Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 150 Severe
As the saying goes, before the soldiers and horses move, food and grass go first.

Zhao Huai'an had decided to conquer the Dabie Mountains in the south, but he didn't lead his troops directly into the mountains; that would be playing with his career and the lives of his brothers.

During the plum rains of May and June, Zhao Huai'an frequently summoned the governor and his staff to gain a comprehensive understanding of Gwangju's current strength.

During this process, the original officials of Guang Prefecture frequently reported to Zhao Huai'an. Those who performed well were recorded by Zhao in his handbook, while those who performed poorly were simply given a severance payment and sent back home.

Having absolute military power, Zhao Huai'an had no time to play power games with the local officials; he came out with decisive and ruthless measures.

In just over a month, Zhao Huai'an streamlined the personnel of the prefectural court, eliminating all those who were old and incompetent or who were merely occupying positions without contributing their salaries, leaving behind only those who were skilled in administrative affairs and had a strong work ethic.

Thanks to this team, Zhao Huai'an first began to clarify the tax sources of Guang Prefecture, which was related to the number of troops and their treatment during Zhao Huai'an's first expansion of the army.

The registrar Hong Yan made great contributions here. Because of his presence, many capable officials in the prefecture flocked to Zhao Huai'an.

Historically, officials have always kept two sets of accounts: one for their superiors and one for their own people. These pragmatic individuals are the frontline personnel who have access to the true figures of Gwangju.

Zhao Huai'an needs the help of these people to understand the true situation in Gwangju.

Now, on Hong Yanshi's recommendation, Du Zongqi, the military advisor of the prefecture, decided to align himself with the decisive and ruthless governor.

This person, as the state official in charge of household registration, land, tax collection, and warehouse management, was a core official in the finances of Gwangju.

At this moment, Du Zongqi was waiting in the corridor outside the main hall with several stacks of tax ledgers, ready to offer his fervent loyalty to Zhao Huai'an at any time!
Right now, in the small hall, Zhao Huai'an is talking to Zhao Liu, who has just returned.

……

The rain outside was pouring down, showing no signs of letting up. Zhao Huai'an looked at Zhao Liu, who was drinking ginger soup, and asked:

"Where has the Huai River waterway reached?"

Zhao Liu quickly put down the soup bowl and reported earnestly:

“I, Niu Li, Wang Li and a few other boys went to check. The local officials didn’t lie to us. The waterline is still below the rocks and hasn’t crossed the warning line yet. It’s already June, and the rainy season will be over soon. Judging from this, there won’t be any flooding this year.”

After saying that, Zhao Liu sighed and told Zhao Huai'an something:
"Hey, I recently met a widow from Xuzhou. She fled to Guangzhou a couple of years ago. Her husband died in the flood that year. She said that two years ago, the Central Plains suffered from both floods and droughts, and people were dead everywhere. It was only because Guangzhou is in the Huainan area that things were a little better. There are quite a few people like her who fled from the north. They are all homeless and pitiful."

Zhao Huai'an gave a deep "oh," and then suddenly said:

"You slept with that widow?"

Zhao Liu blushed with embarrassment and retorted:
"What are you saying? I was just feeling sorry for the person who had nowhere to go, so I took them in."

Zhao Huai'an spat directly at it and cursed:
"Feeling sorry for her?! I just think you're lusting after her. Get lost!"

With that, Zhao Huai'an dismissed Zhao Liu and prepared to meet Du Zongqi, who was waiting outside.

Watching Zhao Liu's retreating figure, Zhao Huai'an couldn't help but sigh as he thought about recent events.

The brothers followed him to Gwangju, which seems to indicate that he is indeed wealthy, as they have only just settled down and are already asking for land and houses.

However, this is also a good thing. Being able to spend money to buy land and property in Gwangju shows that these people are indeed going to settle down here.

Therefore, Zhao Huai'an asked several clerks in the prefecture to help him buy land. Otherwise, he was afraid that if the soldiers were cheated by the locals, he would just take their knives and kill them.

Then Zhao Liu also found a widow from Xuzhou who gave him a half-grown son at a young age. This man is truly blessed.

And then there's Old Mo, who came over to me the other day, all coy and hesitant, saying he'd fallen for a cook in a prefecture who made food in the corridors, and wanted me to help him make the decision.

