The official exam only took half a day. Bai Erlang finished the exam today and got the result the next day. Among the more than 20 Jinshi, the rankings are not bad.
However, unlike Bai Dalang who hurried to the Houguan, Bai Erlang didn't go to the official department after getting his grades, but ran home to find Mingda, and took her to Huangzhuang.
Now go to line up to select an official, in case the father-in-law directly bestows an official on him, will he report immediately, or will it be two days later
So he was not in a hurry to wait for the official, he decided to rest for a few days before talking.
From last year to the present, he has been extremely busy, but it is rare that he can go out to play, and that is to play with his heart, and he can't devote himself wholeheartedly.
Mingda knows the five grains, even sowed the seeds with his own hands, and watched people plant the land, but his understanding of farming is only based on the superficial knowledge.
Unlike Bai Erlang, he has been in charge of a Zhuangzi since he was a child.
So he took Mingda to live in Huangzhuang for two days, walked around, and found out that there were only sixty-eight tenant farmers and twenty-nine servants in the huge Huangzhuang...
Every year, Liyang County dispatches servants from one mile to help with spring plowing and autumn harvest. The villages in the county and the villages come in rotation, which can guarantee that there will be no repetition for several years.
Bai Erlang and Ming Da said: "Zhou Man recruited tenants for a mile in Pu Village, a hundred households. Because of the lack of land, they can cultivate intensively. There are only so few people in a village as big as yours. Basically Just scatter the seeds, apply some fertilizer, not to mention watering, even if we don’t even get rid of the grass, after two months, the grass will grow better than the wheat seedlings.”
Mingda suddenly realized, "No wonder the wheat field I saw last time is thinner than the grass next door."
Bai Erlang suppressed a smile and said: "There are too few people, and the soil is also different. It is also due to the snow disaster last year."
"But no matter what it is for, such a big Huangzhuang is not enough for such a small number of people," he said: "Planting the land is not just about sowing the seeds, daily life is also very important."
Bai Erlang felt that he probably knew why the emperor had so many lands but was still so poor.
He said: "Every year, Huangzhuang can get a hundred servants to work for free, but they only plow for ten days in spring and harvest in autumn for ten days. How long is the time in between?"
"The seeds that are planted need to be fertilized, watered, weeded, and even insects need to be removed. Beans alone must be weeded at least twice after planting. Even better."
Bai Erlang said: "So relying on servants is not enough, we still have to recruit long-term workers or tenants."
Mingda tilted his head and thought for a while, curious, "Why can't Huangzhuang recruit tenants?"
Bai Erlang: "Because you are too dark."
Mingda: ...
Bai Erlang said: "Do you know how much a year's tax is for ordinary people?"
Mingda laughed and said, "Every dime has to pay two millet stones a year."
Bai Erlang nodded, and said: "The tax is not high. Compared with their land grant, it is almost 40% of the tax. However, tenants who rent and plant other people's land usually have to pay 40% to 60% of the tax."
Mingda calculated the gap between the two and was shocked, "How can there be such a big difference?"
Bai Erlang said: "Private individuals are not the state after all. From ancient times to the present, the rent and tax paid to tenant farmers have always been so high. Some mean families have raised the rent to 70%."
"However, in order to ensure the harvest, the owner usually provides good seeds, agricultural tools and some cattle, but there are also some people who are mean and will not provide them. In the end, the tenants leave, preferring to be refugees rather than farming." Bai Erlang looked at Mingda and said: "Just now we Didn’t I ask, Huangzhuang’s rent has always been 60%.”
Mingda: ... so her family is a mean family
She asked, "How much rent does your family give to tenant farmers?"
"It depends on the situation, sometimes 50%, sometimes 40%, at least 20%, and if there is a catastrophe, the rent will be exempted." Bai Erlang used to rush to inherit his father's land as a small landlord Those who went there, and now the examiner knows this kind of thing very well, he said: "The rent and tax that the tenant farmers should pay to the court is paid by the owner, unless he has another mouth to share the land, then he will share it according to the proportion."
"Like my family, Dazhen suffered floods in ten years, and my father exempted many families from taxation. My father has to pay every penny of their family's tax. This is a loss."
Master Bai lost a lot that year. If the tenant farmers did not share the land and only rented the land from the landlord, then they only had to serve the country as labor labor, and the landlord had to pay the rest of the rent and taxes.
Usually, the owners will allocate land for the tenant farmers to grow mulberry, and they will spin and weave the cloth themselves, and hand over part of the rent according to the reservation, and the rest will be theirs.
When the imperial court wanted to collect taxes, the host family handed over the tenant farmers’ rent to the county government. Therefore, Master Bai not only had to give free money to the tenant farmers to pay the rent tax, but also helped the tenant farmers out of Tao’s pocket. Grain…
Of course, Bai Erlang said this to tell Mingda, "Although there are few people in Mianzhou, my family can always recruit enough tenant farmers. Even if there is no one in Mianzhou, people from other places will come here specially .”
Mingda was thoughtful, "Do you think that our Huangzhuang is not generous enough, that's why we don't have enough tenants?"
Bai Erlang nodded politely, and said to her: "Although the capital is rich, there are also many people who have lost their land here. As long as you give enough benefits, it is not difficult to recruit people."
He said: "Our family is not short of money, but the initial investment is large. Such a good land, as long as it is intensively cultivated, the harvest will definitely not be low. Even if the harvest is only 40%, the annual income will be quite a lot."
Just look at Zhou Man's career income in the past two years.
Mingda became interested, his eyes sparkled and he said, "Okay, we will take care of this Huangzhuang personally."
She also discussed with Bai Erlang, "Do you want to change the manager?"
The clever Mingda naturally knows that there are so many tricks in Huangzhuang because of the management.
Bai Erlang also wanted to replace them, but he felt that replacing them was a big deal, and he was a little undecided, so he ran back to ask Bai Shan and Zhou Man.
Bai Shandao: "As long as he is obedient, there is no need to change it."
He said: "He has been used to Huangzhuang for so many years, he is familiar with the land and people there, and he can manage people well, no matter how he managed things before, now he only needs to listen to you, no, to the princess If you can."
As long as Princess Mingda asked him to do, he would do, and that was fine.
Man Bao said: "Even if you want to change, you have to go through the spring plowing first. It's not easy to change the manager to manage so many lands now."
Bai Erlang took a reassurance, breathed out and asked Man Bao, "Where do I go to recruit workers and find tenant farmers in so many lands?"
Man Bao felt that it was too late to find tenant farmers. For such a good land, one must find hardworking people. What if some lazy people are recruited
So she said: "You spend some money and hire long-term or short-term workers directly. Anyway, there are many idle people in the capital. These people should not be difficult to find."
Bai Shandao: "It's a pity that the fourth brother has gone out, otherwise I can ask the fourth brother for help. However, the stewards of Huangzhuang should also have acquaintances. If you make announcements in the capital and Yongzhou, you will definitely be able to invite many people." .”