I was a conman in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 72 Upper Class

Chapter 72 Upper Class

At the south gate of Hanshan County, Old Wu, a yamen runner, sat listlessly, lost in thought.

These days, he issues at least tens of thousands of tax invoices every day. Sitting at his desk isn't too tiring, but the work is too mechanical. Aside from the first few days when it was novel, it quickly becomes tedious, and he loses all passion for it.

Hearing the sound of horses' hooves, Old Wu knew someone was coming. Too lazy to even lift his head, he said weakly, "Paying taxes is beneficial to the country and its people. One penny for city tax, thank you."

"Take the pole away!" Zhao Qiuming said irritably from his horse.

Zhao Qiuming and Wei Yong were constables from Hezhou Prefecture, sent to deliver official documents. Such assignments had their pros and cons. Although constables were low-ranking officials, they were considered "high-ranking" by the county government. The county magistrate would treat them to good food and drink, and even give them some local specialties as parting gifts. Of course, in a small, poor county like Hanshan, the hospitality was mediocre, and local specialties were out of the question.

Therefore, the constables in the prefectural government were unwilling to come to Hanshan on official business. Zhao Qiuming and his companion were disliked by their superiors and were often bullied. In any case, good jobs would never come their way. They were already full of resentment when they arrived at the city gate of Hanshan, where they were even stopped and not allowed to enter, and asked for an entry tax.

Zhao Qiuming wasn't about to give the county yamen runners a friendly look. He immediately started cursing, "Open your dog eyes and look around! I'm on official business, let me through right now!"

Old Wu looked up and saw two men in police uniforms riding on horseback, their eyes wide open, glaring fiercely at him.

"One copper coin per person for city entry tax. This is the rule set by Magistrate Wang. No tax, no entry." Old Wu was furious. He was a senior member of the yamen runners, and even the deputy head constable, Li Hechen, wouldn't be so arrogant in his insults. "Just some constables from the prefecture, thinking they're so great, like everyone has to fawn over them."

"I'm not paying taxes, what are you going to do about it?" Zhao Qiuming drew his sword and chopped down the wooden pole blocking his horse.

This is outrageous! Old Wu suddenly flew into a rage, stood up and shouted, "Someone, help me arrest these two lawbreakers who are violently resisting taxes!"

In Hanshan County now, there are many people collecting tax receipts near the city gate. They've been collecting tax receipts for a long time and are very familiar with the yamen runners. When Old Wu shouted, a group of people rushed over to help.

Two fists can't fight four hands; Zhao Qiuming and his companion were only two people. Although Zhao Qiuming was carrying a knife, he dared not harm anyone. In a short while, Zhao Qiuming and his companion were pinned to the ground.

"Snapped!"

Old Wu slapped Zhao Qiuming across the face and cursed, "You shameless bastard, you dare to call yourself 'I'? Even Magistrate Wang pays the city entry tax when he enters the city. You're just a constable, how dare you not pay the tax?"

"Let me go!" Zhao Qiuming tried to get up, but the four men held him firmly to the ground, and he couldn't break free no matter what he did.

"I am Zhao Qiuming, a constable from Chizhou Prefecture. I have come here to deliver official documents. How dare you attack a law enforcement officer?" Zhao Qiuming shouted.

"boom!"

Old Wu kicked Zhao Qiuming on the head, cursing, "That's what I'm doing! Not only do you not pay the city entry tax, but you also damage public property. You, the guy, you collect the tax here first. You two help me escort them to the county government."

……

Wang Wenzhou was taking a nap with Sheng Lan in his arms when he was suddenly woken up. After figuring out what had happened, he cursed inwardly, "These constables and yamen runners, there aren't many good people among them. They're all the kind who can only bully others, not be bullied themselves. The constables certainly don't care about a penny; they care about their reputation. Old Wu, that old fox, is also someone who won't suffer a loss."

