The Moon Over Tang Dynasty

Chapter 115 It’s up to you to choose

Liuli’s smile was pleasant, but her words were cold and sarcastic. The village leaders suddenly panicked. After all, Li Zhuangtou reacted faster and said with a smile, "This is what I was waiting for. I will naturally check it out for my wife when I get back. It's just that May is busy with farming." , if the land inspection affects the harvest, it will be more than worth the loss. I just hope that the lady will tolerate it for a while, and I have to collect and hand over the grain before I can measure it. "Since this Hu girl is so powerful, she should get through this year first and then talk about next year. , and can only listen to the arrangements of the eldest princess again.

Liuli was startled for a moment, then smiled and said, "How many hectares of grain will be paid this year? One hundred hectares or one thousand hectares?"

Li Zhuangtou was stunned for a moment, and could only say shamelessly, "This grain should be paid half of the actual harvest according to the old rules. As for how much the field is, we can only know it after measuring it."

Liuli sighed, "Well, since you are so busy and don't know anything about it, I won't bother you anymore. I will send someone to check! It's too troublesome to pay the actual amount of food. From this year, you The amount of grain to be paid is based on the number of acres, half a stone per acre, and the increase or decrease can be considered in good years. Anyway, there is Luoyang official law to compare with. I will tell you how much grain to pay before harvesting. "

Li Zhuangtou's expression changed greatly. Half a stone per mu was indeed not much, but how could the eldest princess be willing to let them pay 60,000 stones a year for food? Furthermore, wouldn’t the past few hundred stones a year become an open joke? After thinking for a while, he hurriedly smiled and said, "Since Madam is so anxious, I will check it when I get back and report it in a month. But this year's harvest is really not good, I'm afraid I won't be able to deliver the food."

Liuli glanced at him with a half-smile but not a smile, "Okay, you can check it yourself. After checking, make a book and stamp it with your signature. I will also send someone to take a look. As long as the difference is not big, forget it. If it is too big, your seals can be It is irrefutable proof. Whether there is a good harvest or not, it is normal. I have my own way to check. This grain is always grown in the ground and cannot be faked. If the harvest is really short, the grain will be distributed. But if the harvest is not delivered, all village leaders, don’t It’s my fault for bringing all this to the eldest princess. The eldest princess must know better than me what crime it is for a servant to steal a husband’s property!”

The yard was quiet, and the faces of the village heads in front all turned pale. According to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, stealing fifty pieces of silk from a person's property was punishable by exile, and a slave who offended his beloved received an additional penalty. And if they really didn't pay the grain, they would have stolen 60,000 shi of rice, which is equivalent to 60,000 bolts of silk, not to mention underreporting hundreds or even thousands of hectares of fertile land. They would be punished by beheading! If a slave breaks the law, the master will bear the responsibility, but the eldest princess is afraid that she will not bear this responsibility when the time comes.

Li Zhuangtou's thoughts changed slightly, he took a step forward and said loudly, "Since Madam doesn't believe me, I don't need to bother Madam, so I just handed over the job and went back to Hedong Duke's Mansion to do my job!" Now that he has said this. Go on, he won't risk his fortune and life on this. Besides, they can't do anything to this Hu girl. Isn't it possible that the eldest princess can't take care of her?

Liuli smiled and nodded, "Okay, you just go and do the business. I also want to ask the eldest princess why all the village heads she chose have been working as village heads for more than ten years, and they don't even know how many fields there are in the village. You know why as soon as you heard that I wanted to count the fields, you immediately had to give up the task; if the princess didn’t know what this meant, there were so many officials’ wives in Chang’an City. I must ask a few more for advice, and there will always be someone who understands. Taught me."

Li Zhuangtou felt horrified and said hurriedly, "Who said that I am not willing to do it just because I have to count the fields? It's because the lady doesn't believe in me, so I can't go on. The lady acts like this and often uses the government to pressure her. No matter how hard it is, we won’t dare to hide it, and we will definitely let the eldest princess make the decision!”

Liuli raised her eyebrows and smiled, "Okay, that's exactly what I thought. Dear village leaders, I asked you how many fields you have, but none of you know! There was a good harvest last year, and a bushel of corn in Luoyang only cost two and a half cents. I know! You said you paid half of the actual harvest, but you told me that I raised two thousand people! Do you think I need two hundred people to plant a hectare of land in Luoyang? Send it to the government and ask you to spit out all the embezzlement over the years! I am only afraid of hurting the face of the eldest princess, so I give you a chance to change things. Since you are not afraid of making trouble, what should I be afraid of? I will go and invite the crown prince now? Madam, please also invite some clan uncles and clan elders from Pei Ming Mansion to come over. You don’t have to do anything else today, just come and comment on this theory. How about we wait until we have finished commenting on this theory and explained it clearly, and we will naturally come to invite you. The eldest princess decides!”

Li Zhuangtou stood there, his face turning red and white, and cold sweat instantly wet the clothes on his back: The reason why they dared to do this all these years is actually because they have never judged before. He even tried to exploit his reputation to such an extent that Mrs. Lu didn't even dare to ask about money, let alone settle accounts with them one by one! But I didn't expect that the person in front of me was not afraid of breaking up and causing trouble. She made it clear from the beginning that she was the daughter of Hu Shang and she didn't want a reputation for being virtuous!

