Chapter 585 Ping'er's Request

In an inner hall of the Daming Palace, Jia Lian and three others went in to eat under the guidance of the eunuch.

Although the eight or nine meals were all exquisite, they were all side dishes and snacks and did not appear extravagant. It was obvious that Emperor Ningkang was usually frugal and not a man who indulged in pleasure.

"Why don't you eat?"

The fourth prince Xu was really hungry. After sitting down, he ate a few mouthfuls and then saw his imperial sister and Jia Lian. Didn't move the chopsticks. Not only did they not move their chopsticks, the two of them were still looking at me, and I looked at you, as if they were communicating with each other.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian raised his hands and said: "Princess, please go first."

Princess Zhaoyang was not polite, then picked up the silver chopsticks, put a piece of bamboo shoot tip into her mouth, and then He nodded and said: "The imperial chef in the palace is very good at cooking. This fried pork with autumn bamboo shoots tastes good. The Marquis of Zhenyuan will also try it."

"Is it true? Let me try it."

The fourth prince stood up and opened his chopsticks to pick up vegetables. Princess Zhaoyang frowned when she saw his vulgar behavior. She calmly picked up the fried venison with autumn bamboo shoots and placed it in front of Jia Lian. Smiled at Jia Lian. Turning around, he saw the fourth prince with a look of astonishment on his face, and he took a chicken leg out of the soup and put it into his bowl.

"Hmph."

The fourth prince was like a wronged little daughter-in-law, daring to be angry but afraid to speak out. He sat down and directly picked up the chicken leg with his bare hands, and fiercely Start biting.

Jia Lian stood aside and watched with cold eyes, unable to express his inner thoughts on his face. He could only sigh secretly that the siblings were indeed enemies. The fourth prince was fearless and dared to fight with anyone he met. He was helpless against Princess Zhaoyang. Jia Lian alone had seen him crumble in the hands of Princess Zhaoyang several times.

In order to prevent the fourth prince from hating him because of a plate of side dishes, Jia Lian did not immediately pick up the dishes and taste them. He thanked Princess Zhaoyang and then changed the subject: "This time, Her Royal Highness the Princess took the initiative to invite you. When it comes to the clan, the courage and filial piety are admirable. May I ask, does your highness have any good ideas in mind?"

Sure enough, when the fourth prince heard Jia Lian ask about this matter, he was no longer angry. , turned his eyes to look at his imperial sister.

Although he didn't care much about political affairs, he also knew that the people in the clan were very conservative and very philistine. It would be very difficult to get them to cooperate with the court in paying land taxes.

Princess Zhaoyang took a bite of the dishes in a leisurely manner, and then Fang Xiao asked Jia Lian: "Master Zhenyuan, this is because you don't believe in the little girl's ability, and you are worried that I will mess up this matter. ?”

“No, I have long known about Your Highness’s bravery, determination, and resourcefulness. If Your Highness, the Princess, is unable to take on this responsibility, I’m afraid no one will be able to solve Your Majesty’s problems.This is so sad. "

"Hahaha, Mr. Hou is still so good at talking... But, I really don't have any good ideas, but I just want to deal with this matter first.

On the contrary, the Marquis of Zhenyuan has always been very resourceful. If he has any strategies to teach me, I am all ears, and I will definitely repay him in the future. "

"Hey, can you two stop bragging about each other so much? I can't even listen anymore! "The fourth prince always feels that with Jia Lian around, his royal sister speaks strangely. How should I put it, hypocritical!

"I said you, sister, too. Since you are not sure, why did you take over just now? Such a thankless job. There are so many capable ministers and generals under my father's command. If you just send one of them to do this job, it will be fine. You have to be brave. Now you regret it. "

The fourth prince's tone was slightly mocking.

Princess Zhaoyang glanced at him and felt that she and Jia Lian couldn't understand each other with this bastard around. So he gave Jia Lian a look, stopped talking, and concentrated on eating.

…

After dinner, Jia Lian was summoned by Emperor Ningkang again.

What he did was just to inquire about the progress of firearms and...

"It is rumored that your Jia family has thousands of hectares of fertile land in the north and south. It also exceeds the 100,000 acres limit for ducal houses set by the imperial court. Is this rumor true? "

"Reporting to Your Majesty, it is indeed true. Since Taizu, my Jia family has been favored by emperors and blessed by saints. Our ancestors in the past generations did not know how to manage the family business better. Whenever they had savings, they used it to buy fields. To this day, with the addition of previous generations, As a reward from the saint, my Jia family owns nearly 300,000 acres of mountains, forests and farms. Even excluding the clan sacrifice fields, there are still more than 250,000. "

Emperor Ning Kang asked casually, but Jia Lian immediately answered the specific number.

