Chapter 40: Dominance, Supreme
After Xu Wuxiang handed over 160,000 catties of corn, 200,000 catties of sweet potatoes, 200,000 catties of potatoes, and 80,000 catties of millet, he prepared Return to Dali County immediately.
He could not stay in Yan'an Mansion for a moment.
At this time, Yan'an Prefecture was crowded with people. The soldiers drove the refugees like cattle and horses, and roughly put some corn, millet, sweet potatoes, potatoes, sorghum and other food into everyone's pockets. After filling a bag, he yelled and cursed and asked them to follow the large group of people on their way.
There was no good atmosphere among them, but when distributing food to the people, it seemed fair and no distinction was made between them.
The migration of people from the dry plateau to Ningxia Town is the main task of Lantian County this winter. But in fact, the people migrating to Ningxia Town are not just people from northern Shaanxi. At the same time, Guyuan The officers of the Ming Dynasty Military Department in Haiyuan Town and Haiyuan Town also disliked the people under their rule, so the people from these two places also began to gather in Ningxia Town.
At the beginning, less than 400,000 people from northern Shaanxi wanted to migrate. Now, it has become a large-scale migration of 700,000 people. So many people have to complete the migration task in just two years. Xu Wuxiang, who was responsible for the operation of grain and fodder, had already brought eight generations of Duan Guoren's ancestors to bed in his mind.
Duan Guoren’s plan is interconnected. As long as one link goes wrong, this great migration will turn into a disaster.
So, relying on his great power and commanding generals from all over the world, this guy has almost exhausted all the most capable people in Lantian County.
However, only these people can complete this big plan.
Even so, according to the progress chart drawn by Xu Wuxiang, his work has been completed less than 30%, but the people of Yan'an Prefecture have gathered incomparable numbers to Yan'an Prefecture and Dingbian County. fast.
Because no taxes can be collected from these people, the government has forgotten them for many years. However, as long as the government starts to issue recruitment orders, they still believe in the government as always without hesitation. Abandoning his homeland, he happily prepared to follow the people sent by the government to live in a land of fish and rice with abundant water and grass.
There is no way around this. After the drought in Yan'an Prefecture for sixteen consecutive years, even the rats here have become increasingly rare, let alone the people here.
It is obviously better to migrate to a good place than to rebel. This is the simplest understanding of the people in Yan'an Prefecture.
Just because these refugees have strong food needs, this year’s bumper harvest of miscellaneous grains in Lantian County has a very good price, and they have no worries about selling.
Because their only buyer is the Lantian County government.
Lantian County is naturally not short of money, but the speed of casting copper coins and silver coins cannot keep up with the speed of Yun Zhao's spending. Therefore, Lantian County's government IOU appeared in Lantian County for the first time.
OneThe half-cent annual interest is paid in three years.
Then, the kind and compassionate Yun Niang was the first to step forward to buy. The Yun family purchased a total of 100,000 silver dollars in government bonds. With Yun Niang's purchase, wealthy households in Lantian County such as the Prince of Qin's Palace also They all spent money to buy them, and the first issue of one million silver dollar bonds was sold out. These wealthy households even bought the bonds from the grain sellers who had the same interest rate.
Although the credibility of the Lantian County government is almost made of gold, the people who hold the bonds still sell the bonds in their hands to the wealthy households who hold real money.
This makes Yun Zhao very disappointed. It seems that there is a reason why ordinary people can only live in poverty.
When a bond with extremely high credibility appears, it means that another currency has been produced. This currency is no longer a proxy for physical gold and silver, but is endorsed by the credibility of the Lantian County government. It is a new type of currency. In addition to the advantages of being easy to carry and convenient for transactions, this currency itself maintains and increases its value, and will increase in value by about half a year.
His actual benefit lies not only in the half-percent interest. The biggest hidden benefit is that as Lantian County becomes increasingly prosperous and rich in products, Lantian County uses silver dollars and copper coins to occupy larger areas. The market and the government are minting new money day and night.
In the past, eight hundred copper coins in Lantian County could be exchanged for one tael of silver. Now, eight hundred copper coins can only be exchanged for one silver dollar. In Lantian County, merchants in other places can only use their own silver to follow The Lantian County government exchanged silver dollars for use, and the exchange rate was naturally one tael of silver to one silver dollar.
The Lantian County government will not explain this to people clearly, but the wealthy households know very well that in this seemingly fair transaction, Lantian County The government is making so much money that it's almost fat.
Bonds are very different... Many merchants and wealthy households are not in a hurry to go to the government to redeem them after getting them. After repeatedly confirming that this thing has no expiration date, the market in Lantian County Strange scenes of using bonds as money began to appear, especially bonds with large denominations, which are the most popular.
“Gathering people together to live will greatly reduce the cost of government governance and accelerate commercial activities in population gathering areas. As long as a place is rich in products, that place will easily prosper and eventually become Tongdu Dayi.
This is why we must relocate the people from the remote mountains and remote areas.
