Emperor Ming Dynasty

Under the scorching sun, the once raging Yellow River began to recede, leaving patches of muddy land.

Fertile soil is washed away, leaving only barren soil.

In this case, even if one's own land is visible, it is expected that there will be no long-term cultivation of the land for three to five years, or even the last ten years, and it will not be able to recover at all.

Only some beans and miscellaneous grains can be grown, and the yield is extremely low. After paying taxes, there is not much at all.

Ordinary people naturally cannot bear such costs, and small and medium landlords can only endure it. Only those big gentry will buy land on a large scale for the sake of their children and grandchildren.

The moment Jiang Dakui saw his own land, he had already decided to sell half of the land.

There is no food in the house, so what kind of place are you talking about?

Seeing Qi Guo recruiting people now, he was very excited.

"Our family has [-] acres of land, and if we sell [-] acres and suffer for several years, the remaining [-] acres can still live!"

The mother-in-law couldn't help persuading: "Master, let's suffer."

"If it's not good enough, I'll sell my eldest sister..."

This sentence, she said in a low voice.

Before Jiang Dakui could respond, the second son on the side cried out, "Mother, don't betray your eldest sister, don't betray your eldest sister, I won't cry hungry anymore—"

The ten-year-old eldest daughter beside her was bursting into tears at this moment, but she, who was sensible, only cried and didn't yell.

The mud on the small face was washed away by tears, revealing strips of white tenderness, looking extremely pitiful.

The youngest son was only three years old. He didn't understand what his sister and brother were crying about, so he grinned and cried together.

"You mother-in-law." Seeing this, Jiang Dakui said angrily, "What nonsense, if someone finds out about selling our daughter, we will be laughed at to death."

"It's not that there is no food to eat—"

"Isn't this reluctant to part with the fields..." The woman said in a low voice with an unnatural expression on her face.

"Even if it's ten acres of land, if I want to have a good baby, I'll have to die of exhaustion."

Jiang Dakui sighed: "All the food has been washed away, and the family has no savings and no cattle. How can this land be raised? It depends on my blood and tears!"

"I'm exhausted, how can you guys have a good life?"

The mother-in-law bowed her head in silence.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, land reclamation basically belonged to the family, and small households could only rely on their lives to do the projects of a large family.

Certainly not during the busy farming season, because it is related to the harvest of the year.

If you leave the wilderness during the slack season, you will not be able to earn extra money. You also need to eat rice to do farm work, otherwise it will be boring.

Therefore, if a family of five wants to reclaim one mu of land, it will take three years of food and money and two years of hard work before they can get a piece of land.

If you encounter corvee, there is no free time in the slack season, and you can only delay it year after year.

Long-term toil will cause the body to be extremely exhausted and weak. At this time, illness may kill a young and strong man at any time.

Raising land is naturally extremely tiring, and it is only a little easier than opening up wasteland.

Clearing the silt, raising the land, and restoring the drainage of the field, when it comes to raising the land, a lot of fertilizer is needed.

A great waste of energy and money.

For a small family like them, Qing Zhuangli could really be exhausted to death.

"Let's go to Qi country!"

Jiang Dakui raised his head and patted his daughter's head: "Henan is too bitter, it's better to be in the south, we can harvest twice a year, and the rice is delicious."

"And there is still a hundred acres of land. We haven't had such a blessing in several lifetimes!"

After making up his mind, Jiang Dakui came to the ancestral hall in the village.

The ancestral hall is built on a high place to prevent floods.

Although it is now a dangerous building, it can barely accommodate people, and several clan elders live here.

The city is controlled by the county government, while the countryside is ruled by the clan. Even the gentry have to bow their heads in front of the clan power.

When Yuan Shikai became the governor of Zhili, he wanted to bury his biological mother in the ancestral land, but was stopped by his elder brother who was the head of the clan.

Because his mother Liu is a concubine, she has no qualifications at all.

Yuan Shikai was so distraught that he turned against his brother and was even buried in Anyang after his death instead of his hometown Xiangcheng.

The governor of Zhili had to be petty in the face of the patriarch.

This is the constraint of the Confucian clan tradition. The greater the official rank, the harder it is to resist.

For example, Jiang Kui wanted to sell land, but because it was the land where the clan lived, the land could only be sold to the Jiang clan, not to others.

Similarly, it is impossible to lower the price aggressively, which will hinder the reputation.

So in ancient times, those who were bullied were basically small families, or those with small ethnic groups.

The greater the power of the clan, the more likely it is to survive the war-torn era.

After clarifying the purpose of coming, the clan elders coughed a few times and agreed to his request to sell the land.

Twenty mu of land was taken by a family member with a lot of money.

Because although the family's land is gone, there are shops in the county town, and they can still live well.

