Brother Zhu Youxiao

"King Qi is tyrannical! Disrespecting the Supreme Being will bring disaster to the common people!"

"King Qi..."

In September, when news spread that the capital wanted to abolish the Confucian Mansion Yansheng Duke's title, the Confucian scholars who studied the traditional Four Books and Five Classics immediately began to protest.

They gathered in the capital from all corners of the country and protested in front of Daming Gate every day, gathering tens of thousands of people.

However, they were limited to protests, and if they dared to do anything that violated the "Law of the Ming Dynasty", the soldiers and horses of the Wanping Camp and Daxing Camp, who were in charge of monitoring them, would take action to suppress them.

As for the reputation after the suppression?For a feudal lord who will go overseas in the future, Zhu Youjian doesn't care about this.

What Zhu Youjian cared about was what his brother would think, but it did not exceed his expectations. After Zhu Youxiao got the cabinet's memorial, what he chose to do was to send the memorial to the Qi Palace.

In other words, it all depends on how Zhu Youjian does it.

Zhu Youxiao has no opinion on this matter, so Zhu Youjian doesn't care even more.

Voting for officials is planned to begin on the first day of September. More than 80 officials have three choices: agree to abolish, disagree with abolition, or abstain from voting.

The three options actually correspond to the three paths.

Those who dared to agree to the abolition of the title of Yansheng Duke's Mansion were actually very disappointed in the political arena of Ming Dynasty, and they had already planned to quit.

Those who do not agree with the abolition are basically conservative officials who grew up under the traditional Confucian education.

As for abstaining, they are those who want to be a bitch and still want to sit on the fence.

They didn't want to part with Daming's colorful world, and they didn't want to go to Qi State with Zhu Youjian, so they naturally didn't agree.

But if they were allowed to object, they were afraid of being liquidated by Chengde, so they simply abstained.

In this way, Zhu Youjian can clearly grasp the whereabouts of the officials.

It was also here that Gu Bingqian and others noticed Zhu Youjian's intentions.

"What did you say about abolishing the title of Duke Yansheng? Now, it seems that His Highness is just selecting officials who support him to go to Qi and support him to stay..."

In the Mingshifang Gu Mansion in early October, when Gu Bingqian was lying on the armchair, enjoying the heating in the room, and told Zhu Youjian's plan, Gu Taishuo, who was standing beside him, bowed and asked :

"Father, if this is the case, then we should..."

"Naturally, the only way to go is to oppose this." Gu Bingqian put his legs on the chair, and the maid next to him saw this, lifted his legs, sat on it himself, put Gu Bingqian's legs on his own thighs, and kneaded them with his hands. acupuncture points.

"Hmm..." Gu Bingqian nodded slightly while enjoying the maid's massage, and Gu Taishuo who was beside him also said worriedly:

"Qi Wang has clearly said that he will leave in the 23rd and 24th year of the apocalypse. Why are you suddenly starting to screen again now?"

"It is precisely because we are leaving that we have to screen..." Gu Bingqian opened his eyes, looking at Gu Taishuo with cloudy eyes:

"Nine or ten years may seem like a long time, but it's not that long for a party."

"The Huaixi and Eastern Zhejiang parties fought for 30 years, and the Yan Party and Qingliu also fought for more than [-] years."

"In the future, the Zhejiang Party has been around for more than [-] years, and it hasn't fallen yet..."

"The Yanshan faction has been established for less than ten years, and it is the most rebellious when it is young."

"He is in charge of the military power and walks in the temple. If they want them to leave Daming and the court with peace of mind, how can they be convinced without prior arrangements..."

Gu Bingqian saw it very clearly, and from his point of view, if Zhu Youjian didn't want to find a way to settle the Yanshan faction.

At the age of Chengde and the main figures of the Yanshan School, Li Demao, Zhang Maocai, etc., I am afraid that the Yanshan School can still hold power in the temple for 40 years.

40...

