Exile at the beginning: I rule the world by drawing cards

Chapter 52 Increasing Taxes
Li Zheng didn't know if konjac was good to grow, and no one in the village had ever grown it before, so he still thought growing food was reliable.

"There are more than ten acres of wasteland at the foot of the mountain. How wasteful is it to use it all to grow konjac? Your aunt said last time that she would leave some radish seeds for you. I will go and get it for you right now."

He patted his legs and stood up, holding on to his waist, he went into the house and took out a small bag of radishes to plant.

Qin Meng Shang couldn't laugh or cry.It’s okay to plant radishes, dig a cellar and store them later so you can still eat them next year.

He thanked him and then asked: "Uncle, how long do you think it will take for this place to be settled?"

The konjac planted in the yard has already sprouted, and it is best to move it out before August.

"When the boss and others come back, we will measure the land. After we have measured the size, we have to go to the town. Only when the land is registered and stamped by the county government can we buy the right land. Is this land in your name or not? Put it in Xiao Zhou’s name?”

"Put it in my name."

Qin Meng Shang is a modern person who does not have the mentality of the ancients when they marry and take their husband's surname. Of course, the land they bought with their own money should be recorded in their own names. Moreover, Zhou Lingqi had said this earlier, writing her name.

Li Zheng happily touched his beard and said, "You can't tell, Xiao Zhou is as considerate as I am."

Qin Mengshang disagreed. If Zhou Lingqi was really considerate one day, she would be frightened to death.

Putting aside the random thoughts in her mind, she handed the yard renovation drawings to Li Zheng: "Uncle Li Zheng, I want to build another house. Can you help me find out how many adobe bricks this will cost?"

"Your yard is quite big. It would cost at least three thousand bricks to surround it." Li Zheng narrowed his eyes, "Including the hut and this. What's this word?"

"This is the bathroom, where you take a shower."

Li Zheng let out a long "Oh". He had never read a book, and he could only recognize a few words because he had lived a long life and had experienced a lot.However, since he has lived to this age, it is impossible for him to read and write anymore. He can only let the children at home read as many books as possible.

The two discussed some details, and the three sons of the Chen family happened to come back carrying rice.

Mrs. Fang heard the noise and came out to take a look. Knowing that Qin Mengshang was also there, she quickly glanced over and slipped back to the kitchen.

Although she was able to recover because of Qin Mengshang's cousin who knew medicine, but if it weren't for the Zhou family dog, would she have received a bite?I went in for nothing and even got scolded by the old lady.

Now that she heard that her father-in-law was going to take her men to discuss the land with Qin Meng, Fang was jealous and curious.

How long has the Zhou family been in business and they actually have money to buy land?If doing business was really that simple, she might be able to earn a few bucks by setting up a stall in the town.
"What are you waiting for? The food is burnt, why don't you scoop it up quickly!"

Mrs. Chen brought Fang back to reality with a voice.

She cooks all the meals for more than a dozen people in the family, so how can she find time to set up a stall in the town?After thinking about it, I gave up.

Li Zheng took the things and took Mr. Chen and Mr. Chen to measure the land.Qin Meng Shang didn't know the ancient land management system, so Zhou Lingqi happened to come back, so he asked him to go with him.

After confirming that the land deed is correct, we still need to take it to the county government to have it stamped.

Li Zheng put the deed away and said to Qin Mengshang, "I happen to have a meeting in town tomorrow, so I'll help you with it."

"Thank you very much, Uncle Li Zheng."

Qin Mengshang wanted to keep him here for dinner, but Li Zheng waved his hand and declined.

The rice at home had not yet been harvested, and it happened that the county magistrate summoned them to a meeting at this juncture, so they had no time to stay and eat.It had been raining heavily for a month and there was no movement from the county government. They held meetings as soon as the autumn harvest came. Apart from thinking about the little grain in their fields, Li Zheng couldn't think of anything else to do.

Not only did he think so, but Li Zheng from several other villages also thought of going together.

Sure enough, as soon as they entered the county government office, before the county magistrate could see them, the master with a mustache smiled and talked about increasing taxes this year.

The people in Tonghua Village next door quickly retorted: "Are we going to increase taxes again? It rained continuously for most of June this year. Many fields in our village were flooded, and the harvest was reduced by at least [-]%! It is difficult for the villagers to feed themselves. , how can you get so much food to pay taxes?"

Li Zheng from Zhushanling also said: "Yes, the harvest has been bad in the past few years, and everyone has tightened their belts to get by. If taxes are increased again, I am afraid that I will have to sell my children to pay them!"

Several other people also began to complain, but Chen Lizheng stood at the end without saying a word.

You can tell at a glance that the increase in taxes is the intention of the higher-ups. Although they are considered important figures in the village, their lives are nothing compared to the officials sitting there.What's the use of refuting?In the end, I can only go back full of sadness.

The master raised his eyebrows and interrupted them impatiently: "This matter was ordered by the governor. Not only our county, but the entire Yongzhou will have to pay an additional [-]% tax!"

"This" Tonghua Village was about to say something, but was glared back.

"Okay!" The master tossed his sleeves and stood up, "That's settled this matter. Let's go back early! The tax is collected on a per-capita basis. If you can't pay, you can go to Xishan to pay the tax with your labor!"

Several people looked at each other, shook their heads and sighed.

If the Xishan Quarry does not take human life as a priority, who would be willing to send their son or grandson there?The Xunjiang River has not been peaceful in recent years, and surrounding counties and towns are often harassed by water bandits. Xishan is close to the water bandits' village, so every time something happens, the quarry must suffer first.Officials can just throw away some money, but common people like them have no money to throw away, so they can only throw away their arms and legs.

Several people looked ugly, but Chen Lizheng took a step forward to catch up with the master.

"Old Chen has the guts of a leopard today?" The people in Tonghua Village were very surprised. One person who usually couldn't fart dared to challenge the boss when he heard that taxes were to be increased?

Li Zheng from Zhushan Ridge was equally shocked: "Lao Chen is good! Whether we can have a good year this year depends on him."

"It's still early, let's go back together with Lao Chen!"

Several other people nodded and waited outside the county government office.

When Chen Lizheng came out after completing the land deed for Qin Mengshang, several people sitting on the stone steps immediately gathered around him. Their enthusiasm scared Li Zheng and he backed away.

"What are you doing?" Chen Lizheng took two steps back cautiously, "Every old face is about to burst into laughter. Why haven't I seen you being so enthusiastic about me before?"

"Hey! Lao Chen, please stop selling your skin!" Tonghua Village was impatient and took a step forward to ask, "What did the county magistrate say? Is it possible to pay this tax this year -"

"What's okay? I didn't ask at all!"

"Then what did you do in there?"

Chen Lizheng's eyes flashed, and he put the stamped land deed into his arms: "I'll help the villagers get a land deed. I'm still busy with the autumn harvest at home, so I'll go back first."

After saying that, without giving them a chance to speak, he ran away as fast as the wind was blowing under his feet.

The old faces standing in front of the county government office looked suspicious. Is it really as simple as signing a land deed?It always felt like Lao Chen was hiding something from them.

　Thanks to the book friend Qingyin for the reward, I will continue to work hard ~ I will add another chapter later (`)**
　　
　
(End of this chapter)