The Struggle of the Reborn Prince

Chapter 35 Planning for the future

After taking a bath and eating, Zhao Tan came to the small study room. Guihua added two more lamps in the room, lighting up the study room brightly. He sat down at the desk, spread out a large piece of paper, and pressed the four corners with paperweights. This was his

The map that was merged after the annexation of Chentang Manor was redrawn by Zhao Tan by the steward of the mansion.

This picture is obviously drawn using primitive pictographic drawing methods. There is no scale or symbol representation. If there is a mountain, draw a mountain, and if there is a river, draw a river. This is neither in line with the modern picture-viewing habits of Zhao Yu, nor is it accurate.

What he has to do tonight is to draw a new picture.

Zhao Tong stretched out his hand and hurriedly opened the wooden box he had brought. Inside was a set of drawing tools such as rulers, compasses and set squares. These were made by the craftsmen in the palace according to the prince's instructions. They used all

The best brass was carefully carved and plated with a thin layer of gold foil. It looked shiny. He picked it up and looked at it and couldn't help but shake his head. Craftsmen would spend a lot of money on such a simple thing.

There is little thought put into carving floral decorations on it, which shows that the entire social atmosphere emphasizes luxury.

Zhao Tong picked up a ruler and drew a frame on the paper, marking the direction. After several days of investigation and inspection, he had become familiar with the geographical and hydrological conditions of the entire 'territory'. The reconnaissance and acquisition of key geographical locations were the work of a special forces soldier.

Basic skills, these things did not trouble him. Half an hour later, a topographic map drawn with charcoal appeared on the white paper. Rivers, villages, ditches, woods, roads, and even the paths used by farmers in the countryside were all there one by one.

Marked on the diagram.

"Jianxi, can you understand?" Zhao Tong wiped his hands with a towel and asked Jianxi who was standing aside.

"You can get a rough idea. I don't quite understand what the paintings are about some things?" Jian Xi said with an embarrassed smile.

"You trace this on the parchment, and I'll take a break. My tired wrists are sore!" Zhao Tong said as he took the teacup handed over by Osmanthus fragrans.

"Second Master, I'm afraid I can't do such a delicate job because I'm so clumsy. Why don't we let the housekeeper do it tomorrow!" Jian Xi said with a grin on his face, he couldn't use a ruler or compass to trace the drawing, he had to rely on his hands.

It took a lot of effort and the smallest brush was used, so it was really not easy to draw it well without losing shape.

"What's so difficult about this? It's easier than tracing flowers. Let me do it!" Osmanthus looked at it and volunteered to take on the job.

"I'm happy, are you ashamed? The cowhide blows loudly, as if you can do anything. Today, I let Sister Guihua compete with me, so I'll punish you by grinding ink for her!" Zhao Tong scratched his face with his fingers.

He teased twice.

"How can I compare with the second master? You know everything. I can't even catch up with you!" Jian Xi pouted, but he was also wondering in his heart. Who did the prince learn from? Why do you have so much in your stomach?

Thing, it seems that the prince must have descended from the gods, he muttered obediently and went to study the ink.

Zhao Tong drank some water and opened his notes, which recorded the results of his 'research' over the past few days. Looking at the words above, Zhao Tong's heart became heavy. The life of the people at the bottom of the Song Dynasty, which was said to be extremely prosperous and wealthy in history, was not as good as before.

Not that happy.

According to the system, the Song Dynasty divided the country's residents into two categories: principal households and customers. Residents living in cities were called Fangguo households, and households living in rural areas were called rural households. Rural households were further divided into principal households and customers: rural principal households,

They refer to those farmers who own land and pay summer and autumn taxes to the country; rural customers are tenant farmers who have no land, or even cattle, farm tools and other means of production, and rent land from landlords. They are also called tenants and floaters.

They were also included in the household registration and became the official household registration of the country. They also paid personal tax, summer and autumn taxes and husband's labor. This system changed the status of tenants and allowed them to get rid of the status of slaves. It can be said to be a kind of progress.

However, the land policy of the Song Dynasty did not suppress annexation. Officials could purchase land at will and become large or small landowners. Landowners could also become officials at all levels by passing the imperial examination. Officials and landowners were combined into one, occupying most of the land in the country. The royal family, nobles, and bureaucrats

, landowners annexed more and more land.

Zhao Tong originally wanted to use his free time a year ago to inspect his 'territory', investigate the water and soil conditions, and make preparations for next year's spring plowing. However, he was shocked to see the situation. There was not even a single landlord in his territory, and even

There are neither first-class households nor middle-class households. The lower-class households with ten to eight acres of self-cultivated land are all small and medium-sized households. That is to say, those who work on their own four hundred acres of land are almost all tenant farmers.

What surprised him even more was the methods used by the former owner of the land, Chen Tang, who completed the annexation of tens of thousands of acres of land in just three or four years. The autumn wind swept away nearly a hundred landowners, large and small, like fallen leaves.

