Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 246 The Great Tax Collector
While in Zhengzhou, although some of the disaster's impact could be seen, the overall situation was not too serious due to its geographical location. Even though there were many refugees along the way, most of them had come from other prefectures and counties.

However, as Zhang Dai and his group continued their journey eastward from Guancheng, the situation changed significantly. Especially in the vicinity of Zhengzhou and Bianzhou, many travelers encountered difficulties along the way. In Zhengzhou, farmers could already be seen working in the fields, while Bianzhou across the river presented a desolate and barren landscape.

Even the banks of the Bian Canal showed a clear difference between the two locations. Travelers mainly stayed on the Zhengzhou side, while on the Bianzhou side, although there were more inns and guesthouses along the banks, they were deserted, with few boats or carriages stopping there.

Such a strange phenomenon is probably not just due to a natural disaster; the greater likelihood is that it was caused by human intervention.

"Young Master Zhang, Young Master Zhang! Since receiving the letter, Wang Er has been waiting here for days, and we are finally pleased to welcome you!"

As soon as Zhang Dai and his party arrived, Wang Yuanbao led a large group of servants, all smiles, to greet them. When they got close, Wang Yuanbao bowed and knelt down, his expression showing both respect and a hint of pleading.

At the end of last year, this fellow followed Zhang Dai's advice and left the capital to travel east. He had been staying in Bianzhou for a while and things were peaceful until he gave the poem that Zhang Dai had used as a code to Wang Maozhong's daughter, which triggered a series of subsequent events.

Although he was in Bianzhou, he must have had his own channels of information about people and affairs in Luoyang. Now that he had seen Zhang Dai again, he was naturally uneasy.

"The two places are separated by only a line, yet the scenery is so different."

Zhang Dai couldn't worry about these things right now. The stark difference between the two sides of the state naturally made him wary, so he immediately asked.

"Alas, young master, you are unaware of the fact that, perhaps because the state government has been issuing harsh orders recently due to the poor harvests of farming and weaving this spring, it has imposed large taxes at customs and markets throughout the territory, levying taxes on all travelers. This has caused great suffering for travelers from all directions, resulting in the disappearance of merchants and the halt of travel by boat and carriage."

At this point, Wang Yuanbao couldn't help but sigh.

The governor of Bianzhou is Yuan Fu, the son of the prime minister Yuan Qianyao. Since the beginning of this year, he has implemented various harsh policies, intending to take advantage of Bianzhou's relatively prosperous commercial base to make a profit and thus compensate for the loss of rent and taxes caused by the poor harvest caused by the disaster.

Merchants are most sensitive to profit and loss, and naturally want to escape dangerous areas, which has led to two completely different situations in Zhengzhou and Bianzhou.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai frowned and then pointed to his own caravan behind him, asking Wang Yuanbao, "Among those who have entered the country by boat and carriage, am I also subject to the magistrate's punishment? Why didn't Xu Shen come with you?"

"The prefectural government recently gathered over a thousand women and children and sent them here, and allocated a piece of land in Pengchi, Kaifeng, for the construction of a new weaving workshop. Mr. Xu went to receive them but was too busy to attend to them, so I went ahead first."

As Wang Yuanbao spoke, he handed a letter to Zhang Dai.

Zhang Dai opened the letter and read it. In addition to Xu Shenyan's apology, the letter also contained a customs pass issued by the Henan Pacification Commissioner. With this pass, local officials were not allowed to harass anyone or anything passing through the territory.

Last year, Xu Shen was recommended by Zhang Dai and was appointed by Yuwen Rong as an agricultural advisor, in which he was responsible for coordinating the entire disaster relief plan and liaising with local officials.

Following a series of personnel changes at the beginning of the year, although Yuwen Rong was demoted from the court and appointed as the governor of Weizhou, he was still appointed as the pacification commissioner of Henan and Hebei and remained the highest-ranking official in charge of disaster relief in Henan and Hebei. Xu Shen's post naturally still had certain powers.

Only after receiving this document did Zhang Dai order the team to continue their journey. Otherwise, given the situation on both sides of the border, he really wouldn't dare to blindly enter Bianzhou territory.

After all, Bianzhou didn't have his father's protection, and Yuan Qianyao's son, Yuan Fu, as the governor of Bianzhou, probably wouldn't show much favoritism or preferential treatment to his group.

Especially after hearing what Wang Yuanbao said, Yuanfu's series of actions seemed a bit desperate for money. Who knows what kind of crazy ideas he might come up with after seeing his big fat sheep enter the country?

Other travelers who had stopped outside Bianzhou Prefecture couldn't help but follow and watch as Zhang Dai's large entourage entered the prefecture. They probably thought that if Bianzhou's policies weren't as strict as rumored, they would also hurry in to trade.

Zhang Dai and his entourage were not immediately intercepted upon entering the country. However, seeing such conspicuous targets traveling unimpeded, the merchants behind them couldn't help but become restless. Some couldn't resist and secretly followed them in their boats and carriages. After all, even if something did happen, there was a big target ahead keeping an eye on them.

After traveling for more than ten miles into Bianzhou, a group of cavalrymen suddenly came galloping towards them. Judging from their clothes and attire, they seemed to be government officials and clerks, each carrying a stick, and some even carrying knives and bows.