I don’t know if he had expected it. He would ask this question because he really serves the emperor and is loyal and sincere.

But even if he had expected that he would ask this question, he could answer it so simply and neatly, which is considered to be honest.
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After all, if someone like King Zhongshun can only hesitate and be vague, how can he dare to come up with a specific number?

“Oh? If that's the case, what do you think of the newly revised tax laws? "

"Natural is the work of a thousand years and a good recipe for hundreds of generations. On behalf of the family, I am willing to fully support the imperial court in achieving the great success of reforming the tax law. ”

Jia Lian has studied politics and dare not say anything else. As for the high-level speech skills, most people in this era want to flatter him.People can't even compare to a horse.

"Seriously? If according to the New Deal, the extra 100,000 acres of land of your Jia family will be taxed for thousands of tons of grain every year, which is equivalent to your ten years of rice, you won't feel bad at all. , or in other words, are you not afraid of complaints from your family?"

Jia Lian said seriously: "A gentleman likes wealth and gets it in a wise way. Not to mention that my Jia family enjoys the most generous treatment in the country, even if Our Jia family are just ordinary people under the rule of Wei Dynasty. As long as it can be beneficial to the court and the people of the world, the Jia family will naturally support it.

The family is the smallest country, and the country is the largest family. , If there is no big country, how can we have a small family?

Therefore, your majesty does not need to worry about the humble ministers. Not to mention that our Jia family does not have such people who do not understand righteousness. Even if there are, the humble ministers will teach and control them. , I dare not let it become the slightest obstacle to His Majesty's new policy!"

Thousands of stone grains are indeed more than his ten years of salary, silver and rice. However, all in all, it is only a few thousand taels of silver!

Thousands of taels of silver, and the favor of Emperor Ning Kang. How to choose? Can Jia Lian hesitate?

Moreover, although the Jia family’s two houses have exceeded the limit, Jia Lian does not believe that the tax rates for farmland, forests, and manors will be the same! If fertile land is included in the quota, and mountains, forests, manors, etc. are used to pay taxes, the amount will be greatly reduced on this basis.

Besides, if others don’t know that he doesn’t know that Emperor Ning Kang promised to make up for this part of the losses suffered by the clan members from the annual rewards.

In other words, Emperor Ning Kang had no intention of grabbing benefits from people like the clan members. What he wanted was just to make the clan members stop being the protective umbrella of the small and medium-sized landowners below and become the It is a haven for thousands of small and medium-sized landowners to hide and evade taxes.

It is conceivable that if Emperor Ning Kang can accomplish this matter, even if it is simply implemented, even if it is simply implemented, from the clan, the descendants, the noble families, and the nobles, They would all eagerly throw back the donated land of "unknown origin" in their hands...

Thinking about it, this is what Emperor Ningkang and the courtiers really care about.

Although Jia Lian feels that once the clan members pay taxes, the palace may make up for the loss in the first few years, but as the matter has become a foregone conclusion, the so-called subsidies will definitely be difficult to guarantee...< br />
Perhaps, Emperor Ning Kang had originally planned this. Otherwise, why didn’t he write down the regulations and just let the lobbyists make promises on his behalf? In this way, even if he no longer fulfills his promise in the future, he can still shirk it. Alas, my poor princess will be betrayed by her father again.

Hey, just take the blame. If you want to get power from the emperor, how can you make sense if you don’t help take the blame? He can’tIs it the same?

So Jia Lian said in a bachelor's manner: "So, if His Majesty needs it, the humble minister can even take the initiative to set an example among the honorable ministers. After the new tax law is implemented, he will be the first to take the initiative to declare the land and declare it every year. Pay your taxes in full and become the vanguard of His Majesty's new policy!"

Emperor Ning Kang looked at Jia Lian and said for a long time: "If everyone in the world is as loyal to the monarch and the country as you are, why worry about the lack of support in the world? Jing, I can't manage the officials well! I can feel a lot more relaxed..."

"Uh, Your Majesty, you are just dreaming. Let alone you, even if it is three thousand years later, the world will not be able to achieve it. Just like what you said.

Moreover, I dare not tell you, as long as there are more people who travel through like this, it will be a matter of time sooner or later, not to mention that the world will not be peaceful, the officials will not be clear, the mountains and rivers will be broken, and the lives will be in ruins.

Emperor Ning Kang didn’t know Jia Lian’s fucking thoughts. He was very satisfied with Jia Lian’s words, encouraged Jia Lian with a few words, and let him out of the palace.

…

Returning to Rongguo Mansion, perhaps because of the distance, the farce on the long street did not bring any turmoil to Jia Mansion.