Turn them all into the proletariat and make these exploiting classes poor peasants and laborers.

Chen Tang's method of dealing with these rich landlords would never occur to modern people if you think about it - the method is to let these people serve as officials and errands. The law of the Song Dynasty stipulates that those who work in front of the government must have assets of more than 200 yuan.

As the first-class big landowners, they enjoy the privilege of being exempted from the imperial examination and transfer, and can be awarded official titles, which can be promoted once every three years, up to the rank of military commander of the capital. In addition, the village chiefs, household heads, and township secretaries are

Even powerful grassroots cadres such as elders, archers, and young men must be from second-class households, or at worst, third-class households. This system is actually a privilege granted by the government to the landlords.

They wanted to rely on the landlords and gentry to expand the foundation of feudal rule in the Song Dynasty.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, landlords competed to be the government officials. At that time, they could take advantage of the opportunity of serving as officials, plunder property, and get promoted and make a fortune. But by this time, their good days were over, and the service laws were becoming increasingly chaotic.

If there is any loss or damage, compensation must be paid. If the head of the household fails to collect the taxes properly, he must compensate for the loss. Chen Tang used this to make many landlords bankrupt their families.

The method to deal with those farmers who only have a small amount of land is more direct and simple, which is to collect taxes and lend money at usury. The taxes will make them bankrupt and have to sell their land to him, or in a disaster year when the harvest is not enough to pay taxes, the money will be paid in two dollars.

They were given loans at three times the interest, and God was very cooperative. After three years of locust plagues, they gave Chen Tang their land.

Their fate was also the most tragic, because after selling the land to the landlord and becoming tenant farmers, they were unable to immediately cancel the property and change their household registration. The property was gone but the taxes were retained. They had to continue to borrow money, and even asked their children to be used as 'domestic' as collateral.

, the final outcome is that the family is unable to repay the debt and they become "white-haired girls". The tenants are double-oppressed by the government and employers, and many people choose helpless methods. One is to escape from the tenants, and the other is to become a "hero".

Zhao Tong was thinking as he watched, and now he was facing two serious problems. One was that the officials were busy plundering and offering to the palace, and they had no energy and no 'extra' money to build water conservancy facilities. The ditches were blocked, and the big households

People are also unwilling to pay for repairs, causing the paddy fields to turn into dry land. Wheat and rice can only be grown for one season, and the land utilization rate is greatly reduced.

Another problem is more serious, that is, the labor force is insufficient, and there is land but no one is cultivating it. Originally, Chen Tang's village had more than 800 tenant households and more than 1,000 people. After several years of his "operation", the number of households has been reduced by nearly half.

, now there are less than 500 households. Even these people who remain are still worried. Their families have no overnight food. They are probably sad at the end of the year. Now some tenants want to take advantage of the opportunity to change owners and leave. They do not want to sign a new lease and there is the possibility of losing.

.

"If this problem is not solved well, no matter how much land there is, it will be abandoned. And it is not easy to find so many tenants all at once." Zhao Tong stood up and walked around anxiously.

"Can we solve the two problems at the same time?" Zhao Tong thought for a while, but there was still no good way. He couldn't force them to stay because he was the prince. This kind of bullying others, especially those who don't have enough to eat.

As a poor person, Zhao Tong felt that he could not do it no matter what.

"Second Master, the drawing is finished!" Osmanthus suddenly said.

"Oh, that's right, you guys should rest first!" Zhao Tong looked at it and said absently.

"Second Master, how can we sleep if you don't sleep? Wouldn't that be too unruly!" Jian Xi said.

"No, you've all been tired from following me all day. It's enough to have Xiao Huangmen on duty at night. I also want to be alone for a while. You all should rest early. There is no need for so many people to endure it!" Zhao Tong waved his hand and said.

"Yes, then the second master should rest early, so he doesn't have to be tired!" Seeing that Zhao Tong was not in a high mood, he didn't dare to say anything more, so he took Guihua out and then ordered the Xiaohuangmen who were on duty at night to be more alert before returning to him.

's residence.

"The dam should be built first, and then the main canals should be dredged to divert water to every piece of land. With the dam, the water potential will increase, and the water power can also be utilized. Mills and wineries can be moved to the river, and they can still be built." Zhao

Tamarind looked at the picture and muttered to himself, pointing his fingers on the picture and thinking, each idea forming in his mind, planning this land of his own. This may be just his starting point, but he will move forward from here.

Take a solid step!

In the early morning, when Osmanthus quietly walked into the small study, the prince was lying on the desk and fell asleep, snoring softly, but there was a smile on the corner of his mouth, as if he had dreamed of something happy! On his desk

The candle exploded and the lantern finally burned out. Many new marks were added to the map placed next to the prince. The brazier under his feet was only a dark red with only a few sparks still struggling tenaciously and refusing to be extinguished.

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