"Stop immediately! Where did you come from? Where are you going? Quickly present what you have passed!"

As soon as these people approached, they started shouting and yelling, ordering the group to stop on the spot and urging the cargo owners to come forward and submit their documents for inspection.

Zhang Dai naturally wouldn't directly contact these people; instead, Li Guang would bring the relevant documents to them for the exchange. After all, Li Guang's status as a eunuch was more powerful than a thousand words in certain situations. Eunuchs were the emperor's servants, and eunuchs outside the capital were the emperor's eyes and ears; even the most arrogant local bullies would have to consider whether they could offend them.

Sure enough, after realizing Li Guang's identity, the yamen runners under the jurisdiction of Bianzhou became more restrained. When they saw the documents handed over by Li Guang and glanced at them, the leader's expression changed even more. He pointed to the large cargo caravans on the road and in the canals and asked, "Are all these boats and carts carrying goods belonging to the same company?"

"These are not commercial goods, but materials sent by the envoy of the Eastern Capital to various prefectures in Henan to provide disaster relief."

Li Guang quickly corrected the other party's wording, explaining that the goods they were transporting would indeed not be sold in the market, but would be used to replenish the weaving workshops in various states to maintain their daily expenses.

"Disaster relief? All these supplies are for disaster relief?"

Upon hearing this, the other party immediately curled their lip and then sneered, clearly not believing it. Perhaps in their minds, no one would be so generous, or so foolish, to transport so many goods to aid unrelated disaster victims.

"That's the truth. There are charitable weaving workshops within your Bianzhou territory. Are you unaware of this? These materials are destined for these weaving workshops; they are definitely not goods for sale for profit!"

Li Guang then searched through the relevant documents and found a reply from the Bianzhou Prefecture that could corroborate his statement.

However, the other party did not choose to believe it, but continued to look through the records and quickly found suspicious records: "What is the meaning of these raw silk, cooked hemp, millet and other items purchased from Guancheng Post Station? Each item is worth tens of millions, and there are also residence tax invoices issued by the market supervisor!"

During the Tang Dynasty, commercial taxes were levied at customs and markets, and were further divided into transit taxes and transaction taxes. Zhang Dai and his party traveled eastward from Luoyang, and because of their special purpose of disaster relief, they were exempted from customs and transit fees along the way.

However, a batch of supplies was purchased in Guancheng beforehand, which is a relatively normal business transaction. After all, the buying and selling actually happened. Although the transaction tax collected by the market was paid by the seller, the Guancheng District Government also issued a document proving that the transaction tax had been paid.

This was originally intended to prove the legitimate origin of this batch of goods, but in the eyes of the yamen runners in Bianzhou, it became suspicious. Why should you pay the residence tax in Zhengzhou, but then use documents to evade taxes after entering Bianzhou?

"The goods were purchased from Guan City, so the city government collects a residence tax. But now that the goods are entering Bianzhou, they are not for sale in the market. Moreover, we will also need to purchase materials from this city, and we will have to pay the same..."

Before Li Guang could argue further, the head constable waved his hand and said, "You people from Luoyang are often cunning, taking advantage of our limited knowledge. With so many official documents here, I cannot verify them all. Either you pay the customs tax according to the law, and we'll negotiate further at the prefectural government, or you leave the people and goods here until we report to the prefectural government to verify their authenticity before making a decision!"

"The goods being transported in the boats and carts are all urgently needed supplies for the disaster area. You officials, lacking discernment, are forcibly keeping them here. If this delays relief efforts, can you bear the responsibility?"

Seeing that this person was unyielding, Li Guang immediately snorted coldly.

Upon hearing this, the man sneered, "Aren't we all acting in accordance with the law and contributing to the nation's resources? We are all acting for the greater good, what is there to be ashamed of! Either pay the money to get through, or stay here to await trial! Do you lot even know who I, the governor of this prefecture, am? I am the virtuous heir of the current prime minister, how dare I fear your followers!"

Upon seeing this, Li Guang had no choice but to return and report to Zhang Dai.

After listening, Zhang Dai looked at Wang Yuanbao and asked, "How far is it from here to the prefectural city?"

"Even a fast horse would take two days to travel back and forth."

Upon hearing this reply, Zhang Dai pondered for a moment, then said, "Let him pay the taxes first, but one of his officials must accompany us to the prefectural capital with the receipt. Otherwise, we will leave Bianzhou and travel down the river!"

The entire city of Bianzhou was desperately poor, and even if they managed to get through this situation, they might still face similar harassment on their way east. It was already March, but Bianzhou was not yet the epicenter of the disaster, and they didn't have much time to waste on the road.

Therefore, Zhang Dai decided to pay the tax first to avoid further trouble, and then go directly to Yuan Fu in the prefectural capital to reason with him and get the tax money back.

So Li Guang went forward to negotiate again, and the head constable was happy to do so. How the prefecture handled the matter was the prefecture's business, but how much tax he collected was a matter of their county's performance.

With such a large fleet of boats, at a tax rate of 20% per thousand, it could collect at least 2,000 strings of cash in taxes. This single transaction would be enough to collect almost half of the tax quota assigned by the state government!

(End of this chapter)