Chapter 1848: A Weighty Trust

"Though four generations under one roof is lively, it brings no shortage of worries. To be frank with Your Majesty, your old servant's sons and grandsons are now scattered across the realm, and I still cannot recognize them all—even consulting the genealogy, it's hard to tell who is who!" Li Shaoyou sighed. "And matters after my death also trouble me greatly..."

Hearing Li Shaoyou's lament, Emperor Liu glanced at him sidelong and said, "Your words seem to carry some hidden meaning. What, fretting over the matter of passing on your family legacy? With so many descendants, surely there are a few capable ones among them!"

"Your Majesty remains as keen as ever! This old servant's little thoughts have all been seen through by you!" Li Shaoyou offered a small flattery, then continued, "Most of your servant's sons are mediocre and unfit for great responsibility. To live out their days in obscurity is already a rare blessing. As for carrying on the family and bringing glory to its name, this old servant no longer harbors such hopes..."

"Your words are insincere—false modesty. How can you belittle your own sons and grandsons so?" Emperor Liu shook his head. "I have heard that half of your descendants have been dispatched by you to the borderlands—Andong, Anxi, Monan, Annam, Yunnan, Annam, the South Seas—wherever the banners of the Great Han fly, there are the footprints of your Li family's sons. And of those, half have persevered, opening new lands and cultivating them, spreading our nation's might and martial spirit. These deeds may not match the more dazzling achievements of civil governance and military conquest, but in my eyes, they are the acts of fine men and true heroes!"

Facing this affirmation and praise from Emperor Liu, Li Shaoyou hurriedly responded, "Your Majesty overpraises me. These unworthy sons and grandsons of mine truly cannot bear such an evaluation.

To be frank with Your Majesty, over the past few decades, thanks to Your Majesty's generous treatment, this old servant has accumulated considerable family property, but not enough to divide among so many. Therefore, dispatching them to various places was a necessity—letting them go out and make their own way in the world..."

"Heh heh!" Emperor Liu chuckled and said, "But the places you sent them are remote and wild. Unlike those sons of other meritorious nobles who flock to the prosperous and wealthy regions to enjoy the comfortable life!"

As he spoke, a hint of displeasure crept into Emperor Liu's tone. In recent years, Emperor Liu had been encouraging the people of the Great Han to migrate outward and open new territories. As the core ruling class, the meritorious nobles had performed relatively actively—every clan and family had dispatched sons to the frontiers. But overall, they remained a minority. More people preferred to stay within the realm, living lives of revelry and indulgence.

After a moment of deliberation, Emperor Liu spoke again with deep feeling: "Your decision was sound. When descendants multiply, no matter how great the family estate, it cannot withstand division. Better to have them go out and make their own way, standing on their own feet..."

Emperor Liu's words carried a profound implication, clearly pointing at something. Li Shaoyou instinctively lowered his head and offered no further opinion.

Looking at Li Shaoyou, who seemed to be "shrinking his head like a turtle," Emperor Liu waved his hand and said, "In a moment of carelessness, you've led me around in circles. Speak plainly—what are your thoughts on matters after your death?"

At the question, Li Shaoyou revealed a somewhat "awkward" smile, then said solemnly, "Your Majesty, among your servant's sons, only the seventh son, Zongkai, has some ability. He is steady in character and honest in conduct. Your servant wishes to pass the family legacy to him, but he is not born of the legitimate wife, which gives me some concern..."

The moment these words were spoken, Emperor Liu immediately realized what this old fellow was driving at. He stared straight at him, his gaze sharpening: "You wouldn't be wanting me to issue an edict, making Zongkai your heir to resolve this concern of yours, would you?"

Caught out, the awkwardness on Li Shaoyou's face finally became genuine. He said in a low voice, "Your servant presumes..."

Before he could finish, Emperor Liu rebuked him angrily: "You have the nerve to make such a request of me! Do you not understand the principle of order by seniority and distinction between legitimate and illegitimate? Your two legitimate sons—whether Zongrui or Zongze—are both high officials of prefectures and provinces now. They can govern a prefecture with over a hundred thousand people, yet they cannot manage the affairs of your Shouguo Duke's mansion? I think you've grown senile, bringing your favoritism right before my eyes!"

Seeing Emperor Liu react so strongly to this severe rebuke, Li Shaoyou could no longer hold himself together. He hurriedly rose and knelt: "Your Majesty, forgive me! This old servant was muddled, and thus committed this foolish act..."

At this, Emperor Liu coldly fixed his gaze on Li Shaoyou for a while, until cold sweat broke out on his forehead, before finally withdrawing his gaze. His expression softened somewhat, and he waved his hand: "Rise!"

"Your servant dare not!"

"I said rise!" Emperor Liu's tone grew sterner.

Only then did Li Shaoyou rise. Looking at him, Emperor Liu sighed and said with some earnestness: "You're already advanced in years. Just seek stability. Don't go stirring things up recklessly..."

Emperor Liu's words were clearly lacking in self-awareness, but Li Shaoyou still had to dutifully respond: "This old servant understands! Your Majesty's teachings, this old servant will keep firmly in mind!"

"Enough! Let's talk about the real matter!" Emperor Liu tried to stand again, bracing himself against the imperial desk, looking somewhat strained. Li Shaoyou hurried forward to support him.

Emperor Liu did not refuse. He led Li Shaoyou to the great map of the Great Han that had always hung before the throne, looked up at it for a while, then said, "The reason I summoned you back to the capital this time is that I have a matter to entrust to you!"

