Protect Our Clan Leader
Chapter 1101 - 77: Stirring Up Storms with a Single Hand! Lord Meng Surrenders (Seeking Monthly Pass)

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"Ridiculous, this is just too ridiculous," Prince De Xin, having heard the Old Ancestor Dede trying to drag him into the mess, immediately bristled with anger and erupted, "Dede, you are tarnishing the dignity and honor of the Imperial Household!"

"De Xin, what are you so jumpy about?" Prince Dede, with a sidelong glance at his old rival, let out a cold, mocking laugh and said, "Ever since our forefather, the Emperor Ziwei Xuandu, established Da Qian, the creed has always been the joint governance of the world by the Imperial Household and the Prominent Families. Why can the Prominent Families audit taxes, and we from the Imperial Household cannot? Could it be that your Prince's Mansion of De Xin indeed has been engaging in extremely serious tax evasion?"

In Da Qian, whether it was farmland or any other industry, taxes had to be paid according to regulations.

The Imperial Household had many Commandery Prince's Residences and Prince's Mansions; each residence was a vast entity with numerous high-quality farms and a variety of industries under its name.

This portion of industries, semi-independent to each mansion, were managed by themselves, and the output was also used by the respective residences. For example, White Cloud Tower, which belonged to the Heng Commandery Prince, was one of these.

Additionally, there were various Imperial Manors.

These Imperial Manors were clan properties, shared by the entire Imperial Household. This asset base was extremely substantial, and management and operations were unified by the Imperial Family Mansion, with the output primarily used for the basic sustenance of most Imperial family members and subsidies for outstanding descendants among them.

For instance, the Emperor's support, aside from the national taxes, relied considerably on the provisions from the Imperial Family Mansion.

But whether it was the semi-independent industries of the Prince's and Commandery Prince's Mansions or the clan properties controlled by the Imperial Family Mansion, according to the system of Da Qian, taxes still had to be paid. The proportion of taxes paid was exactly the same as for other Prominent Families; there were no exceptions.

This was also a rule set at the founding of the nation by the Founding Emperor, the Emperor Ziwei Xuandu, modeled after the Immortal Dynasty.

After all, if the Imperial Household didn't need to pay taxes, countless lesser Prominent Families would register their industries under the name of the Imperial Household. As long as they were willing to offer thirty to fifty percent of the tax dues in return, there certainly would be cash-strapped members of the Imperial Household willing to accept these registrations. Over time, wouldn't the industries of the Prominent Families all become dependent on the name of the Imperial Household?

Furthermore, if the Imperial Household didn't pay taxes, how could other Prominent Families compete with Imperial industries? Just in terms of cost alone, they'd be unable to compete. Over time, wouldn't all the land under heaven belong to Imperial industries?

If such a model were to continue, not to mention whether the Prominent Families would still want to play along with the Imperial Household. If all the lands under heaven belonged to the Imperial Household and none were taxed, where would the tax revenue come from?

The Prominent Families would be better off selling all their possessions and then running off to the Immortal Dynasty to purchase lands to live on.

Such a national structure would likely fall apart in just a few years.

Therefore, the taxation of Imperial industries was an extremely important part of Da Qian's tax revenue. This was why Prince Dede was especially emboldened in his stance.

Prince De Xin's face turned grim as he began to feel a sense of panic.

As a prince, how could he not know the state of his own Prince's Mansion's industries?

Taking advantage of no one daring to investigate, his family's industries had been cutting corners in tax payments for years. Although he hadn't calculated the exact figures, he knew the loopholes must be substantial.

Moreover, as the saying goes "a crooked beam leads to a crooked wall"; if Prince De Xin was like this, the state of those Commandery Prince's Residences belonging to his descendants would naturally be no better.

If a real investigation into tax payments were to be carried out, who knew how big a storm it could stir up.

"Your Majesty," Prince De Xin turned to Emperor Longchang and spoke with aggrieved anger, "Prince Dede, in order to support An Commandery Prince's accession, is truly resorting to every conceivable means. Right now, when my lineage is about to assist Kang Commandery Prince in formulating the entire plan for the conquest of the Southern Frontier, he is agitating for a tax investigation, clearly intending to disrupt our plans and sabotage us."

His lineage of Commandery Princes and those Prominent Families that did not wish to be audited rallied in agreement, vehemently accusing Prince Dede of disregarding the national interest and deliberately putting obstacles in Kang Commandery Prince's path at a critical moment.

Even if a tax audit was necessary, it could wait until after Kang Commandery Prince's victorious return.

Prince Dede sneered, "You all should go ahead and formulate the plan for the Southern Frontier conquest; tax auditing has no inherent conflict with this matter. Meng Yuanbai and his team, with their ample experience in taxation, don't need assistance from the Prince's or Commandery Prince's Mansions. They are entirely capable of conducting a thorough and transparent audit on their own."

"Your Majesty," Ding Duke Yin Da, the Old Ancestor, also spoke with righteous indignation, "With Prince De Xin's lineage making so many excuses and trying to avoid the tax audit, it's difficult for me not to suspect that there is a substantial issue with their tax payments. Perhaps, it has already rotten to the core."

"Besides, how important is the strategic plan for the Southern Frontier conquest? If the Grand Marshal responsible for the conquest can't even manage his own due taxes, how can anyone believe he has the capacity or the qualifications to oversee the critical undertaking of the Southern Frontier conquest? It's possible that the De Xin lineage proposed this plan simply to seize a fortune in war profits during this opportunity."

"In light of the foregoing, I propose that both the Residences of Kang Commandery Prince and An Commandery Prince undergo tax audits simultaneously. If Kang Commandery Prince's Residence's tax discrepancies are no greater than twenty, no, thirty percent! As long as it doesn't exceed thirty percent, I, Wang Yinda, will be the first to support Kang Commandery Prince as the Grand Marshal for the Southern Frontier conquest."

At this time, Emperor Longchang seated on the Imperial Throne no longer displayed the impatience and casual demeanor he had at the beginning. Instead, he furrowed his brow slightly, his expression stern, and his gaze retracted, making it nearly impossible for anyone to discern his thoughts.

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