How many 40 years does a dynasty have?There are not many dynasties such as the Ming Dynasty that have been established for 260 years, let alone the rejuvenation of the dynasty in its later years?
40 years later, the Ming Dynasty has already broken through 300 years. From the stability of the dynasty, it is natural for Chengde and his group to stay, but the problem is that if they stay, the person sitting in that position will not tolerate them, or Also, can this group of people tolerate a mediocre monarch?

Zhu Youjian can be said to be the most "passionate" person among the emperors and vassals of the Ming Dynasty. Most of the other Zhu family emperors are mean and ungrateful.

The examples of Yu Qian and Zhang Juzheng are still ahead, and no one is sure whether he will become Zhang Juzheng's second.

"In that case, the title of Duke Yansheng..."

Gu Taishuo hesitated to speak, and Gu Bingqian also stroked his beard: "It seems that I can't keep it."

"What should we do with the tens of thousands of scholars from Daming Sect?" Gu Taishuo was a little worried, but Gu Bingqian shook his head: "What can they do?"

"If you want the emperor to compromise with the king of Qi, you have to control taxes first, like a gentry."

"The second is to master soldiers and horses, such as the governor's mansion of the five armies."

"The third is to control the local yamen, such as Yanshan School Chengde and others."

"Without these, or without one of the three, nothing can be done."

"What kind of impact can the words of those scholars have on the imperial court? First, they can't raise the price of rice, second, they can't incite the people, and third, they can't cause internal troubles. What can be caused is nothing more than making the people near Daming Gate feel noisy."

"Let them make trouble. When they find that no one cares about them, they will naturally leave in despair."

As he spoke, Gu Bingqian raised his hand, indicating that Gu Taishuo could leave.

Gu Taishuo glanced at the time, only to realize that it was his father's lunch break, so after nodding, he turned and left the study courtyard.

While he was gone, compared to the old Ming Dynasty with many affairs, the Qi Kingdom on the other side of the ocean seemed to be full of vitality.

"Dang...dang...dang..."

"Carefully move the machines on the ship, if one is damaged, your hundreds of acres of land will be gone after the labor reform is over!"

Even though it was also October, compared to the coldness in the north of the Ming Dynasty, the Xijing City of Qi State seemed a bit warmer.

When the people of Ming Dynasty were all wearing cotton-padded jackets, many people were still busy on the wharf of Xijing City in autumn clothes.

After three years of development, Xijing City has become more prosperous than last year, which can be seen from the cement-built Xijing City Wharf.

Ships in Qi State’s Xijing Bay (San Francisco Bay Area) are constantly entering and leaving the port. There are cement-built port terminals, rows of port warehouses, cranes using steam engines, and wide government roads leading to Xijing City.

At first glance, those who didn't know it thought they were in San Francisco in [-].

"This is the [-] tractors, [-] industrial steam engines, and [-] large-scale high-pressure steam engines delivered to Qi State this year. Please confirm and seal it with Jin Changshi."

On the wharf of Xijing City, the cranes lifted the tractors and steam engines off the ship, and Jin Xuan, who was in charge of receiving the goods, also stamped the seal of the long history of Qi after inspection.

Standing next to the large high-pressure steam engines used in trains and ships, Jin Xuan looked up at these steam engines and sighed:

"With the arrival of these machines, it is estimated that by this time next year, Qi's arable land will exceed 60 mu."

"So fast?!" Hearing Jin Xuan's words, Yang Bingwen, who put away the documents, was a little surprised, and Jin Xuan also turned around and said with a smile: "When the Xijing Plain in Xijing City does not fall below five degrees throughout the year, it is very convenient to cultivate."

"Here, with a single tractor and manpower, it can barely reach the speed of reclamation of [-] acres per year."

"Last month, the amount of arable land in Qi State had reached 30 mu. I was still thinking about when you will arrive, and I am going to ask you to bring this good news to His Highness."

What Jin Xuan said made Yang Bingwen almost bite his tongue. He really did not expect that Qi Guo could reclaim 30 mu of arable land in just three years.

"How is the yield per mu this year?" Yang Bingwen asked curiously, and Jin Xuan also knew everything: "The land used for intensive farming with machines and fertilizers is about the same as I expected, and the yield per mu is one stone and two buckets."

