Chapter 125: The Nobles of Chang'an Have Plenty of Money

Although Fang Chongyong had been building momentum in Dunhuang, spreading word far and wide that the Tibetans were coming, unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—right up until spring plowing ended, the Tibetans never came!

Young Master Fang's reputation lay shattered on the ground, fast becoming something of a laughingstock in Dunhuang. Rumors ran rampant through the city, from calling him timid as a mouse to accusing him of wasting manpower and squandering wealth—there was no shortage of people saying bad things about him.

Fang Chongyong understood that this was the local prominent families expressing their dissatisfaction, still in the brewing stage.

Actually, it was not strange, because no matter who it was, if their money had gone down the drain, they would be very unhappy. The local prominent families, led by the Zhang clan, had provided grain to the prefectural office to serve as military rations against the Tibetans—not to fill Fang Chongyong's holes.

Now that the Tibetans had not come, the ball was kicked to Fang Chongyong's feet, and he had to take some action to placate the local prominent families. Otherwise, if those people banded together and hatched petty schemes behind his back, it would surely land Fang Chongyong in serious trouble.

Inside a meditation cell of a certain temple beside the Medicine Spring, Fang Chongyong, who had only recently returned, was reviewing a draft of ordinances he had previously written at the desk before him.

Lately, he had been holed up in the prefectural office of this small city, poring over various account books in the prefectural treasury, while also investigating local conditions across Shazhou, and he already had a clear picture in mind.

As for local specialties of Shazhou, in his previous life there might have been many things worth showing off, but right now there was truly nothing remarkable he could produce.

For instance, because of the long hours of sunlight, the melons and fruits here were exceptionally sweet and distinctive, grapes in particular. But these things could not be converted into money, let alone into fiscal revenue, much less be transported to Chang'an for sale.

The only thing worth mentioning was grape wine. However, the local temples had an enormous demand for alcohol, and much of the grape wine produced locally was consumed by the monks of those temples, leaving very little to serve as trade goods for money.

As for local livestock products, while the quantities were not small, their competitiveness was weak. Only camel meat had some distinctiveness, and yet camels existed primarily as mounts in the desert, not as animals raised specifically for meat.

To put it plainly, those cattle, sheep, and camels were all quite common throughout the Hexi Corridor, and their prices were exceptionally low. With a distance of over two thousand li to Chang'an, local products could only be consumed locally.

From an agricultural perspective, this place called Dunhuang was entirely unremarkable!

However, from a commercial perspective, the conclusion reached would be completely different.

Various goods from the Western Regions all converged here—one could say there was everything one could want. Although Dunhuang's local market tax and customs duties were both very low, the volume of goods circulating was enormous, and accumulated over time, customs and market taxes accounted for the bulk of the prefectural office's revenue.

In Dunhuang, if one wanted to develop, one could not rely entirely on local strength; one had to borrow external power.

In other words, the habitable zones here were all oases within desert terrain, and the total resources they could provide were extremely limited.

To raise more cattle and sheep, one had to sacrifice the stalks from the fields as fodder; but without stalks as fuel, the locals would have to cut down ever more of the already precious white thorn and tamarisk shrubs; once vegetation was lost, the oases would shrink, and living space would be further compressed.

Every kind of output required sacrificing the already scarce local resources, whether water, vegetation, or manpower—it was all the same.

Not to mention that the surrounding area had no coal, no iron ore, and not even black oil (petroleum); there was only a single jade mine of considerable scale. Unfortunately, it was located in the mountains west of Dunhuang, with very poor mining conditions, to say nothing of how to transport it in bulk across the desert.

After multiple investigations, Fang Chongyong found that the development of Shazhou itself seemed to have reached its limit. If he wanted to serve peacefully for four years in the position of Inspector of Shazhou and still produce some political achievements, then he should not set his sights on local products.

Just then, Anaye, carrying a basket and having just returned from buying vegetables at the Outer City with Fang Dafu, walked over with a worried expression and said:

"My lord, many people in the Outer City are saying that Your Excellency is wasting manpower and squandering wealth. After all that preparation, the Tibetans never came, and you still have not sent the soldiers of the Doulu Army back to farming. There are many people outside cursing you, my lord."

"These are all things others have released to test me—pay them no mind."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand and spoke, looking completely unconcerned.

The soldiers of the Doulu Army had received both last winter's clothing and this spring's clothing at once—what complaints could they possibly have? Only after pacifying the local garrison did Fang Chongyong dare to continue staying here at the Medicine Spring. Otherwise, if the local soldiers mutinied, it would mean a complete upheaval!

Shazhou's Doulu Army and Guazhou's Moli Army had in fact both originally been organized from the remnants of the Tuyuhun.

"Doulu" meant "submitted to righteousness," and "Moli" meant "wolf"—both words were dialect from the Tuyuhun side. Among the common people of Shazhou, quite a few were Sinicized Tuyuhun who had merely adopted Han names.

