Chapter 985
Chapter 985
Xue Shao planned to visit the county government office. He would travel south on inspection and then north to Jiangnan.
"I forgot to ask you last night, what are you doing here?"
Pan Yun: "I was bored in the capital and my cultivation had not improved in two months, so I came out to gain experience, to experience the lives of ordinary people, and to find a beautiful place to go into seclusion."
"Aren't you cultivating merit?"
After she retrieved the late emperor's remains, her merit increased dramatically. Later, after returning to the capital from her personal campaign, it increased again. After becoming the Imperial Preceptor, she broke two seals in her spiritual realm. After that, her merit bar became only the size of a fingernail, while her progress bar was the length of a whole finger, the longest one at that.
This means that the merit points she has accumulated over the past ten years are only worth a fingernail in the face of the next seal.
But after breaking through two seals, the spiritual realm was completely different. She had a premonition that if she broke through one more seal, she would be able to touch the secret of the separation of body and soul. The soul leaves the body but does not perish. Isn't that semi-immortality?
Such a great deal of merit can only come from the people.
Seeing that she didn't answer, Xue Shao didn't press her for an answer and instead invited her, "Since we're experiencing people's lives, would you like to come with me?"
Pan Yun thought for a moment and then nodded: "That's fine."
The two returned to the Xu family home together, called Xijin, and then bid farewell to the Xu family.
Old Master Xu sighed repeatedly: "I didn't know you were a high-ranking official from above. I've really been negligent."
Xue Shao apologized, "I'm just glad you don't blame me for concealing my identity, sir."
Old Xu hesitated for a moment, then saw the man to the crossroads before finally asking, "Sir, do we need to pay taxes on the newly reclaimed land?"
"According to the law, if you do not pay the tax due, you can be exempted from tax for another year, and you will start paying the regular tax next year."
Old Xu breathed a sigh of relief, but then, remembering something, his heart tightened again. He asked in a low voice, "Then, what about the land we've entrusted to the Gu family..."
"The Gu family will return the land deed to you. The yamen will send someone to register it tomorrow or the day after. You can no longer entrust your land to the Gu family."
Old Xu had a bitter face and wanted to curse, but Xue Shao was a good person. From yesterday until now, such a high-ranking official had accompanied him to the fields to harvest rice, which showed that he was a good official. He couldn't bring himself to curse, and instead felt a little guilty.
But the thought of the sudden increase in burden made my heart ache.
Old Master Xu sighed and watched the three of them leave.
Xue Shao led them directly to the county government office.
He had already been to the county government office once, and spent half a day reviewing the land taxes paid by their households over the past two years, as well as the land register.
He already possessed the ability to remember everything he saw. Since he began practicing, his martial arts skills haven't improved much, but his ability has become even more refined. He can memorize the contents of a book with just a glance.
Pan Yun was very envious of his skill.
Xue Shao smiled bitterly and said, "It's very painful."
Pan Yun hummed in response and looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Xue Shao said, "Remembering too much can be painful at times."
Xi Jin, who was standing nearby, immediately said, "Pan Dao... Miss, don't you know medicine? Why don't you take a look at my young master? He only sleeps for two hours a day now, and he can't sleep at night."
Pan Yun looked him up and down: "You look very energetic, you don't seem like someone who suffers from insomnia."
Xue Shao smiled and said, "When I can't sleep, or when I wake up early, I meditate and cultivate. Sometimes, even if I don't cultivate, just quietly regulating my breathing can help my body recover."
Upon hearing this, Pan Jun waved his hand and said, "Then it's alright, your body won't break down."
"It's just that I haven't felt well-rested in a long time, which is quite a pity."
After thinking for a moment, Pan Yun said, "For someone like you, I could try acupuncture. You can't sleep because you have too much to remember and your brain is too active."
"Sleeping injections?" Xue Shao said, "I've used them on myself before. They were effective at first, but they're no longer effective."
He's a tough guy, he even pricks himself with needles to fall asleep.
After thinking for a moment, Pan Yun said, "There is another way."
She raised her hand and chopped down hard, saying, "Let me knock you out."
Xue Shao turned and left: "Let's go quickly. We'll set off after we finish meeting with the magistrate. There are many places to inspect, so we can't stay here any longer."
Pan Yun pulled his horse to catch up, calling out, "Lord Xue, I'm accompanying you on your inspection tour, you have to cover the transportation costs, right?"
Xue Shao glanced at the rickety horse she was riding, which only started moving slowly after being whipped three times, and asked, "Want me to rent you a horse?"
"Why rent a horse? Let's buy one."
Xue Shao: ...
Xi Jin immediately glared and said, "Miss Pan, do you know how expensive a horse is? Our horses are all rented from the post station."
