I led more than 50 county soldiers and village militiamen into the mountains to hunt tigers. Unexpectedly, when I entered the mountains, the beast went the other way and came out to kill the people at the foot of the mountain. When I learned the news and turned back, the beast had eaten one person and disappeared into the forest."

"The beast is so cunning that he could actually do a feint to the east and attack in the west!" Liang Mi exclaimed.

Zhang Yu frowned slightly and asked, "How many villagers have been killed by the tiger so far?"

Yin Huai thought for a moment and said, "Since the beginning of spring this year, according to reports from the township and the pavilion, tigers have killed ten people. The local militia went into the mountains many times to hunt them, but all failed. During this period, some local militia were ambushed by the beasts while hunting tigers in the mountains."

Zhang Yu was slightly moved and said, "This beast is really cunning. He actually knows how to avoid the strong and attack the weak!"

"Oh!" Yin Huai sighed, feeling ashamed for not being able to kill the tiger.

"The beast ate and killed ten people, and its whereabouts have not been found yet. I wonder what Lord Yin's plan is?" Zhang Yu asked.

Yin Huai groaned for a long time, gritted his teeth and said: "I want to recruit warriors in the county, and then patrol Nanshan, and never let the beasts kill anyone again!"

"good!"

Seeing that Yin Huai had his own plans, Zhang Yu did not say much, but only warned him: "The beasts understand human nature, Yin Jun should be more careful to avoid further losses."

"promise!"

After chatting for a while, Liang Mi and Yin Huai left one after another.

After the two left, Meng Ningzhi and Zhang Feng, who were standing at the door, walked in.

Meng Ningzhi was the first to bow and ask, "May I ask you, sir? I heard outside the hall that there is a vicious tiger roaming in the South Mountain. Is this true?"

"Of course!"

Meng Ningzhi volunteered, saying in a deep voice: "Since I followed the county lord last year, I have not made any achievements, but have enjoyed abundant food and clothing. I feel ashamed. Now there is a vicious tiger in Nanshan Mountain, I am willing to follow the county lord Yin to kill the vicious tiger and relieve the county lord's worries!"

Zhang Yu hesitated and asked, "Has Bo Ning ever hunted tigers before?"

"When I was a knight-errant, there was a tiger doing evil in Yingchuan. I volunteered to go there and luckily I hunted a tiger with my fellow villagers." Meng Ningzhi said, "So I know a thing or two about hunting tigers."

"good!"

Seeing that Meng Ningzhi had experience in hunting tigers, Zhang Yu did not hesitate and said, "Animals are cunning. When Bo'an goes into the mountains to hunt tigers, he must be careful to avoid being hurt by animals."

"promise!"
-
With Zhang Yu in charge, many things in Zheng County have made progress.

Du Ji went to the prison in person and handled the cases personally. In just ten days, nearly two hundred cases were solved and nearly one hundred people were released from prison.

Zhang Yu assured everyone that within five days, if anyone felt that the case was unfairly tried, they could file a petition for a retrial. However, not many cases were re-filed within five days, only about twenty cases, which was one-tenth of the original cases.

After Du Ji and Zhang Yu re-decided the verdicts, only five or six of the twenty or so cases had their verdicts changed, and only one case was overturned.

At the same time, in order to select a mountain that was easy to cultivate into terraced fields, Zhang Yu asked his men to visit the county for a long time and finally found a relatively suitable mountain.

At Longwei Ridge, Zhang Yu led the county officials to climb up to the heights and look into the distance, surveying the terrain of the mountains and rivers.

"County Lord, the Chishui River flows northward from the mountains. When it passes through Longwei Ridge, its flow rate slows down." Water Officer Zheng He pointed to the terrain of Longwei Ridge and said, "If we want to cultivate fields in Longwei Ridge, we need to repair the Chishui River, divert water into canals, and use the momentum of the mountains to flow through the mountains and irrigate the fields."

Zhang Yu squinted his eyes and saw fertile fields at the foot of the mountain. He asked, "Will the repair of the Red Water on the ridge affect the irrigation of the fertile fields at the foot of the mountain?"

Zheng He pondered for a long time and said, "In previous years, the Chishui River often overflowed due to heavy rains. Now, borrowing fields between the mountains can prevent the good fields at the foot of the mountain from flooding."

"What if there is a drought?" Zhang Yu asked.

Zheng He hesitated for a moment and said, "The mountain fields should not be short of water, but the upper and lower parts may be short of water."

Zhang Yu looked at the gullies that had been washed out and said, "Can we build a pond to drain water when it rains lightly and store water when it rains heavily?"

"feasible!"

Zheng He nodded and said, "I'm afraid that the pond will take a lot of manpower, and a thousand refugees may not be enough."

"Conscript the people living along the Chishui River and order them to build dams in the mountains during their off-season." Zhang Yu said, "The mountain fields will be reclaimed by the refugees."

"How is it?" Zhang Yu looked at Liang Mi and asked.

"We can follow the county lord's wishes!" Liang Mi said, "If we can choose a good one today, we can let the refugees come to open up the wasteland tomorrow, and the clans in the county will come to help. And all the clans think that Longwei Ridge is feasible."

After Liang Mi's efforts and organization, the major families in the county reached a consensus to provide the refugees with tools for reclaiming wasteland, and to use the land after the reclamation as collateral for the expenses they had to bear during the period of reclamation at 80% of the market price.

At the same time, after Zhang Yu's efforts, the land reclaimed by the refugees could be cultivated first, and the land of the big families did not have to be delivered immediately, but could be postponed.

"good!"

Seeing that Longwei Ridge was recognized by everyone, Zhang Yu ordered: "Starting tomorrow, settle the refugees here, name it Longwei Village, register all households, and open up the mountains and lend them farmland."

"No!" Everyone responded in unison.

On the way down the mountain, they suddenly saw Zhang Feng coming in a hurry.

"County Lord!"

"What's the matter?" Zhang Yu stopped and asked.

Zhang Feng wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "According to the people from Nanshan, today County Magistrate Yin led his troops up the mountain to check for a vicious tiger. When they were resting, they unexpectedly encountered a vicious tiger."

"After a fight, County Magistrate Yin was rescued by local militiamen, and the tiger was injured and fled. But Bo Ning went deep into the mountains alone, and the others followed him. We don't know what happened yet!"

"Jiangzuo Yishu": "When Emperor Shenwu was the magistrate of Zheng County, he set up refugees, who were rampant in the county like vicious tigers. The big families were deeply afraid of them, so they donated grain and land to avoid the disaster!"

(End of this chapter)