On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 469 Long-term plan

Cui Che's good mood went away as quickly as it came. After hearing Cui Qiji explain in detail what he saw and heard on the way home, Cui Che was furious.

In order to prevent tax collectors from corruption, he specially dispatched spies from the Observation Department to supervise. Unexpectedly, this so-called supervisory department was in name only and might even be part of the interest chain.

"Let Zhao Wengun come to see me!"

The roar almost overturned the roof of the wing. Cui Che's anger silenced all his followers. Changsun Wuji hurried to the Observation Department to find Zhao Wen.

"Why is Auxiliary Machine (Changsun Wuji's nickname Auxiliary Machine) in such a hurry? Could it be that the King has something to give?"

Zhao Wen said doubtfully.

Changsun Wuji panted and waved his hands and said:

"The king has summoned Mr. Zhao to go to the Prime Minister's Mansion as soon as possible."

Seeing Changsun Wuji's appearance, Zhao Wen also guessed that the matter must be serious. He hurriedly put down the case file in his hand, and followed Changsun Wuji out quickly without even having time to explain the affairs of the Yamen Office to his subordinates.

On the way, Zhao Wen couldn't help but ask:

"Auxiliary machine, do you know what happened?"

Changsun Wuji hesitated to speak, and finally said perfunctorily:

"Chief Zhao has gone to the Prime Minister's Mansion, so he will naturally understand."

These words made Zhao Wen's heart tighten. He knew that something must have gone wrong, and the king would blame him. Otherwise, how could Changsun Wuji be so secretive about him?

If there is really something to consult, Changsun Wuji will definitely reveal a few words, so that he can be prepared to organize his words, calmly respond to Cui Che's inquiries, and give Cui Che a satisfactory answer.

Along the way, no matter how hard Zhao Wen tried, he still didn't know what he had done wrong, which made Cui Che want to blame himself.

It wasn't until he came to the Prime Minister's Mansion and faced Cui Che's anger that he finally realized:

It turned out that the people below were guilty.

Zhao Wen was wronged, and he was indeed wronged. He was stationed in Jinyang, and of course it was impossible to specifically control every spy in various prefectures and counties. They colluded with each other and protected each other. It was not difficult to deceive the people above.

But no matter what, you cannot escape the responsibility of an incompetent person.

After beating Zhao Wen and scolding him, Cui Che gasped and asked:

"Did you also make money from it?"

Zhao Wen quickly distanced himself from the relationship, and while swearing and swearing, he also asked Cui Che to send someone to check his assets in detail to prove his innocence.

Seeing Zhao Wen being so determined, Cui Che also breathed a sigh of relief. He was really afraid that his trusted companion would go against his will.

However, Cui Che did not easily believe Zhao Wen's words. He would investigate whether what he said was true or false.

Cui Che asked:

"How do you think this matter should be handled?"

When Zhao Wen saw Cui Che's expression softening slightly, he felt happy and gritted his teeth and said:

"Cunning thieves hide things from superiors and deceive subordinates, and should not be tolerated. I believe that to control chaos, heavy regulations should be used. I also ask your Majesty King Xu Chen to thoroughly inspect the tax customs and markets in various places. Anyone who violates the order and exploits them can be killed."

Cui Che waved his hand and rejected Zhao Wen's offer. He said:

"Guzi will send people to investigate the matter thoroughly."

After sending away the anxious Zhao Wen, Cui Che looked at Cui Qiji, with a hint of taking a test in his eyes, and asked:

"Killing can only shock you temporarily. My father wants a long-term solution. Does the Bodhisattva slave have any strategies?"

This question also happened to scratch Cui Qiji's itch. Along the way, he was constantly troubled by this matter. Cui Qiji said seriously:

"Reporting to my father, I think that the corruption of tax collectors is just because the property they handle is huge and their salary is meager, so I don't hesitate to take risks with my own life.

"Since the father is asking his children for advice and the children are bold enough to speak out, it is better to increase the tax collector's salary to keep him honest, and to use severe punishments and cruel laws to make him fearful, so that he can live long."

Cui Che nodded slightly. Cui Qiji's idea of ​​a high salary to support an honest man was not beyond Cui Che's expectations.

However, Cui Qiji did not stop there. He continued:

"My father used the Observation Department to supervise the tax collectors, but there was no one to supervise the Observation Department. The boy asked his father to follow the Han system and order the spies who monitored the tax collectors to declare their family wealth."

Cui Che's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he was obviously very satisfied with what Cui Qiji said.

The so-called imitation of the Han system refers specifically to the calculation system.

Suanmin is a property declaration system established by the Han Dynasty for traders and handicraftsmen. According to a certain proportion of the declared property, property taxes are paid to increase the country's fiscal revenue.

During the actual implementation, it also encountered strong opposition from businessmen and craftsmen.

Cui Che naturally did not want to copy Suan Min, but only asked the tax collector's spies to declare their property, but would not collect asset tax.

Of course, Cui Che was more satisfied that Cui Qiji did not simply suggest that he set up another secret service agency to supervise the Observation Department.

Using a new secret service agency to supervise the old one, isn't that how the Ming Dynasty's Jinyiwei, Dongchang, Westchang, and even Neichang came to be.

After agreeing to the two strategies proposed by Cui Qiji, Cui Che did not give up on testing his eldest son. He continued to ask:

"This large-scale killing of corrupt tax collectors and spies will surely collect a large amount of stolen money. What do you think we should do with these stolen property, Bodhisattva slave?"

Cui Qiji pondered for a long time. He really couldn't decide to pay attention. His father was famous for plucking the feathers of wild geese. Whenever corrupt officials fell into his hands, regardless of the severity of the crime or the amount of stolen money, he had to collect all the ancestral property of those people.

Gone.

Seeing Cui Qiji's hesitant look, Cui Che smiled and said:

"If you have any ideas, it's okay to say it. As a father, I will never blame you for what you say."

With his father's promise, Cui Qiji then spoke:

"Father, I thought that this year there will be a bumper harvest in all parts of Kanto, and the national treasury will be rich now. Although the original wealth of the corrupt people can be confiscated to the national treasury, please return the stolen money to the merchants."

Cui Che raised his eyebrows slightly and asked:

"Why do you say that?"

Cui Qiji explained:

"My father once made a promise to merchants that he would not collect taxes twice. Although the people below are doing bad things, the people are ignorant and may think that my father is untrustworthy. If my father returns the stolen money, the people will be convinced."

Cui Che asked:

"It's hard to tell the owner of the property, and how difficult it is to return the stolen money. Is there a way for the Bodhisattva slave?"

Cui Qiji smiled bitterly and said:

"The child is not a god, so how can we tell the difference?"

As he spoke, Cui Qiji changed the topic and continued:

"But I think that since my father can't tell the owner, it's better to inform the people after thoroughly investigating the matter and use the collected stolen money to pay business taxes for the next three years, so that the merchants can be tax-free for three years.

"It not only punishes evil, but also benefits the people. The merchants will definitely be grateful."

Of course, the basis of all this is the good harvest in Guandong this year. If the finances were really tight, Cui Qiji would not suggest Cui Che to buy people's hearts like this.

Cui Che looked at Cui Qiji, who was full of confidence, and in a trance, he seemed to see himself when he was young.

One more chapter, before twelve o'clock.

(End of chapter)