But in the study room of Dongkuaoyuan, Hu Yuanyao received a message from Princess Zhaoyang, asking him to meet outside the city tomorrow.

This was also expected. Jia Lian agreed and went home.

It was September, and it was a cold autumn at home. But under the eaves, Jia Lian saw a lot of fruits and vegetables, such as pumpkins, eggplants, etc., there were quite a lot of them!

Jia Lian took a second look, but didn't pay much attention. He went straight into the house and saw Ping'er sitting alone in the house doing needlework. "Second Master is back."

Ping'er always looks so peaceful. When Jia Lian comes into the house, he is neither cold nor flattering. The master's grandma is more warm and considerate, and Jia Lian sometimes wonders whether this girl is simply committed to him out of etiquette.

Jia Lian said "Hmm" and walked to Ping'er's previous seat to sit down. He picked up her needlework and took a look at it. It was a tube top with yellow gold threads.

　“Your own?”

　“Made for my second grandma. My former grandma burned two old ones, and I was afraid that she wouldn’t have enough to replace them, so I made more for her. Two new ones."

Ping'er stood beside Jia Lian and explained.

Jia Lian pulled her to sit on his lap and put his hands into her arms. After a while, he said very seriously: "There are so many maids in the courtyard, whoever does it for her is different. Look, Your own ones are old, so why don’t you make two new ones for yourself?"

Ping'er, who had already been touched by Jia Lian, blushed. Hearing this, he explained seriously: "Second wifeI’m not used to wearing bras made by others, and besides, how old am I? I only made this dark green top half a month ago..."

Women in this era basically know how to do it. Female workers, so apart from not being too demanding about their outer clothes, they basically make their personal belongings by themselves.

The people in his courtyard are no exception.

It’s just that Sister Feng doesn’t have much free time and is too lazy to do such small things. Therefore, most of her underwear is done by Ping’er.

And like Jia Lian, the details on his body are among the Most of the objects are the masterpieces of Qingwen. Female Xiangling is not a good worker, she likes to read.

Having said that, when Jia Lian heard Ping'er's words, he immediately asked curiously: "Dark green? Let me see if you lied? "

Seeing Jia Lian really picking up her collar to take a look, Ping'er was helpless and funny, so she covered her chest and advised: "Second Master, don't make trouble, there are guests here today. Don't let anyone catch the joke? "

"Oh? What guests? "

"It's not that he's an expensive guest. He's a countryman. He has a long-standing relationship with Second Grandma. I visited her once that year and she didn't treat her badly. She promised her some money. give her.

Perhaps life is getting better now, so I brought a lot of vegetables to visit my second grandma. I don’t want the old lady to hear it, so I must ask her to come over and have a look. Grandma Fuji also followed her and hasn’t come back yet.

I originally planned to sit there for a while and take a look, but the second master came back. "

When Jia Lian heard this, he hugged his concubine and smiled: "Oh, this guest's surname is Liu? "

"It is Grandma Liu, how did the second master know? "

Ping'er sat upright, a little curious. If she remembered correctly, that year Grandma Liu came to catch the autumn breeze, and the second master was obviously not at home.

Jia Lian smiled but He said nothing and never took this matter to heart. Ping'er, who was seventeen or eighteen years old, looked as pretty as a flower. He hugged her for a moment and couldn't help but want to do something bad.

Ping'er couldn't be persuaded, and she was angered by Jia Lian, so she pressed Jia Lian's hand to untie her clothes, lifted her hair, and her eyes were clear.

"Second Master, you still remember, I owe Ping'er a promise. "

"Oh, when did it happen? ”

Jia Lian didn’t think about it seriously. Seeing that Ping’er wouldn’t let him take off his clothes, he turned to kiss her neck. He thought that this little girl was decent in appearance, but once she was tempted, she would be interesting. The person.

“I knew that the second master didn’t take this matter to heart, and he reminded the second master kindly. Grandma Xiaorong came here for the first time, and the second master got itCome back, I'll help you tell the lie in front of Second Mistress. Second Master promised me something. "

Jia Lian then remembered that it was indeed true.

"That's what happened. What do you want? "

Jia Lian let go of Ping'er and sat on the stool, looking a little unhappy. Ping'er never asked him for anything, so he mentioned this at this time, probably to persuade him. Stop.

Ping'er stood up straight, seeing Jia Lian like this, she didn't understand Jia Lian's mood.

She smiled knowingly, did not explain, and continued to flirt with Jia Lian. With his messed up hair, he placed his ear beside Jia Lian and said with a smile: "Second Master, you still remember, that year, before Second Mistress entered this door..."

