Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 181 Civil Governance of the Wu Dynasty
Beijiwu returned to Luoyang in August.

In the golden autumn season, Beijiwu returned to his bedroom in Guanyin Pavilion and sat down.

"Has anything been going on lately?"

Beijiwu asked casually, revealing that the long journey by carriage had left him exhausted.

Consort Wan, the younger sister of Crown Prince Wan Shi, brought tea and gently reported on the recent situation.

"In July, the Yangtze River flooded, Taihu Lake overflowed, and a typhoon hit the Jiangnan province."

"The flood-affected areas near Taihu Lake are mainly hereditary territories, so we sent people to rescue the Jiangnan Province first."

"Later, they set off by land and water, and transported food and medicine to the disaster relief along two routes, one in the southeast and one in the southwest."

"The journey took fifteen days, passing through the Luoyang-Bianjing Canal, the Bian River, the Huai River, the Han Canal, and the Yangtze River."

"The other route is by land, passing through the Yi and Luo rivers, the Han River, the Yangtze River, Dongting Lake, and the Xiang River, and takes twenty-five days to reach the destination."

"A few days ago, the commanders of the two lakes region and the hereditary prefects jointly petitioned to be appointed to official positions in the court. They hoped to abolish the hereditary system and only wished to stay in their hometowns when they retired in the future. They did not need the hereditary fiefs and positions, and they also hoped to receive the court's salary."

Beijiwu understands the group's thoughts, but he also has his own difficulties.

The real reason is that I don't want to take responsibility and don't want to care about outsiders.

"What else?"

Arctic Martial Arts simply ignored the matter and chose to disregard it.

Consort Wan asked, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Shu wishes to go to Jiangnan to bring back his father's remains and bury them in Shu."

Beijiwu laughed and said, "Of course it's possible. Just send someone to reply. Say whatever you want. It's only human nature."

After all, it was something that could be easily handled. Beiji Wu had been very kind to the Shu King's family and was planning to focus on training the Shu King to help with some matters.

Consort Wan felt somewhat at ease knowing that Beiji Wu treated the Wan family very well, as a former princess of the previous dynasty.

"Thank you for your magnanimity, Your Majesty!" Consort Wan then casually inquired, "I wonder where Your Majesty's father is buried, and whether he should be moved to the imperial mausoleum?"

Beijiwu said directly, "No need, don't interfere in my family's affairs."

"Yes!" Consort Wan knew she might have said something wrong and dared not bring up the topic again.

Beijiwu's older brother, Beijiyong, refused to come back no matter what, as if he was terrified of Beijiwu.

The relationships within this family are probably even stranger than those within the Wan family.

Beijiwu quickly lay down to rest. "Go and arrange accommodations for the new sister. She is a princess of the Khitan people and, like you, a concubine."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I shall take my leave." Consort Wan had long known that a princess was to be married off.

The palace was never short of women who had once been of high status; in chaotic times, women were merely tools.

Princesses and queens from various countries were killed in the Arctic and brought back in droves.

There's no torture involved, just a quick and painless death.

They brought back mostly beautiful and obedient women who were very proactive and didn't need to be given any status.

They're actually quite relaxed if we don't contact them.

Due to several wars, the palace of the Northern Kingdom has become crowded again, with more than 400,000 women in attendance.

First, the spoils of war seized from the royal palace and nobles after the conquest of the Tubo Kingdom.

Secondly, the Khitans and Han Chinese were actually the same. They sent many royal women and concubines to King Wu, which was better than giving them to soldiers and ministers, at least it was more respectable.

Many Khitan nobles and Han Chinese officials who surrendered to the Khitan also sent over a number of beautiful women in order to protect themselves.

Many of the Khitans were Han Chinese, with the proportion of Han Chinese far exceeding that of the Khitans.

Thirdly, the southern court sent over some palace maids and beauties.

The Jiangnan Imperial Palace, which originally housed nearly 30,000 to 40,000 people, has shrunk to less than 100. Apart from the old woman who stayed behind, most of them were packed up and sent over.

Although Wan Hu is still King Wen, he knows how to keep a low profile and has only kept a few concubines, palace maids and eunuchs.

Beijiwu didn't want too many people, and since most of his subordinates already had wives, he figured he had more money than he could spend, so he just kept them.

Peace and tranquility are a good thing for many people, but not for some who haven't made enough contributions.

Several households gathered together to discuss matters.

Bei Gong Dingbian frowned and tentatively asked:

"What do we do now? There are no more battles to fight, shouldn't His Majesty take back our military power?"

"You wish!" Shi Wenyuan took a small sip of wine and said with a smile, "You think you can take away my military power and have the Emperor support your army and pay your salary?"

Bei Gong Dingbian said angrily, "So what?"

Shi Wenyuan was a staff officer, not a commander of a thousand men, and did not have a fief, so he lived a very comfortable life.

"Hahaha!" Shi Wenyuan laughed heartily. "Don't get your hopes up. A while ago, many hereditary prefects wanted to abolish their titles, but His Majesty refused outright!"

Wang Daoji, who came over for a drink, felt something was off.

