Xiao Qing's eyes were red with anxiety, "I thought he would buy tens of thousands of mu at most, but I didn't expect it to be hundreds of thousands! Those lands, it's no exaggeration to call them wasteland, right?"
Ding Wuyi also smiled helplessly and bitterly, "Young Master Liang Er's grand gesture, even with the support of his wine business, I'm afraid it won't be able to withstand such a strain!"
Xiao Qing nodded slightly, tears streaming down her face.
She had only exempted Yan Prefecture from the head tax for three years and the land tax for one year. After this year, Liang Xiao would face exorbitant land taxes!
By then, if the lands Liang Xiao bought at a low price couldn't be sold...
Her elder brother, her beloved, was taking practical action to gradually solve the problem of land annexation, but this step was too large!
Ning Xuejun saw this and gently comforted her, "Your Majesty, Young Master Liang Er is a prodigy admired by both Lord Zhuo Ling and the Marquis of Zhenguo of Great Liang. He must have his own plans."
Xiao Qing felt a little better and sighed, "Of course I understand, but fate is unpredictable. If my elder brother is forced to sell land in the future, the government will acquire it for cultivation. What do you think?"
Ding Wuyi and Ning Xuejun nodded in agreement.
This move was questionable for favoritism, but it was also the only thing Xiao Qing could do for Liang Xiao, as Yan Prefecture could not remain tax-exempt forever.
"Has this Liang Xiao really become complacent after making some money?"
Ouyang Ji and Ouyang Hong received the news at home and sneered.
Instead of expanding his wine business, he ran to Yan Prefecture to buy two hundred thousand mu of barren land that no one wanted?
Ouyang Hong laughed heartily, "Does he think that with two hundred thousand mu of barren land, he's a big landlord, a magnate?"
Ouyang Ji also sneered, then quickly calmed down and analyzed, "This child doesn't seem like an impulsive person. He must have some ulterior motive for doing this. We cannot let him have his way, at least we must hinder him!"
So Ouyang Ji went straight to the Ministry of Revenue to inquire about the situation.
The officials at the Ministry of Revenue reported truthfully, "My Lord, the land transaction documents from Yan Prefecture were sent directly to His Majesty by the Prime Minister's Office!"
Ouyang Ji frowned and finally understood Xiao Qing's intention!
This was clearly arranged by Xiao Qing in advance, preventing the Ministry of Revenue from obstructing Liang Xiao's land acquisition!
Ouyang Ji immediately rushed to the imperial palace to request an audience with Xiao Qing and forcefully argued the disadvantages of Liang Xiao acquiring a large amount of land.
"Your Majesty, by suppressing the land price like this, I fear it will cause unrest in Yan Prefecture!"
Xiao Qing asked with a stern face, "Cause unrest? Isn't the decrease in land prices more convenient for the common people to buy land? Does Lord Ouyang wish for the common people to sell more land to those landlords?"
Ouyang Ji was speechless.
"The Prime Minister and I have already approved Lord Liang's land purchase. The Ministry of Revenue is not to interfere in this matter!" Xiao Qing said decisively.
Fearing that he might anger Xiao Qing, Ouyang Ji had no choice but to withdraw.
Xiao Qing stared at the doorway, her hands gripping the armrests of the chair, "The more they obstruct, the more it proves my elder brother is right! Eunuch Ding, go to my private treasury and retrieve two hundred thousand taels, send it to Yan Prefecture for my elder brother, and have him acquire all the land from those landlords and gentry. The government lands are for cultivation and cannot be easily transferred..."
Soon, the entire capital knew about Liang Xiao's large-scale land acquisition in Yan Prefecture. For a time, all the major noble families mocked Liang Xiao for courting disaster.
Only the Ouyang family and the Dugu family secretly pondered Liang Xiao's intentions, even planning to send people to Yan Prefecture to acquire land on a large scale, following Liang Xiao's example.
However, considering the dismal value of land in Yan Prefecture, both families eventually abandoned this unprofitable plan.
Three days later, three black-clad shadow guards escorted an official document and two hundred thousand taels of silver notes to Yan Prefecture, which were handed over to Liu Anmin and Liang Xiao respectively.
The official document read: An Guo Hou Liang Xiao is permitted to freely acquire private land in Yan Prefecture, and all requests are approved!
Liang Xiao, at home, was also surprised to receive the silver notes, "This..."