"Bang!" Wang Wenzhou slammed his gavel and asked, "Who is this person below? What crime have you committed?"

Li Hechen cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, constable Wu Hai was ordered to collect taxes at the city gate. He encountered two men who claimed to be constables from Hezhou Prefecture. These two men violently resisted paying taxes, damaged public property, and even beat Wu Hai."

Li Hechen pointed to Zhao Qiuming and Wei Yong, whose faces were bruised and swollen, and said, "Please judge for yourself, sir, these are the two thieves."

Li Hechen is Lao Wu's direct superior, so of course he has to speak up for his own people. If he sided with outsiders, his position as deputy squad leader would be over.

Zhao Qiuming and Wei Yong clasped their hands in greeting and said, "Greetings, Your Excellency! We are Zhao Qiuming (Wei Yong), constables from the prefecture."

"This is an official document from Magistrate Yu to you, sir." Zhao Qiuming took out the document and presented it with both hands.

Wang Wenzhou couldn't care less about the grudge between Lao Wu and Zhao Qiuming. Since his subordinates had benefited anyway, he would pretend nothing had happened. He waved his hand, signaling someone to bring over the official documents.

Upon opening the official document, he was surprised to find that it reprimanded him for arbitrarily levying taxes and demanded that he stop the city entry tax.

In the Ming Dynasty, the Prefect and the Prefect were similar to modern-day mayors of prefecture-level cities. They had full authority over the prefecture city where they resided, and while the counties under their jurisdiction were subject to their control, they were not directly under the Prefect's jurisdiction. The Assistant Prefect, on the other hand, was equivalent to a deputy mayor, primarily in charge of litigation, the transportation of money and grain, and other related matters.

Wang Wenzhou had at least received pre-job training, so he understood this basic principle. A county magistrate indeed did not have the right to levy taxes.

Wang Wenzhou turned back to Wang Qiang and asked for two coins, then threw them to Zhao Qiuming, saying sarcastically, "You two are so poor that you don't even have two coins for the city entrance tax. This is a reward from me. Remember, you have to pay the city entrance tax when you enter the city. If you really don't have the money, come and borrow it from me. I have already written the reply to the official document. Take it back and give it to Lord Yu."

After Wang Wenzhou finished speaking, he got up and left. He felt something was amiss. Lord Yu had just arrived in Hezhou as the prefectural judge, so why was he causing trouble for him right away? His reply to Lord Yu was ambiguous and did not mention whether the city entry tax would be stopped.

Wang Wenzhou was not familiar with the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty, and he wanted to ask Old Wang for advice on how to handle the matter.

Upon arriving at the labor camp, Wang Wenzhou recounted what had happened.

Wang Zhixin stroked his beard and said, "Yu Wuzhen was the top scholar in the imperial examination of the year Yichou of the Tianqi era, and once served as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy. I had some contact with him. He was an honest official, but a bit stubborn and inflexible."

"The city entry tax has just been stopped?" Wang Wenzhou asked.

“Young Master, stop! I objected from the start. It’s not because you insisted on giving out a thousand taels of silver as a reward, but because it’s against the laws of the court. If Lord Yu really wants to take it seriously, it would be bad if he impeached you,” Old Wang advised.

Wang Wenzhou was frustrated; the city entry tax couldn't be stopped! He needed to rely on this indirect welfare benefit to attract people from outside the city. Hanshan City currently had about 200,000 people, which, compared to the massive cities of later generations that easily exceeded a million inhabitants, was merely the size of a small county town.

"Young master, let's stop! Although the city entrance tax is a good thing for ordinary people, the county magistrate has no right to levy additional taxes." Old Wang advised Wang Wenzhou again, seeing his hesitation.

People! That's right! The people support the city entry tax!

"Haha..." Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, "Old Wang, I've figured out what to do!"

"Hey! Young Master!" Old Wang wanted to persuade him, but the young master didn't even turn his head and hurriedly left.