Chapter 167: Tax Farming System
Translator: Cinder Translations
...
The minor dispute at the meeting finally settled, and the discussion continued on other issues.
"So, Hansel, is the Kingdom's military interested in our canned goods, salt, and similar items?"
"Um... my Lord, due to time constraints, I only interacted with the logistics officer under Her Highness the Grand Princess. From his attitude, canned goods are indeed very much in line with their needs."
"How many canned goods can they purchase?"
"We didn't discuss specifics at the time, but Her Highness the Grand Princess commands around 8,000 troops, so the demand should be quite substantial."
Paul asked with some confusion, "What do you mean by saying you only interacted with the logistics officer under the Grand Princess?"
Hansel explained, "Currently, not all troops stationed in Crystal Glare are directly commanded by Her Highness. Each general's forces manage their own logistics independently."
Paul understood. Although these troops all pledged loyalty to the same entity, without a unified logistics system, such arrangements were common in old-fashioned armies.
"In that case, we'll need to individually negotiate with those generals."
"Earl Grayman, I have a suggestion. We could organize a trade delegation, inviting merchants and factory owners to visit the capital and find their own markets."
"A trade delegation?"
"A trade delegation? That sounds good. Organize it under the Lord's Manor name; I believe those merchants and factory owners will eagerly participate. After all, it's much easier to conduct business under the banner of nobility."
Paul strongly agreed with this proposal, nodding continuously.
"That's a good idea; we should nurture the 'wolf nature' in these merchants, let them seek opportunities and strive on their own. Otherwise, always relying on handouts won't achieve much."
Hansel echoed, "You have a keen insight, my Lord."
Paul clapped his hands, "Good, I leave this matter to you, our 'Agricultural Manager,' to handle. Haha! Oh, besides canned goods, items like porcelain and paper, bring along the merchants and manufacturers of these goods as well. Once the sea routes open up, we can ship directly south, without letting middlemen skim off extra profits."
Hansel reassured Paul with a hand over his heart, "I will immediately start organizing this."
"But..." Hansel then raised a question, "Can our production keep up with demand?"
"After my visit to several factory owners in Alden Town, it's not just canned goods; paper mills and porcelain factories are also highly sought-after products. According to their feedback, current production capacity is already straining to meet existing orders."
"That is indeed a problem. So, I plan to have these new refugees find work in the factories instead of farming. You need to inform the factory owners in Alda and Byerldine to recruit from the refugee groups. I don't want to support these refugees for nothing; they must work and create value."
"Yes, my Lord."
Paul suddenly had an idea and addressed everyone, "To alleviate the shortage of production capacity, I have another idea—freeing a group of serfs from the Grayman family. My reasoning is, with the use of 'harvesters' and other machinery, the current area of cultivated land within the family doesn't require so many hands. Let's free them from serfdom, let them choose their own livelihoods, and incidentally alleviate the labor shortage in the factories."
There was a stunned silence for a moment. Seeing everyone about to zone out, Paul quickly added,
"Of course, this is just encouragement—just encouragement—just encouragement. I don't intend to set any specific targets or indicators to prevent subordinates from using this as an excuse to disturb the region for personal gain."
Everyone regained their composure. Paul breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "For those who voluntarily release serfs or invest in emerging industries, I will grant certain tax reductions."
Manager Ford stroked his beard, saying, "Encouraging the release of serfs to supplement factory labor is a good idea. However, using tax reductions to achieve this may not yield significant results."
Paul was puzzled, "Why not?"
Manager Ford explained, "Because those landlords and gentry who own a large number of serfs... often are the local 'tax farmers'."
"'Tax farmers'? What does that mean?"
"Um... the so-called 'tax farmers' are tax contractors. The lord entrusts certain local leaders with collecting various taxes in that area, setting specific revenue targets. Tax farmers must meet these targets; if they fail, they must make up the difference from their own wealth and then remit the required amount to the lord. Conversely, if they collect more taxes than the lord's set amount, the excess money can be kept by the tax farmer as their commission."
Manager Ford pointed out why Paul's policy might not be very effective: "In reality, how much tax is collected is determined by the tax farmers themselves. The more they collect, the more they keep. Think about it; how tempting is a small reduction in their own household taxes?"
Paul jumped up from his seat, "Is this how our territories have always been taxed?"
Manager Ford was taken aback by the Earl's reaction. "In places like Alden Town's Lord's Residence and major towns like Frand Port, the Manor directly sends tax officials to collect taxes. But in most rural areas, tax collection is contracted out to local gentry."
He found it strange; wasn't this how things had been done for centuries? Why was the Lord's reaction so intense? He seemed quite unhappy.
Little did he know, Paul's mind was racing a mile a minute—not against the old manager personally, but against this infuriating tax system.
(End of the Chapter)
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