First Minister of Ming Dynasty

First Minister Section 565

The Ming Dynasty didn't even complete the first stage at the beginning. After all, Lingnan, Huguang, Bashu, and even the Central Plains still had extra land, which could also promote immigration.

It is conservatively estimated that there will be another 30 to [-] years before the crisis will really break out on a large scale...

But Zhu Biao asked himself, two to thirty years is not a long time!

I can live to see that day!

And if you don't start to solve it now, on the day when it's hard to get back, there's really nothing you can do.

Almost instantly, Zhu Biao realized that only by developing industry and commerce can the problem be solved.

I have to say that Mr. Zhang is really powerful. A few years after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Ximeng was talking about this matter and had already made arrangements. At that time, most people did not understand. Zhang Ximeng was almost under all pressure and reluctantly moved forward. carry out.

Now Zhu Biao is belatedly aware of how powerful Mr. Zhu is.

But one question remains, what to do?

Specifically how to use the power of industry and commerce to break the current deadlock... Zhu Biao had no choice but to call a group of officials to discuss this matter, and the important officials of the court and central government headed by Sun Yan gathered together.

There have been discussions about it for a long time, and everyone knows what to do at this moment. In fact, they are not completely clueless.

"Your Highness, in the final analysis, we still need to release people from the land... We need to change the original strategy and mobilize the entire Ming Dynasty."

Just after Sun Yan finished speaking, Wang Guangyang said: "Sun Xiang, what we have been doing all along is to calm down the common people, to solve the problem of refugees, to let the common people live and work in peace and contentment, and to feed their stomachs. Suddenly forcing the common people to move, this It's not a small matter!"

Sun Yan nodded and said yes, "That's true. Thanks to Grand Master Zhang's early deployment, we have a chance now. I mean, we have to break down each fortress and reshape the structure of Daming to have a chance!"

What is Sun Yan talking about?

It's not complicated to say, just take food as an example, is Daming really short of food now?

Obviously this is not the case. There are large and small grain merchants everywhere, and they have a considerable amount of grain hoarded on their hands.When the grain is harvested, it is harvested from the hands of the common people, and then it is sold when it is green and yellow.

After changing hands, there is at least [-]% to [-]% profit.

Is it hoarding?

Naturally, it is also counted, but the problem is that there are too many such people, spread all over the north and south, and there are as many as a cow's hair.The Ming court was able to control major cities and traffic arteries, but there were still too many places that could not be managed or managed at all.

To put it bluntly, this is the normal state of agricultural society.

In an agricultural society, scarcity is the norm, so the habit of hoarding has been formed from top to bottom.

Food, cloth, in many places, simply save money, put the money in the cellar, and suddenly create a money shortage.

Because everyone knows that materials are precious, and food is valuable, as long as it is kept, it will definitely increase in value.

This kind of morbid concept has caused commodity funds to stagnate and lose circulation. Once there is a famine in a certain place, then sorry, there is no other place to supplement it, and the price of food can only skyrocket.

If the court's relief is not in place, refugees will appear.

It is not too difficult to solve this problem. One of the most direct ways is to get enough goods so that they are no longer in short supply, and then forcefully smash them down and tell everyone that the rules have changed.Don't think about accumulating materials, but think about creating more wealth.

"Your Highness, and gentlemen, this matter is not without precedent in Daming, such as Changlu Salt Farm, what is the price of salt in Daming now? You should all know it well?"

Sun Yan threw out another example. This time, everyone who was still hesitant gradually changed their minds... That's right, there seems to be some truth!

At the beginning, Beiping was recovered, the Changlu Salt Field was opened up, military expenses were raised to raise troops, and the Great Wall was repaired.

Now that these years have passed, looking back at the original approach, it is definitely very successful.

The Yuan Dynasty inherited the salt law of the Song Dynasty. At that time, the lowest salt price was thirty to fifty yuan a catty. Ordinary people suffered from the high salt price, and the imperial court did not receive much salt tax. salt merchants.

They sit at home, do nothing, and make money.

The salt merchants at that time were very similar to the current grain merchants. One got the right to manage salt, and the other hoarded grain, and then they could sit back and wait to make a fortune.

How efficient is this way of doing business and making money? There is no progress at all, it is just the accumulation of wealth.

What did Zhang Ximeng do at the Changlu saltworks?

First of all, the sun-dried salt method was implemented, enough table salt was obtained, and then sold on a large scale, and sold all over the world at a very low price.

For those places with inconvenient transportation, the imperial court set up salt shops, or used Changping warehouses to sell salt at a low price.

After all this hard work, table salt is no longer expensive.

He hit the price of salt to seven Wen in one breath.

Even the poorest common people can afford table salt.

And as much salt is produced by the saltworks, so much tax is paid.

The salt tax has not only not been reduced, but has also been greatly increased.