"Why abolish hereditary succession? Isn't that a great favor?"

Seeing that he didn't understand, Shi Wenyuan explained the reason.

"Since King Wu founded the country, there have been tax exemptions, tax exemptions, and more tax exemptions. Now there are still tax exemptions, but the Wu Dynasty has lasted for eight years. Maybe in a few years, the tax exemptions will be extended to ten years."

Wang Daoji was even more puzzled. "This is a good thing! The Emperor's grace is boundless!"

"Hahaha!" Shi Wenyuan laughed three times, then stopped laughing by slapping the table, but looked at him with a serious expression while still smiling.

"I ask you, if King Wu himself didn't collect taxes, how did his subordinates collect them?"

Wang Daoji immediately understood a third of it and became serious as well.

"Let me ask you again, everyone in the world knows that King Wu doesn't want a single copper coin, yet he gives out money every day. Are you listening to King Wu, or to the nonsense spouted by the person above you who takes your money?"

Upon hearing Shi Wenyuan's question, Wang Daoji replied, "Didn't King Wu allow us to levy our own taxes? Since it's our own fiefdom, we should manage it ourselves."

Shi Wenyuan couldn't help but laugh.

Wang Daoji immediately asked, "Please enlighten me, sir. Where is there a problem with what I said?"

Shi Wenyuan shook his head, clearly indicating that there was something wrong with what he said.

"Ordinary officials and soldiers still have salaries, and hereditary generals also get paid for fighting and guarding the area. But the hereditary officials in various places are in a terrible situation. For six or seven years, no taxes were collected, and they had to rely on the government treasury and some grain from the city to survive."

Do you know how much silver a ninth-rank official in the imperial court earns? Eighty taels a month!

"The prefect is a fourth-rank official, and his monthly salary outside the capital is six hundred taels of silver! In the capital, it's nine hundred taels!"

"Ten thousand taels of silver a year! Does it still matter whether it's hereditary or not?"

"Besides, if you are a hereditary official in a remote region, you will be an official in a remote region for life! After all, your fiefdom is still there!"

"So what if your family has 500,000 mu of land? Even if you work yourself to death all year, can you earn 10,000 taels of silver?"

Wang Daoji said with a wry smile, "This year, grain can't even be sold for four coins a pound. Everyone in my territory eats government grain. I came to the capital this time to find a way out, otherwise I'll lose money farming."

Low grain prices hurt farmers. While the Northern Army relieved the farmers' burden, it also affected their income. With grain unsellable, local governors couldn't collect taxes. If they were too ruthless, they lacked imperial power and risked being killed in retaliation.

There will definitely be many people who take things too seriously and make a big deal out of nothing. Everyone says that King Wu exempts taxes, so how can local governors and gentry use his authority to collect taxes?

Court officials all opposed the enfeoffment system, and the number of people opposing it was growing!

Local military officers and magistrates also objected, arguing that they served as local officials to receive salaries from the imperial court, not to dedicate themselves to their hometowns.

Even the local gentry opposed the feudal system, arguing that it would prevent them from legitimately collecting taxes.

Without the backing of imperial power, no one can control those below them.

Especially after the Arctic Army issued weapons, equipment, and warhorses, and dismissed the militia that had been trained for two or three months, the local governors and powerful figures were terrified.

Everyone considered forcing Arctic Martial to collect taxes and relinquish power by doing nothing, but Arctic Martial truly didn't care about their lives or how much trouble they caused.

If you have the guts, go ahead and collect taxes privately. Let's see if the people below dare to kill anyone.

They can kill people all they want, and Arctic Martial Arts doesn't care.

They don't kill people, but they deserve to be bullied, and Arctic Martial Arts doesn't care either.

The Northern Army does not oppress the Han people, nor does it oppress other non-Han peoples. The mountain farmers support themselves and do not take anything from the common people.

Those who were granted fiefdoms lived independently, while those who were not granted fiefdoms lived with King Wu.

Now it has been almost seven years since the Wu Dynasty began. The wealth of the local noble families and gentry is almost gone, and they all want to work for the government!

Chaos has long been brewing in various places. If you can't see the Arctic Army, it doesn't exist. Now, there are only 10,000 to 20,000 people in each place, and more and more people don't take the governor seriously.

Hereditary officials who don't pay their servants' wages have long been resentful among their subordinates.

Everyone was suppressing their anger, waiting to kill the officials, surrender, and become government officials.

It's better to be a servant of King Wu than to be an ordinary citizen in the local area.

Everyone knows the principle that you can only eat well if you follow the powerful and wealthy in the capital.

Hereditary status and poverty are becoming synonymous.

Now, all the fiefdoms of the Wu Dynasty are gradually realizing the trouble they are in.

The problem isn't the price of grain, nor is it hereditary succession; it's the issue of King Wu's tax exemption!

As long as the imperial court levies taxes, there will always be ways to profit from the process. For example, when the capital conscripted soldiers from the south, a group of people from the south finally got a good meal.

King Wu not only exempted people from taxes, but he also did absolutely nothing!

