Xinshun 1730

Chapter 1484 Final Chapter Ninety-Three Years ([-])
Of course, for this very important official event of Dashun, the difficulty of transportation due to the dangers of mountains and rivers has never been a real problem, at most it is just an added reason.

In fact, there is another important reason for returning home via the classic east-west trade route from the Atlantic Ocean this time, and that is to use Liu Yu's bones and the theory attached to these bones to carry out diplomatic activities with Europe.

For Dashun, the crucial European market is on the eve of a drastic change.

A huge cloud for Dashun's trading system is spreading in Europe.

And this pervasive cloud is closely related to this coffin that is about to be unfurled and sent back to Dashun.

On the other side of the waterfall, the young French major Napoleon Bonaparte, who was in his early 20s, took off his hat while looking at the coffin being slowly pulled out on the other side of the river.

However, the tribute was short-lived.

After a short tribute, Napoleon put on his hat and said to the adjutants beside him: "The Chinese have sent Physiocracy, Taoism follows nature, and the natural order and free trade derived from it. But similarly, they also brought Then came the Flour Wars, the riots, and the kind of nationwide famine and food riots we've never seen — or, revolutions."

The adjutant did not make a judgment on this particularly grand topic, or in other words, did not consider these historical processes, but only talked about Napoleon's self-struggle.

"Didn't you stand out for suppressing the '89 Flour War?"

The adjutant accurately used the official French translation of the idiom "to stand out". The drought in 88 directly led to the Flour War in the second year.

The young, up-and-coming Corsican in front of him had become famous precisely because he had decisively adopted a method of repression in the Flour War that no one had thought of.

Napoleon nodded, he didn't think this was a stain in his life.

"Yes. However, when the Chinese spread Physiocracy, they deliberately ignored the words 'emphasis on agriculture and despise commerce' and 'hoard goods for odds'."

"Similarly, when they spread free trade, they intentionally ignored the Grand Canal they once owned, and Caomi--the real material that is not gold and silver currency held by the central government."

"Turgo completely ignored the greed of businessmen. He thought that free trade would bring all good things. But it was precisely because of his free trade policy that it directly led to the two food chaos in 76 and 88. "

"He overlooked one thing. In France, the state should be a tool for market development. For food, the government must have sufficient food reserves and transportation capacity before engaging in free trade."

"Turgo learned the domestic unified market from the Chinese, but he didn't learn their Grand Canal, Changping warehouse, and we still lack a 'salt and iron discussion'."

Of course, this is the story of this time and space.

In another time and space, or in the original history, what happened in 88 and Turgo's previous free trade reforms, by this year, the king's head had to be chopped off.

Historically, Turgot, who was praised by Lao Ma as "in feudal France, under the skin of feudalism, and implemented a radical system after the French Revolution", also had a high status in classical economics.

His masterpiece "Reflection on the Formation and Distribution of Wealth" is the germination of "The Wealth of Nations".

In later generations, few people know that his article originated from the question and answer of two "Chinese students studying abroad": Gao Leisi and Yang Dewang.

This representative work of Turgot has historically been in the form of [Question and Answer].

In other words, using a vocabulary that is easier for Chinese to understand, and using the form of [问对], it is actually written in the form of ... how should I put it, which is quite awkward due to translation problems. Article.

You are right, it is a very [archaic] style of writing.

Many of "Tang Taizong Li Weigong Questions and Answers", "Yanzi", "Guanzi", "Mozi", and even "The Analects of Confucius" have this kind of "question and dialogue style".

What is the question-and-answer style?

Someone asked: XXXX.

Confrontation: XXXX.

This is to ask the person.

To put it simply, this masterpiece of Turgot is written in the form of Gao Leisi and Yang Dewang, two "Jesuit-sponsored Chinese students studying in France" who ask questions and he answers them.

which is:
Gao Leisi asked first: Is it possible to average the land?

Turgo said to him: "No.If the land were so equally divided among all the inhabitants of a country that each of them possessed exactly what was necessary for his own subsistence, and nothing superfluous]

[Obviously, then, since all are equal, no one would want to work for another.At the same time, no one will keep anything that can be used to pay for the labor of others...]