It sounds rude to say that bad mountains and rivers bring out unruly people. In fact, it makes sense. Any place with poor mountains and rivers must be a weak area governed by the government. In addition, people have insufficient communication and are poor. In order to compete for limited resources, all kinds of evil things that violate principles and human ethics will happen. Without the restrictions of poverty, The possibility will be infinitely reduced.
The rich households in such a place will naturally become the natural leaders of this land. In order to maintain his rule, it is easy to dominate one party. , this pair of poorNaturally, there is no benefit for the common people. Their only way to survive is to rely on the rich to survive, and eventually become their slaves.
There will be no obvious oppression in populated areas. Exploiting the people has always been the prerogative of the government. Any wealthy household who wants to get involved in this privilege will become the target of the government.
Therefore, as you can see from the case law of Lantian County, the laws of Lantian County are generally very lenient to ordinary people.
Since the fourth year of Chongzhen, only 144 people have been executed in Lantian County. All of these people were executed for reasons that had to be executed.
However, in the same eight years since the fourth year of Chongzhen, Lantian County killed 1,783 landlords and wealthy households. Among them, 11 households were exterminated. Although these There are also reasons why wealthy people have to be killed.
However, if you compare it, you will find that for the same crime, the sentencing scale of the two is completely different. What ordinary people can get away with with a slap in the face, but if it is placed on the rich, they must go to jail. .
Through this, you will find that Lantian County's policy is still based on maintaining Yun Zhao's rule. They are promoting a stricter governance system with purpose and direction.
In terms of commerce and trade, wealthy households are very important, but in terms of maintaining control, ordinary people are more important. Obviously, Lantian County chose to strengthen control instead of comprehensively developing commerce. Attention, Yinzi students, let me tell you what you learned in today’s class, your parents who get carried away when they have a little money. Money is very important to Lantian County, but it is definitely not the most important.
This is true now and will be true in the future. From the knowledge I have given you, you will be surprised to find that this is the foundation for the future establishment of Lantian County. From Yunzhao to Weimo, all the small officials in Lantian County is a staunch defender of this strategy.
Okay, take notes. This is the key point. It will probably appear on your exam paper. get out of class is over! ”
After Huang Zongxi finished his lecture, he put the lecture notes under his arm and walked out of the classroom.
Gu Yanwu sat under a cypress tree, drinking tea leisurely, and saw When Huang Zongxi came out, he waved to drink tea and chat together.
The thirsty Huang Zongxi drank two cups of tea in a row before he quenched his thirst.
Gu Yanwu said with a smile. It's true, but if you break the rules that others have worked so hard to establish, do you think Yun Zhao will hate you?
Huang Zongxi sneered and said, "This is a conspiracy. I'm not afraid of others finding out. So what if the rich people find out?" Do you mean to leave Lantian County and go somewhere else?
Is there any other place better than Lantian County? Is it easier to make money?
These people are also the ones who can’t afford to be early without any benefit. Who is willing to invest all their wealth in Lantian County without any benefit?
Zhongqing, are you leaving Lantian County and returning to Yangzhou? "
Gu Yanwu shook his head and said: "Next year isIn the year of the competition, I want to try again.
Huang Zongxi frowned and said, "When did you have the idea of becoming an official again?" "
Gu Yanwu sighed and said: "All the bastards in the world are bullying the emperor. I can't stand it anymore and am going to help him." "
Huang Zongxi looked at Gu Yanwu in surprise and didn't know how to comment on his words. When did the emperor become weak?
Gu Yanwu said: "Li Hongji captured Xiangyang, Zhang Bingzhong Everyone who entered Shu seemed to have the intention of proclaiming himself emperor, but Yun Zhao seemed to be happy to see it come to fruition, and had absolutely no intention of destroying all the heroes in the world on behalf of the emperor.
Huang Zongxi smiled and said: "Are you really willing to see Yun Zhao do something like 'hijacking the emperor to order the princes'?" "
Gu Yanwu said bitterly: "That's why I want to become an official. "
"In today's world, the strongest person is still the emperor. The emperor still has nearly two million soldiers and horses in his hands. Why do you think the emperor is the weakest? Do you really think you can take the test? A Jinshi? "
Gu Yanwu patted his chest and said: "Yun Zhao's poem "Thunder" said - I advise God to be brave and send talents of any kind. I heard that the emperor praised this poem very much, so he had a great idea. Plans to open an examination center.
Huang Zongxi smiled and said: "In that case, don't go back to Yangzhou. Wouldn't it be better to go directly to the capital to find an apartment and prepare for the exam with peace of mind?" "
Gu Yanwu sneered and said: "You think I can't pass the exam?
Huang Zongxi sighed and said: "With your talent, it is nothing to be a Jinshi. I am afraid that after you go to the capital, you will be beheaded by the emperor's order before you can serve the Ming Dynasty." "
"This is impossible! "
Huang Zongxi looked at Gu Yanwu and said: "Since your reputation of controlling locusts in Shanxi spread to the north and south of the Yangtze River, you and I have become traitors in the eyes of the emperor and the scum of the Jiangnan scholars. ”