Chapter 511: Chapter 250: Balanced Revenue and Expenditure
Lu Yuan had been living quite contentedly these days.
He didn’t know if it was really fate at work, but everything seemed to be influenced by the luck of the world.
Ever since he had broken away from the Jinling court and established the independent state of Chu.
The one-tenth of the luck that had been diverted due to the constraints of righteousness was now fully recovered.
With his luck complete, Lu Yuan’s fortunes exploded like a geyser, and good things came one after another.
First of all, domestically, the military was full of good news.
The nine Forbidden Army divisions, totaling 180,000 soldiers, had mostly taken shape after over a year of restructuring and integration.
Especially after the recent tense standoff with the Ning Kingdom, which provided nearly-real combat training, this mixed army of Yue people, Miao people, Zhou people, and Qiang people had finally grown familiar with one another and could cooperate seamlessly.
As for the local county soldiers, there was even less to say.
They had fewer numbers and were easier to integrate. Moreover, they didn’t bear the heavy responsibilities like the Forbidden Army did. They had already taken shape before the year began.
With this, both the central and local armies had formed in succession. The military reforms, which had begun in Hongdao Year Nine, had finally come to an end.
The strength of Chu State had reached its peak.
Not only in the military but also in domestic affairs, good news kept coming.
First of all, the most significant project in Chu Country at present was the immigration project.
This project, which had been ongoing since Hongdao Year Nine, had lasted for a year and a half from the beginning in the first month to the present sixth month of Shenwu Year One, and it had finally come to an end.
Not only that, but many of the early immigrants, apart from the ones who’d been moved after Lu Yuan recaptured Xichuan, had already settled down in their new locations, built houses, farmed fields, planted mulberry trees, and engaged in businesses. Finally, they could call this place their home.
Even the later groups of immigrants had mostly finished building their houses by this time, managing to catch up with the fall harvest, even though they had missed the spring planting and summer harvest. In Dongting County, crops could grow twice a year, so they didn’t miss out on the autumn harvest.
Once this year’s autumn harvest was complete, all of these approximately 2.3 million immigrants would have properly settled down in Chu Country.
The people captured during the Northern Expedition were now mostly integrated.
This year’s first batch of summer taxes had also been collected from every location in July.
According to the reports from various prefectures and counties, Minister Cui Changqing, Sun Siwen, and others had collated the figures, and the total revenue for the first half of the year had been tallied.
“Your Majesty, this year’s summer tax total is 22,110,000 silver tales from the field tax, 11,700,000 silver tales from the head tax, and 560,000 silver tales from the additional head tax.
The sum of these three items comes to 39,400,000 silver tales.
In addition to these, ever since the establishment of our great Chu, as the situation in various prefectures and counties has stabilized, businesses have resumed, and shops have been established gradually.
With the stability of local people’s livelihoods, the traffic of merchants and travelers between the various prefectures and counties has increased, and the customs and port tax revenues have risen significantly.
During the first half of this year, the domestic customs revenue reached 8,200,000 silver tales.
As the local situation continues to improve, this tax revenue should continue to increase, and it is estimated that it could reach as high as 15,000,000 silver tales.
But this is only domestic.
Now, as the reputation of our Great Chu grows, and our national power increases, merchants and travelers from all over the world are coming to us in greater numbers.
Southsea, Su Country, Jiangdong, Liang Country, Zhou Country, and Southwest Yi – the merchants of these countries can be seen in Baling market, gathered in groups.
Goods from all over the world are being transported here by them.
For just collecting taxes on imported goods during the first half of this year, we received 9,200,000 silver tales.
Moreover, as our Great Chu is still new, and the news has not spread, as more countries learn of our strength and prosperity, even more merchants and travelers will flock to us.
By then, the tax revenue from international transactions could rise to as much as 20,000,000 silver tales, far greater than the potential of domestic customs tax.
However, even so, the total value of domestic and foreign customs tax in the first half of this year was 20,400,000 silver tales.
Apart from customs taxes, our Great Chu also levies business taxes on shops and sales in markets.
Although these business taxes are not as much as customs taxes, the total for the first half of this year was still 830,000 silver tales.
In addition, there are some miscellaneous taxes; though the amounts are smaller, together they still totaled 480,000 silver tales.
Thus, field taxes, head taxes, additional head taxes, customs taxes, and business taxes, the five main types of taxes in our Great Chu in the first half of the year, plus miscellaneous taxes, totaled 70,000,000 silver tales.”
In Qianyuan Palace, Lu Yuan listened to his friend Sun Siwen reporting on the income of the first half of the year, and couldn’t help but be taken aback.
Seventy million silver tales in just half a year – was his Great Chu really that rich?
He couldn’t quite believe it, and couldn’t help but ask again: “Sun Qing, was there really 70 million silver tales in tax revenue in the first half of this year?”
Sun Siwen knew that Lu Yuan was astonished, and to be honest, he was also surprised when he obtained the final figures.
It was because this year’s first-half tax revenue was unexpectedly high.
However, several recountings and on-site inspections on local conditions had led to this accurate figure, and it was absolutely certain.