What made Zhao Huai'an most nervous that day wasn't that, but that the old Mo told him that he felt he could still try harder to have a son, so that his son would be a Tang person.

There was no other way; the old Mexican had been with him for so long, it wasn't unreasonable for him to want a son.

So Zhao Huai'an paid out of his own pocket to buy a house for Lao Mo nearby and settled Lao Mo's new wife in.

A few days ago, his relatives asked his cousin Zhao Youben to inquire when they would be given wives.

Then Zhao Youben was scolded by Zhao Huai'an, who told him to go to his mother to resolve the matter.

What a joke! Zhao Da is so busy these days that he barely has time to make butter tea anymore. How could he possibly have time to care about clan affairs?

It was through this incident that Zhao Huai'an officially entrusted his mother, Zhao Shi, with full authority over clan affairs, and then had an uncle and two scribes assist her.

Actually, Zhao Huai'an was already helping them resolve this matter without the clansmen even asking.

He also discovered that the clan was not thriving and many of his relatives of marriageable age had not married.

So Zhao Huai'an gave her mother a sum of money, about 20,000 to 30,000 guan, to be used as family property, and all future family weddings and funerals would be paid for from this money.

With money, there will be a dowry, and then he will be able to marry a daughter from a good family in Guangzhou. Why should he have to spend his time on everything?
However, Zhao Huai'an didn't have time to manage the marriages of his relatives, but he was very concerned about housing and education, and had someone take care of it on his second day in Gwangju.

To settle his relatives, Zhao Huai'an chose a small neighborhood as the residence for more than two hundred members of the Zhao family.

He made some minor modifications to the neighborhood, knocking down the internal walls and raising the outer courtyard walls, transforming it into a small fortified village with functions for living, practicing martial arts, and defense.

Later, more than two hundred of Zhao Huai'an's relatives lived here, so the place was also called "Zhao Family Alley" by outsiders.

Zhao Huai'an valued these relatives highly because, since ancient times, starting a business has always involved employing relatives.

Some relatives were capable, so they assisted in achieving success, while others were useless and ended up in positions they shouldn't have been in, harming themselves and others.

Therefore, if Zhao Huai'an wants to have a stable future, he needs to improve the abilities of his relatives now.

He specifically selected samurai from the shogunate and the army who were both literate and skilled in martial arts to serve as instructors for his clansmen. All members of the Zhao family, regardless of gender, were required to learn from him.

However, the fact that his relatives wanted to get married inspired Zhao Huai'an. He thought that he should also find wives for the officials and soldiers of Baoyidu and let them settle down locally.

That's how people are; once they put on shoes, they have more thoughts and concerns. Before, organizing the righteous society was a constraint, and now allowing the officials and soldiers to marry and have children is another constraint.

It was difficult to find so many women of marriageable age. Guangzhou had a small population, only about 30,000 households, or about 100,000 people. There were more men than women, so Guangzhou alone could not solve the marriage problem for its officials and soldiers.

However, this should be done step by step, as it is not something that is too urgent.

When Zhao Huai'an reached his position, thousands of people surrounded him, and he had to arrange everything from food and drink to weddings and funerals.

He gained power, and naturally, he assumed this responsibility. Furthermore, as long as he continues to shoulder this responsibility, he can maintain a firm grip on power!

Rights and responsibilities are always equal!
Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Wang Duo called out from outside:

"My lord, Military Advisor Du has arrived."

Look, this is Old Wang's political awareness; he's grown up very quickly. Du Zongqi had clearly been waiting outside for almost an hour, but in Old Wang's words, it was as if Du Zongqi had just arrived.

After hearing this, Zhao Huai'an instructed Old Mo beside him:

"Change to better tea."

Then he straightened his robes and called out:
"Enter!"

……

Du Zongqi's legs ached from standing under the eaves, but he dared not massage them in public. If he encountered some gossipy people who might tell the governor that this Military Advisor Du was not in good health, he would be wronged.

Those who climb the ranks in officialdom never overestimate the character of their colleagues.

Fortunately, at this moment, Chief Secretary Wang Duo walked over in a friendly manner and gestured that he could go in, which gave him the opportunity to ease his steps considerably.

Seeing Wang Duo's warm demeanor, Du Zongqi seized the opportunity to ask for his advice:

"Chief Clerk, does our governor have any taboos? What should I be aware of? Please advise me."

