Dugong

Chapter 128 Tolerance and Kindness
June.

Hot summer.

Four ice chests were placed in the front office, and a young eunuch vigorously shook a fan, blowing a cool breeze toward Eunuch An.

Li Ping'an's martial arts cultivation is profound. His limbs and bones have been nourished and tempered by true qi, and he has long since reached the point where he is impervious to heat and cold and can see clearly at night.

However, while an ice chest may be useless, it cannot be without one.

Furthermore, if Eunuch An doesn't use an ice chest in the summer, which of Eunuch Xia, Xiao Yuzi, or Magistrate Gao would dare to use one?

Those in positions of power should consider the feelings of those below them.

"Tolerance for the sake of the country."

Li Ping'an wielded his brush with fluid strokes, creating characters that flowed like clouds and water.

The martial arts master copied the inscriptions, his control of force became subtle, and his calligraphy improved rapidly, reaching seven or eight tenths of His Majesty's skill in a short period of time.

"This is just right; it wouldn't be appropriate if it were any better!"

Li Ping'an waved his hand and smashed the calligraphy copybook to pieces. He then took out Xuan paper and wrote a letter in running script, expressing his concern for the Empress Dowager's health and recounting interesting stories from Jiangnan.

His Majesty will surely see this letter, and then Eunuch An's hard work in copying it will not have been in vain.

At this moment.

Eunuch Xia bowed as he entered and reported on his recent duties.

"My lord, based on the clues provided by Li Ergou, Eunuch You has raided several private salt workshops, and private salt has almost disappeared from the market."

"Well done! The smuggled salt trade must be eradicated. Behead them and hang their bodies outside the city as a warning to others!"

Li Ping'an changed the subject, saying, "Li Ergou is too vulgar a name. How about we change it to 'Yifang'?"

Grandpa Xia exclaimed, "It symbolizes being extremely wealthy and dominating a region, a sign of great riches and prestige."

Li Ping'an instructed, "Send someone to look after his business. According to custom and rules, 70% of the profits will go to the Imperial Horse Administration."

Eunuch Xia asked curiously, "Why does Your Excellency value this person so highly?"

"It was just a coincidence."

Li Ping'an said, "Even if it weren't Li Yifang, there would have been Zhang Yifang or Zhao Yifang. He was the first one to come in yesterday."

Looking at Eunuch An's casual demeanor, Eunuch Xia couldn't help but feel envious; this was the beauty of wielding power.

A single stroke can destroy an entire clan; a single word can elevate one.

Eunuch Xia composed himself and continued his report: "In May, the government sold 50,000 taels of salt certificates. With the new policies being promoted more and more, we expect to sell 100,000 taels in June."

Li Ping'an asked, "After all the reforms, will there be three million taels of salt tax?"

"more than."

Eunuch Xia had already calculated the situation and replied, "The dynasty has three major salt fields: Sanfu, Yongjia, and Donghai, as well as more than ten smaller salt fields. If the new policies are implemented in all of them, it is estimated that there will be four to five million in salt tax revenue."

In the past, the annual revenue from salt tax was about four million taels. After the reform, tax revenue can account for 50% of the total tax revenue, or even more.

Of course, this only calculates the tax in cash; there are also taxes in kind, such as land tax and cloth tax.

Li Ping'an pondered for a moment and said, "The salt tax should not exceed 250 in the second half of this year, and should be rounded up to 300 next year."

"clear."

Knowing that one shouldn't do everything in one's power, Eunuch Xia asked, "What about the extra salt produced?"

Li Ping'an said, "We'll stockpile 50% to avoid years of deficit, and convert the other 50% into cash."

"Your Excellency is wise!"

Eunuch Xia flattered, "The government has this salt reserve, which can be used to stabilize salt prices and prevent any salt merchant from hoarding and speculating, causing salt prices to skyrocket and public resentment to boil over."

Li Ping'an was slightly taken aback. "Our family has no such idea, and we don't care about any public grievances."

Stockpiling salt is merely to avoid a drop in salt tax, which would displease His Majesty. As for salt merchants who hoard and speculate, they should simply be beheaded and their property confiscated.

"Ahem, that's what we mean. Has the price of salt dropped in the market?"

"It has been reduced from eighty coins per catty to forty coins per catty."

Eunuch Xia said, "The people of the three prefectures are grateful for your achievements and want to present you with a 'Ten Thousand People Umbrella' (a symbol of your benevolent rule), build a monument to your virtuous governance, and erect a shrine to worship you."

"Shrines for the living are going too far."

Li Ping'an waved his hand and said with a smile, "The Umbrella of Ten Thousand People and the Stele of Merit are still necessary. They can be changed to 'the people present this to His Majesty,' and sent to the capital by fast horse."