"However, those who can achieve this yield are mainly the more than 5 mu of land reclaimed in the first year, and the fields reclaimed in the second year are basically around seven buckets. As for last year's reclamation, the yield per mu is less than four buckets. "

"That's not bad. Yingzhou's cultivated land in Beizhou for three years is only nine buckets per mu." Yang Bingwen sighed.

Since Yingzhou has a large number of labor reform workers, there is no need for machinery at all, but Qi State needs it more.

Thinking of this, Yang Bingwen came back to his senses and asked, "How is the yield per mu in Qi this year?"

Jin Xuan led Yang Bingwen to walk on the pier, and when he heard his question, he replied without hesitation: "Although we have broken through 30 mu of arable land, it will reach about 35 mu by the end of this year, but half of it will only be reclaimed this year. Yes, there is no food planted."

"This year, only 17 mu of land has been planted with grain, and 3000 shi of grain has been harvested."

"By the beginning of spring next year, there should be about 38 mu of land that can be directly cultivated, and 28 shi of rice and wheat should be harvested."

Speaking of this, Jin Xuan and Yang Bingwen boarded the carriage to Xijing City, and the carriage also set off towards Xijing City, gradually moving away from Xijing Port.

In the car, the two talked more, and Jin Xuan couldn't help saying: "According to this progress, Tianqi's 16 autumn harvest will probably be able to harvest 50 shimimai."

"At present, the soldiers, horses and citizens of Qi State basically have one catty of rice per person per day, and two catties of pigeon meat and bison meat."

"According to this standard, after next year's autumn harvest, Qi's 12 soldiers and civilians should be able to barely support themselves."

"In the next year, which is the 16th year of Tianqi, it can basically meet the food and drink expenses of 20 people."

"As for 17, if the transportation of machines does not stop, and all the industrial areas in Qi State are also put into production, then by the end of the year, Qi State's fields should reach about 200 million mu, and the amount of autumn harvest in the second year should be 200 million. Wan Shi."

"Under the same standard, Qi State can feed 85 people. Even if the rice is increased from one catty a day to two catties a day, it can feed 423 million people."

"So, I'm going to ask His Highness to start organizing immigration from next winter. The first batch will be 5 people, with 3 Yingzhou reform-through-labour workers, reaching 20 military and civilian laborers."

"As for the 17th year of the Apocalypse, it is also a winter immigrant, but Qi can eat 20 people, with [-] reform-through-labor workers."

"Apocalypse 18 years, still winter immigrants, Qi can eat 30 people, 20 reformed through labor."

"Why are they all immigrants in winter?" Yang Bingwen asked puzzledly, and Jin Xuan also explained:

"Although there are a lot of cultivated land at the end of the year, what can be planted is often only half of the previous year's land, and the reclaimed land still needs several months of compost to be cultivated."

"Immigrate from Daming in winter, and when they arrive in Qi, it will almost be the beginning of spring. As soon as people arrive, they can immediately divide the land for farming."

"Your idea is good, but His Highness probably won't agree." Yang Bingwen first approved of Jin Xuan's idea, but then felt sorry for it.

"Why?" Jin Xuan was a little puzzled, and Yang Bingwen also explained after hearing this:
"My father has seen His Highness's immigration policy. According to His Highness's temperament, it is estimated that the land allocation for immigrants in Qi State will start at [-] mu, or set at [-] mu per household."

"One hundred mu per household?" Jin Xuan didn't know what to say, but he also quickly thought of why Zhu Youjian set an immigration policy of one hundred mu per household.

"Your Highness is preparing the people to distribute tractors?" Jin Xuan asked suspiciously, and Yang Bingwen nodded:
"Probably so, so even if next year, even if the arable land in Qi State breaks through to 60 mu, it can only support at most [-] households of immigrants, and the number of people is about [-]."

"Before I set off to come to Qi, I heard that His Highness is planning to conquer Qi in the 23rd or 24th year of the apocalypse."

"According to this progress, in the 23rd and 24th years of the Apocalypse, how many acres of arable land should Qi have? How many people can it support?"

