OBS Chapter 339 Let him, Yang Dianfeng, broaden his horizons
Chapter 339 Let him, Yang Dianfeng, broaden his horizons
A small mound of corpses stands by the sea. The road from the sea to the county town was once littered with corpses, and even the ground was soaked with blood, with a faint smell of blood still lingering.
Would the people of Penglai County be afraid if they saw such a terrifying scene?
Definitely.
Although they may have rebelled during the Yuan Dynasty, and although they may have also worked as pirates during the Yuan Dynasty, under my rule, they are all good people who pay taxes. How could they not be afraid when they see such a tragic battlefield?
Moreover, as the Prefect of Dengzhou, whose office is located in Penglai, it is only right that I, Yang, strive for some reasonable and legal compensation for the people under my jurisdiction, isn't that right?
As for what will be used to compensate the people?
It's impossible to ask Lao Deng to apply for another tax exemption, since he's already been exempted for three years, and then for another three years recently because of the Plow Case. If Lao Deng were to be exempted for another three years, the Minister of Revenue would probably hang himself in the Dengzhou government office.
For the sake of the lives of his many colleagues in the court, Yang Shaofeng ultimately decided to issue in-kind compensation instead.
For example, the small boat sent by the loyal customers of the Zhejiang East Gentry Group is quite nice.
With this in mind, Yang Shaofeng immediately smiled and said to Xu Jingyu, "Well then, I'll tell you a few things first."
"The first thing to do is to notify the people who volunteered to defend the county town, as well as those who temporarily moved into the town from outside due to the Japanese pirates' incursions, and the residents within the town who were temporarily housed by them. Each family can take a small boat back as compensation."
"Also, don't be too rigid with the standards. Anyway, we've captured over a thousand small boats this time, understand?"
After a slight pause, Yang Shaofeng added, "By the way, because of the war, the small boats captured by the naval camp are all in terrible condition. Tell the people to repair them themselves after they receive them."
Upon hearing the words "tattered and broken" that were emphasized, Xu Jingyu couldn't help but laugh. He then repeatedly agreed, "Yes, I remember. I will definitely tell the people to repair it themselves before using it."
Yang Shaofeng hummed in agreement and continued, "The second thing is to remember to tell the people that our Penglai County has the Dengzhou Guard and the Leopard Guard, and we are not afraid of any invading villains. Let everyone continue to cultivate the land they should cultivate and continue to reclaim the wasteland they should reclaim."
"The third thing is that I want to set up a shrimp drying workshop in Penglai County. Remember to tell all the people of Penglai County that they can bring the small shrimp and other such things they catch while fishing to the workshop to exchange for money."
As Yang Shaofeng finished speaking, Xu Jingyu was overjoyed.
Workshop!
Penglai County can finally have workshops like Ningyang County!
Although it's still unclear how the Prince Consort makes money from this shrimp-drying workshop, Zhou Jingxin said that several workshops in Ningyang County have made a lot of money, and the people of Ningyang County have benefited from it. Many families not only have stored grain, but can even take out several strings of cash in savings.
Once this shrimp-drying workshop in Penglai County is completed, even if it can't ensure that people have both grain and savings, it should at least make life a little easier for those peasants.
That's fine, at least it doesn't mean their constant calls of me "Master" are in vain.
Just as Xu Jingyu was secretly pleased, Yang Shaofeng's expression suddenly became somewhat solemn: "The fourth thing... This time, when the Yellow Turban rebels and Japanese pirates attacked, Dengzhou Guard and Leopard Guard inevitably suffered some casualties."
"Although the imperial court provided them with compensation, they ultimately died on the battlefield while protecting their officials, our Penglai County, and its people."
"Therefore, a shrine to martyrs will be built in the new Dengzhou city, and a cemetery to bury them will be built on the sunny hillside in the southwest."
"After the Martyrs' Shrine and Cemetery are completed, I will go to pay my respects to the soldiers who died in this battle. If any people from Penglai County are willing to go with me, they are welcome to join me in paying their respects."
Without hesitation, Xu Jingyu bowed to Yang Shaofeng and said, "Yes, Your Excellency, rest assured, I will definitely inform the people."
……
Sun Gupu's rebellion did not cause much of a stir in Dengzhou, and was even a source of amusement for the people of Penglai County.
After all, more than 20,000 people came to besiege a county town, but they were slaughtered before they even reached the edge of the town. If this is not a joke, then what is?
However, outside of Dengzhou Prefecture, the effects of Sun Gupu's rebellion were only just beginning to emerge.
Wang Guangyang, who originally thought he was going to be sent back to his hometown, suddenly received news that not only would he not be transferred, but his mother had also been sent to the provincial government office in Jinan so that he could fulfill his filial duty as a son.
Many unfortunate officials in Jinan, Qingzhou, and Laizhou were implicated in Sun Gupu's rebellion.
In particular, officials in Weixian County of Laizhou Prefecture and Linqu, Linzi, Changle, and Shouguang of Qingzhou Prefecture began their lives of working in shackles.
There was no other way. Thousands of Yellow Turban believers were either preaching in their territory or passing through their lands. If these officials hadn't actually not taken money and hadn't participated in it, they would probably have ended up like that unlucky guy from Yidu, queuing up in the capital.
As for the gentry of eastern Zhejiang...
Compared to the previous plowshare case, this time the gentry of eastern Zhejiang truly witnessed what ruthlessness meant.
Any name mentioned by that scholar, regardless of whether it was actually related to Sun Gupu's rebellion, would be immediately arrested by the infamous Inspector Xia Yu.
Moreover, Xia Yu's bad reputation is not without reason—even without any evidence, Xia Yu would first torture the gentry of eastern Zhejiang until they were half-dead before he would begin the interrogation.
Of course, no matter how bad Xia Yu's reputation is, it's still a little better than Liu Bowen's.
After facing the risk of losing his entire clan once again, Liu Bowen completely lost his mind.
You bastards don't care about my entire family, do you?
You bastards want to destroy the Ming Dynasty, don't you?
Since you are so heartless, then don't blame me for being unjust!
Who does Yang the Madman think he is? From the progressive tax system to the Wangtian system, he only submitted memorials to Emperor Zhu, and all of them turned into unfinished projects. Today, Old Liu will open Yang the Madman's eyes and show him how Old Liu does engineering!
Completely driven to madness, Liu Bowen revealed the progressive tax system during the grand court assembly.
Moreover, Liu Bowen solemnly pointed out that if a progressive tax system is not implemented, it will be inevitable that the poor will become poorer and the rich will become richer, with the rich owning vast tracts of land while the poor have nowhere to stand. If this continues, the national treasury will not be able to collect land taxes and land taxes.
Therefore, the implementation of a progressive tax system is now imperative. If you, Emperor Zhu, do not agree to reform the tax system today, you will be the number one tyrant in history!