Chapter 4739 Tax Reform Pilot

Chapter 4739 Tax Reform Pilot
Fang Jun did not answer Li Ji directly, but asked in return: "Do you know why Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty and Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty successively destroyed Buddhism?"

Although Li Ji was a famous general of his time, he was born into a wealthy family and was well-versed in classics and history since childhood. He was considered to be both civil and military. Naturally, he knew about these two spectacular anti-Buddhist events in history, but the reasons behind them were not agreed upon by historians of different generations.

After thinking for a while, he said, "It is said that Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty destroyed Buddhism because the monks in Chang'an colluded with the Hu people to plot a rebellion. Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty destroyed Buddhism because the order of the three religions was determined at that time, with Confucianism at the top, Taoism at the second, and Buddhism at the end. As a result, Buddhism was indignant, which led to mutual attacks among the various religions, and the atmosphere became chaotic. Therefore, when Buddhism was destroyed, Taoism and various folk sects were also abolished."

"The historians' words may not be conclusive, most of them are just the style of the Spring and Autumn Period." Fang Jun was dismissive of the current views on the two anti-Buddhist incidents in history: "Monks may not be pure in mind and have not necessarily cut off the secular world, but they are independent of the court and form their own faction. How could they collude with the Hu people to rebel? The main reason is that Emperor Taiwu initially advocated the gentle and low-key Buddhism to assist his rule, granting land and exempting taxes. As a result, many people with impure mind and body used the name of Buddhist disciples to do all kinds of evil. They did not pay taxes, and some people who avoided military service entered temples to become monks. They were no longer pure Buddhist disciples. The social unrest and public security were worrying, so they had to be ruthlessly eliminated."

After taking a sip of tea, he continued, "As for the reason why Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou destroyed Buddhism, it was even simpler. When he first ascended the throne, the population in the country was declining, and all industries were in decline. A large number of people took refuge in temples, and most of the land was the property of the temples. The civilian labor force was greatly reduced, and there was not enough tax revenue to support the country. Even monks, for their own benefit, connected with officials in the court and attempted to influence the government... It was natural for him to destroy Buddhism."

In fact, there are not too many reasons behind the scenes. Only one reason is enough, and that is interest.

The ministers in the hall fell into deep thought. They were all savvy men who had been in the government for half their lives. They were not ignorant young men who became passionate after reading a few books. Of course, they understood the truth of "interests first".

When national interests conflict with the interests of a certain group, a country with a "violent agency" army will certainly not hesitate to eradicate this group and take back all its interests through violent means.

Fang Jun turned to Li Chengqian and advised: "Buddhism flourished in prosperous times, just as it has been since ancient times. It is conceivable that Buddhism will experience explosive development for a long time in the future. Due to the favorable conditions of paying less or even no taxes, the number of monks will inevitably increase sharply. Countless lands will become tax-reduced or even tax-free temple properties owned by temples through "alms" and other means. By then, the temples will be like blood-sucking worms attached to the body of the Tang Dynasty, sucking blood unscrupulously and endlessly. When this unproductive group gradually grows, it will inevitably link the court with interests and become a chronic disease in the development of the empire."

Since we can already foresee the difficulties of the future, why not take advantage of the current conflict between Buddhism and Taoism to cut off the danger at the root?

Li Chengqian was obviously tempted. As an emperor, he had no good feelings towards any group in the empire that could not create wealth. However, he also knew that this matter was of great importance and would have far-reaching consequences, so he could not make a hasty decision. He pondered and said, "But what if both the Buddhists and Taoists refuse to give in?"

Fang Jun looked slightly puzzled: "Isn't Your Majesty already doing it?"

Li Chengqian was stunned: "..."

What did I do?

"The prestige of Buddhism has soared since Xuanzang retrieved the Buddhist scriptures from India, while Taoism has fallen behind and become passive. Your Majesty's move to build several Taoist temples in Chang'an City has just enhanced the prestige of Taoism, allowing the two sides to reach a delicate balance in the short term. This is a stroke of genius, which makes it so that neither side dares to be negligent or slack and must go all out. At this time, everyone has to be wary of the power of the court and must accept the court's demands no matter how uncomfortable they are, otherwise they will face a situation where the court supports the other side to gain an absolute advantage."

Li Chengqian was a little tipsy. Was what he did really so brilliant? He just took action after the Taoists came to the palace to plead. After all, compared with Buddhism, the Li royal family was closer to Taoism and could not refuse the Taoists' pleading.

But I didn't know there was such a subtle influence...

The other ministers watched with their eyes the nose and their noses the heart, and in their hearts they were extremely disdainful of Fang Jun's flattering words and deeds, but seeing that His Majesty enjoyed it very much, they naturally did not want to expose it in person. They could not be as shameless as Fang Jun, but they also could not disturb His Majesty's interest.

There are corrupt officials in the court. It's a pity that the iron-faced and impartial Wei Zheng has passed away. How much I hated that old man for his ruthless and frank criticism, how much I miss him now...