What's more interesting is that the price of salt is so low that the private salt business that has been raging for thousands of years has disappeared, and there is almost no room for private salt dealers to survive.

This time, almost all problems were solved.

It can be called the benevolent government of Ming Dynasty.

At that time, Sun Yan was still by Zhang Ximeng's side and was very familiar with the whole process.

Thinking about it now, he is still full of admiration.

In fact, just by rectifying the salt law, it can be seen that Zhang Ximeng's ability to do things is absolutely top-notch, and even Lao Li has no advantage at all.

It's just that Zhang Ximeng doesn't want to get himself involved in government affairs.

At this moment, Sun Yan also wants to use a similar method to sell the grain in Beiping on a large scale to fill the gap in the markets in various places, and to drive down the price of grain, so that those grain merchants will lose their profit margins.

"Sun Xiang, what should ordinary people do in this way? Their income will also decrease!" Wang Guangyang whispered.

Sun Yan smiled, "Maybe it will be reduced, but if they can be encouraged to leave their hometowns to farm in the north, or enter factories and work as workers, they can also make up for the gap, and maybe they can earn more."

Wang Guangyang frowned, "Sun Xiang, not everyone can leave their homes. If you do this, you will be infamous!"

Sun Yan laughed, "You're right, but if you do nothing and imprison people on the land, you still have to back the name and say that we are incompetent. In this case, it's better to make a big move and kill a bloody road. As for the consequences No matter what, I am willing to fight with my shoulders, and if the result is not good, then punish me, Sun Yan."

After a pause, he said again: "At that time, please ask Wang Xianggong to stand up and clean up the mess. Remember, you must not be polite to Sun Mou. I will take the blame for killing the nine clans!"

Wang Guangyang's old face turned red in an instant, "Sun, you are so worthless!"What do you mean by that, clearly warn me, don't hold back, pull your hind legs!

OK, you can do it!

Seeing Wang Guangyang's mute eating Coptis chinensis, Sun Yan was secretly happy.

How many years have I studied with Master Zhang?He was full of bad moves, but he was unwilling to use them because of his status.But it doesn't matter, I, Sun Yan, don't care, I want to fight with me, let's learn for decades!

At this time, Zhu Biao suddenly said, "Food is only the first step. If everything goes well, there will be timber, oil, and wool spinning... We must learn to use the products of Beiping to reshape the structure of the entire Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Biao clenched his fists, "As the prince of the country, I am personally responsible for this matter. If it cannot benefit the country and the people, I am willing to resign as the prince!"

Chapter 785 Exiting Bad Gas

"His Royal Highness King Yan, this is a deposit of 30 guan. First, 100 million shi of grain will be shipped, and the subsequent amount will be transferred to the account of the Bank of Peking. Please rest assured, Your Highness."

Zhu Di looked at the household official in front of him, and took a helpless breath.

If it were someone else, no matter what, they would have to pay a heavy sum. If they wanted to take such a small deposit and transport the grain away, that would be impossible no matter what.

After so many years, he, Zhu Di, has never suffered a disadvantage.

But when Zhu Biao spoke, he really had no choice.

Among the few people Zhu Di couldn't handle these days, the eldest brother Zhu Biao was definitely one, and he was also the one who ranked very high.

To be honest, Zhu Di's rapid development and growth in recent years is definitely inseparable from Zhu Biao's connivance.

Without Zhu Biao's nod, even Zhu Yuanzhang and Queen Ma couldn't open the door to Zhu Di. Don't you want to see the children kill each other?

What's more, Zhu Biao led so many people, they could all come out to trip Zhu Di.

But I'm sorry, Zhu Biao didn't do anything, and even indulged Zhu Di, allowing him to do whatever he wanted.

Although Zhu Di is a little messy, he is not stupid.

The eldest brother shields himself from the wind and rain, if he can't repay his kindness, people all over the world will tear him to pieces.

"Okay, this is the order of the prince's brother, there is nothing wrong... But I want to remind you that the food has been transported away, and I have worked so hard to get it out. You have to be careful and be careful, and you are not allowed to send out any food." error!"

The officials of the household department immediately nodded and said: "Thank you, King Yan, for your suggestion, please rest assured, Your Highness, we know it well!"

After the explanation was completed, the officials boarded the tank boat, and with an order, the boat loaded with grain went directly south along the Grand Canal.

There are also some grain ships, simply loaded with grain from Liaodong, heading south from Dagu to Zhejiang and Fujian.

For a long time, grain from the south has been transported to the north to support the military expenditure of the nine sides.

When will there be surplus grain in the north that can be transported to the south?

Isn't this a dream?

Who knew that what could only happen in this dream would actually become a reality.

Even Zhu Biao had no way of predicting this impact. He had to go to the Ministry of Education to keep an eye on it all the time, and deal with it immediately if there was any problem.