Yang Bingwen's question made Jin Xuan's brain move immediately, he made a rough calculation, and then replied:

"About 23 million mu in 1000 years, and about 24 million mu in 200 years, if it is cultivated for three years, it can support about 700 million people."

"However, according to what you said of 12 mu per household, these fields are at most enough to distribute to 10,000 households, and at most six to [-]+ immigrants."

Jin Xuan still didn't quite agree with Yang Bingwen's words, but Yang Bingwen had been instructed a lot by Yang Wenyue, so he said easily:
"Immigrants don't have to divide land. Not everyone has to be a farmer."

"Qi has a vast territory, but it is impossible for everyone to be immigrants, and there must be workers who should be there."

"Let's talk about the current state of Qi. If there were no reform-through-labor workers, how many people would have to become workers?"

"Reform workers don't need money, but ordinary people do."

"Six 10,000+ people can use tractors to cultivate 200 million mu of arable land and feed 700 million people, and the rest of the people can work as soldiers and do some business."

"What's more, the king of Qi once promised to deliver grain to Tang, Huai, and Ji, so Qi is also the granary of the three countries in the west of Levia."

"Qi not only needs to support its own people, but also needs to support people from the Three Kingdoms in exchange for gold and silver taxes."

"Besides, it is impossible to grow food on 200 million mu of land. Foods such as cotton and vegetables all need land. Therefore, in my opinion, it is not surprising that there are 10,000+ people in Fuze Liu per [-] mu of land."

"Counting workers and other people from all walks of life, in the 23rd year of the apocalypse, Qi should have more than two million people."

Yang Bingwen's words awakened Jin Xuan.

It is impossible for a country to be full of farmers, there should be some scholars, farmers, industry and commerce. Even in the Ming Dynasty, at most [-]% of the people actually farm the land, and the rest are either craftsmen or small people living in the city.

Judging from the situation in Qi State, workers are the most needed people in Qi State, and farmers are not so important. After all, as long as they can master tractors proficiently, three people can cultivate [-] acres of land.

Jin Xuan learned in Yanshan that the progress of society mainly depends on productivity, and the productivity of Qi State can be said to have reached the level where farmers do not need to stabilize the country.

"The Guochao is different from the Qi State." Yang Bingwen explained: "There are so many people in the Guochao, and it is not because of the lack of food in the Guochao that they are asked to farm the land, but because of stability."

"This tractor only needs three people to cultivate [-] acres of land during the busy season. Its capacity is better than hundreds of people."

"If the country is really short of food, it only needs to drive people out. There are more than 9 million acres of arable land, and there are only a few million tractors, and tens of millions of people can cultivate it."

"Like Qi, more than 1000 tractors and more than 3000 people can cultivate 10,000+ mu of arable land and produce food to feed 10,000+ people."

"Qi State can do this because there are not many people in Qi State, but what about the state?"

"If tractors are really used to cultivate land, what will tens of millions of farmers do? Will they become refugees?"

"I'm afraid that's why His Royal Highness King Qi doesn't allow tractors to be used in the pass."

"Not to mention too much, if all the gentry and landlords in the dynasty use tractors, tens of millions of tenants will lose their status as tenants and can only become refugees."

"If Guochao wants to promote these machines, the first thing to do is to get people out first."

"Either relocate the frontier fortress, or relocate the vassal state. In short, the population reduction can make the dynasty a Qi state that can use machinery unscrupulously."

Yang Bingwen's words were very thorough, and he basically explained why it was impossible for Ming Dynasty to take the initiative in the industrial revolution.

To put it bluntly, there are too many people. Once machines are used, a large number of people will lose their jobs.

In this era, if the unemployment problem of the common people is not resolved, the common people can only become refugees, posing a potential threat to the country.

If people want to live and work in peace and contentment, they must be given means of production.

The means of production can be jobs or arable land. In short, they must be kept busy and have something to do.

But the problem is that in this era, jobs are limited and arable land is also limited.

In a country as large as Ming Dynasty, even if only half of the population became workers, that would be 8000 million workers.