Therefore, for such a scarce thing as land, it is natural to be extremely thirsty.

Although there were many casualties in Henan during the reign of Chongzhen, after more than ten years of development, the population has repopulated again, and the land is naturally owned, even if it is to open up wasteland.

Therefore, the 60 mu of land was sold as [-] yuan silver dollars, which was considered an affordable price.

And the real land price in the market is only six or seven silver dollars per mu.

60 yuan in silver dollars is considered a sudden wealth for the family.

But Jiang Dakui was not happy.

The whole family is sitting and eating, and this little money can be spent in two or three years.

Therefore, we must go to Qi State.

Before leaving, Jiang Dakui went to the pawn shop, bought some old clothes for his family to wear, and bought some medicine for his body.

In the end, he bought ten catties of wheat and made a lot of steamed buns. The family had a full meal, and the rest were used as rations.

"You want to come to our country of Qi?"

"A family of five, male and female, very good, very good."

The officials were overjoyed and registered directly.

Later, a small official led them to a wooden house.

Although it was built temporarily, it can keep out the wind and rain, which is much better than the thatched hut they lived in before.

Seeing the sincerity, Jiang Dakui was relieved.

After a month, as the governor started to store, a large amount of money and food was imported, the price of food was stable, and the victims of the disaster relief were also stable.

Those who are well-connected and rich in wealth will naturally not leave their hometowns and go to Qi.

Therefore, after recruiting 1 people, the officials of King Qi's Mansion had no choice but to end and take this group of people directly by boat to Xuzhou from west to east.

Then pass through the canal and arrive at Songjiang Mansion.

This is where the customs is located, and it is also the second mansion of the Ming Dynasty, which is extremely rich.

Naturally, there are ships to the South Seas here.

When Jiang Dakui's family saw the bustling Songjiang Mansion, their jaws couldn't be closed in astonishment.

On the wide street, there are many shops, and a large number of vendors keep selling.

As far as the eye can see, silk, cotton cloth, and porcelain are placed in the shops in such a random manner, and it will take less time to blink.

Pedestrians who come and go, even if they are traffickers and pawns, wear short clothes, their faces are plump, and their feet are cloth shoes. It can be seen that they are often full and warm.

Not to mention, those scholars and buddies in cloth clothes were even more excited.

Even a few red-haired Xiyi people in robes walked and watched, talking and laughing, and the passers-by didn't take offense at all.

All this made Jiang Dakui feel like he had come to another country.

Of course, he couldn't understand Wu Nong's soft words.

Everyone entering the city from the pier in batches is also an important burden for this kind of city that can accommodate [-] people.

Therefore, under the leadership of the officials, hundreds of big men acted as starters and purchased goods from the shops together.

Grain, salt, cloth, ironware, porcelain and even books were purchased in large quantities.

Two or three days later, the sea boat arrived.

In order to cooperate with the state of Qi, the South China Sea Division and the East China Sea Division had to send hundreds of ships, which is extremely spectacular.

Jiang Kui's family was taken into the boat cabin and lived in a hammock with others.

Seeing the heavy draft, Shi Lang, the chief soldier of the East China Sea Division, felt inconceivable: "But only a few people were transported, how could it be so heavy?"

The deputy general soldier on the side sighed: "Qi Guo has loaded a lot of goods in the warehouse, we are not only transporting people, but also transporting goods!"

"Really." Shi Lang wanted to scold her, but he could only do so in his heart.

The majestic king of Qi just borrowed navy ships and used them as merchant ships to transport people and make a fortune at the same time.

What a fine person.

No way, he is a prince.

By the time the immigrants arrived in Qi, it was already the end of September.

At this time, for Qi, the dry season is about to arrive.

Throughout Southeast Asia, there are distinct dry and rainy seasons.

Even in the dry season, it is just that there is less rain, which happens to be the period of agricultural development.

The State of Qi plundered the people from the Sulu Kingdom and returned to the country, and announced the destruction of the Sulu Kingdom, and set up two counties, Dongdao and Dongdao, and divided them into Dongwang and Dongwang.

In this way, after nearly two years of development, there are five counties under the jurisdiction of Qi State.

They are Linzi, the capital of the country, and Jimo and Langya, which are fundamental.

Now add Dongdao County and Dongdao County.

Among the five counties, Linzi is the most prosperous, with a population of 30 and nearly [-] mu of land.

Jimo and Langya protect Linzi on the left and right. They both belong to the coastal plain area, with fertile land and abundant rainfall. They can achieve two crops a year, or even three crops a year.

Each has about ten thousand people.

Of course, there are hundreds of large and small vassal tribes surrounding the three counties, and the scale has reached as many as [-].