They had a strong sense of belonging to the local area, but whether they were willing to be ordered about unconditionally by the Great Tang was another matter entirely.

Once the central court of the Great Tang failed to deliver supplies, it was hard to say how much loyalty these men would still have.

The most obvious piece of evidence was that after the An Lushan Rebellion, the various northwestern armies all returned to Guanzhong, and the Chishui Army was the first to reach Guanzhong. But the Doulu Army and the Moli Army did not move; instead, before the Tibetan offensive even began, they fell back to defend Shazhou and did not follow the others to Guanzhong.

The Doulu Army and the Moli Army, bearing the deep imprint of Tuyuhun remnants, did not want to go rescue the Great Tang—this was what one called human nature.

Fang Chongyong understood very well that so-called "loyalty" was always conditional and had boundaries. There was no love without reason in this world, and no loyalty without reason either. Without pay, there would be no army that fought bravely against the enemy. How much favor was given determined how much was done—in a certain sense, this too was a transaction.

Fang Chongyong felt that he, as Inspector of Shazhou, should have considerable influence within the Doulu Army; it was the local prominent families who should have complaints!

Seeing Fang Chongyong looking utterly indifferent, Anaye pleaded, "My lord, this place is a mixed bag with plenty of bad people. Wouldn't it be better to be a bit careful?"

Fang Chongyong stood up, walked around Anaye a few times, crossed his arms, and nodded slightly, "Go change into that set of Sogdian women's clothes from last time. I have something good to show you."

"What good thing?"

"You'll know when the time comes."

Fang Chongyong sent Anaye away.

Those noble lords of Chang'an—life had been far too comfortable for them. It was time to find them some amusement.

Before long, the beautifully dressed Anaye appeared before Fang Chongyong. The exotic Sogdian attire looked not the least bit out of place on her; rather, it displayed a perfectly matched exotic charm.

"That old lecher Li Yi actually had quite good taste."

Fang Chongyong muttered to himself, then opened a wooden box on the desk and pulled out a large handful of colorful jewelry.

Gold and silver went without saying, rubies and emeralds were not rare either, and garnets and diamonds also appeared among them.

In short, there was every style imaginable!

"Wow! Are these all for me? Isn't this a bit too extravagant?"

Anaye rushed over and gathered all the jewelry in her arms, only to hear Fang Chongyong say coldly, "These were borrowed from the prefectural treasury and have to be returned tomorrow. You wouldn't want me to be taken down by the court for embezzling the treasury's jewels, would you?"

Fang Chongyong sighed helplessly.

"Oh."

Anaye placed the jewelry from her arms onto the desk, her face full of reluctance, her eyes looking at Fang Chongyong with quiet resentment.

"You have no ambition at all. In the future, how could things like these be worthy of your status!"

Fang Chongyong waved his hand impatiently and said.

"Really?"

Anaye was overjoyed upon hearing this.

"Naturally. Would I still lie to you? What relationship do you and I have?"

As he spoke, Fang Chongyong placed a ruby-studded necklace around Anaye's neck, then added piece after piece of jewelry until she could wear no more. On Anaye's ten slender fingers, she wore over a dozen rings!

Some fingers had three or four on them.

"These are all fine things!"

Fang Chongyong said with feeling.

"Yes, all fine things."

Ana Ye said with a bitter expression, her heart a jumble of conflicting emotions. Then she watched helplessly as Fang Chongyong removed the jewelry from her person piece by piece, the pain of it as though her own flesh were being cut.

"No need to feel the loss; you'll have them all again in the future. It's just that wearing these things could become a source of trouble later on."

Fang Chongyong packed all the jewelry into a box and said with pointed meaning.

Having just used Ana Ye as a model, he could see that the jewelry coming from the Western Regions and West Asia was indeed quite fine, with a unique character of its own. Properly matched, it could add considerable external beauty to a woman.

In Chang'an it should have strong competitiveness and value-retention properties.

Now it was time to unleash a major move, or else the local powerhouses would think he was a blockhead who only knew how to fight and kill all day long.

"This is for you."

Fang Chongyong pulled a very small gold ring from his sleeve and handed it to Ana Ye.

"It's so small..."

Ana Ye took it and swiftly slipped it onto her middle finger, unable to resist a complaint. This thing was far inferior to what she had been wearing just now!

Completely incomparable—not even a single gemstone on it!

"Love is firmer than gold—haven't you heard that saying? Of course you give someone a gold ring. Besides, even if I gave you a big ring you wouldn't be able to keep it on, your fingers are so slender.

Stay home and cook a good meal. I'm going to the small town and will be back tonight."

Fang Chongyong placed the draft he had already written into a wooden box, picked up the box, and left.

After he had gone, Ana Ye, who had been keeping a straight face the whole time, finally danced with joy and laughed out loud in the meditation room. She kissed the gold ring over and over while rolling about on the soft cushion where Fang Chongyong had just been kneeling.

