PNB Chapter 165 Taxation
Chapter 165 Taxation
Lin Ziping meticulously sketched out the design on the cloth bag.
The good news is that you can make out that there is a house above, a mountain behind the house, a large, iconic tree on the mountain, and some winding lines.
The bad news is that we have no idea what the drawing represents.
Lin Ziping fished the bag out and carefully examined the papers by candlelight.
After a long pause, they finally gave up.
Come to think of it, before, we couldn't even tell which way was north, south, east, or west. We had to go around in circles several times to figure out the direction using navigation. What can this piece of paper with such unclear information possibly mean?
Lin Ziping pulled out a cabinet hidden under the bed. Inside were gold and books he had taken from Dai Qin's house, as well as scribbles and drawings made since he came into this world.
He stuffed the paper into the box, then took out another piece of paper. There were already two strokes written on it, and Lin Ziping added three more strokes, making it exactly a "正" (zhèng, meaning upright).
I probably slept too much during the day, and I was in a daze all night, barely able to fall asleep.
Today, on duty, Lin Ziping rubbed his dazed head and began his work life again.
Upon arriving at the county government office, the bronze mirror, which had cost a hundred taels of silver to straighten one's clothes, distinguish good from evil, and clarify right from wrong, was now covered with a thick layer of dust. Originally placed at the entrance of the county government office, it had now been moved to a corner, and people coming and going found it an eyesore, occasionally uttering curses and complaints.
Lin Ziping looked at the wound on his face in the mirror. The medicine was working well and it was slowly scabbing over.
He went to the barracks to report on the progress of the past two days to Inspector Chai and asked for instructions on the next steps.
After listening, Inspector Chai said, "Since it's almost over, you don't need to go. While you're at it, take the opportunity to sort out and write down what happened in the past two days."
Lin Ziping was taken aback. Did people have to write work summaries in this day and age?
Seeing that Lin Ziping did not respond, Inspector Chai added, "Magistrate Wei needs to report this to His Highness the Sixth Prince."
"Yes." Lin Ziping still had doubts, but he still clasped his hands in a salute.
"By the way, the tax collection is coming up soon. You need to coordinate with the household registration office. If there's nothing else, go with the fast and strong shifts," Inspector Chai instructed.
Bai Xin lives in the household registration office; he hasn't thanked Dai Qin for the house he bought last time.
"Alright, Inspector Chai, I'll go check the household registration office." Lin Ziping clasped his hands in farewell.
Inspector Chai didn't speak, but waved his hand to allow Lin Ziping to leave.
As he walked out of the barracks, he ran into Shi Yong.
"Ziping is here." Shi Yong greeted Lin Ziping.
Lin Ziping smiled and said, "Brother Shi, it's been a long time. What have you been up to lately?"
Shi Yong said, "What could it be? It's just about Cat Mountain."
"I heard that His Highness the Sixth Prince is in charge of this matter. Congratulations, Brother Shi, on being able to work for His Highness the Prince. Your rise to prominence is just around the corner," Lin Ziping flattered.
"It's all just talk, don't spread rumors." Shi Yong pretended to be angry, but the smile in his eyes, mouth, and corners of his mouth was impossible to ignore.
Lin Ziping looked frightened and lowered his voice, saying, "Brother Shi is right. I will rely on you to take care of me in the future."
"No problem, we're like family." Shi Yong raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Old Huang said you've been accompanying the pharmacy staff to the villages to distribute medicine these past two days, and the others haven't returned yet. What brings you to the county government today?"
"It's not that my brothers are taking care of me; they only allocated me a small village. The whole thing ended yesterday, and I'm here today to report to Inspector Chai," Lin Ziping said. "I was planning to have a drink with Brother Shi this afternoon, but I had to go collect taxes, so we'll have to reschedule for another day."
"Tax collection used to be an easy job, but this year..." Shi Yong clicked his tongue twice, patted Lin Ziping on the shoulder, "Brother, good luck."
Lin Ziping was startled and said, "This... what do you mean? Is it very dangerous?"