Now, with the addition of Dongdao County and Dongdao County, there are 6 to [-] people. For Qi, it is no less than taking a big tonic pill.

In the real sense, there are 12 people under the rule.

When [-] Han people flooded into the Qi State, King Qi was overjoyed and brought a group of ministers to the pier to welcome them.

Looking at the endless stream of heads, King Qi said with emotion: "No matter how many people there are in Sulu, I have no joy in my heart, only fear. Although there are only tens of thousands of Han people, I feel at ease in my heart."

As the Prime Minister of Qi State, although Gu Yuan is a hunchback, he is trusted by the King of Qi. He has worked hard to manage Qi State for nearly two years.

Hearing King Qi's words at this moment, he looked at the group of immigrants with their families and said: "The Han people in Qi are like the ballast stones of a ship in the wind and waves. Naturally, the more the better."

"Yes!" King Qi shook his head slightly: "In the Ming Dynasty, I didn't think about the common people, but once I went overseas, I realized the importance of it."

"However, the more ballast stones, the better."

"Gu Qing, how many Han people does Qi need?"

Gu Yuan thought for a while, and immediately replied: "Now that the three counties have opened up 70 mu of cultivated land, it will take at least two or three years to become cultivated land, so they can support another [-] people."

"One hundred thousand Han people are needed."

"One hundred thousand? Is it enough?"

King Qi asked softly.

Gu Yuan naturally knew it was natural, and said decisively: "Enough."

"Although savages don't know etiquette, after two years of enlightenment, many people can already speak Chinese and take Chinese names. As long as there are [-] Han people, it will be twice the result with half the effort. In three to five years, this group of vassals can become real. people."

King Qi agreed with his words.

If calculated in this way, an extra 30 Han people is equivalent to enlightening [-] savages, and the population of Qi will easily increase to [-] by then.

This is in Daming, and it is also a common people.

"There are nearly 30 households among these [-] people, and each household has [-] mu, which is [-] mu."

King Qi counted the number and said in surprise: "10 people, at least 200 households, that's [-] million mu. Does Qi have that much land?"

Zhang Chun limped, raised his head and said, "Your Majesty, although the number is large, there are nearly 30 wild slaves in Qi State. Together with cattle and iron tools, they can develop [-] mu a year."

"If we capture some more wild slaves, 50 wild slaves, we can reclaim [-] mu in the dry season."

"In four years, it will be over."

"In other words, it will take another four years?"

Listening to the question and answer between the two, Gu Yuan couldn't help laughing and said: "Your Majesty, no matter what, only one family in a hundred mu of land can't grow enough."

"So, I ordered people to draw a boundary of a hundred acres of land, make a stele, and let the wild slaves reclaim [-] acres, and the rest will reclaim [-] acres every year."

"In this way, 200 million mu, only 60 mu is enough, hurry up, one year is enough."

King Qi said with emotion: "Even if you have so many fields, this king can't ask for so many people!"

"This disaster affected more than [-] people and affected three counties, but only [-] people were recruited. Unless the government forces it, it will be very difficult."

"My lord, it has to be gold."

At this time, Zhang Chun suddenly said: "Money can make ghosts grind."

"If the imperial court can enter 10 taels of gold, what are the [-] common people?"

One tael of gold and ten silver dollars, that is, one million silver dollars.

However, the Ministry of Industry casts gold coins, which only contain 110% of the gold, and earn [-]% of the net profit, which means they can earn [-] million silver coins.

Gold rounds are rarely circulated in the market, and the annual casting amount is limited by the gold output.

If the Qi State contributed one million yuan at one time, the cabinet would have to agree immediately.

"Apart from gold, silver and raw copper are also urgently needed by the imperial court..."

"Open the mine, open the mine immediately."

King Qi said loudly: "Father is in power, who dares to rob my gold mine?"

"Wait until there are millions of people in Qi State, and one hundred thousand soldiers, no one will dare to snatch them."

"Zhang Chun, I'll give you [-] wild slaves, and immediately go to the place called Surigao to open a gold mine. I can't wait."

After calming down, King Qi regained his composure.

At this time, Gu Yuan continued: "Among the 67 people, there are [-] people who can read and write. It is quite good to be an official."

"How much is the autumn tax?"

Suddenly, King Qi turned his head and looked serious.

"Your Majesty, the State of Qi will export white sugar, rice, and jute this year. Rice and jute will go to Luzon, and the Dutch and Spaniards will want white sugar."

Gu Yuan smiled and said: "20 shi of rice, 16 silver, 3 shi of jute, [-] silver."

"Export 9 shi of white sugar, and you can get three pieces of silver for each shi, which is [-] yuan."

"A total of 28 shi, and there are still [-] shi of grain in the warehouse."