……

"The prefectural office will be promulgating these decrees. I have brought them over for Member Zhang to review first."

Fang Chongyong handed the draft decrees he had written to Zhang Quan. This man had once served as an Assistant Director in the Court of Rites, so Fang Chongyong deliberately addressed him by his former highest office as a show of respect.

In the innermost study of the Zhang family residence, Fang Chongyong was in a private discussion with the head of the Zhang clan.

"Protection fee?"

Upon seeing this term, Zhang Quan was momentarily stunned.

Not because it was unfamiliar, but because it was all too familiar.

One of Fang Chongyong's new policies was the so-called "commercial insurance." The kind that hung up a sheep's head but sold dog meat.

From the Western Regions to Dunhuang was a journey of nearly ten thousand li. A slight detour on the road could mean death in the desert, not to mention the ubiquitous bandits. So the "commercial guild" formed by local merchants already possessed the concept of "commercial insurance."

Only it was not called insurance, but "commercial mutual aid."

Merchants within the guild could choose to pay a sum before each departure, letting the guild serve as their guarantor. Should anything happen, a portion would be allocated from the guild's "public fund pool" as compensation, to prevent the merchant from going bankrupt.

However, this system had many flaws, the most difficult being evidence-gathering and claims settlement. Thus the so-called "commercial mutual aid" had only just appeared in the Dunhuang region and was far from widespread.

"My lord, the idea is a good one, but it is far too difficult to implement."

Zhang Quan did not know how to put it; he could only say that this Lord Fang, though young in age, truly had no small ambitions.

"No, no, no, Member Zhang has misunderstood.

Only after this money is paid will the authorities bother to act, and only then will they have the men of the Doulu Army investigate.

If the money is not paid, then the authorities default to treating it as a dead end with no evidence—a pure fiction—and won't even bother to acknowledge it.

This is mandatory; tax evaders will be heavily penalized. Moreover, it is levied only on luxury goods—gold and silver from the Western Regions, jewelry, rare medicinal herbs, and so forth. It is not levied on goods like silk."

Fang Chongyong gave a sly chuckle and held up a finger. "Twenty percent goes to the prominent families of Dunhuang, eighty percent goes to the prefectural office. Whoever doesn't pay, you'll have escaped slaves here disguising themselves as bandits to rob those people."

Hearing this, Zhang Quan's eyes instantly lit up.

They had long been envious of the Western Region foreign merchants who controlled commercial trade; vast amounts of gold and silver never fell into their hands—they couldn't even touch it.

It was like begging for food while holding a golden bowl.

This Lord Fang was truly a remarkable fellow.

"Then what is this classified tax schedule?"

Zhang Quan asked in puzzlement.

Fang Chongyong's second decree was that from now on, the authorities in Dunhuang would tax passing goods by finely categorizing their types.

Luxury goods unrelated to production and daily life would be heavily taxed! Such as jewelry and rare medicinal herbs.

Materials related to production and daily life would be lightly taxed! Such as spices, plant seeds, and so on.

Locally urgently needed goods would not only be tax-free but would even receive subsidies! Such as grain, silk fabrics, and so forth.

Of course, these were all taxes on goods coming from the Western Regions. Taxes on goods coming from Chang'an were calculated separately.

In short, on the basis of the former tax rates, different categories of goods would be subdivided more finely. No longer would taxes be collected solely according to the value of the goods as before.

Overall, the goods coming from the Western Regions were mostly luxuries. This item alone could provide a large amount of tax revenue for the local prefectural office.

Of course, this would naturally drive up the prices of luxury goods in the Chang'an market. But Fang Chongyong believed that the Chang'an aristocrats led by Brother Ji had never lacked money, nor lacked means to make money.

Since they didn't lack money and were the primary consumers of luxury goods, then under the principle of "buy what's expensive, not what's right," adding a surtax should only add to their prestige, shouldn't it?

"My lord, this export tax rebate..."

This was the first time Zhang Quan had heard such a term.

"That's easy to explain. Take spices, for instance—things like black pepper. They're wonderful in dishes, but you can also do without them.

So for these, we first collect a heavy tax, but issue a voucher. After the merchant transports grain or cloth from elsewhere, they can use this voucher to come to the prefectural office and reclaim a portion of the customs duty collected.

The locality both obtains needed goods and increases its revenue."

Fang Chongyong said with a beaming smile.

An export tax rebate—now that was a masterstroke for making money. Even if the first two decrees were scrapped, as long as this one provision remained, it would be enough to let him pass his four-year term in peace and stability.

Fang Chongyong secretly gloated in his heart. What about the Tibetans and the Turks—weren't they still going to end up drinking his bathwater? So what if Brother Ji didn't provide military pay? As long as Young Master Fang was given time, he could make it work just the same!

(End of this chapter)