Shi Yong looked around and, seeing no one was there, leaned closer to Lin Ziping and whispered, "In the past, the county government had its own silver to make up for the tax revenue, but this year the silver can only come from the people. Before, one dan of rice was enough, but now it's three dan of rice. Would you be willing to do that?"
"How could it have risen so much?" Lin Ziping asked in surprise.
“It’s because…” Shi Yong abruptly stopped speaking, glanced at Lin Ziping, and continued, “Don’t worry about it. Anyway, we don’t have to pay taxes. You just follow the others to collect the taxes. I’m not going to say anything more. I’m going to find Inspector Chai.”
Shi Yong was clearly unwilling to say more.
Lin Ziping, seeing that things were going well, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Alright, Brother Shi, go ahead and get busy. I'll go check on the household registration office."
Upon arriving at the household office, Bai Xin was indeed in charge of the matter.
Aside from the fact that they both entered the county government office at the same time, they are completely different.
Lin Ziping also plays a supporting role, going wherever he is needed, and occasionally even taking the blame, while Bai Xin has taken over the management of taxes and land.
Sigh, it's true what they say, comparing things makes you want to throw them away, and comparing people makes you miserable.
"This is a list of taxes collected in previous years. Take a look for yourself," Bai Xin said without looking up.
"So many?" Lin Ziping casually flipped through a couple of pages.
Household tax, poll tax, customs duty, market tax, salt tax, tea tax, mining tax, deed tax...
The sheer number of confusing taxes is overwhelming.
Lin Ziping was a little confused. He had never encountered so many taxes before, including personal income tax, corporate income tax, value-added tax, and vehicle and vessel tax. He had only heard of business tax and customs duties.
Previously, just distinguishing between small-scale taxpayers and general taxpayers for corporate income tax was confusing enough. Now, with so many categories, it feels like life is meaningless.
"How should this tax be divided?" Lin Ziping asked.
Bai Xin looked up in surprise: "What are you going to divide? You're just responsible for taking them back and checking the ownership of the houses and the people in the soap-making team."
Oh, I see. There's no need to memorize all those complicated tax standards.
"By the way, this year the higher authorities specifically mentioned separating coarse grains from refined grains," Bai Xin reminded him.
"Separate?" Lin Ziping asked in surprise.
"Yes, I heard that Magistrate Wei said the taxes for refined grains and coarse grains are different," Bai Xin explained.
"Different?" Lin Ziping asked in confusion.
I suddenly remembered that some time ago, because of the rising grain prices, Ji Xun had told Magistrate Wei that the taxes on fine grains and coarse grains were different.
“Yes, Magistrate Wei had been to the Ministry of Revenue before and was very familiar with all kinds of taxes in various places. The tax collection in Fuchun was decided by him, Registrar Shen, and Assistant Magistrate Feng. He did not mention the taxes on fine grains and coarse grains,” Bai Xin said.
Lin Ziping suddenly felt like he had shot himself in the foot. Who knew that Magistrate Wei was an expert in this field? He had even dared to spout nonsense in front of him back then.
Fortunately, few people knew about this. Lin Ziping awkwardly rubbed his nose and continued to ask, "How do we do this?"
"I've already discussed this with Officer Qi, you can just ask him," Bai Xin replied, then continued with his work.
Lin Ziping nodded, and seeing that no one around was paying attention to them, he leaned closer to Bai Xin and said, "Are you free this afternoon? Shall we have a drink together?"
Bai Xin looked up at Lin Ziping.
“Let’s call Xiao Wu. The three of us went into the county government office together. We haven’t had a chance to get together in so long,” Lin Ziping explained.
Bai Xin said, "Don't you know that Xiao Jiazheng has already returned to the prefectural city?"
"When did this happen?" Lin Ziping asked in surprise. "I haven't heard of it."
"I went to the prefectural city after returning from the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday," Bai Xin said. "It's no fun drinking with just the two of us. Let's do it another day. I have to go."
"Okay, you're busy," Lin Ziping replied casually, then turned and left.