His Majesty dislikes auspicious omens, yet finds it difficult to refuse the umbrella of ten thousand people.

"Your Excellency is truly wise." Eunuch Xia exclaimed in amazement. No wonder Eunuch An was able to win the Emperor's favor, sharing the lion's share of wealth and fame with His Majesty. As he spoke, he took out a letter of thanks from his robes.

"Many salt merchants from Jiangnan sought an audience, hoping to purchase salt coupons."

After the three prefectures issued salt tickets, salt merchants who did not submit a slip were excluded, and no matter how much silver they spent, they could not buy a salt ticket.

"Not seeing him is not allowed."

Li Ping'an said, "Have Xiao Yuzi keep an eye on this matter. They are not salt merchants under our control, so they must be forced to go bankrupt."

After the implementation of the new salt ticket policy, the old salt certificate system was not abolished. In other words, merchants who monopolized salt tickets still had to pay the heavy taxes stipulated by the imperial court.

If you dare not pay taxes, then you can expect your property to be confiscated.

Eunuch Xia hesitated for a moment, then cautiously reminded him, "Sir, Eunuch Yu has been very busy lately. Shouldn't we find someone else to handle the tasks?"

Li Pingan raised an eyebrow: "If you've overdone it, you've overdone it. What's with all the busyness?"

A look of horror flashed across Eunuch Xia's eyes. As expected, Eunuch An knew that Xiao Yu had secretly kept 50% of the proceeds when the house was searched.

Afterwards, they still had to pay 35% to His Majesty, meaning that only Eunuch An and the entire Imperial Horse Administration would receive 15%.

Such behavior aroused the dissatisfaction of many eunuchs.

Li Pingan said slowly, "Xiao Yuzi is our family's first adopted son. People are sentimental, so we've let him off the hook twice. If he does something again this time, we'll deal with him according to the law."

Eunuch Xia exclaimed, "Your Excellency cherishes the past and has a kind and benevolent character."

"His Majesty is benevolent, and we should naturally learn from him."

Li Ping'an bowed respectfully towards the direction of the capital, handed the letter he had just written to Eunuch Xia, and said with profound meaning.

"No one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes. We should always give those who know their mistakes, correct them, and return from the wrong path a chance. What do you say, Eunuch Xia?"

Upon hearing this, Eunuch Xia's fingers trembled, and the letter nearly fell. He quickly bowed to hide his fear and apprehension.

"Sir... Mingjian!"

……

The third year of Yongning.

The dynasty reformed the salt administration, and His Majesty appointed Eunuch An as the Salt Inspector, who traveled to important salt fields in the three prefectures, Yongjia, and Donghai.

Investigate corruption, arrest people, confiscate their property, and exile them.

Wherever he went, officials trembled.

After the new policy was implemented, the price of official salt was halved, and people from all over the country rushed to present "umbrellas of ten thousand people" to praise Emperor Yongning's benevolence.

Your Majesty built the Hall of Ten Thousand People and hung an umbrella to commemorate your achievements.

……

The twenty-third day of the twelfth lunar month.

Taizhou experienced a light snowfall, and the cold was far greater than in previous years.

Officials and merchants stood outside the west gate, breathing out warm air and tucking their hands in their pockets, occasionally stamping their feet to ward off the cold.

They waited from dawn until noon, and finally heard a rumbling sound.

Before long, a dark mass of people came into view from afar, led by hundreds of cavalrymen, surrounding the black horse, Wuzhui Taxueju.

Prefect Xie, who had been in office for less than half a year, led all the officials and merchants to kneel down, completely unconcerned about the wet and muddy ground.

"Greetings, Your Excellency!"

Li Ping'an reined in his horse and stopped in front of the crowd, coldly glancing over them as he asked, "Lord Xie, I heard you are a disciple of Grand Secretary Zeng."

Prefect Xie nodded and said, "This humble official did indeed study with my teacher for several years."

"Our family has a blood feud with Grand Secretary Zeng. Lord Xie, please be a good official and don't give anyone a handle to use against you, or you'll end up with your property confiscated and exiled!"

Li Ping'an made no attempt to conceal his threats and intimidation. He originally intended to promote Xiao Gao to the position of prefect, but the Ministry of Revenue rejected the proposal and instead appointed someone surnamed Xie.

In the following years, thanks to the increase in salt tax, he could be promoted to a high-ranking position.

Prefect Xie replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "This humble official will humbly follow your instructions, Your Excellency."

Li Ping'an ignored them and rode his horse straight into the city.

Hundreds of cavalry followed closely behind, and seven thousand infantrymen were filled with murderous intent. At Eunuch An's command, they drew their knives without hesitation and began to kill.

Even if His Majesty were in person, it would be difficult to say whose orders we should obey.

(End of this chapter)