An industrial country of this size, not to mention in this era, even a few hundred years later, it is also a big country with low-end manufacturing industries.

In the current Ming Dynasty and in this era, not to mention 8000 million workers, even 1000 million workers are enough to produce the goods needed by the global population.

The reason why Zhu Youjian was unable to promote industrialization in Daming was because there were too many people and too few jobs.

Even if more jobs are created, it will not work if no one consumes the goods.

The more than 500 million workers under Huangdian's command have already produced enough commodities for the consumption of 500 million people, so that the remaining [-] million people can only become farmers in addition to self-employment.

The reason why later generations of Britain and France went to war with the Qing Dynasty was nothing more than to ease the trade surplus and seize the market of [-] million people in the Qing Dynasty by the way.

The current Ming Dynasty, in terms of commodities, has covered [-] million people under the suzerainty system, affecting [-] million people in Europe and other places.

With a population of only [-] billion in the entire world, the industrialization progress of Ming Dynasty is doomed not to speed up, and it can only slowly advance in the direction of developing new means of production.

The development of new means of production is nothing more than reclaiming arable land in sparsely populated areas.

1000 million mu of arable land is a job that can support 300 million people. As long as the arable land can be continuously created and distributed to farmers, they will not rebel.

Daming has no choice of road, and its size is too large. It must be a long journey to transform into an industrialized country, so right now it can only focus on agriculture, but Qi is different. Qi is small and has more s Choice.

Not only that, Qi also has a market of tens of millions of people on the three continents of Levia and South and North Asia, and they can dump a lot of goods.

For Daming, even [-] tractors can't solve big problems, but for Qi, even if there are only [-] tractors, Qi can become the only industrial country in the world today.

A small body has the advantages of a small body, and a large body has the benefits of a large body.

The difference between the two is nothing more than a matter of the speed of industrialization.

As long as the Ming Dynasty can export population for a long time, it can definitely bring the Ming country under the suzerain-vassal system to a win-win situation.

When technology advances and demand increases, Ming Dynasty will naturally transform into an industrialized country.

Of course, Yang Bingwen and Jin Xuan couldn't understand these principles, but they could intuitively feel the different importance of tractors to Qi and Daming.

If there is no drought, no food shortage and food demand, Daming probably won't pay much attention to tractors, because the existing arable land and food production are enough for the people to eat.

If there is no demand, no matter how much arable land there is, the people will not cultivate and grow grain, because the more fields there are, the more grain there will be, and the price of rice will be lower.

The lower the price of rice, the higher the cost of using tractors to grow grain, and the higher the cost of machinery, the gentry and powerful will use lower-cost manpower, which will slow down the pace of industrialization.

It can be said that the drought can be regarded as a helper to promote the basic industrialization of Daming. At least it created demand, making Daming eager to reclaim arable land in other places to alleviate the internal food shortage.

However, it is foreseeable that when the drought is over and the food in the Daming market is far more than the food needed by the population, the food will be extremely cheap.

More than 6000 million people, how could it be possible to consume more than [-] billion shimimai, even if they raise livestock, the livestock can't eat that much.

At that time, Daming will only have the option of economic transformation.

As for how to transform, Jin Xuan didn't know, but he knew that His Royal Highness King Qi should have already thought of everything.

Thinking of this, Jin Xuan also had to sigh: "Compared to Qi, Daming is indeed a 'mess'."

"The mess depends on who is setting up the stall." Yang Bingwen shook his head: "If it's Your Highness, even if it's a mess, it can be very popular."

"Although Qi Guo has a good stall, if there are no customers, then no matter how good the stall is, it will be useless."

"Da Ming and Qi State complement each other..."

"It's true..." Jin Xuan nodded slightly, and stopped talking.

At the same time, the carriage also drove into Xijing City, and compared to last year, this year's Xijing City more than doubled in size.

"In any case, you and I are not the ones who make the decisions."

Yang Bingwen glanced at Xijing City outside the window, and said silently:
"The only person who can make decisions is always the one who sits in that position."

PM update 05:30