Hearing this, Li Shaoyou immediately said, "Please give your commands, Your Majesty!"

"You must have some understanding of the tax reform. I am resolved to implement it. However, several months have passed, and progress has been quite unfavorable. The drafting of the new system has remained stalled, with great controversy." Emperor Liu spoke at a measured pace:

"I know many people are dissatisfied, worried that it will touch their interests. Though they dare not openly oppose it in words, their behavior already makes their attitude clear.

But no matter how great the resistance, what I am resolved to push forward, I will never abandon. Some people probably think I am old and can be bullied, that they can wrestle with me and play the delaying game. How could I let them have their way?

Over the past few decades, I have pushed through so many new policies and reforms—which one went smoothly without a hitch? But I broke through them all. To be honest with you, this may be the last major reform of my reign. If it succeeds, it will benefit the present and merit eternity. As for failure—I have not considered it.

No matter how great the resistance, I will break through it one by one..."

Listening to Emperor Liu's narration and firm stance, Li Shaoyou's brow furrowed involuntarily. After thinking briefly, he clasped his hands and asked, "May I ask what Your Majesty intends for this old servant to do?"

"For the overall situation at court, Zhao Pu is presiding, so I need not worry. Once he takes office and adapts somewhat, I will be able to see progress!" Emperor Liu continued. "But reform cannot remain only at the central level—ultimately it must be implemented at the local circuits and prefectures. Therefore, we must advance on both fronts, combining internal and external efforts. The capital region and Henan Circuit were previously selected as pilot areas for the tax reform. Over the past few months, progress has been slow, but from now on, I will no longer allow them to dawdle.

And upon recent reflection, I found this insufficient. I have selected two more places as the first batch of reform circuits. One is Yulin Circuit. Though that great chaos back then caused severe destruction, it also cleared out a large number of demons and monsters. The obstacles to reform there will not be too great. Moreover, it is not a traditional agricultural region—its tax regulations on animal husbandry can serve as a reference for the court in formulating further tax systems.

The other place I have chosen is Jiangnan Circuit—a land of scenic beauty and abundant produce. Though its cultivated acreage does not match the north, its output is very high, and it is also the most representative circuit in the entire nation.

In recent years, Jiangnan Circuit's tax revenue has consistently ranked at the forefront of the nation, and it is one of the top regions among the southern circuits. Therefore, Jiangnan Circuit is worthy of being the first to try.

I intend to send you to Jiangnan to preside over the tax reform. Other matters can wait for now. First, do the preparatory work—get a clear picture of the land situation for me, find all those hidden fertile fields, and record them in the registers.

The key to tax reform lies in the land. I have examined the land registers from various regions, and those figures become increasingly unreliable. It is already the twenty-fourth year of Kaibao, yet the nation's cultivated acreage is actually less than twenty years ago—this is utterly outrageous!

Once you arrive in Jiangnan, you must clean things up thoroughly for me! When the court's new system is formally finalized and promulgated, you will implement it immediately on your end. The two sides working in coordination will make the tax reform a reality!"

Listening silently to Emperor Liu's instructions—the tone not overly severe, yet Li Shaoyou felt a wave of pressure bearing down on him. After thinking it over, Li Shaoyou also responded solemnly: "Yes!"

On this matter, Li Shaoyou had no room to refuse.

Naturally satisfied with his response, Emperor Liu raised his hand and patted his shoulder, saying, "Reform is an exhausting task—a thousand threads tangled together, hard to sort out. The executor needs to be strong and vigorous, with keen ambition. But I don't believe in that. I feel that only by using old ministers like you can I rest easy! Brother You, you won't disappoint me, will you..."

Hearing this, Li Shaoyou's heart tightened. He said with great resolve: "This old servant will only exhaust himself to the utmost, giving his all!"

Nodding, Emperor Liu continued, "There is another purpose in sending you to Jiangnan. Back when Jiangnan was first pacified, the court carried out a great migration to break the control that local old officials, clans, and landlord forces held over Jiangnan. It had its effect—I settled a large number of northern soldiers there, greatly strengthening our grip on Jiangnan.

But over these past twenty-plus years, many accumulated problems have emerged. Whether in officialdom or among the people, the previous anti-corruption and evil-elimination campaigns removed not only corrupt officials but also many meritorious generals and soldiers who had fought bloody battles for the Great Han.

Even with my resolute determination, it was only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Moreover, the influence of the Southern Tang's decades of separatist rule has not been completely eradicated. All of these require you, once in office, to clean up again for me!

The responsibility is great—you must conduct yourself well!"

"Your servant understands!" Li Shaoyou stepped back two paces and bowed.

The proper posture was struck, the instructions were clear. Emperor Liu's expression relaxed into ease and calm. Suddenly thinking of something, he said with a playful tone, "For you meritorious nobles, this tax reform is no different from cutting flesh from your own bodies. Take your family for example—once the new system is implemented, most of those thousand qing of fine farmland will have to pay taxes according to the regulations. I wonder if you can bear to part with it?"

At the question, Li Shaoyou said with great righteousness: "Everything this old servant has is bestowed by Your Majesty. The grace is deep and the treatment generous, enough for my family to enjoy without end. The tax reform benefits the nation and the people. Though this old servant's vision is not grand, how could I, like some common miser, only count my personal gains and losses?"

"Hahaha..." Emperor Liu laughed again. "But in all the court, how many could share your level of awareness..."

Of course, regarding Li Shaoyou's declaration, Emperor Liu likewise only half-listened and half-believed—everything would still depend on actual performance.