The leading shadow guard explained, "Marquis An Guo, these silver notes are a contribution from His Majesty and the Princess to you. His Majesty only asked me to convey one sentence to you: It's alright, even if you lose money."
At this point, Liang Xiao no longer hesitated, accepted the silver notes, ordered people to entertain the three shadow guards well, and returned to his room to write a letter.
He had made up his mind that if this portion of funds generated any profit in the future, it must be returned to Xiao Qing in full!
In the room, Jian Qinwan stood beside Yue Lian, gazing at Liang Xiao, who was writing, and felt even more dejected.
It seemed only the empress, Xiao Qing, could realize Liang Xiao's ambitions, while she, despite her title as the Qin Immortal, only brought trouble to Liang Xiao...
"By the way, Bodhisattva, are you getting used to living here?" Liang Xiao asked while writing.
Jian Qinwan felt a pang in her heart and retorted, "Are you planning to send me back?"
"No, no, no, I mean, if you're not used to it, I'll hire more people to arrange your accommodation and make it cleaner for you."
Jian Qinwan was stunned, her face full of confusion, "I'm not as delicate as you think, but why are you suddenly so thoughtful?"
Liang Xiao sighed, "You are the Qin Immortal of this generation, but during your time in Yan Prefecture, I asked Yue Lian, and you haven't played the zither. Don't let your skills deteriorate by following me."
In the capital, Jian Qinwan would at least play the zither for Zhen Mi and Yue Lian, and he could occasionally hear it when he returned to his courtyard.
Gazing at Liang Xiao's back, Jian Qinwan bit her red lip tightly and snorted, "I wouldn't play for a lecher like you!"
"Alright, my little Rakshasa."
Liang Xiao laughed heartily, and under Jian Qinwan's resentful gaze, he finished writing the letter and entrusted it to the shadow guards to deliver to Xiao Qing.
In the northern military camp, Lu Changhe and his generals stood behind a white-haired general in brocade robes, not daring to breathe.
"Marshal, please calm your anger. Marquis An Guo will surely visit you..." the adjutant said nervously.
General of Cavalry, Marquis of Zhenbei, Imperial Uncle, Marshal of the Northern Frontier, Lu Yi!
Lu Yi angrily waved his sheathed sword, overturning the table in front of him, "Is this kid also arrogant because of his talent? As soon as he arrived in Yan Prefecture, instead of paying his respects to me, he started doing what the noble families do, annexing land! Send someone to summon him immediately!"
Upon learning that Liang Xiao intended to buy more land, the landlords and gentry of Yan Prefecture once again gathered at the Prefect's mansion to bargain with Liang Wen.
However, because the land in Yan Prefecture was truly undesirable, and the people had suffered from war and could not afford to buy it, these landlords and gentry only wanted to quickly offload this hot potato and get some funds.
Furthermore, these barren lands were almost wasteland, with extremely low grain yields and difficult to recoup costs.
In the end, almost all the barren lands in Yan Prefecture held by these major landlords were acquired by Liang Xiao.
Including the land previously ceded, the total amounted to five hundred thousand mu!
Liu Anmin was startled by Liang Xiao's grand gesture, but due to the imperial edict, he could only allow Liang Xiao to purchase, only reminding him to take care of the land.
Yan Prefecture was the first prefecture to promote land cultivation, and most of the people were participating in official cultivation. However, the subordinates of these major landlords still had a large number of tenant farmers who could be transferred to be employed by Liang Xiao.
This was not out of kindness from the landlords, but because they had sold their land and no longer needed these tenant farmers.
Liang Wen recruited more manpower for Liang Xiao to manage these lands, while also recruiting farmers and purchasing the curved-shaft plows promoted by the government, preparing for spring plowing.
"Second Young Master, we have less than fifty thousand taels of capital left. If there's a poor harvest this year, I fear the entire industry will collapse..."
Even Liang Wen was somewhat worried. He returned home and quietly complained to Liang Xiao.
After buying draft animals, hiring manpower, and farmers, it cost over a hundred thousand taels. Some farmers might even have to rely on Liang Xiao for food provision.
Jian Qinwan, standing nearby, wanted to speak but hesitated.
Liang Xiao smiled and said, "Go ahead and do your work with confidence. I will take care of the money."
Liang Wen was relieved and left.
Jian Qinwan finally couldn't help but speak, "The risk you're taking is too great. I can think of someone who can help you..."