"I followed Second Master Grandma came over here and arranged a room for Second Grandma to stay in the house. Second Master came to look for Second Grandma in a hurry. Unfortunately, Second Grandma went to see his wife, and I was the only one in the house at that time. "

"That year, I was only thirteen years old..."

Ping'er's soft words easily brought Jia Lian's thoughts back to his memory. .

Looking through the messy and bullshit memories of his predecessor, Jia Lian remembered it in a daze.

At that time, Jia Lian was only sixteen or seventeen years old, just two years old. The family was discussing marriage between him and Sister Feng, so Sister Feng, who used to come here to play often, had not been to Jia's house for a long time.

When he came over that time, Jia Lian happily ran to look for her. Sister Feng.

I didn’t find Sister Feng, but I saw a maid with red lips and white teeth, handsome eyebrows, and a somewhat well-behaved appearance sitting in the room.

Of course he Knowing that she was one of Sister Feng's personal maids, he would not have dared to have any evil intentions if he had taken it easy.

But by then, he knew that this beauty, Sister Feng, would most likely have fallen. Once it was in his hands, once Sister Feng got married, as long as he wanted to, this little beauty would most likely be his.

Thinking of this, Jia Lian became bolder, and even Sister Feng also He stopped looking and just stayed in the room. After some probing words, he found that Ping'er had no intention of stealing from him and actually intended to use "brute force".

His thoughts at the time were also It's easy to understand. As long as he succeeds at that time, under that background, Ping'er can only obey. The most he can do is ask for a status in the future. This is something that he, Mr. Jia, can still afford.
< br />Who would have thought that this little maid looked so delicate and weak that it was really hard to coax her. The other girl was not as half-hearted as he imagined other girls would be. Instead, she threatened to break up if she continued to disrespect her.

At this time, Jia Lian was so angry that it was difficult to ride a tiger.When he was about to leave, his maid came to find him, and she relieved him, then left in annoyance.

Afterwards, he was still afraid, but after probing around, he learned that Ping'er had not told what happened that day. This made Jia Lian respect Ping'er and fear him even more. My heart felt itchy.

What a pity that Wang Xifeng is a powerful wife. After marrying into the family, she was not allowed to touch the people around her. This allowed someone who came after her to get a complete advantage.

But Jia Lian didn’t know what Ping’er meant by mentioning this at this time. Could it be that he was deliberately trying to embarrass him?

If this was the case, she might have made a wrong calculation. It was not like she had done this embarrassing thing. If it had been him, it would have been like that that day anyway, so why give up halfway? In one word, Yuan Jia Lian is still too cowardly!

Ping'er saw Jia Lian smiling and saying nothing, and when he recalled what happened back then, his smile became even more intense.

"I am not saying this for anything else, I just want to ask the second master, are you still annoyed about what happened at the beginning?"

Now that the matter has come to this, can Jia Lian how to say? He could only say sanctimoniously: "No, you were too young back then, and Jia could actually have such thoughts. Jia is really not a thing!"

Obviously, Jia here, Specifically referring to former Jia.

Ping'er smiled and said as if he was nostalgic: "No, later Ping'er asked himself, if he hadn't stopped the second master that day, wouldn't it be that Ping'er would have already Now that the second master is his wife, there is no need to wait for so many years..."

Ping'er said, his face red, but Jia Lian suddenly felt a little unhappy. It took more than a year after he arrived in this world to win over Ping'er.

Ping'er said that he had been waiting for several years. Obviously, there was an element of the lecher in it.

Then he couldn’t help but tighten his arms around Ping’er’s waist, “As for what to do now, haven’t we already achieved righteousness long ago?”

Ping’er It was meant to express love, but little did she know that the complexity was far beyond her imagination! Noticing the strength of Jia Lian's arms, she thought that Jia Lian liked her body, so she said "hmm" and joked in her ear: "If the second master is not annoying, Ping'er would like to ask the second master if he is willing to give it a try. , what would have happened if no one had come to interrupt the second master that day..."

"Hmm!!"

Jia Lian did not react slowly and replied suddenly After regaining his composure, he looked at Ping'er in shock.

His quick reaction also made Ping'er more determined to play the game. He smiled and got out of Jia Lian's arms, and explained softly: "Second Master will go out in a while, and come in again after a while. Just treat it as nothingShe is a little maid next to the second grandma. And Ping'er will only think that the second master is the second master of the Jia family. If the second master wants to do anything to Ping'er, Ping'er will not agree to it. He will resist and even shout. What he can do depends on the second master. It's up to you.

This is what Ping'er wants the second master to do. Is the second master willing to accompany Ping'er for a while? "

Jia Lian calmed down, gave Ping'er a thumbs up, then without saying a word, stood up and went straight outside.