"Well, I really didn't think that much about it. I just couldn't resist the requests of many Taoist priests and had no choice but to do it. It was unexpected that there was such an unexpected benefit."

Li Chengqian's face turned red. Although he felt tipsy inside, he was still a simple person and could not take credit for any achievement that he had not expected.

"How can everything in the world be predictable? It is your Majesty's unintentional but ultimately in line with the general trend of things that proves that your Majesty is worthy of being the Son of Heaven and the most fortunate person in the world."

Fang Jun was sincere and confident in his words, and he did not feel at all that he was being regarded as a "flatterer" by the ministers in the palace.

Li Chengqian accepted this calmly, as it was indeed the case. Throughout history, those who have achieved great things are certainly talented and strategic, but in the final analysis, man proposes, God disposes. Apart from one's own efforts, the most important factor is whether God blesses them.

Liu Li couldn't stand it any longer. Throughout history, most of the "flatterers" were civil officials. However, now even a civil official like him felt greasy and disgusted by Fang Jun's flattery...

"Duke Yue, you don't know that the current situation is that Buddhism is far more prosperous than Taoism. This is not only reflected in the reputation of both sides, but also in the number of their followers. The number of monks with Buddhist certificates and confirmed by the court far exceeds that of Taoism. If the tax is increased according to the rent adjustment, the tax scale that Buddhism needs to pay will be dozens or hundreds of times that of Taoism. Buddhism will definitely not agree."

The strategy of Buddhism is "teaching without distinction". It increases its scale and influence as quickly as possible by accepting a large number of people. There is almost no screening of monks, and everyone is accepted, whether voluntarily or forced.

Taoism follows the "elite route" and its strategy is completely different. You can't enter the Taoist gate just because you want to. Whether in the mountains or in the cities, only the upper class of society can join. This leads to the fact that although Taoism has a higher level of voice, it is at an absolute disadvantage in terms of sheer numbers.

The rent and taxation system currently implemented in the Tang Dynasty is a mixed taxation system, in which "rent" refers to the rent and tax collected from land, while "yong" and "taxation" are essentially taxes and labor service collected based on the number of people. In this way, Buddhism will suffer greatly.

The principle of increasing taxes on Buddhism and Taoism is that the losses suffered by both sides are roughly equivalent, so neither side wants the other side to receive preferential treatment from the court because of their refusal or resistance. However, if one side suffers greater losses than the other and the scale of the tax increase is disproportionate, how can they agree to it?

It will inevitably cause chaos.

Fang Jun was confident about this: "From ancient times to the present, the tax system has been changing all the time. There has never been a perfect system. We can only weigh a more appropriate system as the social situation changes. Rent, labor and tax was a very suitable tax system in the early days of the empire, but now with the gradual annexation of land, the rapid development of commerce, and the explosive growth of population, it is conceivable that various drawbacks will inevitably appear in the near future."

Ma Zhou nodded in agreement. "Let's not talk about anything else. Just the 'rent' item has already shown its drawbacks. Take Jingzhao Prefecture as an example. The 'equal field system' is almost dead in name only. Most of the registered population no longer have land on record. This part naturally becomes a huge burden for those people. The land has been annexed and has no output. How can they pay taxes? This is the best place under the feet of the emperor. I'm afraid that the situation is even more serious in remote areas such as Jiangnan and even Lingnan."

Annexation can be curbed but cannot be eliminated. The only difference is the speed. As time goes by, the final result will certainly be that the people will have no permanent land and no permanent property. Countless people will be displaced, and then the people who have no way to make a living will rise up in rebellion, and the world will be filled with war. It may last for two hundred years or three hundred years. This is the lifespan of a dynasty.

Fang Jun said: "In this case, we are in high positions and naturally cannot just sit there doing nothing. We must try to find a way to solve the problem."

Liu Li asked, "What's the plan?"

"Why not try to change the basis of taxation from people to land? People may live or die, become rich or poor, but land is always there and always produces. People with land pay taxes based on output, and people who lose land do not have to bear taxes. Wouldn't it be possible to balance wealth to some extent and avoid the danger of the poor getting poorer and the rich getting richer? This move is of great importance and cannot be implemented rashly throughout the country. Why not take this opportunity to try it out in Buddhism and Taoism? The court can send people to monitor and manage it with all their strength, and make adjustments at any time according to the current situation. If the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, then stop here. The two sects of Buddhism and Taoism are in the midst of a struggle and it will not cause much trouble. If the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, then select some prefectures in the world to expand the scope of the trial until it is implemented throughout the country."

Upon hearing these words, there was total silence in the Wude Hall, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Liu Li's head was buzzing, his throat was dry, his whole body was shaking, cold sweat was oozing out uncontrollably, and he could no longer hear any sound in his ears.

Damn it! This idiot finally showed his true colors!

He had previously felt that "measuring the land of the world" was too weird, saying that it was for the purpose of drawing a map of the world. It turned out that this guy was planning to reform the tax system and collect taxes based on the amount of land!
Are you really so bold?

Or do you really think that after two failed mutinies, all the aristocratic families in the world have become little sheep to be slaughtered? !