Chapter 98 Taxation
The next day, the warm morning light fell from outside the window, making Shangguan Feiyan's pretty face look particularly beautiful and beautiful.
Perhaps the light was a bit dazzling, Shangguan Feiyan woke up slowly, looked around in confusion, and only remembered what happened yesterday after slowly sitting up.
"It seems like I did something embarrassing..." Shangguan Feiyan patted her slightly red cheeks and turned over and got out of bed.
When he walked out of the house, he saw that Qingyan and Mr. Zhou were rolling up their sleeves and chopping the firewood. During the period, they were talking and laughing very well.
"Awaken? How do you feel in your body?" Qingyan Yu Guang caught a glimpse of Shangguan Feiyan, then chopped the axe on the wooden pier and asked with a smile.
Looking at Qingyan's hearty smile, Shangguan Feiyan couldn't help but remember what happened last night again, and her face was a little blushed.
"Qingyan, the old man looked a little red when he saw that the girl's face was not very good. Please help her into the house to rest." Mr. Zhou looked worried.
"I think so, so I will help you after I help her back." After that, Qingyan walked away quickly.
"Okay! I'm fine, I'm really fine, you don't have to worry." Shangguan Feiyan saw the other party walking straight towards him, quickly patted her chest.
Qingyan said in confusion: "It's so good? Don't show off."
"It's really good! Why don't I chop firewood for you and see if I lied to you?" In order to cover up the embarrassment, Shangguan Feiyan wanted to step forward.
"You can take a break. How can you use your firewood to recover from a serious illness? If you really want to move, go to the wing room to help Grandma Zhou have breakfast. Xiao Lu has a few hands to thank the two elders for their rescue." Qing Yan pointed to the wing room with smoke from cooking.
"Oh! OK, I'll go to the kitchen!" Shangguan Feiyan ran out trotting.
Mr. Zhou was very surprised when he heard this, "Miss Shangguan is so young, but he can cook vegetables?" Qingyan smiled and said, "If it was the first time I saw her, I would think she was a pampered lady, but I have personally tried her skills, and even after a long time, I feel that she has a lot of memories."
"By the way, my father-in-law, you said you are from Zhoujia Village this time, but you are really old, so you should have a good life." Qingyan picked up the firewood axe.
"Actually, the old man should have stepped down five years ago. However, all the villagers in Zhoujia Village saw that I was in good health, they should have recommended me to work for another ten years. Alas, the villagers trust me so much, how could the old man refuse again?" A helpless smile appeared on Zhou's face.
"That's because you're sitting upright, otherwise how could you do this?" Qingyan carried the chopped wood on his back, "Brother, this is the last batch, right?"
"No, considering the previous batches, the wood in the hunting house in the mountain is enough. Be careful on the road, and we are waiting for you to come back for dinner." Mr. Zhou waved.
"Okay!"
---------------------------(I'm a dividing line)
Although the hunting house is on the mountain, the mountain is not far and not high, and Qingyan's foot strength does not take a stick of incense.
On the way back, Qingyan thought about his next plan. Qushui County is in the eastern part of Yizhou and the journey to Chengdu is not close. If you ride a horse, it will take about three days. I just saw Shangguan Feiyan running at a steady pace. I wanted to take another day and I could set off tomorrow.
Thinking of the unknown forces that dug the ship yesterday, Qing Yan sighed in his heart. He thought that he would be able to leak the traces in Chengdu, but he didn't expect that Yizhou was blocked before it even entered.
When I arrived at the head of Zhoujia Village, Qingyan frowned.
There were two groups of people confronting each other at the entrance of the village. On one side, there were a large number of villagers led by Zhou Laozhang, while on the other side were more than a dozen yamen runners and a big belly official.
Qingyan came to the villagers without any traces.
"Zhou Lizheng, the deadline has passed three days. I wonder how the tax bank is being prepared?"
"I went back to Wei to work. The tax has been a bit heavy in the past six months. My Zhoujia Village really couldn't raise more silver for a while. This is thirty taels. You can take it first. After the fundraising is complete in the future, I will definitely send it in person." Mr. Zhou respectfully handed a piece of broken silver wrapped in red cloth to Wei to work.
After Wei worked on one hand, he put a cube on his weight and laughed at him: "Zhou Lizheng, are you sending beggars? Your Zhoujia Village is 150 taels by counting the number of people!" After that, he threw the broken silver in his hand on Zhou Laozhai's face.
Seeing this, the villagers around were all indignant and wanted to step forward to argue.
"What's wrong! Are you troublemakers trying to rebel? You know, this official is the prefect of Qushui County. If I lose one hair, I will slaughter your entire village!" Wei Chengshi was very arrogant, as if he was an emperor who could control the life and death of these villagers.
"Wei is engaged in it, right? The imperial court's taxes and silver are collected after the autumn harvest, and ordinary farmers can use grain to make taxes. I have never heard of the taxes in the spring and must be cash. What kind of taxes are levied?" Shangguan Feiyan asked coldly, holding Zhou Laozhang.
This is not the first time that Wei Chengshi has come to Zhoujia Village. Not to mention that he is extremely familiar with every tree and every tree here, but he probably knows who this Zhoujia Village is composed of. At this moment, he is so obsessed with Shangguan Feiyan. It’s not that he has never seen a beautiful woman, but the former’s appearance and temperament are not as good as the popular kiln sisters in Qushui County.
"But you are deaf? If you can't answer, you will be imposing private taxes in the name of the court. The crime will be punished by the nine clans."
