Chapter 8 Countless Taxes
Strolling all the way back to the courtyard,
As soon as they entered the front yard, they heard the chief Wang Mazi's fierce but weak shouting coming from the middle yard.

"Zhang, your old Jia has passed away, come out and pay the donation quickly.
Your family has to pay for the coffin of the dead, the toilet for guests, ..., um ~, um ~, the garbage from sweeping the floor, this, um ~, ...

By the way, we just kicked the door in, so you have to pay the donation for breaking the door.

If you don't pay these donations,

Don’t even think about holding your family’s old Jia’s funeral today.”

Although He Yuzhu had long known that the old Xia during this period was famous for its high donations, claiming that it donated for every cause, and even for nothing.
But after hearing Wang Mazi's long list of taxes and levies, so many that he couldn't even remember them all,
He Yuzhu still felt a little dizzy.

In later generations, if ordinary people want to make contributions to Daxia and pay personal taxes, it depends on whether your monthly salary is high enough and whether you are qualified.

For example, himself,
Paying taxes is something that happens after the food is delivered.

But in this period, you can't pay taxes even if you don't want to.

In addition to the coffin donation, paper burning donation, banquet donation and other items that Wang Mazi just mentioned,
Other donations include giving birth to a child, getting married, raising pigs, raising cattle, being a waitress, being a monk, being a Taoist priest, going into the city barefoot, and wearing straw sandals.

Even if you are so poor that you have to become a beggar, there are still beggars donating to you.

Walking quickly into the middle courtyard, He Yuzhu saw Jia Zhang jumping up and down and cursing.
"Wang Mazi, are you immoral or not?
We have been neighbors for more than ten years after all. It would be fine if you watched Gao Shigui beat our old Jia to death without interceding for him.

Now that Lao Jia has just died, you come to bully us orphans and widows.

We just threw all our money out, so where can we get the money to give you? You might as well carry our old Jia away!"

The reason why Jia Zhangshi was not afraid of Wang Mazi can be traced back to the 3,000-year-old Baojia system in Daxia.

In the Western Zhou Dynasty, the common people were divided into the state and the wild. The state was divided into six townships and the wild was divided into six villages.
[The five tribes form a party, and they help each other; the five parties form a state, and they help each other; the five states form a township, and they are guests of each other] refers to the six township system;
[Five households make a neighborhood, five neighborhoods make a li, four li make a yin, five yins make a bi, five bis make a county, and five counties make a xian] is called the Liusui system.

After three thousand years of evolution,
In 1937, the Jinling Executive Yuan revised the Baojia Regulations.
The baojia organization is based on households. Each house number is a household with a household head. Ten households form a jia with a jia head. Ten jias form a bao with a bao head.

So Wang Mazi and the guard with a gun beside him were actually the neighbors nearby.

"Zhang, stop being so annoying.

You have to pay today whether you want to or not. If you don't pay, we will go to your house and move the things to make up for it.

If you dare to stop me, I know you, but Gunzi doesn’t.”

Seeing Wang Mazi waving his pistol to scare her, Jia Zhang puffed out her chest, unwilling to be outdone.

"Come! Come on!
If you don't beat me to death today, you, Wang Mazi, will be a son of a bitch."

Seeing the fierce Jia Zhang, Wang Mazi was quite troubled. He was not like Gao Shigui, a soldier in the security team who had no worries and lived from day to day.

Gao Shigui could use Lao Jia as an example to scare the monkeys without hesitation.
But he can't.

Even a rabbit bites when it is cornered. Wang Mazi has a family and a business in Nanluoguxiang, so he dare not provoke the neighbors too much.

"Zhang, it's no use for you to argue with me.

Everyone knows how your old Jia died. Captain Gao asked me to collect donations, and you can't deny getting this money.

If you don't pay, I'll have to pay with my own money.

Do you think that's possible? "

After expressing his determination, Wang Mazi started shouting at the top of his lungs.

"He Daqing! He Daqing, come out quickly.
You are the head of the Siheyuan, you have to give me an explanation today about the old Jia family's donation, otherwise I will really move my things!" As soon as Wang Mazi finished shouting, he heard Yi Zhonghai next to him say,
"He Daqing is not here at the moment."

"With such a big thing happening, where could he be if he wasn't at home?"

"Everyone is busy preparing for Old Jia's funeral. After He Daqing exchanged the money, he went to Shichahai Station to find an acquaintance to take a letter to Fengzeyuan to ask for leave. It will probably take a while for him to come back."

Seeing Yi Zhonghai speak, Wang Mazi immediately went to find him.

"Old Yi, since He Daqing is not here, then you tell me how to solve this matter today. Anyway, not paying the donation will not work.

How about you guys share the cost equally?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Bugui, who was standing next to Yi Zhonghai, jumped up in anger.

"That won't work. Since it's the Jia family's donation, then they have to pay it themselves.

Lao Yi!

Lao Jia is dead. You helped to exchange the money he took out. Hurry up and take out the money and pay the donation first.
After paying the donation, let's quickly arrange the next things.
In such bad weather, if we delay any longer, Lao Jia will be in trouble."

In fact, whether the Jia family is rich or not, the neighbors all know it very well. The reason why they didn't say it is that they don't want to offend Jia Zhang.
Now that Yan Bugui had jumped out as the first to speak out, they naturally took the opportunity to urge Yi Zhonghai,

"Old Yi,

Hurry up and take out Lao Jia's money and donate it.

After paying the donation, we still have to buy a coffin, find someone to build a mourning shed, and notify the relatives and friends of the Jia family. There are so many things to do!"

When Jia Zhang heard that the neighbors wanted Yi Zhonghai to take out her family's money to donate, she immediately became unhappy. However, just as she was about to rush over, she was forced back by Wang Mazi and his guards with guns.

"Zhang, you have to think clearly.

Not having money to pay is one thing, having money but not paying is another. When that happens, it won’t be me, the village chief, who will come to you.”

Hearing this blatant threat, Jia Zhang immediately stopped doing anything.
She just wasn't afraid of her neighbor Wang Mazi and the soldier Gao Shigui, because they were ruthless people who would really take the lives of her family.

Wang Mazi received the donation from Yi Zhonghai smoothly.

Then he took out a 5-cent gold note from his pocket.

"Old Yi, now that official business is done, let's talk about personal matters. This is my share of the money, don't think it's too little."

Behind Wang Mazi, the guards also took out one-cent and two-cent gold yuan notes and began to give gifts. This was a form of "getting along with the neighbors". Yi Zhonghai politely accepted them.

"Chief Bao, 5 cents is not a small amount.
按照【8.19限价令】的规定，一石小麦（180斤）30元、一石大米（180斤）20元，5毛钱能买3、4斤粮食呢，

If you only buy whole grains like sweet potatoes and cornmeal, it will last you at least two weeks."

"Okay, Lao Yi, you guys go ahead and do your work. We'll come back tomorrow to try He Daqing's cooking."

"it is good!"

After Wang Mazi and the guards left the courtyard, Yi Zhonghai and others began to discuss Lao Jia's funeral. Not long after, He Daqing walked into the central courtyard.

"Old He, you're back just in time. Come and preside over Old Jia's funeral!"

(End of this chapter)