"So it's an official horse. Then rent one for me too."
Xue Shao held an official position and was also an inspector. When he traveled, as long as he entered an official post station, he would be provided with free food and lodging, and he could even rent horses. Although it was called renting, he did not actually need to pay any money. He could rent a horse as long as he had the official seal and documents, and he could change horses at the next post station.
Of course, you don't have to change it.
Xue Shao and Xi Jin rented these two horses from the official post station in Nanjing. They were very good, so they didn't change horses along the way.
Pan Yun was also interested in the horse system of the Ming Dynasty and asked, "Can any official rent a horse at the official post station?"
Xue Shao: "Ordinary officials really can't do it. Apart from the Imperial Censor, only the Five Military Commissions, the Northern Garrison Command, and local garrisons can rent horses from the official post stations when they need to transmit urgent military information."
Pan Yun nodded in agreement: "That's true. If anyone could rent a horse, the horses at the official post station would have been completely divided up long ago."
Xue Shao could not rent horses for Pan Yun at the official post station. As an inspecting censor, he only had one guard quota to rent horses.
So he went to the bull market and bought Pan Yun a fine horse, spending almost all of his money.
Pan Yun sold the old horse and casually tossed the money to Xi Jin, asking him to take care of food and lodging along the way.
Xi Jin accompanied Pan Yun to go shopping to buy dry food and medicine for the journey, while Xue Shao went to the county government office by himself.
Pan Yun is only interested in people's livelihood and good deeds that can bring merit, but she has no interest in dealing with officials.
There was no Xi Jin either.
Xue Shao went by himself.
He pointed out to the county magistrate that in some counties, some people were trying to pass off barren land as cultivated land and use data to deceive the imperial court.
Xue Shao said, "The purpose of land surveying is to increase the national treasury's revenue without increasing the burden on the people. If anyone dares to substitute barren land for cultivated land and impose the amount of land on ordinary people, I will not let them off lightly once I find out."
The magistrate was drenched in cold sweat and quickly bowed in agreement.
It's unbelievable. Before Xue Shao came in, his advisor had just mentioned this method to him, and from what he said, someone below had already done it. He hadn't even had a chance to verify it, so how did Xue Shao know? Is he the local bigwig, or is Xue Shao the one?
Why does it seem like this imperial inspector from the capital knows this place better than I, a county magistrate who has been in charge for four years?
Regardless of his thoughts, Xue Shao gave him a sweet treat after his warning: "I have met with Gu Qingyan. He is willing to return the land to the people. Tomorrow, take your men to the capital. Remember, you must act impartially."
The magistrate repeatedly agreed.
The Gu family is the most prestigious family in their county. Master Gu is a prefect in another region, and his son has passed the imperial examination at a young age, with a promising future ahead of him.
If the Gu family takes the lead in returning the land they received, then the county's work will be much easier to carry out.
The magistrate's eyes lit up. He finally realized that the censor's inspection of their county wasn't a bad thing. Sure enough, as soon as he stepped out, the credit for the achievements went to him, the magistrate.
The magistrate agreed with a smile. When Xue Shao left, he wished he could have his clerk fetch a tray of silver for his travel expenses.
But he didn't dare.
Xue Shao was an imperial inspector, there to investigate corruption, and his reputation for integrity and uprightness in the south was so great that he had the will but not the courage.
The magistrate could only regretfully escort the man to the entrance of the county government office, watching him leave with a lingering look on his face.
Once the person was out of sight, the lingering affection and regret on their face disappeared, leaving only envy and jealousy: "So young, yet with such a bright future ahead of them."
He touched the hat on his head; the hair beneath was thinning day by day, and his temples were already turning white.
He fears he'll never reach Xue Shao's position in his lifetime.
The magistrate shook his head, turned around and went back to the yamen, ordering everyone in the yamen to be summoned.
Whether it was the county magistrate, the registrar, the clerk, or the yamen runner, even the farmhands who swept the courtyard were summoned and made to stand in the last row with brooms to listen to the reprimand.
The magistrate reiterated Xue Shao's demands in full, and said with a stern face, "Although the Imperial Inspector has left, he can still turn back! If he hadn't come, our mistakes would be forgivable, but since he came and clearly issued instructions, and we still made mistakes, that would be knowingly committing a crime, a heinous crime!"
The magistrate shouted, "I am already old and do not aspire to promotion, but if anyone makes it so that I cannot even keep my official hat, I will take their life first! Do you hear me?"
"Yes!" the crowd responded loudly. The magistrate waved his hand, and everyone dispersed.
When the county magistrate turned and went into the main hall, the clerk and the county assistant clerk immediately followed him and whispered, "Your Excellency, are you really going to do as he says?"
The magistrate glared at them: "Otherwise what?"