Of course, Wei Chengshi would not be scared by a girl's threat. After reacting, he felt a bad smile on his face, "This girl's words are really alarmist. Of course, I collected taxes according to the imperial decree. If the girl has any doubts, why don't you find a Jingya to answer them one by one for you? How about you?"
"Ha, don't urinate and reflect on your virtues. Do you think the peacock will be under the same roof as a toad?" Shangguan Feiyan's undisguised ridicule made the surrounding villagers burst into a shocking laughter.
Although Wei was not under the status of Qushui County, he was also the direct descendant of the prefect. He had never been so humiliated in the past. "Since you don't toast and don't speak rudely to me, don't blame me for being rude. Come and take the woman back on the chain and then put it in jail."
Shangguan Feiyan was not afraid at all and shouted: "It's okay to take this girl. As long as you explain what tax is levied, what if you go with you, the toad!"
"Listen, this is the royal heir burial tax issued by Your Majesty himself. Because His Highness Zheng suddenly became sick and returned to heaven a few days ago, His Highness was extremely sad to hold a grand funeral for His Highness Zheng. However, in recent years, he has been vacant with Northern Yan for many years, so everyone in the South Zhao people need to do their part."
Shangguan Feiyan was stunned when she heard the explanation. After a moment, she could no longer bear the silver bell-like laughter, and finally she laughed so hard that she was out of breath.
"What do you say, a toad? The royal heir's burial tax? King Zheng died of illness? Your Majesty wants to hold a grand funeral for him? You are afraid that your mind was caught when you go out, right?" Shangguan Feiyan bent down and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.
When Wei Chengshi heard Shangguan Feiyan's words, he suddenly felt nervous. Because he was engaged in the prefect of Qushui County, the news was of course very well-informed. He knew why King Zheng died. Moreover, the royal heir burial tax was naturally used to take away the people's wealth and ointment in the name of the court.
"Take this nonsense woman to me!" Wei Chengshi did not hesitate anymore and ordered the left and right yamen runners to come forward to arrest him.
Seeing this, Mr. Zhou quickly stopped Shangguan Feiyan behind him and said with a smile: "This girl is my distant niece. I have never seen anything ignorant in the world. Wei is engaged in you. Don't bother with her."
"If I want my official to let her go, as long as I have to accompany me for three days, I will not only not cure her for crimes, but also reduce the taxes in your Zhoujia Village by half. What do you think?" Wei Congshi looked at Shangguan Feiyan's graceful figure with a lewd smile on his face.
"Wei Cheng's words: My niece is still young and can't serve a high-ranking official like you. I hope you can let the old man go for the sake of his two sons sacrificed their lives for the country. The old man kneeled down for you." After that, Mr. Zhou knelt on his knees and looked at Wei Cheng's pleading eyes.
"The two sons sacrificed their lives for the country? They said beautifully. Who knows whether your two sons died or not? Maybe they were deserters,"
"Wei is engaged in how you can insult the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country!"
"Insult? I admit that the Huangqi of the Northern Mansion is indeed powerful, but where are they now? Maybe they will be deserters like your two sons." Wei Chengshi ordered again: "Why are you still standing there? I won't take her down for me!"
Shangguan Feiyan raised her beautiful eyes and said coldly: "I see who you dares!"
At this time, a warm and powerful palm rested on Shangguan Feiyan's shoulders. When he turned around, he was suddenly shocked.
The person who came was very familiar with Qingyan, but the expression on his face seemed like a thousand years of ice, no longer as cheerful and handsome as before. He held the axe that had chopped wood in his hand and walked over to Wei to work as a group of people.
"I know you are the prefect, so I will give you a chance. Now I kneel down and kowtow to Mr. Zhou for a hundred times. I think you were farting if you were before." Qingyan stood still five steps away from the other party.
Wei Congshi was very surprised. There were so many strange things today. The young man in front of him was obviously not from Zhoujia Village, but when he heard the words from the other party, he seemed to hear a huge joke, "What did you say? Let me kowtow to him? There must be one hundred? Do you think you can scare me by taking an axe?"
The yamen runners around them are the pawns engaged in Wei. They are used to being arrogant and domineering in daily life. However, they never thought that when they saw such an interesting boy today, they all laughed out loud.
"Feiyan, help your father-in-law back."
"Qingyan, no matter how he said..."
“Return.”
Shangguan Feiyan felt an irresistible power from Qingyan, and then she remembered what his father had said.
[Feiyan, don't always quarrel with the prince side by side in the future. If this kid is really angry, even His Majesty may not be able to suppress it. He is just like his father's virtue back then. If he is not angry, he will be gone. If he is angry, he will be blood splattered five steps.]
Feeling the inexplicable pressure on the other party, Wei Congshi couldn't help but take two steps back, "This kid must be trying to make a bad plan against this official, and he won't take it down!"
More than a dozen yamen runners didn't talk nonsense, and pulled out their swords and surrounded Qingyan. The leader was about to step forward to control Qingyan's shoulders.
But as soon as the yamen runner stretched out his arm, he felt that the world in front of him suddenly turned red, and then a biting pain suddenly came from his arm.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
The yamen runner rolled all over the ground with his right arm covered with blood, which was so painful that the other yamen runners saw no sign of the other party's attack.
Immediately afterwards, four yamen runners looked at Qingyan at the same time. The surrounding villagers were so scared that they blocked their eyes by this scene, and the young man's fate had already appeared in their minds.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
But a few louder screams made the villagers very puzzled. When they opened their eyes, they saw that the four yamen runners fell to the ground with broken arms and struggled violently like the man before.
Chapter completed!