Wang Duo smiled, looking meaningfully at the clever young man before him:

"Our governor has nothing to hide. If there is anything he is afraid of being lied to, then you just need to tell the truth."

After saying this, Wang Duo patted the young official on the shoulder and then led him into the small hall.

Inside the hall, Zhao Huai'an was still sitting on the soft couch, with a small stool on each side and a small table next to him, on which some candied fruit and fruit were placed.

After Wang Duo and Du Zongqi entered, they bowed to Zhao Huai'an and greeted him:

"Greetings, lord."

Zhao Huai'an smiled and gestured for them to sit down.

Then Wang Duo sat on the stool on the left, and Du Zongqi sat on the right, sitting upright, only daring to sit halfway.

Seeing Du Zongqi like this, Zhao Huai'an laughed heartily and said:

"Young Du, there's no need for that, please be at ease." Du Zongqi quickly rose and bowed.
“This humble official dares not do so. Your Excellency is the beneficiary of the entire prefecture and the parent of the people. You should uphold propriety and set an example for the counties. In this way, who in the prefecture would dare to disrespect or be disrespectful?”

Zhao Huai'an smiled, finding it amusing that these Confucian-educated officials could spout grand theories about etiquette, but since this man insisted, he didn't mind and asked:

"Alright, Xiao Du, tell me about the situation in Guangzhou. The summer tax has already been collected, so tell us about the results. Also, tell me about Guangzhou's financial situation, otherwise we really won't feel confident. Come, sit down first, and try some of our own Guangshan tea."

As he spoke, Zhao Huai'an asked Du Zongqi to sit down, then raised his teacup to Du Zongqi before offering it to his chief secretary, Old Wang.

Wang Duo and Zhao Huai'an were much more casual, raising their teacups in return, taking a sip of the golden tea, and praising it:

"Good tea leaves a lingering fragrance in your mouth after the first sip. It's truly wonderful tea!"

At this moment, Wang Duo was drinking the Guangzhou tea that Zhao Huai'an had improved. In this dynasty, tea was usually steamed, then crushed into tea cakes and boiled.

Zhao Huai'an, on the other hand, prepared Guangzhou tea according to the tea-making methods popular during the Ming and Qing dynasties. He would stir-fry the tea leaves in a large iron pot to kill the greenness and preserve their aroma, and then simply brew them with hot water.

If the tea-drinking tradition of this dynasty is about consuming tea as an ingredient, then Zhao Huai'an's approach is to enjoy the pure aroma of tea.

For this reason, Zhao Huai'an specially commissioned artisans in the prefecture to carve out several tea sets specifically for tea drinking.

Elderly people like Wang Duo are no strangers to tea frying and brewing, but this was the first time they had tasted tea from Guangshan. They were attracted by its fresh aroma and couldn't help but exclaim in praise.

But Du Zongqi, sitting opposite him, was experiencing this way of drinking tea for the first time. Looking at the tea soup, which was as clear as amber, he felt a surge of appetite.

Before even taking a sip, the aroma of the tea was already wafting up, instantly clearing my mind. I took a careful sip, but it didn't taste like much, so I couldn't resist taking another sip.

At this moment, the first lingering fragrance arrived, and the rich aroma swirled in his mouth. Du Zongqi immediately fell in love with the taste.

This tea soup doesn't have the strong flavor of boiled tea, but it's also not oily. It's very refreshing, and this comfortable feeling is exactly what a scholar like him likes.

Before he knew it, Du Zongqi had finished the tea in his small cup, and Lao Mo next to him poured him another cup.

At this moment, Du Zongqi felt a little embarrassed, put down his teacup, and said to Zhao Huai'an:

"I apologize for my rudeness. This tea is truly refreshing and fragrant. I drank more than I expected."

Zhao Huai'an laughed heartily, placed the teacup in his hand, and joked:

"No, that's exactly right. Now I'm relieved. We'll make a fortune from this in the future!"

Du Zongqi's heart stirred, and he understood what had happened, but since it was not his business, he did not interrupt at this moment.

Then Zhao Huai'an said to Wang Duo beside him:
"Old Wang, we've made two kinds of tea. One is the highest-end one, made with the finest tea from Guangzhou, using the best Yue kiln porcelain teaware. I'll sell it for one guan per tael. It's called 'Little Guangshan.' Do you think it's worth it?"