"But...the money we received?" the registrar whispered. "Scholar Wu and Master Ma have already given money, and they said it was just a formality. The Gu family didn't give any money, but we can't afford to offend them."
"Lord Xue has already made arrangements with the Gu family. The Gu family will return all the land they received. You just need to take people to register it."
Several people looked at each other.
The magistrate knew what they were thinking and warned in a low voice, "Xue Shao is no ordinary person, and the Gu family are not hypocrites. Put away your thoughts."
The men remained silent. The magistrate then said, "Return the money to those men."
Registrar: "This... sir, isn't it inappropriate to accept the money?"
The magistrate glanced at him and said, "You haven't accomplished your task, and you still have the nerve to stay?"
The registrar looked embarrassed and blushed.
The magistrate pretended not to see it.
The county magistrate readily agreed: "It must be returned; otherwise, if we take the money, our subordinates will be hampered in their work."
“That’s right,” the magistrate nodded. “He who eats another’s food is bound to be bound to him; he who takes another’s money is bound to be bound to him. Return every single penny to me!”
He glanced at the registrar and warned, "Our county is not far from Quanzhou City. Quanzhou is changing rapidly these days. Censor Xue will definitely come back after he leaves. Don't cause me any trouble and try to take my official hat off. Before Censor Xue can do anything, I will definitely deal with you first!"
The registrar had no choice but to agree along with the county magistrate and others.
After they left, the magistrate instructed his clerk: "Keep a close eye on them."
The magistrate said somewhat discontentedly, "Even an outsider like Censor Xue knows about substituting barren land for cultivated land, but I didn't know about it."
The clerk quickly said, "That Imperial Censor Xue is very cunning. I don't know when he entered the county town. After he left the county office, I sent people to follow him all the way, but before he even left the city, he disappeared in the blink of an eye."
"The most amazing thing is that I sent a lot of people to stake out the intersection, but he always managed to avoid our sight. He arrived at Gujia Village yesterday, and our yamen runners left right after, going west and then east. Isn't that amazing?"
The magistrate stroked his beard and said, "It's rumored that Xue Shao and the Imperial Preceptor have a very good relationship; they were acquaintances back in their mortal days. Now it seems he does have some skills. By the way, has he left the city? Where did he go?"
The clerk shook his head and said, "The people we sent followed him to the market and saw him meet with his servant. There seemed to be a young girl accompanying him as well. But before they even left the market, they disappeared in a flash."
The magistrate broke out in a cold sweat and wondered, "Could he have never left at all, but was hiding in the shadows waiting to find something on me?"
"No, it can't be that bad. He has many places to inspect. Aren't the situations in Zhejiang, Southern Zhili, and Jiangxi more serious than ours?"
"Especially Zhejiang and Jiangxi, those two places, tsk tsk tsk, sir, in my opinion, he won't stay here for long."
The magistrate gave him a disdainful look and said, "Do you think there aren't many problems in the Minyue region?"
“However…” the magistrate stroked his beard: “Zhejiang and Jiangxi are indeed dangerous. He may be able to leave Fujian alive, but he may not be able to leave Zhejiang and Jiangxi alive.”
The advisor's eyes lit up: "Then..."
"No way!" the magistrate said. "I don't know if he'll live or die, but if I dare to do those things after his warning, then he can drag me down with him before he dies, just like I can definitely drag you down with me before I die!"
The advisor: ...
The magistrate instructed his wife to hand over the money she had collected some time ago to his advisor.
The clerk sighed, took the money, found the others, and after collecting enough, had it delivered to their respective homes.
Upon seeing this display of force, everyone panicked instantly.
What made them even more panicked was that the next day, when they heard that the government officials were going to Gujiazhuang to survey the land, the Gu family immediately set up a show of force at the village entrance and returned all the fields that each family had entrusted to them.
The imperial court has shown leniency by forgiving past taxes on the land that has been deposited, but this year's land tax must be paid!
While the Gu family returned the land deeds, the yamen runners registered and recorded the deeds. After the registration was completed, officials went to the land to measure the land.
Over the years, many families have relied on the savings accumulated through the Gu family's wealth, and then used these savings to buy land or reclaim wasteland in the surrounding area.
None of these lands were registered for tax purposes, nor were they even registered under the Gu family's name. Instead, they were cultivated and harvested every year without paying any taxes.
This is Hidden Field.
This land survey revealed that the Gu family had even more hidden farmland.
Even Gu Qingyan was surprised. He stared at the number of acres of land measured by the officials for a long time, speechless: "Didn't you say that all the land had been returned? What are these extra ones?"
The old steward bowed his head and said, "It's land that the manor has gradually purchased and reclaimed over the past ten years or so." (End of Chapter)