Yang Dewang's second question: Did the average land exist in ancient times?
Turgo said to him: [This hypothetical situation will never exist.Because the land has already been cultivated before it is allocated】

[This cultivation, that is, reclamation work, itself is the legal basis for the distribution of land and the protection of personal property... 】

It is probably such a form, with a total of 101 questions and answers, explaining in detail such things as Physiocracy, Taoism following nature, and natural order.

Or, in the words of Lao Ma, it is [the more radical minds in Physiocracy, especially Turgot, completely despise this appearance (that is, they don't even wear the feudal skin), and Turgot puts Physiocratism system, as a new capitalist system penetrating into feudal society]

Historically, Turgot became the French Minister of Finance in 75, and carried out reforms based on Physiocratism.

However, in the second year, something went wrong.

The essence of Physiocracy is that Tao follows nature, that is, the idealized capitalist free trade system.

Then, obviously, the history of France is too short. Turgot only understood what free trade is, but as Napoleon said at the time, he did not understand at all what it meant to emphasize agriculture over commerce, hoarding goods, flat selling and flat buying, and salt and iron. On these things that have been debated for nearly two thousand.

In the second year, the game crashed.

In fact, the reason is very simple.

Was there a real France before Turgot's reforms?
Actually, it doesn't exist.How can there be France, at least economically?Where is France?

In fact, France at that time was a scattered and regional market—this was different from China. Before the Grand Canal was abolished, no matter what, rice was collected to ensure the price of grain in North China.

Historically, Turgot's reforms were very "radical"-this is relative to France.

The regional markets in various regions have been cancelled, the trading restrictions in various places have been cancelled, and an attempt has been made to build a unified domestic market.

The first thing to cut is the food.

Break up the regional market and use grain as a knife—in theory, in theory, once a unified market is formed, domestic grain trade is free, and regional control is banned, then grain will definitely be flattened.The price of food here is high, so there will naturally be businessmen transporting food here to stabilize the price of food, an invisible hand.

But the reality... is cruel.

75 years of reform.

In 76, Turgo was dumbfounded.

Merchants choose to hoard goods, raise food prices, and capital enters the market to manipulate food prices. It is not natural at all. Once the invisible hand regulates food prices, food prices will stabilize, and expensive places will immediately have low prices. Food comes in...

no.

But the whole of France is completely messed up.

What has actually happened?In fact, the reason is very simple. It’s probably like this. Don’t use that mysterious vocabulary in economics, it’s actually quite easy to understand.

Probably so.

Originally, there was no unified national market called "France", especially for grain.

But in the geographical concept of France, there are several regional markets such as A, B, C, and D.

There is a famine in a land... In the Chinese language, it is called: Hexi is famine, so the grain will be moved to Hexi.

The famine in land A will not affect land B; the shortage of food and rising food prices in land C will not affect land D.

And with Turgo's reforms, it would be too long to believe too much, or even dare to believe in invisible hands and laissez-faire in things like food.

[Prior to Turgot's decree, each region faced its own shortages, so that some would suffer a real famine, while others would be completely spared, supplied by a stable price guaranteed by the state (royal or Intervention by the central government would have been required, and no doubt could have been obtained, to ensure supplies in the worst affected areas, thereby mitigating the worst effects of the famine)]

[However, with Turgot's free trade reforms, grain owners began to speculate by storing grain.]

[Also, in an effort to monopolize the market, there is also a tendency to collectively buy in areas with good harvests in order to sell in poorer areas where profits are likely to be greater, leading to large price increases and shortages across the country (less grain in harvest areas leads to Price increased)】

In short, this leads to a situation that France has never encountered before:
That is: it is no longer a regional food crisis, but because of the cancellation of various controls, food shortages quickly created a national crisis.Then, this national crisis, not a local crisis.

This is something France has never experienced before: what the hell is going on?I haven't seen it.How could the lack of food in Jiadi lead to nationwide chaos?

Another example.

Ding Di, in fact, there is no shortage of food.

However, the capital collectively went to Dingdi to buy grain and hoard it, which led to the rise of Dingdi's grain price.