Compared with Zhu Biao's anxiety, after Zhang Ximeng returned to Beijing, he stayed at home and had nothing to do when he was free. He cooked some meals for his wife every day, while Jiang Nan was at work every day, and he could eat meals made by her husband when he returned home.

A joke back then has really come true.

Sure enough, Jiang Nan was busy working outside to support Zhang Ximeng.

"You should go out and do something! Or you can write some books! You have to do something!" Jiang Nan said: "You have wasted so much time, those who admire you will be disappointed."

Zhang Ximeng laughed loudly, "What can I do now? I'd better wait until we see the outcome, and then I'll write something and summarize it, that's all."

Jiang Nan was stunned for a moment, and then said, "Where will it go? Can you predict it?"

Zhang Ximeng said with a smile: "Since you asked, let's deduce it... First of all, the problem of food shortage that has existed all these years is really not enough food produced?"

Jiang Nan chuckled, "I am also in charge of the Ministry of Commerce. The number of commercial firms that can be registered now is probably less than half of the actual amount. There are too many private industries that cannot be recorded at all, especially in Huguang, Bashu, and Lingnan. There are everywhere. I kept writing everywhere, asking them to thoroughly investigate the commercial firms in the territory, and even sent officials to conduct a thorough investigation. But in the end, the effect was limited. This Ming Dynasty is really too big, there are too many economic activities, and it is not in the country at all. Within the control of the imperial court."

Zhang Ximeng was not surprised by his wife's complaint at all, and even took it for granted.

An economy that exists among the people and cannot be counted, let alone the Ming Dynasty, even in later generations, it is not uncommon.In some large South Asian countries with poor management, more than [-]% of the labor force cannot be included in the national statistics.One billion livestock, well deserved.

With Daming's current state, must he be stronger than a certain third brother?

It's really hard to say.

"We want to develop industry and commerce, but there is always a stubborn force resisting at the local level. As far as the common people are concerned, men farm and women weave as much as possible, self-sufficient, unwilling to buy goods, and reduce expenses... This has been thousands of years There is nothing to talk about. The land equalization I promote is to compromise with this basic situation and meet their requirements, and then the Ming Dynasty came into existence."

"Now if we want to get out of this predicament, we must start with this situation."

Jiang Nan thought for a while and said, "But we have already promulgated the most stringent land equalization order, forbidding land annexation, so is the current practice still useful?"

Zhang Ximeng smiled and said: "Land is the foundation. There are fields and food can be grown. This guarantees the basic needs of more than [-]% of the people and prevents major disturbances. Don't forget that it is the foundation of men farming and women weaving. In the world, there are still many merchants, such as grain merchants, who rely on their own financial resources to collect agricultural surplus from the hands of the common people. While amassing wealth, they also form closed areas."

"So we say that men farm and women weave, it is layer by layer... The bottom layer is husband and wife, men farm and women weave, meet the needs of food and clothing, and purchase as few commodities as possible. One layer up, maybe a county town, in the In the county, there are blacksmith stoves, livestock markets, cloth shops, and grain stores, and they form another layer, and so on, until a province, or several provinces... In short, our Ming Dynasty is shrouded in layers."

Jiang Nan chewed on Zhang Ximeng's words, and couldn't help but nodded, "I probably understand that if you want to develop industry and commerce, you need a sufficient market, sufficient raw materials, and abundant labor. But now Daming, with layers upon layers, is resisting The development of industry and commerce restricts the circulation of goods. Only by opening this situation through the impact of goods in Beiping can we realize a game of chess across the country?"

Zhang Ximeng nodded with a smile, "Madam is really amazing!"

Jiang Nan couldn't help laughing, "I'm no good, the master is the real master. After so many years of planning, it's finally time to harvest. No wonder I heard that when the master cooks, he hums a ditty. What a joy!"

Zhang Ximeng sighed lightly: "That's just my estimate. It's hard to say whether it can be done smoothly, so let's wait and see!"

……

The first batch of grain from Peiping arrived in Yingtian.

After the inventory was counted, sales started on the third day.

470 Wenbao notes for one stone!

You can buy two stones for less than a consistent treasure note.

When the price was posted, it caused quite a shock.

According to the official price of the Ming Dynasty, one tael of gold can be exchanged for about ten taels of silver, and one tael of silver can be exchanged for about two precious banknotes.

There will be some differences in the value of currency in different places, but probably not much difference.

In the past when there was a bumper harvest, grains were concentrated on the market, and one tael of silver could buy about three shi of grain.

In other words, when the price of grain in Daming was the most expensive, it was almost a stone of grain bought with a consistent treasure.

It's all right now, Yiguan Baochao can buy more than two stones of grain!

The shock brought by it can be imagined.

Some wise people don't think it's a food problem, right?

Is it old food?Or moldy?