百姓赋税养着你
“You're fed by the people's taxes.”
THE DIALOGUE REEL
岁末钱帛也不少
“Nor is your year-end payment low.”
百姓赋税养着你
“You're fed by the people's taxes.”
“Yet you have the gall to bleed the people dry.”
“You owe your entire existence to the people, yet you brazenly exploit them.”
Traditional Chinese political ethics hold that officials are parents of the people and supported by their labor, making official corruption a profound moral betrayal.
LEARNING CHUNKS & PARTICLES
taxes; taxation
A formal and historical term referring to agricultural and civic taxes collected by the state.
supports you; provides for your livelihood
Often used confrontationally to emphasize an ungrateful dependent who fails their duty.
VOCABULARY & EXPRESSIONS
Parallel Spoken Cinema Scenes (语义近邻切片)
“People can't afford to pay taxes as it is. Now, you're even proposing an increase.”
“There were no miscellaneous charges, and the land tax was reasonable.”
“I really cannot impose higher taxes on the people.”
“periods of prosperity are built on minimal taxation and corvée labor.”
“yet the authorities pressed hard for taxes.”
“The tax they levied was called the Immortality Tax.”