Wang Duo had also been to Chengdu and was well aware of the spending power of wealthy merchants and aristocratic families. If something was elegant and could please these people, it would be in short supply even if it cost ten strings of cash per tael.

Therefore, Wang Duo happily agreed:
"My lord, this Xiaoguangshan ware is most suitable for scholars, literati, and wealthy families to entertain guests and send off visitors. In addition, Yue ware is a treasure of our dynasty, which will further enhance the style of Xiaoguangshan ware, so there is no worry about sales. However, Yue ware is very expensive. If we only sell it for one tael and one string of cash, will we be losing too much money?"

Zhao Huai'an was taken aback for a moment, then said matter-of-factly:
"Who said even porcelain is included? Tea is one string of cash and one tael. Porcelain is a separate item!"

Looking at his lord, Wang Duo thought to himself, "This is what our lord should look like."

Zhao Huai'an then said to Du Zongqi beside him:

"Xiao Du, the kind of tea you're drinking now is the best, so the production is limited, and it's mainly sold to the super-rich. But there's another kind that's much cheaper, and it only needs to be brewed with hot water, so it's affordable for ordinary people."

Du Zongqi now knew that his governor was no less adept at making money than he, a virtuous official. He was even more optimistic about Zhao Huai'an, after all, what a glorious future it would be for a governor with money and troops.
After exchanging pleasantries, Zhao Huai'an got down to business and asked Du Zongqi about the current financial situation of the prefecture.

……

At this moment, as Du Zongqi talked eloquently while Lao Mo kept refilling his teacup and the fruit platter and candied fruit gradually decreased, Zhao Huai'an roughly understood the current financial situation of Guangshan.

When asked about the savings from previous years, Zhao Huai'an, upon learning the figures, immediately cursed his ex in his mind:
"You bastard, why didn't those Xuzhou soldiers skin you alive? You're way too greedy!"

Du Zongqi told Zhao Huai'an that there was a rule in the regional military governorships that there was a sum of money called the "common money for the governors," which was a sum of money that could be transferred from the public treasury to the private pockets of governors and military governors.

The term "incorruptible governor's allowance" roughly means this: with this allowance as a subsidy, you can serve the emperor as an honest and incorruptible governor. In Zhao Huai'an's view, it's somewhat similar to a "protective allowance for incorruptibility."

But the former military governor was too greedy. There were about 60,000 strings of cash left in the public account, which was originally intended to be reward money for the soldiers. But that scoundrel transferred it all into his own account. No wonder the soldiers in Xuzhou mutinied!

At this moment, Zhao Huai'an began to understand the Xuzhou soldiers a little, and even thought that they were really restrained.

If someone were to steal his money, he would have skinned that person alive and stuffed them with straw long ago!
Sigh, those Xuzhou soldiers were wrongly killed! But Zhao Da also gave you permission to lay your hands on them, why are you risking your lives!
He silently memorized the name of this governor. Li Ruoweng, right? Good, good, I'll remember you. Your Li family will have a good time in the future!
Suppressing his urge to pound on the ground, Zhao Huai'an asked Du Zongqi to explain the summer tax collection situation for this month.

The summer tax collection was completed in June. Before Zhao Huai'an took office, the prefecture and the five counties under its jurisdiction began collecting taxes.

While Zhao Huai'an was enjoying himself during the rainy season, the tax collectors below were covered in mud, braving the torrential rain to collect taxes.

Indeed, an iron army should have this kind of spirit in any era!
Knowing that Zhao Huai'an would not be satisfied with the state of the treasury, Du Zongqi quickly reported on the collection of the summer tax for the month, which was his primary job.

Among Gwangju's many sources of revenue, the two taxes are the most numerous and common, broadly speaking, including household tax and land tax.

The household tax here is calculated based on the property of the household rather than the number of people. Those with higher household status pay more taxes. Although Guangzhou is located on the Huai River and is not as wealthy as the neighboring Shouzhou, it still has many wealthy people, so the household tax revenue is still quite good. This year, the summer tax revenue is 4,000 strings of cash.

And then there's the local tax.

According to Du Zongqi, Guang Prefecture rotates wheat and rice crops. Currently, the summer tax revenue mainly comes from wheat, with a tax rate of six liters per mu for superior fields and four liters per mu for inferior fields. When it comes to the autumn tax, rice is harvested, with a tax rate of five liters per mu for superior fields and three liters per mu for inferior fields.