So, what will the people in Dingdi, especially those who need to buy food to eat, do?Obviously, they will smash grain stores, shops, and warehouses: the price of grain in our place has been driven up by you people!

It should be said that, in history, it was only at this moment that Turgo came to his senses.

But, it's too late.

Is there food in France?
Have.

There is no shortage of overseas food.

But, does the central government have enough transport capacity?
No.

Let's put it this way, it can be said that Turgo's reform is somewhat similar to the "rice ban" farce caused by Prince Dashun's reform in Hubei: Does Dashun have food?Yes, Nanyang, Dongbei, Ezo, Fuso, there is plenty of food.Does Dashun have enough transportation capacity to transport grain to Hubei within a month, so that those grain speculators can be overwhelmed?

incompetent.

Turgo's reaction was quite quick.

First year of reform.

I realized it in the second year: Fuck, you can’t just follow the Tao and follow nature, you still have to control some necessities of life by the state, food is nothing else, something big will happen.

At that time, Louis XVI had just come to power.

Who was completely messed up the moment he came on stage?Who hasn't just stepped on stage, thinking about doing something?
Therefore, Louis XVI wrote a letter to Turgot at that time: [Sir, I have received your letter.I am very happy that the logistics problem has been solved and the bridge has been repaired: In fact, we should have expected that the reform will bring about various bad phenomena in the countryside, but we still have to carry out the reform to the end...]

The letter was written on May 5th.

On May 5, the national control policy was immediately issued: 【Transporting cheap grains to different places will provide different bonuses to the transporters.Especially Alsace, Lorraine and the Tri-Diocese, where the price of grain is so high, will pay a subsidy: 8 sous per load of wheat, 15 sous per load of rye...]

Thoughts, are good.

the reality is cruel.

Do you know what kind of subsidy Daming gave to solve the food problem in the frontier war?
Salt!Open Chinese law!
What kind of businessman would give a subsidy of 15 sous for every load of wheat?
After waiting for Turgo to react, it was too late when he realized that this was not possible and that the central government had to directly regulate prices!

In short, the baby is dead and the milk is coming.

Turgo considered that the logistics problem, the transportation problem, and the road problem must be solved. Free trade can only be carried out after all these are solved.But the problem is, roads, bridges, logistics, local protection, noble forces, these things can be accomplished with a single policy?

Furthermore, do you have a regular position in France?Is there a Pingbu library?Do you have rice?Is there a governor's yamen for water transportation?How much transportation capacity does the central government hold?

There is no hanging hair, so why do you keep prices down?
Just rely on your [moral economicism] influenced by Confucianism?
Of course, from a political point of view, Turgot's failure is inevitable.

To put it simply, Turge, I want to be Li Kui, Wu Qi, Shang Yang, Sang Hongyang, Yao Chong, Wang Anshi, Zhang Juzheng...

Who are you?

Can you complete the road that took these people 2000 years to complete within a few years?
Another one, who is standing behind these people?To what extent has the imperial power been strengthened?

Is Louis XVI that material?
Building a unified domestic market is not just an economic issue, it is first and foremost a political issue.Of course you, France, have this ability. Didn’t you demonstrate it in 93 years of history?Paris conquers all of France.

But, you Louis XVI, do you have the ability?Versailles, to conquer all of France?Who are you?Where does your power come from?Do you have an imperial examination system?Did you kill the nobles?Have you opened the fields and broken the well fields?Do you have a yellow nest to help you walk the sky?Do you have money?Do you have an army that really eats the imperial rations?
Are you hanging hair? You are just a puppet of the great nobles from all over the world and the old forces. Why do you reform?
Do you have the selection system of the imperial examination system, a complete set of civil bureaucracy system, and county system?Even without this, you still want to mobilize the power of the nobles by strengthening the monarchy?Go crazy you.Do you know how many years it took for Dashun to come to this day, from Zheng Zhuanggong shooting Zhou Tianzi, to Shang Yang's reform, and to the follow-up?In addition to the imperial power, nobles, aristocratic families, poor families, and small peasants, how many real heroes from common people used the most violent methods to sweep many things into the garbage dump?
(End of this chapter)