No taxes, no talent shows, no large-scale construction projects; materials are collected from all over the country to build houses; no stamp collecting, and no interest in calligraphy, paintings, or antiques.

How can I persuade them...?

The national treasury is always overflowing, and the salaries of court officials are all incredibly high. Does this mean the common people want to pay taxes?

Besides, the world is at peace now, and military spending will be cut next year. Hereditary commanders of a thousand households may have their salaries stopped and be transferred back to their fiefdoms to live out their lives at any time.

Everyone was aware of the problem, but because of the unique welfare system pioneered by the Mountain Farmers, no one knew what to do.

There has never been anything like this in history, and there is no precedent to follow.

The local prefects and their commanders were equivalent to town mayors, but they received no salary or government funding, no power to collect taxes, and no official documents or tasks from their superiors.

What's the point then? Do you really think the villagers are so obedient?

In remote, mountainous areas far from the emperor's reach, the probability of encountering bandits and unruly civilians is not low.

It's true that I have a group of subordinates, but the greatest danger now comes from these resentful subordinates who don't dare to act like superiors to them.

Arctic Martial Arts is not afraid of them slacking off. They can slacking off for five or six years without a care and will not even ask a question.

If they want to rebel, that's even simpler: kill them.

Hereditary succession has blocked everyone's path to promotion. Now, no hereditary governor of a thousand or ten thousand households has been promoted. King Wu only uses his public household members and makes good use of administrative civil officials who can be summoned at any time.

Initially, people believed that hereditary succession meant that one's descendants would all be nobles.

In reality, only one of the child's descendants was a nobleman who inherited the title and land; the rest were either his subordinates or serfs.

They cannot leave their territory at will, nor can they serve as officials in the imperial court; they must remain as noble relatives within their territory for their entire lives.

The grain could only be consumed by themselves, and there was no channel to sell it. Salt, iron, tea, and wine had to be bought from outside.

How is this any different from the barbarians of Northeast China?
The civil service system has been abolished, and all officials have been placed in the official city. They cannot leave Zheng City without the permission of the Northern Martial Lord.

Officials in Luoyang held high positions and received generous salaries, and were not part of the same circle as hereditary prefects in other regions.

But there is one exception.

There were many clever people in the Wen Dynasty. After falling into a predicament, they kept looking for solutions. Soon, someone found a good example in the short six-year history of the Wu Dynasty!

Prefect of Xinyang, Zhang Weicang!
Zhang Weicang was originally a hereditary prefect, but he resigned from the position early on and was promoted to a hereditary public household of the Faith Rice and Tea Company.

Zhang Weicang was neither a centurion nor a thousand-household commander. He did not have hereditary military households or land under his command, so his subordinates' salaries were still paid by the Northern Army. At the same time, he could also receive an official salary and could pass on this position to his descendants.

In theory, Zhang Weicang was a family slave of Beijiwu, and all his descendants were servants of Beijiwu.

This is precisely the path that the bureaucratic and military groups want to take; they only want to live off the state rather than venture out and explore new frontiers.

Even if you set up your own territory, you still need to rely on the government's stipend. Now, you can't get your stipend, your funds have been cut off, you have no followers, and you're surrounded by a bunch of hungry, greedy, and resentful beasts.

Furthermore, natural disasters have been occurring for nearly two hundred years. Judging from the level of disaster relief efforts this year, the farther away the area, the worse off they are. By the time people arrive, they will already be dead.

The mountain farmers have always prioritized helping their own people; they only help more people when they have more food.

When there's a food shortage, it's clearly written in black and white: priority is given to our own people!
Compared to the Wen Dynasty, which claimed to have conquered the world on horseback and governed the country through civil administration.

A dynasty that conquers the world through military might and governs the country through civil administration is more in line with this concept.

The Wu Dynasty was fierce in both its strength and its literary style.

The civil and military officials of the Wu Dynasty began to rack their brains, thinking about the way forward without eating or drinking.

Instead of starting to enjoy life right after conquering the world.

There were no civil or military officials who benefited from the war, and very few people became rich or were promoted as a result, so naturally there were no people who enjoyed themselves.

Officials in the Wu Dynasty, whether civil or military, were divided into four classes.

First class
Beijiwu believes that useful officials stationed in various provinces can support their families with high-ranking positions and generous salaries, allowing them to focus on their work without any worries.

The others believed that: their families had served the emperor for generations, and had been loyal to him for generations.

Second tier
Beijiwu believes that local officials should be stationed in Luoyang and the capitals of various provinces to assist in handling affairs and supervise the local areas. Their salaries should be paid by the local government, which would save on the turnover of funds and grain. In order to cultivate technically competent personnel and to ensure that they cherish their positions and govern with integrity, the system of meritocracy should be allowed to be inherited.

The others believe: Mountain farmers

Third level
Beijiwu believes that: "When officials are appointed, there always needs to be someone in charge. Just deal with them casually, use the good ones and dismiss the bad ones."

The others believed that: Han officials
Fourth class
Beijiwu believes that people who surrender quickly and lack ability are too much of a hindrance in front of us, so they should go back to their hometowns to farm and retire.

The others believed: Tusi
(End of this chapter)