He gave Zhao Huai'an a figure: how many acres of land in Guang Prefecture are currently registered in the Green Seedling Register? Around 30,000 hectares. And this year's summer tax wheat harvest was around 15,000 shi, which means an average tax of 5 sheng of wheat per acre.

Zhao Huai'an pondered the figure. If the 15,000 shi of grain were converted into currency, it would roughly be one shi to one guan. Therefore, the summer tax of Guang Prefecture would be around 20,000 guan.

Since there was no reference point, Zhao Huai'an didn't know whether the number was high or low, so he directly asked Du Zongqi:
"Do you know about the summer tax in which place, and how much they collect in summer tax each year?"

Du Zongqi hesitated for a moment, then, remembering Wang Duo's words of advice at the door, he spoke frankly:
“I have a good friend who is a military officer in Suzhou. He once told me that the summer tax in Suzhou is around 300,000 strings of cash.”

Upon hearing the number, Zhao Huai'an nearly lost his composure and blurted out:

"How much? Three hundred thousand strings of cash, just for the summer tax? Good heavens, that's fifteen times the amount from Gwangju!"

Zhao Huai'an knew that Suzhou had been a wealthy place since ancient times, but he didn't expect it to be this wealthy! He was determined to keep Suzhou under his control in the future.

Seeing that the governor was somewhat out of sorts, Du Zongqi even helped to comfort him:

"My lord, they pay a lot of taxes, and they have a lot to pay. Prefectures like Suzhou, Huzhou, and Yangzhou have to hand over almost half of their tax revenue to the imperial court, and then send the other half to the military governor. They only keep about 25% for themselves, so their summer tax is only about 80,000 strings of cash."

But Zhao Huai'an was not comforted at all, because he suddenly realized that the summer tax he had just collected also had to be paid to the imperial court and the local government.

He almost gritted his teeth as he asked Du Zongqi:

"Old Du, of the 20,000 strings of cash we have in Guang Prefecture, only 25% is left?"

Now they don't call him Xiao Du anymore, they just call him Lao Du!

Du Zongqi shook his head and quickly explained:

“Our Guang Prefecture is not as good as those places in Huaidong. They generally keep 25% of their taxes, while we keep 30% to 40%. So this year, we can keep more than 9,000 guan of summer tax in the prefecture!”

Seeing that Du Zongqi was still a bit proud, Zhao Huai'an couldn't hold back anymore. He had just given his mother 20,000 to 30,000 strings of cash.

The summer tax in Guangzhou is 20,000 guan, and even with the autumn tax, it's only 40,000 guan. Of that, he can only keep 15,000 to 16,000 guan, which is less than the allowance he gives his mother.

Zhao Huai'an was heartbroken at this moment, but he didn't know whether he felt he had given too much money to his mother or to the imperial court and the military governor.

No wonder Zhao Huai'an couldn't accept it.

The money left in the prefecture this year is only 15,000 strings of cash. I currently have 3,000 soldiers under my command. If each soldier pays 20 strings of cash, the annual military pay alone would be 60,000 strings of cash. There is a difference of 45,000 strings of cash!

If he sits around and squanders his savings, he could lose all his capital in just four or five years.

This doesn't even include his upcoming campaign to suppress bandits in the mountains. He will inevitably use both suppression and appeasement methods. The soldiers in the mountains have always been of high quality, and Zhao Huai'an plans to expand the army then.

However, given the current situation, the state can only maintain a military pay for a force of five or six hundred people.

Wait a minute, the number of those Xuzhou soldiers before was only five or six hundred!
Hey, that's amazing!
Seeing Zhao Huai'an almost clutching his forehead, Du Zongqi hesitated and said tentatively:
"My lord, shall we continue?"

Zhao Huai'an closed his eyes, slowly exhaled, and comforted himself that emotions couldn't solve the problem.

He forced a smile and said to Du Zongqi:
“Go on, tell us what money our state has left and where it needs to be spent. Make sure you explain everything clearly. When you run a household, you need to keep track of the accounts. You can’t be confused.”

Then Du Zongqi went on to explain in detail the other income and expenditure of the prefecture, which made Zhao Huai'an frown from time to time.

The situation in Gwangju is very serious!

There are bad guys in our team too!
(End of this chapter)