If you really want to judge, even a village man and woman know that there is a problem on their side, not to mention those members of the Pei tribe who have been eyeing the income from this land for a long time, but do not dare to take action due to the power of the eldest princess. Given this opportunity, it would be even harder for people like me to escape than to reach the sky! If it really comes to that point, the eldest princess will definitely not say that the millet in the past years was taken by the Hedong Duke's mansion. Then, the few of them will have no choice but to die... Thinking of the eldest princess's methods, his legs became weak and he could hardly stand. I couldn't stand it any longer, my eyes were getting darker and darker, and just when my heart was empty with no where to go, I suddenly heard Liuli chuckle, "Actually, according to my original intention, I don't want to force you to this dead end. "

Li Zhuang's head and body trembled, like a drowning man suddenly grabbing a straw. He raised his eyes and looked at Liuli, his eyes filled with hope.

Liuli's tone was calm, "I have also said that I have some knowledge about farm business. I have also inquired about the situation in Luoyang. You can tell most of the nine farms by looking at their boundaries. It is fertile farmland. It is not difficult to calculate if we look at the farmers you raise. It is estimated that there are more than a thousand hectares. I am not too proud of myself. I don’t care if it is too much. Even if it is a thousand hectares of mid-field, all the fields, even if they are planted, are priced. The cheapest corn is a pound of silk. This year you only need to hand over 50,000 bolts of silk. I will not hold you accountable for the amount of grain you paid in the past!"

Her eyes slowly turned on the faces of the village leaders, and she smiled very warmly, "After all, the past has nothing to do with me, so why should I bother to settle old scores and commit murders? I just don't know, you guys, Do you want to do it or not? Do you think my idea is feasible or not?"

Li Zhuangtou couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief. Starting from this year, fifty thousand bolts of silk a year would only account for less than 30% of the farm's income. It was better than being forced to settle old accounts, but... he heard a sound of relief behind him. , "Ma'am, are you serious about what you said?" "Just do it, ma'am!" He immediately didn't dare to hesitate anymore and nodded involuntarily. Liuli's face was full of joy, "Although I am a woman, I will naturally keep my word. If you don't believe it and what you say is unfounded, let's establish a written statement. You can rest assured, right?" He turned around and ordered Ayan and Ani. , "You go and take out your pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and make a contract. The nine farmlands, regardless of the harvest in previous years, will be paid in 50,000 bolts of silk this year, and the delivery will be divided into July and October. This will count between me and you. an agreement.”

Ayan and Ani were stunned when they heard this, but they came to their senses at this time, hurriedly rushed into the house, carried a few cases to the door, spread paper and polished ink, and asked for the names of nine people. Yan Yun's pen was as fast as flying, and he wrote down a contract in a short time.

Liuli smiled and said, "Everyone, go and see if there is any mistake. If it is correct, just press your fingerprints."

The first few people in Li Zhuang looked at each other and couldn't help but hesitate.

Liuli didn't push her, she just looked at the village heads with a smile, "If you think this is still harsh, I will send people to measure the fields and calculate the harvest. It doesn't matter if I harvest half of the actual harvest."

"Furthermore, of course you can leave immediately, but in this case, won't I have a reputation for treating the eldest princess's servants harshly? This crime is really too big, and I am determined not to bear it, no less We need to invite more people to distinguish this truth. If the family can't tell the difference, go to the government to tell it. If the government can't tell it, I will go to the palace to tell it. I believe the fields in Luoyang are there, and the accounts you have paid over the years are there. , this truth can always be distinguished.”

Lowering her head and straightening the life-extending rope with gold thread on her arm, Liuli added nonchalantly, "Speaking of which, His Majesty and Zhaoyi sent people to reward the life-extending rope yesterday, so I was supposed to go to the palace to express my gratitude. That’s it.”

When Li Zhuangtou heard this, his face turned a little gray. Indeed, the amount of land cannot be faked, and the accounts are irrefutable. The bigger the trouble, the less likely they are to survive. What's more, the person standing behind her is the beloved concubine of the current emperor. As long as she insists that she was wrongfully bullied by a few servants and tells what happened today, how can the eldest princess lose her face in the clan? Their wealth and lives are not enough to pay for this crime! Now that they have signed this contract, although the eldest princess will be furious, they are also forced by the situation, and the princess will not kill them immediately.

Thinking of this, several people looked at each other. Li Zhuangtou silently walked to the table, took a cursory glance, and put his handprint on the contract.

After everyone had finished reading, Liuli took the contract and read it again, sighing, "I feel relieved now. Please remember, 50,000 pieces of silk must be handed over before October this year, otherwise, Don’t blame me for going to the eldest princess to talk things over with you!”

Glancing down, Liuli smiled sweetly, "However, please rest assured, as long as you abide by this contract, I will definitely keep it a secret from the eldest princess and will never teach her to pursue your past affairs. ! Otherwise, I have to explain this mess to the princess bit by bit. I am originally from the market, so it is okay to calculate it a few times with the ladies in Quan Chang'an, but it's a big deal. How noble is the eldest princess? If you insist on forcing me to report these matters to the eldest princess, it will only make her angry, so why bother!"

Li Zhuangtou only felt that his mouth was bitter and fishy, ​​and he knew in his heart that it would be useless to move the eldest princess here immediately. Since the person in front of him didn't want the reputation of a noble lady at all, he was not afraid of tearing the matter apart. He said, let alone telling outsiders that if the eldest princess really wanted to find her, she would be forced to cause trouble for them instead, so "why bother"?

Liuli put down the contract, turned to look at the remaining dozen shopkeepers in the yard, and smiled brighter, "You guys don't know, in fact, I only know a little bit about the land, but I am even more familiar with the store. Some, several of my uncles have businesses in three places in Xizhou, Chang'an, Luoyang, and there are quite a few jewelry, spice, and fur shops in Makou. I have read your shop contracts and made estimates for each shop. You guys Are you willing to settle accounts with me or sign a contract? "

 (End of this chapter)