Chapter 8: The Land Problem
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“Your Highness, the soldiers have been waiting for this day!”
Lu Fei laughed heartily. Today, the King of Qi was different from before—he felt much closer to the soldiers.
As a straightforward man, Lu Fei had only looked down on Xiao Ming because of the prince’s past arrogance and incompetence. Now, though he didn’t understand why Xiao Ming’s personality had changed, he saw it as a good thing—perhaps it was worth following the prince a while longer.
Li Kaiyuan, chewing on a bone, savored the unique taste of horse meat. Unable to resist, he asked hopefully, “Your Highness, I’ve heard that Chang’an is incredibly prosperous. Can all the commoners there eat steamed buns?”
Xiao Ming pondered for a moment before replying, “Not everyone, but life there is certainly more comfortable than ours.”
In his view, no place in the Da Yu Empire was truly prosperous for the lower classes. The kingdom’s Equal Field System had long since collapsed, with severe land monopolization leaving many commoners landless. Bandits roamed freely, and the entire kingdom reeked of decay, like an old man at death’s door.
Qian Dafu, reminiscing about life in Chang’an, added, “Chang’an is home to wealthy merchants and noble families—so yes, it’s bustling. At least if you have silver, you can buy anything you want. Not like here in Qingzhou, where even money can’t buy salt. We only managed to get some because Ziyuan went to Prince Wei’s territory to procure it.”
“Salt?” Xiao Ming suddenly realized why the horse meat had tasted so bland—it wasn’t seasoned. “The eastern part of my fief borders the sea. Don’t people here know how to boil seawater for salt?”
“Your Highness, it’s not that they don’t know how,” Qian Dafu explained carefully, “but salt production has always been a state-controlled monopoly. Selling private salt is a crime punishable by death. And since Your Highness never paid much attention to the official salt bureau… well…”
Xiao Ming felt a wave of embarrassment. This was yet another disaster caused by the previous Xiao Ming’s neglect.
For five years, the prince had ignored everything about his fief, never thinking to develop it. He had done nothing but indulge in pleasure, leaving many necessary institutions completely undeveloped.