86: Chapter 86. Li Si, Feng Quji, and Feng Jie all opposed Zhao Fusu, but Zhao Fusu laughed instead.

Behind Feng Jie followed two Qin Officials, carrying a large pile of bamboo slips.

Zhao Fusu flipped through the bamboo slips that recorded the cultivated land area and grain output of various commanderies and counties.

The Great Qin Empire currently has 48 commanderies.

Through his calculations, Great Qin's cultivated land area was approximately 131 million mu.

Of course, this cultivated land area was reported by the landlords themselves, effectively making it self-reported data.

The First Emperor had never sent people to conduct on-site measurements, so no one knew exactly how much cultivated land Great Qin actually had.

Zhao Fusu felt that based on the amount of grain held by the nobility, the actual cultivated land area in Great Qin definitely exceeded 131 million mu.

Exactly how much it exceeded that figure, Zhao Fusu did not know either.

Regardless, Zhao Fusu felt those nobles, who looked so upright and honest on the surface, would certainly not report the true data.

The landlords under the nobles wouldn't truthfully report how much land they had either.

Even if you told them they could receive subsidies based on the reported land, they would then just over-report it.

It wasn't that Zhao Fusu's prejudice against nobles and landlords was like a mountain, but rather that human nature is simply like this.

"If you don't take a cut, how can I? If I don't take a cut, how can my superior? If my superior doesn't take a cut, how can we advance!"

Zhao Fusu shook his head slightly.

Once Great Qin was stable, he would definitely send out surveying teams to measure the cultivated land area of the entire empire and obtain the real figures.

Zhao Fusu then calculated how much grain Great Qin could produce in a year.

After his calculations, he finally gained a preliminary understanding of Great Qin's grain production capacity.

This data might not be accurate, but it could serve as a standard for Zhao Fusu to measure the world's grain output.

65.188 billion catties!

Modern grain output is 1.413 trillion catties, which is a full twenty-one times more than Great Qin!

Modern society's ability to flourish is built upon the foundation of abundant food!

Zhao Fusu knew in his heart that Great Qin's current grain production capacity was too poor.

If he wanted to promote an industrial revolution, he had to significantly increase grain production.

Only when the per capita grain possession increases significantly can more people be liberated from the land.

Only then could the population of the Great Qin Empire increase.

Zhao Fusu wanted to take advantage of the rest of his life to expand the empire's territory on a large scale. Without a population, how could he expand the borders?

Even if a vast amount of territory was conquered, if there were no people to suppress it, it would be just like the Yuan Dynasty—the area was huge, but the population was too small to hold the land for long.

There is strength in numbers!

Many hands make light work!

"Prime Minister Li Si."

"Premier Feng Quji."

Zhao Fusu's gaze turned toward the second and third-in-command of the Great Qin Empire.

"Your Majesty the Paramount Leader."

Li Si and Feng Quji frowned slightly, an uneasy feeling in their hearts, sensing that Zhao Fusu was about to say something earth-shattering.

Sure enough, they heard Zhao Fusu say, "The grain tax we collect from the people is too high; taking one part in ten will suffice."

"Your Majesty, you cannot!"

Li Si and Feng Quji spoke almost in unison.

"Our Great Qin has conscripted three million for corvée labor, which already means we collect the poll tax of three million fewer people."

"Furthermore, we provide three meals a day for these three million laborers; they consume a terrifying amount of grain every day."

"If we only take one in ten, the grain collected will likely only be enough to supply these three million laborers!"

It was no wonder Li Si and Feng Quji tried to stop him.

The number of laborers was simply too large, and each of them had a massive appetite—they weren't like modern people who could get full on a few dumplings.

One of them could eat a whole vat of dumplings!

These three million laborers alone could eat Great Qin into bankruptcy.

Great Qin had to support more than just three million laborers; there were also members of the National Assembly, as well as the governors and magistrates of the forty-eight commanderies and counties, and various Qin Officials, totaling tens of thousands of people.

If the salaries of these people weren't paid, the Great Qin Empire would collapse.

As the second and third-in-command of the Great Qin Empire, Li Si and Feng Quji definitely had to stand up and oppose this, otherwise the Great Qin Empire would surely perish.

This was not what Li Si and Feng Quji wanted to see.

They weren't unaware of what Zhao Fusu was worried about.

The people of the Six Lands originally used the well-field system, where they only had to pay ten percent of their income in taxes.

After your State of Qin arrived, you demanded nearly seventy percent of my income.

Do you want me to say 'thank you'?

I'll thank your whole family!

The people of the Six Lands cursed the State of Qin behind its back. 'Tyrannical Qin, Tyrannical Qin'—that wasn't just cursing Great Qin's harsh criminal laws, but also its excessive taxation.

Li Si and Feng Quji's attitudes were incredibly firm; even if they had to risk death to remonstrate today, they had to persuade Zhao Fusu to stop.

Zhao Fusu wanting to show mercy to the people of the world was the people's fortune, but he couldn't take such a giant stride!

Wasn't he afraid of overextending himself?

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

Feng Jie also stepped forward and said.

Feng Jie was Feng Quji's younger brother.

Normally, ancient great clans believed in not putting all their eggs in one basket. Since Feng Quji had stepped forward, as the younger brother, Feng Jie should not have stepped forward for the sake of the family.

But Feng Jie still stepped forward, showing that he did not want to see the Great Qin Empire fall apart, and thus acted regardless of personal safety.

He would rather risk being targeted by Zhao Fusu to speak up; this was his profound love for Great Qin!

Facing such resolute attitudes from Li Si, Feng Quji, and Feng Jie, Zhao Fusu did not get angry.

Instead, he was immensely gratified.

The reason Li Si, Feng Quji, and Feng Jie had such firm attitudes was that they truly had Great Qin in their hearts.

In history, Feng Quji was killed by Hu Hai, and Feng Jie was also killed by Hu Hai.

The reason these two were killed by Hu Hai was because of the mess Hu Hai made after ascending the throne.

Feng Quji and Feng Jie both saw that the world was exhausted and the people were increasingly dissatisfied, so they asked Hu Hai to stop building the Epang Palace and send a million laborers back home.

Firstly, this could reduce public resentment.

Secondly, sending a million laborers home meant they could collect the poll tax from a million more people and wouldn't have to provide grain for them.

This could be described as a wonderful thing that achieved multiple goals at once.

Unfortunately, with Hu Hai's pig-brain, how could he see this point?

Hu Hai was supported by Li Si to take the throne.

Yet when he executed Li Si, Li Si's son was still leading troops to suppress the rebellion of the insurgent army.

Just look at this move—wasn't it incredible!

"I am shedding blood on the front lines for you, while you are killing my whole family in the capital!"

This could be the opening of a high-drama web novel.

"Prime Minister Li Si."

"Premier Feng Quji."

"Censor-in-Chief Feng Jie!"

"None of you should be so agitated!"

Zhao Fusu was still smiling, not becoming angry because Li Si, Feng Quji, and Feng Jie were anxious.

And the words he spoke next indeed left Li Si, Feng Quji, and Feng Jie all looking shocked and utterly horrified.